My first marathon and my very first race, and everything went very smoothly, from picking up my race kit to the end of the race. Their website is very informative and a must-read for newbies. I can't imagine finishing the race without the cheers of the spectators, the beautiful scenert, and the friendly volunteers. Overall, the city is a great place to visit, and a great place to run your first marathon.

Race was extremely well-organized, with great volunteers and fans. Weather was on the warm side, but scenery was nice. I actually liked the half merge at the end. It was nice to feed off of the half-marathoners' pace as your legs get a bit heavy. The talent of the field is impressive, with strong average times. The city is very pleasant; it has friendly people and and it's easy to get around.

Ottawa is a great city and this race is an excellent showcase. The course winds by beautiful houses, takes you along a scenic canal, through some interesting parks, and finishes where you started - in their eclectic downtown. I only have 2 suggestions: 1) Remove the Quebec part. There were virtually no spectators and the course was on barren city streets and 2) For us metrically-challenged Americans, add a few MILE markers - like every 5 miles at least! Perhaps best of all, Ottawa must have more Irish bars per person than any city but Dublin.

I may be biased, as this is my hometown marathon, but I think this is one of the best running events in Canada. This year over 32,000 runners participated in the events. This year they added a kids' marathon, with grade school kids training 41K before race day and then running the final 1.2K. This year they tweaked the start time of the half marathon to address merging problems with the marathon (I think it worked!!). This year they moved the running expo to the Cattle Castle, a wonderful historic building by the canal, and added a concert on the Saturday night. My message is that they keep trying and innovating to make a great event even better. The organizers really care about making this event a success. The course for the marathon is a nice mix - what I would call an honest marathon course - giving a good tour of the city. Weather was perfect this year - a little warm at the end - mostly because of the cool weather leading into the weekend. Crowds were fairly good; there were some spots without them, but then again it was early Sunday morning. The bands and the dancers along the way were great. Someone said they couldn't find the pace bunnies. They were there with great big signs and rabbit ears in all the events from the 10K, to half marathon, to the marathon (perhaps it is time to eat some carrots). Bottom line: great race.

A well organized race from start to finish. The course is great; the city is beautiful! I'll be there next year!

This was a great weekend and experience. I highly recommend it to anyone coming from the U.S. The expo and Athletes' Village were well organized, the crowd support was sporadic but very enthusiastic, and the mix of French and English made for a very interesting race. My one complaint is that when I arrived at the start line and looked for my pace bunny, he/she was nowhere to be found. My wife ran the half marathon and had a similar experience. I understand that many races do not have pace bunnies, but if they are promised, it is a real disappointment if they don't show up.

Fast course (I trained in cold and hilly north-western Ontario), and great people in Ottawa (and Hull) helping out and cheering. A few quiet spots, but what do you expect? The last few miles offered a steady roar from the crowd and this is the only reason I was able to finish - thank you, everyone!!

This was my first half, although I've cheered at others, like Grandma's in Minnesota. Gatorade and sponges were great, but water was a little fishy at spots. They gave some kind of GU/gel that I didn't use. I also seem to remember some folks handing out PowerBars at the start line. Love the belly dancers around 11KM. One of the musical bands along the course had quite a sense of humor. "On the road again?!?"

I came with my wife and two young boys and there was lots for them to do. There's even a kid's fun race, if you're so inclined. Also, there's some kind of play center for them off of the finish area. The course layout allowed them to see me three times while traveling on foot. They say "more washrooms, please." I tend to agree, but the cops turned a blind eye to watering the bushes. At the start, if I had arrived earlier I would have found more washrooms a little farther from the start line.

There was a bottleneck in the last few miles, as well as a complete traffic jam just past the finish line. And the family wasn't allowed to come see me in the recovery area, but I'm told this is common at many races. Oh yeah, and Ottawa is not a cheap place to stay.

With an earlier start to the full (7 a.m.), I was able to see them take off before my 9 a.m. start. Speaking of starts, some of the corral signs were confusing because arrows on one side of the road pointed in the opposite direction of the signs on the other side of the road. I was mid-field anyway, so it didn't matter too much. They let me line up wherever I wanted.

I heard one of the days was crazy at the race kit pick-up. The day/time I was there was no problem, though.

Overall, I loved it. Thank you to all the volunteers and friendly runners!!

I have never seen such a poorly run expo/race kit pickup. Getting the chip and bib was good, but the t-shirt pickup involved elbowing your way through a mass of people, in no discernible lineup. I didn't elbow for ten minutes or so, and after realizing I'd never get to the front that way, since everyone else WAS elbowing, I had to do it too. Highly stressful, especially with the volunteers screaming at each other about which bags go to which runners.

The start corral signs (for the half, at least) had their arrows going in the wrong direction, such that the fastest runners would be at the back, but since people just lined up wherever they felt like it, I suppose it wasn't an issue. Except it was, somehow.

I'd heard really good things about this race, and the race itself was fine, but the chaos the day before really left a bad taste in my mouth.

I bring my own food/drink, but my sister told me one of the aid stations provided HOT water. Oops!

This was a great marathon - well organized, with plenty of support. I have one question for others who ran it. I had a cup of water at the water station by the Museum of Civilization and the water had a sour taste and it upset my stomach. Did anyone else have this experience?

I loved the course. I have run the 1/2 twice before and really enjoyed it. I ran the full marathon this time and enjoyed it even more. The organization was very good.