Last
Updated
Wednesday September 08, 2010
Click here for our Race Calendar...
Birthday List has been updated.
Routes for
September 11th, 18th & 25th have been posted so please
contact Molly
to help with a water stop.
Water: Time once
again for my annual water stop rant but we did go longer this year than
most years. A week or so ago we a) ran completely out of water
before everyone finished and b) had a nice ice chest stolen. It's
always hard to tell how many runners are going to show up and I've seen as
few as 6 or 8 when bad weather threatened and I've seen over 40 show up,
you just can't tell. Here are a few rules you should follow in order
not to be flogged:
1) Put out at least 3 gallons of water and 3 gallons
of Gatorade. Double that if we go by there twice! We go
through an incredible amount of fluids during the summer and a bit less
when temperatures cool off.
2) Set out at least 50 cups, again, double
that if a double stop. Runners should try to reuse their own cup if
possible but when I get there and 30 cups are already lying around and
hung in trees it can be hard to keep up with which cup was mine.
3) If
we start running low on Gatorade please keep the runners behind you in
mind and leave some for them too.
4) Usually there is a trash bag at
each stop, put your cup and all your trash in there. Make it as easy
as you can on the poor slob coming back to pick up the trash.
5) Always
be sure to go back and get the trash and pick up the area so neighborhoods
won't mind if we use a spot for water stops. You wouldn't like
someone leaving garbage in your yard either so please have it picked up by
10:00 am.
6) In the summer do whatever you have to do to keep the
drinks cool. If you set out an ice chest you run the risk of getting
it stolen, it's happened to me too. Buy a cheap Styrofoam cooler or
get a box, line it with a plastic trash bag and fill it with ice. It
doesn't have to be pretty, just effective.
7) Pay attention! I've
had times when I set out several bottles of water and they'd all be opened
and none would be empty. Please don't open a bottle or jug until we
have emptied the previous one. Once a bottle is opened it can't be
reused later, I always throw opened bottles away.
In kindergarten you
learned to treat each other like you would want to be treated, if we all
follow that simple rule things will continue to go well. We do get a
lot of help and cooperation from everyone but maybe this will helps things
go a bit smoother.
Click here for results of the Woodland Wallahatchee Races
Facebook: As you
know, AORTA has never had an original thought but we are masters at
stealing others ideas. We saw where some other clubs were using
Facebook to distribute information about individual local races. So,
Penny Merritt-Price has started a
Facebook page for the Tough Ten and Two. I
think this is a great idea because it gives the race director a way to
post updates on their race, post maps, answer questions and do a lot of
other things that aren't really practical for this website.
Cleaning up:
I've added the Forestry Preserve race above
and you can also register for the Tough Ten using Active.com by clicking
on that link. The Race Calendar has also been updated with a Half
Marathon and 10K in Troy, November 20th.
Molly wanted me to mention the water volunteers:
Thank you to the August water volunteers - Jennifer
Cabbage, Beth Kisor, Marianne Farris, Robert Keith, Bob Kennis, Tom Lawry,
Nick Holler, AHS Girls Cross Country Team/Coach, and Mike and Gloria. The
heat and humidity didn't keep many of us away, and the water stops were
always a welcome sight - thank you for waking up a bit earlier and
covering a stop.
On the other hand, I
did get a hostile email from one of our members abecause we ran out of
water at one of the stops. We had a huge crowd that we didn't
expect. Not only that I heard a volunteer had their ice chest
stolen. So, it's time for me to rant about the water stops again
which is no reflection on Molly, she's done a superb job coordinating
this. I know some of you are new and may not know exactly what we
need so we'll get that cleared up when I rant tomorrow.
AORTA Mops up at Woodland Wallahatchee:
We dispatched Scott Walker to the race this weekend to report back results
and
embarrassing things our runners did that may require disciplining.
So far, only good news. AORTA swept the trophies and Heather May was
the overall 10K winner. Alvin Walls walked away with 2 trophies, one
for his age group and another for helping out Barbara White for so many
years. Congratulations to all the runners and thanks to Scott for
the photo.
You may have noticed recently on Saturdays we have some
very young women who have been running with us; they are from the
Auburn High School Cross Country Team. They won't be here
every week because of meets and such but we are happy to add them to our
number and they'll be helping with water stops too. Don't teach them
everything you know, just teach them everything you know about running
long races!
Forestry Preserve 5K: I've meant
to add this date to our calendar but keep forgetting. Nick Holler
has pegged October 16th as the date for the trail run this year.
It's a really nice run in the woods without fording streams, climbing
steep hill and stumbling on rocks. I'll get you the race application
when they get ready but mark your calendar!
Thursday Update:
I got some feedback on this proposed new route from several of you which I
appreciate. We'll do some tweaking on it and see if we can't make it
more runner friendly.
This Saturday is the
Woodland Wallahatchee 10K, 5K and 1 Mile in Pike Road, AL which
is just off I-85 on this side of Montgomery. A quick and easy drive.
Barbara White is directing that again and always does a superb job.
You can
download the application here!
Next in line will be the
Tough Ten and Tough Two. If you click on the icon
above it will bring up the registration PDF. Plans are well underway
for this race, Penny Merritt-Price is directing this again and does a
great job. If you'd like to volunteer to help you can
drop her an email.
If you'd
like to do a race on Labor Day we have just the thing for
you. There will be a 5K/1 Mile in Montgomery at Union Station at
7:30am.
For more details click here.
Sick of it! I'm a) sick of the
heat and humidity and even worse, b) sick of our routes. Yes, it's
basically the same old worn out courses week after week after week...
It's not easy coming up with new routes because they need to be safe, have
places someone is willing to drop water and not too complicated for our
"mentally challenged" runners. Karen submitted
this route as a
potential change but I'm not sure where we can put water on this route and
if anyone would drop water as far away as east university? Please
take a look at this and let me know what you think and if you have an idea
for a brilliant route let me know.
Badwater Ultramarathon: A couple of
weeks ago I mentioned that someone in Auburn had completed the Badwater
Ultramarathon which is a bit over 135 miles long. Emily Ansick sent
me the race report her husband, William Ansick, wrote for his blog.
I have it here in PDF and
while it's long it's a great story and you'll enjoy it!
Find
results of the 1200 Mile Club for July
here
Routes for this Saturday the 14th and
then the 21st are posted. Please volunteer for a water stop with
Molly.
Huge Mistake: I missed one of
the biggest days of the year on the AORTA calendar...Alvin Walls birthday
which was this past week. He is still accepting kisses from the
young ladies and from the guys he just wants cash.
