Scottydog Reports

Photos are here:           https://photos.app.goo.gl/bmfTqK4ziiZAJyEQ6

 Before the Start:  After having some in-office surgery for skin cancer on the back of my neck on August 27, my 53rd race of 2025 was the District 8 Through The Decades Activate 5K held on Saturday, September 6^th at UT-San Antonio (University of Texas at San Antonio), for which I am a staff member (will be a 29-year employee with the university on October 5^th, 2025). This was my first race back, after doctor’s order to take a week off from running after the surgery, so not too long. I did a training run two days before Race Day, then rested on Thursday and Friday. Put on by District 8 Councilwoman Ivalis Meza Gonzalez. This was a free 5K for those who did not want timing; for those that wanted to be chip-timed, the fee was five dollars. Race start time was right at 7 a.m., with race-day packet pickup from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m.  San Antonio Sports Activate program provides “free weekly fitness and wellness classes along with 5K runs throughout the year to encourage play, exercise and healthy habits.” With a free & low cost entry fee, you can be sure this event got a really nice turn-out.  I elected to do the timed run. I am not sure how many actually participated,  but per posted results, the timed participants alone had 423 finishers. With the non-timed runners and walkers, it was QUITE the turn-out and a VERY busy and ACTIVATED (pun intended) 5K. I’d guess there must have been close to 800 or more total participants.   Race Day packet pickup was from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m.  I guessed this race, with free entry and low fee for timed runners, would have a very busy turn-out, so I got there very early – 5:30 a.m. – and then got my packet at 6 a.m. After that, I wandered around chatting with other participants, volunteers, sponsors, etc. and got a few pre-start photos.  A little before the start, the Activate folks also led a group session warm-up for those that wanted to participate.

On the course – As a UTSA employee, I run on this campus quite a lot, so am familiar with all the roads, etc.  Normally, races here start and finish at the Convocation Center; however, the Fall Semester has started and there are some Saturday classes, so the main part of the campus would be busy with students walking around, some traffic coming in from 1604 and UTSA Boulevard and so forth, so I expected we would not be going to that side of the campus, and that was correct. We started and finished at the East Campus, which includes a huge parking area just off of Valero Way, across from Valero Energy headquarters. At exactly 7 a.m., a horn blew and we got started.  There were so many in the start crowd, it took me about 3 – 5 minutes just to cross the timing mat. The course was all on paved roads. We made a short loop around a road near the start/finish area, and then went around a curve and proceeded onto a fairly steep downhill – about ¼ mile in length – that took us to an intersection. We turned left here and went up a road that took us toward UTSA Boulevard. At the intersection, we curved to the right, entering a parking lot area, did short jaunt to a traffic cone, went around that and headed back to the road we had been on. We then went up a short incline, took the next right turn, and headed toward the Science and Engineering building. Left turn in front of that, went down this access road, and then turned right. This took us up a short steep hill, that put us into a traffic tunnel that is underneath the UTSA Parking Garage. After traversing this, we exited the tunnel, made a right turn, and this took us to the campus road where the Main Building is. We wound in front of this, did a short jaunt to an intersection, made a right turn, and then were on the road that took us toward the “hill road” we had started on.  This is where I finally realized – duhhhh – this course was going to be 2 loops. The speedier runners who were already on their 2^nd loop, turned back onto the hill road and went to the finish. The rest of us began our 2^nd loop, repeating the same route as described above. Overall, I was feeling pretty good, doing my usual run 8 minutes/walk 2 minutes – can’t run nonstop anymore for any great length of time because of my spinal arthritis – and during my walk breaks took some on-course photos.  When I got to the Mile 2 marker, I then proceeded almost nonstop for that last mile back to the finish, with just a short stop on the hill on the way to the  finish, to get a photo of those in front of me going up this hill right before we finished. After that, I went nonstop to the finish. I ended up with a chip time of 42:13, averaging 13:35 per mile, dead last of the 5 in my age group which, before the start, I expected would happen when I saw who was in my age group, lol .My very speedy friend, Jim, was first in the age group, averaging 8 minutes-and-change; there are some speedy old guys in my age bracket, lol. Me, I’m more of the fun-and-finish kind of guy and my time is what it is.  As long as I finish standing up and there’s no ambulance waiting specifically for me, well then, my goals are met, lol. Anything after that is a bonus. Every finisher was supposed to get a finisher medal, but the turn-out was so large – which is a good thing – that the supply of finisher medals ran out, and I had no heartburn with that. Whenever I do get a medal, I usually throw it into a bag at home; after I get enough of them, I then donate them either to the disabled kids at Morgan’s Wonderland – I was a disabled kid for a while – or to the kids in the Cancer Ward at Children’s Hospital, since I am also a cancer survivor (4 times); I just hate that kids get cancer; no kid should ever have to deal with that and one day I hope that becomes true,.

After My Finish:  I stood near the finish line and got a few photos of other coming in, including a few friends, and then wandered here-and-there, chatting with friends, other participants, supporters, volunteers, etc., and got a few more post-race photos.  Mother Nature had been kind to us and not rained on us during the event, but post-race gave us a pretty good – but thankfully short – downpour, so we got a nice soaking.  The start time temp was 78 degrees, and the humidity was a whopping 83%, so that shower actually felt kind of refreshing to me, lol. Councilwoman Gonzalez handed out the age group medals – each runner who was first in her/his age group – and there were some Spurs Cheerleaders there too; enjoyed chatting with them – super nice people – and got a photo of them. 

