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Members of the tight-knit group pumped up one another at the starting line.

Shoes were retied last minute as the national anthem played from the speakers. When it finished, the announcer asked blind and visually impaired runners to come forward.

The group made their way up. Crosby, a guide dog for runner Kerry Kuck, stood at the front of the pack. The runners prepared for their starting cue, which was a minute before the rest of the participants tackled the 5-mile route at the annual Cherry Creek Sneak.

“Crosby the dog is going to lead the way,” the announcer barked out to the crowd. Then, the start was signaled. The runners and their guides took off, breaking away down the first stretch.

The Colorado Springs-based U.S. Association of Blind Athletes partnered with , the local chapter of an international organization that gives athletes with disabilities a community of support, and a Colorado sports club that connects those with good vision with blind or visually impaired runners, to recruit about 15 runners and guides to race Sunday.

For some, the sport is about escaping isolation or exploring freedom. For others, it is a fun form of exercise. Regardless of the motivation, the athletes all expressed a similar theme: Blind runners have a tight community in Denver.

Many blind or visually impaired athletes run with a guide who points out potholes or curbs, helping athletes stay safe. Runners have different preferences for how they work with a guide. Many run side by side, with both holding a rope called a tether to stay connected. Others run directly behind the guide. Then there are teams like Kuck and Crosby, in which the guide mainly acts as an escort to make sure no wrong turns are made.

Ultrarunner Jason Romero made his way over to the starting line for the 10-mile run, which he would perform while wearing an Angry Bird costume and a white cowboy hat. Romero was part of Team USA at the International Paralympic Committee’s World Marathon Championship in 2015. The year after, he became the seventh-fastest person — including those with good vision and blind — to run across America from Los Angeles to New York.

But on Sunday, he took it easy. He chatted with fellow runners, stopped to say hi to people he knew, cheered on everyone around him and even sang a bit. He and his guide, Donna Marie, are training for the Leadville Challenge, a series of five events over 10 weeks that include a 100-mile run. After finishing the race, the two were planning to run back home.

Romero was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative retinal disease, when he was 14 years old. Although he ran while younger, Romero said he had stopped. As his vision continued to deteriorate, Romero said he struggled with depression.

“You end up isolating yourself,” he said. “Just like anyone with challenges.”

So his counselor recommended exercise. Romero laced on the running shoes.

“That turned into this craziness,” he said. “I just love it. I run all the time.”

Many of the runners talked about how they loved the social nature of running and chatting with other athletes and guides. The environment breeds close friendships. Amelia Dickerson and her guide, Grace Dill, got so close that Dickerson attended Dill’s wedding. The two have been running together for four years. Dill had to pause for a year due to a pregnancy. Sunday was the first time they were back together for a race.

It’s important for guides and runners to be in sync, especially when they’re connected with a tether, the two said. Different gaits can slow down the runners or interfere with proper former. But when the two are in sync, they end up pushing each other. Dickerson admitted that she considered letting off the gas at times but wouldn’t do that with Dill next to her. It’s also key for guides to be able to keep up with the runners — Dill mentioned that Dickerson has had to drop guides who were too slow in the past.

Once in a while, Dickerson will try to go on a training run without a guide. Generally, if she falls, she’s not injured, she said. But once, she ended up hitting a railing, flipping over it and falling into an electrical box.

“Every blind runner has some sort of story like that,” she said with a smile, “done something crazy trying to go on a run.”

When running with a guide, sighted bystanders can get confused, sometimes yelling at Dickerson and her guide to not run like that. That usually means Dickerson has to explain to them how the tether system works.

“Most of the time people are completely clueless,” Dickerson said, adding that she’s thought about getting a penny that says “blind” on it.

She’s not the only one. Romero said he was running in the Boston Marathon and someone yelled at him for using a cane.聽But people are also incredibly supportive, cheering on blind runners.

Dickerson and Dill were in the front pack of 5-mile runners. They crossed at about 35 minutes and 50 seconds, which averages out to about 7 minutes and 10 seconds per mile. The two high-fived and smiled. Dickerson said she was exhausted but felt great and proud of her time.

Others in their group began to cross the finish line behind them. Everyone went over to finished runners and guides, congratulating them and cheering loudly.

Achilles Internation hosts Mondays at 6 p.m. starting at the Washington Park Recreation Center.