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May 2, 2024

Louisiana Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Louisiana Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.6

Organization 4.7

Spectators 4.2

Number of comments: 83 [displaying comments 31 to 41]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9 > ]

R. N. from Austin, Texas (2/2/2014) "FiVE STAR PLUS MARATHON" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 One of the best overall marathons I have ran. (27th marathon). Pros: expo Pastas dinner- incredible speakers Start of the race organization Flat and fast course Well marked mile markers Crowd support for a small race Post race food and festival Finishers medal High tech shirt Cons: Nothing, IMO any complaints re: this race would say more about the author and less about the event.. Well done Louisiana Marathon!
J. K. from Wisconsin (2/2/2014) "Outstanding marathon" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I have run over 35 marathons and this one I would highly recommend. The course was flat, fast and it ran round a lake with beautiful southern mansions, and huge live oaks lining the course. The food/beverage/music after the run was top shelf, in a very nice open area near the capitol. The hospitality couldn't be beat.
J. A. from AR (1/31/2014) "I really enjoyed this race." (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Loved the race even though the temperature got a little warmer than I was expecting. Expo was nice. Lots of vendors and well-organized packet pickup. Also nice that just a short walk away was the MS River and veteran's museaum/memorial complete with the USS Kidd (Navy destroyer) and a couple of old warplanes on display. The course was great, especially the first 10.5 miles. Running through LSU campus and around that lake was beautiful! The warm temps made me a little sick by the finish so I didn't get to take advantage of the great after party and all the great food, but it was a really nice finish festival.
L. P. from Overland Park, KS (1/25/2014) "Lived up to the hype" (about: 2014) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race has been listed in Runner's World the past two years as one of the best new races. It did not disappoint. I'll start with the only negative-they ran out of much of the food by the time the 4 hour marathoners finished. I'm not a huge eater right after a race, but I feel bad for anyone that is and finished when I did or after. Now for the pros. -Flat course! The overpass at miles 2 and 25 is just that-an overpass. To call it a hill is a disservice to hills. -Weather. 50-60 degrees and low wind. I am always cold and went out in a tank and shorts. -Crowd support. This was way better than I expected for a marathon this size -Porta potties everywhere and no line at the start -Postrace onsite medal engraving. I hadn't seen this before. -So many aid stations -The streets were not as bad as advertised. I was paranoid about this from comments from previous years. I emailed the race director. Any bumps were spray painted. As long as you pay attention, you are fine. No different from any other urban race that I have run. -Separate finish lines for the full and the half. -Finish Festival. Great location and great entertainment. I've never seen so many people just hanging out and enjoying themselves after a race. (The weather didn't hurt!) -Nice sackpack, medal and tech shirt. -Free temporary tattoos with the race logo -On race morning the capital building was lit up with the race logo. Very cool!
A. L. from Boston, MA (1/23/2014) "Sets the bar high" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 One of the best races i've run ever (hundreds overall). I'm going to give my constructive criticism to indicate the only small details that need work for hope the director reads to improve for 2015, because everything else was excellent. 1) Put Powerade and water in separate color cups so you can tell what you are grabbing 2) Separate the half and full the last mile of the course with cones so it is easier to get into final straight-away stretch. 3) Better website directions to pasta dinner night before
J. K. from Nashville, TN (1/22/2014) "Fun Race" (about: 2014) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my second marathon...way flatter than Atlanta in the fall and thus I PRd by 23 minutes, which was fun. The start was a bit of a cluster (no speakers in the back of the corral, and you couldn't hear the national anthem. I think the gun took some people by surprise) and there was some confusion as to whether there was actually a shuttle from the Crowne Plaza Hotel (as advertised on the marathon's website)...that could certainly be cleared up in the coming years. Expo was nice...it was the first one I'd been to so I don't really know what to compare it to, but seemed OK to me. The race was good. Like I said the course is pretty flat. There are several out and backs, including one long one towards the end, which I thought was kind of cool cause you got to see the lead runners. The fans that came out were great and there was a ton of gel, shot blocks, oranges, water, powerade, etc. They only had clocks on the half mile mark and the finish, which annoyed me at first, but by mile 3 I didn't really care. The finish festival was awesome...great food (although they ran out of Crawfish Tamales!), the medal and shirt are fine. One small thing - this is Baton Rouge! After the awards ceremony, they had a '2nd line' band, but all they played was motown covers. They were fine, but maybe some zydeco/local flavor in there would be more appropriate. But whatever. Just a couple really small things I'm sure they'll figure out: -There was a shortage of safety pins...a bunch of people only got 3 in their bib packet and they didn't have any at the gear check. Combine that with the aforementioned shuttle problems and some people were pretty stressed before the start. -I bet it has to be a logistical nightmare, but any chance for race morning packet pickup? The expo closed at 5 on Saturday...and SE Louisiana is pretty far from a lot of places. I came from Nashville and had to get out of town by 6:30 to ensure I'd get my packet. Had there been traffic or anything I'm not sure what I would have done. With so many people coming from out of town (49 states I think they said), having a race morning pickup option, or something to that effect, would make travel a bit easier for those of us coming from out of town. Overall though, I had a great time.
S. K. from New Albany, Indiana (1/21/2014) "Run This Race!" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This race, and its organization is amazing! The road can be a bit treacherous, especially in those lovely oak-shaded streets. The oak trees that give such great shade, also have massive roots that can raise the streets in places to cause one to trip if looking up. I know, I did it once. Thankfully no injury except a small bruise to my hand. Do the 5K the day before and bring proof that you finished to the runners assistance after the marathon. You will also receive a laminated 'gumbo serving tray' as an extra award! The finishers medals for the marathon AND 5K are very nice. The course, other than the condition of the streets outside of the ones shaded by oaks, are great. The LSU campus is pretty, and running by the lakes are scenic as well. I highly recommend this marathon. Especially since the weather in Louisiana was wonderful, compared to much of the northern USA, and with the flat terrain, is easy to train for. The police did an outstanding job of helping cross intersections, and the volunteers were terrific! Thank you Baton Rouge!
N. M. from Opelousas, La. (1/21/2014) "Great race, great experience" (about: 2014) 1 previous marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is the best race I have ever been in, and I have done hundreds.
J. S. from Dallas, TX (1/21/2014) "Absolutely gorgeous run through a beautiful city." (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was one of the most enjoyable marathons I have experienced. It was relatively small, but had all the amenities and great organization that I expect of the older, larger races. The course takes you from the Louisiana Capitol building through downtown, LSU, the park lakes, and some of the most beautiful residential streets of the city. It was one of the most scenic races I have done...and one of mine was Big Sur. The water stops were plentiful and volunteers did their jobs well. Crowd support was awesome, many folks staying out to encourage us turtles. If you are working on 50 states, do this one for your Louisiana race. You will not regret it. For you jackrabbits, it is a fast course, even though the winning time might not indicate that. For those travelling into BR, you might want to rent a car, even if you are staying in a downtown hotel, because the restaurants and action are not in the downtown area. I loved it. You should do it!
E. B. from Miami Beach, FL (1/20/2014) "Excellent marathon!" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Louisiana Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The Louisiana Marathon is a great winter race. The weather is usually quite good that time of the year, and it didn't disappoint this time either. Some thoughts- the expo was small but easy to access and well organized. The gear check was well staffed and done quite well. The corral system was comfortable and I didn't find myself dodging many people at the start. The course and scenery is spectacular- the half course is stunning along the LSU lake. The only real negative is the uneven pavement in many places. You definitely had to be careful! I suppose I didn't like the blue Powerade (blech) or the bridge hill just before Mile 25... but all of this was minor compared to the overall experience

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