I have run this marathon three years in a row. They are the only marathons I have run, and I've had a great experience each time. Improved from 3:53 to 3:32 to 3:28 and qualified for Boston. The pacers are phenomenal, and crowd support fantastic. What's more, about 25% to 30% get a PR or a BQ.

As advertised, this is a fast course (I missed Boston, but a friend made it comfortably), and it is largely well organized, which makes it a positive experience. The expo was good, with enough variety among the vendors to keep things interesting. The finish area was laid out well, which made connecting up after the race easy. The one hiccup this year was with the buses to the start - the buses are supposed to run from downtown Sacramento to the start in Folsom between 5:00 and 6:00. We arrived at 5:30, and the line was a half-hour long. We didn't get on a bus until 6:10, and we didn't arrive to the starting area until 6:52 (for a 7:00 start). I was still getting my sweats off when the gun went off, so I missed stepping off with my pace group. There were many runners behind us in the bus line, so I'm sure they got off quite a bit later. Who needs that stress at the beginning of a race? I understand that last year if you arrived at 5:30 you walked onto a bus, but obviously something was amiss this time.

This is the best marathon I've run by a long shot. It's a real runner's race: tons of really fast and competitive people, great point-to-point course (fast, but the rollers in the first half makes it honest), a wonderful finishing stretch in California's capital city, very well organized, good crowds, perfect weather, nice city, logistically easy, perfectly sized, a city that's proud of this event and its long storied history, and even the shirts are top quality. Dude, what more could you want?

This course is not as fast and flat as they made it out to be, compared to some really flat ones like Chicago, Richmond or even Philly. There are big downhills - which turned out to be hard on the legs - and some small, rolling hills. The boring course is compounded by heavy fog and dark skies in this time of year. I agree with some comments by others from last year's race: the water stations are random; sometimes water first, then sport drink (which was so diluted it tested awful), and sometimes water second, on the left side or right.

The support from locals is great but the organizers only offered transportation to the start without considering how runners can get back to their hotels, which scattered in Sacto 2-5 miles apart (and these are the marathon hotels too): too far to walk (for checking out hotel on the same day), and this is not a city where you just hail a cab.

I'd prefer they charge $5-10 more to provide the post-race shuttle back to hotels. The finish area is very nice; other than that, the course is mostly boring with not much to see. The women's long-sleeve shirt was quite stylish, but too thin, with cheap, see-through fabric. Overall, a nicely organized race, but compared to others, I can't rate this run as outstanding.

Weather was perfect. The course is rolling during the first half and fairly flat during the second half. I have run this race 5 times; as the race gets bigger, the logistics are becoming a nightmare. Lot of aid stations were not well prepared. The food at end of race really needs improvement, and waiting in line was no fun. This is still a great race, but they need help. Either have a lot more food tents or limit the race size. I do not like to complain, but this was a much better run when it was smaller.

-The start was great. Plenty of porta-potties (especially if you walked beyond the first few of them, which somehow had lines when ones farther down the row were empty!). The wide road start meant little stress. I crossed the line in 10 seconds, without pushing to the front.
-I was a little discouraged to see people littering their clothes and trash all along the course. If we drop our stuff near an aid station, it's probably a lot easier to clean up.
-Rolling hills during the first half were not as bad as I had feared, but driving the course the day prior was helpful to put it into perspective. Had I not read comments here from prior years or really studied the course, I might have been disappointed by how the reality measured up to the fast-fast-fast descriptions. I happened to like the speed of the course, and the varied elevation, but may have had a different assessment had I not BQ'd and PR'd.
-Big thanks to volunteers - very energetic.
-Bus to start was convenient, but nobody checked that I was a paid rider. I was, but I fear some potential stowaways could have taken seats from other paid riders. Anyone who ran the Seafair Marathon in 2008 knows the potential perils of that (i.e. the challenge of getting to the finish is irrelevant if you can't get to the start). To be certain, I did not hear of any difficulty regarding this at CIM. The event is so well organized that I imagine there was some built-in slack in the system.
-Medal was huge and shiny. Olympian in scale and design.
-Crowd briefly narrowed the running lane to 2-3 abreast at half-marathon and 20 mile (AKA "The Wall" arch) marks. Great energy, but a little scary and cumbersome.

Thanks to all who organized, volunteered and cheered on a very enjoyable morning.

This was my 1st CIM and I really enjoyed the fast course. The weather was perfect - cool (high 30s to low 40s) and no wind. This is apparently typical. Minor rolling hills in 1st part of the course are not steep or long enough to pose any sort of a problem. The second half is a slight downhill all the way to the finish. Perfect course to run a PR or Boston qualifying time.

There was a pretty serious problem with transporting runners to the start (in Folsom), however. Buses left Sacramento between 5 and 6 a.m. I got in a VERY long line at 5:40. Waiting til 5:40 was a mistake. Get on the first bus at 5 a.m. if you can. My bus arrived at the start just as the race began at 7 a.m. I literally started running as I exited the bus. And there were at least a couple hundred people on buses that hadn't yet arrived at that point.

The race director says he prides himself on never making the same mistake 2 years in a row, so I expect the bus issue will be fixed next year.

Other than that little organizational glitch, everything was first-rate. Well stocked aid stations and more than adequate spectator support. Volunteers called out the time and pace at each mile marker, which was very helpful for those who forgot to pack their forerunner (whoops).

First-rate race.

Absolutely great marathon. Ran the CIM in 2007 and knew I had to run it again in 2008. The EXPO is well organized, the course is amazing and the support during the run was first rate.

A big thank you to the volunteers who braved the cold to support the runners. I for one really appreciate you getting up early on a Sunday morning to volunteer your time. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I will definitely be back in 2009.

I just got back from the 2008 CIM. The organization was great! Capping it at 6,000 runners makes for a much better overall experience! Everything was easy: Expo, transportation to start and lots of port-a-potties!!!!

I have run 6 different marathons and this was near the top!!

An early, cool start, downhill course and zero wind made for a promising day. The course is well-known for being fast due to the net-downhill elevation and December date, but this year was perfect with absolutely no wind or adverse weather and cool temperatures the entire race. The shuttle buses to the point-to-point start were pretty convenient, considering the early start, and I got there with about 45 minutes to spare. Start line logistics were fantastic with plenty of porta-potties.

As advertised, the course was quick and merciful toward the end. Finishing with the state capitol as a backdrop made for a perfect setting for a PR and first Boston qualifier.

The gripes are minor. Most of these are due to the relatively low-budget nature of this race (compared to, say, Chicago, which I ran 7 weeks before).

Mile markers had people calling the time rather than a visual clock - one nice thing was that they had a second person calling out your pace per mile based on clock time.

Crowds are light and sparse until the end, save for a handful of main intersections.

Too few aid stations and too few toward the end. Water was in plastic cups, making for tough drinking on the run. I snagged paper Cytomax cups, dumped them and refilled them from the plastic water cups to drink on the run. Next time, guys, PAPER!

Zip ties for timing chips were not supplied in the envelope, nor available at the start. I laced it through my shoelaces, but it would have been one fewer thing to worry about.

All in all, a fantastic race, nice course (who knew Sac was scenic?) and my first Boston qualifier to boot!