Scottydog Reports

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/EgoU43WSofXmAGTN7

Before the start:  My 26^th race of 2024 was the Siesta 5K put on by Scally Wompus, a local race company that puts on several events over the year.  It also has a program where it puts on a series of races that includes 4 races in each series. Participants can register for all 4 at the same time and get a nice discount or can register for each one individually.  The Siesta even was the 4^th event in the Texas Hill Country Series; as you can tell from the title, all these events in this series had hills, including this last one, which was held a Mission County Park #1 in San Antonio.  The event included a half marathon, a 10K, a 5K, and a competitive walk, if I remember correctly. I had picked up my packet the day before, so when I arrived I chatted with friends, other participants, etc., and got a few pre-start photos. I had watched the weather report the night before and it was mentioned that a ‘front of rain’ may be moving into the area around 6 a.m. or so.  As I started out for the race, sure enough, right around my house, it did start raining, and there was lightning also; so I waited to see what would happen and it passed by pretty quickly.  I went on down to the park and by the time I got there, the light rain was there also, but not too bad.  However, shortly after arrival at the park, right before the half was to start, there was a rain delay, so we all waited under the park pavilions – there are two of them – hoping it would soon stop. While we waited for the weather front to move on, our MC, Anthony, kept us entertained by having a pull-up contest, and other things going on.  The original schedule was 7:30 am start for the half, 8:15, 10K and all walkers, and 5K, 8:35 . It did not quite work out that way as it just kept raining and raining.  I seriously thought about just changing to Virtual and going home because, although I am cancer-free now, my immune system still has not totally recovered from my cancer treatments, so my medical team had warned me to be careful about being out in cold weather, heavy rain, etc.  My friend, Max had a weather app on his phone and showed me how fast the front was moving, so told me to just wait it out. Well, I trust Max, so I did. It took a while, but the rain finally did stop, and the race organizers got us out there pretty quickly about an hour after the originally scheduled start times. The half first, then the 10K and competitive walkers  went, and then we 5K folks started around 9:20. And we were off!

On the course:  Although a bit humid because of the storm, the weather actually was pretty nice, with a temp of 67 degrees, and very little wind. All events were out and back and started in the same direction, so the half and 10K folks pretty much did the 5K first, then did a turn-round and went back the way they had come out, passing by the park pavilion and going to another turn-round farther down the Riverwalk. With 3 races on the course going on at the same time, it could have gotten pretty crowded, but several participants had decided to head out instead of waiting for the storm to pass on, so that made for a bit of ‘lighter traffic”.  Even so, there was a total of 226 finishers for the 5k, so a pretty nice turn-out in spite of the weather delay. Since we 5K folks started last, we could see some of the half and 10K participants coming toward us as we made our way to the turn-round. The 5K course was the hilliest part of the 3 courses, which was nice, because with all those hills, the pavement was pretty dry, all things considered, with no standing water on it, and the river in most places was not as close to the 5K course as it was for the Part 2 course that the half and 10K folks had to do.  After my finish, friend showed me some phone video he took, where a part of the half/10K course was under water, good grief.  I was feeling pretty good overall and did my usual 8-min-run/2-min-walk, taking photos during my walk breaks. The 5K course – which all the main events participants did – started with a downhill from the start area; then an uphill, then a short fairly flat part; then another downhill, and then a not too bad uphill, then another flat for about 2 blinks of the eye, then a loooong uphill. going underneath a bridge. This took us onto a flat part of the course that got us to the turnround, and the we did the course in reverse.  With the back-and-forth hill repeats, we ended up doing 6 total hills, with the last one being the climb back up to the Riverwalk entrance to the park to get to the finish line. That one was not the steepest on the course but, lol, after all those other hills done, you sure could feel it.  I ended up first in my 70-74 males age group with a chip time of 40:28.  There were only 2 in my age group.

 After my finish: I did a short cool-down walk and got some water, and then stood near the finish line and got some photos of others finishing, including my friends Max finishing his half, and Carolyn and Lucy Dog finishing their 5K. After that, enjoyed the after-party for a while. The Scally Wompus motto is “Come for the race. Stay for the party.” They are not kidding either. There were all kinds of post-race goodies, including beer, fresh fruits from my good fruity friend, Gilbert, energy drinks, margaritas, if I remember correctly, Kiolbassa Sausage-on-a-Stick, and lots more.  Music and sound provided by DJ extraordinaire, Paul. Some of the sponsors/vendors also had free give-aways, and there were also 3 different backdrops for photo opportunities. Scally Wompus throws one heck of a party.

Epilogue:   Scally Wompus events are very popular and they are one of the few race companies that has a competitive walker division, so the walkers get their own awards without competing against the runners. All finishers get a really nice quality finisher medal.  Age Group winners get a very nice souvenir Scally Wompus glass.  Very nice quality race shirt, although I opted out of getting that; I do so many events over the year, my shirt drawers are starting to overflow, lol. I keep some of them, but donate most of them to charitable organizations, such ad Disabled Vets of America, Street2Feet, etc. If you have never done a Scally Wompus event, give it a try; I am sure you will not regret it.  Mucho thanks to all the ones who made this one happen for we participants, including Race Director Tony Garcia, Bart Childers and his wife – whose name I can never remember, lol, even though she is one of the nicest people I have ever met, but I think it’s Sarah; all the many volunteers, and the many sponsors and vendors who help pay for it all; the law enforcement officers that were out there for our safety; Pushbutton Photograph for all the photos they took – much better than mine, I am sure, lol, with my hand-held ancient Canon camera – and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned. Thank you all!  I wish all my fellow runners, walkers, etc., fulfilling and safe race and exercise outings. Keep getting out there as much as you can and Never Give Up! Hope to see you at a race sometime.

