INTRO

I am Scott aka Scottydog, runner since 1983, cancer survivor, retired Air Force, friend of dogs, fun-runner, and all-around goofball.  In 2003 I had spinal arthritis flare up and ever since then I’ve done the run/walk method since it hurts my back too much now to run continuously with no walk breaks.  I’m on what I call my “2F Plan” which stands for Fun and Finish.  At events that I now do for fun I carry my camera, chase “Great Legs” to help motivate my slow old man self to keep moving forward, and take pictures before, during, and after the race. Sometimes I even get a nice post-race sweaty hug from one of the Great Legs ladies.   I then do a pictorial race report of my events.  I also carry dog biscuits with me to treat any dogs I may meet at a run, hence my nickname “Scottydog.” Here is yet another of my Race Reports With Photos, and my thanks to all the people I interacted with for their graciousness and good humor in letting me take photos of them.

SHORT VERSION REPORT

Mission4Hope 5K, held on November 24, 2013.  This was Race #66 for me for 2013,  and my 2nd race of the weekend, after having done the Mustache Dache 5K on November 23 (report and photos for that one is here: http://www.runningahead.com/groups/BF_and_Beyond/forum/Post/932e5a3003594abbaf25488993ecb55b#focus ).  The San Antonio cold front was still hanging around - 40 degrees with a feels like temp of 35 - so I thought this would be a small event.  However, for a crappy weather day, there was a nice turnout, probably 100 people, maybe a little more.   I managed to finish this one in a chip time of 34:11.

LONG VERSION REPORT WITH PHOTOS

Before The Race

This event was put on by Mission Point Christian Church - -  and supported  Hope Worldwide, their world-wide charity work.  iaapweb.com, one of the Top 3 local racing companies, in my humble opinion, did their usual great job with course set-up and race timing.   Event venue was Eisenhower Park, a local park with both paved trails and off-road natural trails.  Race start time was supposed to be 8:30, but we had a slight delay as it began POURING.  So the majority of folks huddled in the park pavilion waiting for the rain to abate a bit......

....because this course is a hilly one - and these ain't no baby hills either -  and we'd all have gotten 'flooded' by the water running down the hills as we ran them, and probably would have caused some folks to fall too.  So we waited.  And I wandered around under the pavilion getting some photos...

The lady in the center is wearing the race shirt we got in our goody bags.

This participant  runs in memory of a lost loved one, another victim of the insidious cancer disease

Frozen yogurt for anyone who wanted it...there actually were some takers, even on this cold day.

On The Course

The church must really be in good grace with some 'on-high connections" because the Powers That Be were sure kind to us.   The race was only delayed about 10 minutes or so beyond the original start time, and the weather behaved splendidly.  Rain stopped.  Wind stopped.  I think the temp might even have gone up a couple of degrees.   So we all went out to the waiting start/finish area...

...and away we went!  The course was done on the paved trails in the park and they were wet, so you did have to watch your step in some areas - especially on the downhill parts - but overall the weather was actually quite accommodating, considering what it had been just a little while ago.

As said previously, the hills we did on this course were no baby hills.  I train in this park quite a bit - great place to do hill work - so I knew what was coming and was prepared for it.  We did a little loop-around out of the pavilion area and then got to the trail where we began climbing - and climbing and climbing - up to where the park has an observatory tower/platform.    If you're not doing a race and have the time, that is your 'reward' for getting up those hills....climb into the tower and enjoy the panoramic view of the surrounding area.  However, this was a 5K event so I did not see anyone stopping to enjoy the view.  We did a flat loop around the tower and then it was DOWN the trail we just climbed up.  Personally, with my spinal arthritis, I find downhills much harder than uphills, downhills pound my back more.  So I was somewhat slower going down than I was coming up - most people are in reverse of that, lol. After we got down this trail, we made a right turn and then did a loop around some fairly flat trails, and then it was back to the start/finish pavilion the way we had come out.

I am heading up to the Tower

Now I've looped around the tower and am heading back down, wishing luck and encouragement to folks still on their way up.

No dogs at this race, but hey, it's ME!  I managed to find along the course probably the only 2 dogs within 5 miles of the park today, lol.  This lady was out walking her 2 dogs on one of the off-road trails nearby our race course.

After the Race

Then it was back to the finish.  Gun time 34:24, chip time 34:11.  Got a photo of me and this Virginia Tech graduate, who actually grew up in my hometown area - I am originally from Virginia, I grew up in Falls Church - and I love Virginia Tech, my Dad was a graduate, his side of the family is from Blacksburg and there is a street in Blacksburg named for my family and I spent a lot of summers at my great-aunt's house in Blacksburg and playing and exploring on the VPI campus.  Small world to run into this guy.  We had a nice chat.

Hook 'Em Horns!  I work for a university in the University of Texas System.

Go Roadrunners!  UTSA aka The Univesity of Texas at San Antonio is the university I work for.  "Rowdy Roadrunner" is the school mascot.

My pal Bernadette was also at this one, after having done the Mustache Dache too the day before.

Bernadette was first  in her age group and I managed to get 3rd in mine.  Gotta love smaller events where even a slow old dog like me has a shot at a medal.

EPILOG

This was the inaugural event for this race and I hope this one grows a bit more, it was very enjoyable.   Small event, not the greatest weather, but still an enjoyable race because of the volunteers and the participants, they are what made this race.  Outgoing, supportive, friendly.  And a challenging course is not such a bad thing either once in  awhile, it builds character, right?   I would definitely do this event again.  I really do hope the weather is a BIT better next year, though.

I will cut them some slack on this one.  40 degrees is one thing, 40 and rain is a cold flippin' day!

Scotty- Sounds like the rain let up just in time!  And not a bad time for you with all those hills and a race the day before!