Operation Jack starts Friday!!!

What is Operation Jack? It's an attempt by Sam Felsenfeld to run 60 marathons in 2010 in honor of his 6-year-old son, Jack, who is diagnosed with Autism. Sam will run these 60 marathons, beginning with the Texas Marathon on January 1, 2010, to raise awareness for Train 4 Autism, so let's give him a hand!

OK, so I'm still learning!

I suppose I should have written these in reverse order, so they would read from top to bottom, but I didn't think of that, and I'm not about to retype, reload the pictures, and repost all these entries, so, gentle reader, in order to follow the story, start with the first entry of today, entitled "Catching up.", and then read UP from there!!

And since California..........

California was followed by the Running Fit holiday party, the Turkey Trot 5k on Thanksgiving Day, more feasting, more running every day, work, Christmas, getting together with Katie for their monthly run/lunch date in November and December and more running. Asia got a digital photo frame for Christmas. We loaded it up with pictures of races, friends and family, and it sits on her table by the couch, scrolling constantly through the memories. Which brings us up to today. Jerry and Asia are at work, Grandma is watching Family Feud, Grizz is sleeping, and I'm trying to get this blog up to date.

New Year's Eve is tomorrow night and then Monday it's back to the real world for all of us. The Winter 2010 session of Running Fit 501 starts January 19, and Asia is counting the days. She has new warm gloves, a gift from my friend Linda at work. They are felted wool, hand knitted by a friend, and should keep her perpetually freezing fingers warm this winter.

Have a Happy New Year everyone!! See you in 2010!

California Dreamin' Finale!!!

But of course, the highlight of the trip, the main reason we went, was to spend time with Meghann and Jeff. It had been nearly a year since we last saw them and a lot has happened in their lives.........most notably that Meghann is expecting their first child......our first grandchild.....Asia's first niece/nephew, and Grandma Betty's first great-grandchild!

Meghann is healthy, looks fabulous, and has had a fairly easy pregnancy so far. The baby is due the end of this January and we are all very excited to welcome this new little person into our hearts.

The waiting time and separation has been made a little easier for us with the addition of webcams and Skype! Now we can see AND talk to them, and Asia thinks that is the best!

You can bet there will be more news on this later!

California Dreamin' Part 4

Of course no trip to California would be complete without catching up with my old boss and friend Jacques. Jacques and his Little Brother (bigbrothersbigsisters.org) Alosha met us for lunch at the Sojourner Cafe in Santa Barbara. After a fine feast, and lots of catching up, we moved the party to Jacques' house, where he kindly took a bunch of pictures of all of us for our Christmas Card. Jacques' house, in the hills overlooking Santa Barbara and the ocean, provided a beautiful backdrop for our picture.

California Dreamin' Part 3

If you go to Los Angeles, find a Kogi Truck and try their Kimchee Quesadillas.....or Korean Short Rib Tacos.....or Spicy Pork Burritos!! Genius cooking!!! We caught up with the Kogi Truck in Santa Monica at the Yahoo building at lunchtime. They aren't in the phone book, but you can find them on Twitter and get their route/schedule. It's quite an experience, and really yummy food!! I want a Kogi Truck in Ann Arbor!!!

California Dreamin' 2009 Part 2

A few days later we met some of the Board of Directors of Train 4 Autism for dinner at P.F. Chang's in Santa Monica. (train4autism.org) When we learned that Meg and Jeff had previous plans for one evening during our visit, I emailed Molly Rearick to see if we could meet. She immediately organized a dinner at the P.F. Chang's restaurant in Santa Monica and sent out email invitations. We arrived that Tuesday night knowing no one and left with 7 and 1/2 new friends (the 1/2 being Ben and Suzana Davidson's adorable baby daughter Nola). Shelly Overton was the first to arrive and instantly made us feel at ease, as though we had known her for years. Ben and Suzana arrived with Nola next, and Nola charmed our socks off! Ben Fesagaiga and Ling Esangga came in soon after, bearing gifts for Asia - a Train 4 Autism technical shirt, which she proudly wore the next day on her run, a hat and wrist sweat band. Molly and Anthony Altomare arrived after some traffic snafus. We spent a wonderful evening learning about the group's history, plans for the future, and how we can help. After Shelly mentioned that there are some fine races in California, Asia spent the evening lobbying for future trips back to race. After snapping pictures of everyone, all too soon the evening was over. But I'm sure we'll meet again, and I know we'll be spreading the word about Train 4 Autism at races here in Michigan.

