While it seemed like a rather hard course it truly was one of the funnest races I've run. The directors and their volunteers had everything covered. The prerace dinner was great, there seemed to be more aid stations then usual, and they even brought ice out as it got hot. I was one of the last finishers which is where I normally am and was extremely grateful to see the all aid stations were in full force as was the finish line and the post race food. I have been in runs where even though they say the course is open for 6 hours, they start cleaning up at hour 5. Not in Casper! They were there literally until the last runner came in! I can't recommend this race enough and thank the directors and their volunteers for all their hard work and thoughtfulness. Absolutely will do this one again.

The 2006 Casper Marathon lived up to all of the positive comments posted from last years race. Coming from Southern California I was a little concerned about the altitude so my wife,daughter, and I arrived four days early. Our stay at the host hotel (Holiday Inn on the River) was excellent. The hotel staff really treated us well. The pasta dinner the night before the race was fantastic! Co-race director Dawn Easton showed a lot of class acknowledging the hard work by the marathon staff and the accomplishment of making Casper the last marathon to complete all 50 states by a gentleman from Illinois.

The marathon course was very scenic. Three deer walked right across the road as I was ascending the bluff between miles six & seven. Running along the North Platte River was very enjoyable. I really appreciated the encouragement from the other runners after the turn around at mile 15½. The volunteers at the water stations were excellent. Twice I had a volunteer make it much easier to get a cup of water by running along side me. The post race food and beverages were the best that I have ever experienced! I was fortunate to win my age group and received a blanket with the beautiful race logo on it. That sure beats a trophy!

This is a can't miss race for any runner wanting to finish a marathon in all 50 states or just looking for a beautiful place to take the family for a vacation. I highly recommend arriving a few days early and enjoying the wonderful people and city of Casper. The marathon sponsor (LifeTime Health & Fitness Center) was the best health club that I have ever been in! Check out the very informative website for all the race details.

Great race! Thank you

This was an incredible marathon, and the race directors are the friendliest and most competent directors you'll ever see. The entire event was planned meticulously, from the expo to the post-race party - which had ample amounts of different food, juices, sodas, beer, etc. The awards ceremony was timed perfectly.

You'll see plenty of cottontail bunnies as you run, as well as a lot of antelope, and the occasional beaver. One antelope ran across the road less than 100 yards ahead of me at mile 3.5. Most of the course follows the Platte River, which is quite scenic. Although the altitude can make it difficult for flat-landers, the course is mostly flat. The volunteers are very supportive from start to finish, the Dri-Release shirt is awesome, and the medal was very impressive. This marathon is truly a labor of love for the directors, and they should be congratulated for putting on such a great event.

Take the drive up Casper Mountain and hike some trails when you visit. It's other-worldly.

(Comments based on 1/2 marathon course. Did not run full marathon course at this event.) Well organized. Not a special course for the half-marathon distance. Advertised as a scenic, wildlife viewing course, the first 6 hilly miles are on asphalt roads. Most "wildlife" was roadkill; no sign of antelope on race-day. For the 1/2 marathon, the remainder is on a concrete and asphalt greenway trail, out and back. The full marathon continues on this greenway trail, so a smaller percentage of it is on roads. For the 1/2, not worth traveling to from out of state. For the full, a pretty nice course. Lackluster fan support - just locals cheering on their friends and families, then leaving. Venue was well organized and very convenient, but host hotel (Holiday Inn) was grungy and had poor service - stay someplace else.

I ran the half marathon in this race, and I had a great time! I loved the new starting point - it made a huge difference! I hope this race will continue to have the participation and enthusiasm that it does!

This was my fist marathon ever. I love to run to run but I never thought I could run a half-marathon. Because of this marathon, I'm about to do my 2nd in Houston, TX - working towards the Boston qualifyer as I get older. Thank you.

P.S. Work on the course.

This is my first time to run the Casper Marathon. I signed up last year but couldn't run it because of an injury. I live in Wyoming, so it's wonderful to have a marathon that is relatively close to home. This is a very well run race, and you can tell that people care about you. All of the volunteers on the course were friendly and had encouraging things to say. The course is lovely, and I got to see parts of Casper that I didn't even know were there. The host hotel is absolutely great. After the race our car was still at the start up on the hill, so the race director himself dropped everything and gave us a ride up there. Now that's service! Thanks to everyone in Casper for making this race available and for making it such a great experience. The food after the race was fabulous!!!

TWO THUMBS UP CASPER!
I concur with comments made by runners from Austin and South Dakota.
What differentiates this event from the others was the personal attention provided to all that participated in this marathon. Dawn and Eric, the Holiday Inn staff, and the volunteers personally made you feel like you were an ELITE athelete. Oh yeah, for those that go for the food, I have never seen a better offering; you won't experience a better pasta feed, more GU offered during a race or food following the race - and if that wasn't enough, more food at a post-race party.

This is a must-do race for the area.

Many thanks to the race organizers, volunteers, host hotel and everyone in the greater Casper area who helped out. I agree with the other posts; this is a very well organized event. The pre-race pasta dinner was the best ever. The bus to the start line, where the event center was open for use, was great. Indoor plumbing was a surprising treat. The water stops, support and spectators were first-rate. Thanks to everyone who yelled at me to turn left at mile 14 or so, when I was running off course. The post-race grub was excellent. I was looking forward to the beer and pizza, but - go figure - the strawberries, rasberries, and melons were refreshing. Ah! Strawberries and beer; now that's carbo loading. Casper: stand up and take a bow! The marathon was an excellent experience & I highly recommend it!

This may be the best organized race I've ever run anywhere. The race has a friendly, small-town feel and big-city, first-class organization. The race t-shirt is CoolMax, and it's not white. :-) They opened the Casper Events Center (which is near the starting line) at 5AM on race morning for us so we could have a warm place to wait before the race, with real plumbing (no porta-potties required!).

The course is scenic and rolling. The average altitude is about 5200 feet. The first six miles are on asphalt roads on the bluff north of town, and the rest is on the Platte River Trail, which is mostly asphalt with some concrete paved sections.

The half had 107 finishers and the full marathon had 140, so it never felt crowded to me. The finish line was right at the host hotel (Holiday Inn on the river). Even the weather was perfect (clear, 40F, 70% humid and calm at the start, 70F and 20% humid with a 10 mph south wind at the finish.) Since I'm a 'back of the pack' runner, and with so few runners, I was a bit concerned about taking a wrong turn and getting off the course, but the course was well marked and staffed with volunteers to direct us. There was water and Powerade about every 2 miles. At the finish, one person handed me my medal and another handed me a bottle of water. They had sandwiches, pizza, and beer for those that were hungry, and lots of bagels, fruit, Coca-Cola, juice and water for the rest of us. They even had fresh raspberries!

Casper has good air service and the Holiday Inn treated us like royalty. While we were walking and running around Casper before and during the race, we saw antelope, deer, and lots of cottontail bunnies. If you like wildlife viewing and wide open spaces, Casper is the race to run. Congratulations to the race committee, the Windy City Striders running club, and the city of Casper for a first-class event.