Really a great show - the organization was precise. I had zero problems with the race expo, the organization of the start, the run, water (etc.) stations, and the finish area. Probably the best organized race I've run; I could not find a flaw. The course was interesting but not very hilly really (yes, there are hills, but they're mostly short and gradual). Perfect running weather this year too.

However, according to my Garmin, it was 240 meters long! I thought that odd, so I checked with 2 other friends who said they stopped their watches after walking around a few meteres after the race and they had 42.5K. So either the satellites weren't working accurately or it was long. Not a huge deal to most, but I was 12 seconds from beating an 8-year-old PB, which I would have broken even if it were only 100 meters too long.

Great crowd support, scenic race, only minor hills. Only complaint was that the water stops seemed too far apart at the end of the course. Otherwise a fantastic experience!

This was my first marathon, and I had an AMAZING experience! I can't wait to come back again next year to run it again!

PROS:
-VERY friendly staff and city, police, everyone!
-Crowds were wonderful
-First aid seemed plentiful
-BEAUTIFUL COURSE
-I had no expectations of entertainment along the course, but there were A LOT of wonderful acts - from belly-dancers to mariachi, to jazz bands, and everything in between. It was just so GREAT!
-Passing parliament was one of the most memorable moments for me!
-The countdown signs really helped me rev up the last 750 meters to go to the finish line!
-The road of flags leading up to the HALFWAY HOME archway was really exciting!
-The medal is GORGEOUS!!!!!!!! I AM SO PROUD! :)

CONS:
-There were NOT enough bathrooms on the course. They were ESPECIALLY limited between the halfway mark and where we split from the half-marathoners, as now marathoners were competing against the halfers for bathrooms.
-Fluid stations ran out before I got to them, and there were many people behind me; also, 2 gel stations were advertised, but I only saw 1, so I assume it ran out also.
-As it did for most of the first-timers, it felt like a VERY hilly course to me! The WORST thing is that the tour guide on the bus tours of the course explained that the marathon would NOT be going over the hill this year, so even taking the bus tour did not prepare me for the big hill! I felt really discouraged when I came upon it and realised I WAS going to have to climb it. By the time I was done, I was mixed with the half-marathoners and there was the lack of bathrooms.
-I thought the experimental farm portion of the run was quite pretty, but it felt VERY long and you can't even SEE Ottawa from there. At points, this part of the race felt ENDLESS to me! :P
-The U2 cover band with the female vocalist HAS TO GO. It was TRULY AWFUL!
-Generally, the entertainment speakers were WAY TOO LOUD.
-I was SO HAPPY to see that they used paper cups, but very UPSET that they did NOT recycle anything! Everything was thrown into black plastic bags. We can do better! I saved all my trash for a garbage, and wore Camelbaks to reduce my waste, but certainly we can recycle paper cups!

These are MINOR complaints, which hopefully can be corrected by next year! Overall, this race gave me the biggest sense of pride I have ever felt in my life!!!

Definitely, please add more toilets and straighten out the tour guide/bus situation! :)

THANKS FOR AN AMAZING WEEKEND!

The course was quite hilly, not as was advertised. I was completely disappointed with the expo. My quadriplegic nephew and mother went to the expo with me . They could not even explore what was there. They had to turn around and wait outside for me as they could not enter; what's with that? No bags to carry stuff in; what's with that? The expo was very crowded, hot and extremely difficult to move around. Getting to the expo on Saturday was draining, as the streets were congested. If you want your marathon to grow, so must the facilities.

This was my third marathon and by far the best. I didn't find it hilly - slight ups and downs only. The crowd was awesome; in the last 500 meters I thought my legs were going to give out, but the crowd encouragement was beyond my expectations. What a great day. Yes, I did need medical attention and was extremely pleased and appreciative of the care. I will be back for another marathon in Ottawa.

I've run this event since 2000, and every year it keeps getting bigger (which the organizers love to brag about). But the cost is that, over the past several years, they've run out of food! I'm not the fastest runner, but there are lots of people who finish after me, and if there are no bagels for me, there are no bagels for thousands of full and half marathoners who follow.

Otherwise, it's a nice event. But it's really nothing special - no better than other events in other cities.

I had high hopes for this marathon after a disappointing Hartford in 2009. My goal was to break 3:20 to BQ, but the early weather reports were predicting temps in the lower 80s with high humidity (not good). The race doctor posted a warning about the temps and hydration, but the weather changed by Sunday and the day stayed cloudy throughout, with temps in the 60s - just perfect for a marathon!

The starting area was well organized with plenty of crowd support. I didn't know much about the course, but I was encouraged by the weather I went out with the 3:15 pace bunny and kept my splits at 7:24 per mile. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits, and the crowd really got the adrenaline going.

The course was not flat - more of a rolling course, but not as dramatic as VT City. It always seemed like I was running up or down an incline, and there were a lot of turns and sights to see along the way so the run never got monotonous. The water-stop volunteers were great - super nice and plentiful. This was the first marathon where I got to use sponge stations (a really great idea). Even though it wasn't very hot, it made a difference to be able to clean up and cool off with a nice, clean sponge soaked in cool water.