California Dreamin' 2009...Part 1

Not long after the Halloween Party, we flew to California to visit Meghann and Jeff. We stayed in Manhattan Beach, and Asia got to run on a different pier, strand, boardwalk, or beach every day! The second day we were there she ran with Dana, a runner friend of Meghann's, who took her to Venice Beach for a 5 mile run.

After the run Dana tried his hand/foot at tightrope walking while Asia relaxed on the pier.

Catching up!!!

It's been over 2 months since I've written here! There's been a lot going on in Asia's life, some running-related, some not. So here is a summary, the Reader's Digest Condensed Version of the past 68 days. (As if I ever write anything in a condensed version!)

This is the off-season for the Running Fit team. Not Asia's favorite time of the year. Since joining the team and re-learning the joys of running with others, she much prefers the Tuesday workouts and Saturday long runs with her running mates to solitary running her 5 miles a day. The Halloween long run helped, with runners in costume..

Detroit Marathon, Part 2

Asia and Katie crossing the Finish Line!



Asia, Katie, John, and Jerry at Sweet Lorraine's
for the pre-Race dinner.

Asia finished in 3:55:41, which was a 1 min. 28sec. PR for her. She was 56 out of 1141 in her age group, 272 female out of 6880, and 1307 out of 12793 over all. There were over 19,000 runners in all, including the half. I'll put up some more pictures later. (Asia's favorite part is the all-you-can eat Chinese buffet after :>) Thanks Katie!

Katie's husband, John, finished in 3:01:25, and was the 63rd to finish overall!!! That's just crazy fast!! Way to go John!!!

Alex's Marathon

Alex finished his marathon 3:35:07 and came in 60th out of 245 runners. He had a great day, running by the water and hearing the music along the course. 2 of his teammates set course records! Way to go Alex!! Way to go Stan and Jen!!

And another thing............

Asia shares a bond with marathoners around the world. They do something human beings weren't necessarily designed to do.............run 26.2 miles. The body can't store enough fuel to run that far, so the last part is run on pure grit and determination.

Asia shares different bonds with another marathon runner.....Alex Bain of Prince Edward Island, Canada whom she has never met. Alex also has autism, and is running his second full marathon this weekend. He's hoping to beat his PR (Personal Best in Canada) of 3:29:29. AND, Alex has been chosen to be an Olympic Torch Bearer as the relay crosses PEI on the way to Vancouver for the 2010 Olympics. Asia was a Torch Bearer in 1996!

All the while we are cheering for Asia and Katie, in our minds we'll be cheering for Alex too! I'll post his results later Sunday. GO ALEX GO!!!

Detroit Marathon, Part 1

Asia and Katie are running the Detroit Marathon this Sunday. Katie's husband John is also running the full marathon, and 128 of their Running Fit teammates are running either the half or full marathon. They have trained together all summer, on sweltering hot days, in downpours and thunderstorms, in high winds and fog. In the winter they ran on icy roads, in calf-deep snow and sub-zero temperatures. They are ready for just about anything Mother Nature can throw at them. Fortunately, the weather looks to be about perfect........a little cool, maybe, but not bad. Temps in the 30's at the start, warming to 50 by later in the day. Clear and not much wind.

This will be Asia's second full marathon, and she and Katie are going to try to qualify for Boston with a time of 3:40 or better. Coach Gina says she can do it. Katie ran Boston in April. Her goal will be to keep Asia from going out too hard, to have negative splits. We know that if the weather gods cooperate, and the blister gods behave (Kinesio tape rules!!) she has a good shot at qualifying.

Katie came up with an ace in the hole. Since Asia always runs faster when people cheer for her. Katie suggested getting shirts with her name on them, so the crowd would know who they are cheering for. We got shirts for Asia, Katie, Jerry and I in the team color and had the front printed at Elmo's Tee Shirt Shop in Ann Arbor.

We are getting so much support from teammates and friends in this effort. Since Asia has taken so well to wearing her fuel belt and drinking her "chocolate water" (Chocolate Outrage Gu and water) on the long runs and in races, we are going to have a full belt of 4 bottles at the halfway point to carry her thru to the end. Zoe, who ran the Chicago Marathon last weekend, volunteered to be at the 13 mile point with the replacement belt and help Asia and Katie make the switch.

There is going to be online, race day runner tracking through the freepmarathon.com website. This is the first race Asia has run that we haven't been able to parallel the course to see her, and we won't have any idea of her time or how she's doing. Linda, a friend at work, is going to set up the race day tracking on her computer at home, then call me as Asia's times come in. And other volunteer teammates, who will be cheerleaders along the course, will try to call me with times as they see Asia and Katie pass.

