It was my first and second marathon. There's not a lot to look at, if that's important to you. Great aid stations. I used an iPod, so I cant speak for the music. I don't really have to have constant crowd support but it seemed fine to me.

This is one of my favorite races. I love the fact that there are so many half marathon runners. The event is extremely well organized. The course is flat and fast. The organizers do a great job of getting you from ASU (the finish line) to downtown Phoenix quickly. I have run the race each of the last three years and will continue to do so. I am looking forward to the Rock 'n' Roll LA that is starting next year.

- Bob Delava

I actually managed to injure myself (stress fracture) during this race, and although I made it through, I had to limp the last 12 or so miles, so I finished with a pretty slow time.

Pros:
1. I really liked the expo. Good guest speakers; I had a chat with John Bingham, had Bart Yasso sign my book, and almost ran over Shawn Johnson. The one booth handing out beer samples was a bonus. Packet pickup a doddle. Decent bag of stuff.
2. Well marked course. Good volunteers. Sympathetic and observant medical staff.
3. Well organized. Everything was well set up. Equipment drop-off was convenient and quick.
4. Liked the medal. T-shirt was so-so.
5. Very good weather. Nice to be there in January.

Cons:
1. Course was flat, but surprisingly dull except for the Scottsdale Arts District at around mile 20 (and I couldn't even enjoy that because of my leg. BAH.)
2. Support was OK, but noticeably thinned out as I went from being a medium-pace runner to a slow-pace limper.
3. End seemed to have been partially abandoned by the time I got there, even though there were plenty of runners still coming in and it was still quite a way before the time limit given on the website.
4. Pretty expensive.
5. The bands were OK, but there didn't seem to be anywhere near as many of them as were advertised. Wonder if some didn't show up.

Overall, a good marathon if you want a flat, if rather unexciting course, a big, well-organized race and decent weather in January.

I've run this race a couple of times as Phoenix is a great place to visit in January and while out there - hey why not run a Marathon! That said the course is very very boring and to make things worse, the fan support is virtually non-existent. Phoenix and the valley of the sun should be extremely embarrased about this turnout given that it is now the 4th largest city in the US. However the course is flat and you should be able to get a decent time. It is also quite well organized - one of the best.

This was my first marathon and it was an amazing experience. It was so exciting. I'm from Wyoming and was not sure how it was going to be in this big city, but the weather was perfect, and the course was pretty flat. Stations were set out clearly and there were plenty of volunteers. And talk about some amazing support from the community; you feel like the whole city of Phoenix (and Scottsdale) came out to cheer you on. I felt like I had conquered the world.

I was very impressed. I felt like my donation was returned with medals, t-shirts, a discount at P.F. Chang's, the certificate, and the most impressive post-race food and enthusiasm. I will run in 2010. I want my family to volunteer. It was very organized. I felt recognized in spite of the number of people who ran it.

Elite Racing is doing business good business. For instance, the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll is a big success! Not the Phoenix one. The course is very boring. It was convenient for the organizers - just a straight line. But hey, Elite people, we came here to see and run the city of Phoenix. So please design a nice and scenic route. Not many bands, and the ones that there did not show any enthusiasm. Medals and shirts: Nothing special. Actually, if you do many Rock 'n' Roll Marathons, you will realize that the Elite group has one single concept: No matter were you run, they give you a white, short-sleeve shirt that has the marathon name; and the medal is a heavy piece of metal with some bright colors. Boring....

PROS: Well organized, good corrals, good stations, great medal, and good post-run runners' area. Great, cool, dry weather!

CONS: Boring, straight-line run through standard suburban-appearing America.

If you are looking for a flat and fast marathon with decent organization and don't care about fan support, then this is the race for you. However, a few caveats. First, I found the fan support to be woeful. Other races of similar size that I have run had many, many more fans out on the course. Even tiny Fargo, ND has similar fan support compared to this race. Second, don't count on the bands and cheerleaders to fill in for the fans. Certainly, the 1% of the course that they cover is less desolate because of them, but it's not enough. The start line is well designed, but very spread out. I loved the corral system! It keeps everyone honest with where they should start. The finish was a mess with all the half marathoners mixing with the marathoners. The UPS trucks were too far from the finish line, and there didn't seem to be any organization outside of the secured areas. The best tip I can give for those of you coming from out of town is to stay at a hotel that offers a shuttle to the start and one back from the finish. It was so nice to not have to take the marathon-provided shuttle service.

The course is truly flat and fast. Two of my four best times were run on this course. However, it is a visually boring course that is helped only a bit by the music and crowds. The expo is very nice, registration was easy (with no lines), and the pre-race setting did not feel overcrowded. Corrals worked well. Very nice medal. T-shirt should be a technical fabric instead of cotton. My biggest complaint is the energy drink. Very few people have access to or train with Cytomax. If you want universal appeal in an energy drink, serve Gatorade. Everyone drinks it and all of the truly great marathons (Boston and NY) use it.