My shirt said 'Half-Marathon Finisher', so I have no idea what the Full Marathon finisher's issue was. It was a great race for all finishers - half and full.

The course was beautiful once the fog from the Bay burned off; however, I wouldn't run this as a full marathon again. There were 21,000 half marathon participants, and only 4,000 full marathon runners. This would have been fine by me, if as a full marathon finisher, I would have received a different shirt from those that finished the half. Both distances are a great accomplishment, but I have never run a half marathon and received a shirt that said I ran a full marathon, and vice versa.
Also, when I finished the full marathon, there wasn't much in the way of refreshments at the finish for us (bananas and stale bagels, that's it!); I'm guessing because the half marathon participants went through most of the food before we crossed the finish line in 4hr45min.
The expo was disappointing; after a 45 min wait to get in, there was very little to see. Also disappointing was the lack of marathon gear available for immediate purchase...almost all items were labeled 'Half marathon'. It doesn't make sense that their finisher shirts all said 'Nike Women's Marathon', yet nearly all the swag for purchase only said 'half marathon'.
What you get is not worth the high price of this marathon, not even if you're in it for the Nike name.

The expo was so disorganized that all I wanted to do was grab my race packet and get out of there as soon as possible. Way too small of an area for the number of people. Too crowded. Was not able to see all of the vendors. Other than the Expo, the race and course was really enjoyable. Would definitely do it again.

Ran this as my first marathon in 2012. Very well organized. Runners released in pace groups. Course was challenging, but beautiful. All around great experience. The necklace was beautiful this year. Nike did a great job.

A great challenging course but not if you are only interested in a BQ.

Start is much better than last year - good job Nike.

Finish is still a problem as there is not enough food and the lineup for the bus is huge.

What happened to the chocolates at mile 22? Instead we had a stupid balloon to run under.

Will be back next year :)

I've never been one to run a race for the medal or t shirt. I don't need lots of spectators and don't particularly like large races with big fields. But I do like destination races and spectacular views (extra points for water), so I signed up for the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco.

On the finisher's 'medal' and t shirt: the Tiffany and Co. necklace completely exceeded my expectations. It's a beautiful pendant on a silver chain. I LOVE the necklaceit was so fun seeing other women wearing it when I was out to dinner, around the hotel, and at the airport the next day. The other really nice thing about the necklace is that I can wear it all the time, I don't get that same silly feeling of wearing a medal after other races I've ran (I even felt a little silly wearing my Boston finisher's medal). And the tshirt: reads Nike Women's Marathon FINISHER in great big letters, can't wait to wear it while training for my next marathons.

On spectators: few and far between. This was a-okay by me, though it was a little surprising, considering that 25,000 runners participate in the half and full. Most of the spectators were TNT 'coaches'who were only interested in cheering for you if a were wearing a TNT shirt.

On a large race with a big field: the expo was incredibly unorganized, they were completely unable to handle a crowd of 25,000+ runners and their plus ones (or twos). The starting corals are supposed to be organized by runner's self predicted pace, but this did not happen. There were women in the sub 7:30 min pace area that were walking...

On the course: duh, there are hills, but the absolutely BEAUTIFUL views and water make it 100% worth it!

I both agree and disagree with many of the comments posted. I haven't decided whether or not I will run this race again. However, if I do not, it is mostly because it is over-priced. There is definitely a ton of Nike marketing going on but I believe that to be expected when a company sponsors a race. While I am a serious runner, I am also girly and do not believe two to be mutually exclusive. With that said, I also found the bra exchange in the middle of the race a bit ridiculous but not insulting.
I didn't think that any of the hills were 'killer' or 'challenging' by themselves. From my perspective, the hills were only problematic because many of the participants did not engage in proper race etiquette. The majority of the racers started walking before even attempting the hill ascents and didn't make any attempt to clear the way for those of us that wanted to continue running. Additionally, many participants simply came to a complete stop with no regard to the runners behind you. This I cannot blame on the race organizers but I do think that some signage asking walkers to move to one side or the other might be helpful. Additional corrals further breaking down the runners are definitely necessary and I agree with separating out the walkers. As others have mentioned, I had the frustrating experience of navigating walkers from the beginning of the race until at least 10 miles into the race. Anyone walking in the first mile, should not be staged in front of runners. This not only an issue of increasing your time, the more serious issue is safely as it increases the possibility of injury for all participants - runners and walkers. Additionally, It might be helpful to have corrals for those who are just doing the race for fun. I do not object or have anything against these participants but intermingling of these participants with those who are more serious about the race can be frustrating and upsetting to all.
Organization upon finishing the race and with the expensive shuttle service is imperative. The last thing that your legs need after running 26 miles is to come to a sudden halt and then get herded for a half an hour - only to then spend an hour standing in line for an over-priced shuttle. For the price of the race, shuttle service should have been included in the entry fee and more convenient. Anyone who has ever run 13 or 26 miles should be on the organizing committee as they could explain how torturous this can be on a runners legs. For me, It was the difference between normally not being sore after a race to still having muscle tightness two days later. I appreciated having bananas at the end of the race but is also a good idea to have either chocolate milk or a muscle milk type product post race - especially considering that it would be hours before any of us made it out of the post-race expo. Some participant comments mentioned milk but I didn't see any when I finished.
Race website and information distribution were a huge issue for myself as well. I didn't appreciate having to go look for the information necessary for participation in the event. I am accustomed to receiving e-mails from the organizer's with all of the pertinent information and believe that this is the best practice. The challenge of the hunt for information was unnecessary and undesirable. Both e-mails to participants and an organized and informative website are in dire need for future races.

