Scottydog Reports

Photos are here:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/NSRxFLxaFbGYyJhu6    

Before the start:   My 40^th race of 2024 was the Texas Tough 5K, held in Helotes, Texas on June 23^rd.  Put on by E-Dragon Productions aka “Dragon’s Den”, this was my 2^nd race of the weekend, after doing the Beards vs Beans Longest Day 5K the day before this one. Along with the 5K, there was also a 10-miler and a 10K.  Start and finish location was in Olde Towne Helotes by Serenity Manor, an event venue for various functions, parties, etc.  Interestingly, this event venue building used to be Roger Soler Sports long ago, so the building itself has a running-world history. The 10-miler had 78 finishers; the 10K, 89 finishers; and the 5K, 127 finishers.  I arrived with about an hour to go until start-time and got a few pre-start photos.

On the course:  The 10-milers started first, followed shortly after by the 10k participants, and then the 5K participants started last. We left the parking lot by Serenity Manor, proceeding on a slight downhill on Old Bandera Road and going across a pedestrian bridge that went over a creek-bed, which was pretty dry with this Texas summer heat. We then began to climb again on Old Bandera Road until we got to Antonio Drive, where we made a left turn. This took us down a hill, where we had a flat road for just a bit.  Antonio Drive took us to Merin Hollow Drive, where we made a right turn. We had maybe a quarter-mile of flat on this nicely-wide road in a very pretty neighborhood, lots of nice homes. We rounded a curve in the road and then the hills began in earnest and I could see why this event was named Texas Tough, lol. These were no baby hills; these hills were pretty steep, both up-and-down. I just concentrated on getting through these 5K hills, and taking some on-course photos, and did take a fe more walk breaks than I usually do.  As I went along, I thought, dang, if these are the hills for just the 5K, those 10K and 10-miler folks must really be going through hill-hell. I found out later from some of those participants, that they went all the way to the top of this neighborhood, which is QUITE the climb, wow.  The average elevation level for each of these courses must have been crazy, lol. Per my Garmin connect, the average elevation range was listed at 1,020-ft to 1,120 ft, and that was just the 5K, so the 10K and 10-miler folks must have really had some crazy numbers.  Somehow, I managed to finish with a 42:47 chip time, averaging, 13:46 per mile, and I managed a negative split of 12:36 for the last mile; guess I was ready to be done, lol.  I got a laugh at myself when, just as I was getting ready to finish, my friend Max, who did the 10-miler, if I remember correctly, came whipping by me and finished quite a bit in front of me, lol. Max is one speedy guy.   My friend, Roland, and I were the only 2 in the 70-99 males age group for the 5K, so we each got a medal.

 After my finish:  Got some water first thing, and did a cool-down walk as I sipped that; then found some shade and just sat for a bit. After that, per my doc’s orders, since I have a pacemaker implant, I always get my blood pressure checked post-race. Surprisingly I cooled down pretty fast and the on-site med tech told me it was 117 over 70, nice, with my resting heart rate already down to 62. After that I enjoyed getting some post-race treats, of which there were quite a few, including various fresh fruits, breakfast tacos, Force water, coffee (blech!), and lots more.  There was also a ‘mister’ you could stand in front of to help cool you down; that was nice. Although it did feel a tad cooler for this Helotes event than it did for the 5K I did on Saturday, even so, at the start time, the temp was already 79 degrees, with the humidity at something like 82%, so it was a bit sticky. After getting a bit refreshed from the mister and just sitting for a while, I then wandered here-and-there, getting some after-photos and chatting with other participants, supporters, volunteers, etc.   There were also quite a few dogs present so I handed out treats to them, with permission of their humans.  Epilogue:  As usual for E-Dragon and iaap, a well-done quality event, with a challenging course – to say the least, lol – personalized race bibs, very nice finisher medals, and unique placer awards that are big ‘coins” that can be used to get race entry discounts at future E-Dragon races.  Very nice quality race shirts – I got a youth medium and gave mine to a kid – and there was even a costumed Dragon at the race, which the kids there had a lot of fun with.  It was also nice to see my friend Kristine, co-owner of E-Dragon, back at work after recently having a newborn baby girl. The Burciaga clan is a very busy family. Mucho thanks to all who gave we participants this quality event, e.g., E-Dragon; iaap; all the many volunteers; the law enforcement and medical folks there for us; our official  race photographers; all the many vendors and sponsors the help pay for all this; the patience of the Helotes residents as we invaded their space for several hours; our MC, Anthony, and our sound-and-music guy Paul; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you all so much!  Next up for me; Big Red and Barbacoa 5K, June 29^th, Martin Luther King Park, San Antonio.

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/B8xowF7gk9zMRQUD9   

Before the start:     My 39^th race of 2024 was the Beards vs Beans: Longest Day 5K/10K held on June 22 at McAllister Park, with a 7:30 a.m. start for the  10K and an 8 a.m. start for the 5K.   Beards vs Beans was started by brothers Matt and Miguel to raise funds to benefit the Alzheimer’s Association of San Antonio and South Texas. Two races are done each year, one hosted by Miguel and the other by Matt. Whichever brother raises the most funds at his hosted event, the other brother than has to meet a challenge put out by the ‘winning’ brother. Either way, both brothers win, as this is a very popular event, so these events raise quite a few funds for Alzheimer’s.  After the main events are done there is also a post-race event a 0.5 beer race, in which participants must do this carrying a full glass of beer; whoever has the fullest glass after the finish is declared the winner. Local race management company E-Dragon Enterprises put on this event, with race company iaap doing the timing and results. Both are top-notch locally-based race management companies that put on several events over the years. Our MC, Anthony Zamora, was our MC for this event. He MCs for quite a few local races and did his usual great job for this one.  Our sound-and-music guy, Paul, was also there, doing his usual great job too.  .  I had picked up my packet the day before, so after arriving at the park with plenty of time before the start, I got a few pre-race photos.  There was quite a nice turn-out for this one, as always.  The 5K ended up with 227 finishers, and the 10K had 57 finishers.

