Photos are here:        https://photos.app.goo.gl/2beB2E9R4ZK3ekqX6

 Before the Start:   My 44^th race of 2025 was the Stars & Stripes 5K on July 19^th. Put on by Athlete Guild, this event was held at the Stars & Stripes Drive-In Movie Theater in New Braunfels, Texas.  There was also a half-marathon and a 10K, and a competitive 5K walk.  The half-marathon started at 6:30 a.m., the 10K at 7 a.m., and the 5K run and 5K competitive walk at 7:15 a.m.  There was also a Kids Run at 8 a.m.  I got up around 4:30 a.m., had some breakfast, and left a bit early at 5:45 .m.  Good thing too, as that darn I-35 North traffic was really backed up as the construction crews were moving barriers off the road. I thought I was going to end up being late but somehow managed to arrive just a bit after 6:30 a.m., in time to see the last of the half-marathon folks heading out onto their course. I picked up my race packet, got my bib on, and then wandered around chatting with friends/participants/supporters/volunteers, and getting a few pre-start photos. This event is a very popular one each year, and especially this year, as Athlete Guild had announced 100% of monies raised/donated would go to support the families of the recent Hill Country flooding. The 5K had 227 finishers; the 10K had 121 finishers; the half marathon had 122 finishers; and the competitive 5K walk had 11 finishers.

On the course:  The start for all events was on the movie theater grounds. I did my usual 8-minutes-running/2 minutes walking – have to take walk breaks these days due to my spinal arthritis – and took some on-course photos during my walk breaks. We went through the exit gate of the movie theater and proceeded up the entrance/exit road of the theater. The online course description notes:  “The course is a fast and flat course…”  Ummm, NOT, lol.  At the end of theater entrance/exit road, we made a right turn and proceeded up a fairly long incline, not too steep, and then moved to the left, went onto another road, and kept on climbing. After cresting this climb, we then made a right turn and went down a long hill – again, not too steep, just long; sorry, I don’t recall the street names.  I was about halfway down when some of the speedier 5K folks began showing up on this road, already heading to the finish. After getting down this hill, we then climbed another hill – this one very short – and then made a left turn onto a road that took us to the 5k turn-round. After making the turn-round, we then went back to the start/finish the way we had come out, so that long downhill was an uphill for us on the way back, but after cresting that, then it was all downhill, until we turned back onto the theater entrance road and that was flat up to the finish line. In spite of having my every-6-months skin cancer checkup the day before and having a bandage on the back of my neck, I was feeling pretty good and was going along pretty well. Normally, I try to run the last mile in non-stop, but my doc the day before said not to do that for this one, because of the procedure; take all my walk breaks, so I did. With about a quarter mile to go, I was ahead of my friend Sherri, but then my darn drawstring on my running shorts came loose, so I had to hold onto one side of my shorts, lol, so other participants would not see the moon coming out early; this slowed me down a bit, and Sherri passed me as we were on the theater entrance/exit road going to the finish. I ended up with a chip time of 42:05, averaging 13:33 per mile and somehow ended up first in my 70-74 males age group. My garmin had me at 42:10, with splits of Mile 1, 13:30; Mile 2, 13:14, and Mile 3: 13:30; I am pretty consistent, lol.

After My Finish:  I stood near the finish line getting a few photos of others coming in, and then headed to the medical tent to have my bandage checked, which my doc had told me to do, in case it needed changing after the 5K.   It is one of those waterproof, nice-fitting bandages and my wife had changed it for me the night before the race.  The EMTs checked it and told me there is nothing to do because Gail had put the darn thing on so well, it was completely fine, so very nice. I then wandered around the area, chatting with friends, other participants, and supporters and getting some ‘after’ photos.

Epilogue:  I’ve done this 5K in the past, so kind of knew what to expect. It really is a nice venue, and the theater folks kindly opened their lobby doors to have access to indoor restrooms, a water fountain and a place to sit and relax in bit in the lobby area booths; also, after the race, all participants who wanted it got a plate of a burger and fries, very nice.  There is also plenty of parking for everyone.  All finishers got a very nice finisher medal, and the age group award medal is very nice too.  Athlete Guild folks – most of whom I know – always do a very nice job with their events; I have never had an issue with their races that I’ve signed up for.  The camaraderie between all the people attending this one – both participants, volunteers, and supporters – is really nice.  This is also a dog-friendly event, so I was popular with the dogs there, lol, as I carry dog treats when I go running. As noted, I’ve done this one before and I will continue to do it in the future. Mucho thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants:  Athlete Guild staff; all the many volunteers; the EMT folks there for us; the staff of the Stars and Stripes Drive-In; our MC, Mark Purnell doing his usual great job; the bike lead volunteers for the courses; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you all!   Hope to see you at a future event sometime. Whatever your passion is, may you always stay healthy and safe; enjoy it; and meet all your personal goals.