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/vvUXex8AaaJ568uy6

Before the start:   My 25^th race of 2024 was the Run To Remember 5K held on April 27^th at Comanche Park in San Antonio. This event, established by two brothers, Miguel and Matt, raises funds to help find a cure and better treatment options for Alzheimer’s.  Why the name Beards and Beans? OK, if I remember correctly, because one brother does not like beans, and they both have beards.  So, say the Beans brother raises the most funding for the cause. Then the other brother who does not like beans, has to eat a plate of them. If the Beards brother wins, then the beans brother has to shave off his beard.  The results, done by iaap, a top-notch San Antonio-based race management company, showed 265 finishers for the 5K, and 65 finishers for the 10K. There were also several untimed walkers for the 5K walk. There was also a 10K and a .5 Beer Run/Walk. The 10K had  a start time of a little after 7 a.m. with the 5K start around 7:20 after the 10K folks got started. There was also a Kids Run that began at 7 a.m. before both the main events started. There may have been some no-shows as, per one of the Race Directors, there were a little over 500 who registered and/or donated to the cause. I picked up my friends Carolyn and Lucy Dog and we then arrived very early; it was still dark, so we were almost the first participants to get there; we got great parking, lol. The volunteers, iaap staff, etc. got there even earlier than we did and were in the process of setting up the start/finish line, the photo backdrops, preparing eats for after, and so forth.  I wandered around getting a few pre-start photos and chatting with people there and helping just a tad with some of the start up prep.

On the course:  We started near the park’s main pavilion and then proceeded to do a loop on the access road of the park that went around the grounds of the park. We then diverted on the park’s paved greenway trails and each event went on those trails to a specified turn-round point.  We then headed back to the finish the way we had come out.  When we got back onto the trail that was adjacent to the park road, we then made a turn onto that and went to the finish line. The course did include a few up-hills and downhills, with the longest one being a downhill on the way out, so that was an uphill on the way back. My friend Erik, of e-Dragon Productions – another really good race company – laid out the course; if you’ve ever done any of his Dragon’s Den events, then you know that for Erik “flat” is a 4-letter word, lol, not to be used in race events. I felt pretty good the whole way and did my usual run/walk thing, taking some on-course photos during my walk breaks. I ended up with a chip time of  39:43, averaging 12:36 per mile, good enough to be first among the 4 of us in this age group.

 After my finish:  Water and banana first and sitting and relaxing for a bit after my cool-down walk around.  Then I was up-and-at-it again, going around to get some after-photos; chatting with participants, supporters, sponsors, etc.; and, of course, handing out treats to the doggies there. We also watched the Beer Run, and event where the participants had to carry a full glass of beer and try to finish, spilling as little as possible, and then had to drink what was left of the beer in the glass. It was fun seeing some of the ways these participants tried to make that happen. The guy who did win actually had almost a full glass of beer when he crossed the finish line. I enjoyed talking to a lot of people and made some new running community friends. 

Epilogue:   This is a nicely done event by Matt and Miguel – the Beards and Beans brothers – for a very good cause.  Alzheimer’s is a very insidious disease and a sad one too for both the recipient and the family. I think probably everyone knows personally of a friend, family member, or someone in their family-and-friends circle that may have dealt with this disease, so a big thanks to Matt and Miguel for starting this. Much thanks also to all the sponsors; volunteers; iaap, e-Dragon Productions; the officers out there for our safety; our MC, Anthony, and our sound-and-music-man Paul, our Grill Masters that did up the Kiolbassa sausages on a stick for us; and the other folks that provided goodies; our Fruity guy, Gilbert – best fruits around! – and there was even post-race beer – Modelo, I think, but apologies if I am in error on that – and all kinds of other items.  Apologies if I missed anyone.  Thanks to all involved.  This one is definitely a ‘keeper event’ for me, one that I will continue to do as long as I am able. Happy and safe exercising to all, whatever your passion in that area may be.  Hope to see you at a race sometime!

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/7AA9MBfCEzRjEdnL9

Before the start:  My 24^th race of 2024 was the San Antonio Roadrunners (SARR) Mission 5K on April  21^st, held at Mission County Park 1, San Antonio, put on by the SARR, the oldest running group in San Antonio, celebrating is 50^th anniversary this year.   This was my 2^nd race of the weekend, after doing the Our Lady of the Lake 5K the day before.  This event included a half-marathon, a 10K, the 5K, and a Kids Run. The Kid’s Run was at 0715; the half at 0730; the 10k at 0800 and the 5K at 0815. Rainy night in the late hours of Saturday, so there were a few areas of puddles and wet spots for this one. Mother Nature also provided us with a pretty stiff wind, making the upper 50s, lower 60s temp feel a bit colder.  The 5K start time was 8:15.  I arrived just in time to see the half-marathoners heading out for their event and got a photo of some of them starting out. I then got my race bib; didn’t get one of the tech tee shirts, so since I did race day packet pickup I just assumed they ran out; no big deal, I’ve already got a ton of race shirts, lol, as many races as I do in a year. After that, I wandered here and there getting a few pre-start photos. All the vendors, volunteers, etc., were in the main pavilion of the park, and pretty much just about everyone was crowding in there to get out of that wind. Between all the sponsors there, the vendors, the volunteers, friends, and participants it was pretty crowded. Per the results on iaap website, there were 263 finishers for the 5K; 200 finishers for the 10K; and 184 finishers for the half. Add to those 647 finishers all the vendors that were there, friends, relatives, MC, volunteers, etc., it made for a pretty crowded pavilion; this is also a dog-friendly event and there were also several of them attending.

