I was among the many runners who missed the starting gun. The shuttle area was absolutely overwhelmed by all the runners. Getting back to my car was just as bad. A very frustrating experience.

The course itself is OK. Nice entertainment throughout, but I wasn't impressed by the beauty of the course.

It's nice to say that I ran in the inaugural RnR Marathon, but I won't be back. Overcrowded race. Bad logistics.

For a 'Rock 'n' Roll' Marathon that advertised 70 bands along the course, I only counted about 20... most of which were tuning when I ran by (in the middle of the pack).

The spectators were extremely sparse from mile 14-20.

I'd do this run again because it was relatively flat, making it possible for me to achieve a personal best. Maybe in 2-4 years it will truly be a rock 'n' roller.

Getting to the race was difficult; we had to walk at least 20 minutes on a cold morning (it was 4 degrees C). The shirt was awful - cotton! No goodies. Excellent start organization. The race itself during the first half was nice, with a good crowd. Second half: NO crowd, and lots of unexpected hills until the last two miles. Weather was nice. Excellent after-race hydration and organization.

Lots of spectators and very friendly volunteers. Course was very flat, but once outside of the downtown area, it was pretty boring.

I have come to realize that the Musical Marathons put on by Elite Racing are meant to make money. Nothing wrong with that, but we couldn't even park to pick up our packets without having to pay $10. And only ONE beer?!? I will stick to the smaller marathons from now on. They are less expensive, they are mostly for charity, and you get lots of goodies for half the price of the musical marathons. And BEER!

This race was well planned, as one would expect from a Rock and Roll race. The course was well laid out, the support was excellent, and the spectators abundant. I arrived at the parking lot an hour prior to the race and did not have any difficulty getting to the start via shuttle in time for the race. However, the return was horrendous, as family members and racers were all waiting in line for shuttles to return to the parking lot. I don't believe I've ever seen a line THAT long. Easily half a mile of humanity waiting to board shuttles, and not visibly moving forward at any speed. I elected to walk back across eastern San Antonio, and was fortunate to come across a taxi to spare me the unplanned post-race cool down walk/marathon to the car. The distribution of the drop bags back to their owners was fairly disorganized and time consuming (I'm comparing with Dallas White Rock, which was very efficient by comparison).

There is no finisher's shirt for marathoners, which has become almost universal in races within the last three years or so. I can take this or leave it - but some might find it odd that this nice extra is missing from an $85 marathon.

This is an excellent first running of this event under new management. I trust that Rock and Roll will iron out these glitches by next year, as in all other respects, it was a well run race.

Good
-Lots of volunteers at many water/Cytomax stations.
-Weather (not their doing, but it was PERFECT!)
-Spectators - love you guys!

Bad
-Bands leaving early - seems like all of the live music should have lasted beyond the 3-hour mark.
-Parking/buses/traffic - already mentioned.

The marathon itself was fun. There could have been more spectators, but it was the first running, so it's understandable. The city did a poor job of traffic control/logistics. Hundreds and hundreds of people had to ditch their cars on 281 and run to the start, as there was utter gridlock one and a half hours prior to the start. Support was great, bands were great, etc.

Overall, a fairly nice race. Course and fans were terrific. However, transportation issues were frustrating. It took longer for me to get my bags and get back to my car than it took for me to run the (half-marathon) race.

This was my 2nd full marathon, and my first RNR. The start line was chaos, and it was annoying that it took me almost an hour (over an hour if you count the delayed start) to cross the start line. After the half/full split, the course was kind of lonely. The asphalt and smell of burning tar wasn't much fun either. But thank goodness for the TNT and TeamChallenge volunteers out on the course for keeping our spirits up. There weren't many bands still playing for those of us who are not 5-hour finishers. Also, my Garmin indicated that the course was 26.6 miles. At first, I thought that I might just be veering all of the course. But as a passed the cemetery at mile 16, there was a chalk line on the road that said "16." Right at that moment, my Garmin buzzed indicating that I was at mile 16. Four-tenths of mile later, I pass the 16 mile-marker... and that just made me a little curious. Overall, I had a great time and I'm confident that the shuttle buses and start line chaos will be fixed by next year. Just please remember that there are participants that will take longer than 5 hours, and we need a little love too.

As resident of NYC for 6 years, and an avid NYC Marathon spectator, I thought I'd seen the best of the best when it came to spirit on a course, but San Antonio far outdid my expectations; I'm slow, and even at the end, the volunteers were still motivating and spirited. People with houses along the course stood outside with signs and salty snacks. The full course was a little challenging towards the end, with not much in the way of encouraging distractions, but guys with free beer at mile 21 quickly solved that! My biggest beef: the finish was up a huge hill!! The "rock 'n' roll" aspect was a little disappointing, as many of the bands didn't play the whole time. Bring your own tunes!