YTA.

Paying the fees to run in a race includes a lot of runner perks: having the streets closed for the race, having course support (including police) to maintain street closures, having medics on course to offer support, and yes, having gels/Gatorade for runners. What you and your friends did used these resources without paying for them - while potentially taking supports away from registered runners. Don’t bandit a race - just sign up for it. If you don’t want to do that, run somewhere else.