On the course:  The courses did not go onto the Riverwalk.  They were all out-and-back. The start/finish line was on the main outside plaza of the park.  We lined up behind the start/finish timing mats, with some of the  farther back participants being down the pavilion stairs and inside the pavilion, since there were so many participants. After crossing the start line, we made a left turn, heading along a gravel path near the pavilion’s parking lot, and then crossed the street and went onto a sidewalk that took us to Padre Drive.  We passed by Mission County Park 2 on our left, and then turned onto Mission Parkway, with the Riverwalk area on our left. On this part of the course, we had a few mild hills, but nothing really serious and not too long, but was glad I regularly do hill work once a week, so got through these pretty easily. We went around a curve and there was a water station there, so I got a photo of those volunteers. The 5K turn-round point was just down from the water-station, right before a bridge that the 10K and half folks had to go under to continue on their courses. After the turn-round, we went back to the finish the way we had come out, but on the way back we went right into a head-wind, which was now blowing like crazy.   I stopped to take one more photo and then ran nonstop to the finish, ending with a chip time of 38:52, averaging 12:31 per mile, and I nicely had negative splits for each mile on the course. I came in 2^nd in my 70-79 males age group, largely because there were only 2 in my age group, lol. Jim, first in our age group, finished 6 minutes and 31 seconds ahead of me.

 After my finish: All kinds of post-race goodies at this one, including Kiolbassa sausages; lots of fresh fruits from my fruit vendor friend, Gilbert; all kinds of small give-away things from the various vendors and sponsors; and the age group awards were these small hand-crafted cups of various design filled with various candies and sweets.  I kept the cup and gave the candies away, lol, to a couple that had two kids with them. The vendors and sponsors had quite a few freebies too. The race shirt looks pretty nice, from what I saw of it, a nice tech tee.  I did not get one when I picked up my race number on race day I don’t     remember if I told them no shirt when I registered – I do so many races in a year, I have a ton of shirts – or I just forgot to pick the darn thing up when I got my race bib, but it’s all good.  This is a very enjoyable event, well done, and well managed, in a very nice race location. It was pretty windy before, during, and after, but still a very enjoyable course. Due to all the rain late Saturday night, there were a couple of ‘water hazards” – e.g., large puddles we had to negotiate – but for the most part the course was pretty dry. The route streets are nice and wide, accommodating nicely the participants from all 3 events. 

Epilogue:  Nicely done event by SARR, and nice quality race shirts from what I saw of them.  The course is well thought-out with plenty of room for this many participants of the three events. Personally, I like this 5K course much better than the very hilly Riverwalk 5K course, although on a good day, the Riverwalk does offer some nice views of the river. I would definitely do this one again and recommend it to others.  Mucho thanks to all the people involved that made this one happen for us and who were out there for us, e.g.,  police officers for our safety; all the many volunteers; all the many sponsors and vendors; our MC Anthony, doing his usual great job; my favorite sound-and-music man, Paul; the Race Director and all the people of SARR involved; and anyone else  involved that I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all so much! Take care, stay safe, and see you next year!

Photos are here:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/hKQPc7eVWLoafUDA8

Before the start:     My 23^rd race of 2024 was the Confetti 5K on April 20^th at Our Lady Of The Lake University (OLLU) in San Antonio. This event benefits OLLU scholarships at the university.  The Confetti 5K is part of the festivities of Fiesta San Antonio, a 10-day event each April that includes races, parades, and many other activities such as the Oyster Bake, Taste of New Orleans, Battle of the Flowers parade and more.  Start time of 9 a.m.  I arrived early, around 6:45 a.m. – too early to get my packet – so enjoyed getting some good parking and then chatting with friends and sponsors who were volunteering/supporting the event, and I also got a few early pre-start photos.  Around 7:30 or so, people began arriving in larger numbers. I got my packet and then the race day registration volunteers surprised me by giving me a personalized shirt that my friend, Race Director Liz, had ordered for me.  This event is a ‘streak’ race for me. I have done this 5K every year since it first started and have reported on every one of them. Liz tells me I am the ”Poster Boy” of the event, lol, and she often surprises me with things for this event. This year she even put a photo of me from one of the previous races on the online registration announcement page.  After getting my race bib on, I then continued to chat with fellow participants, volunteers, sponsors, etc. and got a few more pre-start photos.  The weather was just about perfect; temp of around 62 degrees, a tad humid, but not too bad, and overcast skies, but it never did rain on us.

On the course: The National Anthem was sung beautifully by my friend Meghan – who also ran the event – and then we all got started.  They don’t call this event the Confetti 5K for nothing.  As we started off, confetti was shot into the air, floating all around us as we went out of the starting gate. The course took us toward the back gate of the campus, doing a short out-and-back on one campus road, and then continued on, exiting the campus via the back gate on Commerce Street. Once off the campus we then proceeded to a bridge which we crossed over, and then went along the off-road paved Greenway trails of Apache Creek, if I remember correctly, with some nice views of the water. We passed the Mile 1 marker along the part of the course.  We then went to the end of this trail, crossed over another bridge that took us to the other side of the water and continued on some trails on that side. This part of the course had us do 2 bridge crossings, going across the water, and then down to another bridge that took us back to the side we had just left.  After crossing this bridge we came to a water station, where I stopped momentarily to give a biscuit to a dog at the water station. We then went along another paved trail that took us back to Commerce Street. Once on Commerce Street, we went back to the finish the way we had originally come out, with the exception of not doing that short out-and-back we had done after starting. For my 70-99 males age group, I ended up 2^nd with a chip time of 40:16, and I had negative splits for the course too, nice. Leo, first in my age group, finished about 4 minutes ahead of me. There were 10 total in our age group.

