Latest reviews by Marc

(2016)
"Love this race"
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Elevation Difficulty
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I've raced several marathons and this one is at the top of the list for fun.
The expo is at the convention center in downtown San Diego which can be reached by walking, taxi, trolley you name it. There is lots taking place on the waterfront area making for plenty of things to do in the area.

At the expo you can purchase bus tickets from Horton Plaza (mall downtown) to the race start line. We did this and were glad. The line is long so you need to be patient but it's well organized and moves quickly. There were some people who didn't wait and tried to walk fast to the start which is on the edge of Balboa Park at a much higher elevation. We saw them just arriving as we pulled up on the bus right to the start corrals.

Like most Rock n' Roll expos there are is plenty to see and do at the expo so plan to spend some time there.

Race morning we walked from our hotel to the mall for the bus. Easy walk just follow all the other people if your not familiar with the area.

At the start there is a large grass area with lots of bathrooms setup. The lines are long but they do move at a good pace. We found that if you walk around you could find some with shorter lines. I guess everyone lined up at the first area they see but they are setup all the way to the start line.

The race isn't very flat. It actually has some very hefty downhills and climbs. Some in the beginning and a very long climb at the end. You run from Balboa Park through North Park, Normal Heights (highest elevation area) and Hillcrest this is where you approach the steepest and longest downhill as you head to historic Old Town. You then stay relatively flat as you run around mission bay with a steady incline through mission valley. At this point you enter the interstate 163 and have a mile long hill with a 220 ft elevation change. They actually divert traffic in a major road and give you the entire southbound direction to run on. After that it’s a steady downhill through Balboa Park again and finishing downtown.

Now this is one of the most interesting marathons I've run from a spectator standpoint. As you run through North Park, Normal heights and Hillcrest the community really gets involved with their own aid stations setup outside their homes with music, bands, martinis (yes you read that right and for the runners) and other craziness. The vibe is great. There are also two traffic boxes where they change the route every 2 mins or so and redirect the runners to the opposite side of the block while sending cars and city busses the other way. It worked surprisingly well.

The only two areas that don't have a heavy presents of spectators is around the first section of mission bay and while running on the 163. This is mostly I think because there isn't any easy access by cars or walking.

The finish is awesome. It's downhill so you look great and fast no mater how tired you are. They then have lots of food and drinks for you immediately after the finish where you then head down to the waterfront on the edge of Little Italy for live music, jacket pickup and additional free stuff.

I would do this race again in a heartbeat.

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(2016)
"Great Family Run"
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I raced this in 2016 with my 8 year old son. It's a great race that is very family friendly. The route is very flat and the only trouble area is the start and finish which is on a gravel road that isn't very even.
The aid stations were spaced well and parking wasn't that difficult. The location has limited parking but the race organizers arranged parking along some of the streets as well as a local church.

The after party had food and beer. Even with the large turnout the lines weren't to long a wait considering. The awards ceremony was great and they had some additional door prizes that were drawn using the bib numbers of anyone they saw still present during the awards.

Considering the time of year and the heat in Texas this race was still great and I recommend it to everyone.

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(2016)
"Ironman Texas"
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This event over all is well organized. 2016 was a challenge with local politics, construction, flooding in the area and the organizers still managed to hold a top notch event.

The check in is during the week a few days before the race and is held inside IRONMAN village. As long as you have your USAT card and ID ready they check you in with all your swag, gear bags, numbers etc… You exit through the IRONMAN merchandise tent and I recommend you arrive prepared to make any purchases at this time. Items like the name shirt will sell out very fast.

The village itself has a lot of activity from vendors, mechanics, athlete tracker pick up, athlete orientation, volunteer check in and meetings with the pro racers.

For the gear drop have all your bags ready and sealed up before arriving. I also recommend you mark your bag with some colored tape to help it stand out. You will check in at each gear drop (2016 had a split transition because of changes to the course the day before due to heavy rains) your bike will also be dropped off the day before so be prepared to air up tires the morning of.

Parking can be tricky if your not staying within walking distance of the main race site. We found it east to park on the south side of the woodlands waterway. There is an orange and green parking lot located in there that always had parking throughout the weekend and doesn’t cost anything like some of the parking garages.

