Robin Granzow's Staging Area

This was my second time running “The Pig”, and it was a blast! I “swam” it last year and “sweated” it this year and thoroughly enjoyed it (even that HILL heading up to Eden Park)! Make sure you get in lots of hill training for this race. The crowd/spectator support is absolutely the best and unmatched by any other race that I have participated in. The amount of volunteers is amazing, and on Sunday morning, there were volunteers with Info-Signs on sticks everywhere, so as big as this race is, you can’t get lost. The Expo is at Duke Convention Center which is fairly close to where the races start. I got so many freebies at the Expo that my husband had to help carry the bags. I stood in line for the P&G samples for about 40 minutes, but it was WELL worth it. They were not only giving out sample sizes but full size products, and they were offering items to my husband. The Expo is huge. I really liked the Pig-Wear that was available this year. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Covington (I booked almost a year out and got a great deal) both years and walked across the Wade Bailey Bridge in about 30 minutes to get to the Start Area. We left at 5:30 am-gave me enough time to use the potty and walk way back to Corral D by 6:20 (be prepared because CROWDED is an understatement)! Downtown Cincinnati is very walkable. We tried not to drive too much, because you have to pay for parking everywhere Downtown. There were Cincinnati Reds games all weekend and Cinco de Mayo, so there were lots of people out, and it felt like the area was “charged with excitement”!!! This was a much enjoyed “Racecation”🏃‍♀️😎❤️

This was definitely one of my favorites. This race was so well put together from packet pick-up to post race food.
Packet pick up is at Corning Museum (small expo but lots of Wineglass race stuff – and great swag bag-1/4 zip pullover, small bottle of wine, and stemless wine glass. I also bought a cute glass pumpkin from the museum.
We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott in Elmira which was about 20 minutes from the runner drop off or from one of the many parking lots. I got there about 5:05 and was one of the first on the busses (think I could have boarded 30 minutes later and would have been fine but I’m an “over-planner)!
The busses take you to the starting point in Campbell at the high school (you can wait inside to stay warm). There are a couple of restrooms in the high school but after 6:30, the line gets long. There are plenty of port-o-potties outside by the bag drop off, and the lines are LONG, so give yourself time!
It was foggy for the first half of the race, but great weather for running. The course is fairly flat and downhill with only a couple of small hills. There was plenty of course support-locals really show up for this race. You run through some cute neighborhoods.
The amount of people cheering you on at the finish really gives you that final boost.
Post race food was good-hot soup, pizza, bagels, fruit, chocolate milk, and energy bars. Everyone we met in Corning and the surrounding areas were so friendly and nice.
I give this race an awesome thumbs-up, and if I lived closer, I would run it again😎

I highly suggest the Palm Beaches Marathon/Half Marathon. It was a very well organized race with LOTS of swag! Garden of Life is the main sponsor and provided at least $100.00++ of wellness products. Packet pickup was easy and held outside under a massive tent-top. There were a limited amount of vendors, but the amount of products we were given made up for that. We stayed at the Hyatt Place West Palm Beach, so the expo and race start/finish were a 10 minute walk. This is not a huge race, so I was impressed with the post-race food which included pancakes/sausage/bacon/fruit/snacks. Also, if you are looking for a flat-race, this is it (lowest elevation -1, highest elevation 17). Cooling towels were available on the course which helped -it was humid and warm but should be expected in Florida! On Saturday morning, there was an outside market that sprawled over several blocks, and there were plenty of places to eat within walking distance of the hotel (did not need a rental car). If you are looking for a “racecation” to escape December’s cold weather, then this is it!