Well-organized with lots of support. A little thin on spectators in the middle to end part of the course, but those who were out were hugely enthusiastic. Wonderful running crowd with a lot of energy and excitement. Fantastic!

I thought this course was great. It takes you all over Baltimore City. The hills I didn't think were that bad, but I prepared for them this time. Great downhill finish. One thing I really didn't like was how the 1/2 marathon started 2 hours after the full and started at mile 13 of the full course. It made the 4:00-ish marathon runners pretty crammed at the finish. They keep the groups separate for a few miles but once they joined together (shortly before the hills) it was really crowded. Finish line celebration was a mess. Runners only area was filled with non-runners and thoroughfares were way too narrow for the amount of runners. This was my only down part of the race; I was looking forward to the post-race party with Kelly Bell Band, but was so displeased with the organization of it all, that I left.

I agree with others comments on the merge of half-marathoners. For a middle-of-the-pack runner, it was a disaster. SAVE your MONEY on the hotel; the Hilton doesn't have a restaurant or decent bar in the main hotel. No bagels or water on race day. I've run 20 marathons and this was a rip off.

Course: Set on Boston template with hills in the middle. General rolling terrain. Not flat but that is good. Mile markers were visible, and there were plenty of fluids, volunteers and traffic control.

Organization: Excellent. Expo, amenities, race and post-race gala were very good. I found only a couple of problems, but the organizers addressed both. One was the half-marathon walkers on the course after entering. This was highlighted in the handbook but the walkers did not follow the instructions. Overcrowding at the post-race gala was created by the friends and families ignoring instructions.

The spectators were mostly silent in the last 10K when I finished unless I was running with that specific someone they were looking for.

This marathon is one of my best experiences on top of one of my worst here in 2003. Obviously, great improvement. Two Baltimore Marathons, unless you count the Mean Marathon in Baltimore in the old days.

I disagree with a lot of the comments that I am reading regarding this course.

Baltimore was my 13th marathon. I was very pleased with my Under Armour shirt and thought the start area was organized. Thats about all.

The half-marathoners joined our race at mile 13.1. It just so happened that I was running past their start area as their horn sounded. All of a sudden, 10,000 more runners joined our race course. The volunteers at the water stations couldn't keep up with the number of runners passing through. I finished in under 4 hours. I wonder if there was any water for those who took longer? People were practically tripping over each other. Baltimore should take notes from Virginia Beach, Philly, and Jersey Shore. The half-marathoners and full-marathoners should start at the same time.

Then at the finish, families were allowed in the runners' village. It took a half-hour to get to the bag check-in, and it was difficult to find. It was frustrating and too crowded. We felt sandwiched and had to "fight" to get through the crowds.

Course had a lot of rolling hills. Could be challenging for those like myself who train on flat land.

I will not run this marathon again.

The medal is unique, and Baltimore ALWAYS has amazing race shirts. I thought the course was very nice, and organization was good for the most part.

Because the half-marathoners joined the marathoners around the half-way point, it seemed like some of the water stations weren't prepared for as many runners as there were. It was a record crowd, and the volunteers were scrambling to get people water, so it's hard to blame anyone. I didn't need water at that point, but I noticed a lot of frustrated runners around me.

This is such a well organized race that I don't think this will be a problem for next year.

The course for the Baltimore Marathon is beautiful as well as challenging. The crowds were fun and enthusiastic. They could have done a better job with the signage leading from parking lots to start lines. I would encourage anyone planning to run this race to stay the night before in Baltimore. Overall a great experience.

This was my first half-marathon, but have done 5 full marathons prior to this. Signed up with some friends as training for Marine Corps.

Expo is decent, but pickup is set up in a way that you're forced to go through all of the booths. Shirt is really nice, but a couple of my friends noted (and I agree) that they were a size too big.

Parking for the event was a breeze. Start line for the half could have been improved, with one person on a megaphone directing runners into 3 corrals based on predicted time. This resulted in what appeared to be runners lining up wherever they wanted.

The course is hilly, but not a killer. It's a healthy challenge. A friend who was a first-timer said it was fine. Fans are consistently on the course and are very supportive.

The area between the food for the runners and the carnival does get crowded. They don't let you back in the food area once you leave, so you have to "stock up" first. The system for the free beer, where you get tickets in the runner's area, then redeem them at the carnival, is confusing.

Overall, it was a fun day, but I am not certain I'll be back. The full marathon would be just too hilly for my taste. The half is better, but is very expensive when compared to the cost of the full marathon.

The comments from M.S. from Houston are right on; in fact, if I didn't know any better, I'd say I ran with this person for 18 miles of this race.

I found the course challenging yet charming, giving runners the full local flavor or Baltimore. Locals were supportive in every part of the city. It's a perfect-sized race, not too large to be overly crowded and not too small to where you feel like you're running alone.

The "R," "FULL," "HALF" stickers aren't necessary, and many did get stuck to the bottoms of shoes. Water stations were plentiful and the downhill finish into the stadiums was great.

I recommend this race and will likely run it again.

I signed up for this one at the last minute because I was going to be in town for another event. I found the starting area to be great (not crowded or cramped at all) and the course, although hilly for a flat-lander, was really interesting, with diverse views of the city. From start to finish, I could not stop commenting on how great the layout of the course was.

I found it odd that much of the course had large cones running right down the middle. It was almost as if we were running a trail race and the race director was concerned that we might get off-course, so he regularly positioned cones right in the middle of the course. Next year, cones are unnecessary. Additionally, the race packet had stickers saying, "full" to be placed on the backs of full marathoners. The course was littered with these stickers, as most fell off in the first 3 miles. It was a bit annoying to get this stuck to your shoes.

The crowds were intermittent but motivated, loud, and encouraging when present.

I would wholeheartedly recommend this race to anyone looking to experience a fun, interesting, and challenging race.