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Lone Star or Longhorn???
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 2008-10-15 6:12 PM |
Regular 1025  |  Subject: Lone Star or Longhorn???Ok, for those of you who have done both, which one did you enjoy more and why???? Just for my own info....  |
| 2008-10-15 6:24 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
Elite 2998    Fishers, Indiana | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? I did both this year, and between the two--I liked Longhorn more. I liked Lonestar a lot, but the setup at Longhorn was all triathlon and not mixed in with Moody Gardens. Moody Gardens is nice, but there was dodging tourists, the run route was much more twisty and turny, and while the bike is nice and flat (I like nice and flat) the Longhorn one is pure Texas. Due to the park, it seemed like we had more room at Longhorn vs. Lonestar throughout the park. Now, some big pluses from Lonestar = parking lot for transition (no dirty feet) and much more accessible parking (no mile long walk). I will say, while the Longhorn logos are cool, I like the Lonestar armadillos, they crack me up everytime I see them! There are very different races--and the Sprint, 1/4, and HIM are a nice trio for Lonestar, and packet pick up was much more efficient and easier at Lonestar. One is Spring and one is fall, so comparing weather is not biggie...and the ocean vs. the lake really doesn't make a difference for me. Both are great races though! |
| 2008-10-15 6:25 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
Expert 630 Frisco TX (DFW area) | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? Lonestar, over Longhorn :: Hotel - very close to the race Location of event - Route - Simple and clear Both events well run but Lonestar has more to offer -
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| 2008-10-16 9:48 AM in reply to: #1745398 |
Elite 3088 Austin, TX Gold member | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? As long as this input isn't used to determine which one to drop....!!! I've got a pretty good basis for comparison. I did the sprint and 1/2 at Longhorn last year, the sprint and 1/2 at Lonestar this year, and Longhorn this year. I've got to pick Longhorn. Here are my pluses and minuses: - Parking is plentiful at Longhorn, but a pain. Lonestar had great parking very close to transition. - There are no hotels near Longhorn. Lonestar has lodging on site. - Longhorn has a slight edge on the swim because of the ease of entry. You have to jump off the pier at Lonestar. - Transition goes to Lonestar. Longhorn has a long run to T1 and the area is grass/dirt. Lonestar is in the parking lot so there's less need to clean your feet. - Bike course advantage definitely goes to Longhorn. Lonestar is flat and fast, but fairly boring. Longhorn has some moderately challenging hills and some fast roller sections. You've got some variation in the scenery. There are a lot of turns, but I don't see that as an issue. There are plenty of volunteers out there to direct the athletes. You do have some vehicle traffic out there, but the roads are very rural and lightly traveled. - Run course also goes to Longhorn. Lonestar is very twisty and kind of all over the place. Longhorn is a challenging course with enough variety to break things up a bit. - I'd also give Longhorn a slight edge post race. There just seemed to be more room to spread out and accommodate everything. The Lonestar finish area seemed a bit cramped. |
| 2008-10-16 10:23 AM in reply to: #1745398 |
Expert 1083 The Woodlands, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? Longhorn! Now, I'm a newbie, but I've done the sprint at Longhorn last year and the half this year. I did the Quarter at Lonestar. I think most of this is personal preference but: -swim I liked Longhorn better. I didn't like the pier, I thought it was dangerous. I wasn't crazy about the saltwater but that's a personal preference of mine -transition was better at Lonestar, I spent a lot of time this year at Longhorn trying to clean off my feet -bike was much better at Longhorn. Lonestar is probably faster, but it was incredibly boring IMO. I hated seeing so far ahead of me and no hills whatsoever. Longhorn I liked the hills and twists