A busy day of race prep: Wineglass Marathon tomorrow

The leaves haven't started to change in Rochester yet, but they are in full bloom an hour and a half south, between Bath and Corning, where I'll be running the Wineglass Marathon tomorrow.

This out-the-van-window photo does not do the scenery justice.

Shirt and number.

My running buddy Tara and I drove down to Corning this morning to pick up our race packets and check out the course. The Wineglass Marathon is a nationally reknowned race. It's also smaller field and sells out quickly. The course is beautiful. It is 26.2 miles point-to-point, and they shuttle you from the either the finish to the start or the start to the finish, depending on where you park.

Starting in Bath, we run through Savona, Campbell, Coopers Plains, Painted Post and then arrive on Market Street in Corning. It's all country roads, and is cumulatively downhill. All the uphills are very gentle. 

At the end, you get a wine glass (of course), champagne and a beautiful glass medal.

Corning is a quaint, New England style town. In our bags we got gift cards to a novelty shop so before leaving Tara and I stopped in, and I got a wine bottle cap, some horseradish dip and a delicious overpriced white chocolate pina colada truffle. 

Downtown Corning.

The town was really welcoming of the runners. 

We got back into town at 2:30, and I spent the next three hours battling rainy Saturday afternoon mall traffic to run my errands. I became flustered that I couldn't find a reasonably priced bag for my hydration pack (somebody ruined her last one by leaving Gatorade in it.) I ended up paying way too much for one at Dick's, I can't decide if I want to use it or return it and dig out the old FuelBelt for tomorrow. I got some caffeinated Gus, then the makings for a delicious pasta dinner at Wegmans. I'm now tempted to be too tired to make said dinner, but both of my other meals today have been takeout.

Now I still have to pack. I don't know what I'm going to wear -- at Target I bought a nice tank top on the clearance rack for $5, then I ran in it and realized I don't like how I look in it. (I don't know if I care). It's supposed to rain, I bought a plastic poncho for before the race, and will probably find a throwaway layer. I looked at rain jackets at Goodwill to throwaway but they were more than I wanted to spend, and I didn't want to expend the energy shopping around.

I almost didn't do my 2-mile shake out run, but when I got home and collapsed on the couch the hounds were restless, so after the spotted one crashed into the brindle one chasing a ball I decided we all could use a little run. 

I have no clue how tomorrow is going to go. I've been burned out lately. I still have a bit of a cold and my foot hurt a bit today. I'm determined to stay in Zone 1 for the first half. From there, I'll go by how I feel. 

It's go time.