First time in Athens. Beautiful course - loved the scenery. Only two things I would say: more porta-potties AND it would be nice to actually have aid at the aid stations. Vaseline, BioFreeze or even sports tape would have been nice to get a hold of after 20-plus miles. Other than that, a great run!

I personally love this marathon, which offeres a flat/fast course, beautiful/serene surroundings, very inexpensive entry fee, a nice long-sleeve shirt, cash awards for open and masters winners, mugs for age group winners, medals for everybody, water/Gatorade at the aid stations, water/pizza at the finish, etc. They announce your name when you are finishing the race (one and a half loops at the OU track), which was very energizing to me.

You'd love it if you love nature, solitude (especially after the half-marathoners turn around), your own PowerGels/bars, few participants (500+ half and fewer than 200 full), and the attention during the last split.

You wouldn't love it if you need a lot of spectators or music bands, beer and bagel at the finish, water/Gatorade at every mile, and pre-race convention.

I made a PR in this year's Athens Marathon by cutting 9 minutes, and qualified for the Boston 2011... for the first time! I love the town of Athens, its people, and its marathon!

This marathon is set up for half marathoners. Aid stations were every mile and a half on the way out, but once the half marathoners turned around, aid stations were sparse (every 3 miles) and people running the stations stood about 5 feet apart so you couldn't grab two water/Gatorade cups unless you wanted to stop. At one aid station I had to pick the water up from the table myself. This marathon should start earlier! I slowed a lot in the second half even though it was downhill and expected to passed, but I guess everyone was dehydrated. Great course, but 75 degrees at finish with little water on the course causes dehydration and cramping... unless you are a camel. Prettiest marathon I have ever run. Well managed! I did easily qualify for Boston.

A great, small-town marathon. I highly recommend it if it's your first marathon or you're trying for a PR. I got mine, and thought I was going to get my dream of under 4 hours, but I fell apart at mile 24. Still, I improved my time by 8 minutes. It had been 1,272 days since my last marathon, and Athens was my 12th. Best marathon for the money; the race was organized very well. I didn't expect so many half marathon runners, but after their turnaround point, us marathoners had the course to ourselves. I was totally impressed with the City of Athens itself, a very clean, beautiful city. I am seriously considering relocating here. Congrats to Athens; I'll be back.

The Athens Marathon has a nice, flat course with only minor disturbances of bikers on the public trail. Depending on the weather, the late start time can make it really sunny/hot for full-marathon finishers.

The crowd support was minimal/non-existent and the bikers on the course didn't seem to know what was going on. The medal is small but the full marathon t-shirt was pretty nice.

I wouldn't run this marathon again, but it was worth the really inexpensive registration fee. People who ran the half-marathon seemed to have a better time (minus the t-shirt - and it was yellow, 100% thick cotton, with a mini-turtleneck).

If you are looking for a spring marathon with a fairly flat course, then this is your race. The only drawback is it's primarily a half-marathon, where most of the runners are college students - which translates into a late, 9:00 a.m. start time. If you are a four-hour marathoner or longer, you will be running at least half of your race in midday sun - and possibly heat, as in 2009. The out-and-back on the bike path has some shade, but the trees do not have leaves yet, which can make for some very sunny spots (while the final 3 miles are fully sunny on a track). Spectators are almost nonexistent between the water/Gatorade stops. I was fortunate to have my spouse ride his bike on the path, so I wasn't alone most of the time.

Overall, it was a very good race with nice organization. The medal is average to small, and they have pizza, bananas, oranges, and water at the finish. It's the most cost effective marathon I have ever run. I would do it again if weather would allow; it's about 20 degrees cooler and has a start that's at least an hour earlier.

This was a perfect for someone like me who has never run a marathon. No stress at all when it came to registration, starting line, parking, etc. Very little fan support, but with an iPod and beautiful weather, no big deal. In fact, after the half marathoners turned around at 6.5, there were points where I did not see a single person behind or in front of me. Pretty neat to see my family a few times along the trail where access was available.

The course is as flat as one could be, besides the opening downhill trek. Only my quads really ached for the next two days.

Great organization with water/Gatorade stops - really helpful, even for us near the end. Only disappointment was the lack of food or anything after the race. All I got was a bottle of water. Oh well, I found a good pizza place nearby.

It's a great first one to run. I may look for a much bigger one, if I decide to do another one.

The out-and-back course on macadam paved rail trail is perfect for a P.R., weather permitting. Good aid stations: water and Gatorade - and oranges and bananas toward the end. Great finish on the stadium track, with your name and city announced. If you look hard, the only negative was that the mile markers changed to xx.1 after the half - e.g. 14.1, 15.1, etc. I would do this one again!!! To offset any negatives: Athens, Ohio is a great little town with plenty to enjoy.

Wonderful, small race - very inexpensive. Beautiful course: out and back, and totally flat. Lots of water and Gatorade stops (the most I've ever seen). Food at the end was limited but I'm not complaining; that helps keep the cost down (and me from over eating), and I appreciate that. Parking was really easy. A lot of the directions refer to landmarks that a visitor doesn't know, but it's not too hard to follow the crowd. A big thanks to the West Elementary School PTO for the pre-race pasta dinner.

This was my 8th marathon but 1st Athens Marathon. The town was beautiful, the people were friendly, the course was scenic and flat, and the Gatorade and water stops were frequent. I missed several mile markers on the trail - they were not always easy to spot. I only saw one porta-john on the course, and I ended up having to go in the woods (not so easy for girls). At the end of the race, there was no ice for injured runners by the time I came in. Granted, this was my slowest marathon due to complications, but I think ice is crucial for those runners who take longer to finish. So I would suggest more porta-johns, larger mile-marker signs, and ice available at the finish - even for the very last runner.