Latest reviews by Vanessa Junkin

(2017)
"Scenic course but usually hot! "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

This was my third year running the Bottle & Cork 10 Miler (2011, 2016 and 2017). The race turned out to be a struggle for me personally, but that wasn't the race's fault. This is a well-organized, scenic race that starts and ends in Dewey Beach, Delaware, and also goes into Rehoboth Beach.

I paid $40 for the early entry fee for this race (up until the Thursday before the race at noon). Swag includes a short-sleeved tech shirt — I like the fit of the shirt and feel that the women's cut is true-to-size. It's not a super-exciting design or anything, but it's definitely a shirt I will wear. I also received a finisher's medal.

There were plenty of water stops, and all were willing to provide me with multiple cups of water when I needed it. There is also an unofficial beer stop at about Mile 8.5 (and there was another stop that offered beer this year, too).

The course scenery is great — you are running at the beaches, so there are several waterfront views, including the Atlantic Ocean, along with pretty neighborhoods and the Rehoboth Beach boardwalk. The course is very flat, although I live in a flat area, so I noticed some hills. There were certainly not any intense hills.

I gave parking/access a "3" because I didn't have a great experience parking this year at the race, although that can't really be blamed on the race. I parked next to a car, and once the meters went into effect, I paid and then enjoyed some time at the beach after the post-race party. When I returned, I had a ticket for double parking, even though I did not realize I had done so. I was able to appeal the ticket and won, but that's not something I would like to have to worry about when I go to a race. There is some free parking at a nearby restaurant, but I arrived too late to park there (I drove around to see if there were any spots). Last year, my boyfriend and I parked a few blocks away. The race began at 8 a.m., and the metered parking began at 10 a.m.

This race is well-organized and well-marked. I will note that by the time I went into the post-race party, the fried chicken was gone. There is also a 5K, so those finishers and many of the 10-mile finishers would have been done before me. There is not an expo — just packet pickup the day of the race and the day before — so I didn't rate that category.

This race happens the second weekend of September, so it is generally a hot race. This year, it was cooler than normal, but I still had issues with the heat.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.
(2017)
"Great course and door prizes! "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

The Mike Sterling 10K is one of my favorite races, and this was my sixth year participating in the race. It is an awesome community race held on the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend, which is National Hard Crab Derby weekend in the Crab Capital of the World: Crisfield, Maryland.

The 10K is a run, and there is also a 5K walk. It's a great deal for a 10K, at just $25 for advance entries (2017 price). I really enjoy the course, which starts out near the waterfront and then continues into neighborhoods and onto the main strip for a straightaway finish.

The swag is a T-shirt, so it's not something I would run in, but I love that it has a crab on it. There are also large crab pot prizes for overall winners and small crab pot prizes for age group winners. This year, the first two male and female runners in each age group got one of the age group awards (last year, it was just the first in each age group).

There were three water stops during this race, which is normally during a hot weekend. It's great that there are so many water stops, and I did stop at two of them. The one in the middle I believe only had Gatorade held out when I passed by, but it wasn't really a problem for me since the next stop was so close. I was considering putting the aid station rating at four stars because as far as I know, there was not water being held out at that stop, but I feel that a 10K with three aid stations deserves a 5.

Crisfield is extremely flat — my watch logged 0 feet of elevation gain — literally. Parking is also easy to come by not far from the race start. It's a smaller race (although it was at its largest this year), and there is not an expo — just race day packet pickup.

I am friends with the race directors and I think they do an awesome job. There were tons of door prizes, ranging from a pound of crab meat (which I won) to a Smith Island Cake to a free pair of running shoes, and more.

I always look forward to this race!

Read my blog post here: https://sherunsbytheseashore.com/2017/09/07/bringing-home-the-crab-at-the-mike-sterling-10k/

Loading Comments...

Login or sign up to leave a comment.
(2017)
"If you love bacon, you'll love it! "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

If you love bacon, you would love this run! However, there were even people who don't eat meat who ran this race! My friend organized this unusual distance (7K) run on the Naylor Mill trails here in Salisbury, Maryland.

Overall, I thought this was a great race. It was really fun and had the fun bacon theme — I had bacon before, during and after. There was so much bacon available for everyone!

I normally run on roads, so the trails were difficult for me and my average pace was much slower than a regular race. The course includes single track trails and some up-and-down hills (hills are not common in our area).

The swag was a T-shirt with an image of bacon on it as well as the race name. It's not a shirt I would run in as it's a cotton shirt, but it's a soft T-shirt and I like the design. This race was also very affordable to enter -- I believe the highest rate was about $15, and I got in for $12-something because I'm a member of the Pemberton Running Club.

The aid station had water and bacon. I thought it was really cool that there was bacon at the aid station, and the volunteers were great, but I gave it 4 stars because I really like aid stations to have cups. However, I understand the reasoning behind not having cups at an aid station, and I also do not like litter. I carried a water bottle with me during the race.

The scenery was woodsy trails. I enjoyed the different sort of scenery for Salisbury, although I wouldn't consider it breathtaking. Elevation was much more difficult than the rest of Salisbury, with some steep up-and-down hills. I did walk up some of the hills.

