Last weekend I paced my brother Tim for the last half of the Brazos Bend 100 miler. While I did not compete, I did spend an entire night on the course and have a good feel for the pros and cons of the event. The race took place in Brazos Bend State Park, about an hour southwest of Houston. I will be posting a separate review of the park, so this post focuses on the race.
The Brazos Bend 100 is a good race for runners seeking an easy course with simple logistics. Many people will find it the ideal course for a first 100-miler. It would also be a good race for someone trying to PR for 100 miles. The course is about as flat as a trail can be and has a 30-hour cutoff. The race is worth 5 UTMB points but is not a Western States or Hardrock qualifier. The scenery is good, especially if you like swamps.
If you finish, you get a silver buckle that pairs well with some tasteful alligator skin boots.
The Course – The course is six 16.7-mile laps, with each lap consisting of a series of out-and-backs and lollipop routes. This means that runners are never very far from an aid station and return to the start/finish every 16.7 miles. Although the race allows drop bags at aid stations, drop bags other than at the start/finish are overkill. Did I mention that it was flat?
Weather – The weather in December along the gulf cost is generally mild and predictable. Bring a warm fleece and hat for the night and, depending on the forecast, a rain jacket.
The Vibe – The race is put on by Trail Racing Over Texas (TROT). The race volunteers were great, and the race has a positive atmosphere. There is zero pretentiousness and everyone is laid-back.
Swag – the main swag is a red bad sweater race hoodie. Its unique, and better than the standard race shirt.
Aid Stations – The aid stations are pretty basic and all served traditional ultramarathon snacks. They lacked chairs, so runners who had to tape a toe or get a rock out of a shoe were forced to sit on the ground. This had the positive effect of keeping the racers moving and discouraged the trap of hanging around aid stops, but a couple of chairs wouldn’t hurt. The race guide indicated that the aid stations were “cupless,” but that did not appear to be the case as the aid stations gave out disposable cups. As the race went on, styrofoam cups started appearing along the trails. This disappointing behavior by some of the racers should encourage race management to truly run a cupless race in the future.
Challenges and Possible Improvements – The multiple laps of out-and-backs and lollipops present challenging racing psychology. Some portions of trail were crossed 12 times! Given the limited amount of public land in Texas, I don’t know that much can be done about the course layout. But this race could be improved by having more checkpoints where runners are verified. The only places this happened were the start/finish line and the Sawmill aid station, which is at the end of a long out-and-back 12.1 miles into the 16.7-mile lap. More checkpoints would greatly improve the live tracking of the race. It would also discourage potential cheaters. Thanks to websites like Marathon Investigation, we know that cheating at ultras is not uncommon. Under the current setup, someone could cut the course everywhere but the Sawmill out-and-back. This potential could be eliminated, and live tracking improved, by:
- Recording runners at the Horseshoe Lake out-and-back;
- Recording runners at the 40 Acre Lake aid station;
- Recording runners at the Windmill aid station; and
- Recording runners on the Hale Lake lollipop or moving the Windmill aid station so runners check in there before heading to Hale Lake.
Bottom line: The Brazos Bend 100 is a good race if you want a pancake flat and fast course with easy logistics, provided you can tolerate the monotony of a bunch of laps and out-and-backs (and you are not scared of alligators).
Vamonos Baby! 