Asia Renning

The Run Thru Hell on Halloween

2010-10-31T19:10:00.005-04:00

I think it's safe to say that most Michigan runners are familiar with, or have raced, the Run Thru Hell, in Hell, Michigan. It's famous for its roller coaster dirt road hills, beautiful scenery, cool, collectable shirts, and the Porta-john Police. Harrison Hensley and his wife Delores have organized the Run Thru Hell for many years, and have supported the SE Michigan running community in countless ways, from Delores helping with registration and finish line schutes to Harrison hauling hundreds of race flyers to each race. And at the Run Thru Hell, Harrison was the Porta-John cop! He was legendary. His ability to move hundreds of runners quickly and effeciently thru the johns had to be seen to be appreciated. Harrison and Delores were important parts of the running community for many years.

Unfortunately, that came to an abrupt end 2 years ago when Delores suffered a stroke. She couldn't leave the house and Harrison wouldn't go without her. The Run Thru Hell stopped. We didn't see Delores' smiling face at the registration table. There were no flyers announcing upcoming races, spread across tables at the races.

A lot of folks talked about how they could help, and finally, the Running Foundation organized The Run Thru Hell on Halloween as a fundraising race. The goal was to raise enough money to buy a wheelchair accessable van for Delores and Harrison, so these once vital, active people could once again travel to the races they loved so much.

That race was today. There were over 3,000 runners who competed in the 5k and 10k races. Everything was donated...from the timing chips to the tech shirts, and even the Porta-johns! 100% of the entry fees are going to purchase that van!

You could feel the excitement from all the runners at being a part of such a unique event. Everyone sang *Happy Birthday* to Delores, whose 80th birthday is November 1, and then she spoke to the crowd, thanking everyone for coming and assuring them that she remembered all of them. (She probably did!)

The race start was delayed by about 15 minutes, while latecomers registered and the lines to the porta-johns cleared. And that's when Harrison stepped in to claim his rightful place as Porta-John Cop-in-Chief! No more delays! Way to go Harrison!

And Way to Go Michigan Runners. You pulled together for one of your own and had a good time doing it.

Oh yeah, and it was # 107 for Asia. I'll write more about her race later today. Right now, I'm tired, and need to watch for Trick or Treaters.

RF 501 Stats

2010-10-31T18:46:00.007-04:00

I confess to *borrowing* all this from Randy of Running Fit, and his Mid-week Run Mail. It was just too good not to share!

Congratulations to our Summer 2010 Running Fit 501 Runners!

What a great season! We had 30 runners complete their first half or full marathon. In addition we had ninety five PRs (personal records) recorded from our runners this year and twelve Boston Qualifying times were recorded.

RF501 opens its doors to the 17th season in January 2011. We are proud to announce that in those 9 years, we have had over 1,000 members complete a half or full marathon. This year alone, 378 members trained with RF501 and ran 181 half marathons and 173 marathons.

Following are some testimonials from teammates:

I found myself in a regular state of awe at how much the coach extends herself with all the little extras she does! (200%!) Her heart and soul seems to go into everything she does!! Lisa M.

What a great season! I really enjoyed my first summer session with RF501. It will definitely not be my last! Jamie B.

I could not be more pleased with my experiences with 501. Thank you, for believing in me and helping me believe in myself! Linda D.

Can't thank you enough for all the help, encouragement and tough love this last year! Jane P

Coach Doug, Coach Suzi and Lee,Thank you very much for coaching me during the this session. I learned a lot from 501 group..Excellent coaches and team mates! Akane

RF501 is open for registration for our Winter 2011 season which starts January 8, 2011 but in the meantime you can join us in Ann Arbor every Saturday at Running Fit, 123 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor, for a group run. Get acclimated to winter running by running through the fall. Runs start at 8am and are FREE to all 2010 RF501 members and FREE to all NEW 2011 members. You can also "drop in" to "test" out the group for $5

# 106 Detroit Half-marathon

2010-10-31T18:09:00.004-04:00

After the race

Asia and Amy, her new Best Buddie.

Asia and Heidi, coming out of the Windsor Tunnel. (Heidi is in the blue top.)

