Great destination race! No major complaints. I had to improvise for bathroom relief but overall this is a great race event. The course is flat and fast with plenty of water/Gatorade stations. Thanks to all the volunteers. Nice decline the last few miles.

Outstanding expo. Packet pick-up was quick and easy. Organizers put together a great seminar schedule with several running legends in attendance - chatted with Bill Rodgers and Joan Benoit Samuelson for a bit Saturday afternoon!

Great inaugural event which could eventually rival established international marathons at New York and Chicago. And, seriously, what better place to celebrate after a race then Vegas? Mark your calendars for 2006.

I had a great time running this race. The strip was a lot of fun and great way to see it without all the congestion of people and taxis. The weather while cold was good for running, I just wish it hadn't been so windy. The water/Gatorade stations were plentiful. The best part was not having to fight through large crowds. Now, the negatives. I was very disappointed that there was not a clear map of the course with mile markers for the racer at the expo. Also, there were no pacers, so why bother giving out pace bibs? There seem to be a lot of confusion at the Mandalay Hotel with their employees not having a clue as to what was going on. And, c'mon we spent $100 entry fee, airfare, & hotel - can you spring for a bottle of Gatorade at the finish rather then the small cupful we received. I'll definitely run it again; just looking forward to the organizers working out the kinks.

I ran the marathon here in January '05 - the new course was so much more enjoyable. With the 'square' route, I knew that even if the headwinds were as tough as last time (33 mph), I would only have to deal with them for 6 miles or so. The 10-12 mph winds this time were barely noticable.

The course offered so many more distractions: The glitz of the Strip, Fremont Street, the spectacular mountains along with residential and business areas. The course wasn't too hard (or too flat) and the road surface was great most of the way.

Whilst this might not be a marathon to choose for maximum crowd support, I was suprised to see so many spectators and how incredibly supportive they were. The temperature (45-55F) was great to run in, not so good for standing still in. Plenty of water, Gatorade, gels (an unusual treat!), bananas... handed to us by enthusiastic volunteers - they were awesome! I wish every marathon bib had my name on it! Loved the medal and the technical race shirt.

If I was going to run this again I would hope for clearer pre-race information - I had no idea what the yellow tape was for....! If I had, I guess I would have been in a corral and avoided passing walkers for the first 2 miles (no direspect intended to them). Couldn't find any info on family reunion areas. Didn't see any of the port-a-johns that were supposed to be at regular 1-mile intervals. I didn't see a mile marker until mile 4 (and I was looking) and after that, several were unclearly marked.

The photo-op with a showgirl was great, but the exit area was too narrow and we had to stand in line when we really needed to keep moving. Like others, I never found the post-race food. I decided not to check a bag with warm post-race clothes because the baggage check instructions were vague - regretted that soon after finishing. Skipped the massage tents since recent press coverage recommends waiting at least a day or two before getting a massage.... (I read too much!)

I hope we get an 'official finisher's certificate' this year too, unlike the 'complete-it-yourself' version from January.

Overall, I loved running this marathon and have already been recommending it (hopefully the organizers will fix the teething problems and fulfill this marathon's potential).

This race was incrediby fun! The medals? Gorgeous. The course? Flat and fun. There was water, there was Gatorade, there were plenty of gel packs, and there was a great expo. I adored this race, and finished strong and happy. (Of course, I broke my foot, but hell, I FINISHED, and in 4:06:58.)

Probably could have had a sub-4 without that damned wind. Crazy wind.

Kudos to Devine.

My only complaint is that there wasn't a pasta dinner provided for entrants. It was insanely expensive to try and eat around Mandalay Bay and the surrounding hotels. I needed to carbo load, and it was tough to find a place.

I recommend staying AT Mandalay Bay and eating at Raffles Cafe in the casino. Great stuff.

After the old LV Marathon in January, I did not want to come back for another. This course and experience more than made up for it. The flat, fast course was great. Unfortunately, we had to start at 6 AM so as not to disrupt the strip during any prime time. The mile markers were screwed up at some points but that can be fixed. Support was great and plenty of fans. Put this on your list for next year!

If you are looking for a fast course to PR on, the New Las Vegas Marathon is it! Although we were part of a select group of couples to renew our vows at mile five, we finished with a time I did not believe was possible after a 24-minute stop at the Special Memories Wedding Chapel on 4th and Gass. This is certainly a testament to the nature of the course.

There are a few rises and falls along the course; however, it is flat for the most part. There are fewer twists and turns than most of the marathons I have run, which really help when your goal is time oriented. As with most marathon courses, there are breaks in the pavement (asphalt) at some points so you can not run with blind abandon.

Devine Racing did a fine job in organization and support for the participants throughout registration, the race itself and in the post-race finish area. Although the food was not what I have found at some marathons, it was what a participant needed after 26.2 miles (water, Gatorade, banana, orange, trail mix).

Having never been to Las Vegas before, there really was nothing there I was interested in except the race. And there still is nothing there for me but the race. Although the public transportation is efficient, there also is a lot of walking involved in getting from one point to another. Certainly this is something to consider as a participant and plan ahead to limit your physical expenditure. Use the options available through the marathon and stay at one of the three hotels listed as host hotels. If it's too expensive, then look off Strip, but find something within a block and remember that their blocks are very long. Most of the hotels, including the host hotels, involve walking more than a block inside to get to where you need to be!

Having run another first-time marathon (OC in 2004)which didn't measure up, Vegas was a direct opposite. I set a PR: 3:19.

Website - Friends back home were able to watch the entire event unfold on a live webcast dot-race between three of us who finished within 1:30 of each other. The emails sent during the race were fun to read afterwards.

Course - Fun on the strip and Freemont. A little blase the rest of the way, and the 300' climb was done by 14 miles. Timing mats every 5K - the biggest mess up was the clock at mile 23(?) was waaaaay off - displaying a later time than mile 24 when I passed it.

On-course entertainment was fun. You never knew what would show up next - cowgirls, gospel choirs, Santa, exotic dancers, etc.

Sub 4-hour runners had a corral up front - only had a 12-second delay at start.

Fireworks at the start were very cool.

Expo was well setup (although paled in comparison to the Pro Rodeo one next door).

Would have liked a little more food at the finish - bagels anyone?

The New Las Vegas Marathon marked my 26th marathon and is now my favorite U.S. marathon. Considering how little time the race organizers had to pull off this marathon, I thought it was awesome. The weather was a bit cold, but hey, no heat-related problems this time! The course was flat and scenic, the aid stations were plentiful and well stocked with goodies, the crowds were frequent and enthusiastic and the finisher's medals were, well, Las Vegas (wonderful). Las Vegas put on an excellent 26.2-mile adventure!! VIVA LAS VEGAS!

Running the strip was awesome! The organization did a great job pulling this off. Put it on your list as a 'must-run.'

After running Salt Lake City, I knew Devine Racing would not disappoint me. The shirts and medals are awesome. The fireworks were fun. Plenty of water stops. Just the right amount of entertainment and crowd support along the course.

What I did not like was the wind. I knew it gets windy there, so I expected that, as well as the fact that once we got off the strip and out of downtown there was nothing pretty or interesting to look at (I knew that about Vegas too).

Thank you, Devine Racing, for another high quality race.