We're all getting pretty excited. Time to go work on my packing list. More news to follow.

Kensington Challenge

This was the twenty-sixth year of this great event! The 15K Run, 5K Run/Walk, and 1 Mile Run events are held on the park's beautiful, gently rolling paved bike-hike trails. The 15K course has been awarded the RRCA state championship again year and is included in the Michigan Runner Race Series. BenefitsProceeds go to the Ann Arbor Track Club (501c3) to run club activities and to support the John Rogucki Memorial Fund. The fund supports: Washtenaw Community College Cross-Country Club Sports program, Girls on the Run of Southeastern Michigan, Michigan Special Olympics, and the Ann Arbor Track Club Youth Program.

The time for Asia to beat was 1:19:26. They finished in 1:12:55, a 6min. 31 sec. PR!! Asia was 1st in her age group. Katie, who is in the next AG was 5th. Her husband John was 1st in his age group, 5th overall, with a time of 58:54. Amazing run by all three of them.

Next weekend the 501 runners who are competing in the Detroit Free Press Marathon will be running their 20 miler. Detroit is 1 month away!!

The CRIM.....8.22.09

Asia and Katie have been planning to run the Crim since the beginning of the summer. It was going to be a "tune up" run, to see how well their training was progressing in getting ready for the Detroit Free Press Marathon. The Crim is a 10 mile run that draws thousands of runners to Flint, MI every August. There are some decent hills, so the 501ers' training on Sunset, Broadway, the Arb Hill, and Barton Hills Drive serves them well.

When Katie told me that her goal time for them for the Crim was 1:20, I confess that I was skeptical. Asia's previous PR time for a 10 mile run was last year at the Run Thru Hell, with a time of 1:22:40. I mentioned it to Coach and she did her mental calculations based on Asia's PR time, her last 5K time, and some other mumbo jumbo that I don't pretend to understand and said that 1:20 was do-able IF the weather was good (read cool, light breeze, not humid) and Asia was feeling good. Katie felt that a time of 1:20 at the Crim would be a good indicator of their chances to get a 3:40 in Detroit.

Team training went well Tuesday night, with an easy 6 mile run. Asia agreed to run her usual 5 miles on Wednesday and Thursday but promised Katie to cut back to 3 on Friday. I knew that would be hard for her, so I set mom up with a timer and told her when to call Asia in.

It's an hours drive to Flint, so we always drive up the night before, so Asia can get a good night's sleep........and eat out at an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet to carb load. I got off work at noon and had everything ready when Jerry got home at 3:30. The drive up was uneventful and we went straight to the Expo for packet pick-up. We got race packets for Katie, John, and Jay, then went in search of a new restaurant. Two giant platefulls of rice and assorted Chinese dishes later, Asia was sufficiently carb loaded and we went back to the motel to rest. The motel clock didn't work, so I left a call at the desk and set Jerry's phone and mine for 4:45-5:00.

Most runners turn green at the thought of Asia's preferred race day breakfast.......Jimmy Dean's Hot sausage with scrambled eggs and some fruit. Anything less, such as a bagel, or an English muffin, or banana and peanut butter, is unacceptable. So when we travel overnight for races, we travel with a toaster oven. I prepare Asia's scrambled eggs the day before and pack with the selected fruit in a cooler, then warm it up in the morning. We were eating by 5:15 and dressed and on the road to the team meeting place by 6:30. Asia had her fuel belt with 2 bottles of "chocolate water" (Chocolate Outrage Gu and water) and another to drink on the way. It had rained during the night and the temperature was a cool 53 degrees. Perfect!! Understand that NEVER in my life have I thought 53 degrees on an August morning was acceptable, much less perfect. But this morning, it was ..... perfect.

The team was instructed by Coach to meet at the Character Inn and Convention Center Lobby by 7 AM for team pictures. We made quite a show with everyone in their blue singlets and shorts. The energy level in the room was almost tangible. The spirit and camraderie of the 501ers was amazing. Everyone, EVERYONE was happy and excited, all encouraging each other.

After many pictures and pit stops, and promises to meet up after the finish, everyone headed for the starting line. We saw Katie and Asia enter the crowd near the 8 minute pace flag and Jerry and I headed up to the front to get a picture of the front lineup, and to try to start my race watch as Asia and Katie crossed the timing mat, rather than go by "gun time".

A few announcements, the National Anthem, and.......they were OFF! We saw many of our Red team runners pass, then Katie and Asia, then we headed for the only turn where we could see them until the finish. (It's maddening to us to only be able to see them once.....we're so used to races where we can see them several times, but.....oh well.)

