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

I don’t have great camera skills and take photos with a camera that is like me - old fashioned, lol - so sorry if a photo appears a bit blurry, etc.  However, they are free to save, share, etc.     Here is yet another of my photo reports.

Link to photos only:

https://s166.photobucket.com/user/scottydog69/slideshow/2019%2520Race%2520Reports/2019%2520Race%2520Number%252022%2520Fiesta%2520Especial%25205K?sort=2

Full report below.    

BEFORE MY START

My 22^nd race of 2019 was the Fiesta Especial 5K on April 20^th in Windcrest, Texas, a small city within the boundaries of San Antonio and Bexar County.  This race is part of the Fiesta San Antonio celebration, which started on April 18. Fiesta San Antonio is a 10-day long party held every April, with several kinds of events, including races, that raise funds primarily for local education entities, scholarships for students, and a few other causes.   This is one of the smaller races of Fiesta, with about 100 participants today. This race is also one of ‘inclusion’ and has runners and walkers of all abilities, including several disabled participants of various types of disabilities. There was also a 1-mile walk.   Race start time was 8 a.m., followed by the City of Windcrest Fiesta Parade. I arrived with about an hour to go to start time, got my timing chip, and then got a few photos.

I have arrived.  It was a bit chilly this morning for we South Texans, so I had a light base layer on for the chill, and then took it off for the 5K.  Once the sun came up, we had a pretty nice day..sunshine, blue skies, and a temp of about 58 degrees at start time.

Fiesta San Antonio Royal Court attended this event, with "Rey Feo" in the middle, with crown.  The person who raises the most money durng the year before - 2018 in this case -  for the Fiesta charities is the person who becomes Rey Feo for the upcoming year, 2019 in this case.

Our Race Director (right), Melanie, with Minerva.  Proud to call these ladies friends, both are great people.

Some of the crew of iaap, an excellent local race management company that does timing, results, etc., and also puts on several excellent races of their own over the year.

Ainsley's Angels, an impressive group of disabled wheelchair participants, escorted/pushed by able volunteer runners.  Some of these runners pushing the chairs are quite darn speedy too.

One inspirational guy with his service dog.  Military vet.  Always glad to see him at events.

This is also a dog-friendly event and there were quite a few dogs there....I ran out of dog treats, lol.

Various other volunteers, sponsors, participants, etc

One inspiring little lady and her biggest fans

My gosh, you just cannot help but be inspired at this event.....i thought doggie was funny, lol...I had just given doggie a treat and caught doggie in the act of 'finishing up'. Either that or he/she was giving me a razzberry, lol.

Ainsley's Angels lined up and ready to get started

 ON THE COURSE

This is one of my favorite local race courses.   I love running in Windcrest. There is a YMCA quite near the city, so as a member I have often used that as a ‘base’ to start from the YMCA and do a loop through the Windcrest neighborhoods.  Nice wide streets, lots of shade and beautiful homes along the way, and very friendly citizens.  What’s not to like?  10 year age groups for this event – mine was 60 – 69 – and there were only 6 in my age group, and the first 3 were all faster than me, lol, finishing in the 20s.  I finished 4^th, with a chip time of 32:33.  At my age, I also met my 2 primary goals:  finish standing up, and no ambulance waiting specifically for me at the finish.    Right after I finished, I got a photo looking back down the street on which we headed to the finish.

No beer at the water stops, bummer...    That grassy area beyond the volunteers is part of the Windcrest Golf Course. We ran the borders of the golf course for a while.

Heading to Mile 2.  It had quite thinned out by this time.

She ran the whole course wearing that crown

Lots of sunshine in places, but lots of shade too

Right after I finished, looking back at our 'finish line road' with others coming in.  After the race, the local parade started on this road too.

AFTER MY FINISH

This may be a small event, but lots going on for this one.  Post-race goodies was primarily water and various fruits, and one of the vendors was giving out donut holes; the nearby firehouse was also selling sausage wraps at a minimum cost as a fund-raiser for the charities.  There were also several games for the kiddies – and hey, lots of adults indulged too, lol  - such as bowling down these little cartoon characters – I forget what they’re called, but they were the ones like in the movie Despicable Me – a toss at water balloons, making them splash when you hit the target, and all kinds of other stuff.  There was also an automatic photo area where you could put on various Fiesta attire and get a photo of yourself.  For a small race, pretty fun little event. I drank water and munched on various stuff and wandered around getting a few after photos.

My young friend, Andrew, on the left, was first overall for the 5K...and he pushed one of the Ainsely's Angels strollers too, doing a 6:11 minute mile!   Good grief.  Here with his dad, I think, and the dog...both of whom are also speedy.

With Andrew

These little things are ready to get bowled over. one of the games available.

Various others....

With the Race Director.  Well done, young lady.

Buddy, the Mascot of H.E.B, a humongous groceries-and-more store that is all over Texas.  Fortune 500 company, very popular in Texas, with revenue of about a bazillion dollars. H-E-B is VERY community-oriented and sponsors a lot of events over the year.

Always great, Buddy, seeing you at events that I do.

EPILOGUE

Will most assuredly continue to do this one.  Great race location, great course, and for the goodie back, you had a choice of getting a Fiesta Pin or a race tee.  I do so many races I have tons of race tees, so I opted for the Fiesta Pin, which I will probably give to some kid. 

Mucho thanks to everyone out there who made this one happen for we participants: our race director and her many volunteers; all the sponsors and vendors; law enforcement and EMT folks out there for us, as well as the firefighters pitching in with the sausage wraps fundraiser; the Windcrest Golf Course and the local elementary school, which were both near the start/finish line and allowed participant parking at their facilities; and anyone else I may not have mentioned here.  Thank you all so much for what you do so we participants could have this event.