If running Thunder Road for the first time, make sure to check out the elevation profile and and get some pre-race, quality hill work in. The hills are rolling and gradual, but fairly constant with the first half being slightly worse than the second half. The first half of the course is much nicer than the second half, which takes you back into the downtown area and through some fairly nondescript sections. Spectator support is pretty decent in certain areas (neighborhoods, primarily) but then practically non-existent in other areas. Organization is top-notch! Many hotels in the downtown area offer reduced rates to runners and late check-out and are within walking distance to the expo, start and finish lines. The medal was essentially identical to last year's medal. Very nice to receive a long-sleeve technical shirt at the expo and then another one of a different color and material at the finish line! I've never received TWO different shirts before at a race! Even though the designs were exactly the same, it was a very nice gesture on the part of the race organizers - thanks! Post-race food was the usual fare for the most part and included beer. Volunteers at the finish line and at the aid stations on the course were very supportive, friendly and helpful, not to mention plentiful in numbers - thanks to you all!

This was my 47th marathon and I am also an RD for 6 marathons - so I have a lot to compare a race to. This ranks among my top races! Travel was easy from the airport to the hotel. The start line was only feet from the host hotel, which made for extra sleep and a mere stumble back post-race. Packet pick up was easy. I have never been to Charlotte and was impressed with the downtown area, and the residential areas that we run through were beautiful- a very impressive overview of Charlotte for only having been able to stay for 24 hours! The course was rolling hills - but nothing horrible. I was surprised that we got two-long sleeve shirts - one at packet pick up and one at the finish. They were different colors and fabrics, but the same design. I thought the second one would have "finisher" on it - or at least no sponsor logos - but that was not the case. The medal was nice, volunteers and aid station support was as promised, and some of the nicest fellow runners. I am not a big eater after races, but I did notice the lack of finish line food. Chip timing worked fine for me - not sure why the other poster wrote that. One minor point of attention might be to have a little more room for the corral at the start of the race, as a large number of us were outside of the fencing and had to squeeze in after the gun. Overall, probably in my top 5 races. Well done!

The course: Rolling hills pretty much throughout. Well marked. Covered residential, commercial, and (lonely) industrial portions of the city.

Support: Compared to my prior marathons (Marine Corps), this race was relatively small, with under 2,000 marathon runners. For a lot of the second half of the race, especially the last 8 miles or so, runners were pretty spread out. Fan support was spotty, but the fans that did come out were generally very good. There were a couple of DJs and bands along the way that helped. Big thanks to the police, who did a great job with traffic control; many of them also cheered us on. There were plenty of water/PowerAde stations, and the volunteers who were there did a great job. A couple of stations seemed a little short-staffed, but it just meant I had to get the cup from the table myself - not a big deal.

Pre- and post-race: Nothing to write home about, but everything ran smoothly enough. It was nice to have the convention center available to get out of the unseasonable cold (28 degrees) pre-race. Ended up with two performance long-sleeve shirts (one pre-race and one at the finish), which was nice.

Location: I was pleasantly surprised with uptown Charlotte - it seemed like a nice area to hang out. Hotels are very close (i.e. walking distance) to the race and reasonably priced. Driving in and out of the city was pretty easy.

Overall: A positive experience. I'm glad I did it, and if I lived in Charlotte, I would probably do it again. But not a race I left saying, "I need to come back and run this again."

Hotels had late checkout and great rates. Easy to get to the start/finish. There is bus service to/from the airport to downtown hotels. Thanks to the two gentlemen in orange shirts that paced the 5-hour group. Though it was hilly, they made it possible for me to finish in just under 5 hours. Even the weather was good for running.

Liked: Very organized all around. Pre-registration was easy - a good website with lots of info, about the race, hotels, travel, the expo, etc. Air travel to Charlotte was easy, with many excellent, affordable hotels to choose from. Course was well planned; it really showed off the city to out-of-towners like me. Great police support at the many closed intersections. Excellent water stops.

Didn't like: Half marathon was run with the marathon, so it was very congested. Not enough porta-potties on the course. A few more would do it. At the finish line there was NO FOOD for marathon finishers except a table of GREEN bananas. I sensed that there were many more half-marathon runners and we got what was left. The residents don't really come out to cheer, so spectators are at a minimum.

