Fresh Faces, Friendships, and Fitness: Bracket Run Club Starts Friday - All are welcome!

Sometimes it only takes one person moving home to spark something new. Opal Lutz recently returned to Brackettville, and she’s already pouring her energy right back into the community—starting with a new group aimed at wellness, encouragement, and connection: The Brackett Run Club. “It’s time for our first meet up,” Lutz posted to the newly created Facebook group. “Our first day of the new run club this year will be this Friday January 23, @5pm. The weather has been a bit chilly so come in layers so that you are comfortable… Bring water to stay hydrated… Either way we will encourage each other and cheer each other on!” 

Lutz said the idea came from her experience with an Urban Run Club while living in San Antonio. After moving back, she noticed Brackettville didn’t have a similar group—and she felt inspired to help create one. “I used to run for miles alone when I lived here in 2020,” Lutz shared. “Although the views were beautiful, I’d get so far out and figured it probably wasn’t too safe for me to be alone. So… I figured why not reach out to the community and see if there were others like me that wanted to be active, specifically with running/walking. I felt it could be something positive I could contribute.”

That outreach happened fast. On Jan. 11, Lutz posted on “The Brackett Voice” Facebook group asking if anyone would be interested in a run club—and the response was immediate, drawing more than 25 comments and 40 likes, with locals chiming in from all fitness levels and backgrounds. Many simply replied: “I’m in!” Just 10 days later, Lutz is already managing an active Facebook group with more than 20 members, polling the group on the best day to meet, gathering route suggestions, and building momentum for weekly meetups.

“We will meet once a week and each week run/walk different routes,” she said. “I believe if the community can see their peers of all walks of life running/walking as a group it would inspire those who may think they can’t, don’t know where to start, or just don’t want to do it alone.” Lutz hopes the club will eventually branch out into charity races, fun runs, and maybe even bigger challenges. “For the future I have ideas of branching out and participating as a group at charity races… mud races… marathons of all k’s, and maybe even the Spartan race,” she said.

Lutz, who was born in Del Rio and spent summers in Brackettville growing up, earned her psychology degree at San Antonio College and says she’s glad to be back. Her favorite local running route so far? “Running down Ann Street down to Las Moras Mountain.”

As details for the first meetup are finalized, Lutz hopes more locals will join in—whether they’re runners, walkers, or just looking for a reason to get outside and feel supported.

“Running alone is great,” she wrote, “but running together is better.” Anyone interested can find the group on Facebook and hit the ground running. 


Update from the Brackett Run Club Group, posted Jan. 22, 8:07am by Opal Lutz:
Rain Friday & Saturday So it looks like we will be getting rain Friday and Saturday so we will be rescheduling our first run to January 30th on Friday @5pm at the track for our initial run. There we can explore all the possible routes we can run/walk in the future.
Water will be provided Safety will always be a priority for us.
Running tips:
- Wear layers
- Wear comfortable running/walking shoes
- Bring headphones to listen to your favorite music