22nd Annual Armydillo Run Set for This Saturday

SAN ANGELO, TX - Last Saturday, an ambitious group of runners endured the rain showers and held their scheduled "4th Annual 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb" to honor victims and their families from the incident 15 years ago (click here).

Event coordinator Eric Murray said, "It was great. There were over 100 climbers and approximately 60 members of the Central High School Band even came out to play the National Anthem. Many of their parents came out as well to watch the performance and take part in the commemoration ceremony. The San Angelo Police and Fire Department came out as well, and it was just a great turnout."

Saturday, September 17, will be RWB's next event, which will start out at 8 a.m. at the Spring Creek Marina, located at 2680 Camper Rd.

"The '22nd Annual Armydillo Run' is put on by the Sentinel Foundation, a non profit that operates at Goodfellow AFB, [and] assists the army unit here on base," said Murray. 

The organization does fundraisers and provide money throughout the year for events like the Army Battalion events, the Army Ball, and other morale events throughout the year. Also, if the occasion rises to where a soldier happens to have an emergency requiring financial assistance, the Sentinel Foundation will help them out too.

"For this event, there's a 10k, a 5k, and a one mile 'fun run,' and each participant will receive a challenge coin with the event logo on it.  All the money raised from the event will go directly to support the soldiers of the Army unit here on base, the soldiers of the 344th MI BN," he added.

As far as the name of the event, "Armydillo," there is no specific relation to an armadillo.  

Murray said, "There might be some people, mainly soldiers from the unit, carrying packs, but it's not required. The Army has a specific height and weight standard, so fortunately, for these guys, it will help them to maintain their requirements." 

For those unfamiliar, 5k is 3.1 miles, and a 10k is 6.2 miles.

Murray stressed, "For these runs, there will be age category divisions and prizes will be awarded."

For the 'fun run,' it will be one mile, just for fun, for those [who] aren't really into competing but want to be part of the event. The whole event will take between 2 to 2.5 hours. Participants can register online up to the day of the event or on site as well. The fee is $30.  

Initially, t-shirts were included with registration for the first 150 participants, but that number has already been surpassed.  

Murray added, "If we get enough people to register after the 150 pre-set t-shirt allowance, we would consider ordering more for those late registering."