Epilogue:  This is a very nicely managed event with a good course – there were several disabled participants I saw on the course, as well as some strollers, baby joggers, and so forth and they all handled the course quite well; no super huge hills, etc, on it;  lots of post-race goodies, including various drinks such as water, Gatorade, etc; nice finisher medals for those that got them; LOTS of porta-potties, so did not stand in line all that long; and plenty of parking for all; the East Campus parking lot is HUGE. I would definitely do this one again and would recommend it to others.

Mucho thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants:  Councilwoman Gonzalez and all her staff members who probably had a hand in helping organize this; the Active folks; all the many sponsor groups and volunteer; all the police officers along the course for our safety; my friends from iaap who did the course setup, timing, and results; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you all so much!  Whatever your passion is – running, walking, cycling, etc- may you all have great success and stay happy and healthy.  Maybe I will see you at a future event sometime.

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Y6hbVun651LwJAKQ6

Before the Start:  My 52^nd race of 2025 was the Little Comets 5K held on August 23 in Castroville, Texas. I had originally signed up for Beat The Heat 5K in Kyle, Texas, but that one got canceled, so I was going through ‘no-weekend-race withdrawals”, lol, until I thankfully found this one. This run/ walk is the kickoff to a weekend of events leading up to St. Louis Day. All proceeds from this run/walk go to benefit the St. Louis Catholic School field trip fund. This was a self-timed event held at Houston Square in Castroville, with a start time of 8 a.m.  Since I am directionally challenged – even after given directions, lol – I got a very early start, driving from where I live near the San Antonio airport down to Castroville; and, of course, me being me, I missed my turn when I got to town and had to regroup and go back. I finally got to Houston Square, WAY early at 7:15 a.m. and there was nobody there yet.  There was one guy walking in this park and he told me it might be at that park down the road – if I remember the name correctly, it is Koenig Park –  so I went down there. There were a few people there and one of them was doing the 5K too and told me I had been in the correct place, it was at Houston Square; I was just so early, I arrived before everyone else, even the organizers. He and I chatted a bit, and then I went back to Houston Square and there were now people out there setting up the start/finish line, tables, etc. I provided a bit of help to a couple of them putting up tents, and then more of the organizers arrived, as well as more participants, so I got myself pre-start organized and then took a few photos before the start while chatting with volunteers and other participants. This is also a dog-friendly event so, since I have a pocketful of dog treats, as I usually do when I run, with the permission of their humans, I handed out a few treats; I was very popular with the dogs, lol.

On the course:  I am not too familiar with Castroville, so I was not sure what to expect. We started in the very large parking lot at Houston Square. Our route was a kind of loop-course that took us through a very nice residential area with wide streets.  I did my usual 8-minutes-run/2-minutes-walk thing – can’t run nonstop anymore due to some spinal arthritis – and got some on-course photos during my walk breaks. The course was all paved roads, wide enough to accommodate a lot of people, so we had plenty of maneuvering room. For the most part, the course was pretty flat – but whomever laid out the course put a pretty long uphill after the 1-mile mark; it really was not all that steep, just long. After getting up that, we made a right turn onto another road, mostly flat, thank goodness, and lol, and went down this for quite a ways.  There were several dogs in their yards cheering us on, so I handed out a few more treats. After going down this road we then made a right turn and went on a road that was a down incline; again, not steep at all, just long.  This brought us to a turn onto a flat road, where we hit the Mile 2 marker, and also passed by some spectators at the side of the road bawking cheers at us – chickens, and one rooster, lol, and the next intersection had a small, very friendly black kit in its yard, who came right up to me when I stopped to get its photo. I gave it a behind-the-ear scratch and continued on. After the Mile 2 marker, we got to an intersection where we turned right, and this took us past a small movie theater and then down to a left turn onto another road. After going down this road, we made another left turn, and this took us back to the finish line at Houston Square.  Per my garmin, I ended up with a finish time of 43:21, averaging 13:51 per mile.    

After My Finish: I stood near the finish line and got a photo of another guy coming in, that I had been running off-and-on with for the last mile. I’d stop for a walk break, he’d pass me; he’d take a walk break, I’d pass him back, and so it went. After that, I got some water, did a short cool-down walk and then got some after-photos of some of the happy finishers, volunteers, supporters, etc.; and yes, handed out more dog treats, lol.     

Epilogue:  This is the first time I’ve ever done this event, so I was not sure quite what to expect. I ended up liking it a lot.  This is a well-organized event with a really nice course and lots of friendly people, one of the ‘friendliest events I’ve ever done. Participants also got a very nicely designed race shirt – except for me, lol, but that’s on me; I do so many events over a year’s time that I am running out of race-shirt drawer space so these days I usually order a youth medium or small shirt and tell the organizers to keep it and just donate it, which I did today too, asking them to just give the shirt to one of their students; or I just save them up and when I get enough of them, I then donate them to Morgan’s Wonderland – since I was also a disabled kid, so know how that goes – or to the kids at the cancer ward of Children’s Hospital in San Antonio. I also do the same with any finisher medals I get at races. I would definitely do this one again and would recommend it to others.

Mucho thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants: my friends at Athlete Guild, which hosted the online registration for this one; all the event organizers and volunteers out there for us; thanks also to the neighborhood residents for their patience as we invaded their space for a while; and I saw a couple of patrol cars along the course at times, so thanks for them watching out for us; and thanks to anyone else involved that I may not have mentioned here.  This will be my last race for about a week, as I have to take a break to get treated on the 27^th for a recurrence of skin cancer, and my doc told me NO running for 5 days after that; my poor wife will have to deal with my ‘running withdrawals’ for that week, lol.  My next scheduled 5K is the Whine Run on Labor Day, put on by the San Antonio RoadRunners.  See you there, if you are doing that one. May you all stay safe, happy, and healthy and achieve all your personal goals you’ve set for yourselves.

