The explanations below cover pretty much all of the problems with this marathon. The mile markers, the buses, the t-shirts... etc. The only other thing that was ridiculous - although personally I don't care about it - was the medal, which is probably the smallest, cheapest one I have ever seen. This thing needs a lot of work, and I just hope that whoever is in charge is looking at these websites.

This was my first-ever marathon, and I was not expecting a fast time, but most of the water stations had run out before we got there, and a bucket is a dangerous replacement. Then the route through the industrial estate lacked mile makers (or else they were so far up a lamp post as to be a joke). Then, having to dodge traffic at the finish was a pain. It needs a lot of improving.

I can't fathom how the organizers got this so wrong. The start was a mess, and the finish was an even bigger mess. For a marathon to be sponsored by a bottled-water company and give out water in buckets - yes, buckets - is a joke.... I could go on and on.

Well, ladies and gents, the title says it all. I have run this marathon 3 times now - 2005, 2008 (see '08 review) and this year. I gave it the benefit of the doubt in other years and hoped that someone would get their act together and finally make this marathon into the event it could be, but sadly, not this year, again. The organization fell flat again, plus the calls for small improvements seem to have fallen on deaf ears. To mirror one previous post, I have run such marathons as Boston, Amsterdam, Dublin, Barcelona, and comparing Belfast to these really shows it's shortcomings. I'll begin:

The bag collection:
Bag collection was in a lovely big park, about 6 miles out of the city center. Nice, if you wanted to go for a picnic, but personally, I think this could have been situated more conveniently nearer the city center, considering all that it consisted off was a small marquee containing the race bags and one stall from a local running shop. The expo was non-existent.

Bag-drop:
Again, the bag drop was into the back of a single transit-type van. But at least this year, they had it identified as an official marathon vehicle. But for anyone who was a stranger to the city, it would have been very difficult to find, as I found out last year. Also, a point to note: when the bags are laid out at the complex at the finish line, there did not appear to be any sort of supervision or security. At the end of the race, I was able to wander freely through all of the bags and search for my own. I know bags are left at your own risk, but at least one person to check that the bag taken matches your race number wouldn't be out of the question, would it...?

Start line:
Again, absolutely no effort was made to separate runners of varying times/abilities. A general free-for-all. They had a few placards on the street lamps designating the general area for the different finish times, but these may as well not have been there. Marathon runners, relay runners, and walkers were all in the mix. So it took the usual 3-4 miles before it all got sorted out.

The mile markers:
This one was a big bone of contention for me last year. The majority were missing last year, but I did notice a slight improvement this year, with about ONLY 7 or 8 markers missing, especially in the latter stages. But I would take their accuracy with a pinch of salt, as I did mile 16-17 in 5:55 - not bad, considering I was running at 7:30 pace. Just by pure coincidence, a runner who was running at the same pace as me and my friend was wearing a GPS, so we gave up even trying to work of the mile markers and ran too his watch instead. But it did become the running joke through the rest of the race to spot the next mile marker and guess how far it was out.

The course:
A) Long, boring stretches of dual-carriage after 3 miles from the start with no support.
B) That terrible, narrow cycle path from mile 16 until about 19 mile, again with zero support - which then leads you into that soul-destroying industrial estate, full of interesting smells and aromas. Funnily enough, there's not much in the way of support there either. It isn't until the relay changeover point near Mile 21 that you start to see much in the way of support again.

T-shirts:
Every other marathon I have run in the past 3 years has given out a high-quality, wicking, running top/t-shirt. Belfast still gives out a run-of-the-mill, white, cotton t-shirt, with a screen print on the front. Also, I was given the wrong size this year. An expensive t-shirt at £30 plus....

Water stations:
I can't fault the number of water stations; there were plenty of them, and there were also energy drinks. But it strikes me as bizarre how a marathon, sponsored by Deep River Rock Water, gave out all of its water in those miserable plastic cups, filled from buckets that were filled (in turn) from fire hydrant stand pipes...! You don't see a bottle of Deep River Rock Water until you cross the finish line. No lovely screw-top bottles here, folks.

So there you go - all off of my chest. I only hope that someone can take charge and turn this event around. This event has so much to offer. The crowds, although scarce at times, are full of enthusiasm. When running through the relay changeover points, they would really cheer the full distance runners on, which was one of the things I always looked forward too during this marathon.