And things
can return to normal, Dave Hennessey is back from his trip to Spain and
the Canary Islands looking fit and well rested. I've noticed over
the years that once school starts we have a captive audience! Not so
much traveling and goofing off, people have to be at home so the crowds
for the next couple of weeks will be larger than normal. Who knows,
we might even see Steve Speakman or Jill Harris?
I had a written
complaint about the masthead. It's old, those girls aren't runners,
they don't belong to AORTA and I was accused of being lazy. I'll get
something else posted soon.
AORTA Meeting:
On Monday night we had a good turnout for our meeting which will now be
held quarterly.
Alvin Walls reported to us that we will be
having elections near the end of the year for new officers.
There will likely be 5 or 6 positions from
President, Vice President and then directors over membership, race
equipment and other tasks which haven’t been worked out yet.
What better opportunity to move up into the
elite status within the dysfunctional AORTA bureaucracy? This should make the job of being president a
little bit easier too.
Also, several of our long time race directors
want to turn over their races to new directors so we’ll see changes there
too.
As more decisions are made I’ll keep you updated.
Molly Joshnson wanted me to call attention to all the July water
volunteers - 5 Saturdays required lots of volunteers for the month, and it
was a hot one. Thank you to: Jim Doyle, Scott and Laura, Greg Lanier,
Bob Kennis, Carol Keever, Carol Dorn, Allen Smith, Gloria and Michael, Bob
Lawson, Bob Banks, Mac Matthews, Tracey Buckingham, Kermit Davis, and Bev
Long. A successful club of any type is dependent on members volunteering
for various activities - thank you again.
On Sept 4th there will be a race at Luverne, AL.
The Peanut Boil Festival 5K Run/Walk. 7:30am. $15 pre-registered.
Info: Tracy Watson 334-335-2437 or
www.peanutboilfestival.com.
Also check our race calendar for the Alpha Xi
Delta's AmaXIng Challenge which will be held on October 3rd. You can
find out more about it
here.
Monday Night: Tonight, August 2nd,
we'll be having an AORTA meeting at Chappie's Deli to discuss plans for
this fall and next year. We need all the help we can get, please
make plans to be there and volunteer your time for our upcoming events.
More importantly, this past Saturday
was the social event of the season where the elite of AORTA attended the
wedding of Peyton Bean. I have no idea what her husbands name is but
then what does he matter? Thanks to Elyse Corbitt and Tracey
Buckingham who were there to take photos in their official positions and
forwarded them to me!
Beverly Long
wanted me to remind all of you
that today is her birthday (Friday) but she will
still be
accepting gifts on Saturday.
And on Saturday we'll finally have Peyton Bean
married and then we're shipping her off to Atlanta. Her husband can
deal with her from now on. Dave Hennessey and I have worked
tirelessly for 4 years to find someone to marry her and it finally paid
off. Good luck to Peyton.
And I have a prediction to make.
More and more accusations are coming out about Lance Armstrong and
performance enhancing drugs and he will get caught up in the scandal and
found guilty. Maybe not guilty in court but guilty in public
perception which is a sad end to his story.
Happy
Wednesday:
I have only a couple of
things to tell you. Please do make plans to be at the AORTA meeting
this Monday. Our fearless leader and idiot savant, Alvin Walls, has
been talking about stepping down as our president. In my own opinion
there is really no one who wants that job! However, with some
reorganizing and spreading out of responsibilities we can keep the great
club we have along with the great races. It takes a lot of time and
work and if you like the way things are going then pitch in and do your
part. Those of you who choose not to attend will be volunteered for
menial tasks.
Karen
Khodadadi is back at home and doing nothing. That's exactly what's
she's supposed to do, nothing, even though it might give her a nervous
breakdown. She's not doing great but she's improving a bit each day.
You all will remember John Schelhas who abandoned us
a month or so ago and moved to
Athens, GA. I got an email from our old pal this week...Hi
Greg,
We're getting settled into Athens. I miss the AORTA folks,
haven't found any organized long runs, there are more and bigger hills,
and almost all the races are 5Ks (except the upcoming inaugural Athens
Half Marathon on Oct 24). But I did enter my first race this
weekend, and I'm pretty pleased with the demonic fireman bobblehead award
(see attached photo). John Schelhas
Personally, I love the demonic bobblehead.
Molly is back in
town and insisted I update the runs for the next 2 Saturdays so she can
get volunteers! So, they have been posted,
contact Molly.
Runner Down:
Yes, one of our own has run into some serious medical problems.
Karen Khodadadi was having a lot of breathing problems and chest pains and
so visited the ER late last week. They found her oxygen levels were
low and admitted her. Now they know she has a pulmonary embolism
which are blood clots in her lungs, lots of them. She spent last
night at EAMC and my have accommodations for tonight too. It will be
weeks before she is back on the road with us. I'll try to keep you
updated on her progress.
Yes, we have the first AORTA meeting in months
planned for next week. You do need to attend because we have a lot
of business to cover with all of our fall and winter races which will be
here before you know it and we need YOUR HELP! Please make plans to
attend!
A Few Things:
AORTA spokesperson, Beverly Long,
told us at the Wednesday press conference that work has begun in earnest
on the Tough Ten and Tough Two race scheduled for October 9th. A
link has been added to
Active.com for this race.
Brian Benson wrote me about an Auburn runner I've
never heard of. William Ansick of Auburn, (his wife Emily works at
Health Plus and wins some of our local races) ran 136 miles across Death
Valley and up to Whitney Portals in 36:38:30 to place 28th in the 2010
Badwater Ultramarathon. Makes the Tupelo Marathon look like a Springfling
5K….
The
race application for Woodland Wallahatchee on August has been added to
our Upcoming Race List.
There is also a race that is going to be held on July 30th. I was
sent this email from Sergio about it...Please join me on July 30th at 6pm
in order to run/walk the streets of Auburn in order to raise money for
Salud y Paz!
This
past May, I went on a Medical Mission to Guatemala with the organization
called Salud y Paz. Many of you know that my family is from Guatemala, so
the trip was very close to my heart. During my week stay with Salud
y Paz, I was able to apply dental fluoride varnishing to the local
children, go on house visits to the local bed ridden, and work on one of
the clinics that Salud y Paz has created. While I was there, I realized
just how fortunate I was to have all the necessities that I could ask for,
while many of the Guatemalans were so happily blissful with close to
nothing.
For this reason, I knew that the mission of Salud y
Paz was one that I would be happy to work for.