 After my finish:  I did a short cool-down walk, got some water into me, and then enjoyed the post-race festivities and goodies, that included sausage-on-a stick Dos Eques beer, lots of water, and lot of various other sundries and goodies from the sponsors, vendors etc., and also got some after-photos. I was there post-race quite a while and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

Epilogue:  This is one top-notch quality event.  OLLU also politely keeps the doors of the main building open so participants can use the indoor restroom facilities, which is nice. Really nice quality race shirts done by Quali-Tees Etc.; timing and results done by exceptional, and locally owned race management company iaap; sausages and beer provided by Kiolbassa and Dos Equis; and there were lots of other food, drinks, and various goodies provided by many of the other sponsors too; I saw plates of cookies on one table, and another had some hand-out candies – popular with the kids, lol. There were 571 5K finishers for this event, so you can see how popular it is. Liz and her crew do a great job with this event, and always have. It is one of my favorite events of the year and I will keep doing it as long as I am able. Mucho thanks to all the people that made this one happen for we participants, e.g., all the sponsors; OLLU staff and students who were out there for us;  all the many volunteers; the law enforcement officers, e.g. campus police, SAPD, etc., who were there for our safety, our MC, Anthony, doing his usual great job;  our music-and-sound folk who were jammin’ us with some classic rock n roll, my personal favorite music; and there was also a Kids Run right before the main event, so thanks to those who organized that; and, of course, all the many sponsors/vendors who help pay for it all. Apologies if I missed anyone. Thanks to all involved!   See you next year!

Photos are here:    https://photos.app.goo.gl/gztfNV6FXL4MRnAA6

Before the start:   My 22^nd race of 2024 was the Let’s Roll 5K held at Morgan’s Sports, one of the associate parks of Morgan’s Wonderland. This event was held on April 14^th, one day after I did the Life Is Good 5K on Saturday, April 13^th.  This event supports Project Mend, which provides refurbished, donated medical equipment to those in need. It also accept donations of medical equipment.  I try to do this one each year, as I was a March of Dimes Baby, born with a birth defect, dislocated hips. I once told a younger person I had been a March of Dimes baby and he asked What’s March of Dimes? Boy, did I feel old, lol.  I was lucky to live a pretty normal life after treatment, although I was told all my life by medical people that when I got older, this would probably give me some arthritis that affected my spine and facet joints, and sure enough it did when I was in my 50s, resulting in me not being able to do nonstop running anymore; I was lucky though; with the run/walk method I am still able to run, in a fashion, lol, and participate in races too. I also am a 2-time cancer survivor, colon and prostate, with my most recent one being prostate cancer; finished my treatment for that in 2022. A friend of mine told me I should say 3-time, because in 2023, BAMC Dermatology removed two areas from my back that they told me were early-stage skin-cancer. It was thankfully caught very early and I never had issues with it, so I tend to not remember that one although I am scheduled every year for checkup, to be safe. .  Start time for this event oof 8:15 a.m., so I got to sleep in a bit as I live only about 6 miles from the park. After arriving and picking up my packet I got a few pre-start photos. Between Fit-Fest on Saturday and several other events that day, and something going on downtown on Sunday, this race day, there were 94 finishers for the 5K, in which I was a participant. In the Adaptive Category – those who have some type of disability – my wife always tells me I don’t have a disability, I have a differ-ability – there were 11 finishers.

On the course:  The adaptive participants had a slightly different course then the regular 5K course.  We 5K participants started in front of Morgan’s Sports and went down to the Morgan’s Wonderland park, passing in front of the Morgan’s Splashpad and Toyota Field, the home of the San Antonio professional soccer team.  We then entered the park doing a loop around its man-made lake. After exiting the park, we then went back to the start/finish area and then went toward Heroes Stadium, an athletic facility of the San Antonio North East Independent School District.  After passing that, we then turned and went up a fairly long uphill that led to the Wurzbach Parkway.  We did not go all the way to the parkway, but it was pretty darn close, lol; a very challenging hill, so thank goodness I do regular hill workouts once a week. After going down the hill, we went past another side of the stadium and proceeded past Morgan’s Multi-Assistance Center (the MAC), a facility that “assists people with disabilities and special needs through comprehensive and coordinated services.”  We then turned into the parking lot of Heroes Stadium, went past the front of the stadium, and then went to the rear of the stadium and went through one of the parking areas there. The brought us back out to the road that took us back to the finish line.  During my time on the course, I was very lucky in meeting and making a new friend, Avery. She and I, off-and-on, ran most of the last part of the course together, with me sometimes being ahead of her, and her sometimes being ahead of me, and then the last ½ mile we ran into the finish together. Super-nice young lady; enjoyed her company. I ended up with a chip time of 39:56, first in my 70-99 males age group for the 5K.  There were only 2 in my age group, lol. Avery finished about a minute ahead of me.

 After my finish: Got a photo with Avery and then got some water and wandered around chatting with other participants, sponsors, vendors, etc. and got some ‘after-photos.’  For this one there was also a pretty decent spread of post-race goodies that included breakfast tacos, various fruits, lots of water, coffee, donut holes, and other things. There was also  a ‘community fair’ at this one with various vendors offering different things. In addition to the 5K, there was also a pickle-ball tournament starting later after the 5K was done.   

Epilogue:  I can’t remember exactly how many times I’ve done this event but, as I remember correctly, it has been quite a few times.  Project Mend always puts on a good show. It was too bad this weekend that they were competing with so many other events, since this is just a good event. They probably would have had even a bigger turnout for a great cause. I always think the local race directors should have a semi-annual conference and divy up the weekends between them, lol, so everyone gets a fair shot at getting a good turnout, but I doubt that will ever happen.   I will definitely be doing this one again and certainly would recommend it to others.  Very nice course – even with that hill, lol; good facility with lots of amenities – indoor restrooms is always a plus, lol, instead of porta—potties; very nice quality race shirt; really nice finisher medals for all participants and the age group award medal is awesome. As previously noted, lots of good eats too.  Mucho thanks to all who made this one possible for we participants, including all the sponsors; Soler’s Sports that did the race management and laid out the courses; all the many race volunteers; our professional photographers on the course; top-notch race management club iaap for the timing and results; Mayor Nirenberg who was there for the start with some encouraging words for us; the lady who led everyone in the pre-start stretches; our MC and sound guy; and, of course Project Mend folks that put on this event; and anyone here involved I did not mention.  Thank you all!  See you next year!

