This is a nice "small"-city race. It is nothing like the big-city races so don't compare it to one. I thought for a small event that there was a lot of spectators and that it was run well. The one real big complaint I have is that, at the end, they mixed in walkers and half marathoners. My biggest complaint was the walkers! As far as elevation, it's not like Chicago. There are many elevation changes. With that said, they were not a big deal.

I really liked the organization of this race. The race organizers had 23 water stops, with port-a-johns at every one and many medical volunteers on bicycles. They could drop the motorcycles; they were stinky and seemed to be just in the way. As other people had said, the cement roads can be a problem for runners who train on asphalt and dirt. I had to walk most of this race because of an I.T.B. problem, which might have been caused by the cement. Who knows? There was nothing special at the end of the race - just the usual bagels and bananas - but with all of the other good points, of the 40 other states I have done, this race would rank about 25th.

If you're looking for a beautiful course, super volunteers and a well organized race at a great time of year, this is the race for you. It seemed like there were as many volunteers as racers. A flat course running through beautiful, small towns. The expo was small but nice, and beware of the concrete roads (something my feet were unprepared for). But I'll definitely be back for this one.

This is possibly the best "small" marathon in which I have ever had the opportunity to participate. There is not enough allowable space in this forum to do it justice.

The marathon expo was small, but efficiently and effectively run. The pace group held a meeting the day before the marathon for runners to meet their pace leaders and ask questions. The leaders provided plans to their respective groups advising them on the pace they would be running for each part of the course and just gave us an overall feel that they cared about our goals.

The race-day weather was almost perfect, starting out at around 54 degrees and finishing in the mid-60's, with cloud cover for most of the race. The course itself was a tour of the Fox Cities area that had a few rolling hills, but nothing too intense.

The community support was exceptional. Throughout the entire course there were people cheering - sometimes quite a few and sometimes just a single family, but their enthusiasm was boundless. It made the runners feel special.

This is a "small" marathon, but the energy level rivals that of the larger marathons that I have run. I definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys running.

This was my 6th marathon and by far the smallest. I thought having to start and finish at different locations would be a pain. However, I was able to park at the start line and took a shuttle to the start line with no problems. The community college where the start line was located at was open, so runners could wait in the warm building before the race started, which was fantastic. The crowd support was fabulous. I was a four-hour finisher and I swear that for the last mile, I felt like the only one on the course. The crowd really made me feel like I was the only runner they were cheering for. Getting a race t-shirt and a finisher's shirt was a nice surprise. I had only two complaints. The post-race massage wait was almost an hour! They might as well not even advertise free massages. Also, the post-race food was pretty lame. Super small Arby's roast beef sandwiches, which, when I opened it to add Arby's sauce, made me say, "Where's the beef?" And to add insult to injury, we were only allowed one.

Bottom line: A good race if you're looking for small size with great fan support. I wouldn't run it again, but I'd recommend it.

Course: This is a good course with some very nice, scenic spots along the way. The course is deceptively hilly, but most elevation changes occur gradually. There is a steep downhill around Mile 11, followed immediately by a steep (but shorter) uphill. The course was confined more or less to road berms in many places, making it rather narrow at times. However, traffic was well controlled, so it wasn't a big problem to swing out wide if necessary.

Organization: Registration, race start, and water stations were well managed. Runners' names included on the bibs was also a nice touch. The biggest complaint I have about this race (and you will hear this one many times in the '08 reviews) was the half-marathon walkers clogging up the relatively narrow course near the end of the race. This really was a significant issue, as runners (including myself) had to swing around or dodge the walkers. My second complaint was a fairly unimpressive food station at the finish.

Crowd/volunteer support: The Fox Cities communities do come out en masse to enthusiastically support this event. Kudos to the volunteers and spectators!

Overall: The weather was perfect and I had a PR by nine minutes - that tends to skew one's feelings about a race. But I can objectively say that this is a good race that, with a little tweaking, would get all five stars from me.

It was a great overall experience. It was my first marathon and I had a great time. The water stops were awesome; I loved all the energy and support I got. Overall, I was disappointed with the amount of crowd support. I finished in just over five hours, and the course was pretty much devoid of supporters. Great course! I enjoyed seeing all the signs welcoming us into the different towns. Good food after the race, and there was plenty of it! They ran out of small- and medium-sized finishers' shirts at the end, which was a huge bummer for a small girl who worked all summer for her first marathon. Overall, I had a great experience and I would recommend this race to others.

For my second marathon, I could not have chosen a better venue. The course was great, the support staff was always around if a runner should have problems, and the fans were top-notch. I will be back to the Fox Cities Marathon in the future.

The race itself was great: nice course (very fast), good crowd support, and I went sub-3 hours!!

However, the directors decided to allow for the people who were walking the marathon to start 2 hours before the runners. The idea of this is nice, but as I was running miles 20-26, many of the walkers were blocking the course; some of them were lined up in groups six people-wide!!! As a runner who has trained for a sub-3-hour day, it was not fun dodging and maneuvering around the walking crowd during the last six miles. Many of them didn't even get out of the way when I yelled, "RUNNERS COMING UP!!" Needless to say, my day went well and I did get the sub-3-hour PR I had trained for all summer.

In conclusion, great race, fast course, and a good Boston qualifier, but I would never run the race again if the walkers are continued to be allowed the early start!!

Ps. The last 300 yards of the finishing chute were so congested with walkers that I literally had to fight through the crowd!!! That's not fun after running a 6:45 pace all day!!

This was my sixth marathon start, fourth completion, and my first start with the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. Thanks to the early start opportunity, I went ahead and ran this race (thanks to the race staff for not kicking me out when I finished in less than six hours). What I was most impressed with was the crowd support for such a small marathon. The drink stops especially were inspiring. And I must give a special thanks to the medical staff at the finish who allowed me to get some prophylactic leg icing even while I was otherwise doing well. You guys are the best!