Eugene Marathon

This is a good course for a first-time marathoner, and this city loves its athletes, so they come out to cheer. Organization at the finish festival could certainly be better.

This was a fantastically well organized and supported race. Volunteers were friendly, helpful, and plentiful. The course was very well marked, with roughly the first half through parts of Eugene and Springfield and the rest on bike paths along the river. Finishing in the re-built Hayward field was awesome, I can't imagine there is a nicer stadium dedicated to solely track and field anywhere. Expo wasn't huge, but appropriate for this size race. Pancake breakfast was great, thick fluffy pancakes Saturday (after 5k) and Sunday. Other post-race food was average, re-usable water bottle and bag were both nice. All in all a great race in Tracktown USA, well worth the trip if you're a 50 stater or just looking for a medium sized race in a relatively small/laid back city.