The course was very well-marked and I had no trouble finding my way with the pink markings. It was also easy to park close to the race start in the parking lot at the Henry S. Parker Athletic Complex.

There wasn't an expo; just packet pickup the evening before at Smokin' BBQ Grille inside The Pavilion at 1400 South/Hopper's as well as on race day.

Check out my full race recap here: https://sherunsbytheseashore.com/2017/08/19/bacon-before-during-and-after-on-the-bacon-trail-the-naylor-mill-7k/

Login or sign up to leave a comment.
(2017)
"Fun beachy race! "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

Disclaimer: I received a free entry to Rock ‘n’ Roll Virginia Beach as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find and write race reviews!

This was my first year running the Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon, and I had a great time at the event with my friends.

The course was very flat — with just one noticeable hill on a bridge, which runners go over twice. The course is nice, starting in the downtown area and running around there, then going out on General Booth Boulevard and into Camp Pendleton before finishing on the Virginia Beach Boardwalk. The finish on the Boardwalk and post-race party on the beach were great. That scenery would be a 5; I only marked it down because there were some not-super-exciting spots in between. It was still nice, though, and there was some shade, which was much appreciated!

There were so many water stops on the course, which is really important to me. The water stops were well-staffed, with tons of volunteers clearly stating whether they had water or Gatorade. I stopped at all of them except for the last one. There was also a guy with a hose at one of the stops. There were also some unofficial ice pop stops.

The expo was great. I quickly and easily got my bib and race shirt, and there were fun photo ops inside, along with a variety of vendors. I also got a chance to go in a Brooks Running wind tunnel for the chance to win a free pair of shoes, and although I did not win, it was fun. For the shirt, I sized up from a women's medium to large when I registered after running Rock 'n' Roll Washington D.C. earlier this year. I was not overly impressed by the shirt, and I would have preferred a color other than gray, but it is a quality tech shirt and I will wear it. I loved the medal and think it's cute and beachy.

Race management was great! Runners were notified with plenty of information via email and social media, and I was happy with the course, water stops and blocked roads. The only thing I was not a huge fan of was the long process to walk through and get food at the end. Since it's such a large race, I'm not sure if this could have been avoided, and we did get water right away.

Since I stayed in a hotel along the beach, I did not rate parking/access, as I did not have to park.

I would recommend this race and I hope to be back next year!

Check out my blog post here: https://sherunsbytheseashore.com/2017/09/08/rock-n-roll-virginia-beach-fun-beach-atmosphere-and-a-fast-last-mile/

Login or sign up to leave a comment.
(2017)
"My glowing (get it?) review - Fun atmosphere! "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Crystal City Twilighter 5K as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRavePro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find and write race reviews!

I got to run the Crystal City Twilighter 5K, put on by Pacers Running, as a BibRave Pro, and it was a fun race with a great atmosphere! The race started at 8:30 p.m., and participants receive glow sticks, so it's really cool to see everyone with them on the course. The only thing I marked with a lower star rating (other than elevation) was the scenery, because it seemed just like a normal city run to me — and it was dark. The scenery wasn't really the draw of this race to me, so I wasn't bothered by not having breathtaking views. I did actually see the Washington Monument from a distance, which was cool. I really liked the setup where people could hang out before or afterward; there were tables lit in different colors and some other colorful lights.

I was surprised, given the amount of participants, just how few lines there were. I did arrive early, but I was able to get parking in the first parking garage I tried — and it was free. Then, I made my way to packet pickup (there wasn't an expo, so that's why I didn't rate that category), and there was no line there. I also went to the bathroom without a line, and I did not have to wait in line for my post-race beer or food, either.

I was excited to see that the swag item was a tank top, because I have never before received a tank top as a race item in my 13 years of running. It did seem a little big (I normally wear a women's medium, but in some shirts, I prefer a looser fit with the large, so I went with large), but I did not ask to trade sizes. Instead of the tank, participants could choose to get $10 in Pacers Store Race Bucks or to make a $5 donation to Doorways for Women & Families.

I did stop at the first water stop, and there was music playing, which was fun. I also recall seeing a couple portable toilets there, although I didn't use them. I'm pretty sure there was also a place to get water on the way back (there was a turn-around not long after), but one cup was enough for me on this day. Thankfully, some rain seemed to have cooled down the temperature by the time the race started, although it was still humid.

I noticed a couple small hills (I live in a very flat area), but the race course seemed pretty flat.

Particularly as the race got closer, I felt like I saw a good amount of race news on social media from Pacers Running. I will note that I signed up for this race early, and there was still some old information on the website (last year's beneficiary and shirt), so that was a little confusing, but the race certainly seemed well-organized. It was also a chip-timed race.

After the race, participants (21+) were able to trade in a beer ticket on their bibs for a beer, and food options were soft pretzels and bananas.

I had a great time and hope to get some of my fellow running club teammates to join me next year at the Crystal City Twilighter 5K for the Run Club Throw Down.

Check out my blog post here: https://sherunsbytheseashore.com/2017/07/19/my-goals-for-saturdays-crystal-city-twilighter-5k-discount-code/

Login or sign up to leave a comment.