This was my second time here at Whidbey Island; last year I did the full and this year only did the 1/2. I am very impressed with Nature's Path as the sponsor, and what a great bunch of volunteers. I hope to make this a must-do, yearly event. I'm sure this event will become more and more popular with us Canuks either from Vancouver Island or the mainland.

- Harry from the Ferry
Lasqueti Island, BC

There was great running spirit at this marathon - everyone ran happy and supportive. The volunteers and support staff were excellent: competent, supportive... except for running out of Gatorade at two stations.

The course: Most disappointing. A few gorgeous glimpses: Crossing the bridge, some time along the sound. But I can run through prime agricultural land recently invaded by trophy developments in my own hometown. And the entire run was along shoulders: Hard on ankles and legs, and the traffic was distracting and at times dangerous. This one I'll remember for the brief gorgeous moments and the day-before sightseeing; it doesn't live up to its "most beautiful run in the West" billing.

I have just returned from the beautiful Whidbey Island and had to post about this race. I recommend it to anyone who loves a stunning scenic route and a well organized race but doesn't mind hills.

I ran the half and wanted to get a PR. That plan went out the window after mile 6, a 300-foot hill. The weather was gorgeous, but windy, which also didn't help my time. Although what goes up must come down, the inclines seemed never-ending.

The race went flawlessly from an organizational standpoint. In this point-to-point race, we were told to park at the finish and catch a shuttle to the start. There was plenty of parking and the shuttles were efficient and frequent. At the start, they made us line up based on pace, so there was no congestion. There were bathrooms and water stations (with Gatorade and gel) nearly every 2 miles. The route was beautiful, with a view of the ocean almost the whole way!

The sponsor, Nature's Path, were very generous. We got so many granola bars, cereal boxes, milk, organic fruit, oatmeal and even organic grass-fed beef hot dogs! I don't even eat this well at home. There was tons of food, so it was great to fuel up after this strenuous race. At the organic pasta dinner, we were the last ones to arrive, at 7 p.m., and there was still tons of hot food left over. Definitely worth going to. The shirts were very nice as well.

I wanted to thank all the volunteers and spectators that were extremely cheerful along the way. The high-school students got very involved which was great to see. They did an amazing job with sign in and checking our gear, driving it all the way to the finish line. There was never a line up for anything.

This was a really fun race. They called your name as you came to the finish line, which was glorying and made up for such a difficult course!

Cheers from Vancouver!

This was my first marathon and it was a great experience! The course was definitely difficult, but after the first 8 miles or so, you can settle into a nice little groove due to the course flattening out. Due to this being my first marathon, I didn't have much to compare it to, but there was a noticeable lack of spectators on the course, which can be good or bad. As a first-timer, it would have been nice to see more people out there shouting words of encouragement, but the volunteers that were there did an excellent job and made the race that much more enjoyable. From about mile 12 to mile 20, the course is essentially run on the road next to farms and wide open fields, but at mile 20 it drops down onto the coast and you get an excellent view of the water for the last six miles. However, at that stage in the race, after going up and down some pretty intense hills, I had a hard time finding the energy to enjoy the scenery.

However, my favorite part was the end. The mile 26 marker comes at the top of a little hill, and from there it is all straight downhill into the finishing chutes, where hundereds of people are there cheering you on! They even call out your name!! How exciting! I ended up winning my age group and qualifying for Boston in this race and the spectators at the end of the course made it that much sweeter! The spread of food after the race was awesome as well! Overall this was an excellent race and I would highly recommend it!

Terrific race, I really enjoyed it. This was my 4th half marathon and I ended up walking part of it with my girlfriend (her 1st) and I absolutely loved the course. Terrific scenery and friendly volunteers. If you plan on running the race, I would recommend driving the course first so that you know what is in store. It really helps!

I loved this course. Great low-key start, nice rural setting and routing along the water. My only two previous marathons (San Fran. and Portland) had a lot to offer as well, but I enjoyed the smaller crowd and this course much more. The shuttle worked out perfectly and there was more food, gel and drink at these aid station than the larger races. The course was very well marked and manned with numerous volunteers to ensure safe road crossings. Good group of people all the way around. We lucked out with perfect weather. What a great way to see the island! (My only small disappointment was that the shirts seemed geared towards the half marathon and it would be nice to have those 13.1 additional miles recognized.)

This is a point to point run and there is no shuttle service to the finish, so you have to arrange to have your family and/or friends meet you there afterward.

The course is generally very scenic and the addition of the Deception Point Bridge lived up to the pre race hype it recieved this year. It is passed early on in the run, and in my view, made the whole marathon worth the entry alone.

Beautiful blues of the sea far below reminded me of the pictures I have seen of the Big Sur Marathon course.

Other portions of the course are further in the interior of the island, and not nearly as scenic-typical farm land and country dwellings.

Nonetheless as you criss-cross the width of the island on both sides you will be treated to awesome views of the snowcapped Cascade and coastal mountain ranges which contrast brilliantly against the blue waters of the Pacific.

The course is a seemingly endless series of hills start to finish, but they are correctly described by others here as being generally palatable with an exception of two with steeper grades.

The organization did a very good job of policing, monitoring and securing the course, but there were several areas with an annoying amount of heavy oncomming vehicle traffic, despite the coned seperation.

Hot organic eggs and sausage awaited finishers along with a fair variety of other post race refreshments.

Each finishers name was called as they crossed the line and the very large fiishers medal with a depiction of the bridge, denotes the (accompanying) half and the full marathon on the front, and enscribes the specific distance on the back.

There was a mix up with the shirts and the full marathoners recieved a half marathoners shirt. An honest oversight before it went to print, but I felt especially bad for first time full marathoners.

What a great run. This is my 3rd marathon in eight weeks. I am a native of Washington and feel the need to inform all the out-of-towners that YOU CAN DRIVE TO THE ISLAND!! You don't have to take the ferry. Just drive the path to Deception Pass Bridge and over. This is the only part of the race I didn't like, because I think a lot of runners were misled. It was definitely the most scenic race ever and the best post-race food!! Sausage and eggs anyone? How about make your own oatmeal?!?! Thank you Whidbey Island organizers!! DO HILL TRAINING!!

I ran the 1/2 marathon. It was a beautiful spring day on a gorgeous course. Only complaints are that at the start there were not enough bathrooms to accommodate the runners. Plus there was not a sensor pad at the start for the timing chips. A minute can put you under your PR. Great food at the end, great volunteers, and there were great people cheering you on.

This was my third marathon and by far the most difficult. This course is tough because the hills start early. The hardest hill is at about 6-7 miles in. I would say save your energy and run slow through these hills, but the hills never stop. Sure the hills go down after you go up them, but going up wore me out. I was hoping to do this marathon in 3.5 hours but instead I finished in 4.5 hours. Yuck. To be competitive on this course one must practice running long hills.

One other thing that was tough about this course was running along the water. There was a strong wind blowing in off the water all the time. Good luck, this marathon was a bear. It definitely rattled my confidence and I feel like I am a pretty good runner. The course was quite beautiful though. The one thing I didn't like was that there was no energy drink at the finish, although there was cold organic orange juice, which was quite delicious.

Kirk