I commented previously and complained about the lack of beer. Reading it now it sounds too negative. Heck, I can buy my own beer. It was really well done. The 5-hour pacers (11:27 mile) got behind their pace and ran mile 11 or 12 in 9 minutes to catch up (their chip splits confirm this), leaving everyone they were with. In their defense, I'm not sure what they should have done once they realized they were so behind. But I had my watch, so I could live without the pacers. Again, I don't want to be negative; it was a great marathon.

The expo, pasta dinner, shirts and medal were all very well done.

Everything was very well planned, except the shuttle (was there only one?) back to the hotel. It was impossible to find the location of the return shuttle; there were no signs and I finally found it a block and a half away, marked by a sign that said it was the relay shuttle. Trying to find a race volunteer to answer the question while runners were still coming in was difficult. The hotel is a long way away - too far to walk.

The hills are steep and long, and at a difficult place. Not fun. It presents a real dilemma. If you go too hard, you have nothing left for the hills. No one was running up the hills - everyone was walking except the 4:15 pace group leaders, who through the first hill lost everybody. If you save up for the hills (go slower up to then), I really doubt you could make up the time, and you will still be walking most of the way by the time you hit the bad hill in the park.

The rest of the course is nice.

I probably won't return to this one even though it is only three hours from home, unless they reverse the course.

Nice course for Tulsa. I would prefer the river trail, not road, but there's no way to enforce making people do the trail bends and not short-cut them, so the road is the best choice. I liked the hills at the end, but my right hip is still killing me from the severely cambered concrete road the last couple miles. They gave us beer tickets this year, but to no avail, as they were long gone by the time the slower marathoners got there. Is it so hard to bring as many beers as you gave out tickets for? You can take extras back, right?

The best organized "small marathon" that I have run. There were an incredible number of supportive volunteers made this a pleasure to run. From the registration desk to the aid stations, everyone was very helpful. The course was well laid out and marked; there were many clocks throughout the course; there were a good number of well-manned aid stations; and there were supportive spectators. They even provided a Red Sox fan as starter/announcer, which was an unexpected premium. I would strongly recommend this race. Great job!!

I was very impressed with the race expo. It was well laid out. I was able to donate three pairs of my old running shoes. The course was incredible. It ran along the Arkansas River. I was worried about the 8 a.m. start and the heat, but the weather turned out great. Would I travel down to Oklahoma to run it again? Hell yeah!!!

My 16th start, and 13th finish. Thoroughly enjoyed everything about the race except the course. Typically out-and-back courses or "modified" out-and-back courses are boring and fast. The run along the river provides a nice setting for running out and back. Beautiful neighborhoods into downtown for the finish. However, the hills through the neighborhoods between miles 22-25 were at a bad place in the race and advertising made them sound insignificant. They were not. I suspect the position of the hills in the race slows everyone's times, including the winners (by several minutes, if not more). I recommend running the course in reverse.

Although I participated in the quarter marathon, I've run in enough of these to know the real deal and this is one of them. Just the fact that you are running along the famous "Route 66" is enticing enough, but I enjoyed everything about this race. The logistics are wonderful with the expo right across the street from the host hotel, The Doubletree, which gave runners a checkout as late as 3:00. The expo was very decent with good guest speakers and a fair amount of vendors. The pasta dinner was right there in the expo hall, making it very convenient. One of the best perks is the start time. The full marathoners started at 8:00 and the half and quarter marathoners started at 9:00, which was a wonderful start time and certainly welcome since it was a cold brisk morning.

The later start time really helped out temperature wise which was such a benefit. Also, there were free shuttle buses to take you to and from the race although it was such a pretty day that I walked back to the host hotel, which was just over one mile. Great music at the start line was just what we needed to get going (Michael Jackson's "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" and Rihanna's "Please Don't Stop The Music" is enough to get anybody warmed up and ready to go!) Great volunteers, great organization and great communication from the race director clear up to the day before the race all helped to make this a special event all the way around. If you are a 50-stater and need to get an Oklahoma race completed, look no further - Tulsa is the one you want to do. Thanks to Chris and all of the volunteers who helped make this such a wonderful event!

Tulsa has a marathon it can be proud of. Great organization and a unique Route 66 theme to the race. The marathon route is just about the best a mainly out-and-back route can be. A beautiful, flat, scenic course along the Arkansas River lined with parks, art sculpture and beautiful homes. The only thing that stops me from rating it a five-star course is due to the concrete roads along Riverside Dr. So I would recommend wearing a good pair of cushioned shoes, rather than lightweight trainers or racers. How that guy who ran the marathon in bare feet did it, I can't imagine. I didn't mind the hills at the end after all of the flat miles before; it changed the muscle tension and the scenery.

Great volunteers, good bands, cheerful spectators and lots of potta-potties on the course. A great medal design. Cotton t-shirt for entering and a tech finisher shirt. Seems there was plenty of pizza, fruit and cookies at the end this year. Only problem was the line for burgers slowed everything up. They need an express grab-and-go line for the ready made food and a separate line to wait for burgers (or get some more grills going) next year. Thanks to everyone who put together a first-class event.

Ideal cold weather for running. Mostly flat course, except for hills between miles 23-25 - a unique challenge that makes the finish even sweeter. Several nice big-race perks without the big-race hassle: race clocks every mile, nice entertainment along the course, pace groups, well stocked aid stations, two shirts (cotton participant and tech finisher), wonderful race medal, lots of friendly volunteers, excellent course control, efficient bag check, the list goes on and on. One warning is that a large portion of the course is run on a concrete road surface, not asphalt, so make sure to wear good cushioned shoes. Also, the lines at the food tent seemed quite long (there are half and quarter marathon events too) so I didn't bother getting any post-race food. No biggie for me, though, as I'd packed food in the bag I checked.

Weather was perfect. Course was nice, although a path closer to the river (rather than road) would have been nice. Be prepared for hills near the end; great downhill finish. Lots of food (even hamburgers!) at the end (but no beer for 4:50 finishers). Nice expo; lots of volunteers along course. Host hotel (Doubletree) has 3:00 checkout! Met lots of 50-staters.