Lets see, where to start? This was my 2nd marathon (1st was Mississauga in 2008) and I PB'd by 15 minutes and BQ'd. What more can I say? What more could you want?

Beautiful, flat, country roads for the start; there are no uphills anywhere. Then there was a nice downhill, and a waterfront finish.

OK, so there was some wind. Not sure how the organizing committee controls that. No rain, cool - perfect. Water stations were well stocked, and having parking at the finish with buses to the start means that all of your dry clothes are waiting for you. Everything was great. AND the sponsor hotel (Holiday Inn) gave all runners FREE late checkout, and there was FREE breakfast. (It was 2 minutes from the finish... how could this be better??)

One question: Was the lady on the bike "Elvira Gulch" - see another's comment - from the Wizard of Oz??? That got me laughing a lot every time I saw her. If it's not her, it's her twin sister.

Room for improvement: finish photos could be better.

All in all, a great experience.

The course was nice - especially the country roads and the waterfront at the end. There were too few spectators - even ones at the finish were kinda quiet. Volunteers at water stations were just awesome, showing great enthusiasm. The gel stop at 28K was great, but too many half-marathon walkers were crowding the area. Gels should be for full marathoners first. Not much schwag for the $90 entry fee - no foil blankets at the cold, breezy finish area, and only a coupon for small fries at a Hamilton McDonald's. What's up with that?

OK otherwise.

This was my 2nd marathon and it was a blast. Yup, it was cold and windy. Suck it up, buttercups! I loved the course. Some might not like the long downhill from 22-32K on the Parkway, but gravity was my friend this day. I PB'd by 37 minutes over my first marathon in May 2008 and ran a negative split, so WOOHOO, HAMILTON!! The secondary school kids running the water stops were loud and encouraging. Was the mystery woman in the green coat on the bike the mayor? I saw her 4 times.

People were cheering out in their driveways, on overpasses, on the streets. Drivers were patient and polite, unlike London drivers, OMG! The two bands rocking out were nice diversions. The band at 40K responded to my pumping fists by amping up the volume and the tempo. Thanks, boys. Didn't go to the pasta meal, so I can't comment. Bus transport to the start line was flawless. Bag-check, ditto. Lots of porta-pots in the start and finish areas, but I noticed a lot people opting to fertilize the corn in the first half.

Quibbles: The medal should specify whether you did the full or the half, and so should the T-shirt. (I understand the pressure to economize with a new race.) Full marks to the sponsors/organizers! I would recommend this race to anyone. Hamilton is a great running city!

Having run the marathon in 2007, I have to credit the organizers with improvements year after year. The first half probably involved more rolling terrain than might be expected, but it was an improvement over spending time on the Linc (as in 2007). Ditto for only descending on the new portion (unlike 2007). The last 10K along the lake shore was an improvement despite the breezy last few kilometers. The water stops along the way were more than adequate and the supervision/support of the course can't be faulted. The finish area worked well and the weather cooperated. The spectators are sparse but so was the marketing beforehand.

Given the unpredictable nature of November weather, runners couldn't have asked for a better day. OK, so the wind was a factor, but no precipitation was a bonus.

Gotta like the course, which includes highway running, country roads, a bit of suburbia and the shores of Lake Ontario. Not sure why people think the course is boring... having lots of diversity and scenery on parkway is actually really nice.

Lots of aid stations with water and sports drink, as well as energy gel at 28K. Volunteers were amazing, especially young people handing out drinks. Heck, everybody involved gets a thumbs up, including the couple I thumbed a ride with back to the starting area after I dropped out at 33K. DNF-ing sucks, but calf cramp wouldn't relent.

Anyone looking to run this 26-miler next year should consider Hamilton, especially if crowds aren't your thing. Needless to say, bad weather would make considering race-day registration a good idea.

Maybe it's because of the time of year, or maybe because I had a great day, but I really liked this event. Even though there was very little crowd support, the spectators that were there were great. Good volunteers too. Water stations every 2 miles, and an interesting route that goes from very rural to very urban (including a long downhill stretch through a valley highway).

This new route is a winner!
This year the weather was great but there was a substantial headwind. Normally, the wind will favor this course, and it has potential to be fast.
The race goes from suburbs to country, from flats to minor rolling hills and then a big downhill. Then down through the valley, through the east end of the city to the wide lakefront paved trail for the last 10K.
I never got bored with the route and the water stations had great enthusiasm from local high schools.
It's a small race (for now), so don't expect a ton of spectators, but my friends and family were there so I was happy.
We have a lot of marathon choices in this area.
With some work this could be the best of the bunch.
I loved it and I will definitely be running it again next year

Pros:
Great course.
Potentially fast.
Good running weather at this time of year.
Small race.

Cons:
Ran out of sport drink very early.
Website could be more descriptive.
Boring shirt. :-)

I was pleasantly surprised by this race. I decided to run it at the last minute as I still had the urge after running Detroit 2 weeks ago. The course was a bit isolated, running through farmland for the first half of the race. It was almost like a long run in the country with 500 of my running buddies. It didn't have the crowd support that some of the bigger races do, but the spectators that were there were very enthusiastic. The run down the escarpment was quite scenic, with the fall colors making for nice scenery while running down the Red Hill Valley Parkway. The last 7K along the lake were nice too.

Pros:
- race was well organized
- it was nice having the school gym to stay warm in prior to the race start
- volunteers were helpful and enthusiastic
- they didn't forget the FUN. There was a basketball net and ball at the 21K water station. By the way, I made the shot. :-)
- crowds were small but very supportive
- they announced everyone's name as they crossed the finish line. That was a nice touch.

Cons:
- mileage markers were off from the start - 0.2 km off at the 1K marker, and that carried throughout race. However, the difference disappeared after the 41K marker. My theory is that they measured back from the finish line, and forgot to account for the extra 0.2K at the finish.
- the E Load sports drink was awful and was only available at half of the water stations. Please switch to Gatorade and have it available at all stations and also after the finish.

This is the second year that this marathon has been held, and they changed the course from last year so that the majority of the run is either fairly flat or downhill. I believe that registration was up quite a bit this year, and would expect that trend to continue for at least a couple of more years. Transportation to the start was adequate (school buses) and the school where we were housed at the start was reasonably comfortable and was warm. At the beginning of the race you are running in the country (corn fields, cows, very few spectators). After the half you run on the new Parkway, which is downhill for a few miles and has a nice few of the city and the lake. You end up doing an out-and-back along the lake shore for the last six or seven miles. The scenery is very pretty, and the spectators were sparse but were enthusiastic. The organization seemed quite good. Weather is always a factor in Canada in November, but today's wasn't horrible, although I could have done without the wind off the lake over the last few miles. I recommend the race for anyone looking to run a fast course who doesn't mind running without many spectators (unless you count the cows).

I only have the Scotiabank Toronto Marathon for comparison.

This one had much less crowd support than Scotia, but there were enthusiastic students.

The starting line was a lot easier than in a huge marathon, so you could get on pace easier. Scenery was quite boring.

Would be helpful if the energy gel at 28K was given to you before the water.

The problem with a November marathon is the cold start in the morning, though it heated up after the first 30 minutes. Some people wore cut-out garbage bags that they could throw away.