So I was initially signed up for the full but got a late injury and then dropped to the half! Injury healed quicker than expected and I tried to go back to full (Considering I had paid for it) and told No I cannot revert back! 

Therefore I was always going to be a bit grumpy about this race :)

the event is very well ran and well supported! The route is boring as they come but what do you expect? The feed stations were also not very well organised! 

The race tee  was not tech but the medal was great! Felt sorry for the marathon runners tho as completea marathon you expect a bit better bling!

I also felt sorry for the runners as they had 2 loops of the most boring part of the city! 

Overall i I wouldn’t do this again!

The Birmingham International Marathon in 2017 was my first ever marathon and for that reason was a very special experience. However as others have said below, the course was uninspiring at parts and in my mind at least, not as described! They had described it as being almost completely flat and there were actually some fairly significant hills. The start and finish lines were absolutely fine and I found the baggage areas easy to use - not a big fan of the t-shirt or medal though!

Feed stations could of been better as their were no isotonic drinks, could of been few more on route being a large city marathon, I personally didn’t mind the double loop and was finished before the half stated so didn’t have problem of quicker half catching me or the front bike a coming behind but herd this was a problem for people who were on course longer. I enjoy starting on in the Alexander stadium. I don’t think the double loop was needed as Birmingham has lots of room to do single lap course and added on extra through industrial estate wasn’t necessary. The local support was fantastic and a lot of children had used the no traffic time to chalk draw us pictures and words of encouragement and cheered us on and some had supplied extra bottled water. 

This was a Home marathon so I was excited by the prospect of a fast, flat marathon. It was also my wife’s first marathon.

I agree with previous comments regarding the stadium start (good) and uninspiring first few miles (bad). 

Negatives first, the 2 lap section went on forever and it was anything but flat. Not Norma a problem when training for a marathon but having done the loop once knowing you have to conquer the hills again is a bit soul destroying! And the less said about that last push from the bull ring to the finish line the better!!

The medal was hidden in the goody bag. I do not like this, at 90% of the other races that I’ve done there was what can only be described as an angel waiting to present the medal to you. It’s the least great run could organise as a reward for finishing. Also, medal size. It was the first Birmingham International Marathon - it should have been massive!!

Positives. 

The crowds were amazing, especially that lady with the microphone at the start of the dreaded loop. She was morale and sang for hours! Also, big thanks to the locals that were giving out sweets, water, juice and I think I heard someone say they got given a gin & tonic!!

The goody bag was pretty good and the T shirt was nice and fitted well. 

Overall, a well organised race with room for improvement with the route. I’m unsure whether to do it again this year as the nightmares of those hills are still fresh

Great Run have introduced the Birmingham marathon, which is a nice addition to the running calendar. I ran it as the sub 4 Pacer in its inaugural year, at attach my full personal account:

https://pickupthepacepaul.com/2017/10/15/birmingham-marathon-2017

The registration and race briefing was simple. The start was a little strange as it started on a race track and there were two waves split an hour apart. I didn’t like this, but with a large field and a two lap course this was definitely a good decision by the organisers. The risk of starting all at the same time would be that the faster runners would hit a bottle neck at the lap turn point, so this was avoided. If they could do a single lap it would be preferable.

The course was a little uninspired but frankly most marathons do get boring in places. The support was fairly consistent and good throughout, water was provided in bottles, and it was s good medal tshirt and race village at the end.

The course was undulating with a horrible final hill. The only negative I can recall though is the baggage was not left secured, you put in a bus yourself so could have walked away with anyone’s bags.

i would definitely do the course again. My family had fun in the chocolate factory during the run and the day before we went to Thomas world. Spot on

I have run the great Birmingham half and 10k on a few occasions and the Great Run registration process is the same format with everything you need arriving in good time before race day. 

The start at Alexander Stadium, which isnt in the centre of Birmingham, was a good idea although lack of toilets inside the stadium lead to lots of runners finding a wall or quiet corner the relieve themselves. The first four miles into Birmingham were pretty dull with not much support. After that the route picked up the latest route for the half marathon. Once out the streets that are full of factories,around the coach station, the route improves along the Pershore Road, Cannon Hill Park, Edgbaston cricket ground and Cadbury World. This is where the majority of the race takes place with two loops including a couple of hills on each. The hills are nice to conquer once but knowing that your going to have to tackle them again in nine miles was a bit disheartening. I has started in the later of the two waves that had gone off one hour after the first wave and as we started the first loop we were joined by runners from the first wave that were starting their second loop. Being faster they were having to weave their way through the slower runners. Only two feed stations on the route with gels and i seem to recall that these were a long way out from thw finish. The drink stations only provided  water.  Towards the finish, that has a short sharp climb outside the Bullring I had the dodge pedestrians in the road and there seemed to be a lack of marshalling at this poiny. Great Run hide the medal in the finishers bag which was disappointing.

The half marathon was starting as I was finishing and i think having both events on the same day resulted in sacrifices to the marathon route. Unfortunately even as a local I won't be taking part again unless there are changes to the route. 

Having run a few marathons it was only right that I took part in one in my home city, so duly signed up to participate in the first Birmingham marathon since the 80's!!

Having 2 starts (8:30 and 9:30), caused a few issues. Mainly that I couldn't use the trains to get from home to the bus pick up in time....this was solved by a stay in a hotel the night before, but not ideal for a home marathon!!

The course was described as flat and fast, and while it wasn't as hilly as Bournemouth, it was no where near as flat as Berlin or Manchester. Personally I didn't like the 2 lap course, but it works well for spectators as they can see the runners easily.

Overall a good event, medal was a normal Great Run one which was a bit disapointing, as marathon medals are normally big and chunky!!

As with all Great Run events though, it was very well organised.

great organising for first  birmingham marathon  enjoyed starting in the stadium  plenty of water stations  course was good apart from killer hill at  25 miles found being passed  by the half marathon runners  near finish was demoralising  gave a feeling of only crawling. over the years have seen the joy on peoples faces as the medal is placed around their necks as for a lot of  runners this will be their one and only opportunity to be a winner rummaging in the bag for it is a mistake  found birmingham a very friendly city  overall would  not recommend this marathon