We didn’t expect a chilly morning in San Antonio, but the Personal Best Tour was given a warm reception at the opening ceremony for the Texas State Senior Games. More than 325 energetic seniors converged on O.P. Schnabel Park to celebrate the beginning of the annual games and to take to the park trails for a fitness walk after the ceremony.
The majority of attendees came from and active adult communities, YMCA and senior centers from around the city.
NSGA CEO Marc T. Riker introduced our theme and noted that everyone who came for the fitness walk were themselves pursuing their personal best. He then introduced three-time Olympian Bob Nieman, acknowledged by many to be America’s greatest modern pentathlete ever, who also spoke about the importance of staying active. “The challenge never ends. Stay active and never stop,” he concluded.
The two then welcomed Bill Altman, our Personal Best Award recipient for this inaugural tour event. Bill Altman Profile. “Get involved in something. Get off the couch,” he said. “I encourage everyone to keep moving if you want to live to an old age and have a great life.” He then excused himself to go get ready for an afternoon with his Tigers senior games softball team for the opening of senior games competition.
Fox 29 News covered the event, and the San Antonio Express News daily newspaper interviewed Altman for a feature in their health and wellness section. Talk radio KLUP scheduled a studio interview with Altman for next week and local ESPN radio also mentioned the event.
An enthusiastic team from our national games sponsor Humana turned out to cheer on the participants and share some of the interactive pieces of their Well Being Tour. The event closed with music and dancing when the walkers returned to the pavilion. Our thanks to Cathy Pottorf for her great work organizing the Texas Senior Games and the opening ceremony.
After visiting the Texas State Senior Games competition on Friday and Saturday, the NSGA team took to the streets Sunday to participate in a great “family adventure day” event called SiClovia organized by the YMCA of San Antonio. An estimated 70,000 citizens took advantage of street closures to cycle, skate and walk through downtown and participate in recreation zones along the way.
NSGA hosted a “Senior Activity Zone” with a demonstration of pickleball, a fast growing sport similar to tennis that will be added for medal competition at the National Senior Games Presented by Humana this summer. Several senior games players came out to help show how it’s done. Thanks to joe and John Torres, TJ Hapshire, Rita Neureuther, Dale Paulick and Col. Jamie Houston for joining in the fun. Literally thousands viewed the sport during the day and many stopped by our table to learn about the Personal Best Tour and the senior games movement. Humana got into the act by bringing its “Well Being Tour” to set up next to the playing court. This same interactive health and wellness exhibit will be a major attraction at the National Senior Games in Cleveland in The Village sponsored by AstraZeneca.
