GATESVILLE, Texas -- Summer decided to hide this past Saturday, just in time for the Gatesville Spurfest, Sep. 13.
The annual festival kicked off with the Total 5 K'aos Run, a combination 5K run, obstacle course. Temperatures dropped the night before, bringing the race time temperature down to a chilly 57 degrees.
"It's a great day. A little chilly, but a great day to have a run in the morning," said Maj. Gen. Warren E. Phipps, Jr., commanding general of First Army Division West.
Division West volunteers from Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 1st Battalion, 289th Infantry Regiment, 479th Field Artillery Brigade, and the 166th Aviation Brigade joined together to make the Total 5 K'aos Run a fun and safe event.
"We set up some of the obstacles and now we're out here making sure the participants go through the obstacles the correct way," said Maj. Shannon Howerton of 1st Battalion, 289th Regiment.
Volunteers assisted with the obstacles, ensured a safe environment for the runners, and participated in some of the chaos.
The run had "a little of everything: zombies, obstacles and color," said Mrs. Carla Manning of the Gatesville Chamber of Commerce.
Many of the military volunteers were armed with color dye, to ensure that none of the runners finished the race with the same color shirt they started with.
After the run, the Spurfest opened its gates at the Faunte LeRoy Park in Downtown Gatesville, greeting guests with a variety of local vendors and entertainment. The First Annual Miss Coryell County Pageant started off the entertainment, with many musical acts following. The festival topped off with a live performance by country star, Deryl Dodd later in the evening.
The annual Spurfest celebration goes a long way in bringing the community of Gatesville together with the Soldiers of Fort Hood and is a great example of a military-local community partnership.
"Gatesville is extremely charitable and a very patriotic city that's done tremendous things for all the Soldiers," Phipps said. "Anytime we get out here and join in with their activities, it just strengthens those bonds. Again I can't show enough appreciation for what Gatesville has done for our Soldiers here at Fort Hood," Phipps added.
Gatesville is a partnership city for First Army Division West, aligning with the Fort Hood community partnership program.
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