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/WTgmLhUvNCifvQSs5

Before the start:   My 21^st race of 20024 was the Life Is Good 5K, held on April 13^th at the River City Community Church in Selma, Texas. There was also a 10K and a Kids Run. This event supports the Pregnancy Care Center, an organization that provides assistance to women with unplanned pregnancies.  You can find all their information at their website via a search of the organization name. This event also was the Charysse Solorio Memorial Run for my friend, and friend of many in the running community, who sadly passed away recently from her cancer. She worked with the Pregnancy Care Center. She and I were treated at about the same time for each of our respective cancers and often gave support to each other via FB, etc.  She was one of the nicest, kindest people I have ever met and will be sorely missed by all who knew her.  Start time of 8:15 a.m.  I arrived about an hour before start time, got my packet, and then got a few pre-start photos as I enjoyed chatting with volunteers, the timing crew, sponsors, other participants, etc. The event was managed by Soler Sports, owned by my friend Lisa Soler, with iaap, a top-notch local race management company helping to lay out the course and doing the timing and results. My very strong-runner friend, Tony Garcia, was also there helping Lisa out with the event. Our MC was my friend, Anthony Zamora, who is not too shabby a runner either.

On the course:  The event started and finished in a concession stand area near the stadium that is located on the grounds. Prior to the church taking over this property, it used to be a venue for concerts, and other events.  I recall a few years back attending an Aerosmith rock concert at this stadium when it was Verizon Wireless Amphitheater. The church’s campus is pretty large, with 100 acres.  The route for the 5K was one loop around the grounds – mostly parking lot and road areas – and the 10K was 2 loops on the grounds. I started out running with my friend, Chris, but when my watch beeped for my first walk break, she surged on ahead and I never caught back up to her after that, although, since we did some out-and-backs, I was able to see her a few more times and cheer her on.  We started on a downhill and then the course was mostly flat, as we did a few out-and-backs, went past some of the stable areas and outside pens of Retama Park, San Antonio’s horse racing stadium, and then finished up by going behind some of the buildings near the amphitheater – which took us up a short hill –  and then coming back to the start/finish in reverse of the direction we had started.  For what they had to work with – mainly parking lots – the race folks did a good job of laying out a course for we participants.  I ended up with a chip time of 36:53, averaging 11:53 per mile, and was first in my 70-99 males age group, mainly because I was the only one in my age group, lol. 

 After my finish:  Got some water, and the race also had post-race breakfast tacos, so enjoyed one of those, and also wandered around getting some post-race photos and chatting with other participants, friends there, supporters, some of the sponsors, etc. . My friend, Woody, did the 10K and won his age group, and I thought it was funny, lol, that his 10K finish time was faster than my 5k finish time. Woody is definitely a strong runner.

Epilogue:  This is a really nice event for a great cause; just wish Charysse could have been with us, she really loved this event; may she rest in peace. Sometimes when I am on social media, I still stupidly keep checking for her name-and-posts before it hits me again that she is not with us anymore. She will always be missed by many in our running community. The course, as noted, was nicely laid out, and with the huge campus grounds we all had plenty of maneuvering room, that’s for sure. I had a lot of fun with this one, and even give treats to a couple of dogs, lol. As we headed to Mile 2, there were these 2 dogs out in a fenced in-area where there were some supply buildings – they were not chained or anything like that and had plenty of room to roam in the big yard they were in – barking at all the participants passing by.  They barked at me too until I took treats out of my pocket and then they were SO friendly, lol, and each one gently took one from my hand, and then I was off and running again.  I would definitely do this one again and would recommend it to others . Very nice quality race shirt; huge finisher medals and award medals – given to first overall in each age group – an a nice array of post-race goodies, with breakfast tacos, coffee (for me personally, coffee…yuk, lol), and other items.  Mucho thanks to all the ones who made this happen for we participants, including Tony; Lisa; our MC Anthony; Pushbutton Photograph, the official photographers; Pregnancy Care Center staff members; all the sponsors that helped make this one happen; iaap; all the many race-day volunteers; and anyone one else involved that I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all so much!  OK, nap time for me, lol; I have another race scheduled the day after this one.

Photos are here:     https://photos.app.goo.gl/6Ghfs99q4c3a4qTm9

Before the start:  My 20^th race of 2024 was the Get Your Rear in Gear 5K held on Sunday, April 7^th at Morgan’s Wonderland Sports in San Antonio, Texas, with a start time of 8 a.m.  This is one of my ‘streak’ races; I’ve done this event every year since it first started.   The event raises funds for the Colon Cancer Coalition, with the money staying local in San Antonio to “to help remove barriers to screening for under and uninsured people, educate the public about early detection and screening, reduce financial burdens for patients, and fund research to help fight and end colon cancer. “ I got my packet on race morning; as a survivor, my packet included 2 shirts, the race shirt and a ‘survivor’ shirt, both of very nice quality. After getting my packet, I enjoyed wandering around an ongoing expo, chatting with vendors, sponsors, volunteers, and other participants, including many friends there, some of whom were also survivors, and also getting some pre-start photos and handing out treats to any dogs there; there were a couple. There was a total of 222 finishers for this event for the 5K.  There was also kid’s run that started a bit before the 5K; and an untimed Memory Park walk that started at the same time as the 5K.