The 30 year runners had started early and passed us first. Bobby Crim, the founder of the race, passed us and brought cheers. One by one our team passed and everyone looked strong at about the 1 mile mark. We stayed until all our team had passed and took lots of pictures before heading off to Haloburger for some fries and coffee and to wait for the first finishers.

We had barely sat down when the first Kenyan flew past the window, with such a lead that the runner in second place wasn't in the same frame. The first place male, Festus Lagat finished in 47:11, female, Angelina Mutuka, in 54:53.

Haloburger suddenly lost its appeal and we took our coffee outside to wait for our crew to start arriving.

(I'll post everyone's times as soon as the searchable database is up.)

Jerry headed up to the last turn in the course as I headed for the finish line.

One by one we watched and cheered as our team rounded the corner and hit the bricks of Saginaw Street. Mark, Claudio, John, Eduardo, Rob, Stephanie, Zoe, Michael, Aaron, Rick, Andrea, Joy, Erin, Marie, (not necessarily in that order, and certainly not all of the team) streaked by to the finish line. I compared the time on my race watch with the race clock. 1:15.......1:16......1:17......1:18. The crowd was cheering, waving cow bells, whistling, the announcer calling out the names as the racers crossed the finish line. (I don't know how they do that.) 1:19. Katie's goal of 1:20 was seconds away and I had no idea where they were.......and then there they were .... at the end of the block!! Katie and Asia and Ted, pounding down the bricks (oh God, please don't let them fall!) to a finish time of 1:19:48!!! 12 seconds to spare, and almost a 3 minute PR for Asia!! Just then the phone rang and it was Jerry. "You should see them any minute now," he said. I was screaming, "They did it! They did it!!"

I elbowed my way through the crowd to the finish line to the place we had designated as the meeting spot......a Meijer truck near the porta-johns :>) Katie said everytime they approached one of the team, she said, Come on Asia, you don't want Ted to beat you, do you?" And Asia would take off like a shot. She knew exactly how to motivate Asia when she started to flag a little. Asia has a competitive streak a mile wide, and each time she passes people who cheer for her, the after-burners kick in.

Even though I had my doubts, Katie knew all along that Asia could do it. And she did. Thanks Katie, for giving her the push when she needed it, but most of all, for being her friend and running partner.

The CRIM

Asia at CRIM in 2005

33 years ago Bobby Crim and his associate Lois Craig organized a "little race" that has changed the face of the city of Flint on a certain Saturday in August each year. Originally the race was a fund-raiser for Michigan Special Olympics, but has since expanded to encompass many more organizations. In addition to the 10 mile run, there is also a 10 mile walk, a 5K walk and run, an 8 K walk and run, a 1 mile run, a wheelchair and handcycle division and a 5 K racewalk

Asia and 70+ of her teammates are running The Crim 10 miler in Flint this Saturday. The color after everyones name indicates the pace group they are currently training in.......Red = 7:00-8:30 pace, Green = 8:30-9:30 pace, and so on. This year, for the first time, we have groups competing as teams. Asia and Katie are running with the 501 Warriors.

With all our runners in their matching blue singlets, we ought to make quite a splash of color in the 7,000 + runners. GO 501!



Banka, Dianna, F3539 AA Yellow
Buquet, Jason M3539 AA Green
Buyaki, Brandon, M3539 AA Yellow
Cioffi, Jon M4044 AA Red
Doll, Linda, F4549 AA Blue
Evans, Julie F4044 AA Green
Fike, Jen F4044 AA Green
Frankland, Craig M2529 AA Red
Garcia, Do, F5054, Blue
Green-Lee, Carmen F4044 AA Green
Gaunt, Gene M4549 AA Blue
Guarasci, Bridget, F3034 AA Blue
Haite, Heidi F4044 AA Yellow
Hernandez, DA F3539 AA Purple
Huntington, Lisa F2529 AA Blue
Katsefaras, Barry M4549 CHDX Green
Kowalski, Jill F4044 AA Blue
Kowalski, Larry M2024 AA Yellow
Kowalski, Matt M4044 AA Yellow
Lane, Jackie, F5054 AA Yellow
Lawson, Amy F3539 AA Blue
Meeks, Pat AA F5054 Blue
Mlotha, Brenda F3034 AA Green
Morgan, Rob M4044 AA Red
Padakannaya, Kishan M4044 AA Green
Peters Arnold Jane F5559 AA Blue
Peterson, Melissa, F4042 AA Purple
Pfiester, David, M5054, AA Blue
Remke, Beth F3539 AA Yellow
Salas, Claudio M3539 AA Red
Scherle, Brian M3539 AA Yellow
Schrage, Mark M4549 AA Red
Steenbeke, Curt, M4044 CHDX Green
Wells, Mariella F5559 AA Blue
Wolfgram, Marie F3034 AA Green
Buck, Jeff, M4044 NTHVL Green