On the course: The start-and-finish was at the upper parking lot of McAllister Park, where the dog park is located. I’ve done events here before so knew what to expect:  hilly!  Both 10K and 5K were out and back. The course went from the parking lot onto a paved trail that wound us downhill to an underpass that took us underneath the Wurzbach Parkway. After we were on the other side of the parkway, we then started to climb…and then climbed some more lol. Some of the speedier 5K folks were already heading back toward the finish by the time I started this climb.  The first male and female who came in first for the 5K – really speedy – had both passed me by on their  way to the finish before I had event gotten into the underpass, wow; they were moving. After we finally crested this hill, then it was a downhill to the 5K turn-round point.  The 10K participants continued on and I think had to go into Lady Bird Johnson Park to get to their turn-round, so they really had some hills. Of course, after I made the turn-round, I that downhill was now an uphill on the way back; a pretty long uphill to.  I finally crested the hill and then it was downhill to the underpass. Once through the underpass then, of course, that downhill we did from the start now become a pretty long uphill back to the finish. There were two people in front of me – a young lady and young man – wearing pretty funny matching outfits, so I just kept my eyes on them, using them as my ‘rabbits’ to get me to the finish.  I was not very close to them, but I did manage to keep them in sight, saw them finish, and then a few minutes after them I finished too, with my last mile being a negative split, nice. I ended up with a chip time of 39:37, averaging 12:45 per mile, which was good enough for 2^nd in my 70-99 males age group.

 After my finish:  I got a few photos of other participants coming in, then got some water and went and relaxed in my vehicle for 10 minutes with the a/c on full blast, cooling down. It was pretty darn humid out there, with no wind, and the temp was around 81 degrees at start time.     We had crazy humidity  – 88% at start time, almost matching the temperature.  Felt much better after getting re-hydrated and doing the a/c cool-down, so after that it was off to get some more photos, and some post-race goodies and watch the beer race, which was pretty funny.

Epilogue:  As usual with e-Dragon, iaap, and the two brothers, everything went along pretty smoothly from my point of view; there may have been some glitches for a few people, but I never heard about them, except for my friend, Carolyn who placed in her age group, but did not get mentioned during the awards ceremony. They got it worked out, though, and she did get her medal.  Lots of post-race goodies, including beer, Kiolbassa grilled sausages – my favorite, but sadly, cannot have them anymore bummer – lots of fresh fruits, courtesy of some of the sponsors/vendors and my friend Gilbert who provides some really good fresh fruits over the year at several races; Shiner beer; Force water; and lots more.  All finishers got a really nice finisher medal, and the race shirt is a very nice quality. Age group and overall placers got a really nice E-Dragon coin that can be used to get a registration discount for future E-Dragon events.  There was also a costume contest, and a Kid’s Run before the start of the main events. This is also a dog-friendly event, so several doggies there, which made me doggie popular since, as usual, I had dog-treats in my pockets. A very nicely done event, one I will continue to do in the future; although….hey, this is Texas summer, it starts getting light at 6:30 a.m., so how about an earlier start right around then? We’re runners and walkers, we’re used to getting up early, lol  Mucho thanks to all that made this one happen for we participants, e.g., the two brothers, Miguel and Matt; our sound/music guy, Paul; our MC, Anthony; Erik of e-Dragon; all the iaap crew; all the many, many volunteers and sponsors;. law enforcement folks out there for us; and the patience of all the other users of the park not doing this event, as the park was still open to all; Burleson Yard in San Antonio, for the pre-race packet pickup location; and to anyone else involved not have mentioned here. Thank you all!

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/TfB37k5Agsz1JcE88

Before the start:    My 38^th race of 2024 was the San Antonio Roadrunners Texas Sun Showdown 5K, held on June 16^th at McAllister Park in San Antonio. This was my 2^nd 5K of the weekend after having done the Y’all Means All 5K on Saturday.  The Texas Sun Showdown event also included an individually run half-marathon and a 4-team-members half-marathon relay and a 2-person team members half marathon relay. The half marathon events started first, with the 5K folks starting about 10 to 15 minutes after them. All the courses were loop courses in the park, with, naturally, longer routes for the half-marathon participants. It was pretty darn warm, too.  Even with a 7:15 start, the temperature was already in the low 80s, and the humidity was a crazy 81%, good grief.  Thankfully, we did have  mix of cloud cover, along with the sunshine, and McAllister Park has a lot of trees, so lots of shaded areas along the way.

On the course:   All events started and finished on Buckhorn Road, near the park’s lower soccer fields and the youth baseball stadium.  We proceeded up Buckhorn Road, with the soccer fields on our right, and then passed the youth baseball field on our right. We then went up a short-paved path not accessible to traffic that took us to a paved road and continued on that road heading in the direction of Becken Pavilion. About ¼ mile or so down from Becken Pavilion, we turned left onto an off-road paved trail that took us past a police sub-station we could see near the park. We wound around this trail a bit more, ending up at trail intersection. A left turn took us past Becken Pavilion and across a paved road onto a trail across the street from Becken Pavilion. We did a very short up incline, and then made a right turn that put us on a trail that took us to another trail intersection. A right turn put us onto a trail from which we could look down at the lower soccer fields and see the start/finish area. This trail took us behind the youth baseball field and then to another trail intersection. We turned left onto this paved trail and that took us past the baseball field, now on our left. We exited this trail with a left turn, went past the baseball field on our left, and then back onto the road we had originally started on and went to the finish. I ended up with a chip time of 41:57, averaging 13:30 per mile with my run/walk and photo stops, finishing 5^th out of 7 in my 70-99 males age group. The first guy in my group finished in 26 minutes and change, and the next two placers were both in the 30’s. There sure are some speedy old guys in my age group, lol.  There was a total of 244 finishers, female and male, for the 5K.  The 2-person half teams had 30 finishers in 5 different categories. The 4-person half relay teams had a total of 172 participants in 12 different categories.  A very nice turn-out for this event, 446 total finishers.

