Duranya Freeman's Staging Area

I had an AWESOME time at this race!! I thought the course was really beautiful – takes you through LSU/lakes with a few rolling hills in the neighborhoods, then the back half is more or less flat until the one small overpass near the finish which adrenaline will get you through! The course makes it pretty doable to stick to your goal pace. Awesome to see trees with leaves having trained up north all winter. Thank goodness for the gumbo and jambalaya at the finish – truly brought me back to life. I really recommend this race for someone looking for a low-stress but fun environment. Lots of cool things to see in Baton Rouge too! I was originally considering Houston, but it sold out, and I’m honestly glad it did – this race had a lot of “local pride” (tons of signs all over town!), a low-stress but celebratory environment, and a very supportive vibe the whole weekend for a much more affordable price. I ran and bonded with many a stranger.

The expo folks were really helpful especially since this was my first time in Louisiana. VERY easy gear check day of and pick-up – totally stress free and no lines. Also, there is an optional 26.2-minute mass at a nearby church before the race if you are interested. Although I’m not religious, my husband is and we thought it was awesome and welcoming to everyone – it’s more or less a low-key pep talk and reminder to choose to be joyful and supportive of one another and celebrate the journey no matter what happens!

The one thing is that the gels were a little hard to identify at the aid stations, so if you aren’t carrying your own and relying on those be alert as to which stations have gels. I had no problem since I carried my own and got plenty of Powerade and water, but my husband didn’t, and it took him a bit to find them. Overall though SUPER nice volunteers and an event I’d recommend to anyone. I’m still reminiscing on all the great memories we made in Baton Rouge, and I hope this race continues to grow in the future!