Organization was good. Race Director is a great guy who worked tirelessly to put the race together. He can't control the weather...35 degrees, windy and rain; lots of rain!
Course is hilly w/ some of the steepest hills in the last 5 miles. Scenic course, especially in the last 4 miles.
Aid stations and volunteers were great considering the weather. Loyal to the runners. Thanks.
Not much crowd support.
Chip timing didn't work. Net time was the same as clock time. Not sure why. That's a bit disappointing.
I'd run the race again only if the weather cooperates.

The weather could not have been any worse. Two of my fingers are still partially numb (36 hours later). Once you get past the weather, which was hard to do at times during the race, it was a good marathon. A couple degrees warmer and some sun and a PR is a definite possibility. The second flatest course I have ever run--only New Orleans was flater. It was scenic starting in Davidson, a quaint college town and finishing in a beautiful upscale neighborhood at Queens College. The organization could have been much better, but I will chalk it up to the disastrous weather. The race support at the aid stations was great and the fans that braved the weather were great. I would definitely run it again. A 7 out of 10.

Although I did set a PR, I was disappointed in the pont to point course. It goes from Davidson College to Queens College, about a 20 mile stretch of road that is mostly rural. The water stops were great, and the people there were encouraging, despite the constant rain. There was no gym or meeting place pointed out to those several thousand of us who were freezing after the race. One very positive--they served some great, hot chili at the finish. I would recommend keeping the race in town to see the sights and neighborhoods of a beautiful (when it's sunny!) city.

Pretty course thru the city streets of Charlotte---great way to start off the new year---and for a very good cause---was well organized and pretty good crowd support considering it IS in the dead of winter....

Nice blend of rural and urban scenery. Not the best organization for volunteers on the course. Need more aid stations in the last half with fruit and gels. Marathon gets lost a little among all the relays. The pasta party is absolutely the best in the country...gourmet all the way. Post race awards party also gets very high marks. The weather was absolutely perfect for the 2001 race.

January 27, 2001 This race course starts in a small college town just north of Charlotte, N.C. and ends at Queens College in a stately area of Charlotte. In between, the course runs through every conceivable neighborhood from farm country to urban blight. The most interesting part is running through downtown and then through the older stately college neighborhood.
The aid stations are terrific but the spectators are sparse and were mostly looking for their runner. The one spectator that I will never forget on Beatties Ford Road, was a sweet senior citizen lady who enthusiastically gave me a high five with her well-calloused hand. The crowd at the finish line was great and the refreshments and finish line crew were great.
The t-shirt and finishers medal are top-notch.
This race is a race that you run because you love to run marathons. You run it because it is there. This made my 2nd time and if I ever need a marathon to run in January close to home I will run it again-because it's there and I love to run marathons.

I ran one leg of a 2 person relay on this marathon course on 1/27/01 (and have recently run in 3 other marathons). Compared to the other races the organization of this race was a dissapointment. Race materials and website say nothing about race support (e.g., where water, food, porta john, and food stops are). The water stop at mile 4 was deserted (water was on the road packed in their boxes with nobody there). The race was billed as a chip race but was only a chip finish for marathoners. Relay teams did not get chips at all so no split times were available. The start was late and there was a false start. The starter signaled the start by dropping a flag (instead of an audible signal) from a spot that was hard to see from the start line. The course is relatively flat for this area except for some hills at the end. There are very few spectators along the way. Race packets have no goodies in them. Race organizers ran out of T shirts for 2-person relay even though same number of teams ran this year as last year. You have to pay $3 to have them mailed to you. Race organizers were frazzled (typical for races organized by this group) and short with runners. After race food was good. Free chili and cornbread (veggie chili too). This can be a great event if the organizers get their act together and spend a little more money on the runners and the actual event.