When I arrived back into the U.S., I quickly realized
that most of my friends and schoolmates had no idea of the situation that
occurred in Guatemala. I immediately knew that I had to bring awareness to
this cause. As the impact of the mission trip began to diminish, a volcano
named Pacaya that is located close to the capital began to erupt.A couple
of days later a tropical storm named Agatha devastated the Guatemalan
region. Many lost their lives to the natural disasters and thousands of
lives were altered. These natural disasters also took a toll on Salud y
Paz.
Friends and Family, I
am asking you to come out on July 30th in order to walk for a cause. Help
me bring awareness to the Guatemalans that have suffered so much through
these hard times. Please help me help them.
Here is your
June update for the 1200 Mile Club!
Results
from the Peach Run
Things are slow:
I
know the website isn't being updated more than once or twice a week but
it's summer and there just isn't a lot to report. And you're boring.
Beverly Long was holding court Saturday and bragging
that she will be heading up a group running the Memphis Marathon later
this year. I heard Scott and Laura Walker plan to go, Beth Ladisla
and probably others but I can only remember 3 things at a time. I'll
keep you posted on their training/injuries. Karen Khodadadi will be
getting ready to go to Chicago in October, it's probably her 10th time to
run that marathon back in her old stomping grounds. This past
weekend Barbara "Babs" White ran a marathon in Montana as part her plan to
run a marathon in all 50 states. That makes 47 for her! I
haven't heard from her but I'd expect things went well.
This past Saturday was Beth
Mason's last run with the group. She and her husband are moving to
Tampa at the end of this week where they'll be taking new jobs.
Beth's been a regular part of the gang for a long time so she is going to
be missed.
For this Saturday here is the list of volunteers for the
water stops that Molly arranged.
July 17th
Carol Dorn - Auburn Early Ed
Allen Smith - Speakman's
Mike and Gloria - Accountant's
July birthdays have
been added to the right.
Get back to work, the
holidays are over:
I've got a couple of things to catch up on. Don't forget the
Summer Swing 5K is tonight (Tuesday) in Opelika and then the Summer 5K
in Auburn on Wednesday night. On Saturday will be the 3rd Annual
Peach Run and you can
download the application here.
I had heard that a group was doing a "beer run" last Thursday evening
headed up by Bob Lawson. It was all quiet until I got this email
this morning..."I feel like crap. Got in bed last night, laid awake and
finally vomited (twice) around 12:30. That's the first time I've hurled
in at least ten years. So far this morning, I've had a piece of toast
and a mountain dew. I'm hoping the caffeine will snap me out of it.
No more beer runs...my body can't take it"! So a big
congratulations to Scott Walker.
Thank you to the June water volunteers - hot and humid mornings made for
extra-thirsty runners - Jane Farr (who also sacrificed 2 coolers), Shari
Glover, Beth Ladisla, Oliver Prigge (who has left AORTA kicking and
screaming), Beth Mason, Penny Price, Leslie Agerton, Nick Holler, Tim
Adams and Beth Kisor. Now, Molly is gone for a couple of weeks and left
me this list of water volunteers while she is gone!
July 10th
Greg Lanier - Auburn Early Ed
Bob Kennis - Speakman's
Carol Keever - N. Dean
July 17th
Carol Dorn - Auburn Early Ed
Allen Smith - Speakman's
Mike and Gloria - Accountant's
July 24th
Bob Lawson - Auburn Early Ed
Bob Banks - N. Dean
Mac Matthews (new guy) - Kaz
Run for Saturday,
July 3rd has been posted and all water stops are covered.
Man-up:
Molly Johnson, our water girl, will be out of town for a couple of weeks
in July so we were trying to get all the runs planned and water stops
covered before she left town. Molly reported this morning that the
last 3 stops were taken this weekend so everything is covered.
Thanks to everyone for helping out with this.
TDF:
We are in the final countdown to the Tour de France which will start
this coming Saturday morning (July 3rd). I think it will be a good
tour and it's always exciting to watch who gets kicked out for failing
their drug test. This year they'll also be checking to see who has
the new tiny motor stuck in their seat post. No, I'm not kidding.
Who will win? Lance Armstrong, old man and can only win if 4 or 5
others fall off their bike. Cadel Evans? No chance.
The Schleck boys, especially Andy? He might be able to pull it
off, lot's of natural talent. But you'd have to put your money on
Alberto Contador, right now he looks unbeatable. What's nice is
there is always some surprising rider or event that changes everything.
3rd Annual Peach Run:
Wanted to remind you that 2 weeks from tomorrow (July 10th) will be the
Peach Run. You can
download the application here. Leading the AORTA regime will
be Alvin Walls and we need about half a dozen volunteers to cover the
finish line. If you can help out
contact Alvin.
And Molly will be out of town for several weeks so 5 Saturday Runs have
been posted. We need to get all the volunteers set this week
before she leaves.
Email
Molly!!
Send off:
All of you should know that Bob Lawson and Scott & Laura Walker had a
Good-bye Party for Oliver Prigge last Wednesday after the Summer 5K
Race. Scott took a few photos for your consideration.
Water Czarette Molly Johnson has a terrific employment package with
AORTA that allows her several weeks off (with pay) each summer.
The downside is we need to go ahead and get the waterstops covered for
the next 4 weeks. I will try to get all those runs posted so she can get
that handled which means we all need to man-up and volunteer for a stop!
AORTA Breakfast:
The Vice President of Social Events, Elyse Corbitt, has announced we'll
be having an AORTA breakfast this coming Saturday. We'll try to
get started around 8:00am, just after the run. We are asking
everyone to bring a breakfast dish and we'll provide coffee and have all
the paper products etc. This will be held at Auburn Electric so
you already know the routine, everyone is invited.
1200 Mile Club
Results for May
Updates:
Bob
Lawson and Scott Walker have planned a "so long and good riddance"
cookout for Oliver & Nichole tonight (Wednesday).
Bob is supplying the hot dogs, bratwurst and buns -- and he has a pool.
You're to bring your own drinks and a side dish or dessert (chips and
fruit salad have already been spoken for). Oliver & Nicole go back to
Germany around the 25th of this month. If anyone plans to attend, let
Scott Walker
know -- and an idea of what you might bring.
Doug sent me this photo of poor Alvin handing over a check to the EAMC
Cancer Center for $4,000 back in April. It's a very hard life
being president of AORTA...sorry about the red grid in the photo, I
can't get rid of it.
The 1200 Mile Club is up to date and can be downloaded above.