Bottom line: Great race that I would recommend to other 50-Staters, and my 27th state.

Very well organized race with a scenic route that I enjoyed. But I highly recommend hill training before running this race. The hills are very gentle, but there are a lot of them!

Pros: Race start is very easy with the Convention Center right there. You can stay warm and use the facilities inside until 10 minutes before the start time. For out-of-towners, the hotels are very conveniently located right by the Convention Center. You just have to roll out of bed and you're at the start. Great organization and volunteers along the route! The spectators that did come out were very energetic and supportive, but since this is a mid-size race, spectator support was limited. Nice, long-sleeve tech tees.

Cons: I wonder if the race could be advertised more locally to help get more spectators out. I didn't notice any signs downtown and my cab driver from the airport had never heard of it. Also, it would be cool if there was something more that connected it to NASCAR, since that coincides with the race theme.

This was my first time to Charlotte and to NC. The city is beautiful and clean, and everyone I met was very nice. Although my race time was less than impressive, I'm glad that I was able to experience the city and meet the great people there! Thanks, Charlotte!

Great race otherwise!!!

This was probably the most organized marathon (out of seven) I've run.

The course was tough, but scenic. The volunteers, including the race folks, the cops/firemen, and the kids at the water station, etc., were awesome. The crowds were solid and very creative: Bands playing Rocky music, Fugesi Wall to "break down" at mile 20, 10 a.m. BBQ crowds blasting all of the race classics on the radio ("Where the Streets Have No Name," "Born to Run," "Run Like Hell..."), garage bands, and my favorite, the marching band under the tunnel by Panther Stadium....

I went down from NY and it was inexpensive to fly there, and inexpensive to get a great room by the start of the race (Marriott, but there's also the Westin, Hilton, etc.).

This is a super race, and the medals are solid. I would highly recommend that you add one to your collection. Thanks to all of the folks who worked hard to put such a nice race together. I had a great time.

This was a pretty good marathon. I had never run in North Carolina and thought this looked like a good one. The race is pretty conveniently located near several hotels. It was great to have the convention center open prior to the race.

There are some hills along the course but not a single one was a "killer." They were all gradual hills.

I was pleasantly surprised to receive a long-sleeve technical running shirt when I picked up my packet AND after finishing the race. The colors of the shirts were different, but it would have been nice to have two different designs. The medal was nice also.

Having set a half-marathon PR in October, I decided to parlay that into potentially breaking my marathon PR. I have run some bigger races like NY and I chose to do this race late, so I didnt know what to expect.

The Bad
- It isn't just at this race, but some people need a lesson in race etiquette. I spent the first 3 miles passing slower runners and even walkers. If you are going to be running slowly or walking, start in the back! The mass half-marathon/marathon start really cluttered things up.
- The port-a-potties were all occupied throughout the course. Maybe add an extra one or two each water stop.
- Be on the lookout for the traffic. I saw a really close call with someone almost getting hit by a bus. The police would let people through intersections when there was a lull in the runners, but the backed-up car traffic would get antsy and try to make it through. A bus plowed through and almost hit a couple of people ahead of me. This was literally a half-mile from the finish.

The Good
- Despite the hills, it seemed like a pretty fast course. I cut my PR by more than 20 minutes.
- Lots of available parking extremely close to check-in. We parked about 2 blocks from the finish line, so it was pretty easy to get out after the race.
- Race day check-in was a definite plus.
- A pretty enthusiastic crowd. There were a couple of stretches (14-16 and 18-20) where there was no one, but the first half of the race had a lot of the spectators. In the second half, the band under the overpass near the football stadium was awesome, as well as the stretch of people near the arena and the NoDa neighborhood. Thanks for coming out.
- Great volunteers and police support throughout the city. They did a thankless job as well as one can do.
- Weather was great. I have trouble running in the heat. It started in the low 30s and ended in the low 40s. I had a short-sleeve shirt on and by about mile 5, and I felt fine.

All in all, it was a pretty positive experience. The hills didn't seem too bad as I train in a pretty hilly area, but the one after 24 just past Hawthorne High School was the kicker for me. I struggled home after that.

There seems to be a lot of diversity, with a marathon relay, half-marathon and 5K, so if marathons are not your thing, there is something for everyone. I'd suggest this in the future and would contemplate doing it again.