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Race Report and Photos: LLS (Leukemia Lymphoma Society) Doggie Dash 5K (Read 16 times)

scottydawg


Barking Mad To Run

    INTRO

    I am Scott aka Scottydog, runner since 1983, cancer survivor, retired Air Force, employee of University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), 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

     

    Held on May 4, 2014.  This was my 29th race of 2014 and my 2nd of the weekend, after having done the PODER 5K on Saturday, May 3, 2014 - report and photos for that one here: https://www.runningahead.com/groups/BF_and_Beyond/forum/929751a12d8144f6b7733f1caed886f5/resume#focus .  The LLS (Leukemia and Lymphoma Society) has a mission to help cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.  Once again this weekend the weather was really nice...about 62 degrees at the 8 a.m. start time, some sunshine, very low humidity and dewpoint.   I ended up finishing 3rd in my age group with a time of 33:10, ending a bit faster than my 5K on Saturday.

     

    LONG VERSION WITH PHOTOS

     

    This 5K supported the South Texas Chapter of LLS, which has offices in San Antonio and Austin.  Small event, maybe a couple of hundred people, some with dogs, some without.  Besides the 5K there was also a Run With Your Dog 1-Mile event.

     

    Before The Start

     

    Two of the registration volunteers

     

     

    State Farm was a big sponsor of this event

     

    This lovely State Farm lady and I did one of the same races a couple of weeks ago.  She told me she followed me into the finish, using my motto on the back of my shirt to keep her motivated. Gee, if I'd been following her, her Great Legs  would've probably  motivated me to keep moving forward.

     

    State Farm also brought with them an artist  who did a 'caricature' of you if you wanted one. I went ahead and got one of me.

    The artist did a great job...don't I look grand? 

     

    My pal Bernadette with her caricature..

     

    This doggie was very colorful.  There was a dog-service person there who could 'color up' your dog (harmless to the dog, washes right off), for this event if you wanted.

     

    DJ providing music for us

     

    Some of the folks and doggies there..

     

     

    That is a big fella on the left there!

     

     

     

     

     

    My pal Bernadette and friend of ours

     

    He is a member of this organization, whose members do a lot of local races and help veterans.  RWB means "Red White & Blue"

     

    Getting ready to start....

     

     

    On The Course

     

    The event was held in McAllister Park, the biggest local park in San Antonio.  LOVE this park and I am lucky enough to live only a mile away from it.  Both paved and off-road trails, paved park roads, soccer fields, baseball park. playgrounds, lots of restrooms with water fountains - so lots of people do their long runs here because they don't have to carry water with them - lots of shade trees along the trails, wildlife in the park (deer, armadillos, possums, skunks - which you do NOT want to meet, as I learned from a skunk encounter in the park). Our event was a mix of the paved park roads and the paved trails.   I do a lot of my training runs here.   You feel very 'peaceful' when you run in this park.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    A few of the volunteers on course, wearing the shirts that participants and volunteers got in the goodie bags.

     

    After that photo I took off and ran nonstop to the finish for about the last 1.2 miles.  As I approached the finish I didn't realize the chute veered off a bit to the right, and I went right past it, lol. Luckily not too far - only lost about 12 seconds - before I realized my mistake - with the help of volunteers yelling at me to turn around - so did a small u-turn, got into the chute, and crossed the actual finish line.  One of the RDs was there and handed me a bottle of water and jokingly said "Glad you made it!" and I jokingly replied "I would've been here sooner but my wife was not here to give me directions." 

     

    After The Race

     

    The goodies included all kinds of different breakfast tacos from restaurant Taco Cabana, this mixed cup of various fruits and chicken squares, cold water, and one nice person gave me some gatorade post-race.  I munched on some tacos and also got some post-race photos.

     

    I ended up 3rd in my age group.  The AG awards were these nice tiles

     

    I guess I'm setting a trend for this event because I was 3rd in my age group last year too

     

    "Happy Finishers", supporters, et al....

     

    This lady and I were in proximity of each other for just about the whole distance

     

    She and her hubby.  The two of them and I do a lot of the same local races over the year

     

     

    My pals Gene and wife Loyce with their doggies.  Loyce did the 1-Mile doggie dash with her 4-legged friend.  Gene is in my age group and did the 5K.  He is MUCH faster than me, even running with his dog, and finished 2nd in our age group.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The lady on the right was another of the RDs and the one who handed out the awards

     

    One of the post-race goodies volunteers

     

    This is Hershey The Mastiff and her human.  When Hershey gives you a doggie kiss with that big tongue, you really know it since your face gets pretty darn wet, lol.   Hershey is a really sweet and friendly dog.

     

     

    EPILOG

     

    A small event but a very nice one, done for a really good cause.  As this is a Sunday race each year it has very little competition from other local races and continues to be on my calender each year.  Well organized, nice race venue, friendly volunteers and participants, nice post-race goodies and unique AG awards.  The artist this year was a really nice touch, hope they continue that in the future.

    "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." Theodore Roosevelt

      Congrats on the AG placement Scotty, you must be fast to take all those pictures and still win hardware!

       

      So awesome that Bernadette was wearing a vintage race shirt from 1987.

       

      Coloring pets, eh?  I should paint Si in camo to aid his hunting, lol.

      happylily


        Hey, Scotty, congratulations on 3rd AG!!! And really nice pics too. Some of them are funny.  And Bernadette is hot!

        PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013

                Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013

        18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010

        GinnyinPA


          Looks like a really nice race. Cool and shady too.  Lots of your canine friends.  Did you have enough treats for all?  Congratulations on the AG win.

          RabbitChaser


            Congrats on your 3rd place AG finish! It looked like it was a fun race. Thanks for sharing the RR and pics.

            hog4life


              Congrats on the AG place.

              Docket_Rocket


                Congrats, Scotty!

                Damaris

                 

                As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

                Fundraising Page


                SheCan

                  Congratulations on race 29 of the year and on your AG award!   What a lovely place it looks to be also, with all that shady stuff around (I'm JEALOUS!!!!!)  The caricatures of you and Bernadette are awesome, and yes, it does look like you.  The color for the doggies was a good touch also.  Hope they raised lots of money for this good cause.

                  Cherie

                  "We do not become the people who this world needs simply by turning our backs on anyone we don’t like, trust, or deem healthy enough to be in our presence. "  ---- Shasta Nelson