I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this marathon. I just ran the NYC marathon in Nov., so this was a very different (and dare I say, even better) experience.

The weather was ideal on race day (chilly at the start, but in the 50s by the finish). The course is flat, and the 'Dolly Parton Hills' at mile 20 weren't that bad (especially with the guys dressed up as Dolly Parton manning the water station distracting runners!). The decline starting at mile 21 definitely made the last 5 miles go by quickly. I was really impressed with the amount of food (and free beer) in the AA Arena after the race, which definitely beats the apple and PowerBar from the NYC Marathon.

Overall, I would highly recommend this marathon to anyone looking for a fast course. The number of runners was good (never bumped into other runners, yet never felt alone). My only suggestions is to have water/PowerAde at the start, and to close off more streets to traffic. There were several intersections with police officers directing cars across when there were gaps in the runners. This worked out well (thank you Dallas Police!), but I'm sure the drivers weren't pleased with having to wait. After all, we don't want to antagonize the non-runners out there. Also, crowd support could've been better (nothing compares to NYC), so more of them could've screamed 'Yee-haw' when we ran by.

I am a first-timer, and from Dallas, so when I decided to run a marathon, I thought I would run it here. The weather this year was great, upper 50's, not to windy, and the sun was out to warm us up. The aid stations were great with plenty of water and PowerAde, oranges, and carb bars. The race was well organized, and the Dallas Police were on hand and did a great job with traffic control. There were plenty of supporters who line the streets with their signs, water, and beer, and were great support for those last few miles. The fighter jets that did the fly-by while the national anthem played was a great sight, and it pumped everyone up. I'll definitely have to run it again, so hopefully I'll see y'all there. :)

Experienced marathoners should seriously consider this race.

Positives:
a) Loop course makes logistics very easy.
b) Course is flat enough to be really fast.
c) Weather is unpredictable but often great. (In 2005 there was perfect weather. Normal highs and lows are also perfect.)
d) There just aren't enough good winter marathons and this is one of them.
e) Scenery is OK as you tour through a variety of neighborhoods in Dallas.

Negatives:
a) Spectators are very few. If you have run Boston, NY, Chicago - then this is a very, very different experience.
b) Beer servings at mile 20 are too small!!!

There is a saying that everything is bigger in Texas, and the marathon certainly lived up to expectations. This is by far my favorite race, and not because I achieved a PR. The organization was phenomenal, from the expo, to the shuttle to the start, to being able to use the bathrooms inside American Airlines Arena as well as the usual portable facilities. It was cool to have a fly by of 4 jets at the start of the race, and then we were led by a cowboy on horseback to start off. That gave me a bit more adrenaline.

The course was beautiful, going through a very nice part of Dallas. 10 miles went around White Rock Lake. The crowd support was just right, with 10-15 areas having live music (I lost count) throughout the race. There were water stops at almost every mile, and oranges and bananas were passed out at many of the later stops. The course was of medium difficulty, with the worst hill coming at mile 19 and beyond 20.

The only minor negatives were longer disbursement time from the start than usual, some cones separating lanes on the road between the 4th and 5th mile that could have easily caused runners to trip, and some crazy lady that pulled her car right into the course lanes while we approached her. Many yelled at her, and you could see her saying something back that definitely was not, "Sorry."

All in all, a great race, and highly recommended.

I completed this marathon yesterday. Overall I was pleased and would recommend it. The course was scenic and interesting, a bit hilly, but I expected that so I wasn't surprised. Crowd support was a little light, and the majority of the bands weren't playing when I went by, but I had my iPod, so I was fine.

Police did a great job stopping traffic and there were plenty of friendly volunteers wherever the course turned to make sure you didn't get lost.

One of the main reasons I picked this race is that the course is open for 7 and a half hours. I finished in 6:45 and was disappointed at the finish. I had to ask where to go to return my chip, there was NO food and I went to the medical tent to ask for a bottle of water. As you exit the finish area to go back into the American Airlines Center, there had been booths, but all of them were taken down or in the process of shutting down.

In my previous marathon experiences, you wandered through the finish line area like a zombie and people shuffled you around, handing you your medal, removing your chip, wrapping a space blanket around you, giving you a bottle of water and pointing out the food area.

If the course if officially open for 7:30, then I would expect that the finish line activities be going on until the official end of the marathon. Those of us who are out there for 6+ hours would really appreciate a post-race bagel.

Never seen a race with an utter lack of finish-line food or drink. Upon completing the race all I could find was a bottle of water and Rock Star Energy drink. Runners 6 hours and beyond I spoke to had to ask the medical people for some water at the finish. Finally after walking to my car I found out that food was in the American Airlines Center at the floor level at least 30 steps down. Good luck walking up and down stairs after a marathon. This was my 8th marathon this year and the most low budget finish line refreshment I've ever seen. Race director, please see the Marine Corps Marathon model on how to take care of runners at the end of a marathon.

I've run a few marathons, but this was my first experience in the White Rock. There are many things to praise about this race, and only a few minor issues. Highlights--the expo was very nice and conveniently located in the host hotel. The hotel (Hyatt) had a good rate and reasonably priced parking and was also located near the DART rail so access was really good. I highly recommend anyone running the race stay at the Hyatt as long as they host and offer a good rate. The staff and facilities were superior.

