Although the race director cannot control the weather, we've had good luck; this year was very nice: mid 40s at the start, it didn't get over 65, there was a slight breeze, and it was sunny. Being a local, I was already familiar with the course. The hills are rolling and not overly taxing; and Riverside is completely flat. I was most impressed with the aid stations, and attention to us by the cyclists. I was very disappointed with the spectator support through the Maple Ridge area, but very happy with all of the crowd support down Riverside. There was lots of photography, so I can't wait to see how many pictures I have to choose from! It was most disappointing to finish the race and have very little food - only water, pizza, orange slices and bagel crumbs. I've run marathons in 3 other cities - OKC, KC and Dallas - and this has not happened. If we want to be world-class, we need to improve on this. I finished in 4:54, which is early enough to still have food. I liked the order of pick-up after the race; there weren't logjams in the shirt pick-up, or in having your chip removed. There was a long line for the pizza. The last thing a runner wants to do is stand around and have their muscles tighten up. The medals are really pretty and even have lettering on the back.

This was my first marathon, and what a great experience. The course support was excellent, including water stops, med tents, bike personnel, and fans. Great job, Tulsa!

Run Tulsa! You will not be disappointed. After having run Chicago a month ago, it was a great experience running Tulsa.

Positives:
1. The organization is superb and they really want to put on a first-class event.

2. Pre- and post-race were well done. Music: live bands, great food, message tents, merchandise, pop, Gatorade, beer... top-notch all the way around.

3. Announcer at the start and finish! Great job - awesome enthusiasm.

4. Professional photographers everywhere! You will get some really great pictures of yourself!

5. Awesome medal! Wow! The heaviest and the biggest I have. Finisher tech shirt and cotton shirt are exceptional.

6. Southern hospitality! I really appreciated how nice the volunteers were. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. I liked the medical staff on the course riding their bikes! Very nice and caring. Thanks.

7. The first 13 miles are very enjoyable. Great neighborhood over miles 4-9 or so. Wow, cool homes. I thought the downtown section was good too. Miles 13-20 were flat as a pancake along the river, and then a turnaround to come back. If not for the strong headwind and sun smack in your face, I thought it would have been great.

8. I really liked seeing the first two finishers pushing the strollers. Out-and-backs are nice in that you can get an opportunity to see the elite runners. Wow, 2:35 pushing a stroller with a child - incredible.

9. Nice, ice-cold water bottles at the end. I have been in some marathons where the water is lukewarm. Yuck!

10. Great sound system at the start and finish.


11. Really enjoyed talking to the cop from Edmund, OK who was running his first marathon; Chris from Sweden; and the guy and his wife running their 172nd marathon. Thanks for chatting!

12. I thought having the relay, half-marathon, and 5K is a great idea for Tulsa. It is really a race about participating and getting everyone involved. Even though it is a small race - 3,000 runners or so - there are runners everywhere doing the different distances.

Negatives: Ummm... yeah, I mentioned the wind and sun. I can't complain. Turning around at the 20-mile mark was like winning the lottery.

If you are thinking of running a race in November, I would definitely run Tulsa. I drove from Minnesota and it was worth every mile of it. Thanks, Tulsa!

The pasta party seemed like a class-act at the historic Cains Ballroom, and the food was good. I would have loved some dessert though. I loved the confetti and the fireworks at the beginning of the race! The hills in the first half of the course were fine, if you were cautious. I loved the bands and appreciated the ones near the Route 66 overpass and the Cains Ballroom. It was also nice to have the DJs along the route playing upbeat music. Riverside seemed desolate at times, but the crowd at the finish line was great.

I was running late coming from a small town in OK. I parked at a gas station and had to run about a mile to the start. I was still on the bridge when the gun went off, but that's ok because my pacesetter had not started yet. This was my first half marathon and I was very pleased; when I felt like stopping, there was always a spectator saying, "You can do it!" I enjoyed the weather and the course, and the food and beer at the end were great. It was awesome to cross the finish line close to the stroller winner. I will definitely run in Tulsa again.

