Expo/Packet Pick-up
This expo has been held for decades at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston. This venue is "ginormous" as my son likes to say, being quite spacious to say the least. Packet pickup there is always well organized, in particular when you consider that the event traditionally sells out at its current cap of 25,000 participants combined between the full and half marathon races. The packet pickup area this year was moved (for whatever reason) to a different hall from where the vendors are, but it is still on the same floor of the convention center. I guess the move might have been done in an attempt to create more space for the vendors and to clearly separate the two areas. Within seconds of entering the very large ballroom-style room for packet pick-up, I was approached by a friendly volunteer lady who asked if I needed help looking up my bib number and registration. After she found my number on her iPad, she walked me to a booth area in the room where my bib would be, and handed her iPad with my registration info to another volunteer who scanned the QR code displayed on the iPad and asked to see my ID to confirm my identity. He found my bib packet, confirmed with me it was the correct name on it, and explained to me where to go next to get my participant t-shirt (pictured) and browse the expo. I was literally in and out of the packet pick up in less than 3-4 minutes and zero confusion or hassles. It is quite clear not only that they have perfected the process over the years, but that they also know how to staff it with the right amount of volunteers.

Living nearby in the Houston suburbs makes this Expo a great opportunity for me to buy any running gear I may be needing for good, discounted prices, so I generally go to it even if I'm not running in one of the races. There are always plenty of vendors offering the latest and greatest gear as well as representatives of big races from across the country and the state. This year I enjoyed chatting with representatives from the Big Sur International Marathon and the Route 66 Marathon as those are events that have been on my radar for a bit and I'm considering doing. Interestingly enough, this year it felt as if there were less vendors altogether, and that there weren't as many booths or products being offered as in years past. For example, I tried to find a vendor booth I've seen there in the past carrying a large variety of colorful arm warmers, and couldn't find it. A friend of mine who attended had the same impression; that there appeared to be not as many vendors as in years past.

Race Day, Course, and Support
I drove downtown with my friend Mel and parked at the nearby Toyota Center garage which is only 3 blocks away. Parking in downtown Houston can be a challenge as it is the case in most cities that large. You can find yourself circling around several city blocks looking for either an open metered spot or a parking lot that charges reasonable parking fees. This year, a running club we're affiliated with, the Cypress Running Club, offered an awesome discounted park deal of $5 to its members at the Toyota Center garage. I am very glad to have taken advantage of the offer, as it took the hassle and guesswork out of where I'd be parking, at quite a reasonable cost of $5 to be so close to the convention center.

Once there, we gathered with friends and team members for group photos and I then headed for the port-a-potties to avoid having to use them during the race. Even though there were A LOT of port-a-potties available at the convention center, there were several hundred runners lining up for them. I estimate that each line had approximately 60-70 people waiting and they all appeared to be moving extremely slow, but I felt I had no choice but to go then (which was incorrect) and not wait until later, or I'd pay the price during the race---so I lined-up and waited patiently. The line took so long that by the time I exited and got out to the corrals, I had missed my corral closure time (7:00am) and had to then go into corral C, the next one that was open and due to start (7:15am). On my way to corral C, I noticed that there were plenty of port-a-potties available near it, and most of them were either empty or with only 1-2 people waiting in line, so that would have been a much better/smarter option. I regretted not thinking ahead and realizing that those would be there as that would have saved me all that time I spent earlier at the lines inside the convention center.

Approximately 10 minutes after entering the corral, we were released and able to start the race. Soon after, I was pleasantly surprised at how easily I was able to establish my target pace without having to weave in and out and dodge a lot of the runners ahead of me. I feel that this was due to a change in the wave release times between each corral and the gap they were allowing in between, so the crowds ahead of us were smaller than in previous years. Kudos to the race management for that change, I definitely noticed the difference and feels it makes for a more enjoyable race. I last ran this race two years ago in 2016 and do not remember if the first 3-4 miles were the same then as they were this year, but definitely recall that 5 years ago that segment was different and not as enjoyable as it is now. On this new course, the route is straighter and on a wider street during those first few miles, so things felt a lot roomier and comfortable.

All along the course there are plenty of spectators, music bands, cheerleaders, and support groups literally from beginning to end. Despite the temperature being in the low 30s at start time, the crowds were out in force and in great spirits everywhere. I laughed, high-fived, and truly enjoyed all of the music they were playing as I progressed. The hydration stations were plentiful, spaced about 1.5 miles apart beginning at mile 2. They were well-organized and staffed, with plenty of volunteers handing out Gatorade Endurance (a formula with a higher sodium content to help sustain hydration better) on the first set of tables at each station, then water on the second set. Unlike some other races, I felt that the mix of Gatorade Endurance they provided was perfect with the correct strength and not diluted at all, so kudos to race management in that respect as well. They also had a Clif Energy Gel station between miles 9 and 10, but I always opt to carry the gels I train with instead. As far as elevation and difficulty go, I would rate this course as an optimal race to run a PR on, as it is extremely flat throughout with a mix of asphalt and concrete surface and not a lot of turns. One perfect example of this was that of Molly Huddle's, who just broke Deena Kastor's American record in the half marathon yesterday, a record which had stood since 2006 (click HERE to read a full-article on her amazing accomplishment. I was also very fortunate to run fast and strong on this course yesterday and improved on my previous personal record by 54 seconds, to a finish of exactly 1:59:00 for the 13.1 miles.

