Remembering favorite local area running routes

Moe Johnson Running with Moe

I received a text message from my friend, Darrell Rhodes, with a photo of a pickup with an orange Gatorade cooler in the bed of it. His text was, “My first thought was the truck is going to a 5K race.” I replied, “Darrell, you have been volunteering at too many 5K races over the years.” It made me think how many times my pickup was loaded down with a race clock, cones, direction signs, and four or five Gatorade coolers. It started me thinking of the difference between races we put on in the 1980’s versus today with more technology and timing. It also made me think of all the runs we did back then that because of population growth and traffic are no longer possible.

One of the favorites was a Sunday morning run through the Freeman Ranch to Wimberley. The distance was 11 miles and over a dirt road and through longhorn cattle country. If we had to cross the bridge after a heavy rain we would take off our shoes, hook our toes over the edge and side step our way across to avoid slipping. One friend decided he could run across that shallow water and not take his shoes off. After three full back flops from that slippery moss on the bridge he decided next time to take his shoes off and follow experienced runners. The best part of the run was stopping at the Cypress Creek Café and having a plate sized cinnamon roll for breakfast. Now the road is closed and that popular run is no longer possible.

The run to Gruene was also a favorite run. It was 15 miles and the ice cream cone at the General Store was worth the reward for running that far. The main problem was having one runner drop his or her car off in Gruene, so we had a ride back. This was also my favorite bike ride. The halfway break at the store for the ice cream cone or milk shake before pedaling back made this a fun ride. I seem to remember the ride back was more downhill and a little faster than the ride to Gruene. Now with Hunter Road increased to four lanes and the increase in traffic and housing development, entering Gruene has made this a little more of a risky ride. We thought it was fun to run from nearby towns. One of these was the run from Lockhart to San Marcos. We usually stopped at the gas station for a water stop and headed to Mc-Donalds for breakfast. The increase in traffic and the speed cars drive coming from Lockhart to Martindale and into San Marcos makes this run dangerous. Ros Hill and I used to take the “Old RR12” to Wimberley. Ros had found a nice spot in the river about the size of a small backyard swimming pool. After a long run on a hot summer day it was a real treat to lay in that cold water and enjoy cooling off. I always wanted to bring a snorkel tube along, so I could lay face down and really get the cooling effect of that water. The bad part of that run was it was still a few miles into Wimberley and we had to run in wet clothes. The usual practice was to call a friend or a wife to come get us for the ride home. Ranch Road 12 is no longer that lonely two lane road with very little traffic. Even that road to the watering cool down spot is now more developed and has an increase in traffic.

A favorite run we used for a long run training for a marathon of 22 miles was taking the 5 Mile Dam Road (Post Road) to Kyle. We would run down Center Street in Kyle to the access road and follow it back to the rest area and then get back on Post Road and back to San Marcos. That was back when the little organic restaurant Moss Cliff was outside of town about one half mile. Now with apartments, housing developments, and the increase in traffic, this run is a little dangerous. The width of the road has not increased that much to accommodate the traffic for a runner to share the road safely.

While these runs are no longer available for a safe run the same is true with locations for putting on a race. Almost all the 5K races in San Marcos were held at the Hays Courthouse and ran down San Antonio Street and came back on Hutchinson Street to LBJ and turned to finish at the Courthouse. There were over a dozen races held over the summer, fall and winter over that course. Then regulations caught up with the racing scene. Parade permits, liability insurance requirements, permission from Tx-DOT, because Hopkins Street is a part of a state highway, and the cost increase in traffic control forced any organization looking to hold a race to raise some funds to look elsewhere. I guess change is inevitable with the increase in growth in this area. I just miss some of the old times and runs.