Registration for the 2014 Mountain Goat Run (10 miles) opens tomorrow at 2pm – that makes today the perfect day to do a race review!
Location: Syracuse, New York
Date: May 4, 2014
Race Organization:
The Mountain Goat is fairly well-organized. The website is decent and packet pickup on Friday or Saturday at Fleet Feet (the Erie Blvd location) goes smoothly. The only reason I didn’t give five stars here is because race-day registration and packet pickup are chaos – do not wait until race day.
Cost:
This is a no-brainer. If you pre-register for the Mountain Goat before February 28, the cost is only $35. There are not many big, well-organized races left at this price. However, if you wait until race weekend, you’ll be dropping $60.
Course:
With a name like “Mountain Goat,” what do you expect? This ten mile course has two wonderful hills – the first is early and the second is late. It keeps things very interesting. This is a course that you want to tour ahead of time (a drive will suffice). Here’s an elevation chart to consider:
Swag:
For $35, you get a shirt, a finisher’s medal and a post-race party that includes a band, food and beer. In the past, the medals came in gold, silver and bronze, depending on your time; however, according to www.mountaingoatrun.com, there may be different medals this year. We’ll have to wait and see!
Other:
Not only is the race affordable, the city of Syracuse is affordable. There are several nice hotels within a short walk of the starting line including:
Genesee Grande: http://www.geneseegrande.com/
Crowne Plaza: http://www.cpsyracuse.com/
Courtyard by Marriott: http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/syrdt-courtyard-syracuse-downtown-at-armory-square/
The Jefferson Clinton Hotel: http://jeffersonclintonhotel.com/
Finally, this race has some history. Past winners include: Joan Benoit Samuelson, Jeff Galloway, Jerry Lawson (still the course record holder), Max King, Kevin Collins and Maegan Krifchin (course record holder).
Overall:
This is a great race and an excellent challenge. If this is your goal race – excellent. If your goal race is a spring marathon, that works too. I highly recommend this race and I will be out there pounding the pavement once again in 2014. See you there!
