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Would you run a marathon with only 9 days notice? What if I told you it was the Marathon du Medoc? The original wine marathon that sells out faster than a Taylor Swift concert? When the opportunity arose for me to run the Marathon du Medoc I grabbed it, even though that meant I was running a marathon I had spent no time training for.
But this marathon is like no others – well like some others – this marathon serves wine while you run. There are 21 official wine stops along the course, not counting local community members who create their own unofficial stops. Runners are also offered the chance to try oysters, steak, cotton candy, popsicles, and more during their race.
The atmosphere at this race is also like nothing I’ve ever experienced. Even having run a wine half marathon before, the joy amongst runners here is just amazing and contagious, even more so than the half that I did.
If you’re looking for someone to plan a vacation around the Marathon du Medoc for you, look no further. I offer trip consultations, tailored travel itineraries, and end-to-end trip planning. I even support running clubs traveling in large groups.
- Registering for the Marathon du Medoc
- Preparing for Race Day
- Marathon du Medoc Race Expo
- Race Day
- The Finish
- My Only Regret
Registering for the Marathon du Medoc
As I mentioned above, my sign up process was a bit different than normal. A follower reached out to me and asked if I wanted to run this race. She had won a free bib and was able to pass it on since she couldn’t use it. I said yes.
If that hadn’t happened, I would’ve had to sign up the normal way. The marathon registrations open in March, and will typically sell out in just a few hours. If you miss your chance to get a bib, you can sign up for the waitlist, which will allow you the opportunity to get a bib if someone drops out.
Medical Certificates
If you want to run a race in France, you will need to have a medical certificate. Marathon du Medoc is no exception. I got one last year to run Semi Marathon International Beaujolais, another wine half, and it was a very simple process. Essentially all you need to have done is a yearly physical. If you have had a physical in the last 12 months, your doctor will most likely sign off immediately, but if you haven’t this is a great opportunity to make sure you are still healthy.
Preparing for Race Day
Once you have signed up for your race, the preparation begins. There is lots of work to be done in advance such as booking hotels, trains, and flights, training for the marathon, and the most important, picking a costume.
An entire trip, crafted just for you.
Where to Stay for the Marathon du Medoc
The Marathon du Medoc starts and stops in the city of Pauillac. But that doesn’t mean you can stay there. There are only a few hotels and AirBnB options, so most runners stay in Bordeaux, or one of the other towns located along the train line from Bordeaux to Pauillac. If I was to run it again next year, with more notice, I would try to stay in Pauillac. I wish I had easy access to my hotel and stayed later for the after party. But that is my FOMO speaking, not my wallet. My wallet says Bordeaux is perfectly fine.
Traveling between Bordeaux and Pauillac
The distance from Bordeaux to Pauillac by train is just over an hour. On the morning of the race, there is only one train option available. The 7:30 AM train. The majority of runners will be on this train, so plan to arrive early if you want a seat. Or you can sit on the floor, that is what I did.
You can also rent a car to travel easily between the two cities without relying on a train, but if you do this don’t forget to designate a DD in advance of race day.
How to Train
If you are wondering how to train for a wine marathon, I would suggest training as if it is a normal marathon. The Marathon du Medoc has a broom wagon that collects any runners who fall behind a 6 hour and 30 minute finish from the time the sweepers start – which can be anywhere from 15-30 minutes after the first runners.
If you want to relax and enjoy the race, you should have the training to support your run. I will say that my own training was adequate for a half marathon, not a marathon, because that is what I was training for when I found out I got a bib. However, I was still able to run the full distance, with just a small portion of anxiety for the first 20 miles that the broom wagon would catch me.
In an effort to try and help you prepare for your own wine marathon here are some timing details. I have done one marathon before, and on that day I finished in 4 hours and 43 minutes. In Medoc I finished in 6 hours and 27 minutes, with 5 hours and 17 minutes moving time. I also skipped the first wine stop, as it has the longest lines and I figured 20 wine stops would be just as good as 21. My fitness level is “always ready to run a half marathon”, and I had raced a half marathon just a month earlier and was training for another one. I would suggest being able to run a marathon in 5 hours, or a half marathon in 2 hours and 15 minutes before signing up for this race if you want to finish.