The 2009 Route 66 Marathon was a great day. The weather was perfect and the atmosphere was wildly exciting. The stroller world record was fun to be a part of.

The course was moderately boring. Downtown Tulsa is not overly excited. The second half of the marathon along the river was nice.

Big kudos to the medical staff; they were able to stretch me out and get me back running after the worst hamstring cramp I have ever endured.

All in all, a good time and a marathon worth running - the medals were huge and the finishers were nice.

This was my first half, but the course was awesome. No shuttle was available, as advertised from the hotels, so I had a great warm up by sprinting 2 miles to the start line about 4 minutes before the gun. I finished in 1:58, and moved through the chute for food and beer. To my surprise, the beer had been finished, there was a 45-minute wait for burgers, and there was no pizza. Tulsa could have hit a grand slam if food and beverage were available. If you're not going to have it, don't advertise it. Hopefully '09 will improve on the athlete condiments, or we can tailgate post-race.

I was very impressed with the organization. The volunteers were all exceptionally nice. At about mile 18 we encountered a man who was struggling with leg cramps. One of the volunteers offered him water and some food. He (the volunteer) ran all the way back to the aid station and then ran back to catch up with the man who had continued on. I was impressed!

Thanks to all of the friendly folks from Tulsa who came out to support the runners. This was definitely the right time of year for a race, as the weather could not have been better and the enthusiasm was contagious.

Frankly, the course was boring - 20 miles were mostly out and back, with a nice climb through the neighborhoods in the last 6 miles (boy, that was cruel hill placement). I do like to see where I am going and that endless stretch of concrete was lacking in visual appeal.

I echo the previous comments about organization.... After 26.2 miles, I feel I earned my beer. There was no reason to run out. Putting up signs for shuttle drop off/pick up would have been very nice. Fortunately, the shuttle driver saw me rapidly waddling to catch up and waited for me. Signs indicating where various post-race services could be found also would have been helpful.

A side note: Oklahoma apparently has small burrs in the grass.... I found this out the hard way when I sat on a curbside lawn to treat a blister. Talk about motivation applied to the glutes. Be wary where you sit.

Tulsa was my 8th marathon. I finally decided to embark on the 50 state quest, and this one fell on a weekend that I was free. So off to Tulsa I went.

I could summarize the marathon - and, actually, the entire weekend - with one word: Meh. For the most part, it was a well-organized race. My only complaints are at the finish. The entrance to the food tent was a zoo. The last thing I wanted to do after running 26.2 miles was to stand around in line for 10 minutes before I could leave the finish chute. Also, I was disappointed that the beer was gone. I finished in 4 hours, so there were still a lot of people behind me. That was poor planning. But otherwise, it was well organized.

Crowd support was sparse. Many of the people who did line the course were sitting on their hands. I don't really NEED crowd support - I don't have a cheering section on my training runs - but a little more life would have been nice.

As for the course, I seem to be in the minority here; I didn't particularly like it. We ran alongside the Arkansas River, but we were far enough away from it that you couldn't see it for most of the time. I found the out-and-back stretch to be rather boring. And it's a looooong stretch. I won't complain about the hills, because we all knew about them going in. In fact, because the hilly part was in a nice section of town with some nice houses, it was actually my favorite part of the course.

So while there wasn't much wrong with the race, there wasn't a whole heck of a lot to hang your hat on, either. My opinion would be that if you're doing the 50 state thing and need to cross Oklahoma off your list, then Tulsa is fine to accomplish that. But if you're looking for an fun or exciting race, then you could probably do better.

And if you do go to Tulsa, don't stay at the Doubletree (host hotel) if you want entertainment. The hotel itself was fine. But the neighborhood around the hotel downtown apparently shuts down on the weekend. There was NOTHING to do in that area for 48 hours. No restaurants, bars, etc. Heck, I couldn't even find a fast food restaurant for a bite to eat. If you're looking for a fun area, stay somewhere else and arrange your own transportation to the start/finish line....