The course was changed last minute due to flooding. Nothing the course director could do. But here are some of the problems, no gu or anything else on the course. Only had shaklee products to drink, and you can only get those through distributor...see race director. Cannot train for what you are going to race with. The race director may be the cheapest man in America. They ran out of medals. THey ran out of T-shirts. A train stopped some of the runners, and he let them adjust their times based on faith. Worst goodie bag ever, have gotten more for a 5k. Skip this marathon unless you want to have a frustrating day.

I read some of the previous comments and it's nice to see that the organizers listened and made improvements. First, packet pick up was held indoor at the Lansing Center. The Start/Finish was just outside of the Lansing Center, and there was free parking. Second, we were able to wait inside the Lansing Center prior to the race to stay warm. Third, they attempted to add a lot of the river trail, but due to flooding much of it had to be taken out. But overall, the course was a good runner's course - a lot of flat with some gentle undulations here and there, but nothing too severe. Aid stations were plentiful and the volunteers were well trained in handing cups to runners. The t-shirt is o.k., but the medal is nice.

A couple of suggestions - 1) extend packet pick-up an hour to give out of towners a little more leeway, 2) rework the word printing on the t-shirt (keep the foot logo, that's nice), and 3) publish results quicker. All in all a nice race, well organized and worth a visit.

Beginning: No place to wait indoors for race to start. People were pathetically huddled in a parking garage stairwell.
They started announcements and National anthem at 3 minutes before, thus race started 7 or 8 minutes late. This is annoying when you have arrived a half hour early and you expect to start on time.
Course: didn't show off river trail and nicer areas of the region. Just a lot of country roads and farmland.
The last 2 or 3 miles was horrible, the course kept turning AWAY from the goal and you had to keep backtracking. This is really demoralizing when you see your goal ahead. The last miles should be a straight shot to the finish.
I appreciated the Mylar wind jacket at end since it was cold.
The packet pickup was in outdoor stadium on a freezing day, so not much chance to buy stuff or socialize.

It was a really nice course. An incredible job by law enforcement and traffic control. Just a few complaints. 1) There was not enough rescue vehicles for those who dropped out or were injured After a 40-45 minute wait for assistance a friend of mine who was spectating gave a person a ride back. 2) They were passing out orange fluid and said it was Gatorade, but it wasn't . It was some Shaklee product that tasted terrible. It would have been nice if they would have said what it was instead of me getting a nasty taste in my mouth. Instead of hydrating I tried not to puke it up. 3) There was not any food left over. When I finished the course still had 3 more hours to be open. I got a bottle of water and that's it. I learned a lesson to bring a small snack bag of my own in the bag drop area or have family and friends with a back up.

This race was a bit quirky. Things like the medals and t-shirts were great. The course and refreshments were fine. Parking at the expo was confusing because the meters at the expo site parking said no parking. The information on the website was inadequate and the race started late.

It is now 2 weeks after the race and they still don't have the information on what the awards will be up on the web link for awards. It kind of kills the incentive effect of awards when you don't know what they are until weeks after the event! I'd do this race again if they got the website together six months ahead of the race instead of long after.

This was my eleventh marathon over the last ten months. In that time I have done all sizes of races, from less than a hundred to thousands. Things I read online made it seem like this was going to be a bigger race than it turned out to be - a little more than 400 folks for the marathon.

I signed up months in advance and received a one-line confirmation email. That was the only communication I received! The website was pretty static, as race day approached I was a bit wary of what I might have gotten myself into......

At packet pickup I wasn't sure where to park - it wasn't obvious we could park in the spaces at the front of the stadium, but I think it was OK. There wasn't much to the Expo - but I was expecting a bigger race, so my expectations were probably influenced by that.

I felt like race day was much more organized than the pre-race had been. There were absolutely no worries on race day - the course was easy to follow, there wasn't a lot of traffic, and the aid stations were well-spaced, well-equipped and manned until the last participant went through. Some of the roads were in poor condition, but I guess that's what snow does to 'em.

Nice touches unique to this event included a list/map of the downtown garages providing free (really!) parking on race day, plus being greeted at the finish by the race director.

I think this is an event w/ room to grow. Given the enthusiasm of the volunteers and the community, I believe it will continue to improve and refine the participant experience.

Despite some trepidation on my part, the 2012 Lansing Marathon was an event worth doing.

This was a great inaugural event. With approximately 400 runners, the marathon itself was the smallest that I have ever participated in. However, with the relay and half marathon at the same time, it didn't feel too small. And my guess is that with each year, you will get more people running the marathon as the few kinks that were bound to happen are fixed.

The positives: a course that gave a good 'tour' of Lansing and East Lansing; a course that, in my opinion, was not too challenging. There are some rolling hills, but they were not bad at all. Of the 8 marathons that I've done, this was probably the easiest course. The course has great potential for a fast, BQ time. The atmosphere at the finish line was very festive and fun. There were plenty of volunteers and the aid stations were spaced apart nicely.

The negatives: The condition of the roads in several spots was poor, so you had to focus on your feet so you didn't end up tripping in a pot hole. Crowd support was lacking in some of the more remote areas of the course, so if you need tons of spectators to get you through 26.2, this may not be the course for you. The website didn't provide enough information before the race about travel accommodations, the course itself, etc. My guess is this was just due to it being an inaugural event, and this will improve each year.

Overall I thought this was a great marathon and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fast, PR course.

Really enjoyed this marathon! The course was great, a mix of urban and rural, the volunteers really friendly and supportive, and there were cheering spectators along most portions of the course. The traffic control was superior. Next year, more info on the web-site. Otherwise, this race was phenomenal, especially for an inaugural event.

Pros:
- Well marked course.
- Really nice medal design.
- Good mix of city/residential/fields. (Windy and cold, but we can't complain about Mother Nature on Earth Day!)
- Great support on the course.

Cons:
- I finished within the official time, but only water given at the finish line.
- Utilizing the River Trail and main MSU campus would be great in the future.
- I would suggest more Lansing neighborhoods such as Old Town in the following years.

Hats off to Director Owen Anderson for putting it together. Thanks for the high five at the finish line my friend.

I have run 24 marathons from big (+10K) to small (200). This was well organized. The course went from city to farmland. I had a lot of fun. The 18 to 20 mile route hit hard winds (+20mph) which was difficult, but would be ideal in normal spring weather. The finish at the captital was nice. Ideas for next year would be to reduce some of the roads with 2-WAY traffic and incorporate more of the river trail.