This was my first marathon, and it was an incredible experience for me. The biggest hurdle I experienced was the lack of water and toilets along the route. Luckily, I brought some cash along with me, and was able to purchase my own bottled water along the way. It took me over 9 1/2 hours to complete the marathon, and over 1 hour of that time was spent standing in checkout lines at gas stations and party stores. How frustrating! The support that I received along the way from all of the Joints in Motion coaches was beyond belief...they encouraged me every step of the way. My best memory was of a beautiful Irish gentleman named Malachai, who met me around mile 23, and walked with me over the River Liffey (near James Joyce's pub). I'm fairly certain he was real, though I suspect he may have been an angel. I don't know if I'll ever see him again, but I wanted to somehow say thank you, Malachai.

This was my first marathon and I thought it was brilliant. The course was wonderful; not too hilly and mostly beautiful. I liked the way the course circled back in the beginning giving us a chane to see the top runners. I had water the entire way and the Lucozade wasn't awful (Gatorade would have been better, though). For most of the race the spectators were encouraging and so uplifting. The number pick-up was incredibly smooth. The frame that was given for the number is hanging on my wall right now. I also thought the Breakfast Run was quite nice and the T-shirt exchange a lot of fun. As for the plaque: I recommend a more appropriate/pleasant facing than the Walking Dead. Or a medal instead?
Biggest negative comment: We waited hours for some walkers on our team and they wound up dodging pedestrians and avoiding vehicles, which I thought was inconsiderate on the part of the organizers. I realize there has to be an end to the disruption of the traffic flow, but these people have been perservering for SEVERAL HOURS and deserve a much better treatment.
All in all I want to do the Dublin Marathon every year---the people are magnificent and the country remarkable!

I went home to Ireland for the 2001 Dublin marathon with low expectations - last year's race was apparently a bit of a mess. Adidas got their act together this year though.

The good things? The registration was very smooth, and the gift bag was pretty nice. The weather was absolutely perfect, and the course was pretty flat the whole way. There's also a cool loopback at the start where the elites come storming past you, which is a crazy thing to see.

The bad things? 'Lucozade Sport' - it's disgusting! At mile 21, I needed water, not a sugary, stomach churning drink. At least offer a choice!

Spectators were sparse - run with one of the big charities and you'll have lots more support though. You'll find yourself running alongside traffic after the half way mark too, which is bizarre.

Bathrooms were almost nonexistent - I saw two portaloos around mile 16 or so and that was it. I had to make a trip down a residential alley instead :(

All in all, I would recommend doing it, even for first timers. I'm considering doing it every year now, but Adidas needs to get their water stations sorted out next year!

The Freakin Mimis joined the 2001 Dublin run. We experienced wind, more hills than we expected and a severe lack of water on the course. Beyond that, it was a blast. I mean, how could you not have fun when you top off 26.2miles with several pints of Guiness, a nice jar of whiskey and a Cuban cigar! The Freaks www.freakinmimis.com are off to Amsterdam in 2003!

Being a Dubliner the main novelty was running through the streets without the usual traffic chaos. Worth the £20!!!With adidas on board, it was much better than last year. [even the weather!]I loved the course and found the crowd support encouraging. Complete lack of toilet facilities was disappointing but overall I enjoyed it sooo much and can't wait til next year. Completely felt like a hero for the last half mile and it doesn't get better than that!

This was my second marathon with TNT, first in Dublin, and will definitely be back. The crowd was great, shouting 'well done!', and kids giving us high fives. Unfortunately, having no water after mile 12 made running the rest of the race difficult. I was disappointed also about the finisher's plaque and would prefer a medal. The course should also remain open the entire time given to finishers, dodging traffic can be tricky when running a marathon. Overall, I had a fantastic time, loved Dublin, and can't wait for my next visit.

This was, like most, my first marathon and overall it was an awesome experience. Dublin was great, the people were great (particularly the nuns by the convent who high-fived and blessed me and the children who high-fived me and let me take away a bit of their energy), the course was easy...just a few hills and downhill at the end, the residential areas were neat to see (but I agree, running more through the city and parks more would have been good), the weather was great, the breakfast run was a blast, and the wind at my back the last mile was the best.

Now the downsides...water and lucozade were gross (where was gatorade when you needed them? Surely they could get in on this thing with that many American runners...),
porta-potties...anyone see any? (O.K., there were like 10 - 8 at the start for the 8000 people in line to use them and 2 on the course (use them and lose like half an hour to the lines, no thanks), there was no water at one station toward the end (thank god for my husband who had some at 20 something miles), the plaque...yep, the guy who said it made his kid cry pretty much said it best, the t-shirts left as much to be desired as the expo (could you have at least drawn a little stick picture?), the 'goodie bags' at the end had no goodies (trust me, I didn't need or want anymore lucozade...ever), and the wind from 13 miles to 25 miles kicked my you-know-what!

All in all though, I have to say it was the experience of a lifetime. I loved Ireland and I loved this race. I am already looking for another and no doubt will someday return for this one. By the way, we raised $8 mill. for the Arthritis Foundation...how cool is that!?!

Oh, and also really special...this year, the Irish went out of their way to express their support and thanks to the American athletes who came there despite the terrorists and Sept. 11th. I've never been more proud to be an American or more appreciative of a welcome.

Thanks Dublin!

My first marathon at age 51. I'm a walker and only 2 stations had water. We had to rely on the townspeople. Bathroom facilities few and far between. Charity staff was great during the race. Perfect walking weather. Definitely not my last marathon.

I would like to preface this by saying I ran Dublin in 1991 so this was my ten year revisit. Boy has Dublin changed.
I liked the course for it was fairly flat and conditions were great except for the wind, but what marathons are run in perfect conditions. I didn't experience the lack of refreshment since I finished early.
I recommend this one. Dublin is a fun city.

I thought this marathon was fantastic. The course was pretty quick, and really matched the race, although it tended to loop around the south of the city centre and could have been more scenic if it had gone right through. Organisation was very good indeed, especially the drink stations and the energy drinks were much appreciated, especially beyond 18 miles. It looked as if a lot of thought had gone into the event, and it showed. The field was around 7,500, half of whom were American and the atmosphere was so much fun. I hit a personal best on a perfect day for running. Thanks Dublin.