 After my finish:  I got a few photos of other participants coming in, and then went in search hydration and goodies.  Right near the finish area was a tub full of iced-down Force Water, so that was convenient. I got some water and then saw my friend Gilbert, a great supporter of these events, who had a tent with watermelon slices, fresh fruits, and some other goodies. He graciously allowed me to sit in one of his chairs as I just relaxed for a bit, cooling down and drinking my water and eating a banana, as we chatted  with each other and with other people coming by to get some of the excellent goodies Gilbert always shows up with at events. It was very pleasant.  After that, I was up-and-going again, chatting with other participants, and getting some more post-race photos, and handing out more treats to more doggies.  There were a couple of dogs on the course, walking with their humans, but none running, as I recall,  which is probably good, with that crazy humidity we had.    Epilogue:  SARR did a really nice job with this one. The courses were nicely laid out and all of them were loop courses with no little out-and-back sections to do, thank goodness, just before we go to the finish line; that is so annoying; if a race course is advertised as an out-and-back, I get it and expect it…but when it is a loop course, don’t ruin the loop by throwing in an out-and-back portion just before the end; when I hit that last turn before the finish, I just want to go to the finish, not have to do an out-and-back first before going to the finish, lol. I found out post-race, my friend Erik from E-Dragon had laid out the 5K course, and he accommodated us nicely with this very good loop course with no out-and backs anywhere; thank you!  OK, hissy fit over lol.  Anyway…from my viewpoint of what I saw and heard, SARR did a fine job with this one; very nice courses with lots of room for everyone; really nice race shirt, very uniquely don, and very nicely done finisher medals;  lots of vendors with lots of post-race goodies, and there was a brisket meal too – this event  used to be put on and known Carrabba’s, if I remember correctly – and cold drinks, including some Shiner Bock beer.  There is an indoor restroom building at this pavilion area, but it’s pretty small so, with 446 participants, as well as the vendors, sponsors, family members, friends, etc., that were all there,  SARR did a nice job of having a few porta-potties located near the race area. There was also an official photographer for this one – much better photos than mine, I am sure, lol – and the Park Police had a presence there for our safety.   I would definitely do this one again and would recommend it to others. Meanwhile, much thanks to all the people involved that made this one happen for us, e.g.,  law enforcement; SARR leadership; all the many volunteers and all the sponsors; medical staff there for us, if needed; our MC Anthony Zamora doing his usual great job; iaap for the timing, results, etc., doing their usual great job;  the event photographers; the lady before the start – don’t know her name – who beautifully sang The National Anthem; the food service company that provided the brisket and other items for a nice post-race meal for those that wanted it; and also, since the park was, of course, open to other exercise enthusiasts, e.g., cyclists, other walkers, runners, etc., thanks to them too for their patience with us invading the park for quite a while; and to anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all!  See you at a future event sometime!  My next one will be Beards And Beans Longest Day 5K on June 22^nd. 

Photos are here:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/KiyM51yHGQxV87X66     

Before the start:    My 37^th race of 2024 was the Y’all Means All Pride 5K held in San Antonio on June 15^th at Lady Bird Johnson Park. There were 315 finishers for this event that supports the Thrive Youth Center, which provides LGBTQ+  homeless young adults a safe and supporting housing environment so they can become productive, skilled, educated, and successful adults.  This event sold out. It was capped at 400 entries and ended up with a a total of 315 finishers, so just about everyone registered showed up.  The 5K start time was 8 a.m.,  with a temp in the upper 70s, low 80s at start time.  I had previously picked up my packet, so arrived with a little over an hour to go and got some pre-start photos.

On the course:  This course was an out-and-back starting from the LBJ Park trailhead.  We did a lap around the park’s traffic circle near a large parking lot and then went down an incline that took us to the paved park trails below.  We made a right turn, heading in the direction of a trail that would have taken us to McAllister Park if we had stayed on it; however, we just did a short turn-round and then headed back the way we had come.  We continued on the park’s paved trail that eventually took us through the Los Patios shoppes area and to a turn-round just short of the frontage road of Loop 410 highway, and then returned to the finish in reverse of the way we had come out.  This course is mostly flat, with a few small up-and-down inclines along the way. The longest ‘hill’ – which was not much of a hill at all – was the incline we had gone down to get to the park’s main trails and then climbed up it, to get back to the traffic circle, where we went around once more, in reverse from the start, to get to the finish line.  A nice thing about this park too, for the route, is there is lots of shade along the trails. I ended up with a 42:58 chip time, averaging 13:50 per mile and was 1^st in my 70-89 males age group, largely because, lol, I was the only one in this age group. The age group award was this funny, yellow plastic ‘banana holder’ lol, which I thought was pretty amusing and inventive.

 After my finish:    After getting rehydrated and doing a short cool-down walk, I then got some post-race photos.  I normally take quite a few post-race photos, but for some reason my usually-ever-faithful old-fashioned Canon push-button camera started whacking out on me and froze up at times.  I still managed to get some post-race photos of happy finishers, etc., , but I think this may be “Old Red’s” final performance for photos.  Thankfully, when I got this one, I also got a few spares, back in the day when they were pretty inexpensive; you can hardly find these anymore and some of the prices being asked for them currently are just crazy, like they are collector’s items or something, good grief. I’d like to get Old Red repaired, but I don’t think any camera repair shop would even keep parts on hand for an old-time Canon camera. Be that as it may, I still got a few photos of some of the happy finishers, supporters, etc.

