Come on Down

This coming Sat. we start it all over again....the rigorous training for the next LA Marathon.  It's on March 18th, this year, but we don't have to worry about that right now, we just want to get ourselves back in the saddle again.

As some of you know a few of us were warming up these past few weekends in Griffiths Park, and I got two morning runs in this week, just to get myself physically and mentally back into the routine.  I know quite a few of you kept up the running on your own, and there were others who have been training with the LA Running Club each week at the Totem Pole.

That's all great, but it's the rest of you folks who might not have done very much these past few weeks...months....but not to worry, come on down and join us again as we take it nice and easy down the Strand.  A simple mile and a half out, turn around and mosey on back.  I promise, we'll take it easy on everyone, and I'm sure it'll feel just like yesterday when we were in top shape. 


If you want to coerce some of your friends to check it out, this would be the weekend to do it.  Now, if some of you want to try another group, and go just a bit quicker, this is also the best time to try that out too, since it's only a short run.  I highly recommend those who felt pretty good about their last performance, should graduate up a group or two....since you've heard all my stories by now anyway.

Either way, get there early, the parking lot will be crowded, so I would suggest around 6:30am or so.  We're supposed to get gathered up by 7am, but I'm sure it'll be sometime a bit after that before we actually head out, but I'm pretty sure the lot will be full.

It'll be fun to see who shows, and we'll see what kind of new folks will be joining us.  All your fav PLs will be back....Peggy, Mary, and Nancy.


See you there,


Walt

But soft, what light through yonder window breaks...

Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon.....

Last night with prejudice, I laid out my running clothes and a pair of socks in the bathroom.  This morning I woke at 4:45...tried to sleep more...but it must of been that pull from the full moon, that gravitation surge that all oceans must heed, I was drawn out of bed.  I took my time and tried to put off the inevitable, but I was out the door and running in the dark of morn.

To the West....Envious Moon

It was cool, but there was the scent of humidity, as I stretched a bit, and got running down to the lake.  I didn't make any promises, I didn't make any vows of performance, as I just let the body take over...no false pretense here.  I was pleasantly surprised that I hit my first hill, and I was still breathing easy, so decided to push just a bit to get over the hump, promising to reward myself a walk interval if I did.
Lies...what a greater fool than one to believe such lies...I rewarded myself not with a breather, but continued on down, running with a bit more determination.  Finally did take that walk interval....checked my watch...it had only been 9 min....but still no promises.
Walked my walk, and then finished my run....20 min. 

To the west the moon glowed bright in the cold blue morning, to the east, the first promise of the new day sun cracked the horizon.  It was enough to make one want to quote Shakespeare.....

To the East....Fair Sun

Live to run, run to live,
 
Walt

Great Start

It was great to see all the folks that came out for the first day at the Roadrunners. Even though there wasn't any running, it was still an interesting and entertaining morning.  
The kickoff was basically an orientation for first timers, and there were numerous groups set up in an expo out in the side parking lot.  The morning started early with a meeting of all the pace leaders, and that was great to see all the familiar faces, and then the general presentations followed.

ARC Bell Choir

The first thing to happen was the ARC Bell Choir, which consisted of about 20 some people who played music with all these hand bells. It was pretty fascinating to watch and listen, and after a few numbers they asked for volunteers to join them and learn how to play the bells.  Of course, I couldn't resist, so I got up there and was able to play two bells, "G" was my note and as the conductor pointed to this fairly large music sheet I rang my bells when she pointed to the corresponding notes.  The members of the choir all had some form of disability, and it was fun to join them and be part of their group. 
Coach Rod gave a great introduction, and presented the basic theories of how the Roadrunners program works.  The main emphasis was to start slow, build up the aerobic foundation and to maintain the important weekly workouts.  We also heard from Charlie Hoover, the Shoe guy, Robert from Phase IV on injury prevention and proper nutrition, and finally Kimberly who explained how she developed Yoga for athletes at YAS, the Yoga and Spinning studio across the street from the school.

Kimberly Fowler - YAS

Different PLs were asked to help present each of the speakers, and I got to introduce Kimberly.
So prior to her segment, I got to meet her and get a few more personal notes from her.  What I found out was pretty amazing.  She had completed 13 marathons, a few triathlons, was a rock climber and developed her own method of yoga, specifically for athletes.  But the most astounding bit of info was that 8 years ago, she had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in her brain.  She was given about 4 months to live.  She fought that, without radiation or surgery, and basically by sheer will power, mind over matter, she has been able to keep that tumor under control.  The tumor is still there, but she has been determined not to let it take over her life.
Talk about motivation, this woman has what it takes.  It's almost too much to comprehend.
I lost my oldest sister when she was 48 to cancer, after she had fought it off for several years.  I am a survivor of prostate cancer, though I elected to have it surgically removed, so I have some understanding of what this all means.  Too many close friends have lost the battle with cancer and so this was very special for me to be able to present Kimberly to this crowd. 
I asked the crowd to see how many cancer survivors were there with us in the filled auditorium, and a few hands went up. It's something that is very prevalent in our culture today, along with the daily stress, and affected food, so whenever I have a chance to speak to the issue, I do.
It was an honor to meet Kimberly for that brief moment, and I will definitely check out her program.
All these folks will be speaking and consulting throughout the training season, and hopefully we all can take advantage of  their knowledge and expertise. 

Dean Nakanishi - AADAP

Among the numerous charitable organizations out in the expo, asking for runners to choose them as the recipients for sponsorship was AADAP, the Asian American Drug Abuse Program.  I've heard about them over the years, and was able to meet Dean, their director and found out we shared a common friend from way back. We were the "OGs" the old guard, talking about the way things were. In another blog, I'll go more into what has changed, but it was good to talkstory with Dean.


