I am from Oklahoma, and this was my first time training for a half-marathon. I had so much fun running the race!!! Kansas City spectators were so encouraging! The signs, the costumes, the music... it was all just an awesome experience!! I hope to run this race again, but next time with my family! Oh yeah, and the hills... one word: tough! But I made it! :)

My first marathon and I thought it was amazing. Gatorade and water stations about every two miles or so, along with GU packets, gummy bears and Vaseline being handed out. Port-a-potties about every five miles - close enough that you didn't have to hold it for very long. Spectators were at least every 800 meters, and I always had at least five or six runners around me. Few bands out; there probably would have been more, but it was threatening rain the whole time. Start/finish line at Crown Center, which was nice. I only wish there were more bands and fewer turns. Course was rolling hills the whole way, but with only one really tough hill. It was a hard course, but not impossible. I plan to run this again!

Course is very scenic - pretty hilly but not too bad. Was my first full marathon and I can't wait to do another. Really liked how my family could keep track of my progress via text messages. Will probably do this marathon again. Great time!

With over 10,000 participants between the different races this year, this has turned into a pretty big race. I ran the half this year after doing a relay segment last year.

Pros:
1. Just a fantastic course, comprising some of the very best sights of Kansas City. High points were running up to the Liberty Memorial, running through Westport, and particularly turning the corner into the Country Club Plaza where the street was lined with very enthusiastic supporters.
2. The race finish, near the start at Crown Center was so much better than last year, where the Freighthouse District was cramped and inconvenient. It really had a "big race" feel as you approached the finish line too, with very vocal support coming in. Well organized finish, with plenty of room.
3. I found it surprisingly fast. Yes, there are plenty of hills and yes, some are challenging, but what goes up must come down. I set a race PR, so as long as you treat the uphills with respect and the downhills with none, you can achieve a decent time. Make sure you train for them though, or you'll struggle.
4. Free beer at the end! Enough said.
5. T-shirt was way better than last year.
6. Probably one of the best races to do if you're planning on joining a pace team. Both the number available and their actual race strategies were absolutely top notch.

Cons:
1. I think the main tweak could be to do at least a partially staggered start. The race is big enough now to where you could legitimately do this. All paces and races mixed together led to a very chaotic first few miles, and the walkers were genuine hazards.
2. The packets (aside from the t-shirt) were weak this year.

Overall, a terrific course with an increasingly big-race atmosphere. Highly recommended.

This is my first time running KC and my third marathon overall - and it was my favorite so far. Beautiful course, tons of volunteers (thank you!), and spectators all along the way. Also, I really feel like I got the most for my entrance fee in this race - I had the streets of KC shut down for me, and I got two shirts out of the deal, as well as a big, honkin' medal. It was a lot of fun and I will definitely be back; I just have to train better for the hills because, man, my butt is KILLING me today!

- Ben

This was my first half-marathon, and I couldn't have picked a better race! The route is beautiful! I love the pacers - they helped me tremendously. The hills are a challenge, but not nearly as bad as I had anticipated. The people of Kansas City were so friendly and motivating! I can't wait to head back up next year, this time for the full marathon.

I enjoyed the course layout and I thought they did a pretty good job of showcasing the city. Even though it was a cold overcast day, there were several spectators cheering runners on. There was a variety of food at the finish (bananas, bread rolls, yogurt, etc.). Good, high-tech finisher shirt, and a big, colorful medal. Having text messages automatically sent to friends on my progress every time my chip crossed a timing mat was way cool! Kudos to whoever came up with that idea.

Issues:
1. Start is crowded enough without adding 5K runners to it. Why not have them later, like the Kids' Run?
2. More porta-potties on the course.
3. Race started 10 minutes late.

This was my first marathon and I certainly learned a lot from it.

There were a lot of hills that I really didn't plan for, and running up and downhill made for a really good blister from sliding back and forth in my shoes.

But really, the biggest thing was having the runners from the shorter races out there at the exact same time. It really just played with me mentally. I was so happy when we got to the halfway point and thought I would be just running around the same people, but then the relay guys were jumping in. Watching people pass me that looked so fresh and froggy just made me feel horrible. So in the end, my next marathon will be with marathoners only, like Chicago. I would never do Kansas City again.

I had avoided this race in the past because of the negative reviews it'd received here on MarathonGuide.com. But those reviews turned favorable over the last couple years, so I decided to use Kansas City as my Missouri entry toward my quest for 50 states. It turned out to be a good decision.

Probably the best thing about race weekend was the Crown Center. This is where the race starts and finishes, and where the host hotel and pre-race expo is located. It's also a conglomerate of downtown restaurants and shops. All of it was connected by a climate-controlled skywalk. It was super convenient given the rain and cold temperatures. And the Crown Center shops were the perfect place to get a coffee and recuperate after the race.

Race temps were cool - oddly, it felt perfect at the start, but the temperature began falling shortly thereafter. I was sweating for the first half of the marathon, and then trying to keep my fingers from freezing the second half. But shorts and a long-sleeve shirt turned out to be a good choice - just should have held on to my gloves longer.

I feel like the hills along this course aren't given the respect they deserve. This is a legitimately hilly course. Don't go expecting gentle slopes. And it seemed as though we were running uphill most of the race. That's odd for loop course, but it felt like we were mostly climbing for the first 23 miles, and then gave back all that elevation quickly in a short, steep hill around 24 miles. That being said, I enjoyed the course (though I would stop well short of calling it "beautiful," like some others have). It took everything I had to run a good (for me) time, so there was a great sense of accomplishment at the finish.

The crowd support along the route was steady. Thanks go out to all the volunteers and to the police officers who performed traffic control. For the life of me, though, I can't figure out why race directors don't require volunteers to wear plastic gloves when handing out water at aid stations - or at least instruct them to hold the sides of the cups rather than dipping their fingers into the drink. I moan about it all the time, but maybe I'm the only one who's bothered by it. My one other complaint... it looked like some short-distance runners (half-marathoners, 5K'ers, relayers) were bringing their extended families into the finish chute to partake of the post-race food. That's a low-class move, but it also didn't look good for the KC Marathon staff for letting them do it.

But Kansas City should be happy to have this race. It's well done, and shows the city in a good light. Regional runners and 50 Staters alike should be thankful to have such a quality marathon option in Missouri.

This marathon was great and my favorite ever! The course covered all of the highlights of Kansas City, and was very scenic. We were given a shirt both before the race, and after completing it - and both were great. The finisher's medal was awesome as well. The course is a bit hilly in the first half - I suggest walking up the steepest parts if you're not a fast marathoner. I saw people running uphill at the beginning, and walking downhill in the last six miles. The pacers for times around 4:50 and later finished late, so don't rely on them. My time was a few seconds under 4:50, and that pace group came in at least five minutes after me. More port-a-potties are needed - the lines during the race were insane. The aid stations were great. Overall, I would recommend this marathon! I've run all three of the local ones and this is by far the best!