The music was a mixed bag. One band consisted of little kids playing pop music (cute), another was playing Mexican acoustic tunes, and there was a talented Dixieland jazz group with clarinet and tenor banjo. One rock band was deep into a catchy groove that kept me going for miles, but another near the finish was playing a song with lyrics saying to slow down (a stupid message for a marathon).

I kept with the 3:15 group until they picked up the pace a bit to 7:20, then dropped into my own rhythm and worked on keeping my focus. The crowd was sparse away from the city center, but there were pockets of people everywhere, and it was really cool getting cheered for in both English and French.

Towards the end there was a big bridge we had to cross that was an unwelcome, long uphill just when you didn't need it, but there was a funny sigh at the start of it saying, "This bridge could be much worse, so just get over it." That helped... and for every climb you were rewarded with a welcome downhill to push you back on pace.

The last few miles were tough for me, but I kept hearing people cheering for the 3:20 pace bunny, and I knew that I couldn't let the 3:20 group pass me after all those miles. The last 500 meters felt like 2 miles, but the crowd made it all worthwhile, and I finished with a time of 3:18:59 (BQ!).

Some random notes:

Although the race was well organized, and the spectators, volunteers, and runners were very polite and helpful, there were some exceptions. In the last mile or so, and especially in the last 300 meters, the spectators kept crossing in front of the runners. My wife saw a woman step right in front of a runner who was struggling to finish, and he stopped dead, and had a lot of trouble getting his legs to move again. Thats the last thing you want in the finishing chute. I had to run around a guy crossing in front of me with a bike. Don't they realize how hard it is to just keep putting your feet in front of each other? Another runner stopped to let a woman with a stroller cross in front of him, but he did it with a sense of humor that left the spectator (who hadn't looked first) horrified at her own behavior, and the crowd roared with encouragement for him. Luckily a police officer noticed what was happening and took control - pushing the crowd back to protect the runners trying to finish. This was never an issue anywhere else on the course.

I didn't notice any issues at all with the half-marathon joining the full marathon finishers. I did see a couple of folks blow past me in the last few miles like they were running a 10K, but it wasn't disruptive to the flow or experience.

The finisher's medal is awesome! The best I've ever received. The race shirt is high-quality too.

There isnt a lot of commercialism with this race. Don't expect too much branded merchandise at the expo (there is plenty of stuff to buy, just not lots of Ottawa Marathon items).

Logistics are easy at this race. There are plenty of hotels within walking distance from the start, lots of great restaurants, and the expo isn't far away.

The pasta dinner was a bit over-produced: rich, creamy, cheesy sauces with no indication of whether the items were vegetarian or not (a big deal for me), and some kind of soft drink (flat cola?). I wish there had been some plain pasta with sauces you could add yourself.

If you want to combine a trip to a beautiful city with a chance to run an exciting race, then I recommend the Ottawa Marathon. See you in Boston!

This was my 23rd marathon and my third in six weeks. The course is not flat but rather quite hilly. The race has its pluses, like amazing crowd support, lots of porta-potties at the start, lots of volunteers and plenty of Vaseline stops, but it could improve in a few areas:
1. More water stations - every 2K
2. Hand-washing gels in the porta-potties (they looked like they were removed!)
3. With the finish line being close to Ottawa U., they should be like the TO Marathon and have free showers on campus for the runners. Just a thought.
4. Bags at the runners' expo! At least let the runners know in advance so that they can bring their own bag. Also, handouts about the warning signs of sun/heat stroke would be good as well.

It was a fun race with good people around. Just a few improvements and this race would be awesome!

- Sanjay

Really enjoyed this race. I don't think they should advertise it as flat as it's more like "rolling hills" the entire course. The spectators were great; water stations were great. The race expo and the finish line were where I feel a few things could be improved. I think "sweat bags" should be given out at the expo instead of bringing your own the next day. Also, a finders' area at the finish line would be fabulous. I couldn't find any of the people I came here with - and since I'm not from Ottawa, I didn't have a landmark to choose (like others told me they did). The other marathons I have completed (Grandma's and Twin Cities) designate a finders' area by letter. Yesterday was just plain chaos!

Also, and maybe I'm being picky, but I can't help but compare how the food was other races with how it was in Ottawa. (When I finish a marathon, I am starving!!) So I was disappointed in the selection (or lack thereof). Maybe I have higher expectations because at other races they have things like sandwiches, ice cream, chips and fresh fruit - and I expected the same here. Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed Ottawa and the weather was fantastic - but I do think a few things could be improved upon.

The number of fans throughout the weekend was terrific and perhaps unparalleled in Canada.

This was a tough marathon in 2009 and for my debut:

1) Late May is a risky date for potential heat and this course has a little shade. It wasn't just me - I had a 39 second per K fade from the first 30K to the last 12.2K and didn't lose any position in the race doing so.

2) Merging with the half-marathon course for the last 5K is discouraging. I was 3:20 into a 3:53 marathon fade and had fresher halfers 1:20 into 1:40 - 1:45 halves joining our group in about a 5:1 ratio. Easy to feel trounced at that point.