Photos are here:     https://photos.app.goo.gl/g9SqhwdimbmxES9N6

Before the Start: My 51^st race of 2025 was the Summer Sizzler 5K, held on Sunday, August 17^th at Pearsall Park in San Antonio, Texas. This was my 2^nd race of the weekend, after doing a 5K the day before at Ladybird Johnson Park. The races for this event included a Kid’s Run; a 15K; a 10K; a 5K; and a 1-mile walk. There was quite a nice turn-out for this event between all the events, but not sure how many total participants there were for each one, as only the results for the overall top 3 in each race are listed, from what I could find.  There are actually 2 parking/event areas for Pearsall Park, both of which are on Old Pearsall Park Road, a lower one, where e-Dragon did its last Summerfest 5K, and another one up a hill from that one, and that is where these events had its start and finish.  The Kid’s Run went first, and the start time for all the other events was at 7:00 a.m., so we had to be there pretty early. I arrived about with about 20 minutes before the start time; got my packet and got a few photos before the start.  The National Anthem was played and then participants of all races started together.  The 1-mile walk participants and the 5K participants did an out-and-back.  The 10K and 15k participants each had to do 2 laps for their courses.

On the course:  Participants of all events started together.  The first part of the course was on a dirt/rocky trail and after about ¼ mile, we then went down what I call “Erik Hill” that I named in my head for my friend Erik Burciaga, co-owner of e-Dragon Productions; some of his events often have this hill in the courses. This is no baby hill; it is a very steep dirt-and gravel hill that goes just about straight down, which I am not fond of, as I have spinal arthritis and downhills are much tougher on my back than uphills; however, I used a kind of ‘shuffle-and-slide” method that my physical therapist had taught me – it took me a while and few falls, lol, to get it right – that makes the feet barely come up from the ground, so a lot less pounding. I got down in pretty good order, and then the course became some of the concrete paved trails at the park; very wide trails that can accommodate a lot of people. I did my usual 8-minute-run/2 minute walk thing and took some photos during my walk breaks. The course had both flat areas in places and a few hills that were not really all that steep, but a couple were quite long, both up and down. Going to our respective turn-round points, we had woods and Salado Creek on the left sided of us, and we could see off-road trails to our right that had GIANTLY STEEP hills, wow; glad we did not have to do those.   Because all these courses were out-and-back, there was a continuous flow of runners/walers on either side of the trail, participants called out to each other, cheered each other on, and so forth.  After my second walk break, I then got ambitious and went nonstop to the 5K turn. One thing I noticed on the way, for any of you who may have done Erik’s last Summer Series 5K here – which included parts of this course – I saw that ‘infamous’ turn-round branch was lying beside the course. Yeah, I passed it this time and went to the actual turn-round, lol. I continued doing my run/walk thing and getting a few more photos, until I got to Mile 2, at which point I then ignored my watch beeping for my next walk break and ran nonstop back to Erik Hill, since I knew I definitely would be walking some on this part of the course, as this darn hill was just about straight up on the way to the finish. I ran up the lower part of it but walked up the top part of it which was the steepest. I finally crested the top of the darn thing and then ran nonstop the last flat part of the course to the finish line. I ended up with a time of 45:08, averaging 14:34 per mile. Mile 2 on the paved part was my fastest mile, 13:27. Mile 3 was my slowest at 16:08 with that darn hill and walk/crawl up that steepest part of the hill.  I was happy to be done and still standing, lol.

After My Finish:  I stood near the finish line and got a few photos of others finishing.   The finish line volunteer gave me a really nice, huge, finisher medal. After that, I went and sat in my vehicle for a bit, with the a/c on full blast as I drank some water and Gatorade I had put on ice and brought with me. After this 10 minute-or-so cool-down, I went back to the race area, chatted with friends and other participants; treated some doggies still there with some dog biscuits; and got a few more photos.  I also found out I had finished 2^nd in my age group, so got a small ‘placer pin’ for that.    

Epilogue:   This was a pretty nicely organized 5K. The race MC, who also helped with the timing and results, did a good job for us, as did his lady helper. The finisher medals are huge and very nicely designed, and the race shirt is a very nice quality also.  Additionally, there was a food truck on sight, which got a lot of business post-race.  There were actual small indoor restrooms at the park, and also several porta-potties too, so I never saw any long ‘facility-use’ lines, which is nice. The race folks also made sure there was plenty of bottled water post-race, as well as this “blue’ drink stuff to re-hydrate with; not sure what it was, but it was popular. It was a pretty nice little after-event.

Mucho thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants, e.g.,  Big Foot Running; all the volunteers out there for us, as well as the law enforcement folks there for our safety; our race day packet pickup volunteers; the patience of the other park patrons not doing the events, e.g., cyclists and other runners and walkers, as we participants invaded the park for a while; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you, all.   Next up for me, I had planned to do Beat The Heat 5K in Kyle, Texas, on August 23, but that one got cancelled; so I will now be doing an untimed fun-run/walk in Castroville, the Little Comets 5K that supports the students of St. Louis High School. As it’s an untimed fun run, I will not include this in my yearly race count; however, if you know of a timed 5K on that weekend somewhere in the San Antonio-New Braunfels Corridor on that day, let me know about it, please, and thank you. The last week of August I will be doing nothing, as I will be having my procedure that week to take care of my current bout of skin cancer on the back of my neck (this is my second time for skin cancer), so doc told me no running until Labor Day (Sep 1) when I will be doing the San Antonio Roadrunners Whine Run 5K, so I will just kick back and relax from the 27^th through August 31.  May all of you always stay safe and happy and may you have much success in whatever personal goals you have set for yourself. Give me a shout-out if you see me at an event you are doing.