On the course:  The start was held in front of the pavilion at Morgan’s Sports. Right before we started, dark clouds started rolling in, and the wind started blowing like crazy, so I thought we might get rained on, but it passed over pretty quickly and never did rain.  Temp was about 64 degrees with gray skies, and fairly humid, but not too bad at all. My kind of weather, I like it 60s and above. Our route took us up to Morgan’s Wonderland Park, passing by the Morgan’s Wonderland splash pad and Toyota Field, the stadium of San Antono’s professional soccer team.  We then entered Morgan’s Wonderland Park, doing a loop around the man-made lake in the park, which was very cool; have not been here since the park re-opened after having some renovations done. On completing the loop, we exited the park, did short jaunt through the front parking lot and then headed back the way we had come out from the start, passing by Toyota field once more. We then made a turn that took us past Heroes Stadium, an athletics and event 11.000-seat stadium of the San Antonio North East Independent School District. The route took us on the road in front of the stadium, then to the side of it, and then onto a road that accesses the Wurzbach Parkway, where we did a short jaunt to a turn-round point. We then went back the way we had come, once again passing Heroes Stadium.  We then entered the stadium parking lot, going past the stadium’ main entrance and then back onto the road by the stadium, turning right and heading toward the turn-around Wurzbach parkway access road once more. However, at the intersection, we then made a right turn  onto a road going behind Heroes Stadium. This road led us back to an entrance road to Morgan’s Sports, where we then went to the finish line.  It was a well-thought-out enjoyable course and after finishing, I thanked the folks at iaap for NOT taking us all the way up that Wurzbach Parkway access road, because that is quite hill to a climb, lol, to get to the parkway.  I ended up with a chip time of 39:22, 2^nd in my 70-99 males age group.  There were only two of us in my age group.  Richard, the other guy in my age group, finished in 38:22, 53 seconds ahead of me, lol. Guess I should not have stopped for that last photo, lol.  All good, though, this was a very enjoyable route, that allowed participants to see each other several times on the course and shout out encouragement to each other.

 After my finish:  Lisa, Director of the Thrivewell Foundation, which accepts the donations for this event, was at the finish, cheering in all the finishers, handing out water to them as they came in, and gave me a big hug after I finished.  She knows me from all the years I’ve done this event – even used my photo as part of the announcement for the opening of registration, which is pretty flattering – so I stood with her, helping to pass out water, and chatted with her for a while. After that, went wandering around post-race chatting with friends, other participants, sponsors, etc., as I got some post-race photos, including ones of a couple of friends who placed in their age groups. I also got to stand on the podium with Richard – they gave age group awards to the first 2 finishers in each age group, but we had to wait a while, lol, since they started with all the younger people first.  Note to race directors:  please start with we older folks first; we need to get home to get our nap.  😉

Epilogue: This is a very nicely done event, with sponsors giving out all kinds of items; the race expo, with the tables inside the enclosed pavilion building, was packed full of tables with information about what each of them did, and lots of give-aways from some of them. Edibles available included coffee – which I personally don’t like at all, lol; can’t even stand the smell of the stuff – breakfast tacos, various fruits, and more. Mucho thanks to the event presenting sponsors, Gastroenterology Clinic of San Antonio, P.A., and Texas Colon & Rectal Specialists. Thanks also to the Thrivewell Foundation; race management company iaap for doing the course set-up, timing, and results; the people at Morgan’s for use of their facilities; the professional photographer at the event; all the many race day volunteers; and all the other sponsors/donors who had tables, booths, etc., at the event; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all for this great event.  I also want to thank all the people on the course that gave me shout-outs, that really does help.  The Lord willing, and the creek don’t rise, lol, see you next year at this one; got to keep my streak going!

Photos are here:    https://photos.app.goo.gl/2aWXtfCpR2H4hawaA

Before the start:   My 19^th race of 2024 was Give Cancer The Boot Survivorship 5K. There was also a 1-mile walk.  This event, held on Saturday, April 6, allows family and friends to celebrate, remember, and honor those they know who are battling cancer, have survived cancer, or lost their battle to cancer.  The event was held at the Mays Cancer Center, which has a mission to decrease the burden of cancer in San Antonio, Texas, and beyond. .  Race proceeds benefit Patient and Family Services. Race start time was 9 a.m., with a pre-start ceremony around 8 a.m.  Parking was graciously provided by UT-Health San Antonio in the parking garage and some adjacent parking lots on the campus.   I had picked up my race packet the day before, so when I arrived around 7:15 a.m., I went wandering around, chatting with participants, volunteers, supporters, sponsors, and some of the law enforcement officers there for our safety, and getting a few pre-start photos.  I also handed out treats to the doggies there, as this is a dog-friendly event. My friends from race management company Athlete Guild were doing the course setup, timing, and results, so I enjoyed chatting with them also pre-start.  The weather was fairly cooperative, with an overcast day, a temperature of around 62 degrees at the start time, and it was fairly humid. Mother Nature did spit a little rain on us before the start and on the course, but nothing really major, and it didn’t last very long.

