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/2018%20Race%20Reports/2018%20Race%20No%204%20Teen%20and%20Adult%20Challenge%20Freedom%205K?sort=2

A couple of the photos may not have come out so well; sorry about that.   Plus, at times post-race I forgot to wipe my sweaty lens - duhhhh - so there might be a smudge or two on some of them. And for a few, when I asked someone to take a photo for me, I forgot to tell him/her how to focus the camera, duhhh..   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 to save.

BEFORE MY START

My 4^th race of 2018 was Adult and Teen Challenge Freedom 5K held on January 13 at Pearsall Park in San Antonio.  This event supports a program the helps people become free of addictions.  Race start time of 9 a.m.   There was also a Kids Run.  Although the day was sunny, it was still pretty cold for San Antonio, 36 degrees at start time with a ‘feels like’ temp of 35 and the chill blowing wind did not help much either.  I arrived onsite with about 45 minutes to go to start time and wandered around getting some photos.

ON THE COURSE

Pearsall Park is truly one of the hilliest parks in San Antonio. It is near Joint Base San Antonio Lackland and when you get to the top of some of the hills you get some really nice views. Getting to the top of some of these hills is the difficult part, lol.   In spite of the temp we had what weather people call “abundant sunshine” so once I got going I actually felt pretty good and comfortable out there.  The course was a mix of dirt/gravel trails and paved concrete trails in the park.  As said, a very hilly course.  I ended up being 4^th in my age group of 60 – 69, finishing about 24 seconds behind the 3^rd place age guy in front of me.  My time was 35 minutes and change and I was pretty happy about that with all these hills.

One last hill before we head to the finish

Looking back the way I'd just come

AFTER MY FINISH

Post-race goodies included water, various fruits, energy bars, coffee, and various other drinks provided by some of the sponsors/vendors and there was also Jimmy John sandwiches.  That wind was still blowing – even colder when you are not moving – so glad I had brought a dry shirt to change into and then got some after-photos.

My friend Bernadette actually came in 2nd in her age group today.

EPILOGUE

A fairly small event – maybe about 200 or so people – but nicely organized and well done.  Course was challenging but good, well laid out.  Nice race shirts and a small but nice selection of post-race goodies.  Good race cause.   Definitely would do this one again and would recommend it to others.

MUCHO THANKS to all the people who made this one happen for us:  the organizers; law enforcement out there for us; all the many many volunteers at the packet pickup and those out on the course who stood there braving the cold for us; sponsors and vendors supporting the race; Athlete Guild for course setup; timing, results, etc. and anyone else I may have missed – apologies – who had a part. Without all of you there would be no event for we participants, so thank you very much!