Jazz Half Marathon

New Orleans, Louisiana

Saturday, October 27, 2018

Saturday, October 27, 2018 was a perfect day to do the Jazz Half Marathon in New Orleans as the temperature varied from 63 to 67 degrees with sunny skies and little wind,  The course was completely flat on city streets and a loop through a park on a wide paved bike path for miles 8 and 9.  No traffic was allowed on the course where each of the numerous intersections were controlled by 2 to 5 police officers.  Also the famous New Orleans streetcars were not in operation during the event which had 1502 finishers in the half marathon and 718 finishers in the 5K.  Water/Gatorade stations were located every 1.5 miles and had plenty of friendly efficient volunteers taking care of the participants needs.  With the wonderful weather there were spectators everywhere along the course cheering for the participants as they went by.  Also there were a few places where live or recorded music was played.  The post-race party was outstanding as the food consisted of Cajon barbeque, rice and beans, hot dogs, hamburgers, and popsicles.  Drinks consisted of water, Gatorade, Coke products, cold brew coffee, and beer for those old enough.  You could eat as much as you wanted and spectators could also partake.  The live band was so outstanding that several hundred people stayed around the listen, sing, and dance until the band stopped performing at 12:30.  It should be noted that the last participant in the half marathon finished before 11:00.  This event is very well organized and has been held for ten years and I now have done it twice.  I really enjoyed myself and when I finished, I now have only one more state, Mississippi on 11/17/2018, to do in order to complete all 50 states for a fourth time (full marathons one time and half marathons three times).

The Exposition

Along The Course

Before The Race

After The race