One of the things I enjoyed about this race was that it was a weekend, and consisted of two days of running. In most races if you complete more than one event you are rewarded with an extra medal, in the case of this race that extra medal is a crawfish tray for their Déjà vu Award.

Race communication: This race offered lots of pre-race communication including emails leading up to race week with final information, such as course/parking maps, expo information, bib numbers, race guides, etc.

Packet Pickup: you have to pick up your packet before the race. They do not offer race day pick up, but they do have a proxy pickup. Someone else can pick it up for you with a copy of your confirmation emails and ID.

Expo: It was your standard midsized expo. It has security, bib number look-ups, an area to pick up bibs, and a separate shirt retrieval area. Very organized. There was also a table set up to pick up VIP wristbands as well, or to purchase an entry into VIP. Upon leaving you are greeted by the fine folks of community coffee and I may have gotten addicted to their King Cake coffee. It’s just delicious. Right next to that area Tasc, who has all of the official LA Marathon clothing, had their area set up with goodies. The lines were pretty long and I decided that I would wait until race day to purchase. There were your standard vendors, including medal holders, KT Tape, local races, a bank, doctor’s office, etc.

Pre-Race: Very standard, it was a self seeding corral and was mixed in with the quarter folks so we all started at the same time. I was able to meet up with a local Texas runner as well as fellow Pro and packet receiver Jen. We took our official BibRave picture and headed to our spots.

Race/Course: It was crowded, very crowded. It stayed crowded. I got to the point in which I gave up trying to fight for a pace to settle into. There was nothing fancy about the scenery. The only true scenic place you past is the old governor’s mansion. Other that, it’s just your typical out and back 5k course. Things did thin out a bit once you approached the bridge after mile one which is also where you hit the first water stop. Since it's an out and back course you hit another water stop at the same spot, it's just on the other side of the road.

Post Race: After collecting your designated medal you are given a bottle of water and sent down the chute towards the capital building and finishers party. Immediately exiting the runner’s corral there’s a recovery stretching tent and Core protein shakes. But the really good stuff is inside. Each bib came with a tasting wristband that gives you six tastes at the local vendors. There was so much food and beer, and it was greatness. This was the biggest finishers festival I have ever seen for a 5k/10k EVER, and I’ve done some pretty big name ones.