Photos are here:    https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZG6D3Q7zifw14Cd97

Before the Start:   My 50th race of 2025 was the Run For Mental Health 5K held on August 16^th at Ladybird Johnson Park in San Antonio, Texas.  There was also a 10K and a half-marathon and a 1-mile walk, if I remember correctly. Put on by The Best Races, these events are kind of ‘laid-back’ events, that are self-timed, and you get to choose from a variety of start times in the morning and then show up at the park for your start time. I live just a few short miles from this park so got to sleep in a little bit. I  chose a 7:30 a.m. start time, arriving at the park around 7 a.m., got my race bib and then got a few pre-start photos.  There were already some people on the course that had chosen earlier start times.  I could see there was quite a nice turn-out for this event as both the parking lot nearest to the start area and the outer parking long nearest to the park entrance were quite full.  The weather did cooperate somewhat, giving us lots of cloud cover, and the trails at this park do have lots of shade along the way. The temp at my 7:30 a.m. start time was 78 degrees, and the humidity was a whopping 82%.

On the course:  All the courses were out-and-back and done in two laps. The start and finish for all events finish was right at the top of the park’s trailhead adjacent to the park’s traffic circle. We went down an incline from the start, crossing a short bridge over a dry creek-bed and then made a left turn onto the park’s paved concrete trails, heading in the direction of Los Patios shopping area and the 410-frontage road. I did my usual 8-minutes running/2 minutes walking and took photos during my walk breaks. With 3 ongoing distances, the trail was quite busy for my first lap. The course was mostly flat, with just a couple of up inclines and down inclines, but nothing that was a major hill. After going down another incline and across another short bridge, the 5K turn-round was just after we crossed the bridge and went on a trail that would have taken us to the Los Patios shopping area if we had continued onward. The 10K and half folks, of course, kept going towards Los Patios for their turn-rounds; I am not sure how far they had to go for their turn-rounds, but I would guess the half folks most likely had to go all the way through past Los Patios, cross the 410 frontage road and go under the Loop 410 overpass to get to their turn-round. I was feeling pretty good overall and did my run/walk pretty well, but, as usual, with my run/walk method, I had positive splits. I ended up with 3.2 miles done in 45:26, averaging 14:09 per mile. Mile 1 was 13: 57; Mile 2, 14:21, and Mile 3 was 14:19, so a negative split by a few seconds from Mile 2. I guess I would have finished faster without taking 3 dog-treat stops along the way, lol, to hand out treats to doggies on the course, but what the heck, I enjoyed myself.    

After My Finish: I reported my time to the Best Races folks – they post the results on their website – and a couple of photos of others finishing up; and a few of the volunteers and sponsor organizations. After that, I sat for a bit, enjoying a post-race banana and some cold water and chatting with other participants nearby.  There were also a couple of dogs near me, resting after they’d been on the course, so with the permission of their humans, I handed out a few more treats.       

Epilogue:  When I first heard about Best Races and how they managed things, I was a little skeptical of doing their events, but now that I’ve done a few, I am quite starting to like them. They really are laid-back events, where you just do your own thing but still kind of get the advantage of doing an organized event. You can also choose to have your packet mailed right to you and avoid race day packet pickup, which includes your race bib and race shirt if you elected to get one; I keep forgetting to select this option, lol, so usually just get in on race day. The last two times I did this: the packet pickup race day folks saw me coming, recognized me – I guess from my previous race reports of their events – and already had my items ready for me by the time I got to the table, lol; nice service.  After you finish, you do get a very nice finisher medal; for this event there were two different designed medals you could choose from. They also do have water stations on the course; and post-race they have a nice array of snacks, including bananas and some other fruits, assorted chips, crackers, etc., and lots of bottled water. These are nice ‘no pressure’ events – unless you put yourself under pressure, lol, if you want to set a personal PR for one of the distances, or do one of the miles in a certain time, or whatever.  These events also support local organizations. This event, for example, helps support local mental health initiative organizations.  Of course, I will continue to do lots of ‘regular” timed events that have awards, and so forth, but sometimes it’s nice to take a break and do one of these. Much thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants, e.g., Best Races; the sponsors supporting the event; all the volunteers out there for us for registration, water stations, post-race goodies; the EMTs that were there just in case – I saw a couple of them – and there was also a park police officer present for our safety too, and any others involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all!  If you are a fellow runner/walker, hope to see you at a future event sometime; may you all meet your personal goals and always stay safe. 

Photos are here:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/dAYcDtj83MHwHwkMA    

 Before the Start:  My 49^th 5K was the Texas Strong 5K on August 10^th, 2025. Held at McAllister Park in San Antonio, at Pavilion 5, near where the Dog Park is located. The event was a fund-raiser for the victims/families of the July 4, flooding in Texas Hill Country. Because all the proceeds of this event went to directly support this, there were no race medals given.  The race shirt was also sold as a fund-raiser, if I remember correctly, and those sold out pretty quickly.  This event was a timed 5k that offered a choice of two course choices: a paved concrete trail 5K or an off-road natural trails 5K. I selected the paved course since I can only do very mild off-road courses with this darn spinal arthritis I have. The start time was 7:30 a.m. for both courses, with race-day packet pickup from 6:30 a.m. to 7:15 a.m.  I arrived at race sight around 6:15 a.m., got my packet, and got a few pre-start photos. This is also a dog-friendly event and there were quite a few dogs there, so I handed out some dog-treats too. This was my 2^nd 5K of the weekend after doing the Mindful Reboot 5K the day before at The Rim paved greenway trail.

