The 2013 Aramco Houston Half Marathon was the first time I ran in this event. It starts and ends in the Downtown area of Houston. The Expo was held at the Convention Center hear the Start/Finish line. This was the first event that I had a family member, my father, attend.

There were lots of vendors in the Expo. I took advantage and picked up some last minute items that I needed due to the predicted weather for the event.

I even got the meet the world famous American runner Meb. He was signing copies of his book at the Expo the night before the run.

It turned cold. and started to rain the morning of the run. The organizers let the participants stay in the Expo Hall till the last minute to stay warm and dry.

While going to the starting line, it started to rain hard.

It was a cold and wet start. This was the first event that I thought about stopping in the first couple of miles due to the weather.

At this point near the start, I was soaked. And cold.

Mile 3 and the rain lightened up.

The roads were wet but there wasn’t much standing water.

Ronald was out in the rain to cheer us all on.

The underpass was the only spot that you didn’t get rained on.

Lots of support along the course. It was much appreciated.

The rain coats, ponchos and hats were out for the entire run I think.

Always a great sight to see!

Heading back towards the Downtown are.

It was near this point in the run that the Half Marathon course and the Full Marathon course reconnect. The orange cones separate the courses from here to the finish.

It was still cool, but not as wet. The sumo wrestlers were there to show their support.

Almost to the end and so happy.

The crowd was great!

Finish line in sight.

Crossing the finish line in Houston.

So proud and so cold. But it was fun like always.

It never ceases to amaze me how the supporters, friends and family of the runners come out in masses for these big events.

I was back in the hotel and got to see this sight. Still lots of people supporting the runners that were finishing up.

The 2012 Turkey Trot 5K in Beaumont, TX was held at the new Event Centre located near the Downtown area of Beaumont.

There seemed to be a large turnout for this annual event.

There was plenty of room to warm-up for the run and to wait for the event activates to begin. There were several families that make this an annual tradition.

The Downtown Beaumont buildings were in the background of the starting line.

This was probably the only elevation change for the course. You had to go under the underpass, make a loop, then come back on the other side.

Downtown Beaumont has many historical buildings and museums.

If you know me, you know I love history.

The finish line was right back near the starting line at the Event Centre. I was impressed with this new location and the facility itself.

The Inaugural Rock n Roll Providence Half Marathon took place in Providence, RI on August 7, 2011. This was a very nice trip. I have never been to this area and always have wanted to visit. I spent a couple of days in NYC, took a train to Providence, did a “Ghost Tour” in the city, rented a car and drove to Plymouth, MA. Even stopped and visited the famous Lizzy Borden house. I also wanted to experience an inaugural event. I was expecting some “headaches” or things not to run quite at 100% going into this event. The Expo and packet pickup went well. The only thing that did not go well was the weather on the morning of the event.

It rained from before the start until well into the afternoon. The whole 13.1 miles was run in the rain. The corral wave starts were eliminated and it was an all start. The first time I have been in an event like this and the first time I have been in an event where I was soaked the entire time.

It was a little cool with the rain, but not bad.

I loved seeing all the old and historic buildings around Brown University.

It was a mess to say the least, due to the weather and not the organizers.

I gave up trying to stay dry and accepted that I was going to be drenched the entire day.

There was some, but very little, standing water along the course.

Mile 6 and it was just as bad as Mile 1.

I took a seat on the park bench to look out at the river.

Running over the bridge was a piece of cake, even in the rain.

You cant help but to have fun in the rain. Mother Nature will always win in outdoor events.

The rain did get heavy every now and then, but no lightening.

The state Capital Building was in sight. This is where the childrens/family movie Underdog was filmed.

I was happy to finish. And happy to go back to the hotel. But even more happy that I was able to be at this inaugural event in a very nice city. The rain canceled some of the on course entertainment but that is expected when something like this happens. I have no complaints about this event, the organizers did the very best they could in a not so great situation due to the weather.

The 2010 Rock n Roll San Antonio Half Marathon is a great event. Its one of my favorites in a great Texas city that I love to visit. I would run in this event every year if it was possible for me to do so. The expo is top notch as well. Many different vendors.

This year it started right outside the hotel I was at, in the downtown area near the world famous and historic Alamo.

Yes, I was trying to do a string of events wearing a hat of some sort that was related to the event and/or the city. Having a Mexican background I felt that this was a proper choice. I was called Pancho Villa more then once along the course.

The start was marred by a delay of a train for some of the runners. The early corrals made it past the railroad crossing before those of us further back had to wait for the train to clear. This was unusual and the first time I heard about this happening here.

You always have to take a photo by the Alamo if you are Texan and in San Antonio.

The historic (and reportedly haunted) Menger Hotel near the Alamo. Teddy Roosevelt recruited some of his Rough Riders at the bar in this hotel.