Birthdays for June have been posted to the right.
Mark your calendar for October 9th when we'll hold the Tough Ten and
Tough Two. Penny Merritt-Price will be our hostess/race director
once again. I've also added a few other races to our calendar.
I've gotten behind on the
Saturday Runs so please
contact
Molly to volunteer for the water stops the next 2 weeks.
Long time:
I know
it's been a week since the last update but my excuse is I became a
grandfather over the weekend. Make checks payable to "Cash" and
give them to me. Madeline weighed in at 6 lb 9 oz Saturday night,
has a bit of jaundice but otherwise is doing well.
And a word from the Water Czar: Hi Again - remind all 1200-mile runners
that "Effective June 1st, members of the 1200-mile club are expected to
assist with water stops on Saturday mornings by volunteering a minimum
of once per quarter. Don't wait until December as stops are usually
covered on a first-come basis." Molly.
Molly also told me that Jane Farr used a nice cooler at her water stop a
couple of weeks ago and it was stolen. That happens several times
per year it seems and I've lost nice ones myself. Use an old piece
of junk cooler if you have one or maybe just a trash bag with ice in it.
If you still want to use a nice cooler then try to hide it in the bushes
or cover it with a black trash bag. Booby-trapping it probably
isn't a good idea.
Also, don't forget that Oliver Prigge will be leaving us at the end of
this month and heading back to Germany. I think he will be opening
a branch office of AORTA there as part of our European franchise system.
John Schelhas is also leaving if I remember correctly and both these
guys are going to be missed.
We are behind in posting the 1200 Mile Club, behind with the birthdays
and behind updating our calendar. We'll get that caught up this
week for sure.
Results of Summer 5K Series Week 1
AORTA Pool Party:
Yes, plans are now finalized for the party which will be Saturday, June
12th at Tracey Buckingham's home (1802 Ogletree Road). You can
even download the invitation
if snakes don't bother you! We'll start at 4:00 PM, AORTA will
furnish hamburgers, hotdogs, buns, drinks, paper products, etc. We
are asking everyone that has a last name ending in A-L to bring a side
dish or if it ends in M-Z to bring a dessert. If you are coming
PLEASE
let Tracey know and what you plan to bring so we can plan
accordingly.
News from our Water Czar Molly
Johnson:
A
big thank you to the May Saturday morning water volunteers. There were
a couple of "special" races on Saturday's in May, but some of us are
having a hard time adjusting to the high humidity and water volunteers
are thus very special people! Thanks goes out to: Jennifer Cabbage,
Beth and Gary, Bob Kennis, Jennifer Deitloff, Mike and Gloria, Jim
Killian (the only volunteer for May 22nd which was "hit" by many 3 times
- yes, he's my good friend and I was paid handsomely for saying this!),
Tom Lawry, and Jim Doyle.
Our Saturday
routes for the next 2 weeks (June 5th & 12), please contact Molly to
help with a water stop!
Couple of things:
Congratulations to Steve Speakman, legal expert for AORTA. He won
the republican party nomination for Lee County District Court yesterday
and now will face his democratic challenger in November. I know
he'll do a great job. Of course we won't be satisfied until we
have taken over the governorship and then Washington based on our
"running paths everywhere and cold water faucets every mile" platform.
Plus billions in the AORTA coffers for us to squander on food, travel
and useless gadgets. You know, kind of like the government has
been doing for years!
I know I said a couple of weeks ago we were working on a big upgrade to
the AORTA website. It's nearly completed and I hope to get it
posted in the next week or so. It will take a bit of getting used
to but I have every confidence you can figure it out. For the rest
of you (Carol Keever) we'll have special classes on Tuesday nights until
you understand. Actually I've done nothing on the new site, there
is an "eager beaver" in my office who has taken on the task but I intend
to take full credit.
While in one sense the racing season has slowed down we still have races
every Tuesday night in Opelika and on Wednesday night in Auburn the
Summer 5K Series starts tonight (June 2nd).
Pool Party:
AORTA's
Vice President of Social Activities, Elyse Corbitt, has declared that we
will be having a pool party at Tracey Buckingham's on June 12th starting
at 4:00PM. We'll have more details as we get closer to that date.
The
Run for Ross 5K and 1-mile
run/walk will be this Saturday, May 22nd at the Ogletree Village
Shopping Center in Auburn. The 5K will be at 8:30am and the 1-mile will
be at 9:15. Registration will start at 7:30. The registration fee for
both events is a donation of your choice. T-shirts will be available
for purchase for $15.00. For more information
contact
Tracey. Thanks to those who have already volunteered and
registered.
Dear Diary…
The runners have been even more boring than usual. Bob Kennis is going
to Massachusetts for a 3 week class on cell biology in June! Yep, 3
solid weeks. All I could think of was “what would be worse, 15 days of
cell biology or 15 days in a communist Chinese
reeducation
camp with Alvin as the warden”? Beth Ladisla told me she got into the
NY Marathon this November but husband Gary didn’t. She seemed
disappointed until I pointed out it would probably be a lot more fun
without him and she seemed to perk up considerably when she realized the
possibilities. Molly told me that Bob Fucci is/was in Italy and ran a
2:10 half marathon. Excellent time for someone in their early 70’s. I
have a video here of Bob and his
pigeons in
Venice.
A few days ago I wrote about Lisa Smith-Batchen and her quest to run 50
miles in all 50 states. 
Maddie Llyod was in Birmingham and ran a mile and a half with Lisa who
is her cousin. That’s the closest thing to royalty Alvin will ever
have. And Scott Walker sent me this candid shot of John Nevels
hydrating for his next marathon.
Sadly, this will probably be the LAST website update I'll have until I
return which will likely be June 1st! All the Saturday runs have
been posted so there is no reason for you to slack off.
Where do I go?
For the
Ty Garner race you need to turn into the long drive at Grand National.
Turn left at your first traffic circle, go through that neighborhood to
the Post Office. Then take a right and you will see the start of
the race. If you are meeting early to run on Saturday that is
where we'll meet too.
Tuesday:
Thank you
to all the April water stop volunteers on Saturday mornings: Beth
Mason, Laura and Scott Walker, Kermit Davis, Bev Long, Bev Smith, Tammi
Hollis, and Bob Banks. April was a good running month with cool
mornings so participation increased and we all appreciate the
willingness of our volunteers.
