Beginners and Beyond

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2018 Race #19 - Helotes Beer Garden 5K (Read 6 times)

scottydawg


Barking Mad To Run

    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

     

    A couple of the photos may not have come out so well; sorry about that.    All in all though, I think they came out fairly well.  I am certainly no professional photographer with skills; but at least all the photos are free. 

     

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

     

    Link to photos only: 

    http://s166.photobucket.com/user/scottydog69/slideshow/2018%20Race%20Reports/2018%20Race%20Number%2019%20Helotes%20Beer%20Garden%205K?sort=2

     

    Before My Start

    My 19th race of 2018 was the Helotes Beer Garden 5K on March 17 - Happy St. Patrick's Day.  Helotes is a small town/city that borders right on one of the San Antonio city boundaries.  We were in historic "Old Town" Helotes for this event. This event supported Teed Off At Cancer, a nonprofit that helps kids with cancer.  The Beer Garden title because this was also an event where local craft beers could show off their products, giving samples to the many race participants, volunteers, etc.  Event managed by local race company Soler Sports (course setup, timing, results, etc).   This is a popular annual event and this year there were over 1300 registered.  Pretty good turnout considering on this day in the San Antonio area - including New Braunfels and Boerne - there were a total of FOURTEEN races going on, including the also popular Back The Blue (Purnell Racing) and the Shamrock Shuffle (iRun Texas).   Race time of 8:30 a.m.  68 degrees at start time and pretty darn humid. Helotes is about a 30 minute drive from my house.  Arrived with about and hour to go and got some pre-start photos.

     

    I have arrived

     

     

    In front of The Chaparral Restaurant, no bull.     They kindly let us invade their space for a while, we were all over their property.  This fellow was on top of their roof

     

    And these Three Amigos welcomed everybody from this wall

     

     

    Teed Off At Cancer volunteers.  This was the organization the race supported

     

     

    Our Music Man.  Good job, sir!

     

    One of our local celebrities...Bill Taylor (left) of local TV Channel KENS-5

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Pretty empty start line when I arrived

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Various participants, etc.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    On The Course

    Back in the day this used to be quite a very hilly race.  The course has changed over time; it is still a bit hilly, but not the longer uphills the course used to have way back when.  Made this a more 'family friendly' event and apparently the strategy works because this one has grown in participation year after year.  The 'hills' on this course are really more like long up inclines, not too steep, just long, and especially that last long incline everyone had to go up to finish.  All good though, everyone that I saw seemed to be dealing with it just fine. We started from Chaparral Restaurant, down an incline, then up a small incline to a small traffic circe, then had a nice flat out-and-back portion.  After that, it was down that traffic circle incline and then that looooong incline that went up almost to the Chapparal Restaurant...then from in front of the restaurant flat to the finish.  I ended up with 33:47 time. Did not even come close to placing and did not expect to either.  With this many entrants, the first 3 in my 60 - 69 age group all finished in the 20s.

     

    Getting ready to go..people in front of me and behind me

     

    My first walk break...a tad over a half-mile.  There were some "colorful" people doing this event...

     

     

     

     

     

     

    2nd and last walk break.  Made the turn-round, and heading for the finish now.. this was a bit past the half-way mark. Lots of people still heading for the turn-round.  Not the winner, though, he was WAY ahead of me, lol...ended doing 18-something.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    This guy in the black shirt is wearing the very nice tech-tee race shirt that all we participants got

     

    Well, okay, then...carry your beer with you.  lol.

     

    After My Finish

    I walked around and got some water and also ate a Cliff Bar to get some protein, etc, back in my system, and then walked back out onto the side of the course to take a few more photos of people finishing up and get a photo of that last incline.

     

    Part of that long incline we all had to come up to finish...

     

    This finish incline extended around that curve in the road too, where we all started the climb to the finish

     

     

     

     

     

    My friend Trinnie, one of my personal local heroes.  This lady is like the energizer bunny...she just keeps going and going and going...

     

    After that, back to the post-race area to enjoy a beer and some of the post-race goodies on hand, and also get photos of some of the happy finishers, volunteers, supporters, etc.

     

    My favorite locally brewed beer

     

    Thanks for the Alamo Beer, guys!

     

     

     

     

     

    For the greater good...darn right! 

     

    Various happy finishers, supporters, vendors, etc., and 'buncha drunks"  - just joking, of course 

     

    I was pooped a bit...these lovely ladies held the old man up.   Thanks, ladies!

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Very cooperative dogs for the photo, lol.

     

    Dogs say "Ok, we're done with that now."  lol.

     

    Yes, there were nonalcoholic options too

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Massages available...

     

     

     

     

    Doesn't this guy on the right look like a young Gilbert Gottfried?

     

     

     

     

    Not so cooperative doggies, lol

     

    The Humans behaved. 

     

     

     

    With Bill Taylor and our Race Director.  Thanks for a great event!

     

    Epilogue

    Always a good event, well organized, nice course, and lots and lots of post-race goodies. Don't know how many local craft breweries were at this event but there were quite a few with all types of beer, including some kind of 'pickle" beer, beer with some honey in it, dark beer, light beer, you name it, it probably was there. Several of my friends told me they were 'Ubering' today and so they were sampling all the different beers, lol.  Since I was driving, I had my usual post-race two - actually probably about one and a half, since the beer was being served out in some smaller cups, and some of the post-race food goodies too; there was a food truck onsite as well as ice cream vendors, lots of various fruits, pretzels, snack bars, and so forth. There was also a massage company so you could enjoy a nice massage while enjoying your beer, lol.  Music Man also playing tunes for us. This is just one fun event - especially after the race, lol.   All good.

     

    Mucho thanks to all the people that made this one happen for we participants!  All the sponsors, vendors, craft beer breweries, law enforcement out there for us, Chaparral Restaurant and Helotes citizens for letting us invade their space, Soler Sports, Stout House for opening up to all of we participants for packet pickup the day before, and anyone else I may not have mentioned here. No race for us without all of you.  Thank you all very much!

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