On the course: We started right on time.  The off-road participants lined up in front, as their turn onto the natural trails was just a short distances from the start line. We paved trail participants lined up behind them. After crossing the start line, we had a flat course for maybe ¼ of a mile, and then we started going downhill. At the bottom of this hill, it leveled off and we could see an overpass in front of us. To our right we could also see some of the off-road participants doing their thing on the trail they were going along. We paved trail folks went under the overpass – the Wurzbach Parkway above us – and then went left up a short incline that took us onto a flat part of the course for a bit.  After rounding another bend, we then began climbing uphill and this up-and-down climbing went on right to the turn-round point; these hills were fairly long also; if we had stayed on this trail continuously we would have eventually reached Lady Bird Johnson Park; however, we did not go that far. After one long uphill, we then did a long downhill that took us to the turn-round. Of course, after reaching the turn-round we then had to climb up that hill we’d just come down.  After cresting that, we had another short uphill, and then it leveled off for a bit – a pretty short bit, lol; then down another hill we went and finally got back to some level ground.  We proceeded to that small incline that took us back under the Wurzbach Parkway overpass – inside that overpass was the most level part of the whole course, lol – and after exiting that we then, of course had to climb back up to the finish area, as it had been downhill after the start. I ended up with a chip time of 42:17, averaging 13:33 per mile, with my fastest mile being Mile 2, which had the most level parts of the course.

After My Finish:  I got a few photos of others finishing after me – both paved and trail runners – and then went and just relaxed for a bit, drinking some cold Gatorade I had iced down. After that I was out—and about, chatting with participants, volunteers, vendors, etc., getting a few after-photos, and handing out more treats to the doggies there. Per the iRun Texas results I saw posted on their website, there was a total of 201 participants; I think this includes both paved trail and off-road trail participants, so a pretty nice turn-out on a Sunday morning for a good cause. Epilogue:  This is a very nicely done event by iRun Texas for a very worth cause and got a nice turn-out: 201 finishers for the paved trail 5K and 160 for the off-road natural trails 5K, if I remember correctly.  The race shirts did all sell out before race day, but there was another race shirt made and for sale on race day for $50 if I remember correctly.  Yes, the paved 5K course was pretty hilly, but I’ve done this course before so knew what to expect; although pretty hilly, it is a nice course, with very wide trails, giving participants ample room to maneuver around people when needed to do so; it’s also a stroller-friendly and dog-friendly course. There was also a very nice after-party with all kinds of various goodies – all kinds of drinks, including some kind of weird – to me, anyway – coconut concoction drink; lots of water, of course, as well as Powerade, various food stuffs, and lots more. Those that got the race shirts got a very nicely designed and quality event shirt.  The race was also chip-timed, with results already posted on the iRun Texas website.    I am not sure if they will have this again next year, but maybe so, as the flood cleanup will probably take a very long time and, sadly, families affected will probably have a very long recovery time for the damage done.  If it is held again, I would definitely do it again, and I would recommend it to others.  Mucho thanks to all the people who made this one happen for we participants:  iRun Texas staff; any sponsors/vendors; the Park Police officers out there for us; our MC, Anthony Zamora, doing his usual great job for us; he MCs a lot of events over the year;  and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you all so much!  Hope to see you at a future event sometime.  May you always stay safe, stay happy, stay healthy.

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/PPynviT4CQBGhdBf8

Before the Start:   My 48^th 5K of 2025 was the Mindful Reboot 5K held on August 9 in San Antonio, starting and finishing at The Rim Trailhead off of Vance Jackson Drive in San Antonio. Mindful Reboot is an immersive program focuses on mindfulness training, destruction therapy, and mindset transformation. Athlete Guild did the timing and results for us, which is good as they are a very good and dependable race management/timing company. This felt to me more like a group of running/walking friends meeting up for a friendly outing, as there were only 25 total finishers for this one.  Start time of 8 a.m. I got my race bib and race shirt and then got a few pre-start photos.           

On the course:  We started just a tad after 8 a.m.   The weather was clear, with a very slight wind, cloudless sky and a temperature already at 78, with 86% humidity. The course was and out-and-back on paved trails of the San Antonio Greenway System. The course took us in the direction of Eisenhower Park which, if you go far enough, connects to this trail system. Thankfully, we did not go that far. For the first half-mile or so, the course was fairly flat, and then we began to climb. The hills were not all that steep, but they  kept going and going, so it was a pretty good workout. As usual for the Greenway trails, the course was open for non-participants too, walkers, other runners, and cyclists. These trails are pretty wide, so I never saw anyone being ‘interfered with” during the time we were out there. We also got a lot of call-outs from others using the trails. As usual, due to my spinal arthritis – and I also am currently dealing with a recurrence of my skin cancer, which will be treated at the end of August – I did my 8-minutes running/2 minutes walking and took some on-course photos during my walk breaks.  Since I also carry dog treats when I run, I handed out a few to the dogs that were walking the trails with their humans; I was very popular with the dogs, lol. The climbing continued right up to the turn-round point. Thanks to the volunteers there who had water for us.  I looked at my watch at the turn-round point and it was right at 1.5, so I suspected this course was going to be a tad short, since a 5K is 3.14, so the turnround should have been back just a bit more. After the turn-round, we went back to the finish the same way we had come out; this time downhill, which I am not fond of, as downhills are actually harder on my spine than an uphill is; never-the-less, I felt pretty good overall and got a few more photos during my walk breaks. When I hit Mile 2, then went non-stop to the finish. When I crossed the line, I saw the course was a bit short, so I just kept going, down to an overpass a bit beyond the start/finish area, then turned around and went back to the finish line.  I was still a little short – my garmin had 3.07 miles, but I’ll take it. My finish time was 43:08, averaging 14:06 per mile; and my last mile was a negative split of 13:12. 