Alvin sent me some information on this...Starting April 19th, Lisa
Smith-Batchen will be the first person to attempt to run 50 miles in
each of the 50 states. The Dreamchasers Foundation will
disperse 100% of donations between three organizations: The Orphan
Foundation of America, AIDS Orphans Rising, and the Caring House
Project. To make a donation click here:
DONATIONS. She is
pictured here with the familiar face of Prince Whatley from Birmingham
who often comes and runs with us here in Auburn. The girl has got
credentials, she has competed 90 marathons and has a PR of 2:48.
And don't forget that the Summer Swing 5K Series
is already up and running. Doug Underwood directs these every
Tuesday evening in Opelika. Click on the icon above to download
the information you will need.
Bob Lawson
sent me a link to
a race report on last weekends 50K trail run. I want to direct
your attention to Mr. Jim Doyle's comments on that page if you want a
good chuckle.
I will be out of town from the 18th until the end of the month.
Mercifully, there will be no website updates during that time. However,
all of the Saturday runs have been posted for the month of May and Molly
Johnson will be your hostess and boss. Note that on May 15th there
won't be a run from Kaz, we'll be at Grand National for the Ty Garner
Run. Then on May 22nd we'll start from Ogletree Village and not from
Kaz.
I've been talking about an AORTA Cookout
for a month now and none of the dates I've tried have worked! What I
mean by that is too many of the "worker bees" who I can count on to
bring food and help set-up and clean-up will be gone. So the cookout is
going to be pushed into June...
Press Conference:
At the
regular Wednesday press conference AORTA spokeschick, Beverly Long,
stated that we will not have a run from Kaz on the 15th of May.
That is the day of the
Ty
Garner run and instead we can all go out to Grand National and run
extra mileage there before the race. I'll make that change on our
Saturday Plans.
Jubilee CityFest 8K and 2 Mile:
This
is a great race held in Montgomery each year and this will be held this
year on May 22nd.
Online registration will close May 18th for this event so move fast
and register today.
Run for Ross:
Most of you have probably heard by now about Ross Folmar and the freak
accident he had playing baseball. Both his parents have been AORTA
supporters for years and so we'll be having a race to raise funds to
help Ross who is still hospitalized. This 5K & 1 Mile event will
be on May 22nd and you can
download the application here.
Results from the Valley Haven Races
Download information on
Run for
Life and the
entry
form for the
Ty Garner 5K & 1 Mile.
Tuesday:
Add the
3rd Annual Peach Run to your calendar which will be held on Saturday,
July 10th. You can contact
Jennifer
Delmore or
download the application here.
On May 15th will be the Half Moore Leadership Academy 5K & 2 mile walk.
Download the app here or contact Ross Reed at
887-4973.
The XTERRA Trail Run Series is returning to Pelham, Alabama for the
Saturday, June 12th XTERRA Oak Mountain Mud Runs. These fun, dirty,
off-road races offer three distances - the main half-marathon trail run
along with shorter 5km and 10km mud runs. This is the final race in the
2010 XTERRA Alabama Trail Run Series, but runners of all levels are
welcome. You can
visit
their website here.
Also, all North American AORTA offices will be closed on Wednesday in
observance of Dave Hennesey's birthday.
Saturday routes
have been posted for the 8th and the 15th. We might cancel the run
for the 15th since that will be the day of Ty Garner's run. If so
we'll just take the plan for the 15th and make it the 22nd.
Overhaul:
Doug
Underwood told me that Alvin had revealed my salary within AORTA to be
$70,000. Actually it's much higher than that. After all, I pump out 1-2
premium paragraphs every week which is hard work and stressful. But I am
going to be moving the website to another server soon and changing the
software I use. I guess Frontpage 2003 is a little out of date. None of
that should matter to you other than things might be a bit screwy with
all the changes and unintended consequences when you do something like
this. The site will be up and then down and it may look weird on certain
browsers until we can get it all fixed. That won't mean I'll be updating
it any more often or that it will be any better, only that it will be
different.
Notice that the birthday list has been updated for May.
Download information on
Run for
Life and the
entry
form for the
Ty Garner 5K & 1 Mile.
The Big Plan for
Saturday is set but we need ONE MORE VOLUNTEER for water. Please
contact
Molly and help out... The route for the 8th has also been
posted.
Ex-CIA & AORTA Member Does Back to Back
Marathons:
Alvin and I are convinced that Jim Doyle is ex-CIA even though he won't
admit it. Alvin thinks he was a hit-man, I think he just tried to topple
3rd governments here and there. Here is a race report from Jim this past
weekend where he ran a marathon on Saturday and another on Sunday: I
was in Lawrence, KS, for the Free State Trail Marathon on Saturday,
finishing the challenging course, made even more challenging by the
recent rains resulting in 8 to 10 miles of ankle deep, slippery,
shoe-sucking mud, within my target range, which is the same day I start
the race. After this thrilling and very friendly race (the staff was
beyond nice to being one of the most personable and helpful groups I
have encountered anywhere!) I quickly showered and drove down to
Oklahoma City for the Memorial Marathon on Sunday. I finished that race
as well and was surprised at how good I felt during and after the run in
Oklahoma. Good enough to drive back to Auburn that afternoon/evening. I
stayed long enough in Oklahoma City to visit Memorial Park and was moved
by the number of race bibbs and finisher medals that were placed on the
individual memorial chairs. Capital punishment was too good for T.
McVeigh. Glad I made that trip. Both good races and I recommend them to
anyone interested in something a little different. After taking Monday
and Tuesday off, I ran 9 miles this morning and feel good. I feel so
good I am going to join Bob Lawson for the Fat Ass run Saturday, so
don't look for me on your way to Chewacla.
Don't forget that the Fat Ass 50K
will take place this Saturday, May 1st at the Tuskegee National Forest.
Bob Lawson is heading that up and you can
go here hto get
all the information you need.
Or, you can do one of the "Run For Valley Haven"
races this Saturday. They have a 10.5K, 5K or 1 mile for you to choose
from. You can click on the icon above to get more information.
There will be a race for Ty Garner
who was seriously injured in a bicycle accident back in the fall. The
run will take place on Saturday, May 15th at the Grand National Golf
Course in Opelika. Now, if you register before May 1st you will get a
very nice running vest. This will be a non-competitive run with no
awards.
Here are the
race results from the Daylight Donut Challenge!
BTW:
I forgot to mention I'd be out of town for a week so there wouldn't be
any updates!
Summer Swing Series:
Doug Underwood has been directing this 5K series for several years now.
He has developed a blog that you can visit to stay up to date on that
series and not have to wait for a week for me to get something posted.