On the course: We started near the parking garage and proceeded on a loop course that took us on both paved and off-road trails on the campus.  For the first part of the course, we  were on sidewalks, going adjacent to Floyd Curl Drive on our right, and then veered away from the street and went up a paved hill.  This took us to the off-road part of the course  on a dirt/gravel trail.  Pretty much most of the rest of the course was on this trail, which had a couple of pretty good uphill climbs, so I am so glad I do weekly hill training, lol. We stayed on this trail until we got to an empty parking lot that we went onto. This took us back onto pavement, passing buildings on our left and woods on our right. This part of the course got us to the 2-mile mark.    Shortly after that, we went onto another trail, with woods on our left and right.  From this trail, I could hear cheering, so knew we were pretty close to the finish.  The trail took us up to a paved road, where we passed by the large parking lot where many of the sponsors companies had booths set up. We made a left turn in front of that parking lot, and then I could see the finish line. Down this short road, then a quick right turn and there was the finish line, yay.  I ended up running most of the last mile non-stop, with just one quick break for a photo, and ended up with a finish time of 38:40, 4^th in my 70-79 age group, 1 minute and 28 seconds behind the guy who was 3^rd.  Guess I should not have stopped for that last photo, lol.  It’s all good though, enjoyed myself.

 After my finish:  Got my finisher medal, got some water, did a short cool-down walk, got some post-race water and then did my usual thing of getting some post-race photos, Including getting some photos of friends and other participants as they finished.  As I did all this, I wandered here-and-there, chatting with a lot of people and handed-out more doggie treats. I was very popular with the dogs, lol.

Epilogue: This is a very nicely done event, with sponsors giving out all kinds of items; finisher medal to all finishers; very nicely done course – not an out-and-back course for a change, which I loved; loop courses are my favorite type of course; really nice quality race shirt; and the goody bag even included a pair of “eclipse sun-glasses” in it, which my wife appropriated from me, lol, which is all good. I will definitely do this one again, and would recommend it to others.  Mucho thanks to all who made the one happen for we participants, e.g., UT-Health San Antonio; all the sponsors; law enforcement out there for us; all the many volunteers; our music-and-sound guy who also did MC duties; Athlete Guild for the course setup, timing, and results; and any others involved not have mentioned here.  Thank you all!

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/YtgV5Ga7g5azqjK78

Before the start:   My 18^th race of 2024 was the Stride For Sight 5K held on March 30^th at Comanche Park in San Antonio, Texas, on Rigsby Road. This event supports the Lions Sight Research Foundation and the San Antonio Eye Bank.  The theme of the event was “Saving Sight, Changing Lives”.  It is also a pet-friendly event, so there were quite a few dogs attending. Thankfully, lol, I had just purchased a new jar of dog treats, so had plenty.  Soler’s Sports was the local run//race company that took care of registration, packet pickup, etc.  There was a really nice turn-out for this one with something like 600+ participants that included walkers and runners.  The timing was “old-school”, where you started with the clock and then after you finished, filled out a card with your finish time on it. I’m assuming this was because chip-timing for an event can cost an estimated $800 – $1700 depending on the number of race participants, and these organizations are on a pretty tight budget, so opted out of chip timing to better support their cause with the funds raised, which makes sense. This one had a late start of 10 a.m., so got to sleep in a bit.  I arrived with about an hour to go, found some parking in a really packed parking area, and then got a few pre-start photos.  There was an opening ceremony with the National Anthem played. After that, I wandered around chatting with various people, handing out treats to the doggies there, and getting a few pre-start photos.  Our weather was overcast, looking like it was going to rain on us but never did, with just about no wind, and temp at start time of 63 degrees, and fairly humid. Personally, I prefer to run in bright sunshine, lol, but it was all good.

On the course:  At Comanche Park, there are two route options for running events, one with some hills, and the other which is fairly flat. The route for this one was the hillier one.  Out-and-back course that took us along the paved trails of the park, over a couple of bridges, that are part of the Salado Creek Greenway trails. We had a bit of flat for a bit, and then went downhill on a fairly long stretch of the trail – meaning we’d have to climb up to get to the finish.  We had a couple of other up climbs along the way to the turn-round, but these felt to me like long up inclines than true hills.  We then did go downhill to get to the turn-round point, so another up climb to get back to the start/finish.  I felt pretty good and did my usual run/walk thing, taking photos during my walk breaks. After passing Mile 2, I started ignoring my watch beeping at my for walk breaks, since I was feeling really good, making just a few really quick stops to get a few more photos, and then got going again.  We also started encountering lots of walkers coming toward us on our way back, but they were very accommodating and polite, giving way to the runners, and cheering us on.  I ended up with a finish time of 41:07 per the clock, and that ended up being good enough for 2^nd in my 70-99 age group, nice.    

 After my finish:  Got some water, did a short cool-down walk and then did my usual thing of getting some post-race photos, as well as some of the volunteers, sponsors, etc.  Awards ceremony was nicely done – although they really need to start with we old folks first, lol, instead of the younger folks, so we can get home and get our nap  😉 – and the award medal is really nicely done.  Lots of booths at this one with all kinds of items and various food stuff; I even saw a few people with some sausage wraps.  I still had doggie treats remaining, so was very popular with the canines again. Some of them recognized me as I came along and started heading for me, causing the arms of their poor humans to suddenly extend out as their leashes became taut. Thankfully, the humans kept their sense of humor and were all very nice about it.  There was also a ‘memorial area” with lots of boards, photos of loved ones who sadly lost their battles, memorial messages, and so forth. It was quite moving and well-done. Epilogue:   Thoroughly enjoyable event for a good cause.  I kept my late Aunt Sybil in mind, as she had eye problems, and also one of my favorite cousins, the daughter of Aunt Sybil, Kip, who I grew up with, dedicating to them in my heart and mind the doing of this one to them. Our families were so close for so many, many years, and had lots of outings and events, as Kip and I grew up. This event was nicely done and well managed, with as many participants as it had. The course was very nicely laid out. From what I saw at any given time, nobody had any issues with it. Some of the kid runners were really speedy too; I wish I had half their energy, lol.  The award medals are nicely designed and the race shirts are really good quality cotton shirts; as much as I perspire – ok SWEAT, lol – when I run I would not wear this for a run, but it’s a very nice and comfortable walk-about shirt. I would definitely do this event again and would recommend it to others.  Much thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants, including all our sponsors; our MC; Soler Sports; all the many volunteers; the official photographers on the course; the bike lead guys; the police officers who were helping with traffic control before and after, and out there for our safety, too; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all so very much!    