Running Fit 501 Warriors:

LaRusso, Erin F3539 AA Red
Racowski, Joy F2529 AA Red
Rennich, Jean, F3539, AA Red
Roehm, Stephanie F2529 AA Red
Thompson, Zoe F3034 AA Red
Walrath, Andrea F2429 AA Red
Alford, Jennifer, F3034 CHDX Green
Renning, Asia F2529 Green
Sytniak, Katie F2529 AA Green
Tuite, Mandi F2529 AA



Fit 501 "A" Team:

Brandly, Christopher M4044 AA Red
Matsuo, Eduardo M5559 AA Red
Neubert, Rick M5055 AA Red
Pratt, Aaron, M5055 AA Red
Sytniak, John M3034 AA Red
Tucker, Kevin, M2529 Red
Young, Trevor, M4044 CHDX Red
Mester, Michael M5054 AA Green
Lassaline, Jeffrey M4549 AA Green
Stilber, Ted M4044 CHDX Green


Running Fit 501 "Giants":

Frederickson, Gwen F3539 AA Green
Hartman, Laurie, F3539 AA Green
Eleby, Michelle F3034 AA Yellow
Hengesbach, Heather, F2024 AA Yellow
Schroeter, Melissa, F4044 AA Yellow
Tarasow, Amanda F4044 CHDX Yellow
Benbow, Christine, F3539 CHDX Blue
Crudup, Denise F4044 AA Blue
Hoey, Maureen F3539 AA Blue
Morse, Jane F4549 CHDX Purple


Running Fit 501 "Wildcats":

Chiasson, Adam, M2529 NVI Green
Eagles, Kristie, F3034 NVI Blue
Goodhue, Coach Doug M6569 NVI Red
Harding, Andrew, M5054 NVI Red
Klisch, Joerg M4549 NVI Red
Palmer, Shaun, M3034 NVI Red
Roberts, Kelly, F4549 NVI Green
Silvio, Michael, M4044 NVI Yellow
Smerigan, Ron, M3034 NVI Green
Tuomi, Kathryn, F2024 NVI Red


More Info: http://www.crim.org/

Milestone

Oh, and I should also mention that since joining the Running Fit 501 team, in the summer of 2006, Asia has run over 6,000 miles! We keep a running log on aftertherun.com that allows you to run a report which includes total miles run/pace, etc. On Monday August 3, after her run for the day, Asia had completed 6,001 miles. And that is a conservative number, because many days she runs her 5 miles, then goes back out again for a "cool down". 6,000 miles..........that's from New York to LA and back again!! Pretty damned amazing, if you ask me!

Catching up

The summer session of the Running Fit 501 Marathon Training team is in full swing, with early Saturday morning long runs and Tuesday evening workouts. Asia and Katie are officially training for the Detroit Free Press Marathon in October. Today they ran 16 miles in the pouring rain with their team and nobody seemed to mind a bit. There are 120 members of the team this summer.....such a large group that coach sends them out in waves. We had a visitor last week from San Francisco who was visiting Ann Arbor for a wedding. He Googled "running groups in Ann Arbor" and found us. He was amazed at the size of the group, the organization, the website, and the "catered water stops". Coach Gina is up at 3:30 on Saturday mornings to stock the water stations every 2-3 miles along the course. Each station has water, cups, and Ultima enough for all the runners, going in both directions.

Today's course wound through the North Campus of U of M, down Broadway hill, around by the Huron River to Bandemere Park, and up into the Barton Hills. The road to the Country Club is about 3 miles long, all uphill, and with lots of switchbacks, then reverse the course. Coach's philosophy is, "If it doesn't kill you, it will make you stronger." This course, in the downpour, thunder, and lightning proved what a tough bunch this team is.

Katie's challenge has been to get Asia to slow down on the long runs. Today Katie said Asia ran with her perfectly until about mile 12, then she began to slow a little. But that was about at Broadway, going UP this time, so all is forgiven.

We have finally found something that works to help prevent Asia's terrible blisters. The $300 orthotics just hurt her feet, but the $12 roll of Kenesio tape works wonders!! I put 3 strips across the bottom of her feet, starting at just behind her toes, all the way to the heel, and extending up the inner arch and it totally prevents friction blisters from even forming! She has a history of nasty blisters and we've not been able to find shoes or socks that totally prevent them. This tape is a God-send. I know this isn't what it's designed for, but it sure works! Thanks Coach!!!

