http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=2010834

As a race director, usually in January I have the “Race Director Blues.”  That’s because summer seems so far away.  But this year some really good things have already happened regarding our race, and I will be writing about them in future posts.

So, if you are tired of winter like I am, and if you like to register early for your races, don’t hesitate to sign up for our Labor Day race!

Here is the link to the results:

2011 RESULTS

See you next year!!

Adversity isn’t all that bad though….and no, this isn’t one of those “adversity will make you stronger, so enjoy it” pitches.

Don’t get me wrong, I currently have my fair share of adversity in my life & honestly, I am not enjoying it one bit.  HOWEVER, something positive I have noticed about adversity is that it brings people together.  When you’ve “been there” or are currently “there”, you can relate to others and you form an automatic bond.

For example, we faired pretty well during this hurricane out where I live (the monadnock region), however, during the ice storm of 2008, we were out of power for 16 days.  So when my relatives on the seacoast called to let me know they still didn’t have power yesterday, I could truly sympathize with them.

So what does this have to do with a 5K race?

Shared adversity.  A 5K race can be hard!   I go through a series of mental stages when running a race…and all of them go through the “I want to quit” phase.  I thought I was the only one who thinks this. However, after running 100′s of races and chatting with the fellows that are my friendly competitors at the end, I learned that they all do the same thing too!  We talk about what they thought of me when running and how strong I looked….when in reality I was within moments of quitting.  Meanwhile, I was thinking the same thing about them…just as they were seriously considering quitting too.

Whoa.

In others words, we can relate with each other and actually help each other during the race!

Whether you are at the front, middle or back of the pack, you are running with people who are going through what you are going through.  What a great time to encourage each other through the tough mental moments of the race!

So with that, I hope that when you are out there, you turn to the person next to you and give them the “I get what you’re going through” look and help each other out.

You’ll be surprised how encouraging this is to both them and you.

This is even more true BEFORE you even sign up for the race!  There are 100′s of people who came to the site, went to the registration page (I know this because I can track the activity ), but never registered.

They bailed.

I’ve been there too.

Here is what we do.

Call up someone you know who is considering running the 5K and encourage them to register….you’ll find it will make you more excited to run and you  may even PR!  You likely have had it a bit rough in the last week with the hurricane, but so has everyone else.  Let’s run together, laugh about it & share this experience of being overcomers!   Test this idea and let me know how it goes!

Lets Race!

cb

Well, we are less than a week away & I am going to make a weather prediction.  This isn’t based on wishful thinking or by simply checking weather.com.  No, something most of you do not know about me is that I am a closet weather nerd.   I have a set of websites I check and come up with what the real weather will be based on patterns of their previous predictions…..told you it was nerdy.

Using this method, I can usually predict the weather at my house and beyond more accurately than most weather sources.   For instance, my prediction for Irene…..heavy rain and wind…..nothing more.  Inland was going to see more flooding and the coast, more wind.   How did I do?

So here goes…..for race morning, we will see humid, cloudy, but somewhat cool weather with a possible thundershower in the afternoon (well after the 5K).   The temp at race start will be mid 60′s to low 70′s. (give me a break it is still a week away).

What does that translate to?

GREAT RACING WEATHER FOR A 5k.  Make sure you drink a bit more than usually (humidity) and hit the water stop.  I would bring an extra t-shirt and towel for the post race party, since you will be REAL sweaty.

So, what are you waiting for?

Let’s Race!
cb

Some of you are in that “should I enter this race” decision phase.

For some, your reasoning is conflict with your personal schedule, for others, it’s the possible weather & for others, it is something about your cat will go through withdrawals if you leave it alone too long…& so on & so on.  These are all good reasons and I believe I have addressed the overall pre registration issue in previous posts.  (thesis of them is, you should pre register anyway because the worst that happens is that you can’t or decide not to run that day and your registration fee is a simple $20 donation to the children of the St. Charles Home, which is a pretty cool thing to do.) but anyway….

I am going to deal with an excuse that I even use with confidence that it is a legit reason….but in the case of this 5K, it is not.

“I’m not properly trained”.

Hogwash!   If you can walk to the grocery store from the parking lot, then you can enter & finish this race.   Will you finish in the top 10, probably not.  But really, lets keep the focus of this 5K race on the forefront….the St Charles Home.

If you are normally a 17 minute 5K’er, then likely, without training, you can still hit in the 18′s, and if you are a 25 minute 5K’er; without any training, you can likely still hit @ 30 minutes is my guess.

Really, that isnt so bad, is it?

If you want to hit 15:58 and haven’t been training, my advice is to start out strong (@4:37 pace), pick it up in the middle & sprint it in. Drink water after the race….and hire a good massage therapist.

…..if you just want to finish and support a great cause, my advice is to run 3-4 miles every day from now until the Friday before….even if it takes you an hour for each run, then relax on Sat & Sunday, come and register on  race day and have a great race on Monday.  The above strategy will work up until @ 4days before…again, do not expect to set any speed records, but just focus on finishing and you’ll do better than you think.