But sadly, it's still not an event that I would encourage any serious marathoner to aim for. It's good for a family day out, or if you only ever intend to do one marathon and leave it at that. For a marathon that advertises over 16,000 participants (when actually it is nearer to 2,500 marathon runners, with the rest made up of relay teams and walkers), I think they still have a lot to do - really, a lot to do.

My first marathon was run in Chicago, and the organization and support were brilliant - especially for a city that could fit our little province into it. I then decided to run my own country's marathon, and was disappointed to say the least. If other cities can get their organization into order, is there any chance of the organizing committee here speaking to other committees and giving themselves a good kick in the butt?! How can I possibly recommend this to runners from other countries?!

There were lots of positives about Belfast '09, but several issues have yet to be dealt with from previous years - namely: the lack of mile markers other than those painted rather discreetly on the road; crowd participation was feeble to be honest (maybe it was the biting wind?); cotton T shirts (I thought these were a thing of the past); extremely cheap plastic cups for water, which broke on contact with hand (though the PowerAde bottles were great); the lack of buses as advertised back to the start from the finish line; the lack of an audible sound system at the start; and the failure to force walkers farther back, apart from one sign suggesting finishing times.

I ran the Belfast Marathon this year (2009) for the first time, having run the Dublin Marathon last year. I'm glad I ran it but the organizers really need to do some more work if they're to attract real marathoners to the event.

1. Having marathoners line up with walkers at the start of the race is a disaster. How are marathoners to get a good start with people stopping in front of them and blocking the way?
2. The route is quite hilly, and at times you are actually running along a footpath or a motorway. In Dublin the roads were closed for marathoners. At one point marathoners were asked to stop to let lorries cross. This is a disgrace.
3. The relay changeover points need to be further improved. It would be better at all changeover points that the route be split in two for marathoners and relay runners. (The relay is an excellent idea and gives everyone a chance to compete.)
4. The mile markers are a joke. I only saw a mile marker for 13 miles, 17 and 25. How are runners supposed to get their splits right?
5. I found it difficult to get to water at some water stations, as I didn't want to stop running to get water. It's also hard to drink out of a polystyrene cup while running. In Dublin they give you a bottle of water with a drinking cap and have plenty of stations with sports energy drinks.
6. The lack of porta-loos is also a serious problem. Luckily a few shops and bars were open and were letting people use their toilet facilities.
7. The lack of organization for handing in your plastic bags with your changing kit at the start of the race was also a disgrace. I was told to hand it in to a white van at the side of the city hall. What I actually saw were people leaving their bags at a bus shelter. There were no officials looking after the bags.
8. While spectators are to be welcomed, the organizers need to take more care to cordon off the route and also the finish line. Once I crossed through the finish line, I was immediately hit with a wall of spectators. I had to ask someone for my medal and get my own water.
9. I felt most sorry for runners who took longer than five hours to complete the marathon. By that stage most of the officials along the route in Ormeau Park had disappeared. Spectators were walking along and the only way runners could work out the route was by arrows on the ground, which were starting to fade because of the weather. This is very disheartening and a total disgrace.
10. I know the route has been changed over the last year but perhaps they'll think about changing it again so runners aren't forced to run along footpaths, towpaths, the side of motorways or stop for traffic and pedestrians.

I've run 5 marathons and Belfast is my favorite. I ran it in 2006 and 2007 was unable to run it this year, but intend to be there in 2009. The marathon is very well organized and the shower facilities at the finish are a big plus. Find the race isn't that well supported outside the city center and the marathon relay runners can be a distraction. I like the course and my fastest times are over the new course. All in all, a well-run show.

I decided to give Belfast one last shot at enticing me back to this race after the chaotic scenes of 2002 when I was pushed out in to the road by members of relay teams and in to the path of an oncoming car. For me, that was the end. However, I became aware that there was a new race committee and therefore thought... ok... I will give it one more go.... My 2008 experience was so much better than any of my previous 5 BCM's... the course was better, the organization was better, the medal was better, the support on the route was better, but much more needs to be done to make this a race it could be.

