Was very impressed with this incredible event! Most of all this marathon has the best volunteers ever - happy, helpful, and super enthusiastic. LOVE THE TENNIS BALL-GREEN, LONG-SLEEVE T SHIRT! Only negative was that I missed seeing some of the mile markers, but I think they had been blown over.

Cons:
- Very hilly course (more hilly than advertised on the website with at least 6 distinct groups of hills throughout the course)
- Very windy the day I ran it with 15 to 20 mph wind gusts
- Not organized particularly well. For instance, at the end it was very chilly and I wanted to grab my jacket from my checked bag while I waited for my running buddy, but then found I was not allowed back into the runner's area even though I still had my bib and medal on. Also, there were numerous bottlenecks in the finish area that were extremely crowded
- They allow relay and half marathoners to run throughout the course with the full marathoners. This will not bother some, but I was dispirited when passed by fresh runners who were only doing 6 miles each, and I am not particularly slow (with a 3:30 finish time) - I just was annoyed by being passed by so many runners who were only doing a quarter of the distance I was.
- Finally, the tech T this year (2010) was a radioactively bright fluorescent yellow - I don't think I'll be wearing that ugly shirt again. It was almost as if they were forcing us to buy a better shirt at the expo.

The one pro I can think of is that the City of Baltimore is scenic and pretty and I enjoyed the parts of it I was able to see; the course gave you a good perspective of this overlooked, little city. The race itself is not worth doing again, however, when there are so many better competing Northeastern fall marathons on deck.

I just woke up from my post-race nap from this year's (2010) Baltimore Marathon. I loved it. The hills were really nothing worth talking about; there are tons of hills in my neighborhood that are steeper. The fans and volunteers were great. Running past the start of the half at 8 or 9 and again at our halfway point was great - some of the loudest cheering this side of Wellesley. The downhill final 3-4 miles were just what I needed at that point. I never thought the course was too crowded, with or without the halfers, but I was a little ahead of the herd (3:26) and they even provided extra "rolling motivation."

First, the positives: Great volunteers offering great course support; the course is well marked; there's ample parking near the start (I drove in morning of marathon); you get a great technical T-shirt; the start line is not extremely crowded; and we had a nice, moderate temperature.

The negatives: because marathon is on Saturday, you're forced to come on a weekday evening and deal with rush-hour traffic to pick up the packet; at the end I was given a half-marathon medal instead of the full medal, which is a slap in the face; the merge with the half-marathoners is a disaster; and the hills are tough (which perhaps should be a positive).

On the lighter note, I tried to quit, but the police officer refused to give me information about transportation for quitters to the finish line, and told me to just go over the hill. Thanks to him, I finished.

For my first marathon this was fun. I signed up with a Geico pace group and they were positive and upbeat at the start, which helped calm my nerves. The course does have some hills from mile 16-21, you also merge with 15,000 half-marathon runners, which makes it hard to pass. But then you run downhill for the last 3 miles to Camden Yards. At the finish line, things stopped abruptly; I would like to see officials find more room for the runners to keep moving after 26.2 miles.

I rated this marathon in the top three, and I have run NYC, Boston, Philadelphia, Marine Corps, National, Shamrock, LA, and Chicago. People complain about the hills, but the organizers never hide the fact that there are hills and they even posted an elevation profile. So if you signed up for the race, you shouldn't be allowed to complain about what you should have been expecting.

It's very interesting that the comments can vary so much depending on where you finish and which race you run. I ran the half marathon in 2007 and thought it was pretty cool to start at the halfway point of the marathon, although I felt sorry for the marathoners I was blowing by. Then I ran the full marathon in 2008 and found it odd that the full marathoners had to wear a race-specific bib on the back.

Based on the comments of several posters, it seems that slower runners typically have a less pleasant experience. I ran just under 3 hours and thought everything was just perfect. If you have ever volunteered on-course for a marathon, you will understand why this is. I can't speak for the race with respect to people in the 4+-hour range, but from the sounds of it, if you can beat the half marathon start, you are in for a wonderful experience.

This was my first marathon, so take this with a grain of salt, but the course was extremely difficult. I hit the wall about mile 15-16, at which point it felt like there was nowhere to go but up. The first 9 miles was extremely easy with 2 large downhills, but once we turned around out by the point, the wind picked up and it was pretty much torture from there in. The crowds in downtown were nice, but I have to say that it would be better to save at least one of the downhills for the back half. I may run again, but only because I missed the Marine Corps registration.

The course introduced us out-of-towners to many very cool things about Baltimore. I'll return as a tourist and a marathoner. I liked that we ran through a very depressed neighborhood, to let the residents know that, for at least one day in the year, they had not been forgotten.

HOWEVER, the age group award I got was so bad it was funny! Instead of giving out the age group awards at the race, they mailed the trophy weeks later, only after I emailed them to ask when it was coming. I'm giving it the Ugliest Trophy Award. It has no date. It is lopsided plastic covered in copper-colored spray paint, and on the back where a little plaque is supposed to be is a piece of tape on which somebody has typed, "2009 1st Place Female 60 - 64." I'm guessing it was a rejected sample that they found in the back of somebody's closet. Come on, guys; try to do better next year.

This is a great marathon, but if you intend to run it in 2010, make sure you are running hills in training. Like people are saying, the second half of the marathon is just one gradual hill after another. You do get to run downhill for the last mile or so, but at that point you're too miserable to enjoy it. One thing that may distract you with the hills is the entertaining arguments between Baltimore Police and the blocked off car drivers at each intersection on the course.

I like to say thanks to the City of Baltimore. I've been running since 1985, and I've been running these big races since 1987. The Baltimore Marathon was great, and yes, I'll do it again. The fatality of the runner on the 25-mile-mark did put a damper people's spirits, though.... I've never run a course before with hills almost every single mile. Thanks again, and see you in Baltimore in the future.