Overall, I have to say this is a very nice race. It was well-organized, well-supported, everything happened as it was supposed to, and the course was surprisingly scenic. The new course for 2009 seems to take in all of the nicest parts of Cleveland, and minimizes the impact of the wind. The course is fairly flat, with just enough rolling to keep things interesting for the legs. I set a 20-minute PR here, and would definitely recommend this course to anyone looking for a PR or a BQ. One aspect which does need significant improvement is the fan support. The course is EMPTY of fans. What's more, since race organizers sell this race as a "rock" race, every so often there are speakers set up blasting music with one lonely volunteer sitting by the speaker. The whole thing was laughable and pathetic. It is very disappointing that Cleveland residents do not come out to support the race more. So there are some lonely stretches on the road. Overall, though, I would do the race again.

Overall everything was pretty good. The glaring exception was the music (or lack of same). The Columbus Marathon that I ran (2007) made no claims regarding the music - yet there were several bands and the whole atmosphere was quite festive. As a native Clevelander, I was totally embarrassed by the quality of "Rock" provided. It made for a bummer of a run, and if anything needs to change for 2009, it's the "Rock & Roll" aspect.

I understood there would be music along the course. I heard none! It was the Rock-less Rock and Run Marathon.

The course was well organized.

The pasta dinner was great - lots of dessert!

The medal was great.

The Hyatt Hotel hosted a high school prom - so it was a late night! Not ideal for the night before a marathon.

This was my second Cleveland marathon, and I will run it again. I love the course, and I love my city!

If you are planning to run this race, just be sure to visit the expo early before the race staffers run out of t-shirts that actually fit. The shirt this year was great, but 3 sizes too big for me to actually wear.

I ran the 2008 marathon. Here are my thoughts:

1. Reverse the course. Since Cleveland is supposed to be a fast course, the wind should be at your back and not in your face the last several miles.

2. If you are going to have a rocking marathon, then you need more music and louder. I could barely hear the music and a few of the music stations had the music turned off. You don't need bands, but crank the tunes so that Cleveland Rocks at more than a reasonable volume.

3. The expo was good and had a variety of exhibits.

4. The medal was great as was the food, etc. at the end.

5. I thought the course had nice variety and I appreciate getting to see Cleveland from a different perspective.

6. I know that changing a course is not an easy thing, but you may want to consider starting and ending at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is more scenic since it is on the water and more fitting since your theme is Cleveland Rocks.

7. The "Cleveland Rocks" theme is a good idea and sets your race apart from others, since Cleveland claims to be the birthplace for rock and roll. Play up that theme as much as you can. People like to run races not just to enjoy the run and the challenge but to enjoy the overall experience. You are on the right path. Keep it up. You can make this a top draw race.

8. I thought your website provided sufficient information and I appreciated the email updates.

My first marathon. Perfect temperatures. I had a great time for the first 20 miles. Then we turned into a strong wind and I fell off my BQ pace, and the steep uphill in mile 24 turned my legs to stone. It might make sense to reverse the course so that you run into the prevailing west wind away from the lake, during the middle of the race, instead of near the end.

My 3-year-old grandson fell in love with the medal. Good kids' race.

I'm not going to disagree with most of the other good comments posted here. The race and expo was good. The weather can't be controlled. I actually prefer overcast and cool to hot and sunny any day.

My main question (gripe) is: It's called the "Rock n Roll Marathon." Where were the live bands? Where were the school bands? There was not even someone in front of their house with a kazoo. I have run several races, including the NY Utica Boilermaker, which is only a 15K run that had all that and more. All that I saw was a speaker every mile or so playing recorded music. I expected more from a city that has the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in it.

Although it rained during the beginning of the marathon (half an hour at most), there was plenty of time for some setup of live music towards the ending miles. Food for thought for next year.

This was my 1st marathon and I ran a lot better than I expected; no doubt the cool weather and cloud cover helped.

