NOLA half marathon and vaca!!!

This was our first out of state race vacation with friends and it was a blast!  We booked NOLA a year in advance, taking advantage of the early bird special pricing (half marathon only $50!!).  For an entire year we eagerly awaited this trip, and it did not disappoint!

Day/Night 1 (2/26) - Checking in, Dinner at Pier 424 Seafood Market and hitting up Bourbon Street!

At first we were going to rent a van, but that was too expensive, so we carpooled down.  The drive was about 8 hours, not too bad when you have drinks for the road and a DVD player!  We arrived at our hotel around 7pm.  Thankfully we managed to all reserve rooms on the same floor.  Once checked in we headed to Bourbon St for food and drinks and people watching.  ;)

Traveling in style, sushi in the car!

watching dodgeball

It's hard work riding in the back, sipping on mimosas

Hawt Dog!  2/26/2016

Giant jello shots!

Day 2 (2/27) -  Beignets, Expo and fancy dinner

We manged to stay out until 1am or so Friday night.  Pretty good for us I think!  Sat morning came all too soon.  We actually made it up by 8am so that we could hit up Cafe Du Monde and then make it to the Expo by 10:30am.  We wandered the expo for about an hour, tried out luck at some pole dancing and then headed out to AMCE oyster house for lunch. This place is popular!  We were probably in line about an hour before we could be seated.  We had to split into 2 tables as a 12 top was quite hard.  This place had the best oysters!  Afterwards some of us headed back to the hotel for a quick cat nap before our fancy dinner at Antoine's!  We did not stay up late that night as the next morning was the race.  We hung out in Mary and Marks room for a bit and then headed to bed around 10:30/11pm.

cafe du monde!

<3 the coffee and beignets!

at the expo

ACME oyster house for a late lunch

The BEST char-grilled oysters EVER!

Ready for our fancy dinner

Antoine's Restaurant

Day 3 - Race day and awesome brunch!

Our alarms went off around 6am, giving us enough time to get ready, eat half a bagel and meet the rest of the half marathon peeps at 6:45am in the lobby.  We were within walking distance of the start line so we didn't have to rush out.  I think it took us all of 10-15mins to walk to our corral.  My hubby was originally going to run the 10K, but he was able to switch bibs last min to the half.  This was his 1st half ever!  The course was extremely flat, the only problem was the roads.  There was a ton of construction, loose gravel and holes in the roads and at some points it was so narrow you were squished down to 2 people side by side.   After mile 6 it opened up a bit more and the last 2-3 miles were pretty exciting.  We scarfed down some King Cake at Mile 4, mimosas at mile 5, beer at mile 8 and jello shots around mile 12.  All in all a fun run.  Afterwards we hung out in the biergarten for a few drinks, then headed to a very late brunch at the Ruby Slipper.  I think some of us tried for another nap right after that, most of us were STUFFED.  Later in the evening we went out again for drinks and dinner.  Most people went back to Bourbon St, a couple of us went back home to rest.  I think everyone was in a food coma and beat.  

Ready to head out.  We run so we can eat and drink all the things!

Clowning around in our corrals

Malek was right behind us, somewhere around mile 4

The only race that you eat king cake and drink mimosas.  This is mile 5!

Runners unite!

I finished the NOLA half in 2:06:21 (9:30 avg pace in 13.3 miles). Whew,  it was hot but the drinks and king cake were great! Jello shots at mile 12!  The hubby finished in 2:08:48 (9:50 pace), so proud!!

The Ruby Slipper - we were stuffed!  Brunch at 1pm :)

Willie's Chicken Shack for drinks and biscuits!

Dinner at Mother's Restaurant

Day 4 - Homeward bound.

We left Monday morning around 9am so that we could get back in time to relieve the grandparents from the kiddos and prepare for work on Tuesday.  We had such a great time and would totally do it again!  The food was amazing, hanging with friends all weekend was great, and I didn't feel too bad indulging in food/drink since we ran a race.  It was a great way to see the city.  In face, we are already researching our next race trip for 2017 and 2018!!!