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@richwoo2
Rochester, MN Raving since 2023 Active 3 months, 2 weeks agoAbout Me
My Races
Organize, track & review your races and personal bests here.
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Future Races
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| Race | Distance | Location | Date | Paid |
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Past Races (4)
| Race | Distance | Location | Date | Result | My Raves | My Performance |
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| Louisiana Marathon | Marathon | Baton Rouge, LA | Jan 18, 2026 |
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| Los Angeles Marathon (LA Marathon) | Marathon | Los Angeles, CA | Mar 16, 2025 |
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| Keesler Federal Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon | Marathon | Biloxi, MS | Dec 9, 2023 |
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| California International Marathon (CIM) | Marathon | Folsom, CA | Dec 3, 2023 |
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Louisiana Marathon
Southern Charm at its best
Louisiana Marathon
Definitely my favorite race in the south for comfort and ease! My friend and I came from the Midwest to run this marathon the week after the Houston marathon. We … MORE
Definitely my favorite race in the south for comfort and ease! My friend and I came from the Midwest to run this marathon the week after the Houston marathon. We wanted to try Cajun/creole food in New Orleans, but we also got a lot of that here post race!
The race is a chilly start but takes you through you the LSU stadium and lake early on. Through all the nice neighborhoods, you get welcoming crowds and spectators. Some gave out mardi gras beads which I wore for the last half of the race! I had a lot of bananas and gels along the route. You finish with the capitol building in front of you as you run the straightaway, which was motivating. My friend liked the free coffee before and after the race! Afterwards, you could get a wide variety of southern food to try after the race or just get really drunk with the food/drink coupons! We definitely got our fill of jambalaya and gumbo as well as king cake. We don’t have any of this stuff up north! Overall, this race rewards you for running.
Otherwise, the expo was easy downtown and had some king cake and the race essentials. I stayed at the Hyatt Place and it was cheap compared to other big city races. Parking is free on the street and we manage to park a few blocks down from the start. There was a farmers market going on Saturday literally on the street near the finish. LSU and nice southern restaurants to check out while you’re here.
Los Angeles Marathon (LA Marathon)
Compelling tour of LA
Los Angeles Marathon (LA Marathon)
First off, I only ran this race because of the 40th anniversary this year. I am not a theatre and culture person (or traffic), so this race wouldn’t make my … MORE
First off, I only ran this race because of the 40th anniversary this year. I am not a theatre and culture person (or traffic), so this race wouldn’t make my list. All things considered and after finishing this, I would consider it again like CIM!
Packet pick-up on Saturday around noon was a breeze at Dodgers Stadium if you have pre-marathon time and corral though. The expo was world class and had a lot of freebies, sponsors, and food trucks. Some of them that stood out are Impossible foods, KT tape, Electrolit, Gu gels, Chiquitas bananas. Since I work this field, the thing I loved the most at the expo is the organization is striving to cure neurological diseases and that was put on the medal also!
Hotel: I stayed at one of their host hotels that provided a wristband and bus to and from the finish line. If you aren’t local or traveling with company I would do this! The finish was overly crowded and they charged for parking there. The Westin was very accommodating and had a great fitness center. It was three blocks away from the shuttle pick-up and drop off. The World Trade Center parking garage cost me like $9/day over the weekend!
Per-race: I’m glad I didn’t drive in and I would not park unless you go at 4 am. I took the shuttle in at 530 am and the movement on the highway about a mile away before seem non-existent. People were climbing up the hill up to Dodger stadium! The shuttles got a backdoor into the stadium and literally dropped you off at the start line. They gave out pre-race food and drinks free, like GU gels, honeystinger waffles, bananas, water, bananas.
Race: On time start. Read the other reviews if you want an in-depth review of the course! Aside from the crowded push past thousands of racers around you, you get a free tour past all the major sites and nice neighborhoods in LA (band playing in front of Chinese theatre). There were a lot of running clubs and individual organizations having their own aid stations. The most I have ever seen in any race! On average, it felt like every 0.5 mile there was something along the route. The official aid stations felt like they were 0.2 mile long and were never bare. There were runners running at crazy paces even at the halfway mark run past you because some never ran a marathon before and started at the back of the pack! I ran a lot faster than I should and the last 10k was too hilly, especially towards the finish.
