One of the sights you don’t always get to see are traditional Cajun Chicken 🐓 Runners or “Courir de Mardi Gras “( French for Fat Tuesday Run) Yes I said chicken runners because chasing down the chicken is involved! It’s an old Cajun French custom dating back to 19th Century when the masked costumed chicken runners would go house to house on a pilgrimage singing and dancing collecting ingredients for the communal pot of Gumbo including the chicken for the pot! You might say it’s a begging ritual of soliciting donations
We had a group of of Basile Chicken Runners visit our Krewe du Lac Cocktail Party this year! They did bring along a live chicken for show, but we didn’t have to chase it and sadly we did not enjoy a gumbo.
Our SWLA rural communities still have traditional Cajun runs on Mardi Gras Day, some you will see chicken riders on horseback, or traveling in trailers, with the most famous being held in Mamou, LA and the rural areas of Eunice & Basile.
The traditional costume includes a tall pointy hat called a “capuchon “and a hand crafted mask. Participants dress in specialized costumes, ostensibly to protect their identities! Music is as integral to Cajun Mardi Gras as food, so there is often a fiddle, or accordion player riding along with the revelers. A capitain (leader) keeps everyone in check throughout the day, barking orders in French and wrangling the party together. Anywhere from a few dozen to a few hundred people, all who set out in early morning, until the conclusion in the evening with the gumbo being served!
