The course was okay. The biggest downside was a long 5-6 miles stretch on a four lane highway. Most of the rest of the course was run on little back roads, through country neighborhoods, which was cute and pleasant. The course support was astounding. There were police officers/firefighters/volunteers blocking almost every intersection! Many of them were very encouraging, which made up for the lack of actual spectators on the course. The biggest downside to the course was that there were many areas where the road was very sloped, which I found very difficult to run on. Additionally, there were aid stations with water and gatorade (and oranges later in the course) every two miles - and every aid station had a port-o-potty!

Organization
Details for the event were well communicated on the website and in a pre-race email that was sent a couple of days prior to the event. Additionally, packet pick-up was quick and easy (there were only 115 marathon finishers so no congestion there!). I didn't go to an expo or anything, so I can't comment on that. They also allowed you to change your shirt size, which was a nice perk that isn't always offered. The course was easy to follow with assistance/signage at all the turns. I was really surprised at how well-organized everything was even after reading reviews about how nice a job they do in this regard. Additionally, the race results were posted within a day online.

Fans
There weren't many actual fans/spectators out on the course, however, there were an extensive number of volunteers who served as cheerleaders throughout the course. There were a couple of places with high schoolers cheering us on that was very nice. Additionally, the police officers and firefighters directing and blocking traffic offered support much of the time. I would have liked more support at the finish line, though. There were only a couple of people clapping for any given finisher at a time. It would have been nice to have some volunteers there just to bring a bit more excitement to the end.

Swag
Loved the swag. Received a nice green long sleved tech shirt. Came in men and women's cuts. Only improvement I would recommend there would be to make one just for the marathon. The medal is nice and heavy. Also received a hat.

I enjoyed this race and would do it again, albeit probably not until I've run many other races. For others I would recommend this race if the schedule/location works out for you or you just want to knock off Tennessee, but I wouldn't necessarily travel just for this race outside of that.

2012 Race

This was my first marathon and I couldn't have been more impressed with the organization of the race. Water, Gatorade and toilets every 2 miles, couldn't have asked for more. The later part of the course was rolling hills, and you can expect long periods where you may be running by yourself, but practically every turn and side street had volunteers or police. Overall a great experience!

This is a nice race for those looking for a small fall race. My expectations were far exceeded for a race this small. Here are the pros and cons that I saw:

Pros:
1). Small field. This race only had about 100+ runners in the full and maybe twice that in the half. It is easy to stay local, park close by and show up very close to the start time.

2). Good course support/volunteers. There were water stops with a port-o-let every two miles. Just about every intersection had a volunteer or two to help control traffic. There were actually some cheer zones with very enthusiastic fans.

3). Nice finish for a race this size. Names/hometowns were announced as runners approached the finish line. The guy helping at the food station practically acted like a waiter taking food orders and grabbing pizza, snacks and drinks to help finishers.

Cons:
1). This first half of the course is not much to look at; it's run mostly on a 4-lane highway bordered by strip malls. The second half is better with farms and the lake for scenery, but is on two-lane roads and is open to traffic.
2). The course has rolling hills, which isn't necessarily bad, except that two of the hills come at miles 23 and 25.

This is for the 2012 race:
What a great race in a friendly small town. We were able to park less than 1 block from the registration desk. The race started on time the course ran on a road that was coned off giving you a wide area to run. I think there were more friendly volunteers and police than runners (they had someone posted at every driveway). The course was beautiful with rolling hills,
neighborhoods and lake crossings. The people of Winchester could not be more friendly. Every so often you would come around a bend and there would be local cheerleaders, a widows group or a family madly cheering you on. At the finish they were passing out whole pizzas. We ate ours in a little coffee shop overlooking the finish line (try doing that at a big race). Don't miss this experience!

I've recently just started my quest for a marathon in each state. I'm really glad that I chose this for the state of Tennessee. I've raced in road races for over 16 years and I have never seen a race put together so well in such a little town.
Pros:
*Course was rolling but not difficult.
*Plenty of Water stops
*An army of support staff on course.
*nice rural area with no tag along dogs.
*A nice finisher's medal that could also serve as a weapon (really heavy).
*Coffee shop adjacent to the finish line very convenient for the drive home.

Cons:
*Small race in terms of people, so not too many people to pace off after the split for the half marathoners.

(This is an update to my 2011 comments) I had mentioned many great things about the race but also that I thought the 2nd half could have been better not running with some of the traffic. Well, that was my first marathon and as I have seen in reviews for other races the first timers can sometimes be overly critical about their first course and I was no exception. Now that I have more marathons and half marathons under my belt I would not have been bothered running it today. Since then I've been in events where we were left to ourselves with no road support and in comparison the 2nd half wasn't that big of a deal since we had road support the entire route. Huge hindsight thanks to the Winchester organizers for a nice event with a beautiful date specific medal I can hang up to remember my first marathon!

Loved this race and small town. Set my PR on this course Volunteer and traffic support was the best. I felt like they had at least 2 volunteers for every runner. I was never concerned about traffic. Water stations every 2 miles and very friendly. Perfect time of year for weather, l like the 7 am start, nice tech shirts and medals were nice. Beware of last 10k, very hilly. Last mile steepest elevation climb. Brutal. Would love to run this race again.

I ran this race earlier this month, and I couldn't be happier that I choose it. What a cute, tiny well-run marathon. I have only ran one other marathon, Dallas White Rock, so I didn't know what to expect with such a small field. I was happily surprised! Tons of volunteers to keep the runners safe and keep us hydrated. I stayed in Manchester, which was a little drive but the Ambassador Hotel let us check out at 1 pm, so I can't complain. Thanks for the Tennessee runners who kept me motivated, you know who you are. Thanks Winchester for a great time!

This is a small town marathon run with more volunteers than most big ones.
The course is not flat, rolling and some long gradual ups and more significant climbs about 18 and 24. I drove the course prior to the run and was more worried about the gradual up about mile 6 along a four lane hwy. I was shocked during the race to see so many traffic cones. Runners had one lane and the shoulder and there never was a concern for safety. The water stops where about ever 2 miles and the volunteers working them were very enthusiastic. .
This may not be a pr course but it can be an bq, just be aware of mile 18 and 24.
I plan on doing this marathon again.

Last year the Southern Tennessee Plunge (STP) Marathon was a great small town event that did a super job for it's first running. They must have learned a thing or two because this year things only got better! I can't believe that such a tiny marathon can do so much while keeping so small.
Let's start with the swag. The half and full marathons have independent long sleeve technical shirts in multiple sizes and in both Men's and Women's cuts. The Finisher's Medals are also customized to the Half or the Full and are extremely hefty with inlays of glass, a major step up that puts them on par with the biggest races. B- tags are used to keep track of your times and are built right into the bib. Even the goody bag itself is customized and high quality and worth keeping.
The course has been upgraded from last year, especially for the full marathon. Last year the second half of the course was more or less an after thought. This year there are scenic vistas and multiple lake crossings that will keep your attention on mother nature and not your aching legs in the late miles. Yes, there is a boring stretch of about 6 miles down Hwy 41A I would love to see go away but the rest of the course more than compensates for it. The course is also certified making it one of the smallest fields found in any race where you can score a BQ or official record!
There are some hills here and the one at mile 25 is particularly daunting coming so late in the course. It's a hard race to PR.
Despite that, this is a race that is one of the hidden jewels on the race circuit. I could go on and on but I'll sum it up this way. The STP marathon is a tiny race with big marathon swag and plenty of scenery to boot. The volunteers are second to none and the organization is seamless. Winchester Tennessee may be off the beaten path but this is a race worth making a special trip for. You won't be sorry you came.