This is a perfect, early spring run. Well organized and a bargain run for the price. Volunteers did a very nice job! Reasonably priced motels in the area. Quality shirt. It as better than I expected!

I loved almost everything about this race, especially the course going along Fox River, then between farms and hills. I like the no-frills approach, I am OK carrying my own gels and such, but one essential thing was totally missing: the last two miles of the course were not marked properly. Three times over those last two miles I'd run to an intersection and have absolutely no idea where to run next, every time losing a minute or two to ask for directions. I should not have to do that.

I understand that you might not want to paint on sidewalks, but at the very least you should provide a detailed and accurate map of the city section of the course, which I could print and carry with me. Also you should put big and clear signs with arrows on each and every intersection. Putting only one red cone in the middle of an intersection, with no other clues in sight, is ambiguous and misleading.

5 stars I love home town marathons
that are not out of reach of the working runner with family members that can enjoy the course and cheer. This is event is what made our country a wonderful place to live.
A real home town fun marathon that was put together by home town people. I took my time and enjoyed the each mile. Thank you

I ran this marathon to get out early in the season and to train for a later spring marathon.

There certainly could have been more water stops - there was always a bottleneck of runners at the few stops. It should have been suggested on the website/registration form to bring your own water and gels.
I didn't like the fact that the race shirt was a men's shirt and the smallest size available were still way too large for me - it would be nice if they realized that small women run these events too and would like a shirt that fits.

And, I agree with the comment that food should have been saved for marathoners, not mostly taken by the runners in the shorter races.
It was good to have indoor bathrooms available before and after the race; volunteers were very friendly; parking was great.

For a small-town race, this one was well done. Simple packet pick-up, and plenty of water and tables to sit at and wait indoors at before the start (which was right outside the recreation center). Indoor bathroom facilities and the finish were right behind the building. Easy, free parking, and everyone was pleasant. Course was as expected and the middle part with the trail and tower were great (just wish the halfway point would have been marked). I didn't think I would like coming back on the half-marathoners - but gave me plenty of incentive to pass one more. Spectators were sparse (as I expected), but if you are looking for large crowds to cheer you on, might want to find a different marathon.

The course needs more porta-potties and water stations. Also, the last 4 miles of the race were poorly marked; they need more cones or arrows.

This marathon is a joke. The course was poorly marked. There weren't any mile markers between the four-mile mark and the six-miles-to-go marker. The three-mile hiking trail wasn't marked at all. I wasn't sure if I was going the right way. This course isn't certified so you can't use it as a Boston qualifier. Finally there weren't any awards (except for a certificate) for the age group winners.

I've run this marathon for the third time and will never run it again. Although the seven-mile trail run is challenging, most of the marathon is run on an old railroad right away that is flat and rather boring. As mentioned before, there is no finisher's medal, which is odd as this marathon is billed as "one of North America's 25 most difficult." The only thing it had going for it was discontinued this year: Your finisher's shirt was somewhat personalized with tower chevrons on the sleeve indicating the number of times you've run the marathon. Now you have to run it ten times before this is done! This change was not indicated on the entry form.

It's obvious that the race organization is catering to the 1/2 marathoners and 5K run/walkers. For the second year in a row there was basically no food left by the time my friends and I finished the marathon (we were in the middle of the pack).

Why let 5K walkers eat all the food? What are they recovering from?

A friend of mine heard the race director say, prior to the 5K race, that they didn't spend any money on this race this year. THAT WAS QUITE OBVIOUS! I understand that the proceeds go for a worthy cause (Children's Hospital of Wisconsin) but at least offer some of the amenities that you find at other small marathons.

This was my second straight year doing the half marathon, again as a motivator over the winter and a good gauge of where I was at for a late spring marathon. This year it was cold, rainy, and windy as opposed to just cold last year. Nothing has changed from the previous year as far as race organization/supplies. Course is a flat black topped out and back. Bring your own GU and water! Great fun after the race, got to love beers with other runners!

Positives: low cost, nice dry-fit shirt, runners did a great job supporting each other since spectators were minimal.
Negatives: boring trail followed by a very difficult trail will not give you a PR in this race, dissappointed with the finish (no finisher medals for anyone), waited 3 hours for the award ceremony to get a piece of paper with my finish time on it. Do this one as a training run only.