After My Finish:  I got a few photos of some others coming into the finish; and then went to my nearby vehicle to get some water and Gatorade I had put on ice, and relaxed a bit with my car a/c running, cooling me down a bit.  After that, it was back to the start/finish area, getting a few more photos, and then headed over to the packet pickup/registration area.  The race director lady – her name went right out of my head, sorry – led us through a ‘mental relaxation’ mind exercise, which was pretty interesting.  I also chatted with other participants and got some more “after” photos. After that, there were drawings for give-away items.  As she noted:  “We don’t give race medals, but our goal here is that everyone leaves with something”, which is pretty nice, and the items were pretty darn nice too; I ended up getting a really nice Black-and-Decker ice crush blender, which I gave to my wife after I got home. There was lots of other things too…coffee makers, juicers, etc., some really nice things.

Epilogue:   This is the first time I’ve ever done this 5K – I don’t remember if this is the inaugural one or if it’s been done before; but it is really nicely done. The race shirt is very nice quality; and the prizes are very nice;  there was also a couple of tables full of various snacks and treats, such as crackers, a variety of fresh fruit, Powerade, a long cloth-thing that you can get wet and/or ice it down and then use it to put on your neck, head etc. to help cool down post-run, and lots more. There was also a DJ there, playing some tunes for us, and who also played The National Anthem for us before the start.  The only ‘down-side” I incurred here was that there were no porta-potties or nearby restrooms; we were directed to use the restroom at Target across the street from the race location, but they don’t open on the weekend until 8 a.m., which was start time; the organizers kindly did delay the start for a bit, so those who needed to use the facilities could do so.  After the event, one guy and I noticed the building behind where packet pickup and post-race events were done is a Wal-Mart; so we told her, ummm, Wal-Mart is open 24 hours, so if the event is held here again, you might want to direct participants to THAT building, as they can literally “go” there any time, lol.  We did get a laugh from her, lol; she’s a good spirit.  I certainly would do this one again and would recommend it to others, and hopefully it might get a lot more participants, although I kind of liked this ‘friends and family” participant thing with the smaller crowd.  We had lots of post-race joking, smiles, and laughing, all good.

Much thanks to all who made this one happen for us: Athlete Guild for the timing and results; our music-and-sound-guy, who did a great job; the patience of all the non-participants on the trails, as we invaded their space for a while; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all!  OK, it’s nap time for me now…l have another 5K scheduled the day after this one.

Photos are here:      https://photos.app.goo.gl/NsrDb1ipynWzpnBM9

Before the Start:  My 47^th 5K of 2025 was the Remember The Alamo Beer 5K, held on August 2^nd at Tuscany Venue in San Antonio, just off of 1604 frontage road at Old Fredericksburg Road. This was the 12^th year of this event being put on, if I remember correctly, and it was the first event of 5 for The 2025  Alamo Beer Series of races put on by Scallywompus.  Participants can register for each race individually or register for all of them at one time and get a registration discount. I usually register for each individually, and especially now, as I just found out I have a recurrence of my skin cancer, so will be getting treated for that very soon, so didn’t want to register for all of them at once, and then maybe not be able to show up for one of them. For this event, there were several distances to choose from:  half-marathon; half-marathon relay; 10K; 5K; and 5K competitive walk, in which walkers don’t have to compete against the 5K runners to get age group award. The races were delayed from the original start time, so we all got pushed back a bit; the half started first, followed by the 10K, and then those of us doing the 5K run/competitive walked started at 7:51, if I remember correctly. Scallywompus events are very popular, as their motto is “Come for the race. Stay for the party.”  They are not kidding;  they throw one heck of an after-party.   I arrived well before the start time – as did just about everyone else for their start times, since we were all going by the original start times posted.  I found some parking in a lower lot adjacent to the race start/finish area, got my packet, and then got some pre-start photos. There were a lot of people there, with all the participants; volunteers; supporters; vendors, etc. The half marathon had 117 finishers; there were 45 doing the half-marathon relay, which consisted of 3-person teams; the 10K had 242 finishers; and the 5K had 402 finishers; so, as you can see, a very nice turn-out. Since the start times had changed, I had plenty of time to wander here-and-there, chatting with friends and other participant; volunteers; vendors, etc., and get a few pre-start photos.

On the course:   The National Anthem was played before the half-marathon starts and then they were off.  The 10K folks went next, followed by us 5K participants. We started on the grounds of Tuscany Venue, making a left turn onto Old Fredericksburg Road and going down a short hill, after which we turned left onto an off-road paved trail that is part of the Leon Creek Greenway System. It was nice and flat for the first part of the course, for about a quarter mile, lol, and then we began climbing.  The hills are not super-steep; it’s a gradual up-climb, but some of these climbs were pretty long. As we 5K folks progressed onward, we started seeing some of the participants from the 10K – and maybe some o the faster ones from the half – coming toward us as they headed for their finish; some of those participants were moving pretty darn quick too, so I assumed the first ones we saw were the speedy front-runners. As all of us went along, and passed by each-other going and coming, lots of shout-outs to each other of encouragement;  I did my usual 8-min-run/2 min-walk since I can’t run non-stop anymore for any great length of time; darn spinal arthritis and degenerative disc disease, which docs told me all my life I would get someday, since I was a March of Dimes baby, born with a birth defect; and it did arrive when I was in my 50s. During my walk breaks I took some on-course photos until my watch beeped at me to run again. When I got to the Mile 1 marker, I got ambitious and just kept running, ignoring my beeping watch for a bit, and got to the 5K turn-round sign feeling pretty good overall. I took a couple of very short photo stops on the way back to the finish, and then for the last mile ran that nonstop to the finish. I ended up with a chip time of 41:44, averaging a pace of 13:26, and I had negative splits too, nice;  13:23 for Mile 1; 13:20 for mile 2; and 13:08 for Mile 3, sweet. There were only 4 in my 70-74 age group, and I was dead last of that group, but knew I’d get an award as Scallywompus goes 4-deep for age group awards, nice.   