Some runners go into this race with the strategy to purposefully DNF, and just have a great time until the sweepers catch them. The race also circles back through Pauillac around the 13 mile mark, which allows some people to just DNF there and call it a half marathon. But if you do this you won’t get a medal or any of the other finisher perks.
Costumes in the Marathon du Medoc
One of the most important pieces of the Marathon du Medoc is the costumes. Each year the race creates a theme and runners must dress to the theme. In 2023 the theme was gastronomy, and in 2024 the theme was “Make Your Games” in honor of the Olympics. While the race will present inspo for the theme, you do not have to match the inspo as long as you have a costume. For example the 2024 theme was dedicated to the Olympics, but there were runners dressed as card games, board games, and other games, along with people dressed as Olympic sports, symbols, and ancient Greek Gods. Let your creativity run wild.
Since I only had nine days to find an outfit, I kept it simple with the game Go Fish. I already owned a fish hat, and bought a children’s fishing rod. I also attached some toy fish to myself, but most of them fell off in the first two miles.
The theme for 2025 is “The Sea”. Runners will be expected to dress in ocean themed outfits. Luckily, I will be able to rewear my fish outfit. Maybe you want to keep it simple with a fish hat like me, or go big for an inflatable fit, I would just remember that anything you want to wear needs to fit in your suitcase.
Marathon du Medoc Race Expo
The race expo for the Marathon du Medoc runs all day on Friday before the race. Unfortunately, due to my own unique journey to a bib, I did not get a chance to explore the expo for myself but here’s what I know. There will be food and wine at the expo, along with many games. The party vibes of the race start at the expo.
If, like me, you can’t pick up your bib until the day of, the race offers the chance to get just your bib on the morning of. You will need to email them to confirm. If you pick this option you won’t get a shirt.
Race Day
Since I was staying in Bordeaux, I took the 7:29 train to Pauillac. I ended up arriving around 8:40 and heading straight to grab my bib. After I got that I hopped in line for the bathrooms. There were plenty of porta potties available, and they even had running water and sinks. The line took about 10 minutes. With 8,500 runners in the Marathon du Medoc, this was a really good time for a bathroom wait.
My next stop was the starting line. I stopped for a quick photo at the Broom Wagon, aka the sweepers, and then made my way a bit ahead of them. I knew that I did not want to start near them. As you cross the starting line you will be greeted by aerial artists. These performers helped set the tone for the race ahead.
Marathon du Medoc Course
Before we talk about the wine and food, let’s talk about the course itself. The course is a mixture of pavement and dirt paths that go through the many vineyards of Bordeaux. There are also lots of hills. I found in the first half, the hills weren’t so bad, but as the wine and exhaustion set in, most people were walking the hills.
The course is also an official marathon at 26.2 miles, but you will see people referring to it as the “longest marathon in the world”. This is because as you drink more, it becomes harder to run in a straight line.
Wine Stops
Let’s chat about the most important thing – the wine. During the Marathon du Medoc there are 23 official wine stops, with multiple unofficial stops set up as well. The wines range in quality and price. But most of them are still fancier than your average wine. Looking up the prices post race, I found the bottles we were served ranged from $30 at the cheap end, to $90 at the high end.
The course is also set up so that the higher quality vineyards, such as Chateau Lafite Rothschild, are in the second half. This means that people who drop out after half will not get to try them.
Aside from Rothschild, there are several other award winning vineyards that you will run through, but honestly, I am not well versed in the world of wine, and I cannot tell you which ones they are.
My number one tip for this race is to skip the first wine stop. I ran the Beaujolais Half last year, and the first stop took 45 minutes of just waiting. While the lines were shorter in this race, I did not want to make the same mistake. With the time limit, I knew I wanted to save that wait, and spend more time at the later stops.
While most of the wine is red wine, the last two stops both have white wine.
Food Stops
Of course, this marathon is more than just wine. It’s also the food. In the second half of the race, the food options pick up. Chateau Lillian Ladouys offered popcorn and cotton candy to runners, which pairs surprisingly well with red wine.
