INTRO 

I am Scott aka Scottydog aka Scotty Dogg, runner since 1983, cancer survivor – caught very early, so I actually had a fairly easy time of it - , retired Air Force, employee of University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), friend of dogs, fun-runner, and all-around punster and 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.  My only goals for a race these days are finish everything I start, have fun along the way, and finish standing up with no ambulance waiting for me.  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 – unless it’s a mean dog; then the biscuit goes in one direction and I go in another.  Hence my nickname “Scottydog.”

And a big thanks to runningahead.com for allowing me a “home” for my many many MANY race reports and photos.  Great site, free training log; calendars; running routes; maps; conversation forums for runners; and much more

Here is yet another of my photo reports.  Full report below.    

Link to photos only:  http://s166.photobucket.com/user/scottydog69/slideshow/2017%20Race%20Reports/2017%20Race%201%20Cobweb%20Chaser%205K

A couple of the photos came out a bit blurry, sorry about that, I am definitely no professional photographer, lol, but at least the photos are free.

BEFORE THE START

After finishing 2016 with 75 races on Dec 31, 2016, I started 2017 with my first race of the year – and my second of the weekend - with the San Antonio Roadrunners Cobweb Chaser 5K.  Held in Helotes Texas on New Year’s Day at Soler Sports, with a start time of 10 a.m.  This is quite a popular local annual event for runners to start the new year and always gets a nice turn-out. Weather was great, sunny, blue skies, about 63 degrees, low humidity and dew-point.  I arrived onsite with about 45 minutes to go to start time and got some pre-start photos.

Welcome to the San Antonio Road Runners (SARR) race

Me with friend Karen

SARR official photographer Tom with friend

MC Bob, doing his usual great job

Various participants, volunteers, family members, sponsors, supporters, etc.

The lady on the left is wearing the tech-tee race shirt that participants and volunteers got.

Cooking them sausages up for after the finish

Getting ready to start

ON THE COURSE

Started beside Soler Sports and then did an out-and-back down one of the main streets in Helotes, came back past the start/finish area, and then did an out-and-back in “Old Town” Helotes. This portion of the race had some hills; nothing really huge, but still enough to be a bit of a challenge, especially as they were at the back half of the race.  Having done a somewhat hilly race the day before this one, my legs did feel these short hills a bit.  At one point, about right after the race started, I stopped to take my energy gel – which I’d forgotten to do before the race started – and spilled some on my running glove…so I just licked it off, lol.  As I was doing that, one of my friends came running by and saw this and said “Dang, Scotty, you really are a dog!”  lol.  I ended up with a chip time of 33:03, ending up 6^th in my age group, if I remember correctly. No placing as this is a popular event and there are some really speedy old farts in my 60-64 age group, lol.

I now just starting out on the back half of the course, and some people were already heading to the finish.

People on the left, like me, were heading to the 2-mile point and then the turn-around point after that before coming back to the finish.   People coming toward me were almost finished.

Looking back behind me

I am now on the right side of the road, heading to the finish.  We had to climb this small hill on the way to the finish.  People on the left are heading to the 2-mile mark and the turn-around point a bit beyond that, including my friend Karen, who walked the whole course.

AFTER MY FINISH

Went back on the course and took a few photos of some others finishing

The hill we went up on the way to the turn-around point, then down on the way to the finish, and the incline we went up on the way to the finish

With my friend Bernadette near the finish line area, and two of her friends

Finish line volunteers

Nice post-race party at the Cobweb.  Alamo Beer and there was also wine for those who did not want beer, plenty of water, Kiolbassa – my favorite sausage – ‘Sausage on a Stick’ and energy bars, various other snacks, and so forth. I wandered around with my Alamo Beer and sausage, munching and drinking and taking random photos of the ‘happy finishers’ and their supporters and family members, the volunteers, and so forth.

Race Director Tony, with course bike pacer George

Thanks for the beer, guys!

...and sausages...

Goofin' with my friend, Karen...she had a loss yesterday (football loss  ), so trying to make her laugh...

What? I'm a Redskins fan...now Dallas Cowboys hats allowed in the photo! 

OK, I'll behave...just for my friend Priscilla, who is pointing...

Put ladies around me...dang, I look good! 

EPILOGUE

Love this race. Don’t know how many times I’ve done it, but pretty much every New Year’s Day for several years.  Race Director Tony Garcia put on a good show for this year’s event and Helotes was a nice location to have it. Nice tech-tee race shirt and the goodie bag included a really nice San Antonio Roadrunner 2017 calendar; nice age-group medals, great post-race goodies – hey, you can’t go wrong with beer and wine and sausages for we Texans, lol – and just lots of fun and runner camaraderie at this event.

MUCHO thanks to all the volunteers, sponsors, law enforcement, Soler Sports for the use of the building and area, Helotes Chamber, and the Helotes residents for letting us invade their space for a while – all the people who made this one happen for we participants.  Definitely a keeper on the race calendar.