This was my sixth time running this race and it's one of my favorites!…read more This race is exceptionally well-organized. The communication is clear, the expo is well thought out and both the start and finish lines are models of how large races should be managed. (I will note that this year they changed how you do bib pick up and that wasn't communicated clearly the day I went to the expo. Rather than going to a booth that corresponded to your bib #, you checked in with someone with a tablet and they told you which booth to go to. There were no signs directing people to the tablet folks the day I was there, so most of us just walked up to the booths corresponding to our numbers where the people had no idea what we were there for. They need to improve that next year, but I'm not going to knock them for it) There is always so much support on the course...even though it was cold this year, still a lot of people out there and that makes a huge difference when you're running. Water stations were great, signage on the course was phenomenal and you get a lot of encouragement the last two miles. Getting your finisher shirt and hot food from HEB after the race was a breeze. The finisher shirts are okay but I will say when they had Under Armour finisher shirts, those were excellent. I've already signed up for the 2020 race and I'm looking forward to it.

This was my first year to enter this run. Before it, the longest sanctioned run that I participated…read morein was a 5 miler about 30 years ago and it was at a small town spring festival with about 250 participants. Boy, is this one different!!! Registration opens the day after the event for the next year and I signed up in January of 2018. Also by registering that early the cost to do so is the lowest and increases later. Beginning last summer, the run committee starts sending out emails reminding you of your registration and to start preparing which is helpful in case you forgot. The first aspect of this run for me was the packet pick up on the Friday and Saturday before the run. The pick up is at the GRB and requires you or your proxy (limited to one) to come down and pick up your packet that contains your all important bib, run day instruction sheet, a pre run tee shirt and your large and clear gear check bag (which I decided not to use). That part I knew from emails sent from the committee and my experience went very smoothly as it was well organized. I went at noonish on Friday and experienced no delays. Also the Expo was fun to go through and see all of the vendors and their wares. The volunteers were all super friendly and said thanks many times for entering. This warm attitude was again demonstrated many, many times by the volunteers until I left the building to go home after the run was over the next day. That single trait impressed me the most. It gave such a small town feel to such a big town event. The organizers recommend that all runners be at the GRB by 5:30 a.m. the morning of the run. I arrived at 6:30 a.m. and still had plenty of time since I do very little stretching or warmups. While the GRB was full with people there was enough room to walk around, stretch and get some water or Gatorade. The lines for the many Port A Cans inside were long but moved quickly. The run begins at 7:01 a.m. and staggers the start because of the estimated 26,000+ runners. Remember that both marathoners and half marathoners are included in that total and run about the first 8 miles together before they split off. At the start line, runners are segregated into corrals (A,B,C and D) depending on how fast they expect to run. When registering you pick your corral depending on your expected speed. I know that the A and possibly B corrals require proof to be admitted. The D corral is the slowest group and the corral I was a proud member of. Like I said, the run began at 7:01 a.m. with the A corral. It was 7:48 a.m. when I finally crossed the starting line. I expected that and why I was in no hurry to arrive earlier to the GRB that morning or even leave the GRB to walk to my corral staging area when I did at 7:10 a.m. It was cold outside and the warmth of the GRB was appreciated! Remember your time begins when YOU cross the start line so if you need to go to the bathroom one last time do it before you cross the start (there are Port A Cans besides the corrals in the staging areas). The course was flat and well marked. Every mile and every 5k has a banner on the side of the road to help you know your location. After the run is over you can look online at your 5,10,15, 20k splits and finish time as the chip in your bib helps record them. I cannot say enough about how much the people of Houston support this event. All of the people cheering you on and calling you by your first name (which is on your bib), the musical acts and the funny signs were incredible. I would have loved to stop and talk to these people, take pictures of the signs, etc. but I didn't have time...lol! Also, there were plenty of drink stations and Port A Cans along the route. After the finish line, the finisher medals were handed out and then you proceed to pick up your finisher tee shirt. HEB was serving a free hot breakfast and I considered eating but the line was long and moving slowly. I estimated at least a 15 minute wait and left. After running 13.1 miles, I didn't want to stand in a line that long. In fact, with a total experience of an event that ran so smoothly from beginning to end the breakfast was the only snafu that I witnessed. In my review, I refer to this as a run not a race. That's because I wasn't racing anyone! But I did meet my goal....by 7 seconds. This was a great experience and I was proud to be a part of it.

