New Orleans (PRWEB) April 08, 2014
The Allstate Sugar Bowl Crescent City Classic is now gearing up for its 36th race, held this year on Saturday, April 19.
The race went through a complete overhaul last year, including a new course, and the shakeup has received nothing but positive reviews.
“We received an overwhelmingly positive response to the entire event last year, and we’re excited to be taking those changes into their second year,” said Race Director Eric Stuart.
Registration continues to grow, with last year’s race having over 23,000 participants. This year, Stuart estimates that the number will grow to over 25,000. The Classic is expected to reach participant capacity with 30,000 runners by 2016.
The Classic has always been a popular tradition for locals in New Orleans, but recently the race has seen a large uptick in out-of-town participants who use it to plan a trip to New Orleans during Easter weekend.
“We always have runners travel for the race, but it is mainly along the Gulf South. This year, we have a substantial amount of runners coming to the event from all along the East Coast and other parts of the country,” said Laine Thomas, Classic Event Coordinator. “We’re excited to see the race become a tourism draw for the city.”
Race organizers have made an effort to expand the Classic into a full event and festival celebration, something New Orleans knows best. The Classic weekend kicks off with the Health and Fitness Expo, which takes place on April 17 and 18 at the Hyatt Regency on Loyola Avenue. The expo is free and open to the public and will feature a number of demonstrations from local fitness clubs, with classes such as yoga and crossfit. Race registration will be available at the expo, and registered runners can pick up their race packet and bib number.
The race starts at 8:00 a.m.. The current course debuted last year and begins in front of Champions Square, goes through Jackson Square in the French Quarter and then heads up Esplanade Avenue and into City Park.
Immediately following the race is the Michelob Ultra RaceFest, an experience unique to the Classic. The fest will feature live entertainment by Bonerama & Big Sam’s Funky Nation with free food and beer to all participants. Non-race participants can enter the fest for $5.
For the first time, the Classic has partnered with various New Orleans hotels to offer participants discounted hotel rates. The full list of hotels can be found at http://www.ccc10k.com/hotels.html.
To learn more about the Allstate Sugar Bowl Crescent City Classic, and the entire race series, please visit http://www.ccc10k.com.
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About the Allstate Sugar Bowl Crescent City Classic
The Allstate Sugar Bowl Crescent City Classic is the Gulf South’s premier road race, and each year attracts over 20,000 runners. For 36 years, the Classic has combined world-class competition, amateur participation and great fun for all participants. The Classic is both physically challenging and a great New Orleans tradition!
About the Allstate Sugar Bowl
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier bowl games in the country, having hosted 23 national champions, 86 Hall of Fame players, 46 Hall of Fame coaches and 15 Heisman Trophy winners in its 80-year history. The 81st Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic on January 1, 2015 will be an integral part of a new era in college football as it will be one of the first national semifinal games in the College Football Playoff which begins with the 2014 season. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee is involved with various community initiatives through hosting and sponsorships of sporting events, awards and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors over 13,000 student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2 billion into the local economy in the last decade. For more information, visit http://www.AllstateSugarBowl.org.