After My Finish:  I got a few photos of some others finishing, including my friend Rick, who’s been dealing with a knee issue  but still walks about as fast as I run, lol.  His knee is improving, thank goodness, to today he was allowed to run a bit, and he was not all that far behind me, so glad to see he is gradually getting back to his old self. After getting those photos, I then went to my vehicle for about 15 minutes, where I had put some Gatorade and water on ice, and sat there with the a/c on full blast, drinking those, and cooling down a bit, as the temperature for this even was around 78 degrees at start time, and the humidity was crazy. Felt much better after that, so back to the venue area to chat with friends and other participants and get a few more photos of participants, supporters, vendors, volunteers, etc. Also sat a bit with my friend Gilbert, one of the vendors, who always has for me post-race at the same events he and I are at, a fresh banana, and a chair for me to relax a bit in. After chatting with him a while, I was then out-and-about again, getting some after-photos; handing out treats to the doggies there – yes, I carry dog treats whenever I run, lol, which his how I got nicknamed Scotty Dogg by a friend – and enjoying some more of the variety of goodies some of the sponsors/vendors had. Awards ceremony was nicely done by our MC, Anthony Zamora, and Pushbutton Photography got a photo of all the placers. Finally headed home and after that very humid outing, a nice shower felt pretty darn good.

Epilogue:  Scallywompus always puts on some really nice events; and their after-parties are really huge, with all kinds of things available, such as Kiolbassa sausage; beer and other adult drinks – I think there were even margaritas if I remember correctly – and there was a vending truck on site, that had a variety of stuff – even donuts – and lots more. Scallywompus does not mess around, lol, when it comes to the after-party.  The race shirt is very nicely done, and the finisher medals are huge, and also nicely done.  If you do all 5 of the races, there is a ‘letter’ on the back of the finisher medal – this race’s finisher medal had the letter “A” on the back of it- and after you get all 5, it spells out “ALAMO”.  I will definitely continue to do Scallywompus races in the future and certainly would recommend them to others. Mucho thanks to all who made this one happen for we participants, including iaap for the timing and results; our music man Paul for all the tunes; all the many volunteers for packet pickup, water stations, course marshals, bike leads, etc.; Tuscany Venue for the use of its grounds and facilities; the law enforcement officers on the short road part of the course, for our safety; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.   Whatever your exercise passion is, may you always have success doing it, and forever stay safe, uninjured, etc.  Maybe I will see you at a future event sometime.

Photos are here:    https://photos.app.goo.gl/kwATDEeJbSaZxjWx6

Before the Start: My 46^th 5K of 2025 was the e-Dragon Summer Series 5K, Race #5, held on July 27^th at Pearsall Park in San Antonio. The Summer Series had a total of 5 races – all 5Ks –  over June and July, each one held at a different park in San Antonio different, giving participants a nice look at these parks,  which are all part of the San Antonio Greenway Trails  system.  Events were held on Sunday mornings, with packet pickup from 6 to 7 am, and the races starting promptly at 7 a.m. I completed 4 of the 5.  For this one at Pearsall Park, since I am ‘directionally challenged” lol, my wife ran map-quest on her phone and gave me the directions to get there. I live near the airport, so mentally it seemed ‘forever’ to get there, since I had to go all the way down Loop 410 in San Antonio; the directions were spot-on, though, and I found the park, got my packet, and then got a few pre-start photos, and handed out a few dog treats, as this is a dog-friendly event.  There were 118 finishers for this event.

On the course:   The National Anthem was played, and we started right on time. The course was mostly paved concrete trails, with just a bit of off-road gravel-and-dirt trails, which, lol, made me silently swear at my friend who had assured me this would be all paved trails, since I am not supposed to run ‘offroad” trails because of my spinal arthritis, unless they are really mild trails; thankfully this did turn out to be the case for the off-road parts, they were pretty mild; the majority of the course was on paved trails. I did my usual thing of run-8-minutes/walk 2-minutes and took some on-course photos during my walk breaks. The course connected with another part of the park, where we got onto some very wide trails and also had a few hills to negotiate, but nothing really extreme;  a couple of them were long ups-and downs, but not really all that steep.  After the water station on the course, I headed for the turn-round, and people coming toward me called out there was no turn-round sign on the course, so turn-round at “the stick’ that had been put onto the trail by a runner. I found this kind of hard to believe, as my friend, Erik – Mr. e-Dragon, co-owner of e-Dragon Productions – is really good about marking the course; never-the-less, I followed these shouted-out instructions from the runners already heading for the finish and turned around at that stick. My friend, Rick, coming behind me, told me I had not gone far enough, and it turned out he was right.  I ended up running nonstop most of the way back to the finish, with just a few quick photo stops, and then got to the finish. When I crossed the finish line, my garmin had my distance at 2.68, not 3.1, so shoot. I did chat with Erik after I finished and said, yes, there is a turn-round on the course, I just did not go far enough out to get to it; darn the luck; I should have just followed my gut feeling and kept going, since I have never known Erik NOT to have a turn-round sign at any race he marks out, but no, I just followed the crowd, as most of the participants did. I ran really well, and felt pretty good the whole way, so that was nice, considering it was my 2^nd 5K of the weekend.  Overall, I ended up being 4^th in my age group.

