I only arrived 60-75 minutes beforehand, but still had plenty of time. I detested the long walk to and from my car at the time, but it was probably great for my muscles to warm up and cool down. I had a quick recovery (1-2 days of sore muscles), and I owe most of it to the walking I HAD to do. More hills than I expected... but I didn't train for any hills either. Spectators were sparse on the course, but the water stations and bands were awesome and supportive. The spectators in Fairborn got me so amped, and I loved having my name on my bib. I thought it sounded so lame to have your name on your shirt so people would call you by it, but it really did keep my spirits up. Pizza was scarce at the finish line, and it took 20 minutes to vet throughout the food line. The raspberry gel they had was the first gel That didn't make me gag. I'll run this course again, and I'll bring my friends.

Well organized, with lots of hydration stations, and the medical crew was top-notch. Parking was not very good. The rest of the experience was AWESOME! I loved being able to thank soldiers during the race.

I have run this marathon 3 times and have loved it every time. The flyovers are breathtaking, and the medals, shirts and towels are spectacular. The course is fairly flat, yet challenging. The finish is the best... running under the wings of historic airplanes and then receiving your medal and a handshake from a high-ranking officer.

I am a 58-year-old man and this was my first marathon. Two of my sons are Air Force pilots so I could not think of a better place to run my first marathon than on an Air Force base. Were there problems with parking? Yes. My oldest son and I ran from the parking area to the starting line and made it just in time. Lesson learned? The gates open at 5:00 a.m.; take advantage of it. Adapt and overcome. You have the opportunity to run on an active military base. In today's world it is a wonder this race even takes place. It was an honor to be with so many military personal. I felt the support was excellent  hydration stations and medical support were great. Because of so many restricted areas, spectators were sparse. But the City of Fairborn at the 10-mile mark really showed up in style as did so many military families as the race made its way through base housing. Complaints about not enough aircraft flying over the race?? Are you joking?? When was the last time a B-52 or a flight of F-16s made multiple passes over your race? Had they been flying the entire race someone would have complained about the cost to taxpayers. The course was not flat. But I loved the upward change in elevation at mile 21. Someone on the course design team has a sense of humor - priceless. Do the full or half Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati, OH and then talk to me about hills. I guess my view from the back of the pack is different from those who finished hours ahead of me and were home in the ice bath by the time I crossed the finish line. I loved this event. Can't wait to do another one - can't wait until next year's USAF Marathon. I will be there when the gates open and walk to the starting line.

This was my first half marathon and I had a great experience. The course was flat with water stops at every mile. The crowd was very supportive. Some of the fans even dressed up with different themes to entertain the runners. There were also several bands that played along the course as well. B-52 flyover at the beginning of the race was a nice touch as well. The parking wasn't the best but you have to expect that with such a big event. Overall, I had a great experience at the Air Force Marathon and plan to do it again next year!

This was my fourth, it was the first year that I had problems getting on and off of the base. That's the only downside. I thought the fly-overs were great! Running next to Bill Rodgers was great! Love the course.

I am tired of reading complaints about all of the traffic and parking problems with the Air Force Marathon. This is a military base; word was put out about getting there early way in advance. The walk to the start is treated as if it were 10 miles. It wasn't; get over it. People complained last year when shuttle buses were used because there were not enough of them, so the parking was moved closer and they still complain. The Marine Corps Marathon does a great job, but read the comments on this site about people complaining about the transportation there. I met a few runners after who were very happy because they did qualify for Boston, so it is done. Stop the complaining, or start your own PERFECT MARATHON.

NOT A GOOD BOSTON QUALIFIER. The parking was atrocious; it took almost an hour to get into the base and parked. The full marathoners merge with the half marathoners late in the race.... That's utterly pathetic, since you are not running the same pace (7-minute marathoners merged with 10-minute half marathoners and were forced to dodge their way through the half marathoners to keep pace... NOT what you want to do late in the race). Just utterly pathetic that they can't coordinate the parking better. Maybe they need to contact the Marine Corp to learn how organize a race properly. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS RACE FOR A BOSTON QUALIFIER!!!

I've felt the race was one of the more sentimental and one of the most fun races I've done. The course has variety and it wasn't boringly flat, nor ridiculously hilly. Every segment had some sense of significance to the race planners. I liked running on a high-tech runway, and a few miles later, running past the Wright brothers' runway.

As far as crowds, the start and finish, along with Fairborn, were phenomenal. We could hear them about a mile away.

The parking situation left a lot to be desired. I will say that getting to the gate at exactly 0500 helped a lot. My running partner and I parked, and the moment we did, we saw a snake of headlights start. You'd think with the logistics and capabilities in a college town, they'd have more sense, but that's the one glaring flaw. Outside of that, I couldn't be more pleased.

You can't ask for a better course than the Air Force Marathon: Fast, flat for long stretches and abundant water stations.

Unfortunately, the organization/logistics before the race constituted the glaring flaw for this race (as it was for 2009, judging from the comments... so little has been fixed). The only means of getting onto the base was through two gates, that had little to no police support, just poorly timed traffic lights. Traffic was backed up for about 3 miles one hour before the race and traffic was barely flowing. If I hadn't been carpooling with someone from the local area and knew back-roads, we never would have made it on time. At the gun, we ran by large fields where you could see the off-base traffic and the hundreds of cars trying to get to the race already underway. It looked like the final scene from Field of Dreams. The race officials need to have people/cops directing traffic into base two lanes at a time (not single file) and utilizing the whole field for parking.

If you are going to do this race next year, do not attempt to show up 90 minutes early... you'll be late. You need to aim for 2 hours early or more to be on time.