Epilogue:   This event was put on by In The Loop Running Crew and they did a very good job at it. Nicely thought-out course; lots of pre-and-post-race hydration available; many various vendors with different types of merchandise; shaded pavilion for post-race where you could sit and relax, and there was also a ‘cooling’ tent that had a “mister’ in it, nice. All the volunteers were great. There is only one porta-potty at LBJ Park – which I never understood as this park is quite well-used so you’d think the Park Service leadership would pull their heads out of you-know-where and put a few more here – but the race organizers rented a couple more so that made it better for the event. There was also a water station at the turn-round point, which was nice too.  I enjoyed doing this one – in honor of my daughter who supports this cause – and it has a very nice finisher medal too for all finishers.  I don’t remember if there is a race shirt; I do so many races over a year I bring home a lot of shirts, lol; so I often order a youth shirt and then just ask the organizers to just please donate it to some kid they may know; it’s all good.  Mucho thanks to all the people that made this one happen for we participants, e.g., In The Loop Running Crew; Thrive Youth Center; all the many vendors, sponsors, and volunteers out there for us; our MC, my friend Anthony Zamora; the EMT/Medic that was on site for us, as well as the Park Police Officers there for our safety; my friends at iaap, the race management company that did the course setup, timing and results; the official photographer there for us; and any others involved that I may not have mentioned here, thank you all.  Also, although this event was not recommended for our canine pals due to the heat, there were few dogs there that I enjoyed meeting and giving treats to, with permission of the humans; yes, I am the Good Humor Man for dogs, lol. Thanks to all who supported this event. Hope to see you at a future race sometime!  Now, MY old-dog self needs to go get a nap…I’ve got another 5K the day after this one, lol.

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/SZBAN1eniW7nFSsN6  

Before the start:   My 36^th  race of 2024 was the E-Dragon 5K Summer Series, Race #2, on Sunday, June 9^th at the South Side Lions Park East in San Antonio. This was my 2^nd race of the weekend after doing The Big Run 5K the day before.   The Summer Series event raises funds for a scholarship. This is a nice park in San Antonio, that is part of the  San Antonio Parks and Recreation Greenway Trails System, that connects several city parks with each other. The events have an early start time of  shortly after 7 a.m., after the Kids Run is held. For 5K #2, there was a total of 93 finishers, per the results list. I arrived with about 45 minutes until starting time. I saw my friend, Erik, co-owner of E-Dragon, who was just about to leave as he got word his wife had just delivered their new daughter. We had a brief exchange, wished each other well, and I congratulated him on his new family addition, and he was on his way. I also saw my walking friend, Peggy, and got a photo of her and friend. After getting my packet, I then got a few more pre-start photos before we got going.

On the course: This was an out-and-back course on the park’s paved trails, giving us a couple of nice views of the park’s man-made Lake, Lion’s Park Lake, where several people fish. The first mile or so was fairly flat,  with us crossing a short bridge, and then we began climbing a bit, after crossing another bridge.  The course took us on a trail that would have taken us to Comanche County Park on Rigsby Road, if we had continued that far. We climbed up to a water station and then went downhill, crossing underneath an overpass, and then down short hill, and crossed over a short concrete bridge. We rounded a trail bend after the bridge and then had a short uphill climb to the turn-round point and then did the course in reverse to get back to the finish.  As usual, I did my run/walk thing – can’t run nonstop anymore for a whole race with this spinal arthritis – and took some on-course photos during my walk breaks.  After crossing the short bridge we’d gone over to get the to turn-round, I began running again and went nonstop to the finish, ending up with a chip time of 40:34, good enough for 2^nd in my 70-99 males age group, out of the 4 people in it.  I might have finished a bit faster, but my darn running shorts tie string broke, and so I had to keep pulling up my running shorts on occasion, lol, which slowed me down each time I had to do that; probably the right thing to do, though; don’t want anyone wanting to put their eyes out if they inadvertently see my wrinkled old-man butt.  We old guys, you see, are like trees that get a new circle each year we age; we old guys get a new butt-wrinkle each year.   

 After my finish:   Did a short cool-down walk, got some water in me and then got a few photos of other finishers coming in. After that, relaxed a bit in the shade of the park pavilion, drinking some more water and chatting with friends, other participants, etc., who were in the pavilion; then it was up-and-out again to get some post-race photos of the happy finishers, etc., and to watch the post-race awards being handed out.

Epilogue:  This is a really well-done event by E-Dragon and their volunteers, with a really nice course – hilly in places, but nice –  that gives you some nice views of the lake along the way and then the creek near the turn-round point. The award medals are small ‘coins’ that have a code on it to get a discount when one registers for another E-Dragon race, very nice.   Various post-race fruits and other goodies were offered and they also had these  “frozen pops” things that hit the spot on a humid day; official photographer on the course getting participant photos, and plenty of cold bottled water; I don’t recall if there was post-race beer. Race shirts were sold at very reasonable prices to help raise funds for the cause, as the entry fee for these races is pretty low, and if you sign up for more than one initially, then you get a nice discount with that, too. Mucho thanks to all who helped make this event possible for we participants: the sponsors; all the many volunteers; our MC Anthony; E-Dragon, of course for initiating it; the race photographers; and anyone involved I didn’t mention.  Thank you all!  Hope to see you at a future race sometime!  Also, big congrats to my friends,  E-Dragon co-owners Erik and Christine, whose baby daughter was born this race morning.

