Well the day started very early. That happens with a 7 a.m. race start and us runners understand that, but the problem was that the website didn't explain well how to get to the event due to the road closers. Now other marathons in DC rectify this issue by encouraging their runner to use the metro; at the National Marathon, unless you live in DC or got a hotel room, the metro trip would have made you late for the start. Besides the website issues and silly logistical issues, the organizers also had a problem with the finishing results. I can forgive a lot, but after putting in the work to get (what I think was) a good time and you don't even get to see it except on your watch. It is just heart-breaking. Overall the course was a fun - and the people on the course worked hard, and I thank them - but the organization leaves a lot to be desired. I do not recommend this race.

This was a very well run race! They showcased the city very well - they added a cool "Heartbreak Hill" of our own, there was excellent police protection on every side street, neighborhoods were fun and supportive and there was plenty of water and Gatorade all around. I loved the clear race times at about every mile - the clear mile markers.

Packet pickup was fast - I was out of there in 4 minutes. Plenty of bathrooms at the start. The bag drop off team had their stuff together - fast to get your bag in (flexible on types of bags) and fast on retrieval. Medal was cool.

Nice job on the weather, too!

You start off running towards the capitol building, you see the navy yard, all the museums, the botanical gardens and many monuments. You run through beautiful Rock Creek Park, the Potomac by the Kennedy Center and along the Anacostia Riverfront. You run through great neighborhoods - H Street Corridor and the Connecticut Ave./Calvert St. and Adams Morgan neighborhoods. It was terrific.

You've gotta love it when the mayor runs the full marathon, too!

I ran the half and I will definitely be back next year. There are so many things that were done right, I'll just list them:
- free parking on race day and at the expo
- expo near a major highway on/off ramp for quick access
- enthusiastic volunteers, with well stocked stations
- DC police did a FANTASTIC job at holding back the traffic
- course goes by the monuments and the nitty gritty neighborhoods of the city
- technical shirt

There were only 2 "cons":
1. No porta-potties on the entire half course until about mile 12.5.... At that point the finish is practically visible.
2. We were repeatedly told that the metro would not be running in time to use it to get to the start. Late the night before, however, the metro announced it would start running at 6 a.m.

It was a great size race, and we had perfect weather, in my opinion (overcast and 50s). I want this race to take off, but then again I don't. I liked it much better than the Marine Corps Marathon.

In short, if you want the race party atmosphere, do MCM in the fall. If you want a challenging race that highlights the best and worst of this city, run the National Marathon/Half.

A challenging course with lots of hills in the second half of the half-marathon. (According to my Garmin, the course ran 13.52 miles. I talked to several other folks with Garmins, and they had the same reading I did.) Aid stations were well staffed and supplied. Suggestions include: more accessible place for packet pick-up (I learned to use the Metro), more garbage cans on site, and better mapping of the course.

I was injured and ran the HALF marathon instead of the full marathon; so my comments are limited to the first half of the course - or at least, somewhere around mile 11-12 when we split off from the full marathoners. I did like the first half of the course, except that I found the long stretch of M Street through SW and SE to be rather desolate and boring. I understand that the folks who ran the whole distance encountered rougher terrain.

I thought the race director did a really admirable job. DC does not make it easy to put on a major race, which is unfortunate, especially since DC wanted to be in the running as an Olympic host city. I feel the mayor could have been more supportive of the race in advance, although I was glad to see him come to the start. The police were great that day - they were doing their public safety job and being cheerleaders at the same time.

I give the organizers high marks for allowing people like me who lost their entry fees from the cancelled DC Marathon a couple years ago have complimentary admissions. Even though the National Marathon was in NO way affiliated with that cancelled marathon, I thought that was an unexpected and pleasant way to have folks think about running a DC marathon again.

I don't think this marathon can compete with the Marine Corps Marathon (which I've run three times so far), but I don't think it is meant to. The Marine Corps Marathon is a very different kind of race.

The race: DC had a spring marathon until 2003 when the race imploded due to organizational problems. Although area runners wanted another spring marathon, everyone knew how daunting the task would be to bring one back to DC. Congratulations to the city and the race director for taking on a snake-bitten challenge and pulling it off.

They focused on the basics - support the runners, give them a challenging course, water-stops, security, good medical attention and the beginning of new support from communities east of the Capitol. Things like the expo, goodie bags, music, bands, shirts, tons of food, cheerleaders and balloons - they certainly weren't at the level of a major marathon, but I didn't expect it and didn't mind because the basics were done right.

The course was challenging, but it was also no secret. The elevations were there on the website all winter long. As it was, I didn't fully "appreciate" them until running them in the race, but it gave me a life lesson for all future races - train for the race course!

The support from the volunteers was great, and the police directing traffic were top-notch. During the second half of the race there were some long traffic back-ups and the compliments and support by drivers watching the runners far outnumbered the few frustrated drivers in their cars. It was kind of fun for runners to actually have the right-of-way in their favor for a change!

Suggestions/improvements for next year: If you're sticking with RFK Stadium, let us start and finish in the stadium; add more portable toilets at the start; and note that the two-mile section in the park right after the half-marathoners turn off the course was truly desolate. If you keep the hills next year, I'll be ready! I liked the idea of the qualifying time as well.... I think over 93% of the runners finished in under 5 hours, a great effort for a challenging race!

The bar has been set for high expectations in 2007

This is not a course for a PR. The race director is an elite marathoner and designed the course for racing elite marathoners. The last 10k literally has one turn with long and challenging up and downhills. This was only a training run for me so when I got to the last 10k, it was fun to pass people. I could envision DC hosting an Olympic Trials on this course and watching the greats duke it out down the last 10k. This course is better than the loop course at the 2004 Olympic Trials in Birmingham, which the RD raced in. Because of the great police presence and cones, traffic was NEVER a safety issue for me. There was plenty of room to maneuver and I appreciate going to sections of DC and PG County I had never seen. Hopefully in 2008, I will get to run the same course right by the new Nationals baseball stadium.

I had fun participating in this event. It was the first time for this event, so there is still room for growth in several areas (numbers of participants, number of spectators, etc.). However, overall the course was nice and varied and the organization was excellent. I really have no quibbles with any aspect of this race. I loved the logisitical simplicity of being able to park close to the start, and having the start and finish in the same place. I would enjoy running this race again.

The hills were challenging but the downhills were rolling--let me recover well between hills. I liked the course-it was a good mixture of terrain and scenery. I can compare it to Richmond, Charlottesville, Baltimore and Atlanta (half)--the hill were easier on me in DC. i'm not fast, but I finished well even though I ran the Shamrock Marathon the Sunday before this. Good job to the directors! My only complaint was I needed better directions to find RFK in the dark Fri. night, and again Sat. AM. The race was beginning as I got out of my car in the parking lot. I guess I ran 26.5 that day... The police were great in helping me find the stadium, and they were great support along the course.

The race organizers handed the half-marathoners a beautiful course through Capitol Hill and the new baseball stadium area. However, full marathoners had to contend with angry residents and nasty hills in deep Anacostia and PG County. DC needs a spring marathon and I want to support the National Marathon.... However, please make it easier for me to lend my support next year - change the course to two loops of the half. By the way - the police officers deserve a huge round of applause. They provided cheers at every turn and kept the angry residents away from me!