Iowa should be proud to own this marathon. The expo was well organized and packet pickup was easy. The downtown start was well marked for pace and the runners in my pace area were not far off my target pace, not always the case. The course winds through hilly, tree lined streets of older neighborhoods in West Des Moines after mile 3 then flat for 17-26.2. After the finish runners are treated to a wide selection of comfort food. Beautiful course, perfect weather, and great spectators. The only negative is that I couldn't find a sweat check at the start area, an inconvenience for an out-of-towner without spectators in tow. All in all a great race and I had a great time. Do some hill training and you should love this race.

This is a great marathon on all levels. Well organized with a nice expo, ample hotels and parking right near the start line, easy entry right up to race time, great volunteers and spectators are just some of the pluses to running here. The course is quite diverse... going thru downtown to start, followed by many hills thru neighborhoods, going over the expressway, doing a multi-use trail around the lake, and a somewhat desolate stretch before the big finish keep experience interesting. Bananas, apples from McD's, Dominos pizza, granola, OJ, yogurt, BBQ sliders made for nice post-race meal. Have to watch out for cambered roads and downhill stretches with turns on the course- both I and a friend wound up with a case of runners knee pain from the pounding. But like others here, I really enjoyed this marathon

Well organized. Well supported by fans. Excellent food/beverages for the runners. Very nice medal. Overall, it was a very nice course including beautiful neighborhoods,bike trails, around lakes and in parks. The first half of the course was quite hilly. Running around the Drake track about at the half way point was a nice touch.

After working myself up to run DSM marathon I'm glad I did. Being my hometown I'm familiar with the course. The hills early on go through an older part of town that's very scenic, especially with the fall colors. The lap around the Blue Oval at Drake University is impressive, thinking of all the greats whom have run that track before. Except for Grand Ave and part of the park it goes through there's plenty of enthusiastic fans that will cheer and hand out water/gatorade/candy/mini-donuts/beer, whilst displaying goofy but encouraging signs 'Worst Parade Ever'. I love this reace because the city loves the race so much.

This is a nice fall marathon with lots of pros and no real cons. Here are some of the good things and areas for improvement as I see them:

Pros:
1). This is a well organized and well supported race with ample volunteers and more fans than I expected.
2). The city is race friendly - parking is free on the weekends, many hotels allowed for very late check-out (3:00 at the hotel where I stayed).
3). The field is not too big. Aside from some crowding the first mile or so, it was easy to get up to pace.
4). The pasta dinner had a nice (albeit disorganized) mix of speakers.
5). The course is pleasant - a nice mix of urban, suburban and parks. One note - pay attention to the suggestion to train for hills - they aren't steep, but are long and continuous in an early part of the race.

Areas for improvement:
1). The race shirt was a bit weak - cotton with rather plain graphics.
2). A few volunteers and signs directing out-of towners to parking on race morning would have been nice. There were lots of one way streets and race-related road closures that added confusion to my quest for a parking spot.

What a fun run! One marathon-two countries...bridges, tunnels, islands, neighborhoods. THANK YOU volunteers...you were magnificent! You ignored the cool, drizzly weather and took such great care of us. A Must Run for beginners as it is mostly flat (except the bridge to Canada which is way cool - train for that)

I was really impressed with this marathon. Chose this as my Iowa marathon for my 50 state circuit, and I am confident I chose the right one.
Course- beautiful course- first 16 miles residential and through some lovely neighborhoods. I heard some grumbling of hills...but I train on hills all the time so I really didn't find them to be that bad. Last 10 miles or so wound through some parks/greenways which were pretty- and thankfully many of these paths were wide enough. I hate when some courses route you on very narrow public greenways but not here. Then you finished where you began in downtown Des Moines to cheering fans. And the best part of the course is that they slit the half folks after mile 2- so no crowded streets with half marathoners. I did run into a few coming in the last few miles, but there not many by this point.
Logistics- Pre- race communication, Expo, and start/finish were all well- managed. Finish line was great- they had large clear signs where all the food was, the flow worked nicely, and volunteers were all fabulous. Expo was just the right size- and when I was there, there were two chair massage places- one with no line whatsoever!
Many hotels close by- mine was older but very accomodating for a late check out and close to good pre- and post- marathon meals.
Perks- Were what I'd expect from a marathon. Nice LS shirt (fits a little large but design is great) and medal. Aid stations were plentiful on the course- and all appeared to have plenty for all runners. Oh- and the best perk of all was the weather. We had great running weather- the kind you want for all your long runs and marathons.
Great job, Des Moines! You all put on a great race that I would recommend. I've run pretty much all the midwestern states by now- and Des Moines was in the top 3, easily. Nicely done!

Wonderfully organized race with some small hills between miles 5-8, this race takes you through a variety of places: downtown, residential, Drake University campus, out to the parks and lake, and eventually back into downtown. Great fan support throughout the race, especially at the finish line. Packet pickup is a bit difficult to navigate if you're unfamiliar with downtown, but overall a great experience I wouldn't hesitate to do again.

Plenty changes of scenery throughout so you're not looking at the same things mile after mile, and it does go over a few bridges, which makes this race a lot of fun. Half marathon also breaks off from the full after the third mile. Be prepared and fully trained before attempting to complete the race, as the course is monitored closely and you will be taken off as a safety precaution at any time if volunteers or officials believe you are unfit to continue.

Des Moines does an excellent job with this marathon, which is why I came back to run 2010. Varied terrain with some hills and good spectator support for the first half, a lap through Drake stadium, and then it flattens out for the last half. I will add a caution to runners - miles 15-17 are a long gradual downhill and you feel like a world-beater, and it is easy to run faster than your intended pace. And we all know what happens when you try to bank time in a marathon. Let's just say that my last few miles around the lake were a "less than optimal experience." Fantastic post-race food and excellent medal.

Overall, one of the best races I've completed. Pretty large expo. Pasta dinner had good food and excellent speakers. Race course was hilly to start, but it had a lot of redeeming qualities.

Post-race food was very good and the shirt and medal were also quite solid. I have recommended this race many, many times. Race director is very competent and communicates frequently. This was my 10th marathon.