Well what did I expect? It is Seattle after all; there should be reasonable expectations of rain. Mother Nature provided plenty of cooling precipitation - all through the race. Advice to runners: come prepared with lots of breathable, waterproof layers.

Extremely good race organization. Goodie bag and shirt were exceptional. Course was beautiful and well stocked at aid stations. Almost no music or entertainment along the course. Somewhat confused finish area.

I hate slamming a race because I know how hard the people work to put it together - but Seattle stinks as a race as of right now.

The weather in late Nov. is horrible. This year was soaking wet and very cold. The fans who came out where great - all 50 of them. But on the whole there are 3-4 mile stretches of road where you do not see a single fan... the worst being the stupid forest they send you through for two miles or so at mile 21-23. Not a soul in there except people out walking their dogs.

The course is ok - very hilly at the end. Only an elite runner would call the last six miles of hills moderate. For the other 90% of the people there, it is a cruel way to finish a very long and cold and wet day.

They need to re-think this course and change the date to a month earlier and maybe fans will come out.

This was my first marathon. I started feeling the pain at mile 13. I was really doubting myself until I got to 16 and realized I had fewer than 10 to go. The pain didn't get much worse, so I just trudged along. A little bit wet and a little bit cold but not too bad.

It rained off and on throughout the entire race. More "on" than "off." And it was COLD!!!

- Expo was small but fine.
- Participant t-shirt was fine.
- Organization was very good. Lots of porta-potties and aid stations throughout the course.
- The course itself was excellent, well marked and far less hilly than I anticipated.
- There weren't many spectators, but the ones that did show up get high ratings for braving the weather to cheer us on.
- The finish area was inside Memorial Stadium, which was nice for keeping us warm and dry. The finish area food however was *okay* at best. They had chowder, but since I'm not a chowder fan I didn't partake. Even if I were a chowder fan I'm not sure I would have wanted some after such a long run. I AM a huge fruit smoothie fan but didn't partake of the FROZEN fruit smoothies either, as the last thing I wanted to do was eat a frozen item. I was mainly looking for some carbs (muffins, bagels, etc.) but couldn't find any. Ended up walking out with just a banana and bottled water. Quite disappointing.

Would I do this race again? Probably since it's a local race, but I'd wait until the last minute and only sign up if the weather looked half-way decent.

Good race except for end-of race glitches. This is a geat course (or would be if not for the seasonable weather: cold, socked-in and raining most of the race). Surprising to see ANY fans in such horrible weather - but, they were out there!

At the start they were talking-up the hot food at the finish.... Then after five hours of running in freezing rain, that hot food really sounded good! Ooops. No hot food.... "We ran out.... How about a banana?" Also, when I got back I noticed I still had my chip on. They didn't have anyone collecting these at the end (and after five hours of running in the rain it was the last thing on my mind.... The HOT FOOD was on my mind). So now I get to screw around trying to mail it back. The no-food and chip glitches detracted from an otherwise good marathon (assuming some reasonable - i.e. UNSEASONABLE weather).

This was the first full marathon I have taken part in. The conditions on the day were wet and cold, which personally I didn't mind; I felt it made the runners dig a little deeper. The course was well planned with good directions and water stations that were well stocked. I had a great first half, but after stopping to use the restroom at the 13-mile point, I didn't really find my stride again. From there onwards, I really appreciated having the other runners and supporters around me.

I moved to the city in summer, so I knew what to expect from the hills near the end, it felt great to get those out of the way and race the final couple of miles with the Space Needle in sight. I finished in 4:10 - not as fast as I expected but I'm more than happy. As I crossed the finish line the announcer called my name and my wife was there to greet me. Awesome feeling.

The recovery area was busy as expected; I was just happy to get some warm food inside me.

Overall it was a great day. Thanks to all those folks who came out in the rain to cheer us on, the volunteers throughout the course, and to all those who raced.

I grew up in Seattle and November is probably the worst weather month. Seattle is one of the few cities you can have a summer marathon, and it would attract a lot more runners and spectators - don't complain about people not wanting to watch a marathon in the wet, wind and cold. And require every member of the organizing committee to run this thing every year in November.

I ran this race previously in 1998. The course has been modified for the better since. I felt like I really "knew" Seattle better the second time.

It was great running through downtown next to the elevated train (and ironic that a small collision on the same train/track(s) the previous night made the made national news; though it didnt effect marathon day).

The course brought us through downtown, over bridges with great views of the city, through freeway tunnels, large expanses of rural park, and through a very high-class neighborhood with million-dollar homes (this also happened to be one of the hilliest sections of the course).

The weather was moderately cool along the route, and seemed to get progressivly colder as I ran, probably low 40s or high 30s. I will take this any day over 1998's bone-soaking downpour, however. (The nature of the race's traditional Thanksgiving Day weekend date and location in the NW is that you can get bad weather; that's just the way it is).

The medal is nice, course support was fine, and refreshments at the finish were good, to the best of my recollection.

The pasta dinner is too much of a high-class, overpriced ($25) event, and not much of a family affair. The all-weather "walking billboard" t-shirt has a very tiny race logo on the front, and about 20 advertisers on the back. I rarely wear it.

The marathon bus tour is nice, but way overpriced at $20 each!

Good race, very well organized on the course, but I was VERY disappointed by the food situation in the recovery area. After 26 miles and 80 bucks, I'd like something warm to eat other than clam chowder. Very, very skimpy on the food. Felt kind of ripped off, actually. If it weren't for that, I'd recommend it!

I have done Seattle twice, and I have always been impressed by how well organized it is. The course is either downhill or flat for most of the first 20 miles. Then there is a climb, and then downhill again. For the last three miles, it is easy to understand how much you have left to run, since you finish by the Space Needle, which is visible. If you understand the course and how to run it, there is no reason why you can't PB here. At every mile marker, there is a volunteer reading the time. You never feel like you are out on your own on this course.

Also the course is very nice and diverse (lakefront, downtown, and residential). The last three years the weather has been perfect for a run. My only suggestion is that the technical race shirts should have longer sleeves. Both years they have been too short for me, even in size large, even though normal medium size shirts usually fit me well.