and turns even though it made the course harder and my speeds were probably slower because of it. -run I'm torn. I like the flatness of Lonestar but Longhorn was more fun. I think the volunteer effort was better at the Longhorn run which really made it fun. The part outside the park at Lonestar was pretty miserable. The part going to the Expo at Longhorn was still entertaining enough that it wasn't so bad. I also loved the tailgate area at Longhorn, but it sounds like you'll have that at Lonestar next year so I shouldn't take that into consideration. -post race was much more fun at Longhorn. Lonestar was all in that center and it was really just food. Hanging out outside in the park at Longhorn was much more fun and it was easier to cheer on others who were still racing while enjoying the post-race activities. -Hotel was better at Lonestar. Closer to the venue and cheaper. Longhorn I thought the hotel was a rip-off and our room must have been over a club because there was terrible music all night before the race. Next year I'm staying in Manor, closer to the race site, quieter and cheaper. Now that I've said all that - I will most likely do Longhorn again next year but I won't be doing Lonestar. I'll come down and volunteer and have fun, but I disliked enough about the race course to not want to race it again. That is why I voted for enjoying Longhorn more, even though there were some factors about Lonestar I liked better. Edited by erin116 2008-10-16 10:25 AM |
| 2008-10-16 10:44 AM in reply to: #1745442 |
Master 2355 Houston, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? TexasMPGal - 2008-10-15 6:24 PM Moody Gardens is nice, but there was dodging tourists I sure don't remember Tourists getting in the way, maybe some spectators.. Edited by smilford 2008-10-16 10:44 AM |
| 2008-10-16 1:39 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
Expert 762 San Antonio, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? Longhorn vs. Lonestar... Keith, I can't really compare the two. They are totally two different types of courses. Longhorn definitely has more variety and is a harder course on all fronts than Lonestar. Now if you want to know about atmosphere of the race that you provide...you guys rock. Longhorn has it nailed on the things you can control. Lonestar was my first event of yours and where I knew I would be back. I'd like to see a little more in the expo at Lonestar and more tables and chairs to sit and eat after the race but other than that they are both fantastic. I thought the Games2go was great at Longhorn too. Ice cold towels at the finish line at either race would be incredible. One more thought....for those of us on the relay teams wanting to watch our swimmers and then go to the relay pen at Longhorn that was kind of a cluster trying to get there without getting in racers way. A entrance to the pen without having to cross the swim entrance would be great. Hope your team is enjoying some well earned R&R. K |
| 2008-10-16 1:52 PM in reply to: #1747642 |
| Regular 1025 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? no rest, unfortunately. Two of our crew are in Galveston, working on Lone Star stuff.... I'm wrapping up Longhorn stuff, and re-working some routes, and figuring out a better way for busing/shuttles, etc... This is ALL fun.... Then, Audra is in NH, working on the new Black Fly Tri Fest...... I'm off to Galveston on Sun, for 3 days of meetings to get things ready for Lone Star..... Of course, NOW it rains!!!! Poured yesterday...No more dust now, and the cracks are sealing up on the roads already. I was out there this am |
| 2008-10-16 3:48 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
Veteran 188 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? Both races have their advantages. Lonestar was my first HIM so I appreciated the flat and fast bike course. The run course was very turny and twisty so I preferred the Longhorn run course. Even though Longhorn has a much more challenging run course, I felt like it went by quicker because of all the activity (other runners and special events). The biggest advantage for me though was the swim at Longhorn!!! (Can we somehow do that again next year?) HAHA! They both are awesome events and we plan on doing both again next year!
