It is very cold at the start, but fires were provided to keep us warm. Dress accordingly. Miles 7-12 were uphill - be ready for that - but otherwise, it was a very fast course. The last six miles are on a nice downslope with amazing crowd support.

Other marathon organizers could learn a lot from St. George. I gave "spectators" five stars, even though there obviously are not a lot of spectators along most of the course (since it is a closed course through beautiful scenery and very small towns); you can't have it all. However, even in the small towns, people were out cheering. Once we got into St. George, the crowds were plentiful. The start of the race is very well organized with the bonfires. One suggestion would be to improve the speaker system for the music, since it was very difficult to hear towards the back bonfires. All of the volunteers at the water stations were excellent - thank you!! There seemed to be one water station that was misplaced too. Somewhere around mile 22 or 23 I arrived at the water station, but it seemed to be several hundred yards short of the mile marker. This temporarily "messed with my mind," thinking I had gained several minutes although I hadn't run any faster. Not sure why this happened. A friend told me the same story after the race. This is, of course, a very minor point, but it would be helpful for this not to happen. This is one of the few races I have run more than once, and I would certainly consider doing it again. Great job, St. George.

This was the best organized marathon that I've run. The course was on a closed road and routed through stunning scenery. The finish line has tons of goodies.

My dream of qualifying for Boston finally came true on 10/3/09! I entered my name in the lottery thinking there was no way St. George would pick me - and to my disbelief, I got in! I researched the online comments and studied the virtual course tour leading up to the marathon so I knew what to expect. The hills that were noted on all the runners comments frightened me, which was good because that made me train even harder on hills at home. I live on the island of Maui, and we have valleys and mountains, so training for inclines and declines was not a problem. I wasn't worried about the elevation since I live at 3,300 feet of elevation and bike up to the volcano at 10,000 elevation quite often.

The day before the race I drove the course and took in the hills and, most of all, the downhills. This course is definitely a fast one if you run it right. The first half has some rolling hills, with the exception of Veyo, which is long and pretty steep, so holding back and not going out too fast in the first half is a definite MUST. I was impressed at the second half, which offered A LOT of downhills right smack into town! Driving the course the day before allowed me to take in the beauty of the mountains and all I could think of was how cool it was going to be running in the middle of nowhere surrounded by the beauty of the desert.

The bus transfer the next morning was well organized. The bonfires at the start was something that took my breath away - words cannot explain how beautiful it was. The race itself was the best marathon I have ever done EVER! Our local Maui Marathon is voted as one of the top 10 scenic marathons in the U.S. and as a native Hawaiian, born and raised on the island, I can honestly say, St. George is so much nicer and way better than our marathon, hands down!!! St. George has an essence that cannot be compared to any other race - everything from the preparation, organization, the course, the scenery, and most importantly, the friendly volunteers who made this race so enjoyable.

Yes, the Maui Marathon is mostly ocean view since you run along the ocean most of the way but it's also run on a very busy, noisy and narrow highway, whereas St. George has the beautiful dessert mountains and it is so peaceful (and in some ways, spiritual). Part of the highway is closed to traffic, so there were times when I was running by myself. I was able to focus on me and my race and for once enjoy myself! I qualified for Boston and ran a 25-minute PR because I trained for it, studied the course, and read the past runners' comments. I knew what to expect. I will definitely be putting my name back in the lottery again next year. St. George will always remain close to my heart.

This was a magic marathon for me. It was my 91st and I was not anticipating such a good experience because I was tired from running Lake Tahoe the weekend before. Everything went right from start to finish.

The course is great, on a closed road with the sun rising as you warm up. The silence apart from runners' feet was almost eerie. I loved all of the downhill running, but I was having such a good day, it was as if the whole course was downhill. What more can I say?

I stayed at the Holiday Inn and the staff were very helpful with a shuttle to the start and back afterward. It was quiet the night before the race and they provided a good breakfast at 4 a.m.

I flew in and out of Las Vegas - which was very convenient and offered more choice of flights than St. George. The lunch for overseas participants was good too.

