What a blast! A flat and fast course. A little chilly first thing in the morning, but that has more to do with a time change than anything else. Organization seemed top-notch for the number of people in the race. Plenty of water stops, and plenty of volunteers. Thank you, Shamrock.

This was my 5th marathon and by far my favorite so far. This is a flat, fast course with small field, making it perfect for a Boston qualifier (3:14 finish time). Be prepared for the wind and find people you can work with for drafting purposes. Much thanks to the 5-6 people in the unofficial "3:10" pace group that helped block the wind for the 10 miles running north. The organization at chip pick-up could have been better. Nice touch of putting the first name on the bib; that led to many people calling me by name toward the end. Food at the end could be better.

This was my first marathon. What an amazing experience! It was so well organized. I ran the Philly Half Marathon and found this one to be much smoother as far as expo, water stops, porta-potties, etc... not to mention the wonderful after party! You will probably hear a lot about the headwinds during the middle of the race, and it was painful, but what can you do? It is at the beach, after all. Besides, it sure was nice to have the wind to my back during the last 6 miles! All in all, I have been bitten by the marathon "bug" and will definitely be back for more!

This is my 2nd year back for the half marathon and I'm signing up for number 3. All I can say is, "Thank you, thank you, thank you to the Shamrock Race committee. A bang up job!!!!!!!" I came with a plan to run a pace and beat it by almost 5 minutes.... Truly a magical experience. See you next year.

This was a nice mid-sized marathon with amazing volunteers (although I still have never found a volunteer I did not like). The course was boring for the most part, except for the couple of miles you get to run along the boardwalk.

The GREAT: The 1/2 started on a different course and an hour before the marathon. No mingling of the 2 races. Best organization I have ever seen for this, and other race directors need to take notice of this!

The GOOD: Plenty of water stops and fans. The course was flat. The race director was very helpful with questions. Finisher's hat - nice touch, and better than a finisher's shirt.

The BAD: Ran out of shirts at the expo. The course is boring. Very windy too, although I would not expect the RD to do anything about that.

Overall, a good experience, but I don't think I would return.

The theme for a St. Patrick's Day marathon was fun, and the ocean setting was beautiful; but organizationally, this race was lacking. The organizers ran out of t-shirts for pre-registered participants before the expo ended on Saturday. In addition, the ankle bands used for timing caused chafing for a lot of runners (especially those wearing shorts) and were dramatically inferior to chips you can wear on your shoes. Two days after the race, about half the runners are still missing from the results because of the poor organization with the same pace bands. For a marathon of this caliber in its 35th year, I expected better organization.

This was our first marathon and we were impressed throughout. Signing up was a breeze and the website was continually updated with information and news. The race director sent out several emails with more information and the result was that we flew into Virginia Beach for our first marathon with a very good understanding of everything that was about to happen. The volunteers were great and they took care of us the entire time so we could focus on the run. The course was very flat except for two hills, and our pacer was a stud. The only gripe we have is we would have liked more spectators. The fans that were there were awesome, but the final stages of the run are on an expressway and an Army post, so the spectators are very few. Other than that, the course was beautiful, the race was well run, and the awards presented afterwards were top-notch. This was a great experience for our first marathon!

This was my first Shamrock Marathon. I thought it would be a good marathon - flat and fast from what I had read previously. Well, it was flat, but the weather was not ideal. The wind was a bigger obstacle than the temperatures. I think the wind was around 20 mph. Wow, it really hit me on some spots of the course. I was told by several locals that the weather was "unusual." I'd say! We saw flurries on Saturday. Far from beach weather.

The course itself was nice; it was scenic and it highlighted the nice areas of VA Beach. The water and Gatorade stations were well managed and so were the mile markers.

The expo was disappointing. There weren't many exhibitors and usually there are distributors of Gatorade, PowerAde, or other endurance drinks. Here there were none. I was in and out in about 15 minutes.

I've never been to VA Beach and I'm sure there are many things to do, but there were many stores that were closed for the season and it turned out that my husband and I drove back early since we were basically bored.

I probably won't run this one again. It's pretty forgettable but the organization and mechanics of the actual race were good.

Well, this was my 4th marathon, and my best time yet. The course is FLAT, but don't let that fool you - I would much rather have hills than the headwind we were running into from mile 10-18 or so.
The medals were great, and the hat is fantastic. My only complaint: They ran out of shirts for the marathoners. I have no idea how you run out of shirts, especially after these people are spending $80 to run the race. If people registered late, they should be the ones who have shirts sent to them - not people who pre-registered. But, supposedly the shirts are being sent. Overall, great run.

The weekend was a great time - my daughter ran her first race (8K). The wind was horrible (steady 20-30 mph winds out of the north - direct headwind from mile 10 to 19) but obviously beyond anyone's control. I will definitely do this event again (either full or half) but I have some comments/suggestions:

1) The markers for miles 5 through 7 were way off. I was in a pack of runners at mile five, where the wind was not a factor. We were running a steady sub-8-minute pace, yet mile 5 showed an 8:49 pace. We ran with the same effort and mile 6 showed 6:49 pace. Again wind was not a factor! (Not yet anyway.) Mile 7 was just as bad.

2) The 3:20 pace setter (with flag) was followed at no more than 100 yards by the 3:30 pace setter - someone was off.

3) Consider having water/Gatorade every mile from mile 20 on. The water every mile and a half may work up to that point, but it surely is missed in the later miles.

4) The marathon shirt and cap are awesome, perhaps the best handout I have received to date - thank you.