Laissez les bon temps rouler, Y’all!!

Expo/Packet pickup: The day of the Expo turned out to be storming and raining, like any other day in South Louisiana. However, the Expo and packet pickup had originally been scheduled to be outside at Congo Square (Louis Armstrong Park). Thankfully, the venue was changed to be inside at The Hyatt Regency on Loyola Ave. The Expo was in a ballroom at the hotel and had your typical vendors, if I remember correctly, and of course a place to pick up packets and the t-shirt. I honestly don’t remember much because I was concentrating on not getting my hair wet, as I had just gotten it done for the wedding we were attending that afternoon. Just picture any other expo in a hotel ballroom that you’ve attended, and you have the idea. I must say however, management had EXCELLENT communication, texting and emailing the change of venue for the Expo early that morning.

Course: Due to being at sea level, the whole course is flat and fast. Since New Orleans is one of my favorite cities, I’m a little biased, but I think most people would agree that it is a beautiful and scenic city. Therefore, the scenery along this course, IMO is THE BEST DAMN SCENERY EVER. The course takes runners through some pretty cool parts of New Orleans such as the Treme district of New Orleans, the CBD (Central Business District), and St. Charles Street and the Garden District (the best part of the whole run). I love, love, love this part of the city for it’s history, mystery, and charm. The scenery and flat/fast aspect of the course gets an A+ in my book!

Swag/Bling/Goodies: OMG. If the race doesn’t live up to it’s name, the medal sure does!! I LOVE THIS MEDAL! It is high quality and HEAVY! Maybe even the heaviest medal I have to date. The design of the sugar skull is AWESOME and I of course love the colors (purple, how can you go wrong?). The shirt has the same design and color–bonus points, but the quality is a little low IMHO, as it is not a tech shirt and the material is a little flimsy. That being said, I get compliments when I wear it, so I will forgive the race managements decision to not make it a tech-type shirt.

Would I run this race again? Absolutely I would and for the following reasons: The pre-race communication was spot on, the race bathrooms adequate, great course support (thanks NOPD and volunteers!), the BEST DAMN scenery in Louisiana, and of course THAT MEDAL. Overall, I think it was a well-run, well-priced, and well-thought out course that I think any level of runner would enjoy.

For a detailed recap/review of the Best Damn Race--New Orleans Half Marathon complete with (many!) pictures, please check out my blog:

https://sarahwithanh.org/2017/10/09/best-damn-race-new-orleans-2017-race-recapreview/

Expo/Packet-pickup: Once getting to the Scottsdale area, we headed right over to the Salt River Field where the Expo was being held (also the venue for the race). Easy access off the 101 and lots of parking! Overall, this was a very well run and organized Expo. Bib pick-up was a breeze: no lines, friendly volunteers, technology check-in (just like showing an electronic boarding pass on the smart phone)! Lots of freebie food (some variation of chocolate, of course!) and a number of vendors. The best part was the “swap” of the sweatshirt we received–a separate station were there were sweatshirts to try on and then new ones to exchange for the right size! Really top-notch!

Course: Starting corrals were very well-organized with the corral letter being on my bib. Also lots of high energy at the starting line getting runners pumped to race! Course was FLAT. A possible PR course, if one was in the starting corral, otherwise way too many people to weed through to get a decent race pace. Scenery consisted of human backsides and residential neighborhoods, with a few office complexes thrown in for variety. I suppose that one doesn’t do this race for the scenery though, just the chocolate and the medal! Course support ROCKED! Course was well-marked and had numerous volunteers with flags along the way. A big shout out to the numerous safety officers along the course who were friendly and helpful. Aid stations were approximately 2 miles apart, stocked with friendly, high energy volunteers, water and Nunn sports drink. The best part of the aid stations were the "sweet stations" that accompanied them-- a wonderland of chocolate, marshmallows, and other goodies! It doesn't get much better than this!

Shirt/Swag/Bling: As I mentioned earlier, Hoodies (sweatshirts) were given instead of shirts. I really liked this decision, as the Hoodies were specifically designed for running and made out of quality material. The post race tub of chocolate goodness was also a good move, filled with chocolate, hot chocolate, banana, and other tasty treats. Finally, the medal was absolutely AMAZING! What a beauty (large, solid metal, gold, high quality, with a removable medallion)!!!! This medal was the whole reason for me do to this race and it exceeded my expectations!

