The had obviously learned lessons from the previous year. I arrived at the expo at 1 p.m. on Saturday, and packet pick-up was done in 90 seconds. Got to the downtown shuttle at 5 a.m., and was dropped off at 5:20 a.m. There were plenty of porta-potties at the start. Aid stations along the route were very well-stocked, which was critical this year due to appallingly humid weather.

The problem is that, unless you are a sub-3:30 runner, you are likely to be waiting a long time in a corral. They already start the race "late" at 7:30; I crossed the start line at 8:15. That's a lot of time waiting around, especially after quite a walk from the shuttle drop-off to the start, and then another long walk to get to the drop-bag vans and then back to the corrals. I was tired before I started running.

While the roads were not particularly narrow, I found it quite crowded, and spent more time making sure I kept out of people's way rather than enjoying the scenery and the experience. At Mile 10, the half-marathoners - four-fifths of the runners - turned off and there was much more space, and it would have been almost enjoyable except for the heat.

But even apart from the weather, which no one can control, I will not be doing this race again. However good the logistics, it is still a scrum with nearly 30,000 people. I preferred the pre-R'n'R version, but of course that did not make as much money.

Gosh, what a disappointment. From the expo, to the start, to the finish, this race left a lot to be desired. They have 31,000 participants, which is a lot of folks - especially to have them shuttle between 4:30 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. on race day morning to a drop-off where we had to walk a mile to the start. The water along the route was lukewarm; we ran parallel to a cemetery (enlightening); and possibly some of the most boring scenery ever. The only redeeming quality was the local cheerleaders along the way with their great smiles and encouraging words. I'll never run a Rock 'n' Roll again if this is what they are like. Waste of money, time, and effort. It was more like a merchandising event than anything.

This was my first marathon, and San Antonio is my home town, so I knew what to expect. After reading and hearing about the shuttles last year, my husband dropped me off very close to the race village, which worked out very well. Next year I will get there around 8 a.m., since my corral didn't get to the start line until almost an hour into the race. The bands on the course were really good, but crowd participation was not as strong as what I had hoped for. There were only a few places where you could feel a lot of energy from the crowd, and it was all in the first half of the race (those banana peelers around Mile 6 were awesome!). The second half of the full marathon is very barren, with little crowd support and few bands. It's definitely a race that is structured more for the half marathon runners/walkers. With the heat (close to 80 degrees) and humidity (94%), I kept wishing I had just stopped at 13.1 instead of going the full distance, but it was my first marathon and I would have been disappointed to quit in the middle!

After reading last year's reviews, I was really worried that I was walking into a fiasco, but I either got lucky or the event improved a lot since last year. I didn't have any problems getting to the shuttles at the AT&T Center at 5:30 and was at my corral at 6:30. There were a lot of people, but I started near the front, so I didn't have to dodge any walkers. Overall, I think the corral starts worked well.

The race itself was fun, although there are some places around a park that were pretty lonely. Running through downtown was great though, and the crowd support there was helpful. I really liked being separated from the half-marathoners at the end, because I don't see how I could have continued to run there were so many (I guess they were finishing the half around 3:30 to four hours).

The half-hour wait in line for a shuttle after running all morning wasn't a lot of fun - I don't see why they can't start and end at the Alamodome. The only other thing that bothered me was the $10 parking fee to pick up my packet.

Overall, I had a really good time and nice run. More than likely I'll return next year.

My 9th marathon. Humidity was tough and so were some parts of the course out in no man's land. I expected more bands on the course. Some bands had no one around them in the remote areas. Aid stations were not placed evenly throughout the course and the lack of nutritional products was evident. I will look for another marathon venue before returning to San Antonio for my next.

This event met all my expectations. Easy packet pick-up, AT&T free parking, buses to the start, buses from the finish back to AT&T. Lots of water stations all along the course. Porta-cans every few miles. The course is great. Bands all along the way. The weather... it is what it is, South Texas in November. I'll be back for 2010.

I'll explain my ratings:
1) The course receives three stars. It was flat, but the roads were essentially gravel for long stretches. After the first five miles you run out into the middle of a desolate nowhere.

2) The organization was horrific and thus receives one star. I waited for well over an hour for the shuttles to the start line. The race materials indicated they were basically the only way to get there. I arrived at 5:30 a.m. and didn't load until 7. My half-full bus (despite hundreds still waiting behind me) got to the start line with about 10 minutes to spare. I had already been standing up for an hour and a half. That is basically a worst case scenario.

3) The spectators were great around the Alamo and in the one neighborhood the course leads you through at the beginning (they get five stars), but there is about a 13-14-mile stretch in the middle where you see almost nobody. It seemed like the only spectators were the people distributing water and Cytomax!

I thought the course could be a fast one if the weather would have allowed. Unfortunately, the 95% humidity nailed most runners in the full marathon. I don't like point-to-point races, but was lucky the start was only 1.5 miles from my father's house where I was staying, so I didn't have to deal with parking/shuttles. I hated the expo location and layout. I thought the fans were fantastic.

Of the seven marathons I've run, this is my third Rock 'n' Roll series full marathon and fourth Rock 'n' Roll full or half marathon I've attended. Change the name of the city and they're all pretty much alike: large running crowds mostly running the half (organized in a LONG wave start); a very well organized expo with lots of exhibitors; hit or miss transportation to and from the start and finish lines; lots of enthusiastic volunteers, cheerleaders and bands; good race support at the water stops and finish area; and good medical support along a boring, ugly course.

I experienced no shuttle delays to the start or from the finish area to and from my downtown hotel. In fact, I was way too early to the start fearing a potential problem with the shuttles. The walk to the start area is pretty far from the shuttle drop off area, but like I said, I had plenty of time to get there so I took my time. I was at the downtown shuttle pick up area at around 5:05 and was on a shuttle by 5:30 at the latest for a 7:30 race start time. At the finish area, after a short walk up a long flight of stairs, I hopped right on a bus and was back to my hotel in 20 minutes.

All of the volunteers were great and the weather was hot and humid, but that's luck of the draw. The wave start does provide some running room at the start but it took 28 minutes to get to the start from my corral (#16 of over 30 corrals), which I find a tad slow. The start area also had plenty of water, bananas, bagels, and port-a-johns. Parts of the first half of the course are interesting but miles 11 through 24 are fairly boring with no spectators. Again, fairly typical of the Rock 'n' Roll Marathons I've been to.

All in all, the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon races are generally well run and organized, are fun to attend, and have large crowds. I will probably run at least another one in a different city but don't plan on returning to this race. The city is a nice place to visit and the people are also very friendly.

This one has been my second chance to participate in the R'n'R San Antonio Marathon, and it was perfect and improved compared to the inaugural edition of 2008. The organization was top-notch. I loved the expo, and generally the crew along the course. Great job, San Antonio. The weather was very humid in particular in the park section, but we runners found water and energy drink everywhere. Well done.