At another stop there was a woman offering traditional canelés, with a soft center and caramelized exterior. I’m not sure if this stop was official or not, but it was delicious.
There were also several opportunities to try local meats. I couldn’t tell you exactly what I was eating, but it was very good (after the race I discovered I ate foie gras, very glad I didn’t know in the moment). Another food that I chose not to take, was the freshly made fries. Since the fries were being made to go, there was a bit of a line, and I decided to skip it to save time. I was still worried about the sweepers. I also skipped the cheese as well because of the line, but I did grab some olives.
And of course at mile 24, you had the oysters and steak. First came the oysters, paired with white wine of course, and some lemon wedges to add juice to the top. I will admit I have never had oysters before, and didn’t love them. But people who have tried them before said these were very good oysters.
A little bit down the road and you had the steak. It was already cut to bite sized pieces, allowing runners to grab some and keep moving. I really enjoyed the pieces I had.
Finally, near the end of the run there are popsicles. It was refreshing and lovely to have one at that point in the race. The perfect pick me up for the final stretch. I didn’t finish my full popsicle though, as it was full sized and I wanted to keep moving.
“Normal” Running Fuel
I think an important thing to remember is that this is still a marathon. While enjoying all the sweets and wine is fun, you should also take some of the traditional food options. There is water available at every wine stop, along with crackers, bread, bananas, and other snacks to help keep you fueled and sober.
Bathrooms During the Marathon du Medoc
While the race certainly had more porta potties available during the race for runners than my last wine half marathon, it still was not nearly enough. Since more runners are facing down the clock to reach the finish line in exactly six and a half hours, waiting for a bathroom wasn’t time anyone had.
Which is why everyone was peeing in the vineyards. Men and women were taking stops as needed to run into the vineyards for a quick pee. The only difference is that while men would stop in any vineyard to pee, the women waited for ones where the rows ran parallel to the trail. The parallel nature meant that female runners had a bit more privacy while they did their business.
Weather on Race Day
September in France can really unlock a wide variety of weather types. In 2023, it was almost 100 degrees fahrenheit (30 for my celcius friends). While that did make the oysters less appealing, I heard that it was still an enjoyable race.
In 2024, the weather was perfect. It was mostly cloudy and overcast, keeping runners cool as they ran. About halfway through, the skies opened up for five solid minutes of pouring rain. And honestly? It was lovely. I hope that 2025 is able to replicate this weather, instead of the 2023 heat.
Crowds at the Marathon du Medoc
Something that surprised me about this race was how community friendly it was. Throughout the course there were people of all ages dressed up in costumes and cheering for the runners. Some groups even set up picnics along the side of the path to treat the race as a parade. I suppose in my head, a race where people are drinking wouldn’t be kid friendly, but it absolutely was.
The Finish
Finishing this race I felt great. Probably due to the amount of time I spent walking and eating during the race, and also due to the amount of alcohol I had consumed. Even taking the smaller pours of wine, 20 wine tastings is a lot.
After crossing the finish, runners are handed their medal and several gifts. In 2024 the gifts included a bottle of red wine, a yellow rose, a bottle of water, a plastic branded cup, and a very nice backpack.
As you leave the finishers area, you will be able to enter the finishers tent. This tent had free beer (use your plastic cup), as well as lots of food for runners to enjoy. I spent a bit of time here recovering before I moved on.
My Only Regret
If I was to run this race again, there is only one thing I would do differently. That is to pack a phone battery pack. There is very little service around the vineyards, so my phone spent a lot of time searching for a signal which quickly drained its life. I had to put it on airplane mode about halfway in. After the race I did manage to find a restaurant that let me use one of their wall plugs, but life would have been easier if I had just brought my own from home.
If you read this and want to run Marathon du Medoc next year, I would suggest following Marathon du Medoc on Instagram. Registration will open in March 2025 for the September race, and the Instagram account will be the best place to see updates.
I also have a Facebook group for female runners who like to travel, and in 2025 we will be taking a trip to a wine race (maybe not Medoc). If you want to join, here is the link to the group.