Overall, this race was well-managed and organized from the pre-race communication emails, which included a training plan if needed, to the post-race festivities. I LOVED LOVED LOVED the medal and the “Sweet Stations” along the course. Was the chocolate theme and huge blow-up thingys a bit commercial and gimmicky? Maybe a little, but truth be told it hooked me and made the whole experience that much more memorable, enjoyable, and SWEET! I would recommend this race to anyone looking for a fun, flat, large race.

For a detailed recap/review of the Scottsdale Hot Chocolate 15K complete with pictures, please check out my blog:

https://sarahwithanh.org/2016/12/06/scottsdale-hot-chocolate-15k-recapreview/

Fast, flat, fun!

Houma Heart and Soles Half Marathon & 5K is a fun, local race held before Thanksgiving, giving the opportunity to pre-burn some Thanksgiving calories! The start and finish is at the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center in Houma, Louisiana. This is a small, well-run race worth doing if you are ever in the area!

The Race: FLAT. FLAT. FLAT. Did I mention it’s flat? Of course, I wouldn’t expect anything else being at sea level. Definitely PR material. The course was marked only with arrows spray painted on the road, which might be the only con of this race. Scenery for the majority of the course is nonexistent, as it goes through the town of Houma. The last 5 miles gets better as the course runs along Bayou Black and is really pretty. Water stations were approximately every mile. I wore my hydration vest purely out of habit, but really didn’t need it. I noticed only one porta-potty along the course, but I wasn’t looking, so there might have been more than one. Crowds were nonexistent, so if you like lots o' crowd support, this race may not be for you. Course support was great-- shout out to the Houma PD, Terrebonne Sheriff Dept, Bayou Cyclists, and water station volunteers!

The Bling and Swag: Medals were high quality and heavy with the Heart and Soles insignia. Shirts were equally as high quality: Black (no white see through!), tech material with Heart and Soles insignia. Not much swag, save some coupons and a plastic cup. Overall, I’m happy with my stuff and thought that it was great for the cost ($50) and size of this race!

Post-Race: Participants finish inside the Civic Center on a red carpet. I usually do not eat or do anything in the post-race festivities, so I’m not sure what kind of goodies were available. I did see volunteers surrounded by Subway bags, so I’m assuming Subway sandwiches were available. I did stick around for the awards ceremony and I admired the awards that were given for a race of this size (acrylic plaques with the Heart and Soles insignia).

Overall, this is an enjoyable, well-managed race that I would recommend to anyone. It is a great example of the fun and friendly atmosphere of South Louisiana!

For a detailed recap/review of the Houma Heart and Soles Half Marathon & 5K complete with pictures, check out my blog:

https://sarahwithanh.org/2016/11/25/houma-heart-and-soles-half-marathon-race-reviewreport/

Enjoyable, well-managed race!

The Race: The loop course took us around a residential area. I actually ran the course prior to running the race, so I felt confident about the course at least. At any rate, the course started at Sabino High School, took a lap around the track, then went out the gate to Bowes Rd. For being in this area of the foothills, the course was surprisingly semi-flat. Since I’ve lived here the majority of my life, the scenery is really pretty vanilla to me. Although I will admit the mountains looked pretty spectacular with the sun rising. There were two bands playing music– one at the start of the course and one mid-way through. Water stations were every couple miles and the course was well marked. As always, law enforcement did a great job stopping traffic and keeping everyone safe.

The Bling/Swag/Shirt: I was happy that finishers received a medal, but was slightly disappointed to see it was a generic medal with runners and a sticker (I think) of the race name and the American Flag. Really nothing special. On that note, the shirts were pretty average too. I’m not a fan of white shirts and disappointingly the shirts were white (read: see through) and long-sleeved (also a frustration because there are all of five days of the year we Arizonans can were anything with long sleeves). They were a tech fabric though which sorta redeemed the long-sleeve decision of the race management. No other swag, except the free lip balm and Energy Beans at packet pick-up.

Post-Race: I usually don’t (can’t) eat after a race, so I didn’t partake in the food. It looked good and plentiful, however. There were also massage tables (also didn’t partake). There was plenty of seating and people seemed to be enjoying themselves. There was a giant jumping castle for the kiddos, as well.

Overall, I enjoyed this race and would probably do it again next year if my race calendar allows. I would recommend this race to others, but probably would not travel to do this race specifically.

For a detailed race review/recap complete with pictures, please visit my blog! https://sarahwithanh.org/2016/11/19/everyone-runs-tmc-veterans-day-14-marathon-recap-or-back-to-high-school-for-this-sabercat/