The morning of the race plan to arrive early. There are thousands of racers and each one is checked before being allowed into the transition area. They will also be making announcements on the water temperature in the transitions areas. For 2016 the swim start was located inside of T2 because of the changes to the swim course caused T2 to be moved. In past years you would walk from transition to the swim start with your swim gear. I thought it worked very well with the swim start and T2 being in the same spot. You were able to get your bike ready and then walk over and get lined up for the rolling start.

The race itself is very well supported with water/food stops about every 10 miles on the bike course and every mile on the run course. The community also gets into the race with people cheering from houses or setting up water hoses to cool off runners if it's not.

This was my first full IRONMAN and the course is challenging with the Texas temperatures but if you stick to your plan and trust your training it's a great race.

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(2016)
"Fast 70.3"
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This race is held at Moody Gardens on Galveston Island located south east of Houston Texas. I had a blast at this race with great volunteers and crowd support. 2016 was a hot year for April making it a fast and hot race.

The expo or more commonly known as IRONMAN village is held outside with several of the top triathlon vendors with everything from socks to helmets, bike mechanics/rentals and nutrition. It's not big for the size of the event but is on par with other IRONMAN events.

The check in is well organized and held inside a large tent. At each station make sure that you have the correct number for your packet, bibs, race numbers, timing chip etc… when I checked in the volunteers reversed one of my numbers at one of the stations and I had to go back and get it fixed.

The race is held on Sunday and they allow you to check in on Friday and Saturday. Bike check in is only available Saturday afternoon and parking should be available with athletes coming and leaving throughout the afternoon. You may have to park in a lot further away so be prepared to drive around a bit or to walk. Not an issue other than getting back to your car after checking in to get your bike.

Galveston traffic in the area can be slow with the event so if your arriving from off the island make sure you know to take the first exit after the bridge. Also arrive early on race day.

On race day it's about a half mile walk from transition to the swim start so make sure you have the time to get there especially if your in one of the first swim waves.

The swim itself is in an intercostal bay but can still have rough water or current depending on the tide. Being a Texas waterway there is a chance of having oyster beds on the bottom. This wont be an issue if you swim all the way into the exit where it will be sand and a ramp extended out into the water.

The bike course runs the length of the island heading south. Galveston is known for being windy however it will most likely be a cross wind making the bike course still very fast. The aid stations are well stocked and manned.

The run is a 3 loop run around Moody Gardens. There are some small hills and the sun can make the sections on the road very hot. They do have ice and cooling stations setup with many of the aid stations and there are lots of locations for spectators to watch. You run along the water front for part of the course which will be cooler then on the road. Near the finish there is a playground located behind the check in tent that a lot of families let the kids play on while they cheer.

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(2016)
"First Annual Race"
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2016 was the first year for this event and is the same day as the Woodlands Marathon and half Marathon which I'm sure made the crowd for this race a little smaller. The Packet pickup is very low key. In the race bag you get a water bottle and some coupons for local sponsors and the race shirt which was a long sleeve tech shirt.

The race itself starts at the Cross Creek community center just as the sun is setting.
The race organizers hand out some lights and glow sticks to the runners but they aren’t very well made and most of them ended up on the road as they came unlatched.

As you start the race you run towards the setting sun to do a small horseshoe section of the development that has two out and backs. You will probably wish you had your sun glasses for this part of the race. The turn points for this section wasn't very clearly marked. The turns are at dead ends down a new road.

The course then takes you north east up the main drive of the development onto the nature trails and back up to the northern most portion of the development. You have a few more out and back sections in the newly developed areas. At the time of this race there were no houses built yet and they had generator powered lights. The turns were clearer because the road had a small planter in the middle to go around.

The race ends with a long stretch of run the length of the development down the main road with cones separating you from the traffic and then into a small section right next to the finish. The main road has street lights making it easy to see. The last little loop section has lights on the road but they are completely blocked by the trees for the sidewalk. You will want a head lamp for this part of the course. It’s not clear if the course follows the road or the side walk. In 2016 it was on the sidewalk but we saw many runners near the end of the race who could not tell which was the correct way and the last finishers didn't even see that the course went that way and cut it short because the finish is in a well lit parking lot to the left and an empty road to the right.

The rout will most likely be adjusted on 2017 with the fast development in the area but be aware that you will likely wish you had both your sun glasses and a headlamp.

The after party has beer and Pizza for the racers. There is a playground for the kids but it did take a very long time for the awards ceremony to take place and made it a very late evening for anyone with small kids.

For a low key local race I recommend this.

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