Carmen, Heidi, Elizabeth, and Christine, before the race.

Asia and and Heidi at the pre-race dinner.

Wow! It's been nearly 3 weeks since I updated Asia's blog. There's been a lot happening, mostly good, some not so good, and that's made it hard for me to write. But here I am, and here goes.....

The week after we went to the Chicago Marathon Asia ran the Detroit Free Press half marathon. It was her 11th half marathon, her 4th time running the Detroit half, and her 106th race. We hesitated to sign her up, because we didn't have a pacer for her. This is the only race we are really concerned about, because of the International border crossing. But about mid August, Heidi (who sponsors the water cups at all of our runs, thru her Nationwide Insurance Agency) decided she would run, and that she'd like to run with Asia! Match made!! Our goals for Asia are always, first and foremost, a safe run, a fun run, and then, if the stars are aligned, a PR. Thanks to Heidi, Asia had the first 2 at Detroit, and an amazing time thru the tunnel, with an average pace of 8:04. Thanks so much Heidi!! You made it easier for us to relax and enjoy watching and cheering. Asia slowed after the tunnel and her finish time was 1:49:56. She was 1016 // 8809 over all, 242 // 5005 female, and 53 // 808 in her age group! WOW! And Heidi ended up with a great PR!

Chicago Marathon 10.10.10, or Asia, Jerry, and Adair's Big Adventure

2010-10-11T21:11:00.012-04:00

Our perfect viewing spot at the 20.5 mile point.

We can look so fresh because we didn't just run 26.2 miles in 85* heat!!

Some of the team and support crew.

Gwen, Asia and Eduardo

We finally got to meet Sam! This was his 48th marathon this YEAR!

No, Asia didn't run it. But as soon as we saw how many of our team were going, we wanted to go cheer for them. And when we found out that Sam (http://www.operationjack.com/) was going to be there, it was a no-brainer. We had to go.

I started researching a month or so ago, and we tossed around the idea of taking the train, but Jerry had to work Saturday morning, so that was out. After quizzing my company's sales rep in Chicago, I decided that we'd drive over, stay near Midway airport, then take the *L* from Midway to downtown. The bonus was that we'd get to hop off and see part of the race....the 20.5 mile point....and hopefully see some of our guys running. ***Imagine trying to spot 61 familiar faces in a speeding blur of 45,000 people.***

The drive to Chicago was blessedly uneventful.....we stopped at Culver's in Stephensville for dinner, then arrived at the hotel about 7:30. Plenty of time to relax and plan our strategy for Sunday morning. I had maps of *Everything*....from how to get to Midway to the CTA route map to how to get to the Runners Reunite area, where we were all going to meet at the letter *R* for .....runner, or Running Fit, or (wait for it.........) RENNING!!!

We were up at 5am for breakfast at 6, then off to Midway. Part of my planning included preparing for unpredictable weather. I mean, after all, it's October 10....which could mean just about anything weather-wise. And we were going to the *Windy City*. So we took every combination of clothes from shorts and tanks to jeans and sweatshirts...........all team-oriented, of course, with rain jackets thrown in for good measure..........and this was for a 1 night trip. WHEW!!! It turned out to be wonderful spectator weather and not so great runner weather....55* at the start, warming quickly. I started out in jeans and a jacket but soon changed to the shorts I had in my backpack. The jacket was shed not long after.

We were the only ones at the corner of Halstead and Archer. We claimed our spot by the guard rail and draped our 10+ years old Red/Black/White Milan CC jackets over the fence to both save our spots and provide a visual sign for our runners. I had started my race watch at 7:30 sharp, and signed us up for runner tracking. We kept expecting text messages that didn't come until 8:40!!! The first 2 told us that John, Katie's husband and Sam had crossed the start at 8:06 and 8:07!!!! More than 30 minutes after the supposed start of the race!!! We tried to figure out, based on their previous races, when they might pass us. Higher math :>(

Gradually our little corner began to fill. A couple from San Francisco were there to cheer for their daughter. The support crew for a high school team parked behind us and began to wheel generators, coolers, flags, and camp chairs down the street closer to the water stop.