We'll start with registration - a marquee some miles outside Belfast city center. As it was raining, some people had to wait outside in the rain for some time before getting their numbers (luckily I was early and was in and out in 2 minutes). There is no expo of any sort, so dragging competitors out here was for what reason? The people at registration couldn't have been more helpful - encouraging and polite (huge change for the better here); the race package had number in it, race program, and a few fliers; the t-shirt was ok, but have had far superior quality t-shirts for much smaller events.... As far as I could see, there was little to no support from "sponsors" - a great shame. BCM allows you the option of buying a fleece - coming into the summer months?? A waterproof jacket would be far more enticing, and any sort of merchandise with BCM logo would be better than absolutely nothing!

The start was, as I expected - chaotic... so, I decided to start at the back, out of trouble and let the walkers block the runners farther up in the field. This is due to lack of marshaling time corrals, which were attached to lamp posts. Having been in this situation before, I can say: start at the back. The course was challenging but pleasant, and much improved from previous experiences. The people of Belfast were incredibly kind and supportive.

My main gripe was that there were no static clocks along the course, as there was no timing on the course. How could the elite-to-fun runners check on their split times? There should be static clocks at the 10K half and 20 mile markers. I did get one gulp of sports drink this year, which was good; however, the main sponsor could be more prevalent (a water company). We had the use of standpipes for water. I noticed as the miles ticked by that there were fewer and fewer cups left at water stations, and the last one had run out. I thought of those people still on the course in the heat 3 hours after me with no water... again....

Over the finish line I received my medal from a very pleasant volunteer and a bottle of water (wow) - nothing else. They have improved the relay changeover points so that they do not interfere with marathon runners, but if BCM wants to get recognition of being a MARATHON, they should really reconsider the relays. Yes, there was more emphasis on marathon runners this year (a good change), but the organizers boast 16,000 competitors, leading people to believe that all are completing 26.2 miles (when in reality, it's 4,000 - at most).

It's debatable whether I will do this again next year. Instead of relays, they should hold a 10K and half on the day, and there should be better controls at the start line (with stricter time bands enforced). Yes, there have been improvements, but there are better marathons out there to be tried and tested. It's a shame, as this could be a good marathon; unfortunately it still needs simple issues to be addressed. Do it if you want to. The people of Belfast are VERY WELCOMING. I am just not a fan of relay legs!!!!!!!

This was my first marathon experience; I ran the first leg of the relay, and whilst we thoroughly enjoyed our day out and raised a lot of money for our charity, the actual race didn't feel professional at all. I will summarize:

* Not enough loos at the start - runners seemed to have to start and nip behind various walls a few yards up the road.
* Couldn't hear a single word the starter had to say.
* Mile markers could have been a little bigger and I understand that some of the later markers were written in chalk on the road/path. I'm not too sure how accurate they were. Perhaps someone else can confirm.
* Water stop after about 1 mile and then about 2.5 and then none until after I finished my 6 miles. There should have been water stations at 2 and 4 miles.
* Impossible to drink from plastic cups whilst running. I skipped the first water station as I couldn't get near it without having to stop. What about some Deep River Rock squeeze bottles? I understand that the Dublin Marathon has 250 ML bottles of Ballygowan at each of 9 drinking stations.
* I may be wrong, but was there just water station on one side of road.
* First part of the marathon went out along Sydenham bypass - long and boring, sparse/no support and fumes from lorries and cars along the way.
* Helpers at relay checkpoints didn't seem to know anything about bags, etc.
* Can't believe walkers started with runners.
* Felt embarrassed to watch walkers coming strolling over the same finish line as the marathon runners. Watching the leading men and women giving it their all and having the walkers "stealing their glory" just wasn't right to me. (No offense to the walkers - they should have had a different start and finish.)
* Walkers got crisps, bottles of water and a medal when they crossed the finish, but relay runners (other than the final runner) got nothing.
* Having spoken to a girl who ran the marathon, I understand that the changeover points were total chaos for them to get through. Running a marathon needs total concentration, and to be disrupted in this way is inexcusable. There have to be lanes at changeover points to keep relay runners away from marathoners.
* Can't believe that the marathon runners (other than perhaps the frontrunners) had to dodge traffic. Can a route not be found where roads can be closed for a few hours?
* Surely a route can also be found that doesn't involve running along motorways or deserted docks, etc. It was a real pleasure to be cheered on by the public, but it seemed the route chosen wasn't spectator-friendly.

These are the feelings that I have. Like I said, we had a fantastic time and I would definitely go back to raise some money and do another relay next year, but unless there are drastic improvements, I am not going to pick Belfast for my first marathon.