I'm going to put an icon for this link at the top or you can visit
http://lastlap-dougu.blogspot.com.
This Friday afternoon will be the inaugural running of the
Richland Road Rumble. Deb MacDonald will be directing this and
always does a great job so go out and support their race.
Boston Marathon Results:
As
expected our happy little group did very well at Boston on Monday.
Scott Walker finished in an excellent 3:33, Robin Kelley in 4:03,
Beverly Smith in 4:14 and Laura Walker in 4:18. I mentioned
earlier that Bob Lawson was going but he has deferred his trip until
next year. Congratulations to our group, they did very well.
Help!
AORTA is helping with the Mutt Strutt which takes place this Saturday at
Kiesel Park and we need 4 volunteers to help Heather Taylor. The
race starts at 7:00 and volunteers would need to arrive by 6:00.
Contact Heather via
email
or Alvin at 334-524-2244.
The SGA Fall 5K has been added to our calendar.
For you overachievers don't forget that we have the
Fat Ass 50K coming
up on May 1st at the Tuskegee National Forest. This Saturday the
plan is to do the horse trail section of the course (about 12.5 miles)
and on Sunday they plan to do the Pleasant Hill/Bartram parts (about
8.5). Meet at the Ranger Station at 8:00 off Rte. 186. If anyone is
interested in helping, please let
Bob
Lawson know.
Summer 5K Series:
You can
download the application here. The race will be held each
Wednesday from June 2nd until July 28th at 6:15PM at Auburn High School.
Correction:
Things
are set for the run this Saturday. However, for the 24th we will
NOT have a run from Kaz because many will be out of town and many others
will be at other local races since there are 3 that day. So, I
will just change the date on that run to May 1st and we'll do the
Chewacla Run then. I'll remind you again next week because I know
how you are...
Also the River Road 5K in and the Blake Reynolds Memorial Race both in
Columbus have been added to our race calendar.
The May 1st AORTA cookout? It's been rescheduled now for May the
8th.
Boston Betty's: Yes,
I'd be referring to Beverly Smith and Laura Walker who have both
qualified for the Boston Marathon along with the much less interesting
Scott Walker and Bob Lawson. The
Boston Marathon will be
this coming Monday (19th) and will start in waves beginning around 8:30
CST for elite women and half an hour later for the elite men. I'm
sure they're all a bit nervous but we wish them the best of luck!
Next weekend we'll have several of our women at
Big Sur for various races.
Karen Khodadadi is running the marathon.
Tracey Buckingham, Penny Merritt Price and Carol Keever are running a 21
mile race and then Elyse Corbitt is signed up for a 10K. Since I
read that you need to add an hour to your regular marathon time I'm not
expecting any of them to come back with a P.R.
And we have Molly Johnson recovering from a fall after the run last
Saturday. She tripped and fell head first into the brick wall in
front of Mellow Mushroom Pizza and ended up with a stitch or two
adjacent to her eye. The brick wall was severely damaged.
Two weeks ago Karen Khodadadi fell in an early morning run and besides
the usual scrapes and bruises broke a finger. And Lucy Lamar has
been hobbling around for weeks with bursitis in her hip which has been
slow to improve.
Oh, and some of you still haven't renewed your membership for 2010.
Many would be familiar names to all of us which is so disappointing that
they'd be mooching off the rest of us. Before I start calling out
names we'll give them one final chance to get in their check and
membership application before we drop the hammer on them.
Results from the Jr League 5K
March 1200 Mile Club Results
Plans for the next 2 Saturdays have been
posted,
contact Molly to help with the water stops!
Mud Run: If
you missed the Mud Run just over a week ago you can take a look at these
pictures to see just what you missed!
The Queen is dead, long live the King:
Word has come to me that Karen Khodadadi's long streak of having the
most mileage each month in the 1200 Mile Club has been broken.
John Nevels stepped up in the month of March to shatter her
stranglehold. When Karen was asked for a comment she was heard to
say "next month I'll own him"!
The AU Track Team is looking for some volunteers for a meet on April
16th & 17th. The volunteers will be provided with 2 meals as well as
Auburn Track shirts. According to Jeremy Stallbaumer you'd be
"setting up & moving hurdles & starting blocks, retrieving implements
(shots & discs), pulling tape measures, operation wind gauges (pushing a
button & recording measurements)....all are relatively simple jobs...we
just need the help."
Contact Jeremy if you can help.
Doug Underwood told me that the Summer Swing 5K will crank up again this
year on May 4th!
The Politburo has been at work behind the scenes and will likely force a
new rule upon all of you: Effective June 1st, every
individual who is a member of the 1200 mile club must volunteer for a
water stop 4 times a year, once per quarter. Those 1200 milers who have
not yet volunteered will be expected to volunteer at least twice between
June 1st and December 31st. We expect a few to be displeased with this
but any dissent will be crushed, just like always.
Rumors:
The
latest rumor is that AORTA will be having a cookout/monthly meeting
probably on the afternoon of Saturday, May 1st. Mark your calendar
now!
Last Saturday was the Unity Race in Opelika where Doug Underwood was the
master of ceremonies and things went well but they always do with Doug
in charge. I have the
results here. Also need to remind you that the Summer Swing 5K
will be ramping up again in Opelika. In the past that has been
held each Tuesday throughout the summer and there is usually a band
playing after the race and food!
From water czar Molly Johnson: Thank you to the following for
volunteering for Saturday morning water stops throughout the month of
March: Jim Doyle, Leslie Agerton, Beth Ladisla, Bev Smith, Karen
Khodadadi, Tracey Buckingham, Elyse Corbit, Jim Killian, Blake Henry,
and Becky Freeman. We appreciate your act of volunteering. Those who
are runners and partake in the water stops should be volunteers! Jobs
well done, thank you!
1200 Mile Club Results
Sorry Bub:
I forgot
to mention that I was going to be out of town all last week so there'd
be no updates. I know that all of you (2 total) who read the
website missed it. We are in the super-heavy-duty part of the
racing season where there are multiple races each Saturday. This
Saturday we have the
Junior League Art Run featuring Elyse Corbitt. Or, if you
really want to have fun you can do the
Amphibious Warrior Mud Run on campus.
I'm over a week late on posting this but
here is the up to date 1200 Mile Club results.
And you can find the
race application for the Trinity 10K, 5K & 1 mile here which is
planned for April 24th. On April 10th I think a few are going to
the
Nick Costes race in Troy, AL.