2 other new tools this summer......sunglasses.....we've never found a pair that fit while she is running, because she has no nose to hold them up. We got her a pair by Serfas Optics that come with 3 interchangable lenses, and then got a piece of plastic, like aquarium tubing, to go on the earpieces behind her head to hold the glasses on her face. Works like a charm, and she doesn't mind wearing them, because her team does. Another addition this summer is a fuel belt. Since Asia doesn't do Gu, or Shot Blox, or the Energy beans or anything like that (and the experience trying them is another whole story), we discovered mixing Chocolate Outrage Gu with water. Thanks again Coach! At the Martian Marathon, Aaron and Katie carried Asia's "Chocolate Water" since she had never worn a fuel belt, and we didn't think her first Marathon was the place to start. Earlier this summer Katie let Asia try hers. My fears were unfounded.....seeing so many of her teammates use fuel belts made it a non-issue for Asia. She just did it.

Asia has competed in 2 5-K runs since my last post. The Gallup Gallop and the Rutka 5-K, both in Gallup Park in Ann Arbor. Her times were nearly identical, 23:40 and 23:43. The next race is The Crim 10 miler in Flint, MI. on August 22. There will be 51 Running Fit 501ers competing in that race! Hopefully all in their new blue 501 singlets. I'll post pix and results after.

Asia is featured in the July issue of the Train 4 Autism Newsletter

http://www.train4autism.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=hqLQIXOzGrF&b=5079713&content_id=%7BF0BBA70F-763B-4399-8E80-51347E99CFAA%7D&notoc=1

More Pix from Plymouth Father's Day 5K and 10K

Pix from Plymouth Father's Day 5K and 10K

Water Stations at Saturday long run.

On Asia's very first long run with the Running Fit 501 team, back in 2006 Jerry and I raced to the 2-mile water stop to see how things were going. Since we arrived by car, we had some time to kill before the runners arrived, so we decided to make ourselves useful as well as ornamental, and we started filling the cups with water and Ultima and lining them up on the fence. The runners thought that was pretty cool, so we kept doing it. I think Jerry and/or I have made it to almost every Saturday practice since 2006. We love seeing all the runners, playing tunes for them in the summer, and in general being cheer leaders. It's a small thing we can do to help out a team that has done so much for Asia.

These pictures are of 2 of our favorite water stops. The first one with the fence is *the* first one. The other one is at the top of the Arb hill in Ann Arbor.

TOTALLY OFF TOPIC...I didn't know birds had brakes.......

Those who know me know that I work for a wonderful company. One of the fringe benefits of my job is that I get to care for the 5 bluebird houses on the grounds. The houses have been up for 5 years and in all but one year we have had at least one nest of bluebirds. But it is a constant struggle with the English sparrows, who will chase the bluebirds out of the nest, even after eggs are laid, and will kill bluebird babies, build their own nest on top of the BB nest, and take over. I mean, these birds will nest in Kroger signs.....why do they need to take my bluebird houses? But I digress.....

In years past the fight consisted of checking the houses several times a day early in the season and ripping out sparrow nests. They are easy to spot, as they are messy, disorganized, and full of trash (some might call it recycling, in this case I call it trash), bits of plastic, yarn wet newspaper, parts of paper cups, theater tickets.....TRASH! Bluebird nests, on the other hand, are neatly constructed of like types of grass and twigs and lined with fluff and tiny feathers.

The idea is to rip out the sparrow nest as soon as they start building, keep ripping, and hope the bluebirds get in in the meantime to start their own nest. There have been days when I have ripped out 4-5 started sparrow nests. I've enlisted the aide of fellow employees to help when I'm not here.

Last year Jen at work gave me an old bluebird book that belonged to her mother. In it the author discussed the sparrow problem and one person's solution. They took a toy snake, rubber in the book, I think, and put it inside the nestbox. The sparrows never came back, but the bluebirds were unphased.

*Cue the lightbulb over my head* Jen had a toy snake, but it's wooden and segmented and wouldn't fit into the box, so we draped it over the top. Lo and behold....the sparrows avoided that box like the plague but the bluebirds and swallows couldn't have cared less. The swallows claimed 1 nest box and were very vigorous about defending it. They would dive bomb humans who came too close and the sparrows gave up. We moved the snake to another house and the sparrows wouldn't come close but the bluebirds just lit on it like it wasn't even there. Bluebirds moved into that box, with the snake on top, and raised a clutch of 5 babies!