Right after finishing and receiving the medal, you enter back into the convention center for the post-race food and collecting of the finishers' t-shirt and checked gear bags. There was plenty of post-race food, consisting of ice cream sandwiches, egg and sausage biscuits, chocolate milk, fruit, granola bars, etc. The center, being a covered and indoor facility that is so large and spacious makes it very easy and comfortable to find an area to stretch and gather with friends and family.

Across the street from the convention center and adjacent to the finish line there is a large park, called Discovery Green, where various vendors and organizations setup tents for post-race festivities, refreshments, and promotions. After meeting my wife at the convention center, we went there to relax and to keep an eye out for our friend Mel who was running the full marathon. We were tracking her progress through the Houston Marathon App the race publishes and makes available for both Apple and Android devices. We found the app to be quite accurate in pinpointing exactly where she was on the course (and that is not always the case with some races). In fact, you could actually see the icon representing her location on the map move every few seconds as she moved. With this frequent and reliable update from the app, we went to the finish line to cheer her on as she got within the last mile, and were there as she crossed and recorded a video we shared with her afterwards.

Conclusion
From beginning to end, this was a great event. I feel this is a top-notch race that is extremely well-organized and supported in every aspect. I would definitely run it again, and would also recommend it to anyone considering it.

Registration:
Registration for this race was easy-peasy, done online in just a couple of minutes on a well-designed page and form.

Packet Pick-up/Expo:
The packet pickup and expo was held at the executive club level inside Minute Maid Park, the homefield stadium of the Houston Astros. There were quite a few signs outside to leave no doubt where to enter the stadium for the expo. I left quite impressed with not only the location, but also with the entire process from beginning to end. They had plenty of friendly and knowledgeable staff on hand for everything, from handing out GREAT dark chocolate near the entrance, to the bib pick-up, to the convenient goodie bag area where you could try on the great running jacket included on the packet, and swap it if it did not fit correctly. This is not a common accommodation on a lot of events, so this race clearly distinguishes itself by doing this. Even though there weren't a ton of vendors, it felt as if you could find most of the running gear you'd be looking for or needing. The overall feel I left with when walking out is that the organizers form a quality outfit that has this process down and polished and clearly know what they are doing.

Swag: The main swag item (and a GREAT one at that) was a neatly designed running jacket with a 1/4 zip top running jacket made of a 90/10 polyester/spandex blend with the race logo and branding on the front/left side and on one of the arm sleeves.

Start Line: The start line was conveniently located immediately next to Hermann Square/City Hall, where bag drop off and the runners' gathering area was located. There was plenty of room and areas such as benches and wide walkways to stretch and relax prior to the race. It took less than 1 minute to walk to the starting corral. Start waves were staggered nicely to accommodate the various paces as estimated during the sign-up process.

Weather: Got lucky this year and in my opinion the climate was literally perfect for racing---at start time the temps were in the low 50s, with an overcast sky and little to no wind the entire route.

Course & Support:
The bulk of the course was along Allen Parkway, from the edge of downtown to just a few blocks from Memorial Park and back. There were quite a few inclines on it, in particular on the way back between miles 6 and 9. Nothing crazy though; all quite doable. The hydration stations had plenty of volunteers with a set of Nuun electrolyte on blue cups first, water on white cups second. In addition, each station had a table of some treat such as gummy bears, and yes, you guessed it, chocolate. In the middle of the race I heard a few runners here and there comment that they thought they'd be more hydration stations, but I felt there were sufficient. I never felt myself wondering how much longer to the next station or that they were spaced too far apart. In my opinion, on a 15K race you shouldn't need more than 3-4 stations at most. If you do, you're probably not prepared properly for the distance.

Finish Line/Medal/Food:
The finish line had plenty of volunteers handing out medals and water and was quite wide with plenty of room for runners to walk or greet friends and family on the sides. The medal is a large, chocolate bar unwrapped at the top that makes it appear that you're about to eat it, and it's a neat, unique design---definitely a keeper. The post-race food was, as expected, all themed around chocolate, with delicious dark hot chocolate, marshmallows, etc. It truly is good, quality chocolate believe me. I consider myself a chocolate-snob and theirs passes the test with flying colors.

Conclusion:
I enjoyed literally just about every aspect of this race. There wasn't a component that I felt was not done professionally and with thought behind it, and I would definitely recommend doing it to anyone considering signing up.

