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Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Gulf Coast Half Marathon Mandeville Day 1!

I can't wait to tell you all about my exciting weekend in Louisiana for the Gulf Coast Half Marathon! I did this race last year with my friends Paige, Angela, and Gina and we had so much fun that we all decided to do it again this year! We've decided it's an every year kind of race! It's not too far away but far enough away for a mini vacation! So here's day 1 of our experience!

I started Saturday morning out with breakfast at Cracker Barrel with some of my Sole2Soul Sisters! It was  a little weird because most of them had just ran a long run and here I come all showered and dressed! There's no way I was running since I had a half the next day. We had a great time eating and visiting!


After breakfast I came home to finish packing and to spend a few more minutes with my family. Then it was time to leave. It was a little rough because Sawyer always hates it when I leave...he always gets teary eyed. Breaks my heart. But he gets over it quick.

It was my turn to drive this year. So I went to pick up all the girls and we headed to LA (Louisiana)! On the way we stopped for lunch at a place in Mississippi called The Shed Barbeque and Blues Joint. I've heard of this place but have never eaten there....none of us had. So we decided to give it a try because we had all heard how good it was. We pulled in and the place looked very...interesting lol! It looked like a shed....but HUGE! And they had a sign in front that said, "We want your junk." Yes...there was literally junk everywhere!!! But it made for some cute decorations!



Let me tell you...the food was amazing!!! Awesome bbq!!! I ordered the pulled pork sandwich, collard greens, and mac and cheese. When my food came they accidentally gave me mac salad...I'm sure it would have been good but it was full of onions and I hate onions. The waitress was happy to fix the mistake...although she said they were out of mac and cheese. So I settled for potato salad instead...and it was sooo good! Picture was taken with the mac salad.


Here's my beautiful friends Angela and Gina!


And me and my beautiful friend Paige!


After eating we all had to go to the bathroom. I REALLY wanted to take pictures of the bathroom but thought it may be a little inappropriate lol! But it was decorated so awesome! Each stall was decorated as a different destination....there was a beachy one and Paris! It was so cool! Definitely check out the bathrooms if you ever go here! 

And I'm not talking about this kind of bathroom either lol!


After our bellies were full we got back on the road and headed straight to the expo. It's a very small expo but it held at Varsity Sports which is an awesome running store! I love their slogan..."Run Hard, Live Easy!" We of course had to shop some too and I may have bought a new Oiselle shirt! ;-) 

We grabbed our numbers and shirts and took a quick picture with Joe Relaxo


I really really like the shirt this year!


Like I said...this expo wasn't that big. They had a few tents for some local races, Team in Training (where we made a sign), and Mizuno was there having people write haiku's for a chance to win some shoes. 




After packet pickup we headed to our hotel to relax before dinner. We stayed in the same hotel we stayed at last year...it is super clean, we got a great deal, and the hotel staff are super nice! And another plus...it was only about 8 minutes away from the start line of the race! 

For dinner we made reservations at the same Italian place we ate at last year...Bosco's Italian Cafe.


Gina and Paige got a Mufalata and me, Angela, and Donna (another Sole2Soul Sister that met us there with her son and husband) got Spaghetti and Meatballs. 

Here's the HUGE Mufalata!


And my plate of spaghetti with the biggest meatballs I've ever seen!!!


Hehe!!! And no....I could not even eat one whole meatball lol!


After dinner we all started getting really sleepy and were ready for bed! I got my race gear and outfit all ready for the morning and then it was lights out at 9 PM.


Part 2 tomorrow......

QOTD: What is your favorite meal the night before a race?

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