I liked the predawn start, but it is still pretty sticky so beware of the humidity. The race director was very attentive and accomodating. The comraderie on the course was terrific. The race was far from flat but the hills were not too intense. They did a great job, especially for a small race...

Cool Temps, low humidity, flat course with a year around tailwind. Enjoyed the event. Dale

My husband and I came to do it as a training run for a 50 miler in November. Knew about the slogan 'hurdle the weak, trample the dead' and was wanting to do the race for the challenge. The humidity was ghastly, but we have been running in that, so it was fine. Director was great, packet pick up in really nice shop, the medals and the long sleeved cotton tye-dyed shirts are FABULOUS. Many here to do it for training, and it's a congenial crowd. Very neat & different starting out in the dark, enjoyed the country roads. Out & back course means you get to say hi to everyone, which I like :) We both finished well under 4 hours and the car traffic was a little on the heavy side nearing the end- that was the only fault with the course...they need to have a portion of the road at that point coned off for runners. If you enjoy a smaller, fun, relaxed race,this is for you. Volunteers were awesome & enthusiastic. Course is rolling hills, not flat but has some flat portions. If you are someone who needs a bunch of spectators, this is not for you. If you love running for running's sake, this is for you.

This was my first time running this race and enjoyed it very much. I not only BQ'ed but PR'ed
The medial and trophies were awesome. Is was easy for family to make it on foot to the halfway point to see the runners then back to the finish line in plenty of time.

It is hot and humid, this is not a surprise. The course was a perfect mix of small rolling hills, with very few turns and LONG straight sections. Not many BQ's but this is a good event to run. The website and the rewiews on marathon guide cover everything. It is dark at the start but you could see well enough to run. It is easy to pick up package, the host hotel was great (early check in, and food at 4:00 AM, late check out if needed). Parking at start was very easy. Plenty of porta-potties along route, and food at the end. Shirts are great, medals even better. Aid stations were spaced as stated but not your 'normal' every 2 miles. Water only at first few. You could hear the cheering at aid stations before you saw them. There is enough to do in Tupelo for a day if you are coming from out of town.

'Trample the Weak and Hurdle the Dead.' How's that for a marathon slogan? The website is filled with images of fire and the occasional skull. I guess nobody can say they didn't warn us.
Tupelo is a great race with great swag, reasonably priced and a small field of dedicated runners who must of lost their collective minds. This is the south... in early september. Most people go north for summer marathons. Not Tupelo. They celebrate your suffering. They put the heat and humidity on display for all and challenge the brave (or is it the stupid) runners of the world to come and have a swing.
Although this race has had the odd cool day in the past, this year was HUMID and warm. At least it was mostly overcast and spared us the full strength of the summer sun. Do not come to Tupelo unprepared. Be ready for the weather or it will kick your butt.
The race starts in the pre-dawn darkness which is nice from a temperature standpoint but the humidity is unaffected so it is still sweltery and sticky. It also is very neat running in the dark on a quiet country road.There are very few spectators and the scenery is mostly bucolic and rustic farms.
Aid stations are a bit widely spaced early but tighten up as the race goes on. The dedicated volunteers are attentive and enthusiastic. There are a few rolling hills but nothing too outrageous. It is an out and back course but due to the darkness during the early miles the scenery doesn't seem too redundant as you pass by it in the full light of day.
The swag here is amazing. Beautiful tie-dye long sleeve shirts that will make any wanna-be DeadHead smile. The Finisher's Medal is First Rate and worth the price of admission all by itself. How a race this size does the swag so well is amazing.
Tupelo has grown in popularity in recent years so sign up early. It is already a cult classic and many runners (including this one) come back year after year. Well run. Good course. Great swag. And all the suffering the late southern summer can dish out. Trampled?.. yes. But not disappointed. Consistently one of the best small races out there.