Just ran this race this past Sunday for the 3rd year in a row. This time I ran the half and last year I ran the half relay with my wife.

First, I'd say that about the only negative aspect for some people regarding this race would be the following: there is NO convention to speak of whatsoever. None, zero, zilch. Now, I love going to race with great conventions probably as much as most runners do, but honestly for this race I could care less about not having a convention. Perhaps I feel that way because this is a local race for me as I have lived here in Cypress for the last 13 years so I don't have to travel at all for it so it's not a destination race for me.

If you don't mind not having a convention, then there are plenty of positives to consider doing this race. The packet pickup is well organized and quick, in and out in less than 5 minutes. The bib is personalized with your name or whatever phrase you want it and the gear you get at the finish has been GREAT all 3 years. This year it was your choice of either a headsweats visor (pictured) or hat at pickup, then an AWESOME tech shirt and medal to all finishers. Last year, instead of the visor or hat, the extra item besides the tech shirt was a nice, solid gym bag you can actually use for more than just a couple of times. The year prior to that, it was a coffee mug with the race logo/emblem. It is clear they like to keep things fresh and have a variety of swag items as part of the race incentives, and in my opinion, it works. In addition, every year they include free professional digital photos as part of the package. In both prior years the photos have been of high-quality and much better free than some other races in which they have tried to sell me a package of photos, so needless to say that is a huge, icing-on-top type of bonus.

The race start and finish are both adjacent to one of the local high schools that has large parking lots on all sides so getting there and parking for the start is a breeze as well as exiting post-race. There are plenty of port-a-potties near the start and even though this year I didn’t need to use them at all, when I walked by them on my way to the start line I noticed that the lines were fairly short, maybe 6-7 runners in line for each one maximum. The race course is a perfectly flat, out and back loop that is well-designed in my opinion, with the bulk of it going through a nice master-planned community with nice houses, landscaping, and lakes to look at. There are just a few turns, all through roads that are nice and wide and in great shape. The hydration stations are set apart approximately 1.5-2 miles and staffed with plenty of volunteers. There are pace teams for just about every pace possible in 15-minute increments. This year I decided to follow the 2:00 hour pace team from the start and stuck to them for the bulk of the race and ended up with a PR of 1:59:54. The post-race is done mostly inside of the high school in the cafeteria. It fits the approximately 1,500 runners plus volunteers perfectly fine, as the high school is HUGE since it has approximately 3,500 students in enrollment. Post-race food this year was Papa John’s pizza, bananas, several choices of soda, pretzels, gummy bears, etc.

The temperature at start time (6:45am) this year was around 62F and mostly cloudy. While that doesn’t sound like the absolute best of running conditions, for me it was. I ran on a singlet and felt that the air around me for the entire race was just perfectly cool to keep me from overheating or having to slow my pace down.

The overall gist of this race is that it is well-organized and supported race with a good, convenient course and great included gear, with enough participants to be fun and yet small enough to have room around you to relax and run your best race.

The Badass Texas Half Marathon is a PERFECT name for this race, as its course and weather are truly challenging, and in order to complete it or do well in it, you MUST be a badass. This year the race was held on Sunday, August 6th, and the temperature at start time was 79F, with yes, you guessed it, 100% humidity. I was soaked with sweat with just a couple of minutes easy warm-up and dynamic stretching before the race even started. The course, which starts right across from the small but nice convention center where packet pick-up is held, is TOUGH TOUGH TOUGH (see attached elevation photo). The first couple of miles are fairly easy with a little bit of roll on the asphalt road, but then the monster, straight hills start, weaving you all through the gorgeous Cameron Park and overlooking the Brazos River for the next 6 miles. The course then exits through the campus of McClennan Community College and goes mostly flat the rest of the way for the remaining 5 miles. One very positive aspect of the course (besides its beauty) is that it is mostly covered with trees and so you run the bulk of miles 2-8 under good shade. All that shade though ends at mile 8 and you must battle the tough sun for most of the last 5 miles except a small stretch towards the end. The last stretch to the finish line is certainly quite unique, as it entails crossing the old Waco Suspension Bridge over the Brazos River into the finish chute; it is truly unforgettable. Both the swag t-shirt and finisher's medal are OUTSTANDING, maybe the best combined set I've ever got. The post race food and drinks were good as well, although not necessarily the highlight of the event. The finish/resting area is quite comfortable and pinturesque in the middle of Indian Springs Park and the "Branding the Brazos" sculptures of a longhorn cattle stampede and cowboys rounding them up.

If you're a serious runner and can make it down to Waco, this race is a "must-do" in my opinion, because its course is as beautiful and rewarding as it is challenging. The following is the address to a video review I did and posted to my Instagram account:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXdYojLhC0y/

In addition, the following is a neat video another unner posted on YouTube from the 2015 event:
https://youtu.be/-G1nirkgdMw