If you like a race with few volunteers and a flat, boring 5K course that you repeat over 8 times, then this one is for you. Without a doubt, this is the worst race that I've run in. I've run in 10 marathons and this one was the first where I suffered an injury. No one really noticed or came up to me asking if I was OK. Also, this is one race where you could cheat and get away with it.

In addition, my wife ran the 5K run. She completed the race with her chip and her time was never posted.

This is a race that should be discontinued. Very disappointing. We won't come back. Run away from the Ranch!

P.S. The race was run at the Trinity Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod). My wife and I got a kick out of a church member coming up to us and asking us what our religion was. When we told him we were Presbyterian, he told us, "Well, at least you're not Catholic!"

Overall, this race is exactly as advertised on their website. The course is a 5K loop that is flat with a few slight inclines. There are 2 aid stations that were stocked well with PowerAde, water and GU. The volunteers at the aid station by the start were especially helpful. The second half of the race they would ask you what you wanted when you were 20 yards away from the station and were very supportive. The food at the end was a nice touch. Very little crowd support; however, it is a very spectator friendly course for your friends and family to watch the race. The weather was fantastic. High 40's at the start and 40 at the finish. The only complaint I have is that the race director did not have a bull horn at the start so you could not hear his instructions and likewise his call for the start. Overall I recommend this race as a good end-of-the-year marathon in a cool/mild climate. I also got a PR after running my 9th marathon in Dallas 2 weeks prior to the race due in large part to the fantastic course and weather.

Okay, I ran back '06. Maybe '06 was a better year, but I do seem to remember a nice light drizzle and temperatures dropping below freezing, so how much better of a year could that have been?!

I liked the race. I was in full dread of going, but in '06 it was on NYE! I thought that was wonderful. Run a marathon and then have NYE party! I had a blast! As for my dread of running 8 loops, it turned out to be the best part! I am not fast, so I got to run half the race in the dark. The course runs in a neighborhood for the most part, so there were Christmas lights to cheer you up.

The best part of 8 loops: you got to be friends with the rest stop volunteers after a few laps. They were expecting you and knew what you wanted! It was fun to interact with the same people over and over again. It may just be something that I like as nobody else mentioned this as a plus.

Don't all races have one line for bibs and one line for shirts? Why complain about that here?

In all fairness, I think that they were very low on medals when I finished. I don't know if they ran out.

Also, in all fairness to the complainers, volunteers were not at all intersections after the fastest people had finished... but you should know the way after 5 or 6 loops!!!! Sheesh! How can you not learn the loop after three hours of running it???

Okay, it isn't a closed course; they do let people come home from work and shopping. Not many courses are closed, so why complain now???

Oh, is it important that somebody running a 5-hour marathon "cheated"? I mean, there were volunteers out for the fast crowd... I could care less about what the slower people like me did... cut a corner? Who cares? We are not going lose the race, as it is over already, and we just have not yet finished.

So... I loved the loops and getting to know the volunteers. Unique to start in the daylight and finish in the dark. I have done it the other way many times, but this is new to me! Hot food. A decent shirt. A good price. A small race with race day pick-up. It was a good time for me.

Why can't it be NYE again? My running buddies prefer to be home NYE with the family so they all like this date... I liked the running the last race of the year on NYE. I was out-voted 7 to 1... so this MUST be the better date - the last Sunday of the year, not the last day.

I am sorry that so many people did not have fun... I loved it!

I was one of 15 female marathon runners and my time was not recorded. I came all the way from Maryland and I left without a time. My age group award was given to another runner. I asked the race director to update my results in MarathonGuide, and he said it was too much of a hassle.

I am in the 50 States Club and this was my least favorite marathon. Running loops late in the afternoon on a boring course and not receiving a time is not my idea of a fun marathon.

Packet pickup was a mess for those who had pre-registered and was a breeze for walk-in.

I am glad my entry fee went to a good cause. This is a fund-raising event, so I do want to say that the race director and volunteers are wonderful people for helping to raise money for children.

Runners looking for an interesting course, organized event and a time... beware!

This race promises many things on the application that it simply doesn't deliver. Packet pickup was poorly done. I heard more than one runner say they hoped the timing people didn't mess the times up again this year. The race director needs to pay more attention to the details.

This is a unique race with loads of potential, but it suffers from a few "growing pains."