I have to hand it to the event organizers.......they gave us lots of notice that something was about to happen. 15 minutes before the wheelers arrived there was a *15 minute* van that came thru. Then the *10min.* van, then the *5 min* van, then..........there were the first wheelers! We could see them coming down the street under the train overpass. Such amazing athletes!

More down time. Chatting with the neighbors, waiting for the runners to appear.

And then in the distance we could hear sirens and bells and whistles. The flashing lights of police vehicles appeared under the overpass. The *5* minute van passed, but it wasn't 5 minutes until the police cars were there. Then a 20-motorcycle cavalcade passed, then the official pace car with the time of 1:38:38. And there were the elite runners. The first 7 were from Kenya and Ethiopia. They seemed absolutely effortless as they rounded the corner for the final 5.7 miles of their race. They would finish the marathon in just over 2 hours!

We waited for more text messages announcing the progress of our runners. Nothing!

Finally more runners appeared under the bridge. (I say *finally* but that's just because we were waiting...........these guys were crazy fast.)

We began watching in earnest. We were pretty sure John and Sam would be the first 2 from our *watch list* to pass by, but we had no real idea when. We had no common uniform to watch for, and in Sam's case, we had never even met him in person. We had only seen his picture online. With a lot of our team mates, we can spot them by their running style, but with Sam, we didn't even have that.

Yeah, we're going to pick 61 people out of 45, 000............rrrriiiiigggghhttt!!!!

But then.........wow! THERE'S JOHN!!! (cue the screaming.....Way to go John!!! WHOOO HOOO!!) We got a head turn and a wave from John! And a few minutes later..........(me: 'is that Sam? Jerry, that's Sam!) By this time we'd made friends with the neighbors and were cheering for their people too, so the group of us yelled, "GO SAM!!!" Sam was clearly watching for us as he rounded the corner, but he didn't know us either!!!

Whew..........that's exciting!! What's next? More waiting? Scanning faces? OK, bring 'em on!!

All this time we'd tried to behave......to stay behind the baracades.....while others, who had arrived 2 hours after we did, began to fill in the street in front of us. The police did nothing. We and our neighbors yelled, "Get off the street!" All to no avail. When my view of the street became completely blocked I caved in to peer pressure and ran to the street too! We didn't drive all this way to look at a wall of backs!!

I should mention that the temperature had been steadilly rising, and it was only 9am. It felt like a summer morning. I was in heaven, but I knew our runners would be suffering.

We scanned the faces watching for Eduardo and Gwen but never did see them. Erin and Christine arrived wearing their electric blue wigs, waiting to jump in with Gwen but left with Laurie instead. We waited, wanting to see Katie pass before we left for the finish but didn't see her.

The *L* took us within a few blocks of the finish but we were still several blocks from the Runners Reunite area. I really wish I had not been in such a hurry to get there, because Grant Park looked really gorgeous!!. Someday I'll go back. On the way I got a call that some of our runners were suffering and were walking. It was that hot!!

We made our way thru the park, past runners proudly sporting their finishers medals, with bags of ice on their heads, on their necks, under their arms....courtesy of the support crew. NICE!!

Finally, at the letter *R* we found John (3:09:09), Gwen (3:20:16), Mandi (3:29:06), and Ryan. For all their protestations about how hard it was, they all looked fantastic!! We all knew that it would be a while before the walkers arrived, so we talked, took pictures and waited while the sun beat down. Eduardo (3:21:46) arrived, then Jean (4:05:22), and Melissa (4:12:23) and Laurie, with Karen, Zoe, and Christine (Team Melaurie).

I IM'd Sam (3:29:27) to direct him from the Charity Village to the Reunite area.

Mimi arrived, and Zak (4:43:42, first marathon!!) and Ge (4:33:36 PR!!). Katie and Jon arrived and everyone's camera came out. We tried to *will* the helicopters closer to provide some breeze.

And then it was time to leave. We walked Sam back to the Charity Village to meet his host for the weekend and then made our way to the *L* to take us back to Midway Airport. She kept reminding me how *flexible* she was being by waiting until after 12 to eat lunch. But, truth be told, we were ravenous too, and after we found the car, shed some clothes and put on sandals, we made our way to the nearest White Castle for sliders for Jerry and I and chicken rings for Asia.