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/pPBzQwJvAPtQSqfY9   

Before the start:   My 35^th race of 2024 was The Big Run 5K held on June 8^th, at McAllister Park, with a 7:30 a.m. start time. The Big Run celebrates Global Running Day. Prior to the event you had to choose a day to pick up your packet a few days before race day at one of the local Fleet Feet stores, and then had to go to that specific store to get your packet.  If I remember correctly, race day packet pickup was quite limited, so it was best to get your packet at one of the Fleet Feet stores. I think with all these people, it would have gotten really crazy if packet pickup had been open for all, so probably a good method to use for this popular event. I heard there were over 500 registered for this event; the results for the live event show 403 finishers, so some participants may have done it virtually.  The start finish area was near the pavilion at the lower soccer fields of  the park. With a 7:30 a.m. start, I figured if I left at 6 and got there by 6:30 a.m. – I live really close to the park – I’d get some nice parking.  Apparently, lol, everyone else had the same idea; parking was already packed in when I got there.  I did find parking fairly close, and then before the start enjoyed chatting with friends and other participants, sponsors, vendors, volunteers, etc.  We had fairly nice weather for it, with a mix of sunshine and cloud cover, although it was pretty darn humid, and the temp was already in the upper 70s, low 80s.

On the course:   The planners arranged the start quite nicely, with the ‘elite’ runners, heading onto the course a little before the main body of participants started, so they could maintain their speedy paces without getting ‘crowd-interrupted’. The rest of us started about 10 or so minutes after the elites left. We started on the road where the lower soccer fields were on our right, and the pavilion restrooms were on our left.  The course was nice and flat. We went past the youth baseball field on our right and then continued straight, going onto a road that goes toward Becken Pavilion and a 3-way stop-sign intersection in the park. This part of the course took us to Mile 1.  We did not go as far up as Becken Pavilion; we turned left onto a paved running trail that was a short way down from Becken Pavilion.  This trail wound us through a shady part of the park, and then onto a paved trail that went past a police substation on our left. We continued around on this trail and then took a left turn that took us across the road that is right then park entrance road from Jones Maltberger. After crossing the road, we continued on the paved trail.  This brought us just down from Becken Pavilion, which was down the street to our right. We crossed over the street, got on the paved trail on the other side and then proceeded to a trail intersection that put us now behind the youth baseball stadium.  We turned right onto this trail, going behind the baseball field, which we could see on our left. At the next trail intersection, we turned left; if we’d turned right, we would have gone to Becken Pavilion; this left turn took us back to the road we had initially started on, with the baseball field now on our left, and proceeded back to the finish line the way we had first come out. As usual, I did my 8-minutes-run/2 minutes-walk thing and took photos during my walk breaks; however after my walk break just a tad past Mile 2, I then ran nonstop to the finish.  There were only 3 in my 70-99 age group, so I ended 2^nd, with a chip time of 40:53.  My friend Jim, also in my age group, runs quite a speed pace – 8-minute miles –  so I knew I was not getting first, lol. My slow old legs averaged 13:10 per mile and it’s all good. These days, I’m not into the ‘shoot for the medal’ thing anymore after 41 years of being a runner (I started April 15, 1983 – tax day! – when I was assigned in Turkey, so I always remember the date). My goals these days are just have fun, finish standing up, and no ambulance waiting for me at the finish, lol.  So far so good! If I get a medal, great; but it’s not something I intentionally shoot for;  all good.

 After my finish:  A short cool-down walk, get some hydration in me and then got a few post-race photos.  I then went and just relaxed for a while at the pavilion, getting in some more liquids while enjoying a chat with my speedy friend Woody, who just about always places in his age group. After that, I wandered around some more, chatting with volunteers, participants, sponsors, etc., and got some after-photos.  I also, as usual, had a pocketful of doggie treats, so handed those out to the dogs there as I wandered about. I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

Epilogue:  This is quite an active event, with some games to play; a raffle; a costumed dragon wandering around; many running organization tents/booths – such as Speed Burro Running, Wolfpack Running, Scallywompus and more; lots of Team Beef members there, as well as, Brooks Running, Fleet Feet, and more – and there were also some nice post-race goodies, including Kiolbassa sausages; these frozen popsicle stick things of various flavors; Shiner beer; various fruits, and lots more. The race shirt is of very nice quality – although my old man brain can’t remember now where I put mine, lol, after I picked up my packet – and very unique award medals from E-Dragon for those that placed, and a very nice finisher medal for all finishers; and even the race bib is very nicely designed.  As noted, this is a dog-friendly, chair-friendly, and kid friendly event. I will certainly do this one again and would recommend it to others. Mucho thanks to all the people that made this one happen for we participants, including E-Dragon Productions; Fleet Feet and Brooks Running which, I think, were the major sponsors, but I may be mistaken on that; Kiolbassa Sausage for those tasty sausages; Shiner Beer; the person that led the pre-start warm up stretching; all the many, many volunteers out there for us, and the Park Police officers out there for our safety; our MC Anthony Z. and our music guy Paul, doing their usual great job; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thanks for giving us participants this event. Hope to see you sometime at a future race. 

Photos are here:   https://photos.app.goo.gl/2TTuwNx2Pfx4X3179

Before the start:  My 34^th  race of 2024 was Aid The Silent 5K, held on June 1^st in Boerne, Texas.  There was also a 10K. This event raises funds to increase awareness of deafness issues and support the deaf-and-hard-of hearing community.  This was the 10^th anniversary of the event.  I’m not sure if I’ve done all 10, but I’ve done quite a few of them. I have some hearing issues myself due to an ear surgery I had during my Air Force days, and my late Dad also had some hearing issues, so I do this too in remembrance of him.   The venue for the event was at the Boerne Main Plaza, a large grassy rectangular area that had a small pond and a gazebo area.  Lots of room for everyone. There were 654 finishers for the 5K and 67 finishers for the 10K, so a very nice turn-out for this one.  Considering the hot weather our area has been having lately, Mother Nature cooperated nicely with us for this one, with a temp in the low 70s and a fairly nice humidity level, with a mix of cloud cover and sunshine. I arrived with about an hour to go until the advertised 8 a.m. start time, got my race packet and then got a few pre-start photos as I wandered around chatting with organizers, sponsors, vendors, volunteers, friends, and other participants.  There were lots of booths with all kinds of things provided by the sponsors and vendors,  and a food truck was also on-site.     

