Excellent expo! Got to meet Paula Radcliffe. Heard Joan Benoit Samuelson speak. Great race t-shirt. We used the free shuttle service to get to the Expo. We like to stay within a mile of the starting line as it makes race morning much easier. There were plenty of volunteers to help you find your corral. Super fun & fast course with tons of crowd support. If you like big races, this race is for you. Do not expect your first mile to be as quick as you'd like. It takes a mile or so for the course to open up enough to easily navigate around others. Read up on all of the historical sights you will be running past as this city has a lot of history to share. The finish line is outstanding. I'm so glad the wind waited until the tail end of my race to act up. This was my 2nd Chicago Marathon and I hope to return again someday.

My husband and I decided to throw in this half marathon between climbing 14ers in Colorado! Glad we did. It was gorgeous. We're a couple flatlanders so we struggled a bit with the elevation but still enjoyed all aspects of this race. This race is a point to point net downhill course. We were shuttled at the finish, in Idaho Spring, back to the start in Georgetown and didn't have to wait long for our ride. Great t-shirts and lots of free bees at the finish line. The only negative is that they did not offer any calories on the course. Plenty at the end though. Beautiful, beautiful course if you like the Rockies!

Met Kara Goucher and Bart Yasso at the expo and heard them speak.
Swag: long sleeved tech race shirt that was pretty nice and at the finish line we were given a ball cap and a beach towel. The beach towel was a nice touch!
We stayed at a hotel right next to the starting line and got to avoid the pre-race porta potties. The course was very flat with the exception of running on the highway overpass. The biggest obstacle was running on the boardwalk for a couple miles right before the finish. The head wind was very strong and unrelenting. I was happy with this race experience in the end. My husband did the half marathon and had a positive experience too. This was a nice March getaway and we both enjoyed how peaceful the beach was during its offseason. This would be a great family vacation too as there was a big kid's run and an 8k race the day before the marathon and half.

I did a relay team for this half Ironman in both 2016 and 2017.
The good:
Great swag. Cool tri bag, nice tech t-shirt.
Course information and expectations are clearly communicated at the mandatory athlete's briefing before the race. There were several times from which to choose. The course was nice. The swim was in Delaware State Park, the bike was on country roads around Delaware and a fairly flat route and the run was two loops on a little bit of a rolling hills course with a little shade. Not much though!
The bad:
It is not easy for the relay team runner to see their swimmer get in the water because of the way they release traffic from the Delaware State Park parking lot. No cars can leave until the swimmers are out of the water. So if your cyclist is speedy (like ours!) then you have to hope you get back to T2 before them! It's a bit nerve wracking but we've made it both years we've done the race. I'm glad they've brought a 70.3 to Ohio. Ironman does a great job with all of their events. I'm sure they will iron out this logistical wrinkle somehow. Maybe allow a shuttle for the relay teams.

The expo was organized and efficient but did not wow me in any way. Race day traffic was nuts. Get there early or stay in Columbus the night before. We were stuck in traffic for what seemed like forever.
The oening ceremony was great, complete with fireworks and lots of great energy. Course support and entertainment was top notch. If you're a Buckeye fan, you'll love this course. This race is sponsored by Nationwide Children's Hospital. A child in treatment is featured within each mile. You can read about their journeys in the race booklet given at packet pick up. They are on the course, wearing a large, foam hand so that runners can high five them as we run by. There's also an Angel Mile that honors those whose journeys have ended. I love this part of the race as we given the opportunity to encourage those who are working hard in their efforts to better themselves and also to offer a moment of silence/prayer for those who have lost their loved ones. I read all of the biographies and high fived every foam hand I saw that day. They were very inspiring.
The finish line was spectacular and I got to hit the PR gong afterwards. It was a magical day in a city that is near and dear to this Ohio girl's heart.