It was a wonderful weekend. We had a night away, cheered for our team, and met Sam.

In less than 24 hours after we'd left, we were on our way back home. It was so fast that Jerry had jet lag Monday!

(If you're not too tired of reading, go to http://www.operationjack.com/ and read Sam's blog. You will be amazed at what he's accomplished this year...........the year of 48 (so far), 50, after this weekend, and soon to be 61 marathons.

Next report, the Detroit Half-Marathon!!!

CRIM 2010

2010-08-29T18:42:00.003-04:00

Post-CRIM party

In August of 1977, Michigan House Speaker, Bobby Crim and his assistant Lois Craig launched the first Bobby Crim Road Race. Little did they know that they were embarking on a journey that would change the City of Flint forever! Yesterday was the 34th running of the CRIM Festival of Races, which probably doesn't bear a whole lot of resemblance to the first race.........except for some of the original runners, who reassemble each year to recreate that first race. Asia and 80 of her teammates were part of the nearly 10,000 runners who braved the Bradley Hills to pound down the bricks on Saginaw Street yesterday for the 10 mile run. It was Asia's 105th race and her 5th time running the CRIM. She finished in 1:20:00, an 8 min. pace, and her 3rd best time for a 10 mile race. She was 42 in her AG out of 517, 227 female, out of 4,338, and 1,365 over all, out of 8,967.

I'll have more pix to post later.............right now my camera battery is complaining of overuse. This one of the 3 of us is courtesy of Zoe!

And here are the results for the rest of the team:

1.03.53 6.23 Doug Goodhue (M6569)
1.06.32 6.39 Craig Frankland (M2529)
1.06.35 6.39 Eduardo Matsuo (M5559)
1.06.44 6.40 Shaun Palmer (M3034)
1.06.49 6.40 Rob Morgan (M4549)
1.09.06 6.54 Bob Trustman (M3539)
1.09.09 6.54 Erin LaRusso (F4044)
1.09.20 6.56 Gwen Frederickson (F3539)
1.09.26 6.56 Jon Cioffi (M4044)
1.09.59 6.59 Aaron Pratt (M5559)
1.10.22 7.02 Mike Tamilia (M4549)
1.11.25 7.08Jessica Shehab (F3034)
1.11.57 7.11 Chris Brandly (M4044)
1.12.12 7.13 Marie Wolfgram (F3034)
1.13.13 7.19 Lee Mamola (M5559)
1.15.03 7.30 Joy Racowski (F2529)
1.15.46 7.34Curt Steenbeke (M4549)
1.15.58 7.35 Duane Culp (M4549)
1.16.12 7.37 Ian Parker (M2024)
1.16.29 7.38 Alex Breuning (M3539)
1.16.37 7.39Katie Sytniak (F3034)
1.16.51 7.41 Ron Smerigan (M3034)
1.17.01 7.42 Michael Mester (M5054)
1.17.18 7.43 John Gossiaux (M5054)
1.18.40 7.52 en Fike (F4044)
1.18.52 7.53 Carmen Green-Lee (F4549)
1.19.10 7.55 Irwan Salim (M3034)
1.19.22 7.56 Zoe Thompson (F3539)
1.20.00 8.00 Asia Renning (F2529)
1.20.29 8.02 Ted Stilber (M4044)
1.20.31 8.02 Axel Demuth (M4549)
1.20.48 8.04 Laurie Hartman (F4044)
1.21.23 8.08 Julie Beall (F2024)
1.21.26 8.08 Rick Neubert (M5054)
1.22.00 8.12 Christine Comer (F3539)
1.25.45 8.34 Karen Phelps (F4044)
1.25.49 8.34 Brad Carlson (M3539)
1.27.44 8.46 Patrick Lauer (M3539)
1.27.50 8.47Suzi Stock (F5054)
1.28.05 8.48 Diane Kast (F2529)
1.28.36 8.51 Robin Linfield (F4044)
1.28.36 8.51Heather Hengesbach (F2529)
1.29.40 8.58 Karin Demuth (F4549)
1.29.51 8.59 Mimi Cox (F5054)
1.31.26 9.08 Doug Bateson (M5054)
1.32.13 9.13 Paul Reason (M5559)
1.33.03 9.18 Becky Zak (F2529)
1.33.09 9.18 Marianne Carter (F2529)
1.33.45 9.22 Toni LeMaster (F4549)
1.33.53 9.23 Kate Huffman (F2529)
1.34.18 9.25 Amy Lawson (F3539)
1.34.27 9.26James Kibbie (M6064)
1.34.29 9.26 Laura Locke (F3539)
1.35.05 9.30 Emily Witt (F2529)
1.35.07 9.30 John Wilkes (M6064)
1.35.13 9.32Liz Wright (F3034)
1.35.15 9.32 Kris Welko (F3539)
1.35.51 9.35 Akane Hodge (M3539)
1.36.49 9.40 Linda Doll (F5054)
1.38.05 9.48 Jane Peters Arnold (F5559)
1.38.15 9.49 Brandon Buyaki (M3539)
1.38.06 9.48 Bob Riesterer (M5054)
1.39.03 9.54 Matt Kowalski (M4044)
1.42.25 10.14 Liz Marshall (F3539)
1.44.10 10.25 Cindy Goodhue (F6064)
1.45.22 10.32 Kellie LaBarr (F3539)
1.45.39 10.33 David Pfiester (M5054)
1.45.42 10.33 Peggy Campbell (F6064)
1.47.38 10.47 Jill Kowalski (F4044)
1.50.02 11.00 Lois Davidson (F4549)
1.52.40 11.16 Maryann Chupa (F5559)
1.54.10 11.25 Ken Gray (M4549)
1.55.00 11.30 Raelene Miller-Hagan (F4044)
1.56.37 11.39 Eron Mitchell (M3539)
1.58.37 11.51 Karen Sanders (F4549)
2.00.14 12.01 Andrea Schultz (F4549)
2.00.23 12.01 Tracy Featherston (F3539)
2.01.13 12.07 Julie Kluka (F2529)
2.03.03 12.18 Nickie Bateson (F4549)
2.17.25 13.44 Kristen Lesondak (F3539)
2.40.42 16.04 Katie Darling (F3034)
2.48.24 16.50 Gene Gaunt (M5054)