After My Finish:  I got a few photos of some others coming in and then got some water and a banana and did a short-cool-down walk.  I had also put some Gatorade and water on ice in a cooler in my car, so got that, and sat in my car for a few minutes with the a/c  on, enjoying those on this very humid morning, and then it was back out to the race area to chat with friends and other participants; hand out more dog treats, and get some after-photos.

Epilogue:  I like e-Dragon folks; they put on some really nice quality events; have some very unique age-group awards – a large ‘coin’ for the placers that has a code on the back of it that one can use to get a discount when registering for a future e-Dragon event.  The race shirt is very nice quality and there are also very nice quality finisher medals for all finishers; and even the race bibs are designed very nicely. I will definitely continue to do e-Dragon events – unless it’s an off-road trail run, lol, and e-Dragon certainly has some very challenging events in that area – and I certainly would recommend their events to friends and fellow runners.  Walkers are also welcome at their events.  Mucho thanks to all who helped make this race series happen for all we participants, e.g., e-Dragon staff; all the many volunteers; vendors, and supporters; our MC, friend Anthony Zamoroa; the e-Dragon mascot – the guy in that Dragon costume must have really been QUITE warm on some of those summer days the events were held – and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here.  I am NOT a fan of getting up so early, lol, but the cause is good – awarding a scholarship to a local student – so I probably will continue to do this series in the future. Whatever your exercise passion is, may you always stay healthy and happy doing it and have success in reaching all your personal goals. Maybe I’ll see you at a future event.

Photos are here:     https://photos.app.goo.gl/CJqoqNLZVQYTD6Gk9      

Before the Start:    My 45^th organized 5K of 2025 was the Spurs Nation 5K held on July 26^th at Olmos Basin Park in San Antonio.  There was also a 10K and a half-marathon.  Put on by Best Races, this was more of a fun run, than an actual race. You registered for the event and your race shirt was mailed directly to you – I opted to donate mine to a disabled kid. You then showed up at the location – for this one it was Olmos Basin Park in San Antonio – picked up you bib on race day and then started at your selected start time. There were quite a variety of start times – I chose the 7:30 a.m. start time.  I freely admit I was not expecting much of a turn-out for this one but upon arrival at 7:15 a.m., I saw the parking lot was very full, and participants who had chosen a couple of the earlier start times were already on the course. I went to the registration table and got my bib and also noticed there were quite a few fellow participants I recognized from having done several of the same previous events they also did. This is also a dog-friendly event, so I handed out a few doggie treats too. I got just a few pre-start photos, since I had arrived quite close to my chosen 0730 start time. One of the registration/packet pickup volunteers came over and gave us our instructions for the course, and then we O730 folks got started.  For the 5K, the course was two out-and-back loops; 4 for the 10K and 8 for the half-marathon participants, good grief. I think most people were doing the 5K and 10K.

On the course:  All the events  started on the paved trail by the Olmos Basin Park’s parking lot that was across the street from where a track, soccer field, and baseball fields were located. I did my usual run/walk thing of 8 minutes running/2 minutes walking – can’t run nonstop anymore for any great length of time due to some spinal arthritis now – and taking some on-course photos during my walk breaks and also handed out some more doggie treats to any dogs nearby at any given time on the course.  This trail gave us a nice “tour’ of most of the park. It took us across a couple of bridges and then toward the direction of where The Alamo Quarry Market is located.  We did not go all the way down to the road; our turn-round point was a bit before that. After the turn-round, we went back to the start/finish area, turned around and started our 2^nd lap for the 5K.  We also crossed two bridges in the park and the first thing I noticed about that is these bridges did not shake at all as we crossed them – unlike the ones at Comanche Park that shake like crazy when an event is going on and lots of people are crossing their bridges; so my second though was Comanche Park folks need to come out and see how this bridge is done and then do theirs right, lol.  Overall, I was feeling pretty good and actually picked up the pace for my second lap, ending up with a negative split for my last mile. My finish time was 42:36, and my fastest mile was mile 3, with a 12:50 pace, which is pretty speedy for an old run/walk beat-up dog like me, lol.  I was pretty happy with my results.

After My Finish:  Got some water and relaxed, and enjoyed chatting with other participants, friends, supporters, volunteers, etc., some fellow veterans too, and getting a few post-race photos.  I forgot, however, to fill out the results card, so Best Races probably will not have my results posted, when the finally post the results somewhere, but it’s all good. I am terrible at remembering names, too, so apologies to my friends if I don’t tag you in photos I took; however, I’m sure you will recognize yourself, lol. Also, I used an old-time push-button Canon Power-Shot camera, so I got you in an on-course photo and you look a bit blurred, it’s because you were moving so fast and my old camera has no ‘stop-action” thing; so it’s you, not me.  😉

Epilogue:   Again, my apologies to Best Races for my misconceptions about this event. This is really a well-done event, with a nice race shirt, a very nice course, and some nice-and-simple post-race goodies of water, bananas, some various candies, and so forth. It was actually a very enjoyable experience, and I had a lot of fun with it. I would definitely do this one again and recommend it to others. I also like the location. Since I am a member of the YMCA, I was able to head down to a Y that is near the park and take a shower and get into some dry clothes, so didn’t have to drive home all wet and sweaty; very convenient.  Much thanks to Best Races folks; the volunteers that were on the course for us; the two water station volunteers on the course; the packet pickup folks; and anyone else involved I may not have mentioned here. Thank you all!  Now it’s relax time for me; I have yet another 5K on this same weekend, one on Sunday morning. May all of you stay happy and healthy, enjoy whatever exercise passion you have, and reach all your personal goals.  Maybe I’ll see you sometime at a future event.

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

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

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

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

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