On the course:  We had a bit of a late start, with the 10K folks going first, and then we 5K folks got going around 8:20 or so. The course was on paved roads through a nearby neighborhood and then onto part of the Boerne Riverwalk to finish up. For the first part of the course, we started in front of a nearby hotel by the main plaza and then made a right turn onto San Antonio Avenue. This took us down a short incline. We then crossed a small roadway bridge and proceeded to do an out-and-back on San Antonio Avenue. On the way back, a short ways from the roadway bridge and the start/finish area, we made a right turn on Yoalana Street  and went into a very nice neighborhood area with wide streets and some nice homes.  We then did an out-and-back on West Graham, and then made our way over to O’Grady Street, via Herff Street. We went down a steep but short hill, crossed over another bridge – I think the sign before the bridge noted this was Cripple Creek, if I remember correctly – and then had another steep hill, this one up, but thankfully short. We then made our way over to West Theissen Street, which took us across another bridge. After crossing this bridge, we then turned onto a Riverwalk paved trail which brought us back to the finish line, coming off the riverwalk with the hotel at the main plaza on our left, and then did a short jaunt to the finish line….whew!   I finished 10^th out of 21 in my 60-99 age group – bummer, no 70-99 age group, but what the heck – with a chip time of 40:41, averaging 13:06 per mile, and had a negative split for the last mile, nice. Nicely thought-out course, at least for me, I enjoyed it. I did hear from a few friends post-race, that the speedier participants had a bit of a maneuvering problem for that last ½ mile on the Riverwalk park as they were fairly crowded on it.   I did not have that problem at all. At my slow pace, lol, I had plenty of room to move around – by the time I headed to the finish on the Riverwalk  part, the participant crowd had thinned out quite a bit. I liked the course, but I get the point of those faster runners.

 After my finish:  I got a few photos of some other finishers coming in, and then did a short cool-down walk and went to get some water and post-race goodies, and there were quite a few of them that included lots of water, post-race beer, various fruits, items you could purchase from the food truck and much more. I also enjoyed chatting with lots of people there; taking some after-photos, and handing out treats to the doggies there, including the live “Hank The Dog”, who I got a photo with, like I did last year too. Hank is a very cool dog. I’ve got a stuffed “Hank The Dog” right in my home office, so he keeps me company during my work time; good boy, lol.

Epilogue:  Once more, from my slow-runner point of view, a very nicely done event with a nice course on very wide roads and then taking in a bit of the local riverwalk before we finished, which included crossing over a wooden bridge; unlike the bridges in San Antonio parks, this one did not ‘sway’ at all when I crossed it; race director, can you please have the Boerne bridge-maker call the San Antonio bridge maker for our parks to tell him/her how he/she does that, lol.   Lots of ongoing activities post-race, with some live music, the awards ceremony, and more. They even had a couple of Super Heroes there for photo ops and the awards ceremony. Also, behind the gazebo, there is a very nice little pond area with some statues and benches and lots of shade, which is a really nice place to just sit and relax for a bit after the race. Very nice awards for those that placed; nice quality race shirt, and a very nice tote bag too; pet-friendly and stroller-friendly event; and all for a great cause.  This is one of my personal favorite events of the year; I will definitely keep on doing this one as long as I am able and would certainly recommend it to others.  Much thanks to all the ones that made this one happen for we participants, e.g., all the sponsors and vendors; our race director and the many volunteers out there for us, as well as the law enforcement folks on the course for our safety; iaap, of course, for the course setup, timing, and results; and the group that performed for us post-race; also, thanks to the drivers in this area, and the residents, for their patience as we invaded their space for quite a while; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you all!  Hope to see you there next year!

Photos are here:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/svnUiQsWiobfxn5RA   

Before the start:  My 33rd  race of 2024 was on May 26^th at Comanche County Park in San Antonio. The American Hero races, usually held during the Memorial Day weekend, is a series of races honoring our veterans, especially those who sacrificed their ‘all’ during their service time. Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who gave their lives in service to our country. The event was put on by e-Dragon, with local race management company iaap doing the timing and results. The 25K Relay had a team of 5 members, each doing one leg. The 25K Challenge was one in which participants do the whole 25K solo; a 10K Ruck; and a 5K.  There was also a 400-meter kids run before the main events started. I did the 5K Race start time was 8 a.m. I picked up my friend, Carolyn, who also did the 5K, and we then went down to the park, arriving just after 5:30 a.m. and then had to wait a bit until someone came and opened the park gates at 6 a.m.; thus, we were there in plenty of time before the start, lol.  We had already gotten our packets the day before, so after getting parked, I wandered around, helping here-and-there, and also getting some pre-start photos.   

