Well organized and supported race.
School Buses delivered runners to the starting area in Arkansas. Waited over an hour before the race began. This was not pleasant because it was cold and windy, although the fires did help warm the runners. The first 4-5 and the final 4-5 miles were nice. The rest of the course was along the highway. Running over the MS river was cool.Plenty of refreshments at the finish line!

I ran the 1/2 marathon but had such an amazing experience that I am already planning on coming back for the full. The race was expertly executed (especially for an inaugural) and the course support was phenomenal - I swear the entire town came out to cheer on the runners.

Here is my recap of the 1/2 if you're curious. http://noshingonasphalt.wordpress.com/2013/02/13/mississippi-river-inaugural-marathon-12-recap/

This was a great race, especially for an inaugural event and I will do it again next year. My 7th marathon and I set another PR, which was helped tremendously by the perfect weather and flat course.

Good:
1. Organization was great. Easy to follow instructions, no confusion.
2. Course was flat, flat, and flat. The traffic was well away from the runners, there were police or volunteers at all needed intersections, and signage was good.
3. Weather - while always unpredictable, the weather was perfect and in general is often great for running this time of year.
4. FOOD - This was the best post-race food I've ever had. First, there was plenty and they did not run out, regardless of when you finished. They had healthy (fruit, juice, water), warm (pizza, red beans and rice), and just rewarding (ice cream, donuts). Also of course there was plenty of free beer. It really was the best post race food out of the 7 marathons I've done.

Bad:
1. The course wasn't exactly the most interesting, but at least for me, that wasn't so important.
2. The spectators were not many, but the ones there were very nice and accommodating.
3. Hotel options - There are some good options, but just not a lot of hotel rooms in the city. Greenville's not that big, so plan to book early.
4. The medal is nice, but the half and the full are 99% the same, the only difference being a small 'half' added to the half. Several full finishers received a half by mistake. Not to sound too elitist or anything (I am really slow by the way), but I think full finishers should get a better or at least different medal than the half.

Overall:
A really good race, very, very nice people all around, a fast course, and also a great cause - teach for America. Entry was also pretty cheap.

Thank you for a well managed, fun, challenging and scenic inaugural event. It was a treat to await the race in a warm bus, with a fun driver, then begin the race promptly as scheduled with generous volunteers, cheer support and, of course, super post-race food.

This race was so well organized, you would have thought they had been doing for years, but nope, 2013 was the inagrural event!!! If you are looking for a small marathon without much fan fare and a fast course, this is the right marathon for you!
I cannot think of a single thing that could have been done to make this event more well organized.
The first few miles through the town of Lake Village were very scenic and the towns people were there to cheer us on. However, once we left Lake Village, there was not much inspiration, save for the folks working the FABULOUS aid stations! What a great bunch of volunteers. Southern hospitality at it's finest!
Once you reach the city limits of Greenville, things pick up a bit with the encouragement of the Greenville residents cheering from thier yards.
FYI... the race directors are fantastic people! The night before the race, I lost my bib and frantically started calling and messaging every number I could find. One of the race director called me back almost immedately and told me not to worry, that if my bib was not located, a new one would be issued to me before the start of the race. That is type of service and support you get from this race!! Thanks guys!

I qualified for Boston, so I think anyone wanting to set a PR should run this race. Organized very well. Festiveties at the end of the race where well done.

What a fabulous, successful event!

This was my first half marathon and it was absolutely perfect! (Well, okay, I didnt train as much as I should have and my time was not what I wanted..but I cant blame the marathon for that)
I heard people everywhere raving about the entire event. The consensus comment was that you did not miss a thing! Of course, the weather was unbelievableespecially considering what happened on Sunday. The course was excitingthe bridge was gorgeousloved how Greenville turned out to support it. The atmosphere at the end was just too, too fun! The portapotties were so perfectly placed. Loved the school buses for a Teach for America event. Loved how the school buses hung around so the runners didnt freeze before the race started. Loved the moon pies at the end of the race and on and on and on!

Congrats on a perfect job!!!!

