2017 was a change up year for the Katy Half Marathon this was because the city of Houston hosted the Super Bowl and two weeks before the original race date of February 4th the organizers had to delay the race by one week because there was a shortage of law enforcement to keep the course safe for the participants. This effected runners is various ways because the next week also had several races taking place around Houston. The organizers did allow people to switch to one of 2 other races in the same series or complete a virtual race option. For those who raced on the 11th the biggest change this created was in the temperature for the race. Texas weather is unpredictable at best and this year it's been changing from cold to warm within a week. The last two years it was in the 40's at the start of the race. This year it was in the lower 70's which is pretty warm for running hard.

The packet pickup was held at the local water park Typhoon Texas making for plenty of parking and a well organized packet pickup. The packet contained the race number, race shirt and some coupons.

The race starts and ends at Katy Mills mall which has plenty of parking right next to the start or finish lines even minutes before the race start. There are plenty of bathrooms setup and the mall opens its doors to the runners for access to additional restrooms and a place to stay out of the elements. This is a big plus on cold years. The starting area is organized by pace groups with signs to make lining up easy it easy.
The course is very flat with only a few feet of elevation over the length and is held on the main roads of Katy/Cinco Ranch. Almost the entire course is accessible to spectators making for plenty of cheering. There are plenty of water stops along the course and you finish back in the mall parking lot.

The half marathon runners got a finishers hoodie this year. This changes each year. The first year it was a coffee cup or Beer Glass and a Jacket on the second year of the race. There is no shortage of food for the runners with tables to sit at and local micro brews onsite. The awards ceremonies were held on time and there was a big crowd cheering on those who were finishing right up to the cutoff.

This was again a well organized race and I plan to keep participating in years to come.