Eating a mostly veggie diet will help too…..but that is a topic for another post on another day.  ;-)

Let’s Race!
cb

Before I spoke to her, I was aware of the importance of the home and its impact it has had on many lives, but after the conversation, I gained a whole new perspective.

When I spoke to this young lady, I asked her what St. Charles meant to her….& she revealed some of her story…as “one of the worst child abuse cases the state has ever seen” and that is in her own words, “If it weren’t the love of the nuns at the St. Charles Home, I  truly do not know where me & my brother would be.” – former resident.

I don’t why her comment riveted me so much, but it did.  And for those of you who know me, I am not one of those that shows a lot of emotion, but this one really got to me.  This Home & 5K is making a difference that will affect whole generations.

Runners, races, walkers, your $20, can really make an impact. I know this is a shameless pitch, but come on; to give $20 & leave with a race t-shirt, a fully belly and to know you gave another kid an opportunity to hopefully say “I don’t know where I would be…..”, seems like a pretty easy decision.

Let’s Race!

It was so exciting to me when David Hampson, the CEO of Willis, approached us with a proposal to create our very own road race for St. Charles.  Our race would benefit the Home, but it would also celebrate our kids in a special way.

In 2003, I became the coordinator of the St. Charles Children’s Home 5k, and Willis took on more of a fundraising and supportive role in the event.  It was exciting becoming the coordinator:  it gave me an opportunity to continue to build upon and to grow a race that I knew people really liked.  I have been blessed with incredible volunteers whose dedication over the years truly humbles me.

But the race took on a whole new meaning for me when I had to stop running.  Most runners find it really difficult when illness or injury forces them to stop their daily runs.  I was no exception.  I was frustrated because I could not run.  But the race kept me going.  I could still participate in the running world by providing an event for runners that they could truly enjoy.  Every year we get a lot of feedback from people who truly enjoy our race.  That feedback inspires me.  Each year I am in awe as I watch close to 1000 people line up at the start line to support our Children’s Home and our kids.

I believe our race is something special.  Readers, would you like to share your thoughts about the race?

I am about to give you several reasons as to why you should not wait until race day to sign up.

HOWEVER….

I am probably the worst offender here.

I know all the reasons.  ”I want to check the weather, I am not sure if I will be in shape, I have to see how my injury is healing up, I have to do my my hair, I am nervous, what if the rapture comes, I’ll be in Antarctica, I don’t have a babysitter” & on  & on they go.  Trust me, I have used most of these more than once (not telling you which ones though…but I will tell you, I have good hair).

So you figure, well, this way, I don’t waste the $20 if I can’t or do not want to show up.

Here are several reasons why these excuses wont work:

1)  What is the worse the weather will likely be?  Cold & rainy, right?  We are fairly confident there wont be a snow storm (although that would be cool) or it might be very hot.   There will be no shortage of water if it is too hot, if it snows, bring gloves and a hat & if it is cold and rainy, you might not hit your best time, but I can tell you from experience, that as soon as the gun goes off, you wont notice at all.

So, IF, you sign up ahead of time & you decide you don’t like the weather, guess what, all you did was donate $20 to the children of the St. Charles Home.

Is that such a bad thing?

2) Same goes for an injury.  If you get to race day and decide it would be more harmful to run because of your injury, I validate that (just recovered from a 10 miler on Mt Okemo), but again, what you did is donate $20. to the St. Charles Home if you can’t run….not a bad thing.

3) Picture being in a  line 40 runners deep for the “comfort stations”, 3 minutes to start.   Ya, some of you have been there before huh?

If we know we already have 1100 people registered, we can plan for these things accordingly (read: get enough porto potties).  However, if we have 600 pre registered and another 600  show up race day….well, it could get messy….no pun intended.

4) I have 3 kids under the age of 10….one of them with special needs, so believe, I know the whole, “I don’t have anyone to watch the kids” excuse.  Any little kid fits nicely into a runner stroller and any child over 5 is welcome to run.  THIS IS A KID FRIENDLY RACE.    You may not break a record pushing a stroller, but who cares?  Save your record for later.  This one is about the kids.

5) If you’ll be in Antarctica, well that’s pretty cool, so sign up and send us a picture of you running the “5K” with us!

So, again, what are you waiting for?  Let’s race!

2) Running with 1000 other people is like a party with your running shoes.  Don’t believe me?  try it.

3) Running 3.1 miles is an easy way to burn off the Labor  Day Weekend BBQ’s.  (of course with Applebee’s providing an after race BBQ, well, you’ll break even)

.1)  T-shirt, race entry and access to the BBQ = $20 donation.  Seeing one of the kids who live in the home pass you with a smile of satisfaction because they worked hard all year for this…..priceless.