Two weeks before this race I was training in the frozen north of Canada in -40F temperatures; race day hit 80F for a termperature swing of 120F!

Unique experience. Definitely not for everyone, but if you know what you're getting yourself in for, this is a race for your bucket list.

Well organized, good people, nice ambience. Casual race package pick-up the morning of the race; quick, smooth and easy. Wander down to the start area, listen to the entertaining pre-race speech from Dave, and off you go.

There were about 120 full marathoners this year, so don't expect to be fighting for room or bumping elbows. Take the time to talk to fellow runners; I met a fellow in his mid 60's doing his 300th marathon at Death Valley, his 'younger' companion (early 60's) had done 'only' around 250; inspiring!

Pack your own water. Water stations are several miles apart, and with the heat and dry air I was happy to be packing my own bottle that I could re-fill along the way.

Route and scenery are austere, stark, strangely alien. Hard to get a sense of scale or distance; can be mentally tough looking for miles and miles across the barren landscape, seeing how far you have to go, then knowing that you'll need to turn around and do it all again on the way home.

No I-Pods/earbuds/music machines allowed, so if you need that stuff to keep entertained/motivated be prepared for a long day. Get in the mind frame to enjoy the scenery, listen to the wind (you did hope for a breeze, right?), and soak it all in.

I thought that this might be a good race for a fast time, but ended up slowing down in the heat and going at a pace that let me enjoy running in this unique location.

As a first time visitor to Death Valley, I was glad to have a couple of extra days to explore the area. Fascinating geology and landforms, much more scenic than I had been expecting, some great hiking and driving/exploring in the area, so spend a few days to really appreciate this special place.

Not my fastest time, not the most fun I've had running a marathon, but Death Valley will go down as one of a handful of truly memorable races I'll have had the pleasure of taking part in.

Small race. Beautiful scenery-very stark and open. Significant wind started after about an hour but was a tail wind the second half so was helpful. Was very well organized and the course was fairly flat and fast. Not a lot of aid stations, but enough, and volunteers were great! No spectators, which is not a problem for me. Other runners were friendly and encouraging-great group. I really enjoyed this marathon although it seemed hotter than 70's. Great time of the year to visit Death Valley, which is a very interesting and unique place.

A small race by all counts - no noise, no hoopla, a handful of hard core runners, an easy going bunch of organizers and volunteers (from a local school), reliable registration/ checkin / start / finish processing... if you want a race revolving around the actual run, this is the one. The desert settings are beautiful, though may get a little repetitive in the second half (and not just because its an out and back). Running on the shoulder of the road is not as restrictive as it sounds. Lack of spectators is in fact a positive, it allows you to focus on the silence which is what distinguishes it from regular marathons. Weather is perfect this time of the year. Course is more rolling hills than you would imagine from the 'flat course' description. Medal could have been better. I enjoyed this race overall!

Death Valley is not a typical desert, and this is not a typical marathon. If you like utter barrenness, the scenery is for you. The course stays below sea level with only slight hills. It was dry (of course) and temperature went from about 50 up to 72; it felt good to get out of the rain. The course was the road from Furnace Creek to Salt Creek. You had to get onto the gravel shoulder when a car was coming, which isn't very often. No spectators are allowed on the course, so the only encouragement is from fellow runners (who were all fantastic). 111 hardcore runners came all the way out here to run this year. It is as far removed from a big-city run that I can imagine. I heartily recommend it to anyone who wants to get away from it all.

Weather, scenery, support was awesome..first 1/2 marathon for wife and I, and we can't wait for next year..making it a three to four day vacation to enjoy all the sites...

I enjoyed this race. Given the horrendous winter back east, it was the first time I ran in shorts in and a t-shirt in months. That by itself was awesome. And the scenery was cool.

Great aid stations every three miles - much better food/snacks than many other bigger races I've run. I did not run with my water belt and I was fine, although I'm not sure I'd recommend that for everyone. In fact, I probably wouldn't.

Fun, low-key organization.

Regarding previous comments, I did not have a problem with showering in the pool house after I had checked out, and didn't see it as a big deal. However, as far as spectators go, I agree: if you say no spectators, then enforce it. I, too, saw the same cars pulling up every two miles. Rude.

I'd have preferred if the race started 30-60 minutes earlier. It got warm at the end.

Lastly, my watch (and another runner's too) showed that the race was a little long. I'm sure that can be fixed.

This is a small marathon starting right outside the front entrance to Furnace Creek Ranch in Death Valley.

Positives:
1) The area is beautiful, so take a couple of days to look around.
2) Furnace Creek is 120 miles from Las Vegas and is a nice place to stay.
3) The course had some rolling hills, some of which were quite long, but not steep.

Cons:
1) If you are looking for cheering crowds along the way, this is not the marathon to run. There were NO people cheering along the course. None.
2) The water stops, three miles apart, were manned by high school students. They showed no enthusiasm whatsoever. It appeared to me this was assigned punishment for the students to work this race, even though the proceeds from the race were going to the high school.
3) I rank the t-shirts as having the poorest design of my last 20 marathons. There was no date of the race and the words "marathon" and "half marathon" are so small that they are virtually nonexistant.
4) The medal was small without a date. The Envirosport name seemed to dominate the front of the medal.
5) The temperatures ranged from 40F to 70F. The race did not start on time (8 a.m.). It should be started much earlier, perhaps 6 a.m. or 7 a.m.

My experience with this race was incredible. Very well organized race, with very friendly volunteers and staff. Overall, a great race. Do expect some minor but long hills (with a low gradient - around miles 23-24). Bring water (I brought a small water flask and it was perfect to stay hydrated). Good Boston qualifier (I qualified with this one). Just overall an awesome experience. I personally like to run with the scenery and don't need music or a ton of fans, but if you need both of those things, you should lean towards a larger race.

After reading almost every comment and review from this page, I decided to do this, largely due to claims of "amazing scenery" (which I'm still looking for...). My BIGGEST complaint is that the hotel (where the race starts) requires you to check out at 12 p.m., when you are probably just finishing the race, not allowing you time to take a shower in your room after the race. They told me i had to go to the pool house to shower afterward - ridiculous!! It's an out-and-back race on the side of the road, and the scenery doesn't change - both big mountain ranges on each side of you. And you get to inhale all the exhaust of the cars flying past you. People who think it was scenic should just once in their life try running a trail marathon or any trail race.

The race director was hilarious, though. They constantly said no "supporters" were allowed, but I continuously saw the same 5 cars driving up the highway a bit and pulling over, then passing me again and doing the same all the way up to mile 23, supporting particular racers. You have about a 2 foot-wide lane to run in (the shoulder of the road) unless you want to run in the rocks off the road. The aid stations provided trail mix, bananas, granola bars, Red Vines, peanut butter-filled pretzels, water, and Gatorade every 3 miles. At the beginning of the race, the aid station volunteers were great, but by the end of the race, you could tell they were extremely bored. They were goofing off and complaining to each other. I get it - they are high school students - but at any other race I've done, I've received smiles and happy encouragement from volunteer staff. Sure, it's cool that I can say I ran a marathon in Death Valley, but it definitely sits on the bottom of my list of "awesome experiences" for a marathon. I question whether it was worth the 9-hour drive each way.

Very well organized. Stay at a motel right on the course; that is the only way to do it. Very small field makes for a lonely run. You must run with fluids, and not litter. Something to think about if this is a Boston Qualifier, as it was for me.