I enjoyed the course immensely. However, I must admit that I have a bias as I grew up in the San Francisco area and the course was very nostalgic and a homecoming for me.

I do not believe that the race size is too big. I believe that it is possible to have a wonderful experience with a race this size for both serious, fun runners and those in-between. However, with greater numbers, a correlating level of structure organization is a must.

The Tiffany necklace wasn't a motivator for me. In fact, I have made it all the way back home to Colorado and have not even opened the box as of yet. I didn't even notice that they were being handed out by firefighters but I may be in the minority in both noticing this or caring about it.
I disagree that the TNT runners & walkers as a whole were better 'trained' than others on the course. I ran into just as many frustrating experiences with TNT runners/walkers and non-TNT participants.
I don't quite understand the complaints of lack of beer at the end of the race and also have never understood the desire for beer after running 13 or 26 miles or at 10 o'clock in the morning - but to each is own and whatever floats your boat. With that said, at the time that I finished, there was a microbrew handing out cups of beer right before the finish.

All in all, I think that this race has a ton of potential with some very simple improvements but am still undecided on future partcipation.

You need to update the Boston qualifying times for the new age group times! a 3:40 is no longer the qualifying time for women under 35 it is now a 3:35 so you have marked BQ after people's names who didn't qualify

I have run the race six times, and after 2011, I won't do it again. When I first started running it, I felt a sense of empowerment as a female athlete as I toed the line, and that Nike took me seriously. Last year, I felt as though Nike viewed me as sparkly pink wallet. Nike+ members get preferential treatment above and beyond the exorbitant cost of the marathon. The Expo isn't like any expo I've ever been to. There is almost nothing there related to athletics or running (I mean, facial products and expensive casual shoes?

No gels or anything helpful for the race?). The signs along the course are insulting ('Skinny jeans ahead!' or 'Hurry up so you can shop!' Yeah, that's motivating for someone trying to set a PR for the course.). There was a 'bra exchange' at mile 7 or something. I mean, come ON. Nike makes a women's marathon in 2004, starts it out as a legitimate, good, REAL marathon, and then slowly morphs it into a disgusting show of heteronormality, all girly girl-ness, where running is about staying skinny and being able to eat chocolate and drink cocktails with your 'besties.' I run to compete and to be fast. I don't buy cute running clothes. I don't wear pink and I don't sparkle.

I don't even like to shop. So this marathon slowly began to rub me the wrong way over the years. Combine that with ridiculous crowds of women who get upset if you ARE serious about trying to run fast (Hey, we're just having fun here!), and it made for a very bad experience last year. Re: spectators, there are lots, but be prepared for lots of guys to yell at you. I once had some young guys shouting their numbers to a girl near me, like the race equivalent of the construction workers. I chuckled, and they said, 'Hey, we like older women too!'

I was 24 at the time. That said, it's a gorgeous course, and in 2006, I did qualify for Boston by running with a pace group. I don't know if they have those anymore though. You'd have to get to the start 90 minutes early to beat the rush and be able to get out, now.

1st and last time for this one. Yes, I enjoyed it, but it took us over an hour to get back to our hotel, transportation was a nightmare. And my end time was 45 minutes off from my actual results.