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Wineglass Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Wineglass Marathon Information & Reviews

Course Rating Course 4.4 
 
Oranization Rating Organization 4.3 
 
Spectator Rating Spectators 3.6 
 
 
Number of comments: 212 [displaying comments 21 to 31]
More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 22 > ]

 

C. B. from Louisiana (10/9/2014)
"Wineglass definitely delivers as a BQ race" (about: 2014)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 5


Book your accomodations early. Hilton Garden Inn Elmira/Corning was fabulous. Great jacuzzi tubs and indoor pool. Incredibly well organized expo held at Corning Museum of Glass which you definitely need to tour. The swag was outstanding.Fitted lime green long sleeve technical shirt with single logo. very tasteful. swag bag equally chic. Wineglass and mini champagne split provided for your hydration needs. Race support:buses, toilets, warming hut, gatorade/ water, Gu and chomps all plentiful at appropriate intervals. I was shocked at the number of spectators given the size of the little towns you traverse. I think 3 but I lost count. Scenery was really very beautiful with leaves changing color. I specifically signed up for this because of percentage BQs and it did not disappoint. I got better than a 5 minute cushion out of this. The course is mainly flat. I enjoyed the few downhills, felt like coasting and my quads were still there next morning. The weather was pretty well perfect for this sort of thing but very brisk. I wore long running tights, long sleeve shirt, jacket, ski cap and gloves and didnt need to remove any clothing during the race however many of the runners from the North were in t-shirts and shorts. No wind. No rain. No problem. The finish at Corning was absolutely fabulous with spectators lining both sides of the street for most of a mile. My 15 minutes...I absolutely recommend this race to anyone in need of a BQ and some glassware.

 

S. F. from GA (10/8/2014)
"Great, scenic small town race" (about: 2014)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 4


This is a fast course - I BQ'ed and PR'ed with 3:33:31! Everyone was so nice and helpful - at the expo, on the course, at the finish and everyone working at the hotels, restaurants and shops. I forgot how beautiful upstate NY is - the mountains with the trees changing colors were beautiful along the course.
I didn't have a problem with lines getting on the bus to the start; just get there early. It was cold at the start, but they had a garage open with chairs and heaters to make it better. One thing I didn't like was that the race didn't start on time. That's a pet peeve of mine (especially b/c I was cutting it close getting to the airport after the race as it was).
I loved that they actually gave us a wineglass and a small bottle of champagne. Nice touch. Overall, a fantastic event and one that I will be back to run again.

 

D. M. from Auburn,New York (10/7/2014)
"Nice Course" (about: 2014)

6-10 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


A wonderful experience for my 6th marathon. And PERFECT weather. The course is one of the best I've run. My perception while moving along was that it is a generally flat route, with small rolling hills. It's net downhill, with most of the downhill early on. The remaining hills are a very small grade percentage, and not a big deal. It's like a child's version of Boston. I hung with Pacer Steve for about 20 miles. The pace group I was with had a goal time of 3:25. Pacer Steve finished in 3:23:38, which likely would have gotten me into Boston, had I been able to stick with him. Steve really knows his stuff, and was extremely helpful from even before the start. I'm very glad this service is available. Thank you Wineglass, and thank you Steve. One minor downside to pace group running is that a large, tight group can create a small challenge for road real estate. This is especially noticeable where the course is narrow. Overall, things seemed to run very smoothly, although there appeared to be some minor confusion about the start time. Plenty of porta-potties at the line. If there is one thing that could be improved, it is the number of water stops. Much of the race seems fairly rural, which means not many spectators. However, the folks I did see were very energetic and encouraging. I would highly recommend this Marathon to other runners.

 

L. B. from PA (10/7/2014)
"too cold at the start" (about: 2014)

1 previous marathon | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 1


The course is nice easy run! Unfortunately it was 32 degrees at the start and had to wait too long for the start in the cold. I went out too fast and hit a cramp wall at 20 mile mark-it was aweful pain and disappointed myself :( so I didn't get a pr, but still came under 5hr which for me is good.

It was well organized. A big suggestion is to load more than one bus at a time te elliminate the horribly long lines and maybe the race would have started on time. Which would equal less time standing in the cold 32 degrees :/ cannot control weather but can control loading busses :) Overall good event.

