Le Roy, NY which is inbetween Rochester and Buffalo is the birthplace of Jell-o and even has a Jell-o museum. This was the inaugural year for this event and there … MORE
Le Roy, NY which is inbetween Rochester and Buffalo is the birthplace of Jell-o and even has a Jell-o museum. This was the inaugural year for this event and there was the option for a 7K or half marathon. I was on-call this weekend so chose the 7K but I kind of needed a rest before my next set of back to back halfs next week so may have chosen the 7K anyways. This was a pretty small race with about 100 people doing each distance. I got my packet the day of the race but there was also early packet pick-up options. Parking was easy on a field and there were attendants and they gave good directions. It started at the “Jell-o Barn” with packet pick-up in the barn. Packet pick-up included bib and one of the craziest, most colorful long sleeved tech shirts I’ve seen. My only crazier one is from the Earth day race by the same running company. Start was kind of laid back. The half started at 8:30 and the 7K at 8:45. The half started about 1/4 mile before the 7K. Each had a different color start flag. There was no timing mat at the start just the end. One minor production complaint is they literally just told us to go. No countdown or anything. Especially for a race without a timing mat at the start it’d be nice to get a countdown or something so we can be in running mode. It took a few extra seconds since people were just standing since they weren’t quite ready to start. Race was well marked and was basically just a square course back to the barn. It was open to traffic but on very quiet country roads. There were maybe 3 or 4 cars so not a big deal. The scenery was okay. There was some nice fall foliage but a lot of it was farmland and it was kind of boring. A few houses but it was too rural for many spectators. The best part was going past some very judgmental looking cows judging us for eating their hooves in the jell-o. One other relatively minor production complaint is there were some km and mile markers but not for every km and mile and also the 1st km and 1st mile marker came early since they were in the location for the half which as I said started a bit behind the 7K. There was an aid station a little past half way with water, gatorade and jell-o (but beware of judgy cows coming up if you take it). There were 2 big hills but the rest was relatively easy. Pretty average difficulty course. Finish line was behind the barn. My finishing time was pretty good and I was easily under my goal of 1 hour. You get your medal which is very fun but rubber but it kind of works for Jell-o. There were cookies and jell-o or pudding cups at the end. You also got a $3 coupon for a local BBQ but there was nothing vegetarian let alone vegan on the menu and I had to leave for work so I didn’t take it. Overall I thought this was a fun race with great swag. It wasn’t the best course and I’d imagine the half marathon would get a little lonely with so few spectators and small field. This is one I would recommend for locals or big Jell-o fans. If it grows bigger it will likely be even better. I’d consider this one again but there are other even closer races this weekend as well. Unfortunately on my way home my car broke down (don’t worry it was right by my house, I am fine and I was already planning on getting a new car that will be ready in a few weeks) but I am going to have to skip my race planned for tomorrow and may need to change some travel plans if I don’t get my new car soon. Luckily I am flying out of Rochester to my races next weekend.
Quirky Distance for a Quirky Race
Le Roy, NY which is inbetween Rochester and Buffalo is the birthplace of Jell-o and even has a Jell-o museum. This was the inaugural year for this event and there … MORE
Le Roy, NY which is inbetween Rochester and Buffalo is the birthplace of Jell-o and even has a Jell-o museum. This was the inaugural year for this event and there was the option for a 7K or half marathon. I was on-call this weekend so chose the 7K but I kind of needed a rest before my next set of back to back halfs next week so may have chosen the 7K anyways. This was a pretty small race with about 100 people doing each distance. I got my packet the day of the race but there was also early packet pick-up options. Parking was easy on a field and there were attendants and they gave good directions. It started at the “Jell-o Barn” with packet pick-up in the barn. Packet pick-up included bib and one of the craziest, most colorful long sleeved tech shirts I’ve seen. My only crazier one is from the Earth day race by the same running company. Start was kind of laid back. The half started at 8:30 and the 7K at 8:45. The half started about 1/4 mile before the 7K. Each had a different color start flag. There was no timing mat at the start just the end. One minor production complaint is they literally just told us to go. No countdown or anything. Especially for a race without a timing mat at the start it’d be nice to get a countdown or something so we can be in running mode. It took a few extra seconds since people were just standing since they weren’t quite ready to start. Race was well marked and was basically just a square course back to the barn. It was open to traffic but on very quiet country roads. There were maybe 3 or 4 cars so not a big deal. The scenery was okay. There was some nice fall foliage but a lot of it was farmland and it was kind of boring. A few houses but it was too rural for many spectators. The best part was going past some very judgmental looking cows judging us for eating their hooves in the jell-o. One other relatively minor production complaint is there were some km and mile markers but not for every km and mile and also the 1st km and 1st mile marker came early since they were in the location for the half which as I said started a bit behind the 7K. There was an aid station a little past half way with water, gatorade and jell-o (but beware of judgy cows coming up if you take it). There were 2 big hills but the rest was relatively easy. Pretty average difficulty course. Finish line was behind the barn. My finishing time was pretty good and I was easily under my goal of 1 hour. You get your medal which is very fun but rubber but it kind of works for Jell-o. There were cookies and jell-o or pudding cups at the end. You also got a $3 coupon for a local BBQ but there was nothing vegetarian let alone vegan on the menu and I had to leave for work so I didn’t take it. Overall I thought this was a fun race with great swag. It wasn’t the best course and I’d imagine the half marathon would get a little lonely with so few spectators and small field. This is one I would recommend for locals or big Jell-o fans. If it grows bigger it will likely be even better. I’d consider this one again but there are other even closer races this weekend as well. Unfortunately on my way home my car broke down (don’t worry it was right by my house, I am fine and I was already planning on getting a new car that will be ready in a few weeks) but I am going to have to skip my race planned for tomorrow and may need to change some travel plans if I don’t get my new car soon. Luckily I am flying out of Rochester to my races next weekend.