So ultimately, it was a very engaging morning, and we didn't even run, which means I'm that much more enthused about next week when we really hit the pavement and get this program back on the streets.


Have a great week, go out 2 or 3 times, and just do some simple warmups....walk/jog, whatever feels comfortable...maybe 20mins. or so...just to get those legs back, and we'll be hitting 3 easy miles next Sat.


Walt

Sat Roadrunners Kickoff

Westminister Elementary School - Main Street and Abbot Kinney, Venice, CA.

This Sat. the LA Roadrunners will have their welcome and kickoff gathering at the usual location in Venice.  It starts at 8am, as runners will be able to register outside the auditorium at the banana tables.

There will not be any running this weekend, that will officially start with a 3 mile run next week. What will happen this week will be several speakers inside the auditorium which is planned to start by 8:30am.

There will be a welcome by Ginger Williams, the new director of the Roadrunners, followed by a report about the Marathon by the Race director, and then there will be 5 - 15min. presentations by Rod, our coach, and other specialist who will address issues such as proper shoes and fit, injury prevention, proper breathing and yoga, and proper nutrition for runners.

I think this could all be very interesting, since we usually miss these speakers during the regular season, plus the fact that I've been asked to help introduce one of these special guests.

Plus outside there will be tables where groups will have different charities which runners can sign up for.  The idea is that you would have other folks sponsor your run and donate to the charity you select.


So come on out and check it all out.


Walt

Fun Runs

As we get set for another season of training with the Roadrunners, there may be some who might still be on the fence about joining up again, that's totally fine.  Ultimately you will find what works best for you, and running is one of those things that can't be forced.  I know that there are times when I just can't seem to get moving.  But then again, I know I should get out and do something, because the longer I don't do it, the harder it will be to ever get going again.

Obviously we all have had some experience with training, or you wouldn't be getting this message. So, however you do it, you know that at some point you have to do something for your body, your mind, and your soul.  It's never too late to make the effort.  I know I need the motivation of the group to keep me at it, because when I don't, the entire system starts to bog down, and that's not good.


Minerva, one of our runners passed on this article from a magazine called Competitor. 
http://www.zinio.com/reader.jsp?issn=8587-6864&o=ext
The article in question is on page 32, just enter that page in the search and it'll come up.  It's a funny exchange between a runner and a non-runner, trying to get the non to start running.

What this also points out to is the Tinkerbell Half marathon at Disneyland, which is sold out already.  It's on Jan. 2012, and it's for women. 


So here's the idea: there are numerous half marathons, 10Ks, and even 5K fun runs throughout the year, including Mud runs.  So if the idea of spending 5 months training for a full marathon is just too daunting or too difficult to schedule for, then find other shorter runs that get you back out on the streets again.  Find an event down the road, then call up some good friends and/or workmates, and encourage them to join you in this endeavor, and just sign up for it.  Hey, maybe even offer to pay for their fees, all they have to do is join you for a few weekends and you'll show them how to train, how to run/walk using intervals, how to hydrate properly.

My wife has signed the entire family to run the Universal 10k in Dec. The course runs through the backlot of Universal studios, which means it's hilly, but it could be fun.....

Anyway, think about it and then go sign up for something.  You know once you pay the money, you're committed. 


Walt

Great Run at the Zoo

 It turned out to be a great run on Sat. We had another well attended session as folks I haven't seen for awhile come out and join us.  That's what made these past few sessions so great was the mix of people coming out and just joining in on a fun run.
I love it when the Roadrunners get started and I know we'll have some pretty large groups, but these past few weeks with the smaller groups, which are quite a bit more intimate, really felt special. 
Starting a bit earlier was fine, and this made for a bit less crowds on the running paths. We did our usual 4 mile loop and finished in less than 57 min. for a pretty good pace.

Johanna,Patrick,Kathleen,Kelly, Michelle,Arlene, John,Joel, Minerva,Luc,

A few of the runners are training for the Nike Womens' Marathon which will be held in Oct. up in San Francisco, so after our short run, they went past Train town to work on the back hills. (let me know how that went.)

I decided to try my new phone out and took a couple of shots. (sorry Maggie, you left too quickly).  So I finally decided to join the "smart phone" crowd, got a Samsung Galaxie phone which has all that touch screen stuff.  I've been avoiding this for a while since I never wanted to have a phone smarter than me, but finally caved in.  I'm still having problems since my fingers are so fat, it's hard to type on that screen.
But it's good to try new things, just like this blog, or getting back into running.

Walt

Last Zoo Run

Greetings,
Just checking to see if any folks will be interested in one more Zoo run before the Roadrunners training season gets started.  I'll probably head out there anyway, but I'll wait for you if you plan to come on out.
Because some folks might have a busy weekend, we'll start just a bit earlier to beat the heat, meet at 6:45am, running by 7am....snooze you lose.


I'll probably do our usual course, start from the Camel in the parking lot, head South along the golf course, continue on the closed road, hit the fence and turn around.  Round trip of 4 miles...easy breezy.


Next week, will the be sign ups for the Roadrunners at the Venice school, but I don't think we'll actually be running, the running starts on the 17th with a 3miler.  But I'll be at the school, so this would be the last time to meet at the Zoo.


If you're not planning on joining the Roadrunners, that's fine, but if you still want to get some running in, and you're on the eastside, Griffiths Park is a great place to just get out and do a workout.  There's always plenty of people out there, and the parking is always free.


So have a great weekend, best of luck to those running the Disney Half, and hope it doesn't get too warm.


Walt