Beer run fun inspired by Halloween
What began as a way to make new friends and share a love of the suds blossomed Wednesday, when the Boerne Beer Run Club held a Halloween Fun Run –– costumed runners taking 1- and 3-mile courses through downtown.
The outfits were as diverse as the runners: Dolly and Parton, the Forrest Gumps, Average Joes from “Dodgeball,” the dinosaur suit, M&Ms, three cans of beer — a few first-timers, but mostly return runners, according to Sarah Neal, the Beer Run Club’s creator.
“My husband and I moved from Austin to Sisterdale about two years ago. We went to a run club there and when we moved to Boerne, we were kind of looking for that,” said Neal, now 20 weeks pregnant who dressed up but refrained from running.
She added, “We didn’t find that anywhere, so ... I was sitting at dinner with my husband, Travis, and I said, ‘We should just do it ourselves, not overthink it. I’ll reach out to our favorite brewery and see if they’ll do it.”
The social club began meeting last spring at the Cibolo Creek Brewing Co., 448 S. Main St., and enjoyed its first dash mid-May.
Neal said she blasted out a message on social media about the initial gathering.
“We went on Instagram and I made flyers I posted everywhere, and our first night, we had like 40 people,” she said. “I was so nervous. I thought it was going to be like me, my husband and like one other person.”
She added, “Turns out, there’s a whole host of people who enjoy running and felt this was something they’d really enjoy, too.”
The group meets Wednesdays at the brewery, The Halloween-themed run Oct. 28 featured two courses winding through the downtown area. The mile course left Cibolo Creek Brewing and ran a half-mile along the Cibolo Creek walkway to The Kendall Inn, where it reversed course and returned.
The 3-mile course used the same opening, but continued along East Blanco to the Old No. 9 Trail, which it took all the way to River Road, before finishing back at the brewery.
Matthew Alley, dressed in black tights and a pink tut, said he’s been on board since the first run earlier this year.
“This just brought out a great bunch of people who share a love for running, and as you can see, can be a bit quirky at time,” Alley said. “It’s been fun, a great way to meet new friends and have a beer after completing what some people might call exercise.”
A costume contest was held, and The Forrest Gumps — Andrew Nott dressed as Ping- Pong champion Forrest, and Mark Masterson dressed as the bearded, long-distance running Gump — were declared the winners.
Neal said the club will explore fleet-footed themes for Thanksgiving and Christmas and more as the months run by.
“The least we’ve ever had was like 30 people, and that was in the dead of summer, when it was 100 degrees,” she said. “We’ve had as much as 60 and honestly, I’ve stopped counting.”
One thing Neal can count on is a growing fan base and possibly run-club spinoffs, which she welcomes.
“The more the merrier,” she said.
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