Even though Shari Glover is on probation with AORTA due to the fact she
has not been showing up on Saturdays she was able to post a 4:18
finishing time at the ING Marathon this past weekend.
Congratulations to Shari!
Rumors are swirling that some German runner may be leaving us soon...
And John Nevels sent me an update from the dark side of running...On
March 13, several AORTA runners ran in the Delano Park 12 Hour Run.
Eric Gilbertson had a stellar day, placing 2nd by completing 74 miles
within the time frame. Allen Smith won the 50-mile race in 7:09:38,
breaking the Alabama age 42 state record for 50 miles, and Marcus Farris
placed 3rd in the 50-miler in 7:22:52, also breaking the Alabama age 19
state 50-mile record. I was dumb enough to voluntarily start 12 hours
early, run all night, and then compete in the race having already run 62
miles. In any case, I ended up with 100 miles in 19:42:53 (nearly an
8-hour PR), and I think I raised nearly $1000 for NTSAD. If anyone
needs help falling asleep, a full report can be found at
http://letsgoforarun.blogspot.com/2010/03/delano-day-100.html
I know we are out of "Saturday Routes" so I'll get one posted before
Molly sends me another nasty-gram!
Results for the
KD Shamrock 5K
More and more...I've
added several more races to the calendar this evening. April 10th
is popular with 6 races on that day!
Mud Run:
Also on
April 3rd will be the Mud Run sponsored by the Auburn Marines.
You'll get to run 3 miles of off road trails, creeks, hills, obstacles
and of course...mud pits! You can
go here to download an application.
The Junior League Art Run is also looking for volunteers to help with
their race. If you can help as a volunteer contact
Elyse
Corbitt.
Bajillion:
That's
about how many races have been added to our calendar recently.
Everything should be up to date will all the information I have so
check that out.
Ex-AORTA superstar Kim Dorman finally (the most graceful runner I've
ever seen) ran her first marathon this past weekend. After all
those 20 mile runs she used to do on Saturday mornings but refusing to
attempt a marathon she finally cracked. She turned in a blistering
3:21:17. Oddly enough her arch nemesis, Kermit Davis, was running
a marathon at the same time at a different place and finished in 3:25.
I'm sure an email passed from Kim saying "who's your daddy"!
Thanks to Steve Speakman for that information.
Catching up:
Molly wanted to thank all the water volunteers and sent me this...A big
thank you to the February water volunteers: Penny Merrit-Price, Carol
Dorn, Allen Smith, Bob Kennis, Bev Long, Beth Kisor, Tom Lawry, Carol
Keever, and Mike and Gloria Walsh. Several mornings were a might chilly
and several mornings, races were in progress - but you all volunteered
for AORTA runners and friends, and we thank you!
Also forgot to include John Nevels brother in the Cheaha 50K results.
Include Peter Nevels at 8:12. I've also got a number of races that
need to be added to calendar so I'll get that posted on Thursday.
The routes for the next
two weeks have been posted so please
contact
Molly to help with a waterstop.
Beverly Long:
Last
weekend Beverly Long cruised to her first marathon finish in a mere 4:19
at the Albany Marathon. In the past we've always had to shun her
because, well, without a marathon under her belt she wasn't a real
runner. But now at a towering 5' 1/128" she will be a force to be
reckoned with. She said this would be her one and only marathon
but bets are already being placed on which marathon this spring will be
her second. Congrats to Beverly.
AORTA was there to help with the KD Shamrock 5K on Saturday. We
had approximately 3 volunteers for each position so things went
extremely well. I don't have results of the race yet but I'll get
them posted when I get them. We had a budding young guest
photographer there, Scott Walker. I took a few photos, Scott took
a lot and I've posted almost half of them which you can see at
Smugmug.
I have several more new races to get posted for you this week. I
know Tracey Buckingham snuck away to Seaside to run the half marathon
and I'll get the story on that. And I heard some very sad news,
John Schelhaus has taken a job in Athens, GA and will be moving this
summer. I don't know all the details yet John's been a big
supporter and we are going to miss him...
Birthdays for March are to your right! If we skipped past your
birthday it's probably your own fault. You didn't put your
birthday on your AORTA registration so we don't have anyway to get it.
You can email
Karen though and she'll add you to the list.
Tuesday News:
Nick
Holler and Molly Johnson were in Tampa last weekend to run in the half.
Molly finished with a 2:05 and Nick had a 2:14, both are very good times
and congratulations to them.
We'll be sending Beverly Long along with Randy Long as her "support
team" to Albany for her first marathon! Beverly has trained for a
marathon at least a couple of times in the past but always ended up with
an injury. This time she has quietly trained in order not to jinx
herself which is very different from her usual trash-talking ways.
I think she's in her best condition ever and will do us proud on
Saturday. I tried to get her to predict a finishing time for
herself but she didn't fall for that old trick.
Race Wrap-up:
First,
I know the website has been up and down over the weekend and today.
We've installed some updates and rebooted everything so whatever was
causing us problems should be fixed.
We had runners spread out this past weekend from Mt. Cheaha to New
Orleans. Many thanks to Bob Lawson for providing me these results:
Mount Cheaha 50k (2/27)
Eric Gilbertson 4:44 (5th out of 160)
Marcus Farris 5:17 (11th)
Allen Smith 5:35 (19th)
John Nevels 5:38 (21st)
Bob Lawson 6:18 (43rd)
If you'd like to see just how bad the elevation was take a
look at this!
Rock 'n' Roll Mardi Gras Marathon and Half
Marathon in New Orleans (2/28)
Marathon:
Blake Henry 3:13 (Congrats!! First-time Boston Qualifying time!)
Kermit Davis 3:25
Tim Adams 3:39
Half:
John Horton 1:33
Not one slacker in the group...
Tomorrow I'll bring you up to date on a) Beverly Long's Albany, GA quest
for marathon glory and b) the KD Shamrock run this Saturday.
Mardi Gras: The
word on the street is that we have several local runners headed to the
Mardi Gras Marathon and Half Marathon this weekend in New Orleans.
Marathoners are Blake Henry and Kermit Davis while running the half will
be John Horton and Tim Adams. I know it was supposed to be secret
and all that but good luck to the boys. I also heard that Scott
and Laura Walker and prepping for Boston in April. Scott is still
fighting injuries but my money is betting on the fact he makes it.
Daylight Donut Challenge:
This
race will be held on April 24th at 8:00am at the AU Intramural Field.
You can download the application here, you can
view the map here or you can go to
Active.com and register.
