Their website said that those with headphones would be disqualified, but the picture of the female winner crossing the finish line clearly shows her listening to her iPod.

Why wasn't this an issue?

Yep... the Kansas scenery was a blast: Beautiful open sky, spacious country roads. I had 2 problems, both of which could be construed as my fault. First, screaming like a girl at the sight of a dead deer on the side of the road. I just saw it out of the corner of my eye and I nearly soiled myself. And there was a good-lookin' lady there to see my unfortunate reaction. :o( So much for being studly, eh? Then came the guy who almost hit me with his truck around 22-23. Still, the police did a good job of protecting us, and the course was well marked. I really liked the medal. I also liked how the last 1/4 mile on an uphill kind of separated the winners from the losers. Freakin' awesome! I have crossed Kansas off my list and probably won't be back because it's so far away from home, but the race itself and cool medal make it worth returning. If you're thinking about doing Kansas, do it in Olathe! The sunrise and open country in the first few miles seemed to epitomize what this race was all about: Splendor and hills. This was my first of 2 in 2 days, and it was a great warm-up for the race in Xenia, Ohio the next day.

The organizers went all out. Excellent volunteers and police support, and a well marked course. There was a very high wind and the course is not particularly scenic. I came to run and collect this state though, and I couldn't have asked for a better welcome.

After completing the 2008 1/2 marathon, I was very dissatisfied, but to be fair, most of my negativity resulted from the ridiculously poor preparation at the start of the race. (1) The idea of being transported to the start is silly; just create a course where you start and finish in the same place. Or at least organize the pick up so the lines of people are broken up by race (marathoners to the right, 1/2's to the left, etc. - we got on the bus for the 1/2 almost by accident). (2) Having only two restrooms available at the 1/2 marathon start is beyond ridiculous; anyone who has attended a race in their life knows there is always a run on the restrooms prior to a race, and many (30) racers did not get to use the restroom prior to start and some stayed after the start to use it. (3) Of course, this wouldn't have been a big deal because we have chips, right?! Wrong - there was no "mat" at the 1/2 start, so the chips were useless to us - but we were responsible for them. The organization for this race has to improve; it has been going on for too many years now to have these types of problems.

As another comment states, the 2008 race was very cold and very windy! The wind was so bitter that I wore a hoody with the hood UP for the entire 26.2 miles due to the chill! The first 80% of the course was through the country on highways with traffic, which can get boring and irritating after a while. There was a lot more uphill running than I expected. There were NO spectators aside from aid station personnel and a few family/friends of participants here and there. On the positive side, the aid station organization/supply, event staff, and police presence were all EXCELLENT! Overall, it was worth running once, but I probably won't repeat the Olathe Marathon.

Very friendly volunteers and helpful policemen. Course gently rolling but cold headwinds slowed things down and kept long sleeves on for the duration. Not too much to see along highways - town was more interesting toward the end. Nice medal and massage tent at the finish. Cheap generic cotton t-shirt and lack of food at finish were minor complaints. All in all, a nice run.

My third marathon overall. I picked the race I was hoping for, with cool weather (and it got cooler than expected, due to a steady headwind... which I can't blame anyone for). Aid stations every 2 miles up until 20, and then every mile. Great work from the volunteers. Lots of open road and rolling terrain, with wind. Amazing massage service pos- race! Many experienced runners with the 50 states club, which made it fun.

As this was my first marathon, I'm not sure how valid my information is, since I have nothing to compare it to. There was a few hills around Mile 16 and 17, but nothing too serious. The course double-backed three times, one stretch of which was over a mile long each way. The volunteers were very helpful and organized, with water and Gatorade at every aid station (Gu at Mile 17 station). A couple of things I was disappointed in were the wind and the lack of spectators. At least 20 mph headwinds making the run about 50% more difficult were present, and making it that much more difficult. The people that were there were great, but there seemed to be a slight shortage of spectators.

Overall, the race course was not such a difficult one to run, with some inclines here and there, but mostly flat and well marked, so it was clear where to go and easy to get there. However, the wind was beyond what I expected, and for most of the course I was "crying," holding onto my beanie, and wiping away the sniffles, with my frozen hands (despite gloves). If this race could be put on less-windy roads (such as ones more sheltered, like by homes or businesses); perhaps that could help deflate that wind that really goes right through you from the open fields!

And what can definitely be helped is bathrooms! I needed about double what was there, and at one point made my way off the highway around mile 14 to a gas station!

With the wind as it was, I was really chilled and shivery, and just had to go much more than usual! And then it was too cold to sweat, so all the fluid had to come out somehow!!

Also, at times the stretches of open fields were tedious, and the other major miles, which were on the highways, were often on concrete where we could just soak up the exhaust! (Yuck...)

But, the people were all super nice, encouraging, and there were lots of police to guide our paths and keep us safe. That made it worth it, and a nice experience too, even though I got a time a lot higher than expected.

Also got a nice little massage at the end, and my picture taken at no cost, so people are once again very kind there. :)

I had read several good reviews of this race and there were positive aspects to it... however, when the school bus pulled up to drop us off at the start line for the 1/2 marathon, there were a total of TWO porta-potties! For over 600 runners! Well, you can imagine the line. Come on, people, this isn't the first time this race has been run. Surely you knew that was not going to be sufficient. Secondly, I know you can't control the weather, but how much would it cost to have a tent of some kind with some heaters for the already-predicted weather situation? If not for the wonderful security guard at a near by office building we would have had to stand in the cold and wind for almost an hour with no shelter whatsoever. Standing in an open parking lot, with temperatures in the upper 30's and 30 mph wind gusts with only two porta-potties, is not the way to start a race. Otherwise, it was a nice enough run. Good volunteers and plenty of water and Gatorade. But please, rethink the other aspects before next year. Luckily I'm a local runner, but if I had driven several hours like some participants I would NOT have been happy with the way we were treated at the start!