Who doesn't want to do a 5 mile run with bells on their shoes and some antler headgear?…read more This was such a great event, tons of sponsors, that deserve many thanks, and hats off, wait no "antlers off" to all the runners, walkers, and volunteers! This is a great family event for all ages hosting a kids-run, 3 mile run/walk, and a 5 mile run. Prior to the races kicking off there were ample things for the kids & adults alike to enjoy from rock climbing, bounce houses, games, prizes, crafts, and food! (Got my grub on post race at the Monster PBJ truck, yum, yum, and yum is all I'm going to say in their regards in this review, their goodness shall be glorified with words elsewhere beside in my tummy.) And hey you can be like me and read 5 mile as 5k (ha oops!). Was a very awesome first 5 mile run for me that has me craving for a whole lot more. Great way to get a "running" start on the holiday spirit, totally was digging the large prancing sounds with all the bells during the run (can't wait for next year!) Happy Holidays All!

The Rice U running trail is a great option to incorporate into a running path rotation. Forming a…read moreloop around the Rice campus, adjacent to the medical center, rice village, and the surrounding neighborhoods, it's well used by students, medical professionals and community members. The sand path is wide, well maintained, and mostly shaded by beautiful live oak trees, though after a heavy rain there can be quite a few puddles. The route is just under 3 miles, about 2.9 to be exact (which drives the perfectionist in me crazy). This is the perfect distance in my opinion as 3 miles is easily manageable by most, but it also allows more ambitious runners to go for 6 or even 9 miles with double and triple loops, respectively. This path is great, however free parking doesn't exist on campus so either pay the hourly rate or try your luck in the nearby neighborhoods or in rice village. As always, keep an eye out for parking signs and be respectful of the neighborhood.

lots of trees and shade. lots of driveways passing thru the trail too. the path is not very wide.read more

55 hours. That's 2 1/2 days, give or take. How much can you do in 2 1/2 days? Quite a bit if you're…read morean ultra runner. At least, that's how it should be. I wanted to attempt my 1st 100 miler ever at the 2025 Snowdrop 55 hour ultra endurance event in Missouri City, Texas. It's held annually at Buffalo Run Park for the last 10 years. The Snowdrop Foundation hosts the event, which benefits children with cancer. It was the right thing to do by participating in this event. I arrived here four days before and had a mini vacation prior to the event. After getting dropped off, I proceeded to packet pick up and picked up my packet. That evening, I sat in my rented tent and thought about rest morning before going to sleep. The next morning was race day. It was a .69 lap around the park. We can do as much walking or running we wanted to in the 55 hour time limit. I want to do 100 miles but in the end I hit 50 miles, which was respectable in a sense. I was glad to not quit after the marathon distance and pushed myself further. The event is itself was very awesome and definitely the place to be to do what you can to be just incredibly fulfilled and energized and empowered. Doing loops as part of an ultra interesting event is nothing like short of a crazy thing, but it is a way for event staff to be organized and get to the person if medical is necessary. On this 2025 event, the weather was very nice during the day with temperatures in the 60s Fahrenheit, but it dropped into the 30s Fahrenheit, which made it colder than I would have like it to be even then, I don't feel regret at all because I had to think of my health first then to be freezing out there in the cold doing loops. Brrr!! There's always other events that can be of comfort to me I can do in the future. The overall experience here at the 2025 Snowdrop 55 hour ultra endurance run event was very nice and definitely I was glad to have participated in it. The only thing though, they did not have finisher medallions or anything below the hundred mile distance. They had 100 mile buckles for anyone that finished their first 100 mile distance. Anybody else had nothing but their sense of accomplishment and pride that they're doing amazing things that weekend. That's fine with me. Just a personal goal for all of us. 55 hours is a lot of time for those who want to finish 100 miles but need extra time. For me this time, weather was not on my side and I settled for the 50 miles. The atmosphere during the race was fun and inviting. Some people were really cheering the runners on and it was nice to pass the rows of tents that was set up along the way. The loop seemed shorter than the advertised 0.69 miles, but 145 loops for 100 miles was the magic number. There was plenty of inspiration out there and one main aid station for food and medical staff. After turning in my timing chip to the timing station, I headed to the medical tent since they were giving out body adjustments / stretching to the participants. I opted for a mini sesssion that help me with my legs and lower body. It was helpful for sure. I ended up satisfied with my 50 miles and hung out at the main aid station to celebrate New Year's Eve. We had our meals in the main dining tent for lunch and dinner for the two nights. Both meals were good as well as the jambalaya that was served this year. Once sunrise came on the last day of the 55 hour event, it warmed up, had breakfast at the main aid station, and I walked back to my rental tent to pack up. I texted my friend to come pick me up and that was the end of the event, since I was going home that day. The Snowdrop 55 hour ultra Is held annually at the Buffalo Run Park in Missouri city, Texas typically on the last week of the year. Registration is typically held online, which means you'd need a major credit card to secure your spot on the race course. You can bring your tent if you have one or rent one if you're traveling from out of town, like I was. It is an option for to rent on when you register. It's very helpful to store your gear in there if the hotel or Airbnb is very far away. For the most part though, it was an incredible event and experience. I thought about braving the cold temperatures in 2025 to get my 100 miles but I felt like my health and safety was priority. 50 miles is still 50 miles and I'm satisfied with that. Parking is available at the park, but for best results, renting a car is good too. Uber and Lyft is a good option if you want to as well. And so, this race is a good one to do if you want to dip your toes into the 100 miler and beyond. While the weather gods had different plans for me, I know I'll be back soon. It's a good one for anyone and everyone to do for their first ultra. Running off the holiday calories is a good incentive to kick start a healthy new year. Consider the Snowdrop 55 hour ultra in Missouri city Texas as the one to do for your race schedule. 5.0 stars for the overall experience. Support local! A+