 

N. F. from Ohio (10/6/2014)
"Happy first time marathoner" (about: 2014)

1 previous marathon | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


The organization and volunteers for the Wineglass are second to none. Even though I thanked the volunteers along the course as much as I could, if any are reading here - THANK YOU!! The busses ran from Corning to the start from 5:30-7. I arrived at the busses at 6:15 and was glad I did. Get there early. Plenty of port-o-potties at the start too. The course was a net downhill which did take a toll on my quads. I wish I had worked with a trainer to prepare my legs for this. Now I know what 'the downhills shredded my quads' really means. Wegmans did the post race food and it was awesome. Once again, thank you to the volunteer who chased me down to give me a bag for the food after I walked right by her in my post 26.2 blur. The drop bags were organized by UPS truck and bib numbers. I walked up to the UPS truck that had the numbers that corresponded with my bib. Before I even got the the truck, there was a volunteer handing me my bag. I felt like I was at Nordstrom!! Advice on accommodations - book EARLY. We chose to pay for and go to the pre-race dinner at the Radisson and am so glad we did. Sarah Reinertsen was truly inspirational and had grown me in tears with her personal story.

 

H. C. from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (10/6/2014)
"Flat and fast small race. Great chance to PR" (about: 2014)

3 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


I ran the 2014 Wineglass Half Marathon and PRed by 10 minutes! The course says it is downhill, but it felt flat not really downhill. The expo is small, but well organized. The half marathon male and females got different colored shirts (blue and pink) and the full marathon runners all got lime green shirts. We also received a wine glass and champagne. Runners must ride buses to the starting points, but thankfully there were indoor facilities to wait in for both races. The course was narrow at points, but very scenic and well marked. There were plenty of water stops and fuel stops. The race ends in downtown Corning and the whole town is out to watch the excitement. The course had a lot of crowd support for how rural the area was. The medals are very unique and are made of glass, and the post race food was great. There was chicken noodle soup, pizza, bagels, fruit, cookies, milk, pop and water.

 

A. R. from New York, NY (2/3/2014)
"Fantastic small-town race" (about: 2013)

3 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


I love small races! Wineglass was no exception. It was my second marathon and I enjoyed every second of it. The course was more or less flat with a few hills here and there. The volunteers at all the water stations were amazing. The expo was small and the swag was pretty cool. The buses to the start line were very well organized. The start itself was flawless. Tons of portable toilets. Crowd support was sparse - but the spectators were enthusiastic wherever they gathered. I loved the medal - it was made of glass instead of metal that most marathons give out. The volunteers after the race were excellent. I still remember when I finished my race and was walking in the area past the finish line in a complete daze - a volunteer repeatedly asked me if I was doing okay and wouldn't leave me until she was sure I was fine. The post race food was fantastic - the best I've ever seen. I'd strongly recommend this race to anyone that's looking for a flat course for a BQ attempt or just a fun race outside of a big city.

 

K. L. from Rochester ny (11/2/2013)
"Nice job!" (about: 2013)

6-10 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


Beautiful course, bur prepare your quads for the downhills. The expo was a bit disappointing, probably because the race gear had limited sizes and the venue was extremely hot. I felt race organization was great, easy to get to start via shuttles, crowd support was energetic - thank you race volunteers and the angel at the entrance of the park around mile 22 who handed out ice cold cloths (you were a God send given the heat and humidity). The medal was fabulous, it's all about bling and I love my love sleeve neon orange tech
shirt ! Finish line was fun and the food was great and plenty of it, even for the back of the pack runners. If you're looking for a smaller marathon, this one is highly recommended, good job race director, organizers, volunteers and Corning!

 

S. S. from Rockville, MD (10/28/2013)
"Excellent small race" (about: 2013)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


This was a very friendly, well-run race. The volunteers (especially at water stops) were awesome. Although some stretch of the course was alongside a highway, its a pretty highway (try looking in the opposite direction). My only suggestion for improvement is to get the results broken down by age/gender (I like to see how I did even though I'll never win, place or show).
There is enough to see and do around town that it would be worth making a long weekend and touring around.
If you like good crowd/volunteer support without the hassles of a big race, I highly recommend this race.

 

W. H. from SC (10/27/2013)
"Hot" (about: 2013)

4-5 previous marathons | 1 Wineglass Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 4


This was my 5th marathon and I strategically chose it based on reviews and the information provided on their website. We drove from SC for this race.
PROS:
Smaller, yet older race.
Well organized. It was HOT, and the race director took action (additional fluid stations).
Great small town. Corning is quaint. We stayed in Bath (starting line), quaint town as well.
Mostly downhill course.

CONS
Pretty boring course. Many, many miles on the frontage roads beside the highways.
The Expo was a little confusing. And wineglass pickup was elsewhere.
HOT!! We started the race in the mid 60's and ended in 81 degrees. However, this is Mother Nature and should not reflect on the potential of BQ's and PR's. Great BQ course... just not for 2013.

 

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