I registered for this race because of the Marathon Maniac 10th Anniversary. I have been a Maniac since 2004 so it was special. This was a beautiful course, hilly in the first half but once we reached the park it was downhill for at least 5 miles. The park was amazing, cool and shady. The last 5 miles or so was on the waterfront.
The traffic control on this course was superb. The police not only did a great job but were supportive and friendly. Nearly all the road crossings were manned by the police and I never had to wait once. The highways we ran along were deserted so never once did I have to worry about traffic. Spectators were sparse but very supportive in the nice neighbourhoods we ran through.
The aid stations were excellent with plenty of supplies and some had cookies and brownies. The young people that were working at them were super.
The expo was very small and there could have been more porto potties at the start.
Tacoma was a great city to visit, loved the glass museum and the glass bridge. Marathon hotel was excellent with a very good marathon rate.
Overall an excellent race with friendly people. I would definitely do it again.
Well done Maniac Tony!

Tacoma is not San Francisco, but it's a pleasant city with the Chihuly Glass Museum, a long waterfront, a beautiful penisula park. The latter two are part of the course, which is much more fun and beautiful than the previous version. Organized by Maniac Marathoners, there's a fine tone of marathon enjoyment and caring organization to the run. Only negatives: very slim expo; the bus shuttle logistics need to be on the map/marathon info handout; and the marathon-expo-hotel refused to provide late check out??????

First time running Tacoma this year (2012). Mostly ran it because I too am a Maniac and i live just up I-5. The hilly course was a concern so I stuck with the 4hr pacers (who were really great) for about half the race. Left them at 19 and ran my first negative split!!

The hills were not as bad as I expected and a nice to chat more than normal.

If you want a small, some hills, super friendly fellow runners filled race, try this race.

Tony, I hope the rumors to change the course to p2p and faster are not true. Leave the course as is.

Finish area, enjoyed the band, the food and SUNSHINE.

This is a marathon not to be missed. The weather was as superb as anyone could want for marathon running. Early morning clouds and not too warm sunshine thereafter. Well organized with great support along the way, adequate water stops, generous energy gel provided (at least three on the marathon course), gorgeous views through much of the first two-thirds including water, a lovely park, an island and a spectacular bridge lookout. The expo was fine but I couldn't find any last minute running items like GU but as it turned out, it wasn't even necessary given the generous amount of sport drink and gel on course. It is great when my only complaint for a race was one turn when I had to hesitate because I could have gone two different ways and there was no arrow or marking...but no big deal as I could see others as soon as I turned the corner. Thanks for the great race!

I had been looking forward to the race because I love being a member of the Marathon Maniacs. Unfortunately, this is the ugliest marathon I have done yet. There are miles of beautiful roads in Tacoma, and yet for several miles we ran next to a very busy freeway. I don't want to think about how much exhaust fumes I inhaled. I will definitely avoid this marathon until they figure out a better run.

This is a great race - for 2011, we had perfect weather and spectacular views along the hilly but manageable course. The organization was fantastic and the pacers were great, as were the uniquely shaped medals. They also had the half marathoners start a half-hour later than the full marathoners, so there was nice separation, and the course was not too crowded for the first few miles. The spectators toward the end (in the neighborhood right before the downhill) were fantastic - right when you needed it!

My only (tiny) gripe was that the shirt is short-sleeved, which means I won't wear it much (you can tie a long-sleeved one around your waist...).

I am a Soldier in the Army recently stationed here in Washington and I had a blast on this run. The weather turned out to be great and the route offered nice surroundings as well as a challenge with the hills. Tacoma city's finest did a great job offering traffic support. I found this event to be well organized and I plan to participate in 2012 as well. I commend the people behind the scenes that did a awesome job putting this event together. The whole experience was enjoyable.

This is a tough, hilly course. It is character-building. The organization was great. This course is a must for Marathon Maniacs. We had a lot of fun before, during, and after the race. A big thanks for putting on a sterling marathon!!

This was the 4th annual Tacoma City Marathon, and there are clear signs that this is a young race.

The course has a lot of attractive sections, especially along the bay and in Pt. Defiance Park. It also has the feel of someone's favorite running route rather than a marathon course. There are too many turns early in the race and some narrow sections.

Course support was good.

The expo was very small. You did not feel like stopping at the vendor's booths because of the people walking by to pick up their race packets.

The race shirt was one size too small. I think a lot of people had exchanged their shirts already, because I had to keep the size I ordered. Too bad, because it was a quality fabric with a nice design.

Tacoma is an average race - not great, but not bad either.

Difficult course with some wind along I-5, but Point Defiance is a great section of the run. Overall, a great, very fun marathon that I would recommend to everyone.