Mardi Gras Run

What a disaster!
The race was held at Hospitality Point Park on Quivera Court. I had a hard time finding it, and once I did find it, I had a hard time finding parking. Plus, the construction did not make it any better upon navigation.
There was a 5K, 10K and 15K. I don’t think it mattered what race you necessarily ran because the course was a mess. Signs weren’t marked clearly, and people were just in every direction on the so-​called route.
I think the 5K and 10K finishers received the same medals, and the 15K had the medal with the decorative ribbon. The medals were cute, however, I prefer medals stating the distance ran and the date or even year if possible.
Mardi Gras is supposed to be a very festive day, and this race did not feel very Mardi Gras-​y. No throwing of the beads. No king cake. Some people did dress up in costumes, masks and adorned the purple, green and yellow color schemes — I just wish there was just a little more. I think if people flashed each other, and were drinking, the race would have some potential. lol. jk.
2015 was its inaugural race; hopefully next year (if there is a next year) will be better.

This was **not** a good race. Lots of false promises based on what was advertised in the race pamphlet and what actually happened at the race. Also, the so-​called «scenic waterfront course» was an old, narrow, running path by the bay. If you’re familiar with Mission Bay, you know running by the edge of the bay isn’t a pretty sight.
PROS:
–Parking wasn’t a hassle – I found a spot close to the start/​finish line.
–Some of the mardi gras outfits were nice to look at
–Finisher medal is bright and pretty
–Their use of Race Wire timing. I received my officisl race time (via text) in less than 2hrs after the race.
CONS:
–Race shirts look cheap and bit bland.
–Race shirts do not have the race date on them.
–Finisher medal only says «Mardi Gras 2015»… Um, did I get this from Gaslamp Mardi Gras celebrations, New Orleans, or did I actually run a race??? The point of a finisher medal is to have «run», «5K», «10K», etc somewhere on the medal.
–The PA system was horrible – you could barely hear the MC talk to us before the race.
–There was no music along the couse so I’m not sure why the race pamphlet said «Dance to the Mississippi Delta blues as you dash along our scenic waterfront course.»

I typically use Unilocal to review restaurants and attractions, however I HAD To air my grievances about this HORRIBLE experience in the event that anyone considers running a Wiz Marketing Race or hiring them for any kind of event.
I can’t echo enough of the other comments made following the Mardi Gras race. I was absolutely incensed upon finishing and searched EVERYWHERE for race officials/​volunteers to address my issue and they were either rude or bewildered about things going on at their own event.
My next step was to call the company who basically put ALL of the blame on the local police. Are you kidding me? With race registrations for the most part over $ 50, you can’t hire a teenager to hold a sign? Or ask a volunteer? Shame on you. I get it, you thought you could count on them, but when people alerted you the problem was NOT fixed but met with attitude. When speaking on the phone, the employee told me that she could not credit back any money due to spending it on the event. I’m sorry – it should be coming out of YOUR pay check. This is what your company DOES and it is an utter failure.
BEWARE those considering racing – I registered for a 10k, and on the return section of the course, there were no directional signs. Imagine crossing a bridge and seeing people running in both directions with both kinds of bibs on? What? So we ran about half a mile into the 15k/​5k course before realizing from tracking on my phone that we needed to turn back. After over 5 miles of running, this was not a fun realization.
Whats the big deal, right? Still got my exercise in! That’s true — but I also lost out on having an official time that qualifies me for a certain corral for an upcoming 15k. This is something that I have been training for SINCE AUGUST. These races are meant to be «fun», but are also really important to people that are training and care about their fitness. Not only that, my friend and I would have medalled in our age category, had we originally gone in the right direction as my phone tracked us finishing the 10k distance 4 – 5 minutes earlier.
This is really upsetting and their only offer was to «see what they could do» about maybe getting credit for me towards a future race. Not money back. Not a medal for my time. NOT EVEN A DAMN APOLOGY EMAIL TO EVERYONE WHO RACED. While I remain this upset, Wiz Marketing, be aware that I will make sure all my friends that run races, running clubs, participate in Unilocal elite, etc. know what an absolute disaster of a company you are.

Plenty or parking and a lot of friendly vendors set up for the event. Arrive early to avoid parking so far from the start of the run.