The Houston Half Marathon was a great experience for me! This is not to be confused with the Aramco Houston Half Marathon, which takes place around January of each year. It's part of the "warm up series" for people training for the Chevron Houston Marathon.

The course was well mapped out, with a portion going through downtown, Allen Parkway and even Memorial Park. There were a few mild hills, which I think is kind of nice; other than that, the course is pretty flat.

The atmosphere was awesome, with people cheering everywhere. The race itself was just large enough that there was a palpable excitement, but small enough that runners weren't tripping over one another.

Water/aid stations and bathrooms were plentiful and well-staffed. Power Bar product was also available on the course near mile 7, which was a nice touch even though I didn't use it. If I had one recommendation about this, it would be to have the product on the course a little bit earlier, since it can take a while to take effect.

Parking is downtown, which can be pricey and kinda tricky. If you have friends or family trying to meet you/cheer you on during the race, they may have to park a little far away from the course itself because the roads are blocked off pretty well. That's pretty normal for Houston, though.

I loved the Asics race shirt, and the medal was pretty cool.

The weather near the end of October is usually in the 60's, which is also nice for Texas.

Currently, registration is only $65. It has gone up from last year, but it's still a pretty low entry fee considering all the perks they have. Proceeds benefit local organizations.

Overall it was an awesome race, and I'm looking forward to running it again this year.

I would recommend this race to both first-time and experienced runners... if you want to run a 13.1 race or 10K in Houston, sign up for this one!