This was my first trail marathon and a good friend (from CO) convinced me to come out to run the race. The course has plenty of hills and the temperature this year got into the low/mid 80s which was brutal. A beautiful course, AMAZING support at the aid stations and overall organization. Definitely an enjoyable (albeit slow) run.
THANKS BLUE SKY!

The course was a challenge but the views and scenery were worth the effort. The race was well organized, had plenty of enthusiastic support at the aid stations, and I liked the fact there were no cups; they just refilled your water bottle(s). This ensures no litter is left behind and that you had water with you since the aid stations were fairly spread out. If you run it you should also be aware the course is long (my Garmin showed 27.16 miles), which I didn't know until someone told while in the middle of the race. The food was great at the end (grilled hamburgers). The only minor negative about the race was there was supposed to be an awards ceremony and raffle at 1:30pm, but it never occurred; no explanation why, but I assume due to the hot day (80's) few runners felt like staying around.

This is a great race. The natural beauty of the course is exceptional with everything from great views (you have to do considerable elevation to get these) to wonderful, remote single-track trail. The org. was perfect. I can't think of a hitch. If I could have changed anything about 2011 it would have been the weather . . . 85 degrees combined with a challenging hill course made this years race a piece of work. It felt like a good 'capstone' marathon for the season . . . if you've done some during the year and are in good condition, it represents a nice way to finish-out the spring - summer season. I'm not a fast runner . . . I had to hustle to meet the cut-off times and to be sure to finish in the 7 hr limit. (Again, 85 degrees doesn't do much for my speed / efficiency.) The medal isn't anything to write home about - except it means more than most others because represents finishing a tough course. There's very few spectators because there's no place for them to spectate from.

My first marathon. I love running the trails and hills and chose this race which had "rave reviews" in the past. It lived up to the hype. Very, very, very difficult for a "foothills" run. Like another runner posted, my long training runs - even on monster courses - were sub-10-min miles. I was expecting 4:30 - but got 5:12. The only part that really killed my psyche was about 5 straight miles on nothing but huge rocks (no dirt!) gnarled together and angled at all directions. Killed my rhythm and all downhill from there. Overall an experience I'll never forget. Challenging and equally rewarding.

This trail event is run in the mountains of northern Colorado, including some challenging hills and very technical running on rocky courses. The organizers put on a great race, however, with plenty of food and well-staffed stations, fun prizes at the end, and a great, laid-back experience all around. I would absolutely run it again.

This was the first year for this race, and the organizers (veteran trail runners in Northern Colorado) did a great job. Aid stations were well stocked and volunteers were abundant and very enthusiastic, and the course is very scenic. It is a trail marathon, so there is quite a bit of elevation gain, and there are places where footing is tricky - perfect for what I like to do, but road runners need to understand that this isn't a PR race.

I rated spectators only a 3 because there aren't many (it's basically an out-and-back course on single track, so not easy to get to), but the aid stations cheered everyone on throughout the race.