This is a small town race that starts and finishes at the No Label Brewery in Katy Texas.
The race packet pickup is held at the brewery and is well organized with volunteers who keep things moving. You can also hang out and enjoy a beer if you like.

The race is well organized and the start and finish is the same. The course is marked for each turn and it was easy to follow. The only thing to be aware of is that the start is along a dirt road with potholes and your running in a tight pack of people making it hard to see your footing as you finish your spaced out better but your tired and running hard along the same road so be careful.

The after party is great with water, sports drink and beer. They also have live music and to a good job getting the results up. There are also food trucks on site for additional purchase.

Overall I haven't participated in an Ironman branded even that wasn't well run. The Ironman Texas 70.3 held on Galveston is no exception to this.
Leading up to the race you receive updates of the schedule for the weekend which includes checking times, athlete briefings and deadlines.
When you arrive to the race to check it the process is well organized and efficient. Even with they have had a small hiccup like this year where all the All World Athletes (AWA) who also race under a tri team name were inadvertently removed from the check in list. When I arrived on Saturday they had a process to deal with this in place and I was able to get checked in quickly.
This is a smaller Ironman Race so if your planning on getting any race specific merchandise like the ever popular name shirts I recommend getting to the check in early or on the first day if possible. This year they ran out of all but small and XXL size shirts on Saturday afternoon but they did receive additional on race morning due to one of the trucks getting held up from making the delivery on time.
The 2017 race forecast was or terrible weather. It was predicted to have everything short of an actual hurricane. Then again this is Texas and April is a very unpredictable time of year when it comes to weather. Actual race day had high winds which provided a strong cross wind on the bike course and was mostly overcast. The rain, lightening, hale and tornadoes never arrived.
The forecast did effect the overall crowd size of those racing and spectating for a noticeably smaller turnout.
The race itself was very well run with the swim was everything I expected being in an inter coastal waterway with a little current and small waves. The bike course had it's interesting moments with the high wind gusts but was ok as long as you kept your head in the race and the run as usual proved to be warmer and more humid than expected.

This is a good first 70.3 race for anyone. It's known for being windy and hot but the course is very clear and flat throughout with only some minor inclines on the run.

This is a great race as 2017 was the first time I ran it. This race is a half marathon only so everything is setup to support the runners at that distance.

Packet pickup was easy and located at UTC (University Town Center) mall at the Fit2Run store. It was well organized and easy. In the packet you get a few samples, race shirt, bib and pins. You could pick up your packet on Friday or Saturday.

The race itself also had race day entry open when we arrived. Parking was simple and easy at the Van Wezel concert hall. We were able to park one row over from the start/finish line which was nice for dropping run gear off and changing to dry cloths.
The race starts out running over the Ringling Bridge around St. Armand's Circle and back over the bridge. This is the only significant incline and it's nice that its early in the race. The race then runs to the John Ringling Museum of art and back to the Van Wezel for the finish.

At the finish line there is live music. A pancake breakfast and a beer garden on the water for the participants. There was even a circus performer there this year.

The race was well organized with plenty of water stations and restrooms located along the course with views of some of Sarasota's landmarks along the way. Race photos were also included in the entry which is another positive and the race medal is huge.

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.

This was another well organized Houston race.

Parking can be tough to find. It can range from just a few dollars up to $30 depending on the parking lot and how long you will be parked. For the expo we managed to find one right next to the finish line that was $7 for the day. On race day we parked in a lot a about 3 blocks from the convention center for $20 and saw prices as high as $30 as we walked to the race.

The expo is held on the upper floors of the convention center and is huge. The check it is very efficient with the check in stations separated by race bib number. The expo itself has lots of vendors with free and discounted items along with various activities. We spent about an hour walking through the expo.

This race is nice because the initial race meeting location is on the bottom floor of the convention center keeping you out of the elements until just before the race start when everyone heads out the doors to the corrals. It's all very well organized.

In the corrals they have additional bathrooms located at each pace marker. The lines for these can get long. Once the race starts through you will have a bathroom option at mile 1 and at every water station. The race committee puts out enough that I never say anyone waiting.

The water stations are huge and located every few miles. The first item will be Gatorade followed by water. This is identifiable by the green Gatorade cups and white water cups and signs. There is even beer at mile 20.

The race itself starts off very flat through downtown Houston. The big inclines are under and overpasses with rolling hills starting around mile 17-18. There not very big but at that point in a marathon they become a real challenge.

As you enter downtown for the last 1.5 miles it gets very flat again for the finish.

The course is laid out so that it passes through many of the downtown neighborhoods, Rice University area and then more neighborhood areas in west Houston returning through Memorial park. It makes spectating easy with many options and you will have people cheering for most of the race which is great if you feed off the crowd support.

2017 was a warm and humid race giving an added challenge. The exact opposite of the year before. That’s a Texas winter for you.

After the race everyone is directed into the finisher area for pictures, gear pickup etc… Once you leave this area you wont be allowed back in. I tried. It's strictly enforced by convention center security not volunteers. There are changing areas located in the finisher area hidden off to the right of the finisher shirt pickup and out in the family meet up area.

I can't speak for the after race food because I left the area to cheer on my wife and couldn't get back in.

I still recommend this race to everyone.