On the course:   The courses were out-and-back, so the individual 25K participants had to do the course 5 times, wow; I admire their patience and determination. As noted, the 5-member relay teams each did one leg, carrying a baton that had a timer on it, if I remember correctly; then, again, sometimes I forget my own name, so apologize if this is incorrect. The 5K participants did one out-and-back. The course was nicely thought out, taking us on the paved trails of the park; the San Antonio greenway trails are made with asphalt and concrete, so they’re usually a nice, firm setting to run, walk, or bike on. San Antonio area has been having a very warm spring; not even summer yet and the temp at start time was near 80 degrees. Thankfully, we did have a lot of gray skies, so the sun was not beating down on us as we went along; and the park trails are pretty well shaded, too, by lots of trees along the way. The race folks also had on hand a lot of water and Gatorade and even had a Med Tech on the course, just in case. The course was fairly flat, for the most part, with a few inclines to climb, but nothing one could really call a hill. Even so, I could feel those a little as, the day before this event, I had done a very hilly 5K. I did my normal 8-minutes running/2 minutes walking thing and took some photos during my walk breaks. I managed to do fairly well, averaging a 13:08 pe mile pace and ran the last mile almost nonstop, ending up with negative splits. I finished 2^nd in my 70-99 males division with a 40:46 chip time. The first guy in my age group finished only 2 minutes ahead of me. Guess I should not have stopped for that last photo, lol. It’s all good, I enjoyed myself.   Per iaap posted results, there were 83 finishers for the 5K; 17 finishers for the individual 25K challenge; 10K Hero Ruck had 5 finishers; and the relay had 21 teams.

 After my finish:  First thing, rehydrate! It was warm out there. Got some Gatorade and sipped that as I did a slow-and-easy cool-down walk. I then went and sat with my friend Gilbert for a while at his tent area and just enjoyed relaxing for a bit and chatting with him. After that, I wandered here-and-there, like we dogs do, lol, chatting with participants, vendors, supporters, etc., and getting some post-race photos. Also enjoyed chatting with my friend Miguel, who had grilled up some Kiolbossa sausages, which were pretty good -my favorite brand of sausage; and also chatted with lots of other participants and supporters. Since this is a veteran-oriented event, lots of fellow veterans were there, active duty, former, and retired, to chat with, and we chatted a lot about our various experiences during our military time; and btw, spouses of military members are pretty veteran-oriented too; while some may not have been actual military, they served too in a lot of ways, such as having to relocate with every assignment the military spouse received; setting up households and taking care of the kids, and so forth, while the military member is doing his/her military duties, and a lot more; so honor them as veterans too, in their own way.

Epilogue:  This is a very nicely done event by E-Dragon and all its affiliated helpers, sponsors, volunteers, etc. This event too, also gives out cash awards to overall placers, if I remember correctly, for the overall winners in a few of the events. You can check the E-Dragon website to see which events are eligible for cash awards. All finishers get a really nicely designed finisher medal, and all placers got a nicely designed award medal.  The race shirt is very unique with a great design, and depending on how soon you register, the race bibs can be personalized with the name of your ‘hero’. In my case, for example, I had on my bib, the name of my late dad, a veteran of both WWII and The Korean War.  As usual for events they do, iaap did a great job with the timing, results, etc;, as did our MC, Anthony Zamora, and our music-and-sound man Paul, and, of course, Erik and Kristine of E-Dragon, the driving force behind this event.  The Burciaga family is awesome. All the many volunteers there were also great. Mucho thanks to all of them and to all of the sponsors and vendors that helped make this one happen for participants.  This event is definitely a keeper on the race calendar.  Hope to see you out there next year.          

Photos are here:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/yw6wL5i1MKycoCLVA

Before the start:  My 32^nd  race of 2024 was on May 25^th, held at the San Antonio State Hospital (SASH) just off of New Braunfels Avenue.  The SASH Spring Thing 5K “benefits the Volunteer Services Council of the San Antonio State Hospital. The Council’s primary mission is to improve the quality of life and enhance the well-being of patients receiving treatment at the San Antonio State Hospital by providing goods and services not funded by the state.”  Race start time of 8 a.m. in front of the new hospital building which was just recently completed and opened. It is a very nice-looking modernized building inside and out. It also has a huge parking lot, so no problem parking for this one. We got to go into part of it, as we had use of the indoor restrooms, which sure beats porta-potties, lol.  The event had 113 finishers.   I arrived with about 30 minutes until start time and got a few pre-start photos.

On the course:   The course was out-and-back, so this being an iaap event, of course it had hills, lol. OK, to be honest, iaap could not do anything about the hills, it’s just the way the campus is; it’s hilly in several places. It was pretty darn humid and warm too, with the temp already in the low 80s. Thankfully, Mr. Sun was hiding behind a gray sky for most of the event, and we did have just a tad of wind after we made the turn-round and headed back for the finish. The course was asphalt-paved roads. I did my usual 8-min-run/2-min-walk thing and took some photos during my walk breaks.  I felt okay, but probably should have hydrated better before the start. I had about a half-bottle of water before the start to wash down my GU energy gel.  My pace is so slow, lol, my GU usually kicks in at about the halfway point and gives me a nice little boost for the back of the course; not today though. I did okay until about the 2.5 mile mark and that last small uphill got to me a bit, so I took an extra walk break. Once I crested that hill, it was only a short ways to the finish, so I ran that in.  I ended up with a chip time of 43:09, averaging 13:53 per mile and my miles were definitely positive splits. My fastest mile was Mile 1 at 13:12, and that pace went downhill from there, literally, lol. Even so, I managed to enjoy myself, interacting with other participants on the course, and cheering friends on when I saw them.  There were only 2 in my age group, 70-99 male, so I managed to finish first in the age group.