This club is filled with awesome, fun people. If you're having trouble motivating yourself to run…read moreor just looking for some fun people to hang around, this is the club for you. I joined just after signing up for my first half marathon and I couldn't have done it without the Striders. They have a free marathon & half training program for all members. They have several weekly scheduled runs. They accomodate all paces, including mine - SLOW (but getting faster)! The last Wednesday of each month we have a "run with the Prez" which lately has been a pub run. We run a few miles out to the first bar and then make our way back to Memorial Park. It's great fun. The club also offers runs on the westside at Terry Hershey Park and long runs on the weekends. It doesn't get any better than this.

This is ONE, really FUN RUN that is second to NONE…read more So perhaps there are places you wouldn't drive 5 miles to, hence the quite interesting combination of two cool places: Discovery Green and Hermann Park. Its not just about point A to B, but the journey of five miles with some truly cool Houstonians. As this is the 6th Annual Park to Park Run that benefits the Hermann Park Conservancy, it stands to reason that they have got there act together. This was a well organized event with a great deal of support from enthusiastic volunteers, police, race officials, and even medical support teams. My day started with a primo parking spot at the Toyota Center Garage (free). Rolled into check-in and had no trouble getting my racing chip. Had I needed too, I could have had a bag of spare clothes taking to the Finish Line at Hermann Park by race personnel. Because the start is at the Green, racers had unlimited access to the nice bathroom facilities (no Portacans, yeah). Race started with a very classy prayer and a beautiful acapella rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. The route was well coned and staffed by volunteers and police pointing in the right direction (believe me, I have seen this go horrible wrong at other events). Everyone got a great tour of downtown, midtown and the museum district (had Reggae Hut been open, I would have been jonzing for a beef patty). Volunteers at every mile marker yelling out race time and pace. Little dry on the water stops at the midpoint (but no biggie). The Finish was located between the Reflection Pool and the Boat Lake. Race officials quickly snipped off my chip and someone handed me a welcome bottle of water with a smile. Plenty of bagels, donuts, kolaches, fruit, water, and juice to be found. Farrah was proudly passing out great Yelp schwag. And even better: liquid adult carbs were available from Budweiser (run & drink before 9am -- stay classy Houston). No problem getting back to your car at the race start because they had a free Metro pass back to the Green. Not that I'm an expert racer or anything, but this was truly a great event that I will attend every year from here on out (until my knee gives in). It's only the last five miles that's hard. Make sure you try it!

Amazing run.... Thanks to all of the police directing traffic, to all of the people handing out…read morewater and to all of the incredible people that put this together and worked the concesions after the race....

Race packet pickup a breeze at the GRB Convention Center. Free 30 minute parking in the garage to…read morethe left of Hall E. Once you enter the GRB the packet pick up area is clearly marked for the race you have entered. NO LINES, very organized. Once you pick up your bib you will be directed to the back of the center to get your t-shirt, again no lines very organized. Sorry I'm taking away one star for the ugly unimaginative t-shirt, come on elpaso be a little more creative with your t-shirt design. Tons of exhibitors, shopping, and free stuff at the expo. Good luck everyone! Update to follow.

This is an annual run put on by the YMCA, the main sponsor might change from year to year, but it's…read morestill one of the best FUN RUNs in Houston. The reason I love it? It's in December, so it's usually COLD, not so much for 2012, but we'll try again next year. Since it's cold and it's Christmas related, the costumes really do come out. I've seen things from Santa and his whole reindeer crew, to the grinch, to dogs dressed up. There are so many BELLS that jingle as the runners make the march around downtown. It just brings into the spirit of things!

This was the first year to run this event. Registration was available on-line or in person at…read moreFinish Strong. Packet pickup was also at Finish Strong, very organized, packet included t-shirt, bells, and cute antler hat. Free parking was easy to find the day of the event as posted on the event website. This event really caters to kids and families, the kids who participated in the fun run received a medal. Live music to get you in the running mode. The race started about 10 minutes late, no need to get there early as it was very cold and windy. Course was a little tough, a few little hills through Allen Pkwy and the wind and cold was not so pleasant. The usual snacks on race day- fruit, juice, power drinks, which were quickly disassembled and given away after the 5 mile run. I think they should have stuck around a while, there were many families still completing the 3 mile walk.