Very much enjoyed the race. Great spirit by the spectators. Very well organized. Lots of volunteers, plenty of water stations. Nice shirt, decent expo, microbrewery beer at the finish. It doesn't get much better than this. Small comment: it was difficult for spectators at the finish to make it across to meet finishers. A sign or two might have helped. Overall, a great race experience.

This was my first marathon and I was hoping to qualify for Boston. And I did! Great, friendly crowd and the other runners were very encouraging. Course is flat; there's a slight hill on 22 or so, but it's nice. I hit a wall at 17.5 and the wind off the coast wasn't helpful. Mainly it was my fault for setting PR's at every checkpoint on the first half of the race. GREAT MEDICAL TENT with superior doctors and nurses. I will definitely be back and always hold this one close to my heart.

This was my 3rd full MB Marathon. However, I've raced here since 2004 alternating between the half and full marathon. The race is a good size, which makes running it very easy compared to larger races. I like the early start because it gives you more time in the day to celebrate with friends. The course is very flat and fast, but after the half marathon, the course gets very lonely. The occasional views of the ocean and the spectators that were stationed along ocean-side neighborhoods did a lot to lift your spirits. Water and PowerAde were plentiful. The weather on race day predicted showers from the beginning, but the rain held off until 10:30 or so. But this didn't stop all of the volunteers from cheering the runners on. Nor did it hamper all of the finish line celebrations. Photographers kept at it and the beer poured freely at the end.

This was my first marathon (though I've done quite a few triathlons) and I thought it was very well put together and very organized. I'll be back next year for sure.

The organizers of the MBM did everything they could to make this marathon a good one. I'd do it again. If you want to run a fast marathon, this is a good option.

The Good:
The start had the local college pep band, clearly marked pace groups start areas, and a solid police presence.

The course was clearly marked and not very congested after the first mile. Participants could really run almost from the start. The mile markers were easy to find and most had clocks. Since it is in a beach town, it is almost pancake flat.

Since it was Valentine's Day, the medal was heart-shaped, which was a nice touch. The technical shirt was red, too.

The expo was fine, easy to find and just the right size. The beach towel was a nice touch. The runners got a lane, designated by cones, on the roads. Where needed, police stopped traffic. The race is not a huge one, so my family could easy find me at all of the places we arranged to meet.

The Not So Good (very minor):
The first 3:30 pacer went out way too fast, but the second guy knew what he was doing. I figure the first one just made a rookie mistake.

The fuel stops were almost all water and Gatorade. I usually don't eat much, but carry your own if you do.

Overall, a great race. I will be back every year. Thanks.

I am so glad to see all of the positive comments about the half and full marathon here in Myrtle Beach. Since I live here, I can tell you that the residents of this town are proud to host this event every year and our middle and high school kids vie for the opportunity to work at the various food/water stations along the course. These kids provide excellent moral support to all the runners and make it a positive experience for all the runners.

I ran the half this year and had an easy run, but would have been thrilled had there been a few port-a-johns in the last miles of this race as there were MANY runners on the side of the road pooping and peeing. I did not see any port-a-johns for the half runners.

Overall, great day! The organizers really did an excellent job!

I've done MB for two years in a row. The course is flat, and offers a great chance for a PR. The expo is great, and fans are plentiful (and loud and wonderfully encouraging). My only two complaints would be that the beginning of the race is bottle-necked and you lose a lot of time there, and the 2008 shirts were HORRIBLE!!!!!! Please, please, please go back to something like 2007 - they were much better!!!

I enjoyed the Myrtle Beach Marathon immensely. It was cold at about 30 degrees, but I warmed up nicely to the task.

Since this was my first, I decided to use the Hal Higdon walk-run method, in which I walked all of the water stations. I felt good most of the race, and was pleasantly surprised that I still had turbo boosters in the latter stages of the race (at around the 20th mile). It was at around mile 23 when I hit the wall, but I didn't let that stop me (occupational hazard). When I run, I like to sing, and yell cadence to keep up morale, and when other runners joined in, it really made the run fun. What really did it for me, though, was when some of the other runners said that if it wasn't for me, they would've dropped out a long time ago.

NEVER GIVE UP! NEVER SURRENDER!

Doing it BIG WILLIE-style in Chuck Town, S. Cakkie Lakkie

Fun, flat marathon with an exorbitant amount of BQ potential. This was my 4th marathon and I must say it was probably my most enjoyable. I ran an 11-minute personal best and qualified for the Boston Marathon. The expo was nice. All of the free goodies and BEER was a plus! I got a massage from Naomi at the finish and it sure helped things the following week. The shirt and medal were a nice added plus.

However, I did not like the start of the race. I started right in front of the 3:10 pace flag and found out really quickly that I was in the wrong place. When the half-marathon runners merged with the full-marathon runners, it forced me to run on the sidewalk and pass large groups of runners to catch up. My first mile was 7:39 (from my watch crossing the start line) and should have been around 7:00. Thanks goodness I had plenty of time to get back on pace.

All around, I enjoyed my Myrtle Beach experience. If you can hack all of the winter miles and harsh weather, MB is truly a great reward. I honestly got all my course and detailed information regarding this race from this site. I feel that most of the posts are correct and are a great resource for those new to the MD marathon. Good luck and take it one step at a time.