I disagree with many of the past reviews I read before running this race. I thought the spectators were good, considering the majority of the race is on a base. If you need tons of spectators you may want to stick to Chicago, NY, etc. I thought the course was fairly easy, with only a few small hills mixed in. I thought the expo was above average, unlike some reviewers in the past. This was my tenth marathon and one of the better ones I have race. I had a PR of 3:08 on this course.

This was my fouth time running the Air Force Marathon, and it keeps getting better. This was the first year that all of the runs, 5K, 10K, Half and Full sold out.

The marathon starts and finishes at the Museum of the US AIR FORCE. The start had a fly-over by a B-52 bomber, and during the run also, as well as a replica of the Wright Flyer built by the Wright Brothers. The course is mostly on the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, but you have fantastic support from base personnel, and themed aid stations as well as bands. For 2 miles from before mile 9 past 10, the course goes out into the community of Fair Born, and the residents show great support, which helps a lot. Mostly a flat course, though there are some hills, the biggest being at mile 1.

At the finish you are presented a very heavy medal by a senior Air Force officer.

Everything about the race was good to great. The course, the volunteers, and the event as a whole were very sharp. The parking was ridiculously stupid. I was warned at the expo to get to the start 90 minutes or more early. I was there 90 minutes early and waited in line to park for the entire time. I ran to the start line and got there 3 mins after the gun and had to fight through all of the 10K walkers.

I would return if they addressed the parking issue. The planes were awesome.

I recently completed the 2010 USAF Marathon and really enjoyed it. The medals are really nice, and having them presented to you by active military staff was a nice touch. I did not finish as well as I had hoped, but that had nothing to do with the race. My only complaint would be the LONG walk to and from the parking area to the race start/finish. Before the start it was no problem, but after the race it was not what I needed. I always make it a point to get out and stretch the legs after a race, but not right after the race on the walk back to the car. Overall, I would definitely recommend this race.

This was a great first marathon for me. It was well organized and a lot of fun. Thanks for the tremendous effort! I was also thrilled to meet Bill Rodgers, Amby Burfoot, and the other guest speakers.

As always, another hot and muggy marathon. I think quality was given up for quantity. The expo: you could not get to the vendors without losing your place in line to pick up your packet. Suggestion: move the packet to the gym floor and leave room to get to the vendors . On the course: the usual drums of water and sponges were not out; and the water on the course was hot - not room temperature, but hot. I'm sure some things were missed because of the large crowds. I've finished all of the marathons except the first year, when I did not run it. I know it's a top-notch race and was always well organized. I'll be back. Thanks to all of the volunteers and those men and women who serve our country.

I have to agree with others about the parking and getting on and off of the base. Between packet pickup the day before and the morning of the race, I would say that parking was dreadful. I arrived at the recommended 1 1/2 hours before the start of my race and it still took an hour to park - not to mention at the end I was so tired that trying to walk another 2 miles to the car was crummy. I know you need to cool down, but still.
Although there weren't many spectators, those who did come out and at mile 10 were WONDERFUL!!!! It was very cheery.

Overall, this was a nice marathon, with plenty of post-race food, and the medal was fantastic. Fly-overs were sweet too.

I tend to like smaller marathons because there are no crowds, but from the start, this run didn't have the feel of being overcrowded. It took about 45 seconds from the gun to hit the start line and from there on, you could run your pace and not feel too boxed in. The course is mostly flat and often pretty. The on-base sections (almost the whole course) are covered with only a few spectators from the folks who live on base (great support though) and the off-base section (mile 8-10) is in Fairborn and those guys were awesome. Aid stations came along often. The half and the full combine in the low 20s and it got a little crowded then, but not too bad. The expo could probably be a little better organized. The 5K was run on Friday afternoon at the same place as the expo and it took over an hour to go 2 miles on Col Glenn Hwy (near the Nutter Center). It looked like there were other roads in to the Nutter Center, but they either weren't being used or were blocked off. Parking on base the day of the marathon was a little congested as well, which is why I like smaller marathons. All said, this is one of the best "big" marathons I've run.

This was my first marathon. The course was well laid- out with various areas in the last 1/2 that were shaded. The full runs through a nearby town, Fairborn, where you feel like a rockstar! The whole town seemed to line the streets and every kid wanted to give you a high-five. There was not much more support along the way other than the frequent and well-staffed water stations. There were at least 3 offering fruit, numerous ones with gel, and plenty of medical tents as well. The course itself had a strong hill at mile 2, another overpass at around mile 8 and another at mile 21. They were enough to slow your pace, but walking was not required. Other areas of the course had rolling hills, just to make it interesting. The fly-overs at the start by the B-52 and F-16s were awesome as was the paratrooper with the American flag.

Notes:
1. The traffic is bad. They have 3 entrances to get cars into the base and parked. There are just very many cars and not enough entrances. Give yourself PLENTY of time (at least 90 mins) to get parked and to the start line (which was close to a mile from our car).
2. Porta potties were at the start line but many people did not see these and used the few that were near the parking lot. Skip these lines and get to the 50 or so ones at the starting line.
3. Medal is huge, heavy and very cool. Even the lanyard was nice, and having an officer give it to you and congratulate you was a nice plus.
4. Volunteers at the water stations were top-notch. At the starting line? Not so much. Make sure to review the starting line map to know where gear check and potties are.
6. Finishing on a runway lined with planes was very cool.
5. The post-race party was nice, with plenty of places to sit. Pizza for the runners was good. Other food was available to purchase for the spectators.

I would run this again!

As advised at the expo, I arrived near the base more than 90 minutes prior to the start but was stuck in traffic for over an hour. There was very little traffic control outside the base, and none that I saw on the base. We parked where we saw others parked, ran toward the general start area, checked bags , and were late for the start by 5 minutes. There were NO VOLUNTEERS that I saw to direct traffic or direct people towards the bag check and start line areas. This was not due to security reasons, as our IDs were never checked. FUBAR and SNAFU are acronyms that apply to Wright-Pat. My experience with parking was bad last year and worse this year. The rest of the race is ok, but there are plenty of other marathons that do a better job. I won't be back.