Pros:

1) The course is real easy with a few hills early on, but they aren't steep, so you barely notice them
2) The downhill section along MLK Drive from mile 16-19 was really nice
3) Having clocks almost every mile was a nice touch
4) Seemed to be plenty of people out despite the weather
5) Decent field size to give you plenty of people to run with, but not too large to be a real pain at the start
6) Plenty of well staffed aid stations

Cons:

1) Had a hard time finding a break in the fence to line up in the right spot
2) Start was delayed a few minutes
3) The headwind from mile 19-23 wasn't a lot of fun, but you can't control the weather and overall the weather was ideal for running

Overall, I would definitely do the race again though a middle of May date means that some years it could end up being a bit warm.

Be prepared for:

- Quick left turn on a brick side street and then another quick left (during the first 1/4 mile of race). Might be faster strategically (and safer) to run far wide to right on both left turns, because the pace really slows and there is real potential for twisted ankle.
- Right before circling Browns Stadium, look at the huge high windmill on your right. It was not moving at all at the start of race. Watch te same windmill when finishing hours later!
- Browns Stadium is beautiful, but be mentally ready for steep uphill after circling around the stadium. Near end of marathon you run up just 1/2-2/3 of that same hill, but the steepest part of it. Killer if you're already spent by mile 24-25 like me.
- After the Browns Stadium hill (during early part of race), you run up some overpasses too. Not bad if you're prepared mentally.
- A few port-a-lets were available from time to time, but men have plenty of opportunities to relieve themselves along the right side of the course during the first 4-5 miles - on trees and near underpasses. There were so many doing it that it didn't seem unnatural. :-) Better than in your pants!
- Nice neighborhood for a good mile or two, then a not-so-nice one as we were heading back east. Both had great crowd support, though.
- This time of day, any sun should not be in your eyes except when running east. Due to clouds and early rain, we did not have sun until miles 13-15(?), right before turning north. It was in our eyes though.
- Don't forget that the half turns left after re-entering downtown. Instead of getting discouraged, I used that to my advantage, running stride-for-stride with a younger girl and then surprised her with a "you look strong" as she turned left and saw me go straight. "You too!"
- Industrial part of downtown around miles 13-14? No crowd. Start finding someone to pace/run with.
- Once turning north into the park and on MLK Boulevard, the course is awesome - beautiful and downhill, mostly.
- While running through the park and along MLK, the road curves back and forth. Draw the lines and run the shortest distance. Only one other runner was doing that, but that's legal when no cones are present.
- Be ready for a left turn onto a running path along Lake Erie. Wind gusts of 15-25 mph? The pace really slows. Try to draft with someone, but take turns.
- Watch for Brown's Stadium to know when you're getting closer to turning left, but don't forget about that steep hill.
- Eventually you head up on a street heading east, before heading west to finish line. Be prepared because that street heading east seems to last forever.
- Once heading back west on the final stretch to the finish, be prepared for similar wind to whatever you got dealt along Lake Erie.

P.S. If you don't run negative splits, or have reserves, be ready for Lake Erie winds and to the finish. When windy, this course can "beat you!" My time was decent, but I was spent!

Race Director - 1) Encourage your sponsored hotels to have bananas, bagels, band aids, whatever, in the lobby on the morning of the race. That's a nice feature when someone's not prepared. Everything else closed downtown on a Sunday morning that early. 2) Please get non-medic bikers off the course! I kept calling them for some Vaseline to find out they were spectators pacing/encouraging some other runners. When I found the real medics, they were helpful and even enjoyed catching back up to me to aid me while I continued the run. 3) Thanks for having legends Bill Rogers and Bart Yasso at the expo. Now my photos from the 80's are autographed!

My big complaint is that they had no schedule of speakers! The speakers they had were awesome but I couldn't find anybody to tell me when Rodgers or Yasso were actually going to speak!

The course was flat and the wind did stink at 19-22... the start was congested and could have done without all the turns in the first couple miles to allow folks to spread out before making us go through turns.

The water stops were well organized but not consistent... I had really to pay attention to get water or PowerAde.

The food at the finish line was good.

Ultimately I liked it. I got exactly what I wanted: Good weather, water, PowerAde, and timers throughout the course.

One thing that would have been nice that I didn't see was a mile marker for mile 26... but perhaps I just missed it.