The course was beautiful and very hilly. The half marathoners ran with us for 12.5 miles until they split off and it actually worked well running with them because this is not a very big race. The course and crowd support were fantastic for the 1st half but then miles 13-20 were lonely running through an industrial area and highways. It got better after we entered a residential area at mile 20 with great support. Finishing in the Vols football stadium was great. Knoxville is a beautiful fantastic city. My only other complaint, other than parts of the course, is that our pacer went too fast finishing 10 minutes ahead and dropping everyone. With a few touches, this good race could become a great one!

Knoxville almost has it, and it's really a good run... but it really could be a great run if the organizers and the city planned better. What I liked:
1. The variety in the course. I think we went through every possible neighborhood: UT, swank neighborhoods, green ways, sprawl, industrial wasteland, downtown, etc. And we crossed the river, what six times?
2. Plenty of aid stations, well stocked, close together.
3. Fog that held the sun and heat off.
4. A separate, dedicated, and well-stocked post-race area for the marathoners.
5. Super convenient host hotel in the Holiday Inn: connected to the expo and at the start with plenty of eating options in nearby Market Square.

That said, I really think the city needs to care more about this race. Sure, the traffic control was good, but here's what kind of annoyed me:
1. Parked cars on the first few miles of the course. It would have been easy to enforce the temporary parking ban, but KPD just didn't. That meant a really tight course in the first few miles. Because there's no staggered start, that meant some really tight spots over the first few miles.
2. Almost none of the local restaurants, stores, etc knew there was a marathon going on. I don't need the fans, but it seemed odd that the locals had no idea that Knoxville even had a marathon. Odd. Why wouldn't the city want to promote this race?
3. Would have liked a late check out at the Holiday Inn rather than schlepping to the Y to take a shower.

If you want a course with a good variety of sights and hills, this is it... This one's o.k., but not one for the top ten list.

I enjoyed this run...a lot. It was hilly but I prefer hills and inclines...I experience much less muscle fatigue than when I run the flatter courses. Knoxville was a very pleasant city, for sure. And everyone was helpful! The course was varied and intersting and I never ever felt bored...The Knoxville police kept the roads safe and all the volunteers were helpful and encouraging....Favorite sign on the course? A greyhound dog with a sign aroud his neck '5 cents per mile for pacing'....Coming into the UT stadium for the finish was awesome and I really felt like a champ!!! Thanks to the fine people of Knoxville!!!

Knoxville was my second marathon and I'm glad I picked it. I didn't run as well as I had hoped to, but that was my own fault for starting way too fast and sabotaging myself for the second half.. oh well. I traveled with friends who were running the marathon relay, and they were very impressed with how smoothly it was organized.
The spectator support during the race was fantastic, plenty of water stops, a hat, bag, metal, and technical tee shirt were all included for marathon participants.
My only complaint about the race organization: the walk to the post-race party (and FOOD) is about a half mile from the finish.. uphill. I was not feeling well at all after crossing the line and it would have been nice if oranges or bagels were provided at the finish, with direction to continue to the post race party after that. Of course, if I had finished feeling well instead of faint and dizzy, I probably wouldn't have even noticed that only water was provided!

Great weather, and the finish line was the best. This was my 100th marathon and the organizers went out of their way to make it special.

I placed first in my age group (Males 60-64). Due to bib tag, my time was not recognized. My time does appear in the final pictures at 3:54:48. Thanks to all spectators and volunteers who cheered me on!

My name is Bob Melcher and this was my 22nd marathon in state #14. I am also a DAV who is living on my 3rd pacemaker, and trying to complete the 50/50. The weather and volunteers and the post-race party were great. I am truly blessed with the love of running, and hope to inspire people as I am just inspired with the people who talk to me. This is a wonderful state and race. Keep on running. Semper fi.

I've done a few small marathons and some huge ones. This race is right up there with any other them. It is a small field with very few "competitive" marathoners (I coasted to a 3:25 due to a foot injury and came in 51st overall). This is probably due to its proximity to Boston and its tough course.

THE COURSE: I train in hills. I laugh when reviewers complain about hills... but this course is relentlessly hilly. The route is a great tour of Knoxville with a variety of urban and suburban scenery. IT WAS NICE TO SEE A COURSE THAT STAYED INTERESTING WITH GOOD SUPPORT AFTER THE HALF SPLIT OFF. The finish in Neyland Stadium is just awesome.

ORGANIZATION: 2 GU stations, lots of fruit, more toilets/water/PowerAde than anyone would ever need, great cops and volunteer support, friendly people, TONS OF FREE PARKING, start line at the convention center so you can stay warm inside until race time, the finish line was near the start, and AWESOME treatment of marathon finishers with a nice buffet line and "private party" inside the basketball arena away from other race competitors.

CONS: due to the laid back nature of the race there were no pacers faster than 3:45. I was shooting for 3:10 but ended up going out too fast and an injury forced me to back off and just start having fun around mile 15. I will say this was the first race where EVERY mile was CLEARLY marked so I could pace on my own with my watch.

PERKS: I only paid $75 for this one but it exceeded all expectations. Nice shirt, nice medal, and the YMCA a few blocks from the start allowed all contestants to take a FREE SHOWER! A big plus considering my 4-hour ride home.

Congratulations to Knoxville on a truly top-class marathon and this will probably be the first one I do twice. They pretty much did everything right.

I enjoyed this marathon, but I do feel that there are some areas that could be improved upon. I was looking forward to running with a pacer to try and BQ, but they didn't have signs and even though the race was small, I never found a pacer. Running up until the marathon split from the half was nice, but after we split off, runners were scarce and it wasn't quite as exciting. Spectators and volunteers were great, we got GU at 3 different spots, and they had food (bananas and oranges) around miles 20 and 22 (if I remember correctly). The course was tough, pretty hilly, but scenic. I think there could have been more bathrooms along the route and I couldn't find any food after the race (I was later told that the post race party was about a half mile away). There were a lot of problems with the timing and results, which was frustrating (although mine were posted correctly). It seemed unorganized for how small of a race it was, but I think that with the location, time of year, reasonable cost, and what the weather was like (perfect), this race has potential to expand and become very successful.

Overall a very positive experience. The course is in and around the downtown area of Knoxville, TN. Thus one should generally expect a hilly experience and that is just what I found, though it really wasn't too bad. The steep tenth of a mile downhill and then uphill into the stadium at the end was tough. The expo was average. Arriving late in the day on Saturday, I found many booths closed. However those that remained were enthusiastic and helpful. Race morning parking was very easy to find in proximity to both the start and finish. The course was generally well supervised and supported, though one spot a quarter mile long between miles 24-25 had no cones or volunteers and I feared had turned wrong. Finishing in Neyland Stadium - cool. Medal - nice. Hat - ok. Shirt - fair (L-too large). Postrace eats - solid -liked the extra attention provided to full marathon. Again, overall a positive experience. Would recommend it.