I loved the location and its an easy drive fro the Charleston, SC airport. Lovely flat course (we saw a live aligator while running!) the organization is great but the cheesy large glass disk they call a marathon metal was a big disapointment. For my $100 marathon fee I was expecting at least a metal of some sort and not a glass frisbie.

This was my 17th marathon but my first time at Kiawah Island, and I read the comments posted here for the past three years before I went. The race organizers must have made some adjustments, because my wife (who ran the half marathon) and I both had a wonderful experience. The organization was superb, and although it is a smaller race, all of the volunteers at packet pick-up and out on the course were positive and enthusiastic. It was also a nice touch to have my name on the bib, as they did at the Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville (which falls on the same date) for years; hearing a volunteer call you by name with a 'Stay strong, Richard!' at mile 23 was more helpful than you can imagine. We also thought that, contrary to some of the previous year comments, the mile splits were well-marked, the aid stations were well-staffed, the pre-race and post-race 'Victory Bash' food was plentiful and delicious, the technical shirts (with no sponsor names on the back) were very nice, and the glass 'medals' were unique and very beautiful; as one commentator said in a previous post, they make great Christmas Tree ornaments! We also enjoyed staying at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, our first trip there. The villa we booked was reasonably-priced and far nicer than we expected, and as quiet as I have ever experienced, which is much appreciated the night before a race. The shuttle on race morning was on time and not crowded, and everybody at the Resort was very friendly. We had good conditions - overcast sky and temperatures in the 50s, with little wind. I did not run quite as fast as I expected for a flat, sea-level course (I train in the mountains of Western North Carolina), and wondered if a flat course might be more difficult in some ways due to more muscle fatigue. Also, some of the bicycle paths were a little uneven and it was nice to be back on paved roads after those sections. But they were not at all crowded, as I had been led to believe. All in all, I had a great experience, and would definitely run this race again.

This was a nice race, in a pretty location on a very fast course. There were plenty of water stops and nice volunteers. Most of the participants did the 1/2 marathon so it got a little lonely on the 2nd loop as there weren't many spectators. For a small race the only negatives for me were that rooms at the resorts were crazy expensive and staying off the island was a logistics pain. The closest hotel off island was 40 minutes away and you have to take a shuttle on to the property race morning. They recommend getting to the shuttle by 6:30 and I would agree.

For those individuals who want to run a marathon in their lifetime, this is the one. Great spectators, great course, FLAT, & great support. I decided to stay off the island and am glad I did. It was much cheaper and everything worked out just fine logistically. There are PLENTY of water stations and the spectators are top notch. The course is a loop, once for the half marathon and twice for the full marathon. There were times the course was crowded (bike path) but should only be a concern for the elite runners. Plenty of clocks for timing. My only 'complaint' would be the medal. It is a 'green' race evidentally, and the medal is made of glass. It is kind of difficult to see what's on it, but all in all, it's another state done and another medal in the showcase. I HIGHLY recommend this race.

I was very concerned about running this marathon because of the double loop course, but I wanted to run two marathons during the week of my 26th birthday and this one is close to where I live. I didn't mind the double loop at all. It is one of the most beautiful courses I have ever run! The race was very well organized and the volunteers were SPECTACULAR. There was water and gatorade at every stop and bananas or oranges at the majority of them. I stayed at the host hotel and walked 5 minutes to the start/finish.

The tech shirt is very well designed this year and the medal is very unique. I can't say it's my favorite medal, but it definitely stands out.

If you need a lot of crowd support, this is definitely not the race for you. There were some spectators (and those who were there were very enthusiastic) but it was small groups and only occasionally. Also, when running the full marathon, there will probably be times when you see very few people. There are only about 3000 runners total, and most are in the half, so after the split you may be by yourself. Doesn't bother me but might be an issue for some.

The expo is small but if you only need essentials, it's not a problem. Had some nice official merchandise for sale.

The weather was perfect this year. Low 40s and overcast! Couldn't ask for better.

Overall, a great experience.

I agree, this race does not deserve the complaints. The expo was small, but they had some nice things and all the people there were great. It was unfortunate that it rained for most of the marathon, but all the aid stations were fully supported and had plenty of fluids and gels. At the finish, they had a a complete pasta meal along with deserts inside where it was warm and out of the rain. I also loved the "Beware of Alligator" signs as it made this a unique experience. This was my first 2-loop course and I didn't like repeating where I had already gone, but if you don't mind that, and love a flat course, then you should definitely consider this race. At the park area near the resort convention center where the start/finish is, they even have a 3-sided "marker" with the previous years' winners listed.

First off, I can't believe the number of people complaining about trivial things. Medals and T-shirts? Holy moly - I can't imagine putting out all that blood, sweat, tears (and being soaked in the rain) only to complain about t-shirts and medals. Once done I was happy as hell to be done and know that I survived the rain, cold, wind, and signs that say, "Beware of Alligators."

Now for the race. If you want to run your first marathon, this is a good one. It was flat, fast, with good support and friendly crowds, and with super water stops. You will be hard pressed to find one that is done as well as this one. The expo's were awesome, and I'm sure nobody went without food, water, or post-run items. Sure, the weather was bad, but it made things interesting and worth the effort. If given the opportunity, I would go do this one again, stay on Kiawah Island again, and make sure I recovered at least three days on the island before coming home.

My only complaint, and it is not even a big one, is that some walkers were clogging the small paths and you had to dodge them, but they were all courteous considering us cranky marathoners who had to go around them. Again, not a big complaint.

First off, if you are going to stay on Kiawah, be prepared to shuck out some major money. I opted to stay in the Charleston/North Charleston area and drive the short 20-30 minutes out to Kiawah. Charleston is a great town with lots of things to do/see.

On to the race itself:

The race is rather low-key with little fanfare; however, the volunteers at the aid stations were some of the best I've ever encountered. Course is very flat and offers some pretty nice views along the way. The double out-and-back allows you to see other runners for nearly the entire route. I personally liked the glass finisher's medal as it is something different from the same ol' stone-skipper medal. The overall and age group awards are great... I love my proud pelican!!!

The only area of improvement would be to better police the half-marathon walkers on the bike path; 70% of them stayed to the right, but I had several occasions where people were walking 4- and 5-wide across the path. I realize these participants paid the same entry fee as everyone else, but c'mon, follow the signs and use good race etiquette.

I ran the half marathon and this was about my 30th full or half marathon. We rented a house in Kiawah and it was an easy dropoff for the start and to get to the expo. As mentioned by others, the expo is small, but it's well organized. They had a pre- and post-race dinner, but we skipped them since they were very pricey. The temps were in the 40s and it started raining just before the start (the rain lasted for about 90 minutes). The course is flat, but it gets congested after the turnaround where there are mostly cart paths coming back. The tech short was nice, but the medal is cheap and looks cheap. Kiawah is nice place to visit, and this is a decent race, but it's not in my top 10.

This is my 3rd Kiawah Marathon (18th marathon overall) and probably my last time here. Finally, they went to a tech shirt (useful to runners relative to the cotton through '09) and got the half-marathon WALKERS to the side of the course.

The course has some narrow paved paths, where 3:20 +/- marathoners have to compete with half-marathon walkers still on the course. They did a better job of keeping the walkers to the right this year, but a serious marathon needs to keep these folks OFF of the course completely.

By the way, nearby Charleston, SC does make this a GREAT destination race, however.