If you’ve lived in New Orleans for longer than 12 months, there’s a good chance someone has asked you if you’re going to the track for Thanksgiving. 

If you’ve never heard that question, well, “The Track” is the Fair Grounds racetrack in Mid City. They’ve been celebrating opening day of the horse-racing season there on Thanksgiving Day since 1892.

124 years later, in 2019, Ingrid Anderson - a New Orleans makeup artist, designer, and all-around creative person - came up with an alternative event. She called it Human Horse Races. Initially it was for people who appreciate local tradition, but aren’t so keen on how racehorses are treated.

Human Horse Races has all the style and excitement of opening day at The Track, except at the Human Horse Races, races are run by humans - wearing horse heads. At the premiere event, Ingrid expected - if all her friends came - she’d have a maximum of 75 people. 300 people showed up. That was an early indication of how things were going to go.

Today, Human Horse Races attracts thousands of people, some of whom also go to the traditional Thanksgiving race day at the track.

If Ingrid has dreams of turning Human Horse Races into a major mainstream event, or growing it beyond New Orleans, she's sitting across the table from the person she needs to meet: Lisa LaCour.

Lisa is Founder and CEO of The Vault Collective, a business strategy company based in New Orleans. The company draws on Lisa’s experience as a business strategist for companies like AOL, Comcast, Mattel, MGM, and Madison Square Garden.

Here in New Orleans, among others, Lisa has worked with Idea Village, Wristbnd, and The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. But, in business, as in other aspects of life, although the straight line from A to B might be the most obvious, it’s not the most fun. And often not the most profitable.

Without mixing too many metaphors, being able to see around the corner and find a way for the destination to become the journey is a particular talent. It’s called “creativity” and when it’s applied to business by talented people like Ingrid and Lisa, it combines and transforms the demanding necessity of financial enrichment into the rewarding enrichment of life itself.

Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Orleans. You can find photos from this show by Jill Lafleur at itsneworleans.com.

If you&rsquo;ve lived in New Orleans for longer than 12 months, there&rsquo;s a good chance someone has asked you if you&rsquo;re going to the track for Thanksgiving.&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;ve never heard that question, well, &ldquo;The Track&rdquo; is the Fair Grounds racetrack in Mid City. They&rsquo;ve been celebrating opening day of the horse-racing season there on Thanksgiving Day since 1892.
124 years later, in 2019, Ingrid Anderson - a New Orleans makeup artist, designer, and all-around creative person - came up with an alternative event. She called it <a href="https://www.humanhorseraces.com/">Human Horse Races</a>. Initially it was for people who appreciate local tradition, but aren&rsquo;t so keen on how racehorses are treated.
Human Horse Races has all the style and excitement of opening day at The Track, except at the Human Horse Races, races are run by humans - wearing horse heads. At the premiere event, Ingrid expected - if all her friends came - she&rsquo;d have a maximum of 75 people. 300 people showed up. That was an early indication of how things were going to go.
Today, Human Horse Races attracts thousands of people, some of whom also go to the traditional Thanksgiving race day at the track.
If Ingrid has dreams of turning Human Horse Races into a major mainstream event, or growing it beyond New Orleans, she's sitting across the table from the person she needs to meet: Lisa LaCour.
Lisa is Founder and CEO of <a href="https://thevaultcollective.co/">The Vault Collective</a>, a business strategy company based in New Orleans. The company draws on Lisa&rsquo;s experience as a business strategist for companies like AOL, Comcast, Mattel, MGM, and Madison Square Garden.
Here in New Orleans, among others, Lisa has worked with Idea Village, Wristbnd, and The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University.
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. But, in business, as in other aspects of life, although the straight line from A to B might be the most obvious, it&rsquo;s not the most fun. And often not the most profitable.
Without mixing too many metaphors, being able to see around the corner and find a way for the destination to become the journey is a particular talent. It&rsquo;s called &ldquo;creativity&rdquo; and when it&rsquo;s applied to business by talented people like Ingrid and Lisa, it combines and transforms the demanding necessity of financial enrichment into the rewarding enrichment of life itself.
Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://thecolumns.com/">Columns in Uptown New Orleans</a>. You can find photos from this show by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lafleurphoto.com/">Jill Lafleur</a> at <a href="https://pod.fo/e/609be4">itsneworleans.com</a>.

OUT TO LUNCH finds economist and Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Olreans. In his 15th year in the host seat, Ricchiuti’s learned but uniquely NOLA informal perspective has established Out to Lunch as the voice of Crescent City business. You can also hear the show on WWNO 89.9FM.

OUT TO LUNCH finds economist and Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Olreans. In his 15th year in the host seat, Ricchiuti&rsquo;s learned but uniquely NOLA informal perspective has established Out to Lunch as the voice of Crescent City business. You can also hear the show on WWNO 89.9FM.

Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch at Commander's Palace restaurant.

It's New Orleans: Out to Lunch

OUT TO LUNCH finds the country's most entertaining finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch. Each week Peter invites guests from the New Orleans business world to join him for a midday bite. CEO's, startups, managers, musicians, biomed needle-movers, tech success stories and entrepreneurs of all stripes put aside the elevator pitch and talking points and actually enjoy themselves. It's business, New Orleans style. 
You can also hear the show on WWNO 89.9FM.

OUT TO LUNCH finds the country's most entertaining finance professor <a href="https://freeman.tulane.edu/faculty-research/finance/peter-ricchiuti">Peter Ricchiuti </a>conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch. Each week Peter invites guests from the New Orleans business world to join him for a midday bite. CEO's, startups, managers, musicians, biomed needle-movers, tech success stories and entrepreneurs of all stripes put aside the elevator pitch and talking points and actually enjoy themselves. It's business, New Orleans style. You can also hear the show on <a href="https://www.wwno.org/show/out-to-lunch">WWNO 89.9FM</a>.