This is a race on the roads at Mendon Pond Park on an Wednesday evening in August that benefits an organization that provides mental health services to veterans. I also … MORE
This is a race on the roads at Mendon Pond Park on an Wednesday evening in August that benefits an organization that provides mental health services to veterans. I also did this race last year. It starts at 6:30pm. I got my packet at the race but you could get it earlier. I did think packet pick-up could have been more organized. There was a separate table for bibs and swag bags and it wasn’t clear which one to go to first and I went to the wrong one and then had to wait in another line and then in the same line again. The lines were short so it wasn’t a huge deal it just could have been better marked where to go. Swag included shirt and a nice swag bag with lots of goodies like a hat, a small flag and a bunch of small stuff. It is nice swag for a small 5K. The race is an out and back and it chipped time at start and finish. The course is all on roads but it is really hilly with nearly 200 feet of elevation gain. It is also net downhill out and net uphill back. It is pretty through the park and well marked with closed roads. I think I used all my energy running an under 10 minute mile yesterday and was super slow but I finished fine. There were chips and water at the end. There are also booths you can look it. This is a hilly but nice evening 5K I’m sure I will do again as it is on a weekday evening
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Hilly Evening Race
This is a race on the roads at Mendon Pond Park on an Wednesday evening in August that benefits an organization that provides mental health services to veterans. I also … MORE
This is a race on the roads at Mendon Pond Park on an Wednesday evening in August that benefits an organization that provides mental health services to veterans. I also did this race last year. It starts at 6:30pm. I got my packet at the race but you could get it earlier. I did think packet pick-up could have been more organized. There was a separate table for bibs and swag bags and it wasn’t clear which one to go to first and I went to the wrong one and then had to wait in another line and then in the same line again. The lines were short so it wasn’t a huge deal it just could have been better marked where to go. Swag included shirt and a nice swag bag with lots of goodies like a hat, a small flag and a bunch of small stuff. It is nice swag for a small 5K. The race is an out and back and it chipped time at start and finish. The course is all on roads but it is really hilly with nearly 200 feet of elevation gain. It is also net downhill out and net uphill back. It is pretty through the park and well marked with closed roads. I think I used all my energy running an under 10 minute mile yesterday and was super slow but I finished fine. There were chips and water at the end. There are also booths you can look it. This is a hilly but nice evening 5K I’m sure I will do again as it is on a weekday evening
Good Race But Not My Night
This is a 5K that takes place on the roads of Mendon Pond Parks on a Wednesday evening that raises money to help veterans. My only complaint is when I … MORE
This is a 5K that takes place on the roads of Mendon Pond Parks on a Wednesday evening that raises money to help veterans. My only complaint is when I signed up for the race it said the time was 6:30PM. However when I checked the race page yesterday to make sure I had all the details it said race time was at 6pm. I have no idea when it changed. It is about a 25 minute drive to Mendon Pond from work and I am on call this week so the 6pm start was super tight and I’m not 100% sure I would have signed up. I mean I probably would have but I would have been more mentally prepared for the tight schedule. Luckily packet pick-up was offered the day before and included a fine navy blue cotton T-shirt along with the bib. Work was a mess today and I ended up leaving around 5:20 and got to the race about 10 minutes before the start. I had no time to do any of my pre-race routine which just threw me off. The start area was nice with a start/finish arch and lots of booths to look around at if you had time which I didn’t. I pretty much immediately went to the start line. Then I got paged literally just as the race started so all my pre-race adrenaline got wasted since I almost immediately needed to walk and take a phone call. This start completely threw off my race and I could not get in a rhythm so my time was terrible but I won’t let that affect my race rating. The actual race was quite scenic as Mendon Ponds Park is very pretty especially with a nice view of the lake. The course was an out and back. It was super hilly with a mostly downhill first half and a mostly uphill second half which was not very nice. It was one of the toughest road 5Ks I’ve done. It was chipped time and you crossed the timing mat at the start and finish. Timing was done by Yellow Jacket Racing so it was precise and results posted right away. For post race snacks they had some chips, bananas, regular bottled water and interesting Karma Wellness Water (good but not as good as the Maple water they had at some Millennium events). I couldn’t stay too long after the race but I did look around a bit after and got my additional swag bag. Swag was very nice with small things like chapstick and beer coozies but also a hat and a dog tag with the race name instead of a medal which was a nice and appropriate sized memento. I thought this was a well done race. I didn’t love the course elevation profile and I personally had a rough start though mostly not the races fault except the confusion over the time. I’d do this one again but maybe only if I’m not on call to avoid the stress of getting there at 6pm.