Finish line: I finished around my average marathon time. They gave out pretty much everything (water, milk, bananas, chips, crackers, granola bars, electrolite bottle, protein drink, etc) and I ran out of pockets and hands to carry it. The gear check pick up took me over a hour to get my bag back! Since everyone under 3000 was a fast runner and in the same truck, they were there and waiting with a long line. They didn’t need that many volunteers for the VIP hospitality truck next to ours that eventually they helped our group! I got up to the front and they couldn’t find my bag for half an hour! At least five different volunteers all carefully looked at it and were helpful. Eventually, one white guy with a mustache and baseball cap went above and beyond and found it under the table nearby after twenty minutes of intense searching. By that time, my line was basically empty. The shuttle back to the hotel took about double the amount time getting there (30 minutes)
What I liked: lots of sponsors and crazy overabundances of food, gels, and drink given. Super convenient shuttle to start line and finish line. Landmark sites and neighborhoods of LA were all there. Very shady in most stops. Unofficial and official aid stops everywhere. Crazy running paces and spectators.
Keesler Federal Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon
Very Big Ocean View
Keesler Federal Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon
Summary: small expo, phenomenal afterparty, free race photos, best ocean view for 99% of the race, waffle houses, loads of aids stations, sweet afterparty, cool turtle metal medal, and Desi … MORE
Summary: small expo, phenomenal afterparty, free race photos, best ocean view for 99% of the race, waffle houses, loads of aids stations, sweet afterparty, cool turtle metal medal, and Desi Linden ran this!
I ran the half marathon during covid with a group from my hometown and we ran into Desi Linden in the restaurant of the Beau casino, so it’s cool a racing celebrity decided to partake in this small town event! I decided to run the marathon this time by myself in conjunction with the Louisiana Marathon for the challenge medal. Coming in from New Orleans, I saw a lot of advertisements and billboards talking about this event.
Race morning: free parking, parked within 2 blocks of the finish line, no line to get on bus. Mid size crowd for the marathon. Very windy out, but we could stay on the buses before the start!
Not a lot of pacers. I had to choose between a 3:15 pacer or 4 hour pacer, but I found a few Midwest runners who decided to form a 3:45 group! You won’t see a lot of spectators until the end, but you will catch a lot of aid station every 2 miles or just another Waffle House along the way. Best part is you aren’t leaving the coast ocean view until the last two miles with the giant looping bridge by the Beau casino. Coming down the bridge and into the stadium wasn’t a tough or boring finish. I am glad I drafted with this group for 90% of this race because it was windy and I wasn’t expecting anywhere near PR that day.
I loved the afterparty! First, you have to walk up the bleachers to get your food and drink after running a marathon. They rewarded us with shrimp gumbo, bbq pork sandwiches, sodas, fruits, mini snack goodies, and beer. Also, the race volunteers and people were super sweet. I did get a cool folding backpack from the casino since I was a MGM member at the race. Lots of casinos or local restaurants walking distance away to celebrate!
California International Marathon (CIM)
Pretty cool
California International Marathon (CIM)
I ran the 40th anniversary for this marathon and thought I was going to be disappointed as much as the 40th for Twin Cities, but I was surprised and happy! … MORE
I ran the 40th anniversary for this marathon and thought I was going to be disappointed as much as the 40th for Twin Cities, but I was surprised and happy!
The bus line for 10,000 runners broken up in four spots was nice since the convention center line went by super quick. I got there two hours early and they let us sit on the bus to keep warm. I wouldn’t wait thirty minutes before the race start to use the restroom though.
Race course is mostly residential and winding hills, which kept my legs awake and my mind focused on the road. It never got boring since at every stretch there are loads of runners next to you no matter how fast or slow you are. Loads of aid stations at nearly every mile and lots of volunteers too. I almost PRed and beat my previous PR for a state Capitol marathon by 45 sec. I started with the 3:45 pacer and finished nearly 20 minutes faster in the end thanks to the runners and the crowd!
I was surprised at the amount of swag and food at the finish. One guy was like I wish I didn’t buy so much at the expo! We all got water bottles, backpacks, and finisher jackets with the 40th anniversary printed. They were all very stylish too, so I was very happy I ran this race and they actually cared about their finishers with their sponsors!
I stayed at the Citizen hotel two blocks away from the finish and manage to swing the $50 valet parking over to the city hall parking ramp down the street for like $5.