 After my finish:  Got some water and some Gatorade and sipped those as I walked around, cooling down. After that, sat with my speedy running friend Woody for a while and then wandered around getting some after-photos.  There was also a raffle and I won a big basket of all kinds of stuff, very nice. One of the things in there was a grilling spatula that had ‘Dallas Cowboys’ on the handle, so, since I grew up in the Washington DC area, and definitely not a Cowboys fan, lol,  I pulled that out and gave it to a friend who is a Cowboys fan. She was quite pleased with it. The age group awards were only for the overall winners – which I get; this race has a tight budget, which is understandable – and wow, some of those folks are pretty speedy. The first overall male came in at 23 minutes and change, averaging 7-something minutes per mile…in this humidity and on those hills, good grief. The first overall female’s time was 26-something, jeez.  I think I could run that pace….for about 10 seconds, lol. Congrats to them. Epilogue:  I’ve done this event before, when SASH was still in the old building.  The course is pretty much similar to the old one – I can’t remember if it’s exactly the same one, but I don’t think so – but the facilities are a lot better.  It seems to me, too, that on this course we had wider roads and more maneuvering room, but maybe that’s just my lousy memory at work, lol.  Either way, even with the hills, it’s a nicely laid-out course allowing lots of interaction between the participants, e.g., shouting out encouragement to each other, getting photos, and so forth.  The volunteers on the course were all great, especially the water station ones, I had a lot of fun interacting with them, even though they didn’t have any cold beer;  just kidding, just kidding.  Randolph Brooks Federal Credit Union provided the bags that held the goodies, and they had all kinds of stuff in it. The race shirt is very nice quality and very nicely designed.  Post-race there was all kinds of food, including fresh fruits, donut holes, chicken tacos, if I remember correctly, with the chicken being grilled up right there, and other items.  The organizers really have brought this race a long way since it first started, so it is definitely a keeper on my race calendar.  Mucho thanks to all the people that made this one happen for us, including SASH staff members; the Volunteer Service Council; all the many volunteers out there for us; the many race sponsors, all listed on the back of the race shirt; Iaap for the course set-up, timing, and results; our MC who kept us in the loop about things and did the awards presentation; the SASH security folks; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all so much!  Hope to see you again at this one next year.     

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/n6k7fQN9AB2SuNDB8    

Before the start:  My 31^st race of 2024 was on Sunday, May 19^th, at Martin Luther King (MLK) Park in San Antonio. This was my 2^nd race of the weekend after doing Gabriella’s Cupcake 5K the day before this one.   The E-dragon SA Summer Series is a series of 5 races held in various parks of the San Antonio Parks Greenway system.  The series runs from May to August with one series 5K each month. Participants can register for all 5 races and get an entry discount; or can register for each one individually. The series assists with funding scholarships for youth students. There were 87 finishers for this event.  Start time was 7:15 a.m., with a race-day packet pickup from  6 a.m. to 7 a.m., and a Kids Run right before the 5K started. I arrived about 5: 30 a.m. and did a little helping out with some of the volunteers there getting things ready, and then got my packet and got a few pre-start photos.

On the course:  The course was out-and-back on the MLK Park paved greenway trails.  I’ve done events here in the past and the normal course goes in a different direction than the one we took today, due to some ongoing construction on those trails. I did my usual thing of 8 minutes running, 2 minutes walking, and got some photos along the way. For this one we started in the park and then went across a bridge near the MLK parking lot and then went onto a greenway trail just after the bridge.  Personally, after being on this trail for a bit, I decided I liked this course better than the one usually used for 5Ks at this park.  The trails on this side are much wider than the trails on the other side, so more room to move about. On thing did not change, lol, which is that my friend, Erik, co-owner of E-Dragon, does not know the definition of ‘flat’, lol.  When you do an E-Dragon race, the chances are you will encounter a hill somewhere, and we had three on this one – up on the way out, down on the way back. The longest one was the climb to the 5k turn-round point. They were not super-steep or anything like that, but it was still a fairly good climb.  We did have some nice views along the way of Salado Creek that flows through various parts of the park; we crossed over 3 bridges on the route. I tend to have trouble crossing small bridges when I run – during my 41 years’ running life, I’ve fallen off 4 of them, lol – but I managed to stay dry crossing these.  After the turn-round, I took a few brief photo stops, but for the most part ran just about non-stop most of the way. I ended up with a chip time of 40:11, gun time 40:24, good enough for 2^nd out of 4 in my 70-99 males age group. #1 guy in my age group was whipping right along at a 7:36 per mile pace, wow.  I was waaaay behind him, lol.

 After my finish:  Short cool-down walk and got some water and then got a few photos of others coming into the finish and then some after-photos of happy finishers, supporters, volunteers, etc.  This is a dog-friendly event too – and I had a pocketful of dog treats – but the only dog on the course that I saw was my friend Lucy Dog, with her human, Carolyn.  They did really well too, finished 2^nd in Carolyn’s age group.

Epilogue:  This series has been going on now for a few years. It is really well-done by E-Dragon, with good courses, very economical pricing for the events, nice, good quality race shirt, and the age-group and overall placers get a really nice award coin that contains a code number good for a nice discount at a future E-Dragon event; the higher you place, the higher the discount is. The parks chosen for the races are all part of the Greenway System, so usually have really good amenities, such as indoor restrooms, water fountains, nicely paved trails, and so forth. Iaap, probably the top-notch race management company in San Antonio, does the timing and results for these events, and the results are placed pretty quickly on their website, as well as being posted at the race location right after the finish of the race.  There are not a lot of ‘frills’ – no goody bag full of stuff, not a lot of fancy eats after the event, and so forth, which saves to help fund the scholarship, but it’s one of the friendliest events you’ll ever do; feels like friends gathering together to enjoy each other’s company and get in a run or walk with each other. I would definitely recommend this one and will continue to support it in the future.   As noted, you don’t have to sign up for the whole series; try just one first and see how you like it, and I bet you will be a return participant sometime.  Mucho thanks to all the people that made this one happen for we participants, e.g., e-Dragon; iaap for timing and results; the official photographer at the event – photos much better, I am sure, than mine with my old-time pushbutton Canon camera, lol; the law enforcement folks on the park road for our safety; all the many volunteers out there, helping make this one happen for we participants; our always-excellent MC, Anthony; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all! Hope to see you at a race sometime and if so, I’ll probably take your photo, lol.    Happy running and/or walking and, most of all, stay safe.