This year it worked again, and I actually got to see it unfold. The 5 bluebird babies had just flown over the weekend and on Monday the sparrows thought they'd move into the house. They just started moving their crap, er...junk..., er....scraps in on top of the old bluebird nest! So I ripped the whole thing out at 8am. (The snake was currently in residence on top of the swallow house.) By 11am the sparrows had started another nest........RRIIIIPPPPP - gone. At 3pm, when I went to get the mail, another nest was under construction. At that point I decided to risk the wrath of the swallows and walked over to claim the snake. I came up behind the box thinking, wrongly, that I could sneak in and get the snake and get out like some comando, but nooooo. Mom and dad swallow shot out of the box, circled around behind and began dive bombing my head. It was like a scene from The Birds, but I was laughing so hard I could barely untie the yarn holding the snake to the house.

Finally the snake was free and I carried it back across the lawn to the bluebird house. Before I could get there, the sparrow landed on top with stuff in his beak, ready to start construction again. The little devil! I'll show him! I tied the snake in place and artfully draped him across the top of the box before dropping some mealworms in the bluebird feeder under the house and turning to leave. I had taken no more than 5 steps when I saw the sparrow streak past me. I turned just in time to see him spot the snake and screech to a halt in mid-air before wheeling around to fly off. Honestly, it was like a cartoon bird applying brakes mid-flight WHOA!!!

Almost immediately the bluebird pair returned. The male sat on top of the snake while the female munched on some mealworms underneath. They began their new nest that afternoon and as of today have 3 new eggs.

Haven't seen the sparrow since. He's probably in Canada by now.

And the moral of this story is: Don't mess with a stubborn Irish woman and her snake.

Running Fit 501 Summer 2009

The 2009 summer session of Running Fit 501 is officially underway. Asia always hates the break between sessions. She still runs every day but misses her team.

Tuesday night the new members and some of the old from the Ann Arbor and Dexter/Chelsea locations met at the Running Fit Warehouse in Ann Arbor for 2 mile timed trials. Coach uses this to determine which color/pace group is the best fit for each runner. The Red Group trains at a 7:00-8:30 pace, Green Group, 8:30-9:30, Yellow 9:30-10:30, Blue 10:30-12:00, and Purple 12:00-14:00. Note: this is NOT the race pace, but the training pace. Asia is in the Green Group, and ran her 2-mile timed trial in 14:47.

After the timed trial, Coach introduced the Color group coaches, gave everyone instructions on using the website, staying hydrated on summer long runs, passed out registration packs with team hats and coupons.

The group has grown from 70 or so in 2006 to nearly 200 this summer, including all the stores.

This morning the Ann Arbor group met in the Huron High School parking lot at 7:15 for instructions before taking off for their first long run. The course was 5 miles, out and back, with 2 water stops, and included both Broadway and Sunset hills! Coach made sure all the new runners knew who their color group coaches were, and that they had running partners if they weren't familiar with the course. It was raining lightly, but Coach assured us that it would stop *any minute now*. (After what these folks ran in this past winter, a little light rain is nothing!) After making sure everyone was paired with like-paced runners going the same distance, Coach sent them off into the mist and I took off (by Jeep) for the first water stop.

The Red Group arrived first with a few new members, including John, Katie's husband, and Francisco and Andrea who *graduated* from the Green Group. Everyone looked strong and enjoying their run. Mandi, Jen, Katie, Asia and 2 new guys arrived next, had their water and Ultima and took off again.

The turn around point was 1 mile past the 2nd water stop, so I actually got to see most of the runners as I waited for Asia and Katie to come back. The Kinesio tape was holding up well on Asia's feet and blisters were no problem today.

I was amazed that the new runners looked so strong after the 5% grade on Broadway. I don't know the grade on Sunset, but I've been told it's the highest point in Ann Arbor, and it's long, and steep. I found a website last night that will calculate the grade of a hill, much like a pace calculator for a race. Plug in the horizontal distance and the vertical change and, voila, it calculates the grade.

Back at the high school, runners arrived sweaty and tired but smiling! There is a new runner, Linda, who has a son with autism. She's running the Chicago marathon to raise money for autism. It will be fun getting to know her and her son this summer.

It's going to be a good summer.

