RnR Mardi Gras

[jam217]

Has anyone done Rock n Roll Mardi Gras? My friend and I are thinking about doing it (me the half and him the full) but I'm reading somewhat mixed reviews on marathonguide.com. Looking for pros and cons. TIA.
jill

 

[cewait]

I haven't looked the marathon guide reviews, yet. It's a RNR event so in generalit is a top notch production. If there were any issues in the event last year I would offer that they will be corrected with this edition.

With regrad to MG, I find that if you throw out the 'Really Bad" and "The Best Ever" reviews you get a good picture of the goods, bads and uglys. Frankly if one looked at the MG reviews for the WDW marathon you would wonder why folks ever run it. It's boring, there is no fan support, Why can't more of the run be in parks.....blah blah blah

 

[escape]

There were several of us WISHers who did the half this year. I liked it; I'll let the others speak for themselves. Some of the roads need fixing up but, overall, I thought the course was fine.

Pros:

1) Nice medal. The lanyard is a string of beads (Mardi Gras style beads).
2) You're in New Orleans!
3) New Orleans has FABULOUS food!
4) Great "after" party. I love the P. F. Changs setup after the race - free food and drink! Plus, you can sit in a grassy field and listen to the "headliner" band while recuperating.
5) Enjoyed the Mardi Gras floats at some of the mile markers.


Cons:
1) Shuttles to the start line were a little unorganized. We had to wait in a 45 min. line before boarding. Never had this problem with any other RnR race.
2) Some of the streets were not in good shape.
3) Medals. I LOVED that the lanyard was a string of beads. However, the string was too weak for the heavy medal. We saw several break with beads going everywhere. I'm sure this issue will be resolved for next year.
4) Shuttles at the end of the race were a little hard to find. It might help to have signs indicating where they are.
5) The wait in the corrals can be long. That's typical for any RnR race. I wouldn't let this hold you back. Take advantage of the port-o-potties during the wait.

In regards to the cons, these things are minor although the medal string needs to be reinforced or stronger. I know the organizers had a lot of complaints about this so I'll bet that won't be problem in the future. I enjoyed the race and I really enjoyed the company of the other WISHers.

I think you and your friend should consider doing it.

 

[jam217]

Susie, thanks for all your comments. Let's face it, no race will be perfect. I've never been to New Orleans so that is also drawing me to this race. It sounds like a fun one to do.

What hotel did you stay in and would you recommend it? Thanks.

 

[K80K]

This is the hotel I stayed at: http://www.wyndham.com/hotels/MSYRF/mapanddirections/main.wnt?cid=ROMTW

Nice short walk to both the expo and the race start. It was a longer walk from the shuttles back to the hotel, but it is good for recovery to walk after the race. The rooms were very nice as was the customer service.

 

[FireDancer]

I also wanted to point out that the 2010 race was an inaugural event so many issues could be chalked up to inevitable first year issues. Even a company that organizes races throughout the country may find something they didn't expect at a new location.

We have a race organizer that does a lot of Cleveland events and even though they only deal with events in a much smaller geographic area then the Competitor group new races still sometimes have problems.

 

[geaux_half]

I second Frank's comments on the event being an inaugural Rock N Roll event. I ran the Mardi Gras half 5 times in the 2000's when it was a much smaller, local marathon and half with a different course. The same thing happened the first year San Antonio's marathon/half became a Rock N Roll event in 2008. When you significantly increase the size of an event and add new transportation logistics with new courses, there will be first year headaches. Rock N Roll/competitor is really good at listening to comments; 2011 should be a much smoother event.

 

[WDWFAN9]

I second what Susie said. We had a great time in New Orleans. The organization at the start of the race left a little to be desired - the directions to the corrals were a little confusing, but we figured it out. It is definitely a good event to do.

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

Had a great event for the Mardi Gras half this year. I don't have much more than already said about the event. I will bet this will be a great one as the second time around. We stayed at the Hampton Inn New Orleans-Downtown 226 Carondelet Street and it was walkable to the French Quarter for tourism things as well as ok to get to expo and load bus transport.

 

[escape]

Had a great event for the Mardi Gras half this year. I don't have much more than already said about the event. I will bet this will be a great one as the second time around. We stayed at the Hampton Inn New Orleans-Downtown 226 Carondelet Street and it was walkable to the French Quarter for tourism things as well as ok to get to expo and load bus transport.

Jill, the above hotel is where I stayed. It was fine. Love the free breakfast. They put it out early on the morning of the race. The hotel was about a mile from the expo and bus transport but close to Bourbon Street/French Quarter. I try to stay at Hampton Inns for the Hilton points. However, if that isn't an issue, you might consider getting something closer to the expo and start. The Wyndham that Katie mentioned sounds nice.