I ran the Omaha Marathon in '00. Wow, was it ever hot and humid that day. The runners were friendly, but the fan support was slim to none. I suppose they were all home in the air conditioning. I can remember seeing the same lady out cheering at about six different points. Believe me, we appreicated her support greatly.
In all, what more can you expect from a marathon in August? Heck, I'm running it again this year just to torture myself, I think.

Omaha is a great city and holding a marathon in Omaha is attractive since there are not many marathons in this part of the country... However, holding a marathon in Omaha in August is not going to attract many out of state runners... The humidity is at its worst, and the course, although scenic - by routing it through downtown Omaha, the Zoo, by Rosenblatt Stadium, across the Missouri river and around Lake Manawa in Iowa - it was very hilly and challenging... The course was also very poorly marked and several runners got off course. The start line did not have sufficient parking nearby and could be confusing for an out of towner to find the start point. The amount of port-a-potties were very minimal at the start point and several runners were late to start the race due to the long wait in line to use the toilet. This needs to be a late Sept or Oct race, and organizers need to work on details better, to those participating in the race it appeared unorganized....

This would be a great event if it could be run a month later. Weather conditions in Omaha in late August are among the worst I've ever experienced. My shoes were sloshing from sweat. The course is varied and challenging. I enjoyed running through Conagra Plaza and the zoo as well as across the bridge and around Lake Manawa. The race organizers did a good job. Especially liked the water cups with lids and straws. Felt the competition was diluted as many runners started an hour early. It was my understanding that option was to be only for walkers. They need more porta potties in the start area.

The race began 5 minutes ahead of time, causing some people in the bathrooms to have a late start. For some reason, the water was foul smelling and tasting.
It's held at a traditionally unbearably hot time of year. The course was not marked well causing several runners to take unnecessary detours. (This was amongst award winners, not laggers.) Also, the committee shorted us on prize money and was not helpful in remedying the situation. Generally unapologetic for screw ups and mistakes on their part.
It's too bad because the volunteers and course are great. This should have been a much better marathon than it was. Also, it's touted as part of the 'Arts on the Green Festival' which basically means the marathon starts and ends at the art museum.

Perhaps I've been spoiled by running in larger marathons and shouldn't expect this one to measure up. However, when you've got choices on where to run.....these type of factors should be taken into consideration. Didn't like that they let a whole slew of runners start one hour early....this caused problems with the results. The course is very hilly over the last 7 miles (yes, there are hills in Nebraska)! Over the last few miles there were not any volunteers to tell the runners which turns to take (and the runners became pretty spread out after a while).