My friends and family came to New Orleans for this race. My mother-in-law (who is from New Orleans) has been telling me about this race for years, so I finally got my Maryland friends and family to sign up and run with me.

The expo and packet pick up was easy. The hotel for the expo was a short walk from our hotel. We didn't have any issues. I will say the race t-shirt is not great, it was cotton. I wasn't impressed with the shirt and I am not even sure I kept it. I would think for a big race like this one that they would have a tech material shirt.

The start line was well organized by pace groups. My sister went ahead to a faster pace group and my friends and I hung back in the 10:00 pace area. When the race started we didn't have many issues with walkers in our way. It is a big race so there were SO many people there!

The race course itself was simply beautiful. The course led you through the streets of New Orleans with some shaded areas. The people on the sides of the street cheering were incredible. There were of course the sponsored water stations, then there were the multiple unanswered but fantastic stations. some of the stations I remember are donuts, margaritas, beer, BBQ, and tequila shots. I didn't partake in any of those stops, but if I run the course again I think I would! It was such an energetic course and group of people.

The finish line and post race party were fantastic. My family got tickets to come to the post race festival and it was well worth it. There was so much to eat and drink! I had Community Coffee and jambalaya! We stayed for about an hour until the rain started. We all had enough food to hold us over until we could grab lunch later.

Overall, I highly recommend this race and would definitely run the race again. You're in New Orleans so you know what kind of weather you will typically have. Even with the humidity, it was a fun and fast race. Love it and I will be back!