Houston Running: hp Houston Marathon

Houston Running

One of the leading sources for the discussion of Houston-area (and Texas as well) road racing. Focus and attention will be given to Houston-area runners, specifically HARRA members, that compete in outside-of-the-area events as well as those who do interesting things that aren't captured in the various media outlets, such as Inside Texas Running, Runner Triathlete News and Roberta MacInnis' Running Notebook in the Houston Chronicle (all fine publications and columns but with limitations too).

About Me

Name: WalkSports.com

Location: Spring, Texas, United States

I'm a mid-to-the back of the pack runner who probably enjoys promoting runners more than I do running myself ... I've completed 21 marathons (with a 4:47:32 PR! in Austin) and 52 half marathons (with a 2:09:58 PR! in Oregon) since November 2003 ... I've done a marathon in 12 states, half marathon in 23 and an event in 30 states and one Canadian province ... I have a 13-year-old daughter, Waverly Nicole, who completed her first half marathon in January 2006, made only two B's each of the last two years, was the only sixth grader to sing a solo (Carrie Underwood's Don't Forget To Remember Me) in their choir program (adding Taylor Swift's Tim McGraw in '08) and scored a 19 on the ACT in December 2007 as a seventh grader ... Waverly and I are members of the following clubs -- the Seven Hills Running Club, HARRA and The Woodlands Running Club ... I'm Marathon Maniac #308 ... I edit HARRA's Footprints in Inside Texas Running and write a column for Runner Triathlete News called, "Talking the Talk" ... I'm also the running columnist for the Courier of Montgomery County ... I'm a three-time winner of TAPPS' Sportswriter of the Year Award as well as TABC's Golden Hoops Award.

Sunday, April 17, 2005

hp Houston Marathon

Within the last two weeks, I received the official results book from the hp Houston Marathon. It's nicely done, lots of good pictures and some good writeups; however, it is time for the marathon that has billed itself as the most technologically advanced to make two (2) moves that the Marine Corps Marathon has.

The first would be to produce the results book in a CD format. I have no idea how much money that the Houston Marathon spends to send it to approximately 12,000 finishers; however, I have to imagine that it would be much cheaper to create a CD and mail it with the second move -- a personalized finisher's certificate.

I've done two marathons. I have two finisher's certificates.

Which one is better? The Marine Corps Marathon.

Why? Because it has my name, my chip time (5:39:06), where I placed (13,000th of 16,399 total finishers, 1,504th of 1,730 males in my age group and 8,199th of 9,699 males overall) and my halfway split time (2:32:04).

And the results CD and the finisher's certificate came in the mail together. So what that I had to wait awhile? I'd frame my MCM finisher's certificate any day before I would the hp Houston Marathon.

1 Comments:

Anonymous said...: Rather disputable.; 9:40 AM