This was my 1st marathon, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I had some questions, and was able to get answers quickly directly from the organizer. It was nice having that small-town touch. The course is very flat and much of it is covered by trees, so you don't get baked. There weren't tons of spectators; but those who were there were great. The volunteers were awesome. I will absolutely work to return to this marathon next year.

I was pleasantly surprised with how much I loved this race. I did the 50-miler, which is run on the same course as the marathon, plus more. It is very scenic. The trail is lined with trees most of the way and follows a stream for some of the way. If you need spectators every step of the way, this may not be your race. There are plenty of places for friends and family to see you along the way, but the course will not be lined the whole way with spectators. For the marathon course, aid stations were every 2.5 miles. The middle part of the 50 only had aid every 5 miles, but that was just fine. I thought it was organized very well and the volunteers did a great job keeping me motivated when I was feeling a little down at the 40-mile mark. I would highly recommend this event for anyone.

This out-and-back marathon takes place on an abandoned rail trail in conjunction with a 5K, 10K and half marathon. I think it has the potential to be a good marathon. However, I found that the very small field of participants for the full marathon and the lack of spectators made it very challenging. Once the half marathoners turned around, you were pretty much left to running alone. This definitely needs to be classified as a "no frills" marathon. Aid stations, about every 3 miles, were unmanned after about the 6-mile point. Some support on the course would have been nice. Glad I ran with a GPS, as I can't confirm there were 26 mile markers. Finisher's medal was okay. It appears to have a place on it, for what I am assuming to be where our final time should be engraved. If this is the case, it would have been nice for the organizers to see that it was actually done. No awards for overall finishers or age category winners given. I think if I wanted to run this trail again, I would pocket the entry fee, buy a bottle of Gatorade and an energy gel, and run it alone.