I was looking for a short race this weekend and an excuse to visit Vermont for some hiking now that I am back on the East Coast so was excited … MORE
I was looking for a short race this weekend and an excuse to visit Vermont for some hiking now that I am back on the East Coast so was excited to see RunVermont is starting to hold their fall events with safety precautions. This was the first race they’ve produced since the pandemic and they did a great job. The race is on a farm & vineyard on an island in Lake Champlain. I stayed in Burlington for the weekend which is about half an hour away. For the race you signed up for one of 5 waves each 20 minutes apart. I signed up for the latest wave knowing I was staying 30 mins away. Packet pick up was extremely safe as packets were mailed to you. Definitely the safest and easiest thing for the participants but kind of ballsy with everything going on with the USPS but anyways I got my packet (it sounds like from an email there may have been a few issues using mail). They also mailed very detailed race instructions including recommended arrival time and when to start. After parking they send you for medical screening and temp check. You can also pick up you shirts. Unfortunately the shirts weren’t included and you had to pay extra for them but they were really nice, tech shirts. I love the logo with the farm animals but the color is a little neon for me but I’m glad I paid for the shirt and it will be perfect for my night race on Friday. You then line up in the “corral” which is actually between the vines and then 5 minutes before the race you go to the start line. Lots of very helpful volunteers to help with the process. At the start line you are instructed to stand 6 feet apart. One improvement in an otherwise extremely well produced and safe race would be to put Xs or cones where to stand but all the runners were great about standing apart so it was fine. They modified the race this year. It is normally a 10K. This year it was a 5 mile out and back. This allowed for a shorter section of road to be closed since the road would have to be closed for a number of hours with the multi-wave starts. It was a chilly morning but nice for running. The course was very scenic and one of the prettiest road races I’ve done. You pass by lovely farmland including this farm that looks like it came from a picture along with some beautiful lake views. The course is definitely not flat but it is mostly gradual ups and downs with 2 not very difficult hills. It was nice having the road closed and not having to worry about traffic since most races I’ve done during the pandemic haven’t closed the road. There was one water stop at the turnaround point with water bottles. I didn’t use it since I carried water with me but thanked the very cheerful volunteers. I actually have never run a 5 miler so it was an automatic PR but I still ran very well and was well under my goal of 55 minutes. I was especially happy with my time given I ran a marathon last week and did a strenuous almost 5 hour hike yesterday. At the finish line you there were water bottles, bananas and granola bars. Instead of a medal you get a wine glass with the race date and logo. It is very nice but I’m not sure what I will use it for since I don’t drink wine. Will probably just display it. You also get 2 for 1 wine tasting at the vineyard and they encourage you to visit the vineyard and farm. Since it didn’t open until 11 I didn’t get a chance to visit since I have a long drive home but it looked lovely. This is a little far for me to travel for a 5 miler (or 10K which it usually is) but this race was lovely and I would absolutely recommend it for locals and would definitely run it again if I had another reason to be in town. Vermont is a fun place to visit with great hiking and great vegan and vegetarian food including non-dairy Ben & Jerry’s so even If I don’t run this race again I will definitely do another event with RunVermont. They are putting on a few more races this Fall if anyone is looking for a well-produced, safe race.
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Lovely, well-produced, safe race
I was looking for a short race this weekend and an excuse to visit Vermont for some hiking now that I am back on the East Coast so was excited … MORE
I was looking for a short race this weekend and an excuse to visit Vermont for some hiking now that I am back on the East Coast so was excited to see RunVermont is starting to hold their fall events with safety precautions. This was the first race they’ve produced since the pandemic and they did a great job. The race is on a farm & vineyard on an island in Lake Champlain. I stayed in Burlington for the weekend which is about half an hour away. For the race you signed up for one of 5 waves each 20 minutes apart. I signed up for the latest wave knowing I was staying 30 mins away. Packet pick up was extremely safe as packets were mailed to you. Definitely the safest and easiest thing for the participants but kind of ballsy with everything going on with the USPS but anyways I got my packet (it sounds like from an email there may have been a few issues using mail). They also mailed very detailed race instructions including recommended arrival time and when to start. After parking they send you for medical screening and temp check. You can also pick up you shirts. Unfortunately the shirts weren’t included and you had to pay extra for them but they were really nice, tech shirts. I love the logo with the farm animals but the color is a little neon for me but I’m glad I paid for the shirt and it will be perfect for my night race on Friday. You then line up in the “corral” which is actually between the vines and then 5 minutes before the race you go to the start line. Lots of very helpful volunteers to help with the process. At the start line you are instructed to stand 6 feet apart. One improvement in an otherwise extremely well produced and safe race would be to put Xs or cones where to stand but all the runners were great about standing apart so it was fine. They modified the race this year. It is normally a 10K. This year it was a 5 mile out and back. This allowed for a shorter section of road to be closed since the road would have to be closed for a number of hours with the multi-wave starts. It was a chilly morning but nice for running. The course was very scenic and one of the prettiest road races I’ve done. You pass by lovely farmland including this farm that looks like it came from a picture along with some beautiful lake views. The course is definitely not flat but it is mostly gradual ups and downs with 2 not very difficult hills. It was nice having the road closed and not having to worry about traffic since most races I’ve done during the pandemic haven’t closed the road. There was one water stop at the turnaround point with water bottles. I didn’t use it since I carried water with me but thanked the very cheerful volunteers. I actually have never run a 5 miler so it was an automatic PR but I still ran very well and was well under my goal of 55 minutes. I was especially happy with my time given I ran a marathon last week and did a strenuous almost 5 hour hike yesterday. At the finish line you there were water bottles, bananas and granola bars. Instead of a medal you get a wine glass with the race date and logo. It is very nice but I’m not sure what I will use it for since I don’t drink wine. Will probably just display it. You also get 2 for 1 wine tasting at the vineyard and they encourage you to visit the vineyard and farm. Since it didn’t open until 11 I didn’t get a chance to visit since I have a long drive home but it looked lovely. This is a little far for me to travel for a 5 miler (or 10K which it usually is) but this race was lovely and I would absolutely recommend it for locals and would definitely run it again if I had another reason to be in town. Vermont is a fun place to visit with great hiking and great vegan and vegetarian food including non-dairy Ben & Jerry’s so even If I don’t run this race again I will definitely do another event with RunVermont. They are putting on a few more races this Fall if anyone is looking for a well-produced, safe race.