This is an extremely well-organized, personable, small marathon. If you are looking for a PR, this is your race. I wasn't expecting to run a PR after running a marathon 2 weeks earlier, but I had an unreal day and took a couple of minutes off my best. It's really a beautiful course that covers a lot of different terrain from urban city streets to country roads, fields, parks, woods, and along the river. It keeps things interesting and mentally made it easy to break the course down into smaller chunks. There are a few small hills, but nothing devastating. The expo is pretty good for a small race. If you need a lot of crowd support, this isn't your race. Even in locations where there were lots of people, spectators were pretty quiet and seemed to be only looking for their own runners. Really great finisher's medal and long-sleeved Brooks technical shirt. Overall a fantastic race. Thanks to Don and the entire Grand Rapids crew for a great weekend.

This is my second marathon, and the second time I've run GR. I considered running Detroit this year, but my experience was just so positive that it was difficult to pass up the opportunity to run this one again. The shirts are awesome, the food is wonderful (beer and chili, etc.), the fans are enthusiastic, and the course is pretty. The pace teams are great and even the e-mail support leading up to, and following, the race are fantastic. They say your name when you finish, you get a sweet medal, and Don Kern shakes your hand. I wept tears of joy my first time, and this time wasn't any different. It is an experience like no other, and from what I can see of others' thoughts, I'm not alone in my opinion. I highly recommend this race.

Yes, because of running with the sub-four-hour pace group, I am now signed up for Boston. The pace group was my best help in this race, as there are no time clocks along the course. I only had to check my watch the first few miles to find that the pacers kept an exact nine-minute-per-mile pace the entire race. The entire race experience was first-class. The Amway Grand Hotel was exceptional, located on the course and allowed for late checkout. The town is a nice slice of America - a beautiful, friendly place to run an autumn race. The positive atmosphere, great weather, and terrific, flat course all helped me run faster and stronger than I ever have.

This is the first time I have run this marathon. It is flat, fast and a good one to run for a Boston qualifying time. Not a lot of spectators once you get out of town, but it was peak color season and running along the river was beautiful. Would be nice to have more spectators along the last four miles - when you are hurting and want to die! Overall I think it a good race... and I qualified for Boston! Don (race director) was at the finish line shaking hands with everyone who crossed. That means a lot!

Well laid out course along the Grand River. Excellent support at medical and water stops. Enthusiastic volunteers everywhere. Enough of everything and everything in its place demonstrates top-notch organization. Not many spectators, but because of the wealth of benefits, I didn't miss them.

This was my second marathon. My first was Grand Rapids 2008, as it was a convenient drive from Lansing and the reviews were positive. My other drivable choice was Detroit, and I wasn't disappointed with GR.

The best thing for 2009 was the removal of the industrial park loop from 2008's course, which was the part I disliked. There is still a boring one-to-two-mile out-and-back around miles 20-21; it would be better to add more of the downtown like they did with the new five-mile section to start the race. They might also consider going through downtown the last miles to get larger crowds, like the 5/3 River Bank Run that has huge crowds the last couple miles.

The finish area is the best, hands down, and I was so happy taking 18 minutes off of my time that I couldn't say no to a hug from Don Kern. The whole experience was really inspirational and my family and kids were able to easily locate me and share in the post race fun. The volunteers even said it was OK for my kids to have an ice cream!

This is an awesome race. The course starts with a four-mile, spectator-friendly loop through downtown Grand Rapids, with the rest winding up and down along the Grand River. Seeing the mist rising over the water was a beautiful distraction. Great pace teams to help you get to the chili and beer at the finish. It was a wonderful experience from sign-up to finish line. I'll be back next year!

This is second time running Grand Rapids. Everything about this race is friendly and well organized. The shirts are always great and the volunteers and organizers are always top-notch.

I'm surprised, though, about the raves about the course. For people who run the 5/3 each year, the course is largely repetitive with not a lot of stimulation along the way. Much of the course is on bike trails and a roads that seems to be graded more for water run off than level running. The first time I ran GR, I said I wouldn't run it again until they brought more of the city into the course. They did that this year, which I appreciated; but I would love to see this be mostly in the city. I know it would be more expensive, but I also think they would get more runners and the sponsors would get more exposure. Just my two cents.

I have run 3 marathons before Grand Rapids and all were in Chicago. I was a little wary at first when I heard the crowds would be smaller. Yes, there weren't as many people, so if you want that, then stick to Chicago, but the support was awesome. I loved the out-and-back spots because when you saw your loved one, you knew you were going to get to see them again on the way past. I loved Chicago, but I feel Grand Rapids is a mini-Chicago. Same awesome support, only smaller. Same great organization, only smaller.

My fiance was helped out a lot by the staff at our hotel on where to go for certain great viewing spots. Also they allowed late checkout in the afternoon on race day. Days Inn, soon to be Holiday Inn on Pearl St. I would definitely stay at the same hotel, which is only a block away from the start.

I also took my iPod, thinking I would need it because of lack of crowds. Never turned it on. There were enough people to run with and converse with if need be.

I liked the fact that the full finish was one block over from the half.

Oh, last but not least, I decided not to take my orange slices along and instead stick to GU. I laughed when they offered them on the course. And the food spread after... WOW! Microbrew beer, Wendy's chili, Culver's ice cream, Go-gurt, mozzarella cheese sticks, not to mention the usual after-marathon fare. Not sure I was really into the Oreo cookies and pretzels offered on the race course, though.

The only thing I could see that needed to be changed was the two times we had an out-and-back turnaround. One turnaround was gradual, but the other, late in the race, was pretty sharp. Not something your legs want to do late in the race.

I would do this one again!

I'll be back for this one. Nice, flat and scenic course; excellent support; lots of GU and everything you would need; and an indoor area to wait in for the race start (with showers after); but what makes this race special is the race director. Personal touches, dedication to runners, pre-race emails and he's waiting as you finish, to shake your hand or give you a hug. This marathon is for the runners, staffed with experienced runners, and it has a great party afterward with micro-brewed beer and chili, plus all of the standard post-race stuff.