So your thinking about running the Mississippi River Marathon. Here's what you need to know:

1. Greenville MS is way out there. You can fly to Memphis or Jackson but be prepared to drive a while.

2. This is definitely a Full Marathon experience and not so great for Halvers. I loved the lake views and small towns that ALL occurred before we crossed the bridge (about half way.) The Half starts at the bridge then goes for miles through fallow fields before re-entering Greenville. The full also has these bland miles but they serve only as an interlude between the lake and the city and are therefore not as bad.

3. This race is supremely well organized. Start2Finish is a Memphis based company with years of experience putting on top notch events and was hired to run things here. Being from Memphis I have run many of their races and they do a great job. The marathon organizers were smart to elicit their experience and mixed in the Greenville's residents natural enthusiasm. They seemed genuinely glad to see you there.

4. There is an aid station every mile except over the bridge from miles 13-16. (It's a long bridge.) The water was a little rusty at some of the stops but was drinkable.

5. There is electronic timing but no start line timing mat. Why? If you invest in this technology why not go all the way? Still, it is great to just print your results out at the finish line and see if you won anything on the spot.

6. They give free cowbells at the Expo! AWESOME! The expo is otherwise kind of small, but has a vendor for emergency supplies, which is all I really care about.

7. There are bonfires and a gear check at the remote starting line. The fires could keep you warm if you could squeeze next to them. Some propane heaters or more fires could help keep more folks warm. I suggest you dress warm and check the cold gear just prior to the start.

8. There is little protection from the wind and the sun, so plan ahead. You will get plenty of both.

9. Nice medals. Good post-race food and entertainment. Nice plaques for age group winners.

10. They have an Athena and Clydesdale division! This is great news for bigger runners like me! They also have plenty of age groups compared to the number of runners so a lot of folks just might win awards who usually don't.

11. The bridge is a scenic suspension bridge over America's most famous river. Pretty cool.

12. The course is open to traffic, but the lanes devoted to runners are large enough for 3 across and I never felt in danger.

Overall, this was a great race run across 2 states and the Mighty Mississippi. Well organized and fun. It's well worth the drive.

I ran the half marathon of this race...my 8th one. I was initially concerned about this being a first year race and it using buses to take us to the start line. But the organizers did a great job all the way around! The buses stayed w us at the start line until 10 mins before the gun, which was helpful so we could stay warm. I was really surprised at the number of spectators who lined the roads and highways. There was even a drumline and cheerleaders along the route! I never stop in a race, but I did in this one just to dance to YMCA one of the spectator groups was playing and to get gummie bears. I've never been offered gummie bears at a race! Bathrooms and water/Gatorade were plentiful through out the course. It was a little nerve wracking when we got down town as some of the traffic didn't want to be stopped for us, but it went well.

There were only 2 things that could improve this race...the hotels wouldn't allow an extra hour to get a shower before check out at 11am. When I asked about it twice more than one of them said the directors hadn't negotiated late check out times when they blocked rooms for the race. Another hotel said housekeeping wouldn't get everything clean on time. My thought is, if 1400 people descend on your town and stay in your hotel, an extra hour won't put housekeeping that far behind. The 2nd thing, I had no idea how long we'd be sitting on those buses before getting to the start line and then waiting for the race to start...from 6:00 to 7:45 am. So I didn't have any water w/ me and was getting really thirsty before the race. The restaurant where the buses parked gave us some water, but it would've been nice if there'd been a snack table next to the gear check in.

Also, some kind of starting gun going off would've been good. We walked to the start line in the middle of the bridge, but I never heard anything...maybe the traffic drowned the start gun sound out. It was hard to find an OK dinner in Greenville the night before since I'm a vegetarian, but I'm willing to go back and run again in 2014 because I liked this race so much.

What an amazing inaugural year! No hiccups, glitches, or problems at all. The expo was quaint with friendly volunteers and a big map where I pinned my hometown. Buses from the finish to the start were seamless and easy to understand. When I got off the bus at the starting line, there were huge bonfires where I kept warm, and a baggage drop for my sweatshirt that I didn't want to take with me. The course itself was beautiful. The Lake was stunning and the bridge was epic. I was dreading running miles 16-20 along highway 82 but they had great aid stations every mile and plenty of people along the course cheering and playing music. The finish line was perfect with local bands playing, all the free beer I could drink and hoards of food. Usually when I finish, all the food is gone. There was so much food, people were taking home entire pizzas. This is a must do marathon. Well worth the money and travel time.