Course: At first glance, eight-plus laps around the same route can seem a little daunting. But I was pleasantly surprised, as it was a nice "mental treat" to be able to say, "Only two more laps" at mile 20. The course is pretty flat, especially for Springfield, MO, but there were a couple issues. There do need to be more course volunteers at intersections, especially after dark, since it is open to traffic (the volunteers seemed to thin out as the afternoon passed). And the concern that people might have cut off part of the course is legitimate.

Organization: I basically echo some of the other comments mentioned on this topic. The registration and check-in tables need to be clearly identified, and the process streamlined. A number of people waited in one line for several minutes, only to find they should have been waiting in another. The shirt is your basic short-sleeved cotton tee. Regarding the medal, I thought the horse design was nice, in keeping with the charity supported by the race, but the medals had no reference to the length of the race completed. It could have been a 5K or a marathon... there's no way to tell. A less generic medal would be nice. They also ran out of medals, causing local runners to have to wait two weeks, then drive across town to get theirs. I wonder if some of these problems might have arisen from an unexpectedly large turnout for the event.

Spectators: More than you'd expect for the Sunday afternoon after Christmas in Springfield. The nice thing is that you get to keep passing them over and over. Larry's fans were great.

Overall, the Run for the Ranch has the potential to grow into a great race. Its shortcomings are easily fixed, making this a good destination for a year-end event.

Was dreading this race, as it entailed 8 laps of the same course, but at the same time I was intrigued by it. It begins at 2:30 p.m., which is an odd time for a long race and most people's biorhythms were in for a shock.

On arrival there were two lines at registration, and as no signs were up, I stood in the wrong one for 20 minutes before an announcement was made as to what the lines were actually for. (I was a little worried about this race as they had already lost my application, but not my check....) Another announcement was made as to a problem with the T-shirts. (I never saw one, and never got one - and if it has a horse on it I don't want one!)

Finally, we lined up for the race only to find that there was a problem with the megaphone and very few runners were quiet enough to hear the poor organizer trying to tell us about how the 5K, 10K, half-marathon and marathon runners were supposed to run out so far before turning around to make their distances. I sensed confusion was rampant.

So the race started and it wasn't too long before we had the sight of other runners coming back towards us. It was very annoying getting out of their way, and vice versa I am sure.

Throughout the marathon, some runners were not following the official course and cheating with shortcuts, and I feel sure some of the personal bests or even the Boston times might be a little shady. (I wonder if the Boston Marathon knows about the poor marshaling....)

One worrying fact to me as a runner and an organizer myself was that some of the intersections were not manned, especially as darkness set in and I had a confrontation with a motorist. The course was generally mundane and it took a lot of willpower for me not to just stop and finish early. When I did finally finish, there was no medal waiting for me at the finish line. (I had to ferret one out at the post-race festivities.)

Overall the race was ok but nothing special. However it does have the potential to be special. The volunteers and few spectators were great and I admire them for sticking out the cold, especially when darkness set in. Registration needs a little more organizing (signs are wonderful!). The megaphone needs new batteries. The course needs manning to prevent "cheats." Have the other races start at different times or even places. Have enough t-shirts and please, please change that awful medal. I ran a marathon - I did not ride a horse in a rodeo event!!! The trophies were also horses....

Poorly organized. Packet pick up was right before the race: we had to stand in one line for bib number then in a SECOND line for the t-shirt! Inefficient. On-line registrants were guaranteed a shirt, yet a week later, I'm still waiting for mine in the mail. The course was also not well monitored. I saw 2 or 3 people take short-cuts of several blocks. If this is a Boston qualifier, I think you should monitor the intersections. Thank God for Larry's fans! They made my day! The food at the end was yummy.

This was a small, well organized event. It was an 8-loop course, but was not too bad. A slight incline in the early part of the loop, but no hills, and otherwise flat. The weather was perfect for a December marathon, with a mid-afternoon start. And after dark, when the temperatures dropped, you were already warmed up. The darkness never created a safety concern. There was adequate light after sunset to compete safely. There were water/refreshment stops at the start/finish line, and at the turn-around point, with very friendly volunteers. There was hot food, crackers, cookies and the like, in the church gym for after the race. It was great effort and a great marathon.

For a small-town race, this was run well. I have run loop courses but felt that 8 loops was a bit much to focus on, on on top of running the marathon. It would have been nice - since it was "chip timed" to get split times - which would have helped counting laps. After dark, the traffic control was poor, as just before crossing a major intersection, a truck drove right over the course cones and kept on going. I would do this one again now that I have run it and know what to expect. Also, an earlier start would have it lighter during more of the race.