Mile 3 and the hat hasn’t come off.

I love the Downtown area of San Antonio Texas.

Yes, yes I did Rock the Half.

How often do you see this? Not very so you must take a photo.

The hat was getting loose by this point, but never fell off.

Close to the end of this great course.

People were cheering all along the course and the bands were great.

Lots of people gathered around the finish area.

Being in November the Rock n Roll Marathon Series people gave all the finishers a thermal if wanted or needed. It wasn’t needed on this day, but appreciated.

The 2010 Disneyland Half Marathon was second, and final part, of my Disney Coast-to-Coast Challenge. This was also my first trip to Disneyland. My first, and only to date, trip to the great state of California.

2010 was the 5th Anniversary of the Disneyland Half Marathon. The finishers medal had a special design for this event.

It was a little foggy at the start of the event, but that did not slow anyone down.

Parade elements were there to meet the runners near the California Adventure park.

Still a little foggy, but fun.

The mile markers were very nice.

Me, Lilo and Stich.

Me and the Bears.

Me and the characters from Princess and the Frog.

Belle, Aurora, Snow White and Cinderella weren’t impressed.

Me and some Stormtroopers.

The castle was smaller then the one at WDW, but just as nice.

As with the WDW Half Marathon, there were lots and lots of character photo ops.

After making our way though California Adventure and Disneyland, we were on the streets of Anaheim heading towards the baseball stadium and the hockey arena.

Touching the grass on the field of where the Angels play.

Getting close to the finish.

Lots of people watching the runners come towards the finish line which was near the Disneyland Hotel.

This was a great event. Side note, an episode of the first season of the Extreme Weightloss TV show was being filmed during this event.

I earned my Disneyland Half finishers medal and my Disney Coast-to-Coast medal.

It took a great deal for me to get to this point. To earn these medals and accomplish my personal goals and achieve some personal bests. I came a long way in the year from my first half marathon to this point in time. I was and am very proud because I wasn’t sure if I could do it or would make it. But I did.

I worked very hard (and spent a great deal or time and money traveling & training) to earn these. Out of all my accomplishments in NHRA Drag Racing and now running for fun & fitness, these were the most important to me personally.

The 2010 Walt Disney World Half Marathon was the biggest (and best) running event I have participated in at the time. It was my 3rd half marathon event. This was my first trip to Florida and my first every trip to Walt Disney World. I was running for the LIVESTRONG Foundation charity in honor of Margaret Ash of the USA and Geoff Simpson of Australia. This event was very memorable. It was the first part of my Disney Coast-to-Coast Challenge. It was unusually cold for Florida weather. There was frost, ice and even snow flurries which just made everything wet and cold. Something I wasn’t used to and haven’t run in before.

There are so many character photo opportunities available at this running event, before and during the run.

The start was a welcomed sight after waiting in the cold corals with snow flurries falling.

You get to run though the gates of the Magic Kingdom!

Up to this run, I had never seen so many runners in one place.

The Christmas decorations were still up during the event, which was a pleasant surprise and great to see.

Buzz Lightyear and myself.

The Mad Hatter, Alice, me and the Queen of Hearts.

Captain Hook, me and Smithers.

You get to run though the castle! It was a tight fit with all the runners, use caution.

Prince Charming, me and the Fairy Godmother. With so many character photo ops, you have to take advantage of the ones you normally wouldn’t get to see often during a normal park day.

Photo op in front of Cinderella’s Castle.

Me and the Country Bears.

Very wet, still cold. Not as slippery as you may think, but still ran with caution.

The WDW Railroad Train Conductors.

Pirates!

Me, Mary Poppins, Bert and a penguin.

Once out of the park there was a long stretch of the course that was out on the roads that surround the WDW parks.

Still very cold.

A couple of overpasses were the only “hills” on this course.

The event ends at the Epcot park.

How often do you see the “Meet the Robinsons” characters?

Finally across the finish line, in a slow pace mainly due to the weather and all the stops I made for photos. I was the coldest I ever been after this run and it took a bit to warm up, but I have no regrets and will do it again. The Disney Running, now runDisney, events are top notch and hard to beat. The Expo was huge and the packet pickup went smoothly. Everything was well run and organized.

The 2009 Turkey Trot 5K in Beaumont, Texas was held at Tyrrell Park. This annual event had always has a decent turnout for runners and walkers in the Beaumont area.

This was my first Turkey Trot to run in.

The course followed along the long driveway of the park, then looped back to the area of the park that we started in. The weather was nice and cool, but not cold. Perfect for running in Southeast Texas.

This was a chip timed event. After crossing the finish line we had to return the chip that we were given in our race packet. This even is well run each and every year. It impressed me on this, my first time at this event, and encouraged me to come back and check out other events put on by the Sea Rim Striders Running Group.