I loved this race. FIRST, Marathon Guide asks for the specific ratings, and not everyone values the same attributes. Judge for yourself. If you need spectators, you need a bigger race. The ones there were supportive, but most of the race is fairly solitary. So on to SPECIFICS.... FUN: This race is informal and small with great organizers who really want to help in anything.. That added greatly to the feel of the event. THE ORGANIZATION: perfectly adequate. The water stops were slightly less frequent than I like (each 2+ miles) but were OK. Near the end I'd like to have seen another added to make it more dense there. Also, the hassles were minimum... even parking was great. This is a low fuss marathon, adding greatly to the appeal. THE LOOT TO TAKE HOME: The shirt was technical (for 2012 anyway) so don't expect that unless they state it (I thought it was technical.. so was disappointed). The medal, while very cool (they did an awesome job, actually), may not appeal to some because of the skulls and possibly more dramatic, the saying on them. If you're easily offended by the like, then check it out so you can adjust your expectations accordingly. LOVE the 14.2 mile medal.. as if it's ripped in half. THE COURSE: rolling relatively small hills, If you've practiced hills, don't push too hard up and make up time correctly on the downhills, these will not affect you much. I got a BQ (-5:57) even though temps were 74+ and 97% humidity at the start. WEATHER: The only downside is the apparently highly varied weather; it is a gamble as to whether you get cooler temps and non-90s humidity. If you're here only for fun, no big deal. If you're here for a specific time, that could matter to you.

Signed up for this to hopefully qualify for Boston since my sister and both my parents had...ended up with a 3:11:03 - missing 'technically' qualify by 4 sec! - although I think the cutoff time was another 2 min or so. Anyway, great run, not too many spectators but that just made you appreciate the ones you saw more. David, as others have said, is an awesome race director and promptly answered emails. The race was just fun - the atmosphere is not super competitive, had a great conversation with a runner for the better part of the first half. The last half dozen miles I was mostly alone, but enjoyable (or about as enjoyable as the last six miles can be!). I enjoy bigger runs too but it is nice to not have to stress the logistics of everything.

I'm not sure which was worse; the 80 degree temperature at the start (a 5am start I might add) or the complete deluge of running in Tropical Storm Lee during the second half of the race. You can't blame the organizers for the weather though.

Aside from the weather, this was a nicely run, albeit very small race. I found out afterward that there were a lot of no-shows (presumably due to the heat/storm) which maybe made it feel even smaller.

Tupelo is a rather small place so the hotels, race pickup and start/finish are all within a few miles of each other. There is plenty of free, adjacent parking on the morning of the race but if you can, scout that out in daylight beforehand.

The course meanders through rolling hills (nothing very steep) out into the country and eventually into a subdivision for the turnaround. The course is sort of a big circle so the half-marathoners stay with you 13 deep (also that's why it's a 14.2 back to the start/finish for them) before the marathoners reverse to loop back to the start.

Post-race included barbeque, beans, slaw and even beer. More importantly there was shelter from the rain. The course is well marked which is important since there was very little crowd support. The Gatorade was cold and while the water was not, I was very thankful that they didn't run out on such a hot, hot day.

As an added bonus, I made my way an hour west to Oxford the day before to tailgate in The Grove before the Ole Miss home opener.

With the right weather, it could be a PR event but not on this day.

If you are looking to skip all the logistical calisthenics of a big event and don't require a lot of crowd support then I'd definitely recommend this race.

This is an old school low frills fun run and I would compare it to a training run with a great support group. It's small which add to the charm of the event. No bands, music or warm up people screaming at you. Just loved it! The course is an out and back that starts at 5 a.m. The start is so low key we missed it until everybody started running down the road. Never saw the start line until I was coming back in and saw it painted on the road. I would consider it a rolling hill course but not really bad. The good news was we had a driving rain for the back half of the race that cooled us off. This course would be tough on a hot, sunny, humid Mississippi day for sure. The course is also open to traffic so if you're a back of the packer be aware of some cranky sunday drivers. We almost got clipped a couple times. If you want flat and fast then go to Waveland, MS for the Gulf Coast Marathon. However, it's held on the space center property and it's desolate on race day.

Bring your own water as the first water stop didn't happen until about 3-4 miles into the race. Maybe they slept in. I never could figure out the spacing of the water stops but they had them and everything went well. Super volunteers. Only two porta potties that were off in a field so bring paper too. LOL.

Loved the shirt and medal, very unique. Thanks to all the volunteers and everybody who worked hard to put this on. Tupelo was such a friendly town and everybody knew the marathon was that weekend. Super event and I would highly recommend this race.