This is a race located outside Syracuse. It was a bit of a drive but the closest 5K this Sunday. I wasn't sure the drive would be worth it but … MORE
This is a race located outside Syracuse. It was a bit of a drive but the closest 5K this Sunday. I wasn’t sure the drive would be worth it but I was very happy with the race experience and my finishing time. This race is in a town called Bridgeport outside Syracuse by the lake. I got the packet at the race and it included a nice hooded, light sweatshirt along with bib. The half start at 8:15 and was the same location as the finish. The 5K/10K started 15 minutes later a bit up the road. Start was delayed a couple minutes to make sure everyone was able to use the porta potty. While I like races to start on time it was clearly communicated that they would wait a few minutes for everyone to be ready so I wasn’t wondering what was happening. The course is as flat as a pancake but like most of these Willow Running courses in a quiet small town so a bit boring. There were a handful of spectators and a short section with a really nice view. The course was well marked especially where the different distances deviated. There were mile and km markers but they were a bit confusing with the different races so didn’t always line up. There was a water stop at the half way mark. As I said this is pancake flat. My Garmin recorded 7 ft of elevation gain total. As Syracuse is generally a hilly area if you want a flat race near Syracuse this is the one. Weather was also perfect. With the flat course and perfect weather I was able to run my fastest 5K of the year by over 1 minute. Obviously it’s been a slow year from me but now I am finally back to my average pre-injury finishing times. You get a very nice medal at the end. Really good swag for a 5K/10K and above average swag for a half marathon. One disappointment is they had wraps at the end but only turkey or ham and no veggies. There were at least cookies and chips. The race also goes to a good cause. I’m not sure the scenery and energy is quite enough for me to recommend in for 50 staters planning to only run one race in NY state but I would definitely recommend it to locals. If I have the weekend off I will definitely consider coming back and doing the half to get a really fast time given how flat it is. If you want a PR course and don’t need a ton of energy or huge race field this is definitely a good choice.
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Flat and Fast plus a good cause
This is a race located outside Syracuse. It was a bit of a drive but the closest 5K this Sunday. I wasn't sure the drive would be worth it but … MORE
This is a race located outside Syracuse. It was a bit of a drive but the closest 5K this Sunday. I wasn’t sure the drive would be worth it but I was very happy with the race experience and my finishing time. This race is in a town called Bridgeport outside Syracuse by the lake. I got the packet at the race and it included a nice hooded, light sweatshirt along with bib. The half start at 8:15 and was the same location as the finish. The 5K/10K started 15 minutes later a bit up the road. Start was delayed a couple minutes to make sure everyone was able to use the porta potty. While I like races to start on time it was clearly communicated that they would wait a few minutes for everyone to be ready so I wasn’t wondering what was happening. The course is as flat as a pancake but like most of these Willow Running courses in a quiet small town so a bit boring. There were a handful of spectators and a short section with a really nice view. The course was well marked especially where the different distances deviated. There were mile and km markers but they were a bit confusing with the different races so didn’t always line up. There was a water stop at the half way mark. As I said this is pancake flat. My Garmin recorded 7 ft of elevation gain total. As Syracuse is generally a hilly area if you want a flat race near Syracuse this is the one. Weather was also perfect. With the flat course and perfect weather I was able to run my fastest 5K of the year by over 1 minute. Obviously it’s been a slow year from me but now I am finally back to my average pre-injury finishing times. You get a very nice medal at the end. Really good swag for a 5K/10K and above average swag for a half marathon. One disappointment is they had wraps at the end but only turkey or ham and no veggies. There were at least cookies and chips. The race also goes to a good cause. I’m not sure the scenery and energy is quite enough for me to recommend in for 50 staters planning to only run one race in NY state but I would definitely recommend it to locals. If I have the weekend off I will definitely consider coming back and doing the half to get a really fast time given how flat it is. If you want a PR course and don’t need a ton of energy or huge race field this is definitely a good choice.