B&A Trail is a rails to trails project that is an asphalt surface. There is one short hill at about mile 7 and a couple overpasses to negotiate. Otherwise, this is flat and fast. If the weather cooperates (which it did in 2008) you can run a PR here.

Excellent fleece vest in lieu of a t-shirt. Medal is alright; nice for the price of registration ($45, if I remember correctly). And the pre-race and post-race venue is excellent - nice, warm high school before the start and plenty of room to sit down and relax during the awards. Pizza and other goodies afterwards were also nice.

This was my seventh marathon and first B&A. What a wonderful small marathon. Organization was super. The volunteers on the course were great - I especially liked getting a variety of Gatorade flavors instead of the usual lemon flavor only!! Post-race food was plentiful. And, with so many fall marathons now charging over $100, the price was just right!

You can't beat the almost-flat course (the hills at mile 7 seemed almost nonexistent while the smaller hills between miles 17 and 22 where the trail crossed the highway, because of their placement, seemed much larger). I bettered my PR by over 2 minutes.

If you want a great, small marathon and a course on which to run a PR, this is the marathon for you. I look forward to this race next year!

I researched several events before picking this one for my first full marathon. I certainly wasn't disappointed! The organization, expo, and post-race amenities were better than expected for a small marathon. The course was flat and fast. The volunteers were friendly and helpful. Water/aid stops were appropriate. The weather was perfect. (And all at a bargain price!)

I highly recommend this event for first-time marathon runners!

Thank you to Severna Park High School and all of the volunteers! The support prior to, during and after the race was exceptional. Plenty to drink along the course, hot showers and plenty to eat following. The course was extremely flat... and the hill at mile 7 was a welcome change in the terrain. Crowding onto the trail was a negative, and making up time was nearly impossible until after the half marathoners finished. Get into the front early and you can definitely expect a PR here!

What a great race! From organization to the course to the finisher fleece vest to the weather, it was a stunning day. My thanks to the race directors for allowing the early start AND for coming down hard on the few who chose to break the no-headphones rule. A great field of friendly runners, nice folks to cheer us on, and the volunteers were the best (especially for food - thanks Rita!). MD excels at small, super high-quality marathons. I even loved the hills at mile seven.

The 2007 edition was my second B&A. Both were used as a training runs for Boston. The organization is great, and pre- and post-race are great. Enough food (even if the half folks get at it first). Highly recommended, if you're in the region and want to run a nice small marathon.

Having done several large-scale marathons, this race was a breath of fresh air: camaraderie, support, a one-minute walk to the start line (after a less-anxious wait on picnic tables in the school's cafeteria), an on-time start, and amazing after-race food and awards. There is a great spirit to this race that big-city marathons will never have. A great race I hope to enjoy every year!

This was my first marathon. I chose it because it has the optional half-marathon and I didn't have to decide which I was doing until the half-way point. I hadn't really trained as well as I needed. But on race day, I pushed on and with the help of a 50-stater whom I met around mile 17, I got to the end. I will do this race again. But more importantly, this left such a good feeling that I'm training for other marathons too.

The *only* negative thing about this race is the loneliness of the late miles. At one point, around the 14th mile, I wondered if I had missed a turn - there were no other runners and no spectators at all.

I've done this race 3 or 4 times now and I always enjoy it. Small, peaceful, friendly, well-supported, mostly straight and flat (especially since they revised the course), and good post-race food. No big bells and whistles; just good running.

This was my tenth marathon and my third B&A Trail Marathon. I came back a third time because I truly feel that it is the flattest marathon in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area (95% flat for sure!). The "new" course cuts out the hill at the beginning of the race (I believe it used to be at mile 2 or 3) and you only have the Maryland Route 100 overpass bridge at mile markers 18 (going) and 21 (coming back). A smaller trail bridge in the race could be counted as a "hill" and there is a gradual incline towards mile marker 7, but these are nothing to be worried about. Other than what I have just mentioned, the B&A Trail Marathon is flat, flat, flat! With a little help from the "new" course, I managed to get my PR here - finally breaking under 4 hours... thanks!

I really enjoyed the organization of the Annapolis Striders Running Club once again and this year the shirt premium and medal were an improvement over past years. For the $40 registration fee, it was a great bargain, no doubt.

Surely, there are very few spectators along many points of this race; however, I believe that most runners that choose to do a "small" marathon race like this should expect that. Yes, it was cold and windy in the beginning, but the sun was out and it was dry!

My closing thoughts are that most runners pick marathon races that they enjoy running; the B&A Trail Marathon is an enjoyable marathon to experience as I saw some of the same runners this year as I did in '05 and '06.

Overall, a small and very well organized and enjoyable marathon that is sure to please those runners looking for a PR - you won't be disappointed!