Plans for the
next 2 weeks have been set and
Molly
is going to be out of town
so we need a few water stops covered...now! The stop at Annalue &
the Accountant's this Saturday is not covered and Auburn Early Ed for
March 6th is not covered.
How to be cool:
For
those of you who are nerdy and geeks which covers 80% of AORTA you need
to know the new and cool sport is "curling". I told Jocelin Gibson
I love a sport that requires no athletic ability, no sweating or heavy
breathing and a lot of yelling at stones. But I've been watching
way too many hours of it on TV.
Don't forget that this weekend is the Russell
Forest 10K. Several from Auburn are headed there and you
can go here to get more
information. The people from Alexander City are always supportive
of our races.
Results for "Racing to Help Haiti" can be
downloaded here.
Also, I know that several are planning marathons in the next couple of
months. If you have insider information on that please let me
know.
Saturday Runs for Feb 20, 27 & Mar 6 have
been posted. Please
contact
Molly to volunteer for a water stop!
Catching up:
Despite
the snow and very cold temperatures both of our races went off without a
hitch last Saturday. The number of races ended up being a little
lower than expected but that was no doubt due to the weather.
Racing for Haiti collected around $2,800 not to mention shoes and
clothing. Here are a couple of races coming up in our area:
February 27 Montgomery, AL Footprints to the Finish Line 5K/10K.
8:30AM. Starts at GracePointe Chruch on Ray Thornington Road. $20 for
5K; $25 for 10K by 2/12. Info: 334-532-6152 or 334-315-3241 or
www.nicufootprints.org to register
John Nevels will be participating in the Delano 12 race,
which is a 12-hour event, the idea being to go as far as possible. The
catch is that he's doubling it, making it a 24-hour event, hoping to get
between 100 and 110 miles. In order to make it worth while, John's
trying to use the event as a fundraiser for NTSAD (the same organization
that he raised money for over the summer by running across the state.
He'll be doing this by asking for donations on a per-mile basis (perhaps
$0.25 per mile donation for a family). In any case, the Delano Day will
take place from 6pm to 6pm on March 12-13, and I was wondering if you
could mention it on the website. I'll try to have flyers ready at the
next Saturday morning run or AORTA race for anyone interested.
Quick note to remind you about the
XTERRA
Alabama Oak Mountain 10K Trail Running Race - March 14th, 2010! Late registration kicks in on February 25th,
2010. Whether you are racing the 3 race series or just looking for a
trail race, come on out! We are heading over there in the next weekend
or so to get a GPS of the course and will post as soon as we get it
finalized.
For complete details please go to:
www.dirtyspokes.com
The "Big One":
Of course
I'm referring to the Blizzard of 2010 that will bury us in, well, 2-4"
of snow. I know that's not much but it will bring most of Auburn to a
standstill. However, not AORTA! We have 2 races scheduled on
Saturday morning that will go as planned.
Racing to Help Haiti at 8:00
and then you can walk down the street to the
Diamond Dolls 5K at 10:45.
You can still register for both races and you might even get to run in a
bit of snow....
The most immediate problem is we need to change the rules for the 1200
Club because it has grown so much, it costs the club at least $1,000 per
year and I get 40-50 emails at the beginning of each month with your
mileage and then proceed to lose several of those. So the AORTA
Politburo has met and here are the new rules for the 2008 1200 Mile
Club:
1) Must be a member by Feb 28th. No
exceptions! Membership forms must be completely filled out including
email address.
2) Must turn in mileage no later than the 15th of the following month.
No exceptions. Let's face it, if you are tracking your mileage there is
no reason why you can't turn it in on time.
3) -- on the third day of the following month you will receive an email
with a link. Click on the link and you simply enter in your mileage
when prompted. Do not send your mileage to the website any longer.
4) -- Around the 13th of the month, people who have not responded will
receive a reminder email. Once again, you can click on the link and
enter your mileage for the month then hit submit.
5) To qualify for the 1200 Mile Club you MUST volunteer for a local
race. That doesn't mean help with registration and go run the
race. It means helping from start to finish, you can't race that
day at all. It's hard to get experienced people to volunteer and
this is going to help us out a lot.
Now, if you want to be in the 1200 Mile Club for this year you just need
to
send Karen an email
saying you want to join and you'll
be added to an automated database that she has set up. Then you will be
in the automated system. Later, a new spreadsheet will be sent to
me monthly that I'll post with everyone's mileage. Yes, it's
magical...
If you've been a regular member for a while then don't bother reading
this because you know this already. But, if you are new and have
been pondering maybe possibly to try running with AORTA this is for you.
Lately, I've had several inquiries (at least 5) about wanting to run
with us on Saturdays and they have a lot of questions about what we do
so here goes my explanation.
A) Yes, it may say the Saturday run is some impossible distance
for you but ignore that. About 25% of the people will run that
far, most will run an hour or maybe a bit more or less so don't be
intimidated by the mileage that gets posted. It's bogus man!
B) No, you don't have to be a member of AORTA to run with us.
But, at some point we would certainly hope that you would want to
support the group by becoming a member and forking over your $20.
Now, if you go a really long time we send one of our aggressive females
after you to collect. I have some names in mind but I won't
mention them right now.
C) What do we have to offer on Saturday? Click on the link
to the right that says "Saturday Plan" and it explains in a haphazard
way what we are doing. We have a planned route, a planned
distance, you can print out the map if you aren't familiar with Auburn
and most importantly we have water stops about every 3 miles!
4) "I'm too slow, I'll fall off the back". You might, but
you probably won't, we have runners of all abilities. We have a
lot of fast people and a lot of slow people and I can almost guarantee
you will find at least one person who is your speed.
E) "But I'm new to this and those guys have been doing marathons and
running for years". I can say with all confidence that everyone
understands how it is to be new and how hard it can be to get started
running or to try and move up to the next level. We've all been
there! I've seen so many runners who started running with us and
their max distance had been 3 miles over 45 minutes. A year later
they are much faster and have done a 10K or half marathon and pondering
a full marathon. Running with a group makes running much easier
and you'll find yourself being pulled along.
F) "You mean you run at 6:00 am on a Saturday?" I've heard
that a thousand times but once a person shows up they realize it's not
that hard to get out early. We meet that early for 2 reasons.
1) Do you know how hot it is, this helps to beat the heat a little. 2)
Many of the members have kids and activities so they get their long run
done early and can still get home before soccer, baseball, etc.
The hardest day will be that first Saturday! After that you'll
fall in, enjoy the people and the run and never look back... This
Saturday would be the perfect day to start!