This was my second SGM, and my fourth overall marathon. I absolutely love the course, the organization, the people, and the town. I didn't want to leave! I may have to move to St. George just to avoid the lottery in future years. Don't let anyone tell you the course is all downhill or you'll blow up in miles 8-13, which are all pretty much uphill. But it's a great race, no doubt about it. Thank you for a great experience!

Truly one of a kind. Unless you crave urban streets and skyscrapers or need constant crowd support, this is the course for you. Almost totally rural/scenic for the first 20+ miles, with vistas from mountains to red rocks to extinct volcanoes. The entire roadway is dedicated to the race - meaning that you almost never feel crowded or need to swerve. As mentioned by others, it has wonderful organization (it's the only race I have ever seen where you not only have a drop bag but can also wear something early in the race and then drop it at bins on miles 1-6 - which is then spread out for retrieval at the finish). Gravity works for you, but to maximize the course, put in some quad-building and downhill training so you can cope with the 6+8% grades coming well into miles 13-23.

My only note to the organizers would be to have water more readily available entering the runners' village instead of in small cups at the far side of the area (deceivingly under a "McDonald's" sponsorship sign). But that's a minor quibble - staffers and volunteers were wonderful and you can't beat the So. Utah locale. I'd go on raving some more but that will only increase the number of lottery entrants next year!

It's a great race, and even though there's some travel involved in getting there, it's one I'd recommend to anyone.

It has been 25 years since I ran this marathon (I'm now age 48; ran it last at age 23). I was able to qualify for Boston by two minutes (amazingly my time was within two seconds of my time 25 years ago!). A few facts:

Start temperature: 39 degrees (6:45 a.m.)
End temperature: 59 degrees (10:15 a.m.)

These temps were a few degrees below seasonal averages. There was a slight tailwind when we started (I think this was a drainage wind) and a slight headwind at one point in the first part of the race (probably another local wind). Overall, there was no wind and low humidity. Typically, there will be no wind this time of day unless a storm is approaching (resulting in a south wind/headwind) or a storm leaving the area (resulting in a north wind/tailwind).

I tried to run the "corners," as there are lots of bends. My Garmin indicated 26.24 miles (my brother got even closer to 26.2). You can save time by looking ahead and running the most direct path.

The volunteers are amazing. I wish I could go back and individually thank them. They were simply outstanding!

The miles were well marked and accurate. However, when I came upon what I thought was mile 25, the marker said 25.2. I didn't think much of it, until I checked my Garmin after finishing and realized this was actually 25.0 (my brother confirmed the same thing). This could have really messed up someone who was very close to their goal thinking they had 1.0 miles left when in reality they had 1.2 left.

Training advice: make sure to get in some long downhill runs. It will help you maximize the speed opportunity of St. George without cramping up. It will also improve your recovery.

Great job, St. George! You know how to put on a marathon.

This is the best marathon that I have been to so far: Great course, great weather, organized, etc. I used the pace chart that was offered on the St. George forum website. It was excellent. It allowed me to go out a little slow and then I picked up the pace. I set a PR by 10 minutes. I would go back every year if I could, but in 2010, I will be in BOSTON. Yay!

I ran this in '05, and now again in '09. I have always wanted to come back; here's why: great organization, fun/fast course to run, beautiful scenery. I love the bonfires at the beginning. They have a great mix of Gatorade and water in every aid station, plus gels, etc. At the end of the race they provide a nice assortment of goodies. Somebody complained about not having solid food; you've got to be kidding. Try running Boston - all you get is a banana. My two favorite parts of the course are the beginning when you run in darkness (first 2-4 miles) and around mile 15-16, when you run downhill through mountains. The crowds overall are very good for the setup, and when you hit the town of St. George the last three or so miles, they are lined up very good. My only disappointment was when I arrived at the expo around 8 p.m.; they ran out of safety pins, various sizes of the shirt and the poster of the race. If you're looking for a fast marathon that will truly be a memorable experience, look into this race.