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National Walking Club Hits Its Stride By Moving To San Antonio

International walkers from a February 2020 walk here in San Antonio
Mary Ullmann Japhet
International walkers from a February 2020 walk here in San Antonio

A walking club with German roots now has just moved its national headquarters to San Antonio and has changed its name. It’s the American Volkssport Association, which CEO Henry Rosales said has just changed its name to the America’s Walking Club. As to what they’re all about, the title pretty well says it.

“Individuals who love walking join our organization or come walk with us, primarily for friendship and health and wellness,” Rosales said.

Those walking meet at an agreed upon place to walk a certain mapped-out route. But it’s not a race.

Walkers on the River Walk
Mary Ullmann Japhet
Walkers on the River Walk

“It's not competitive. We have clubs throughout the country that set up walks for anyone who's interested,” Rosales said. “And you can walk 1 mile, you can walk 10 miles. You can walk further.”

You decide the distance and speed you want to walk. The idea is to be outdoors, to get exercise, to see new places and to walk through pretty settings.

“The things you might not see if you just go by in your car,” he said.

America’s Walking Club is now opening up a new headquarters in Southtown.

“Today (Tuesday, March 30) we're having our first open house at the new national headquarters, 1008 South Alamo Street,” he said.

Also, starting Thursday is a national week of events celebrating walking together. America’s Walking Club is a national organization, but has hundreds of individual affiliates.

Walkers along the River Walk
Mary Ullmann Japhet
Walkers along the River Walk

“April 1-7 is National Walk Week and so throughout the week, most of our clubs will be hosting events across the country,” he said.

There are five different clubs in the San Antonio area alone, and each designs their own walks.

“And we invite everybody to come out and join us to visit us to learn what Volkssporting is all about,” Rosales said.

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Jack Morgan can be reached at jack@tpr.org and on Twitter at @JackMorganii