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| 2008-10-16 3:58 PM in reply to: #1747692 |
Expert 1083 The Woodlands, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? KEJ - 2008-10-16 1:52 PM no rest, unfortunately. Two of our crew are in Galveston, working on Lone Star stuff.... I'm wrapping up Longhorn stuff, and re-working some routes, and figuring out a better way for busing/shuttles, etc... This is ALL fun.... Then, Audra is in NH, working on the new Black Fly Tri Fest...... I'm off to Galveston on Sun, for 3 days of meetings to get things ready for Lone Star..... Of course, NOW it rains!!!! Poured yesterday...No more dust now, and the cracks are sealing up on the roads already. I was out there this am Bummer, I was hoping Black Fly Tri Fest would be in Texas  |
| 2008-10-16 4:49 PM in reply to: #1748122 |
| Regular 1025 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? alas, it's in NH.... I'm trying to straighten out the run a bit for Lone Star, but there aren't many options. I worked on it ALOT last year, and it was better.... |
| 2008-10-17 3:58 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
Expert 1103 Plano, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? See, I actually liked the crazy run at Lone Star. It was different than so many of the straight-line courses or single, rectangular loops. You never knew who you might catch right around the corner. |
| 2008-10-17 4:24 PM in reply to: #1750717 |
Master 2355 Houston, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? davidb - 2008-10-17 3:58 PM See, I actually liked the crazy run at Lone Star. It was different than so many of the straight-line courses or single, rectangular loops. You never knew who you might catch right around the corner. I also liked it. |
| 2008-10-17 4:25 PM in reply to: #1750717 |
| Regular 1025 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? I actually like the run course at Lone Star too. It's very spectator friendly, and interesting....Most of it's really pretty too, running through Moody Gardens. I don't like the run out to the airport, but that's VERY straight, though |
| 2008-10-17 4:27 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
| Regular 1025 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? oh, and I expect a bunch more activity on the Lone Star course this year....we'll have the team tailgating, bands again, the Disco Bus, Mardi Gras Krewes, and more....Already working on raising the bar |
| 2008-10-17 5:07 PM in reply to: #1745398 |
Expert 902 Wylie, TX | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? didn't do either, but plan to do both next year...i know, really helpful, right?!?! -this is jah2212 logged in as docshock...oops...sorry. Edited by docshock1964 2008-10-17 5:07 PM |
| 2008-10-18 6:00 AM in reply to: #1745398 |
Member 63 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? KEJ -- I did both this year as well. Here are my comments. Keep in mind Galveston was my first HIM, and Longhorn was my 3rd. + To Lonestar on hotel, transistion, and flat fast course - To Longhorn on transition being dirty. (didn't mind the parking and such, I rode my bike back after the race) + I liked how Lonestar was all in one place you stay at Moody Gardens, you don't leave. That is really cool. I think that you have already fixed my one other complaint in that you have now a one loop bike course. Great Move. - I PR'd at Longhorn, but I think it relied heavily on the shortened swim. While I love the fact that I PR'd, I still feel like I cheated myself. I know that its hard to control the wind and such but those are just my personal feelings. Overall I would have to tell you the truth. Every race has something that could have been done differently. I would say that you put on a terrific event and have always told everyone I know this same thing. Keep up the good work. And BTW how do I get a job like yours???? |
| 2008-10-18 8:59 AM in reply to: #1751298 |
| Regular 1025 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? Lone Star's bike will be much better as a 1 loop course. We got the approval to bike over San Luis Pass, and it's very rural out the west end of the island, with almost no car traffic. Scenic, too. Hopefully, we'll be out of the drought for next year at Longhorn. With no rain for months, grass was just all dead out at the park, and transition just became dirt. We'll probably run more carpet into it next year, if we run into the same problem. It's not easy, as it's a TON of carpet.... Obviously, I much prefer Lone Star's transition, hotel, parking, etc. Moody Gardens is just a spectacular place. We've also gotten approval to eliminate car parking on the seawall for the return trip. This will help alot for the bike. Working on Longhorn parking too. May allow parking in the park next year, since I can fence off the run course. It won't hold everyone, but probably 500 cars or so.... |
| 2008-10-19 9:37 AM in reply to: #1745398 |
Member 63 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? KEJ -- I work in construction, and routinely when our carpet installers are putting in new carpet in offices and commercial buildings, they are tearing out the old. Try calling some of the large installer and asking them what they do with the carpet when they tear it out. I bet you could find the place they take it to get recycled (hopefully they recycle it), and intercept some perfect quality carpet for transition areas. I would be more than glad to reach out to one of our larger subcontractors and ask them this question if you would be interested.. Below is a link for one of their websites. http://www.resourceflooringgrp.com/ |
| 2008-10-19 11:59 AM in reply to: #1752410 |
| Regular 1025 | Subject: RE: Lone Star or Longhorn??? that'd be great. Appreciate the help! |
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