Next to the volunteers and spectators. Obviously it takes a lot of people to make something like this happen, and I was very impressed with the enthusiasm of the volunteers both at the packet pick-up and at the aid stations. Those folks really are great ambassadors for Dallas. A decent number of people came out to cheer on their friends and all runners. I lost count of the number of bands that played along the route. The only part of the race where the crowds thinned was in towards the end as the course winds on some backstreets downtown.

Having the AA Center available to runners before the race was extremely beneficial as it kept us out of the weather and allowed the use of real bathroom facilities. Having two starting lines was also a good idea.

The course itself was very pretty, winding through upscale and middle-class neighborhoods, and of course around the beautiful White Lake. Elevation was not extremely dramatic, even on the infamous Dolly Parton Hills. I definitely walked thinking that Dallas was a beautiful city.

Of all the marathons I've run, Dallas had the best aid stations by far. Having fluids available nearly every mile made a tremendous difference, both physically and psychologically. And Clif Bar was extremely generous with gels the last half of the race. Kudos to the folks who decided to do this many aid stations and also to those who volunteered to staff them.

The only 'area for improvement' I'd list is one I've read from previous years--the organizers need to put signs up directing people to the post-race food and shuttle busses. I was a stranger in Dallas and after the race I had to ask a cop where the shuttle buses were, only to be misdirected. The only reason I knew the food was in the AA Center was that I read it on this site--even inside the AA building it was extremely confusing on the *authorized* way to get down to the food. The last thing anybody needs is to finish a marathon and have to stumble around in a strange city to find food and shuttle buses. A few well placed signs and none of this would be an issue.

The organizers really do an outstanding job putting this on. I wish the local news stations recognized this, as I watched multiple newscasts for 2 days, and heard nothing--including no useful information on race weather. This isn't a complaint about the organization or the race, merely the Dallas media who didn't seem to appreciate that a world-class event like this was occuring in their city.

I ran the 1/2 marathon. I would not do this as an in-towner again because car parking was $5.00 and the line to enter the arena was very long so that you could pass through the metal detectors. Pre-race was a mess. Start and course were okay. Lots of bands and music, and good water support.

DALLAS WHITE ROCK MARATHON ? Race Report by David Homan

I made a quick trip to Texas last month to run the Dallas White Rock Marathon on December 12. The race course starts in downtown Dallas at the American Airlines Arena (where their basketball team, the Mavericks, play) and makes a big loop to the north and east around White Rock Lake. I lucked out with incredible weather - 50F at the start, light breeze, low humidity, sunny and clear blue sky, 60-65F by finish time. The organization and expo were nice, and the crowd support was pretty good, too. In addition to the individuals running the marathon, there is a half-marathon at the same time and several hundred 5-person relay teams that do the full course. This totaled up to almost 10,000 runners, which explains the good spectator turnout.

The first 8 miles meander from downtown through various neighborhoods. There are rolling hills for this section that first pass trendy urban residential condos, then large mansion-like estates, and finally quaint suburban homes. The middle 10 miles are mostly flat and follow the shoreline of White Rock Lake. Very scenic and pleasant. I took off my singlet around the lake to get some sun, (hey, whad?ya expect, I?m a triathlete from Florida), but during the miles while I was wearing it, I heard several shouts of ?Go Mad Dog!? It was nice to hear. The last 8 miles go through another historic neighborhood back to downtown. A lot of the residents that live along the course were out in their yards having holiday parties, drinking eggnog and watching us run. The official race photographers, Sport Photo, did a great job of catching the moment on film - lots of great pictures.

Also, the last few miles of the course are mainly downhill and at a very gradual decline that doesn?t kill your quads. This was great for picking up the pace at the end. In fact, this was my fist marathon with a negative split (1:37/1:32). The post-race shindig in the AA Arena was also nicely done, with cold beer, a live band, lots of food, beer and plenty of tables and seating. So if you?re looking for a nice long run in the Lone Star State next December, consider the Dallas White Rock Marathon.

Well, it's been a few months, and the sting from my pathetic performance has worn off a little bit, so my comments can be taken more seriously now! I had an awful race, and had I rated it anytime soon after running it, I probably would've given it 1 star for everything!

This is my hometown marathon and I frequently race in Dallas along all the parts of the marathon, especially White Rock Lake. For out-of-towners, White Rock Lake is a great urban lake to run around, and a very scenic part of the race. Crowd support is sparse around the lake, but that can't really be remedied, as there isn't a whole lot of room except for at various points.

The course is deceptively challenging, but not overly difficult. I think you could run a PR on this course, although it isn't a PR course, if you catch my drift. The first 8-9 miles have some small rolling hills that can take more out of you than you'd expect. The part around the lake is flat, and there are some significant, although short, hills after leaving the lake. The last 5 are flat and/or a little downhill, so it can make a strong finish provided you have anything left.

In Dallas, you can never predict the weather, and this year it was about 60 degrees. Last year it was about 40. You can't predict the winter weather in Texas, but I think they could start the race an hour earlier to beat the heat that probably occurs every other year.

Organization was good; the only snafu I witnessed was that the chip-reading machine was down for about 20 minutes as I was getting my packet. The expo was much better than the last one I had attended (Marine Corps). Crowds are okay - don't count on them to pull you along as a lot of the crowds are not very boisterous.

Since I live 20 minutes from the starting line, I'll do it again. If I had to travel... well, maybe. It's certainly a nice event, but with the uncertainty of the weather, I think I'll probably opt for the half-marathon next year.