For a first marathon, I was thrilled. Didn't really know what to expect other than being a local and familiar with the course. The sparse fans (the course is very rural) were great, despite being few in numbers. My only gripe was a two-mile stretch on Highway 287 where the right lane was not closed and semi-trucks were flying by at 65mph, spraying runners with dust, ice, and even pig poop from a pig truck. Can the right lane be closed? Those were my fastest two miles... Otherwise, a great race and I will be back next year.

I loved running this race. I did the 15-miler, and didn't mind the wait at the start too much. Lots of port-o-johns, and the UPS drop-off was good for bags too.

I would've liked to have had more to drink at a couple of stops. They filled the cup until there was just barely something in it at a couple of places. Also, the expo was rather small - basically just a place to pick up your bib.

All in all, a good race, tremendous scenery, and I'll probably run it again sometime. This was my first point-to-point race, and I really enjoyed it.... I've stayed away from point-to-point before because of the thought that it would be logistically difficult. Turned out to be pretty easy though. Maybe the full marathon next time instead of the 15-miler.

This is a wonderful small race with the first 16 miles of beautiful scenery (not much for spectators, but there were a few). The race was fairly well organized, although, I agree with a previous poster that had the weather been rainy, a lot of runners could have been severely impacted (runners had to wait outside in the cold for about an hour before the race began). How about bonfires or heat lamps or setting up tents to shield runners from rain/wind??

There were plenty of port-o-potties at the start and a few along the course. The water/Gatorade stops were sufficient (although at one stop, I was told I was given Gatorade but it tasted horrible!!). The weather was perfect for the race - sunny and cold.

I did not realize how much I would be affected by the downhill running (I had sore quads for several days after). Future first-timers to this event, take note....

The finish was somewhat frustrating because I had to dodge my way through the kids' race. I'm sorry I'm so slow (finished in just under 5 hours)!! But this issue with the kids race came up in previous years (per previous comments) - isn't there any way to avoid this issue in the future?

The finish had plenty of refreshments - bananas, orange slices, cookies, and FREE BEER!! The race was worth running simply for the beauty of the first 16 miles. I highly recommend it.

This is a race you just have to do. I've done the full marathon several times and love it. The first 16-17 miles are so beautiful (and gently downhill). The last 9 miles don't compare with the first portion, but aren't bad either as you make your way through some park areas on a trail.

I can't see any reason for complaining about not being able to stay on the bus at the start. It was advertised that you could put any size bag on a truck at the start and then pick it up at the finish line. I knew it would be cool so I wore extra clothes up there. Then took them off 5 minutes before the start, put them in the bag on the truck and went to the starting line. I was never cold.

The medals this year were great. Appeared to be hand-painted (not sure if they were) ceramic medals that were probably close to 3 inches in diameter. A real beauty.

Heed drink was a little funny-tasting, but I had never tried it before.

Awesome course. The fans at the finish were great, but where the heck was the marathon clock? I was within seconds of qualifying for Boston (18 to be exact) and was desperately looking for the clock at the finish. The only thing I saw was the 15-mile race clock. To add to that, the announcer was reading off inaccurate times to the crowd. Obviously his watch was a couple of minutes fast so my family thought that I missed the cutoff and was preparing themselves for a huge disappointment.

It added some excitement to have to dodge the 15-milers on the bike path at the end, although I'm sure many would complain about this.

Tip of the hat:
Beautiful run down the canyon. I like the ceramic medal; it is unique and a nice change from same old metal medals. Bag check was seamless. Bathroom on the bus: priceless.

Wag of the finger:
Last 10 miles were boring (especially compared to the lovely first 16 miles!). Not enough port-o-potties along the route. Several aid stations ran out of HEED sports drink. The food at the finish was not very interesting. The shirt was way too big and I couldn't exchange it for a smaller size.

All in all, I would definitely do this one again, but next time I will do more downhill training!

