Copyright © 2008 by the New Orleans Track Club. All rights reserved.
Page last updated 04 April 2008 16:03 EDT
Course
Exciting new course! Start and finish in front of
the Louisiana Superdome! The course proceeds through the French Quarter via
world famous Bourbon Street and Royal Street (yes...right down Bourbon Street!),
then proceeds on historic St. Charles Avenue to
Audubon Park, exiting at
St. Charles Avenue and continuing down through the Garden District back to the
Superdome where the half-marathoners finish. The marathon runners continue
via Banks Street and Moss Street along picturesque Bayou St. John to a loop
through City Park and back
downtown to the finish in front of the Superdome. A fast and very flat course
with no hills and most of route below sea level.
For the safety of all participants, NO bicycles (except those of race officals), roller blades, roller skates, baby joggers, hand cycles, skateboards, headphones, or pets or other animals will be allowed on the course. NO EXCEPTIONS!
A preliminary version of the course map is now available. A detailed course description is also available.
Certification
The marathon and half-marathon courses are both USATF-certified. The USA Track and Field Road Running Technical Council Certification Code is LA08002JF for the marathon course and LA08003JF for the half-marathon course.
Time Limits
Walker friendly! Time limits are seven hours for the marathon and four hours for the half-marathon.
The course will be closed at mile 13 and beyond for marathoners that have not reached this point within three and one-half hours after the official race start. At this point all runners and walkers will be directed to the half-marathon finish. All course police traffic control is based on a minimum pace of 16:00 per mile.
Water and Aid Stations
Over sixteen fluid stations will be located on the course courtesy of The WATER COMPANY and Gatorade (more specific details will be included in the race packets). Fluid stations will be spaced one and one-half to two miles apart.
Mile Splits
Race officials will call split times at each mile on the marathon and half-marathon course.
Medical Assistance
City of New Orleans EMS Units and EMT's will be stationed along the entire route.
Chip Timing and Race Results
The New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon, Half-Marathon and 5K will use the ChampionChip timing systems to score all finishers. In order to be scored and listed in the official race results all entrants must pickup their race number and timing Chip at the Expo.
Complete results will be posted on this website soon after the race.
Past Weather Conditions
The table below lists weather conditions for February 24 of recent years as
well as average and record conditions. The data is from the National Weather
Service Daily Summary from the KNEW weather station as reported by
The Weather Underground.
| Temperature | Humidity | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Low | Mean | High | Low | Avg | High | Precip | Wind |
| Average | 48 °F | 58 °F | 67 °F | 0.19 in | ||||
| Record | 28 °F | 81 °F | 3.15 in | |||||
| 2007 | 63 °F | 68 °F | 73 °F | 68% | 76% | 84% | 0.00 in | 17 mph |
| 2006 | 54 °F | 57 °F | 60 °F | 40% | 59% | 77% | 0.10 in | 11 mph |
| 2005 | 53 °F | 58 °F | 62 °F | 84% | 92% | 100% | 0.80 in | 10 mph |
| 2004 | 55 °F | 59 °F | 62 °F | 93% | 97% | 100% | 0.35 in | 10 mph |
| 2003 | 54 °F | 63 °F | 72 °F | 51% | 72% | 87% | 0.00 in | 4 mph |
| 2002 | 48 °F | 59 °F | 70 °F | 25% | 50% | 80% | 0.00 in | 4 mph |
| 2001 | 68 °F | 74 °F | 80 °F | 71% | 80% | 91% | 0.01 in | 14 mph |
Marathon Course History
Take a historical tour of the marathon and half-marathon routes. Local amateur historian Dudley Stadler has written a course description highlighting the rich history of New Orleans which can be experienced along the route.