I thought that it was a good run. But I won't repeat.

I have to echo the earlier comments from other runners. The course was good. The fans were good. I thought that the start was great that we weren't out there for hours like other races. But, the finish needs work. It was small, crowded and at one point I wanted to just scream. I ran 26.2 miles and now I'm standing in line because the space is too small. It shouldn't be that complicated. The race organizers knew that there would be 15k people -- give us space to move and find our families.

Also for future runners definitely pick your hotel to walk from the finish. You may drive to the start and be dropped off but waiting for a bus at the end looked undoable to me. I stayed in old town and walked back which wasn't bad. I do think that this should be better organized by the race team but since they don't appear to have fixed it yet -- I advise that you're better safe than sorry.

This is a great marathon to 'run' because of the great organization and expo. Lots of water/Ultima, course support (bands and cheerleaders), gels, and the weather was perfect (64 degrees and cloudy). I prefer not to get sunburn or overheat during a marathon. The first 22 were great but the course does have some minor hills. The last four miles are a little boring.

As mentioned in another posting, the end of the race was a disaster due to the finishing area and traffic. However, I would guess that the event coordinator is well aware of this and will address it for next year.

Give this race a try if you would like to have a great time in San Diego.

It has been a week since my first marathon in San Diego and I'm still euphoric! I thoroughly enjoyed this challenge. The weather was perfect, and the event was exhilerating. Some problems with bands not showing up and the end was a cattle drive, but overall I would do it again in a heartbeat!

This was my third marathon and I have to say the course was pretty good. It was great having the bands out there because there aren't many spectators. Also, they provided plenty of water and gels, even for us slower runners. There are hills, which we knew about, but you also run along a lot of canted roads, which we didn't know about. Very hard and painful to run on for long periods of time. However, their organization leaves alot to be desired. The start and finish are 4 miles apart?? They recommend hotels downtown then don't provide any kind of shuttle bus service to the start or from the finish to the hotels?? You have to park about a mile from the finish and then take a bus to the finish line? And then you can't leave the finish area except on a bus, which had lines that weren't moving (no busses were pulling up) and it would probably have taken about 2 hours to get on a bus, just what I want after I ran 26 miles - stand in line for 2 or more hours! Okay, so we convinced a marine major to open a gate to pedestrians and solved that problem, but we shouldn't have had to do that. I know this is only their fourth year, but if they need help organizing the transportation, get help from a city that knows what its doing and has done this, like DC. There is no reason it should have been so BADLY organized and because of that I would never do this race again. It spoiled the whole thing.

Having just come off of Big Sur, I was ready for a 'flat' course. This one was not as flat as anticipated. However there were no back breaking hills. Those that whined about the lack of scenery need to look up and not at the pavement/ground. I brought my camera and got some good memory shots. The support from the sidelines was fantastic. Plenty of water, sports drink, gel, and power bars. For those that can't handle the taste of the drink, you are not working hard enough. Ending at MCRD brought back memories of that parade deck from 30 years ago. It was ...surreal. Lots of eats and drinks at the end. Thanks to the volunteers, from start to finish, for being there. I understand that the bus transportation was less than desirable. One of the lessons that I have learned, as I have marathoned about, is to be self reliant and plan ahead. Thanks to Chris, there was a very short walk to the car after enjoying the shaded grass and encouraging on the mass of TEAM Leukemia runners (no longer in training, they had done it!). A truly enjoyable race that, in my book, has surpassed L.A.

As everyone has said, the traffic and shuttle situations were dreadful! Organization up to that point was fine, but noone wants to stand in the hot sun waiting for the shuttle for more than an hour. Weather this year was nice and cool during the race. No complaints about that. However, I didn't think crowd support was that great. Sure, there were patches of supporters, but much of the race was without any crowd support. More replacement drink please! I knew it would only be at about 1/2 the stations, but there was often only one table of Ultima. If you weren't able to weave to the side in time for the first table, you were out of luck! The course was hilly, but not unbearably so. My complaint about the course was that so much of it was run either on or right next to freeway traffic. Still, I thought it was a nice city, a good expo, and good starting line organization with a lot of water and food available. I'd run it again if I lived in San Diego, but I wouldn't travel across country for this one again.

The finish area was too crowded and the transportation and access in and out of the finish area was real bad. Outside of that the race was great!!! The registration was fast and organized. The support on the course was great and it was a perfect day for a race. Thanks for all your hard work volunteers.

I just ran Rock and Roll last weekend, so while it's fresh in my mind, here are some points:
-A very pretty course considering this is a city.
-The finish area is a mess. Plan on getting your medal and food and get out of there.
-Getting out of there is also a problem. My suggestion is to get a hotel that's walking distance from the finish. With the ugly shuttle situation and the fact that the course ties up all traffic in the city, you're best off walking.
-If you are planning on catching a plane the afternoon of the race, factor in the traffic.
-I loved the organization at the start line. There was lots of food and water. Plus, there were pre-race massages. Very nice.

This was my fourth marathon, and it would rank fourth. Having the bands and the cheerleaders along the course helped me stay motivated throughout the race. However, the traffic logistics (getting to the start and the finish) were awful! It took me over an hour to reach the start area from the freeway. My wife had to drop me off about seven city blocks from the start because of all the traffic. Some runners were leaving thier cars on the freeway, so they wouldn't miss the start. Later, it took my wife almost three hours (a little under what it took me to run the entire race) to drive from Kearny Mesa (about 9 miles from downtown San Diego) to the finish line area. I ended up having to wait for two hours after the race for her to arrive. She was not the only one in this traffic nightmare, several runners could not find their families after the race because they were stuck on the freeway exit ramp.
The course was not the most exciting I had ever run, but the aid station volunteers made up for it with all of their enthusiasum and spirit.
I will not be repeating this race next year or in the near future.

P.S. If you do decide to run this race, give yourself plenty of time to reach the start area before the 6:45 a.m. start. I mean PLENTY OF TIME (1-2 hours)!

This is my second RnR marathon. The overall race was great with excellent support from volunteers and crowd appeal. BUT the end was BAD!!!The queuing area after the finish area was SMALL AND CROWDED. I waited in the line for the city buses for two hours. I ended up just walking to the parking area. I was not in bad shape but I saw lots of folks who were limping along to the parking area. I am sending an email to the organizers of the RnR to let them know the finish area needs improvement and better coordination for the buses. Why was there no race offical passing out information? All the runners were just clueless on what was going. I encourage all other runners to do the same. The marathon is an excellent marathon and with our input it can be better for next year.