Pros:
Scenic, gradually-downhill course
Good organization (except one comment on bussing... see below)
Few half marathoners to trip over
Plenty of water stops, well staffed
Lot of porta-potties at start
Nice early start
Great weather
Well organized bag drop-off/retrieval
Great parking near the bus pick-up/finish area

Cons:
Bus drops off runners an hour or more before start with no shelter from pre-dawn cold and breeze
Food at end pretty was weak
Lots of runners used the side of the road along the course as there were very few porta-potties

Neither Pro nor Con:
Not much opportunity for spectators and that's OK - this isn't a "spectator race"

I knew that the first 17 miles were going to be beautiful and downhill - no surprise. I was expecting the last nine to be lackluster, however, and they weren't. The bike path onto which we turned at about mile 19 or so at times afforded scenic shade, front range views, and more spectators. While people have complained about the concrete surfaces, there was almost always a softer gravel/dirt trail alongside the concrete bike path that was very usable (and joint friendly). In a previous year, someone complained that the course in the last couple of miles was open to traffic - I don't have a clue what they must have been talking about. Once we were on the bike path, we stayed on it until about a quarter mile from the finish, which was completely barracaded to traffic. Again, excellent planning. (And the crowds at the end were second to none.)

True, the expo was small, but I found people there to be friendly and helpful. The organization was first-class; although they did run out of sport drink at a couple of the late aid stations (and I was mid-pack). More food (e.g., oranges) along the course would have been good; but, those are just recommendations, not really complaints.

This is definitely worth the trip. Fort Collins is a very nice city with many amenities and options for the visitor.

Expo was unremarkable...glad to get the cheap gloves though (didn't end up needing; but is a cheap souvenir). Transport to race start great, no experience to compare pre-race to. Canyon 16-mile portion of run was amazing, river rushing right next to you, downhill not a big deal though I trained on a gentle decline purposely. Very little support but to be expected in small town/canyon run, I would think. Nice technical short sleeve shirt and medal, again nothing to compare to. I finished mid-pack and only found water at the end, bring your own if you want immediate refreshment. Excellent UPS organization of transporting bags start to finish. Brought my own sports drink and re-fuel for run as did not like HEED (in past GU sponsored, would have used that). When moved onto bike path at Jr High School almost missed turn then people yelled for me to go back, otherwise no issues with course...yes canyon road is angled but the edge was fine for me (IT bands sore after though). Agree extra traffic on bike path annoying & potentially hazardous.

Overall, I definitely would do again for good time due to downhill and beauty beauty beauty!!! This was my first and I am very pleased with my experience, if it works out will return next year.

This continues to be a wonderful marathon! The course is beautiful, the overall organization is (generally) outstanding. On this one you shouldn't expect spectators - not their fault since they really aren't allowed to park for most of course.

There are some inconsistencies between the years that detract from the reputation of this race (my opinion) . . . I believe that some were actually safety issues:

MEDALS: The one for 2007 is a sort of oversized painted ceramic plate-style 'medal'. This ceramic plate style looks sort of goofy (my opinion) hanging next to the other classic/traditional medals in my collection. (Of course this is clearly better than nothing - earlier years there were no medals at all.)

LONG/COLD PRE-RACE WAIT: This year the race started at another place and runners were not allowed to wait on the (heated) bus as in past years. That means if you were on one of the first buses (per organizers encouragement) you were dropped off in the pitch dark on a very cold morning (in the 30's) with over an hour to wait before the race start. Brrrrr! If it had rained (this was a possibility based on the weather forecast) and/or been windier it could have been down right dangerous - a sure prescription for hypothermia given the way many runners were lightly dressed.

COURSE SET-UP: The cone crew must have gotten a late start (our bus had to pass them - and did so on a blind corner/no-passing zone - fortunately no vehicles came around the corner at us). The cones were set very random distances from the road edge . . . some were set ~1/3 into the lane (about the right spot) but many were on the shoulder line or even on the very edge of the road surface. To comply with this cone placement, runners would have 'theoretically' had to run single file on the very edge of the road surface or off the road on the dirt or even completely off the shoulder and through the weeds in a couple spots. I say 'theoretically' because the cones placement was so obviously silly most of the time that runners just ignored them . . . creating a safety issue since oncoming traffic had no consistent safety cone line to go by. However, in a 'good players adapt' move, the crew came back through about 1/2 way through the race and remedied the cone placement problem.

FINISH LINE: This was a bit chaotic since there were kid 'racers' who had been walking on the side and then walked out into the finish lane in the way of marathon runners racing to cross the line. It was a little unsafe trying to run/dodge around the kid 'runners' as they suddenly walked out in front of you right before the finish line.

Overall this marathon is a real credit to a fine local running store and an excellent volunteer organization.