501 Members DxA2 10K Results

0.47.13 (7.36 pace) F3539 Smalheer, Sarah PR
0.50.23 (8.05 pace), F2024 Woolls, Heather
0.50.34 (8.05 pace) F4044 Fike, Jennifer 3rd Place AD Award Winner
0.54.29 (8.47 pace) F4044 Schroeter, Melissa
0.55.12 (8.54 pace) F4044 Koenig, Kara PR
0.58.18 (9.25 pace) F4044 Haite, Heidi
0.58.19 (9.25 pace) M4044 Kowalski, Matt
0.59.15 (9.33 pace) F3539 Remke, Beth
1.00.00 (9.40 pace) F3034 Hoey, Maureen
1.00.34 (9.45 pace) F4044, Kowalski, Jill
1.01.21 (9.53 pace) F4044 Pike, Shelly
1.02.56 (10.08 pace) F4044, Winebrenner, Patricia
1.03.49 (10:17 pace) F5054 Kong, Barbara

501 Members DxA2 Half-marathon results.

1.23.12 (6.22 pace) M3539 Salas, Claudio PR 5th AD Award Winner
1.25.01 (6.30 pace) M4549 Schrage, Mark
1.27.10 (6.40 pace) M3034 Sytniak, John
1.28.48 (6.47 pace) M4044 Morgan, Rob PR
1.30.52 (6.57 pace) M2024 Close, Evan
1.33.32 (7.09 pace) M3539 Nguyen, Thien
1.34.01 (7.11 pace) F2529 Roehm, Stephanie
1.34.51 (7.15 pace) M3034 Palomino, Francisco PR
1.34.59 (7.16 pace) F2529 Walrath, Andrea PR
1.36.13 (7.21 pace) M5054 Neubert, Rick
1.36.24 (7.22 pace) F3034 Wolfgram, Marie
1.36.55 (7.24 pace) M5559 Pratt, Aaron
1.39.23 (7.36 pace) M4044 Brandly, Chris
1.39.43 (7.37 pace) M4549 Johnson, Al
1.40.33 (7.41 pace) M4044 Cioffi, Jon
1.41.15 (7.46 pace) M3034 Kellogg, Ryan
1.41.19 (7.44 pace) M4044 Quilter, Shawn
1.42.15 (7.48 pace) M5054 Mester, Michael
1.42.51 (7.52 pace) M3539 Sloan, Greg
1.43.02 (7.52 pace) M2529 Kokoszka, Alek
1.45.18 (8.03 pace) F4044 Lete, Gianna
1.45.25 (8.05 pace) M4044 Straka, Eric
1.46.17 (8.06 pace) M5559 Cutler, Dan
1.46.19 (8.07 pace) M3539 Buquet, Jason
1.47.06 (8.11 pace) M4549 Robles, Javier
1.47.44 (8.14 pace) M4044 Douglas, Stephen
1.50.08 (8.25 pace) F2529 Sytniak, Katie
1.50.09 (8.25 pace) F2529 Renning, Asia
1.50.46 (8.25 pace) M5054 Greff, Glen PR
1.51.39 (8.32 pace) F3539 Hartman, Laurie
1.52.39 (8.36 pace) M4549 Gossiaux, John
1.53.02 (8.38 pace) M5559 Smith, Mel
1.53.35 (8.39 pace) M4044 Toth, Marc
1.54.34 (8.39 pace) F4044 Evans, Julie
1.55.43 (8.50 pace) M3034 Salim, Irwan
1.55.43 (8.50 pace) M3539 Johnston, Andrew
1.57.03 (8.57 pace) F2024 Hengesbach, Heather
1.59.07 (9.06 pace) F3034 Eleby, Michelle
1.59.09 (9.06 pace) F3539 Lindsay, Harriet 1st HALF
1.59.14 (9.07 pace) M2024 Kowalski, Larry
1.59.50 (9.09 pace) M6064 Reichman, Rick PR
2.05.53 (9.36 pace) F5054 Walton, Sue
2.12.30 (10.07 pace) F6064 Shepherd, Naomi
2.13.44 (10.13 pace) F6569 Swaney, Carol 2nd AD Award Winner
2.16.06 (10.24 pace) M4044 Czarnecki, David
2.16.55 (10.28 pace) M4549 Gaunt, Gene
2.20.32 (10.44 pace) F5054 Meeks, Pat
2.21.30 (10.49 pace) F4044 Zhang, Ge
2.22.23 (10.53 pace) F4044 Srinivasan, Meena
2.23.00 (10.55 pace) F2529 Lacasse, Beth
2.32.23 (11.38 pace) F4549 Scott, Melanie 1st HALF
2.33.51 (11.45 pace) F4044 Kleinschmidt, Pamela 1st HALF
2.39.26 (12.11 pace) F4044 Randolph, Joanne 1st HALF
2.48.31 (12.52 pace) F4044 Hutchins, Tonya

Post-Race Pix