50 in 50 by 50: #6 LOUISIANA

Sometimes our race selection has very little to do with how wonderful the race might be - and it has a lot to do with convenience. We have picked most of our races because they happen to co-inside with a vacation (some day we hope to pick a vacation based on an awesome race, but there's still plenty of time for that). We've lucked out though, because they've all ended up being great - and Louisiana was no exception.

We traveled to New Orleans for a friend's wedding in September of 2011. This long weekend away ended up being one of my favorite vacations ever. It was my first time in the city and it just blew me away. I had the perfect mix of time alone (with jazz music, galleries, and cafes), time with Neil (dates, museums, and football) and time with friends (Bourbon St. and an authentic New Orleans Wedding!)

proof I'm not lying about all those good things:

The Treme Brass Band

cafe au lait and beignet

happy nuptials

Bourbon St. below us

The small saturday morning race was called "Black Tie 5K", just outside the hustle and bustle of the city on a little park path. Similar races were being held in cities across America on the same day to raise money for cancer research, but being the first year they ever had this race - we didn't know what to expect.

We were told there would be a prize for dressing up - it was black tie after all. We arrived to find less than 100 people, and about 4% of those people went with the high fashion attire. Needless to say, we were among the 4%...

looking like this, maybe we're the 1%

We had hoped to run the race with our friend Ian, but New Orleans happened and Ian didn't wake up in time. Its a shame too because his cut off dress pants would have given us a run for our money...

nope. changed my mind. this is the 1% 

The course was flat and easy and I got my best time ever! I would have faired much better if I didn't have to overcome a bachelorette party (that always gets in the way of productivity), lack of sleep, running in a skirt, bouncing fake pearls, and evening glove elbow sweat (yes, that's a thing. and it's itchy). 

We loved how small the race was and how friendly the people were. When we registered - they said, "You're the ones from Pennsylvania! Welcome!" And when we won the $100 prize for best dressed, everyone snapped our picture like we were famous. That's a big deal when you turn heads in NOLA - because the locals are used to seeing things like this, everyday...

oh just a mid afternoon discussion about pedal bikes (with the devil)

Like ALL food in New Orleans, the post-race food was the best food I've seen. They had local chefs come in and make healthy versions of some of the city's most popular dishes. They had nutritionalists there to talk about diet and even a special area for children and health! For anyone that's been to the races that have doughnuts and ice cream at the finish - you can appreciate how happy we were.

this is me with my mini pecan pie 

(made from Grape Nuts cereal, honey, and whole wheat crust)

I'm also pretending its a normal sized pie and I'm a giant.

If we were doing 51 in 50 by 50, I would repeat LA in a heartbeat

The Breakdown

date: 9/17/11

race: Black Tie 5K

location: New Orleans, LA

charity: cancer research 

time: 28:20