Sunday, February 22, 2015

Itching to get racing, go to New Brunswick next week



Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, February 22, 2015



ITCHING TO GET RACING, GO TO NEW BRUNSWICK NEXT WEEK

Yes, you are getting itchy feet and nowhere to race.  Take a trip down to New Brunswick next Sunday, March 1st and run in the Buccleuch Park Road Relays.  The distance is 10K but each partner in the relay run only 5K.  To make it fun, each partner runs half their distance or 2.5 kilometer and then hands off to the other runner.  Each runner does two legs but they are split into four separate legs.  Oh, and each leg is actually two loops in the park. 

That has to be fun to watch all that activity.  For runners who may not be in 5K shape this time of year a rest in between 2.5 kilometers will be welcome.

The men’s race is at 11:00 a.m., the women start at noon and the co-ed teams go off at 1:00 p.m.
There are several subcategories and even a costume category.  Obviously the event is designed to be a fun event before the more serious racing gets underway later in the month.

A nice touch is a $2.00 discount on the entry fee if you bring a gently used piece of running equipment that can include a technical race t-shirt.  They will be donated to low-income high school track and cross country teams in New Jersey.

For all the information check it out at www.roadrelays.com 

Shore AC sends team to California


The Shore Athletic Club will have a team at the national 8 kilometer masters championship this weekend.  Getting a jump on the national grand prix series is not a bad idea given that the race is in Brea, California, a suburb of Los Angeles.

Let’s see, it might get to the low 40’s here in New Jersey on Sunday, while in Brea it will be 20 degrees warmer.  Although only the Shore club’s M70 has a full team competing, Shore club member Reno Stirrat of Rockaway will be competing individually in the M60 division.

Long Distance Running Committee meeting is tomorrow night.


The Long Distance Running Committee is meeting at a new venue tomorrow night, February 23rd, in Rockaway.  Some members travel a distance to get to the meetings and do not have time to catch a bite to eat.  A request was made to make it a dinner meeting.  It will be at Potbelly’s Riverside CafĂ© in their back dining area.  The address is 26 East Main Street in Rockaway.  The meeting will start at 7:00 p.m. with the room reserved for 6:30 p.m. for those who want to order food.

The focus of the meeting will be solutions for team member verifications and eligibility verifications.  Slow posting of team results in the team grand prix has been a vexing issue for several years and the verifications have been the hold-up.  LDR division chair, Ed Neighbour of Sparta is hoping the participants can improve the system. 

Also to be discussed is the use of social media to publicize USATF events and activities. 

The Miles for Music 20K will be the first USATF New Jersey championship race and thus a team competition for all divisions.  It takes place on Sunday March 21st in Johnson Park in Piscataway.

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Race Results can often be found at www.compuscore.com or at  www.bestrace.com 
A calendar of USATF sanctioned events can be found at www.usatfnj.org or at www.raceforum.com for running and tri and biathlon events.
Contact Madeline Bost at madelinebost@verizon.net.


Monday, February 2, 2015

Hurry - Running Summit East this weekend - late fee waived



Running Summit East on February 7th & 8th, 2015

The Running Summit East will be held in Morristown,  at the Morristown Medical Center: Malcolm Forbes Amphitheater on Saturday, February 7th & Sunday, February 8th

Here is the lineup of speakers for the Summit taken from the website http://east.runningsummit.com/:

Matt Fitzgerald, endurance sports writer coach and sports nutritionist and author of several

Jonathan Dugas, Ph.D. will present on the physiology of thirst and training quality versus quantity.

Sage Rountree, Ph.D.  will present on race planning and core strength.

Bill Parisi is an internationally recognized fitness business expert and the founder and CEO of the Parisi Speed School.

Peter John L. Thompson has been a coach to international level athletes for over 40 years and is the innovator of the New Interval Training method of training.

Wendy Winn Rhodes, PT, OCS will present on analyzing running form, followed by a hands-on lab, allowing the participant to put skills into practice immediately.

Dani Sabella DPT, ATC will present on taking a closer look at women on the run. Dani has over ten years of clinical experience in sports medicine, specializing in both the endurance athlete and women's health populations.


For all the details of the Summit go to the website  http://east.runningsummit.com/

Although the deadline has passed The $50.00 late registration fee will be waived for anyone who contacts Dave Pavlansky at dspavlansky@hotmail.com and mentions this column.

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Sunday, February 1, 2015

Love affair on the run



Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, February 1, 2015


Love affair on the run


I am so in love.   A new love for sure.  My love affair began back in December when my running buddy found out he could not run on a treadmill or elip on an elliptical without pain.  He was rehabbing from an issue with his back that impacted his hip that impacted his knee.  With winter snows making cross training on a bike very unpleasant, or on a stationary bike slightly more unpleasant, there had to be an alternative.

Of yes, he could use the stair stepper, but how long does anyone want to go stepping?  The rowing machine was out as his therapist said it would interfere with his rehab.

From my perspective it was only a matter of time when the first snows fell and I would be dealing with the same indoor machines.  Yes, I was OK on the elliptical and I could row, row, row, but stepping is boring and treadmilling is – well it’s dangerous.  Run on terra firma and you are in control. On a treadmill the machine is in control.  Stop paying attention or stumble and you get shot off the back end by the dern thing.   Who wants to be a spectacle on American’s funniest home videos?

That’s when I found my new love.  It began at the hotel health club while at the USATF annual convention in Anaheim in early December.   A woman was using a crazy looking machine and she looked like she was running.  Hmmm.  USATF conventions are jam packed with meetings, and more meetings.  I never got back to the health club to look into this new thing.

Then, with the crush of Christmas over, I managed to flip through the latest running magazines that had piled up in my in-box.  And there it was – a machine that defies gravity and lets you run with no impact and at your own speed.  You can go as fast or as slow as you want and you won’t get bucked off the thing.

I had to have it.  With a machine so new I was sure there would be none to be found in New Jersey, but I was wrong.  In less than an hour I was staring at my new love.Not that it seemed to love me back at first.  The salesman demonstrated the ease of using it, but he noted that it took him some time before he got the hang of it.

Good thing too, because the first time I put my feet in the stirrups and attempted to run I might as well have been on that America’s funniest home video!   It does take some practice – a learning curve as they say.

My pal had the same difficulty getting into the rhythm.  The bigger question was the effect on the injured knee.  Once he mastered the running technique his knee was just fine.  Unlike the elliptical and the treadmill; there was no pain.

Online reviews had said that running on the machine had made it possible to be fit to run once an injury issue had resolved.  Users were able to go out and run as if they had not been in rehab, and were fit and ready to compete. 

What about the boredom factor?  Yes, some people can stay on a treadmill or elliptical for an hour or even longer.  But most of us, even watching television, still can’t wait to get off the machines.   Not so with my new love.  I am building my “mileage” back up.  On Friday I ran with my new love for nearly an hour. 
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*  Zero Runner is available at Gym Source of Short Hills, 740 Morris Turnpike.  Ask for John.

Race Results can often be found at www.compuscore.com or at  www.bestrace.com 
A calendar of USATF sanctioned events can be found at www.usatfnj.org or at www.raceforum.com for running and tri and biathlon events.
Contact Madeline Bost at madelinebost@verizon.net.