Downtown Houston to the Galleria and back: level start to finish, 206 feet of climbing, and one real climb, at mile 13. Here is the course mile by mile, and how I’d run each stretch.
A typical race morning: 46°F with a 39°F dew point at the 6:55am start, a combined score of 84. Every race morning since 2000, the forecast six days out and your goal pace adjusted for it are on the Houston Marathon weather page. For any other forecast, my heat pace calculator does the same math.
Over these 2.8 miles the course climbs 27 feet and drops 29, about level overall.
Houston starts downtown and runs west on Washington Avenue toward the Heights, flat and fast, with a lot of runners in a narrow space until the half marathoners split off. Don’t weave. The pace settles on its own within a couple of miles, and seconds lost here are cheap.
Over these 4.8 miles the course climbs 22 feet and drops 16, 5 feet net up.
Waugh Drive over Buffalo Bayou, then Kirby Drive south past River Oaks: some of the prettiest miles on the course, and all of them flat. Settle into goal pace here and check that it feels easy, because it should. At mile 7.6 the half marathon turns off and the road opens up.
Over these 5.6 miles the course climbs 51 feet and drops 40, 11 feet net up.
Past Rice University and through West University the crowds are thick and the course stays flat. The one real climb comes right before halfway: the Westpark Drive overpass, about 25 feet up in a tenth of a mile. In a well-paced race you barely notice it. Don’t push it; the way down gives the seconds back.
Over these 4.7 miles the course climbs 20 feet and drops 20, about level overall.
Post Oak past the Galleria and the run through Tanglewood are wide, flat and quieter, and this is where Houston gets lonely for the first time and pace drifts. Lock onto a group and take your fluids and gel on schedule. The next five miles decide the race.
Over these 5.1 miles the course climbs 29 feet and drops 46, 18 feet net down.
Memorial Drive runs east through Memorial Park, under the 610 loop and through the Land Bridge tunnels, which have music and lights on race day. It’s the most scenic stretch of the course and the hardest, because it’s miles 18 to 23. Run it one landmark at a time.
Over these 3.2 miles the course climbs 58 feet and drops 54, about level overall.
The last 5K runs along Allen Parkway through Buffalo Bayou Park, with gentle rollers that feel bigger than they are at this point and the skyline growing in front of you. If you have something left, Allen Parkway is the place to use it. The finish is downtown on Lamar Street.
| Mile | Elevation at the marker | Climb | Drop | Street |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mile 1 | 46 | +15 | −11 | Franklin Street |
| Mile 2 | 52 | +11 | −5 | Washington Avenue |
| Mile 3 | 42 | +4 | −14 | South Heights Boulevard |
| Mile 4 | 52 | +11 | −2 | Waugh Drive |
| Mile 5 | 53 | +3 | −2 | Inwood Drive |
| Mile 6 | 51 | +0 | −3 | Kirby Drive |
| Mile 7 | 47 | +3 | −7 | Kirby Drive |
| Mile 8 | 46 | +2 | −3 | Bissonnet Street |
| Mile 9 | 45 | +2 | −4 | Fannin Street |
| Mile 10 | 46 | +4 | −2 | Dryden Road |
| Mile 11 | 48 | +3 | −1 | University Boulevard |
| Mile 12 | 51 | +4 | −1 | College Street |
| Mile 13 | 57 | +34 | −29 | Weslayan Street |
| Mile 14 | 56 | +4 | −5 | Southwest Freeway Frontage Road |
| Mile 15 | 57 | +3 | −2 | Post Oak Boulevard |
| Mile 16 | 58 | +3 | −2 | San Felipe Street |
| Mile 17 | 61 | +4 | −1 | Tanglewood Boulevard |
| Mile 18 | 56 | +8 | −12 | Chimney Rock Road |
| Mile 19 | 61 | +7 | −2 | Memorial Drive |
| Mile 20 | 56 | +1 | −6 | Pinehaven Drive |
| Mile 21 | 54 | +1 | −4 | Memorial Drive |
| Mile 22 | 46 | +8 | −15 | East Memorial Loop Drive |
| Mile 23 | 40 | +11 | −18 | Memorial Drive |
| Mile 24 | 20 | +19 | −40 | Allen Parkway |
| Mile 25 | 40 | +27 | −4 | Allen Parkway |
| Mile 26 | 44 | +12 | −9 | Lamar Street |
| To the finish | 44 | +0 | −1 | Lamar Street |
Race week, start to finish: how I’d run the three-week taper, what to take in during the race, how much to slow down in heat and humidity, and what the four weeks after should look like.
A course map tells you where the hills are. It doesn't know your training, how you handle a long climb, or what your legs look like at mile 20. I write every plan by hand and set race-day pacing with each athlete. It starts with a free 20-minute call.
Book a free intro callRace-day weather and heat-adjusted pace: Twin Cities Marathon, Chicago Marathon, Columbus Marathon, Detroit Marathon, Marine Corps Marathon, NYC Marathon, Philadelphia Marathon, California International Marathon, Honolulu Marathon, LA Marathon, Boston Marathon, Grandma's Marathon. All race-day weather pages.
RunFitCoach is not affiliated with the Chevron Houston Marathon or its organizers. Course line © OpenStreetMap contributors. Elevation from the USGS 3D Elevation Program (1 m bare earth), sampled every 50 m and smoothed over 250 m. Bare-earth elevation leaves bridges out, so bridge decks are rebuilt from their ends. The Westpark Drive overpass is set from its published 4.7% grade, and the road through the Memorial Park Land Bridge tunnels is drawn straight between their ends. Distances are scaled to the certified 42.195 km, so mile marks can sit a little off the course markers. The line is routed street by street through the 2026 course’s turns and mile markers rather than surveyed, so here that can be up to a quarter mile.
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