My son and I ran the half marathon and it was great. We received a lot of support from the fans and from the other runners. It really kept us going! The course was beautiful.

After the race, my non-running friends were shocked to hear that I had fun on my run through Boise. The view, the drum bands, the little-kid-high-fives, the camaraderie with other runners, it was all great! Thanks so much to the organizers for a job well done!

City of Trees was my 10th marathon. I would rate it somewhere in the middle of the pack. Please allow me to make a few suggestions on how to improve the marathon.

1. Include race day instructions in the packets. The only thing I was told when I picked up my packet was to be sure to be at the start at 8:00.

2. Get rid of the turn around the cone in the middle of the road at mile 20. It is very difficult at that point in the race to be forced to come to almost a complete stop.

Other than that the race was good. The volunteers at the water stops were great. Overall support was excellent with enough porta-johns and sufficient aid stations. The lady doing the announcing at the finish was very enthusiastic and did a great job announcing runners names and hometowns. The shirts were okay but the screening really doesn't stand out due to the color of the shirt. The medal is simple but nice. Definitely not a bad race, much better than the other marathon ran in Boise, the Great Potato.

City of Trees Marathon is a great event that will only become better in future years. I am a 55 year-old, two-time marathoner with three goals - finish the race, have a good time and improve my time. I accomplished all three at the City of Trees. The course is scenic and flat. The volunteers are friendly and encouraging. Most importantly there were plenty of runners in the 3:45 to 4:15 time slot to help set the pace. I highly recommend this event for novice marathoners.

I ran the Boise half marathon this past weekend. It was a very nice course! It gave you a good picture of all of Boise, which is a very cute town! It was cold, but not too cold, 30-40 degrees the whole race and very dry. The aid stations were well manned throughout the whole race, down to the last racer. The support, when it was there, was generally enthusiastic, although the traffic officials weren't always encouraging. The most horrible thing about this race was the last 2 miles. First of all, since the course doubles back on itself a little bit, there was a point at about mile 12 of the half marathon where the ground was mismarked '13 miles' instead of 12. This was very misleading and disappointing to the half marathoners who really have over a mile left. That should be fixed. Second of all, the last 2 miles were very commercial and uninteresting. Makes the finish less dramatic than it should be. Lastly, the finish line is in view for about a half mile before you actually cross it. Seems like an eternity. Nice touch as you crossed the finish line, the announcer said your name, age and where you're from. Really made you feel good. Overall a nice race. The few glitches will hopefully be fixed by next year! I would run it again. (Nice long-sleeved t-shirt too)!!

This was my first marathon and the City of Trees was perfect. Flat course, small size, cool weather, tons of support for the number of runners involved. Beautiful, clean, neighborhoods that the course traverses.

I have completed 32 marathons and this was the best one. I really loved this marathon. The organization and the volunteers were the best. The volunteers were so terrific for the people that were at the back of the pack. They were out on the course, in the cold weather cheering us on with lots of enthusiasm. Terrific marathon. Thanks!

Okay, so it sounds like I'm gonna bash this race, but this is merely constructive criticism. Past comments pegged the directors as difficult when actually the race directors are pretty nice, runner-oriented people. They, like us, would like the red carpet treatment but that carries quite a price tag. What you do get for your money is quite a scenic tour of Boise, Idaho and most definitely worth the $58.

Unfortunately, the organizers can't train volunteers to speak runner lingo or move mountains. Many of the volunteers were more stoic than a marble statue and didn't even cheer as you ran by - either they were frozen or they just didn't care? This isn't to say every volunteer was quiet. There were a few cheerleaders and loud groups of young kids that were out cheering runners on. One volunteer at a critical junction directed me to the finish at 12 miles and I corrected her darting across 4 lanes of traffic and ironically at the 24 mile mark the same woman told be to do the second loop again rather than finish. Oh well, she was trying to fix the earlier error. Obviously, you need to pay attention or else you'll get misdirected. This can be easily corrected with proper volunteer training and better signs. Painting the street is difficult to read in busy sections of the course. I must admit the spray painted course arrows were difficult to follow at times (I thought I was off course) and many intersections were unmanned - not something you want to think about during your marathon.

What they do have is a beautiful course and something you wont worry about Kenyans coming and taking all the prizes. This is truly the peoples' marathon because the top finishers' times were relatively soft compared to typical marathons. I'd recommend this marathon in a couple of years after they get these hiccups dealt with. Mark it on your calendar in 2005. It should be great by then - for now it is a good race. I think the city could promote the race more so that people actually know about the race and fire people up.

What a beautiful small town and a fine small marathon (300 people). The pasta dinner and staying at the host hotel is a must. High school kids are great but we needed more spectators at times and more music! This was my 7th marathon and will have many warm memories for me. Excellent hospitality and even Joe Henderson as a speaker to boot! The City of Trees earns it's name; it is truly is colorful with the foliage. Do this race, prepare for the cold, but you won't regret it. Small races rock. What a thrill to cross a finish line and have them say your name and hometown!

It was a blustery day, but this didn't hamper one of the best 'small' marathons that I have done. The course was flat, the fall colors were awesome, and the volunteers were amazing!

It was great to be able to walk out to the start line minutes before the race!

The post-race 'treats' were plentiful! I would definitely do this marathon again.