There's a lot of great things about the GCM:
- Flat course
- Good number of runners, not too crowded but never lonely
- Great crowd support and an incredibly friendly city
- Lots of aid stations
- Good weekend break destination for people south of the border

Some cons:
- Dead flat course gets a bit monotonous
- Not that scenic, most of the time you're running through residential areas
- Can be hot and there's very little shade on the course
- Double out and back course means you have to run past the finish line at 32km
- Only the 30km aid station had energy gels on offer - the others only had water or Endura drinks. Some food would have been nice.

Overall I thought it was a very well organised race, but the course just didn't suit me; I prefer races with more variety. Beaches may be pretty but they get fairly samey, and in any case there was usually a row of houses blocking the scenery. It was possibly the friendliest marathon I've done: very impressed with Gold Coast hospitality.

Being a coastal town, the weather is variable. Might have perfect weather, or like the day I ran, humid and hot.

I thought the water stations were not organized as well as they should be; there were not a lot of electrolyte drinks, mainly water.

But the course is mostly flat, with just a few low bridge crossings. Spectators good. I guess I was just disappointed by weather, as I finished 20 minutes slower than my PR just six months earlier. Intense sun combined with humidity. But actually, it was cold just two days before race. It's a crap-shoot on weather.

This was my first marathon. The bib collection went really smoothly. On the morning of the race, we went to the bus stop designated for our area to find a line that took 40 minutes to get to the front of. We had made provisions for this, but in the end we made it to the start line barely in time. I am sure many people must have had raised blood pressure by the start. The return was even worse; we actually walked 7K back to our hotel as we just could not get on the bus.

The race was really good, if not a little boring. Very few spectators but the ones who were out often in pajamas were great - really supportive. The folk at the refreshment stops were the best! Someone must have trained these people what to say to pump you up; awesome. Our fellow runners were really polite. No bumping, shoving or stopping dead in front of you as I have put up with in previous half-marathons. Shorter distance racers were segregated from marathon and half-marathon runners really well.

My first, so a great experience, but I am looking to more interesting races in future. This is becoming a big marathon, so logistics before and after the marathon will need to improve.

Thanks, Queensland; it was great fun, all in all.

This was the 5th time I had completed the Gold Coast Marathon. The course and the spectators are great. But the event has got too big to accommodate the participants. The shuttle buses to get you to the start of the race were advertised at 5-minute intervals at Ocean Ave., and Ferny Pde., but I and 200 others waited and watched from 5:30 a.m. to 6:15 a.m. as 9 buses failed to stop at our location. These buses continued past our location until finally one stopped just after 6:15 a.m. The result was that I missed the start of the race by 3 to 5 minutes and the half marathoners missed their race by 20 minutes. What's worse is that when this was brought to the attention of the organizers after the race, they stated that the same had occurred last year but nothing had been done to fix the problem this year. Their suggestion was that we should have tried to catch the 5:00 a.m. shuttle. I wouldn't recommend catching the shuttle bus to this race next year.

This is a really walker/slow runner-friendly event with a 7:10 cut-off. The course is fairly flat. The spectators are great and they are out there for hours!
The organization is great and you can change events just about right up to the start line! The pre-event events are great and the other events occurring at the same time mean the whole family can take part.
The only downer this year was the un-advertised cut-off times en route. I was supporting an 80-year-old, seasoned marathoner and we were threatened with removal from the course at 25K (due to numerous toilet stops). We "convinced" the marshal to let us continue, but less stroppy entrants might not have. We saw 2 other signs with cut-off times but these were not given in the event literature. This was different from when I did it 2 years ago and people took more than 7.5 hours to do it. The roads were not even supposed to be opened, but we were pushed to the footpaths. I feel most people would be happy to move to pavement at a certain time (like in the Auckland Marathon). Once we showed that we were able to keep up the pace, everyone became much nicer and we made it in under the cut-off time (no more toilet stops!).

Pre-race organization was very good. Collection of bibs took seconds on the day before. Buses to the race from the city center were not frequent enough. The start was very orderly - no pushing or shoving and it seemed as if most runners started in the zone they should have. The previous day the weather had been shocking. The day of the race was slightly overcast, cool/warm, and pretty well perfect with a slight sea breeze. The course runs up and down the very flat coast, so it was easy to pace and preserve energy for a first-time runner.

Although busy throughout the run, there was a ton of space to move and the vast majority of runners were very considerate of others around them. Tons of refreshment stops and toilets. Spectators were spread along the entire course and were of good value. They seem to know the right things to say. Not too many of the "not far to go" types around. As through the entire race, the finish was orderly, with massages and refreshments readily available. My only complaint was transportation back to the center of town. I could not be bothered standing in a mile-long line for the infrequent buses, so, along with many others, I walked 7 KM back to the hotel. Not a great idea at the end of 42 KM. All in all, a great event, and knowing the Australians, once they are on to a great sporting event, it will only become bigger and better. Finally everything on the website is very close to the facts, so that is a good guide.

This was my third marathon, and my second international one. I think it is an excellent choice for an international course. It was really beautiful along the ocean and flat, so it was simple to run through. It was a pretty warm day, but they had a good amount of aid stations so that was not a problem. Also a fun city to check out - just don't sign up to do one of their many courses on how to surf on the same day as your marathon. I found out this didn't work too well, but the water felt great!

Most of the course runs alongside the ocean. The sea breeze generally blows across your body (don't expect a headwind or tailwind) that is refreshing. I thought I was off to a possible personal best for the first half of the race. Only when I hit the turnaround point did I realize that we were running slightly downhill. The course isn't bad, though. Some of the spectators were true Aussie characters... drunk, sitting in yard chairs or sofas, and jeering on the runners. It struck me as funny. Gold Coast does draw a lot of young party goers. But be forewarned you holders of Yankee dollars. The Aussie buck is pretty strong so expect to spend more on food and entertainment than you ordinarily might expect to spend. The finisher medal is a beauty. However, since there are so many people who travel to Australia to run this race (7 continent types), I would change the name of this marathon from the Gold Coast Airport Marathon to the Australia Marathon and make the finisher medal in the shape of the continent. I think this would draw more foreign runners.

This was my second marathon (my first was Blackpool in England last year and it had many problems). I beat my first time of 3:44 to finish in 2:59:51. It was a relatively easy run till the last 2 KM when I could see the end around the curve of the coast. Those last 2 KM were murder, as I knew I had to maintain my pace to get under 3 hours.

Great organization, PR course and friendly volunteers. Gold Coast is a wonderful beach. Two complaints: Energy drink was served at 1/2 strength, and post-race food consisted of only oranges (and there was no beer).