Epilogue:   Thoroughly enjoyable event for a good cause.  I kept my late Aunt Sybil in mind, as she had eye problems, and also one of my favorite cousins, the daughter of Aunt Sybil, Kip, who I grew up with, dedicating to them in my heart and mind the doing of this one to them. Our families were so close for so many, many years, and had lots of outings and events, as Kip and I grew up. This event was nicely done and well managed, with as many participants as it had. The course was very nicely laid out. From what I saw at any given time, nobody had any issues with it. Some of the kid runners were really speedy too; I wish I had half their energy, lol.  The award medals are nicely designed and the race shirts are really good quality cotton shirts; as much as I perspire – ok SWEAT, lol – when I run I would not wear this for a run, but it’s a very nice and comfortable walk-about shirt. I would definitely do this event again and would recommend it to others.  Much thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants, including all our sponsors; our MC; Soler Sports; all the many volunteers; the official photographers on the course; the bike lead guys; the police officers who were helping with traffic control before and after, and out there for our safety, too; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all so very much!     

Photos are here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/P97227EkmrCQje9E8

Before the start:  My 17^th race of 2024 was the Helotes Beer Garden 5K held on March 23^rd in Helotes, Texas. This event, normally held in Old Towne Helotes, was held this year at the Cornyval Festival grounds in Helotes.  I am not exactly sure why the location was moved, but heard through the grapevine that the price quoted for road closures in Olde Towne was just way too high this year to make it practical to do the event there.  Too bad, because there is a lot more room in that area, and it seems to me doing the event there is win for the local businesses in Olde Towne, as many participants stick around after the event to eat and shop locally for a bit; and this year there would have been quite a large group; for this year’s event the 5K had 774 finishers; just for the 5K; then you include the 1-mile walk, all the vendor and sponsor patrons there, the race volunteers, and so forth…that is quite a lot of people Olde Towne lost out on this year. Well, it is what it is, and so we did the event at Cornyval.  I arrived quite early, just after 7 a.m., so got some nice parking, and then enjoyed chatting with friends, race-day volunteers, sponsors, etc. and getting a few pre-start photos

On the course:   Due to the number of participants, the 5K was done in 2 parts.  The speedier participants who could run at a pace of 8 minutes per mile and under started at 8 a.m., followed by all of the other participants at 9 a.m. The course was 2 loops on the Cornyval grounds, with terrain that included pavement, grass-and-dirt areas, and a gravel road.  Given what the race organizers had to work with, the course was pretty nicely laid out. It was pretty crowded at the start, but after we got going and began to spread out, I never really felt crowded at all, and had plenty of room for maneuvering about to pass a few people ahead of me and to move aside to let faster people pass by me.  The course was mostly flat, with our course uphill being on a long gravel road. It was not a steep hill – like the hills in Olde Towne- more like a long incline that went gradually up. Once we got up this incline, we then went onto some pavement, then onto another small off-road trail that took us to more pavement, which took us back to the start/finish, where we went through the start area again to do our second loop.  With my spinal arthritis, I do a run/walk thing, 8-min-run/2-min-walk, and took oncourse photos during my walk breaks.  I was actually feeling pretty good and ended up with negative splits, doing the first loop in 20:20, and the 2^nd loop in 18:32, zowie! My chip finish time was 38:52, averaging 12:31 per mile. This is very encouraging for me, making me realize I am FINALLY starting to get over my cancer side-effects from my prostate cancer treatments in 2021 and 2022.  The doc told me these side effects could last anywhere from 2 to 6 years, post-treatment, so these results made me one happy doggie.  The posted results showed I had finished first out of 8 in the 70-99 males age group, nice.

 After my finish:   Did a short cool-down walk, got some water, and then got some photos of other finishers coming in.  After that, wandered around like I usually do post-race, chatting with others and getting some more “Happy Finisher” photos – I call them that because more people seem to be smiling after they are done than before and during, lol – and also handing out treats to the doggies there, and enjoying a couple of post-race snacks and, of course, since it is the beer festival, enjoyed a post race beer too. There were also several fellow veterans at this one, so we enjoyed sharing experiences with each other.  Nice to see lots of my running friends at this one.

Epilogue:    As noted, with what they had to work with, Race Director Lisa Haby Soler and her crew did a good job of laying out the course for this one.  It was a little crowded when we began in the start area, but that was to be expected with this many people, as we experienced race participants know, and we were soon comfortably spread out. The after party was awesome with all kinds of beer, post-race goodies, a food booth where you could purchase food, a massage area, and more.  Several people did this one in costume, which was fun to see. Dogs were allowed to come to this one – and yes, they did get treats from me, lol, before and after – but I did not personally see any on the course; given the number of participants, probably a smart thing. The age group award medal is nicely designed, large, and has a ‘beer glass runner” on it that spins around. The race shirt is also nicely designed and is a tech-tee, a keeper, so definitely going to get my self-motivation print put onto this one for future running and events.  I would definitely do this one again and would recommend it to others. Mucho thanks to all those that made this one happen for we participants, including Soler Sports and all the many volunteers; all the vendors; all the sponsors, including Stout House, the main sponsor that held packet pickup at its location; the official photographers out there for us; the local law enforcement and security guys out there for our safety, iaap for doing the course setup, timing, and results; our MC for the event, and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Also, thanks to all who kindly indulged me in letting me take photos of them for my race report.  Thank you all!  Hope to see you at a future upcoming event!