This was my first marathon. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire event. The expo was well organized, although a little confusing with getting bib, bag and shirt in three different places. We stayed in the Renaissance Hotel, less than a mile from the start/finish area. (Highly recommended!) Weather was really cold. I failed to bring thick socks, so my feet were really cold. Loved the singing Elvises and music at nearly every mile. There were fluids and porta-johns at every mile. (Mile 9 ran out of cups when I got there, by the way.) Great finish in the stadium. Pacers were nice and helpful as well. Running through the St. Jude campus was heartbreaking. Lots of kids and family out cheering....

Cons: When the half-marathoners turned off at mile 13 to finish, and I was left almost alone. The last half of the race was a bit lonely. Luckily the spectators were still upbeat and encouraging. Overall, a very well run event!

Memphis is my home town, so note my bias. The race entries are capped, and there is a wave start so I never felt crowded or cramped for space. The race covers a number of Memphis sites of note. There is great crowd support for the entire half course along with music and other entertainment. Water and sports drinks are provided at each mile. Finish in the baseball stadium and recover on the outfield. It is a fun race in a fun city.

This was my first marathon. I ran the time I was going for. The food was great. The t-shirt is only okay. You would think they would use some art from the St. Jude's kids. I enjoyed the course. The number of spectators was right for me, but I know many people want more. The last few miles are sparse, but the end made up for it.

This is a wonderful, early winter marathon and I would definitely do it again. I loved the southern hospitality, the friendliness of the runners, running for a good cause, the stadium finish, the pacers at 5-minute intervals, the long-sleeved t-shirt and hat, the Elvi, and the fans. The first half of the course did have more fans and was generally better than the second half, but this isn't an uncommon phenomenon at marathons of this size. Run Memphis if you ever get the chance!

This was my fourth marathon and the second year in a row that our group traveled to Memphis. The overall race organization is great. We stayed at the Marriott across the street from the expo, so once we parked our car when we arrived, we didn't drive again until we left to go home. The trolleys weren't running as promised in the morning, so we walked to the start, which wasn't a problem as we used that as our warm-up. Splitting the half marathon and marathon bag drop was an improvement from last year. I agree with the prior post that the camber of the roads seemed worse this year. Aid stations every mile were wonderful! Post-race food was great, as was the picture with Elvis afterward! We loved downtown Memphis and Beale Street afterward; however, next year we will do a different race for variety's sake. I highly recommend this race - it's well worth it!

This was one of the most well organized races I'd ever participated in; the race director did an excellent job. Expo was small but had a good variety of exhibitors, and there was plenty of parking in downtown area near the race start/finish area. It was really nice to have AutoZone Park available for bag drop and relaxing before and after the race, and indoor bathrooms were great to have for last-minute race attire changes. There was plenty of space at the race start area to stretch and get lined up in the proper corral without being jammed into a "cattle chute" - like the start of the Dallas White Rock Marathon. Course had a lot of slightly hilly sections, but you get to see beautiful residential areas of Memphis and spectator turnout was very good, considering the chilly weather. And having the hot showers in the baseball team's locker room was really great; with that and plenty of food afterward, it was a perfect way to end the race.

Only bad things are having to go up a ramp to get to the finish in the baseball park, and having the race on a Saturday, which means taking a day off from work to make it to the race expo. Other than that, this is a great marathon.

I am 40 years-old and this was my second marathon. I had a goal to qualify for Boston, which I did! I improved my PR by 9 minutes. I cannot say enough wonderful things about my experience, but the following are a few highlights:

1) Outstanding Course - I read about the rolling hills in previous postings, but I never noticed them. This course is essentially flat.

2) Pace Group - Incredibly encouraging pace group leaders that knew the course and how to motivate their flock late in the race.

3) Great Finish and Post-Race - Finishing in the ballpark was a blast and the post-race food/drink was great.

4) Crowd Support - Support was strong for a race of this size and the performers stationed along the way were very motivating.

I would recommend this race to anyone, no matter your skill level or training. I will definitely be back.

The organization of this race was excellent. The fans were amazing - especially the children from St. Jude who left their hospital beds to line the road and cheer the runners. And the course couldn't be better. I was especially impressed with how they handled a snafu with the shirts. This race is first class from start to finish, and if you are a marathoner, it is an experience you must not miss!

Memphis is an amazing town and running for St. Jude's was really worth it. The course was not great past the half marathon mark. I felt like there really wasn't enough to see in the town, and they had us run past the same landmarks multiple times. The finish in Autozone Park was cool though.

Being able to take a shower in the stadium prior to driving home was a nice touch. I got to walk by the medical station under the stadium. It looked like a hospital. Glad I didn't need it, but nice to know it was there and well done. There were 26 PowerAde stations on the course. Nice. I might suggest moving the 5K start a few more blocks away; it made things very congested as we were trying to get around prior to the marathon. This was a perfect location for a weekend get-away run. Plenty to eat and see and do.