#104 "run like mike" Rutka 5K

2010-08-01T20:06:00.014-04:00

Lining up at the start

Carmen and Asia after the race.

The winner of Jason's Walk for Cerebral Palsy!

James, Carmen, Jumanne, Jerry and Asia. Carmen, Jumanne, and Asia were all 1st place in their age groups.

Age group awards. The caricatures represent different facets of Michael Rutka's life, and each one has adorned a race t-shirt.

Today was the 10th running of the Rutka 5k, and Asia has run 9 of them, only missing 2003. The "run like mike" Rutka 5k remembers and honors Michael J. Rutka, husband, father, and local runner, who was killed by a passing car on August 6, 1999, while training for the Twin Cities Marathon as a qualifier for Boston. The "run like mike" Rutka 5k continues Michael's practive of giving generously to charity, and raises funds for Cerebral Palsy of Metro Detroit. In addition to the 5k run, there is a 2 mile walk, a 100 yard Kid's dash and a 50 yard Jason's Walk for Cerebral Palsy.

Asia woke up saying she was "thinking positive about getting a PR today." I didn't want to discourage her, but her last PR was a big one....1 min 9 sec., on pavement, early in the day. Today's race started at 9am, it was hot and 94% humidity at the start. Plus it rained yesterday, so the bridges and wood chipped trails would be slippery. AND she ran 10 fast miles on her long run with Katie on Saturday. But who am I to discourage positive thinking???

Feet taped? Check. Race day breakfast? Check. Operation Jack literature for the flyer table: Check. Race watch on and zeroed out? Check. All mom's gear in the race bag? Check. Time to go!

Asia's Coach Gina is the race director, and a number of her team were course marshalls and water station volunteers. Lots of familiar, friendly faces.

Bib pinned, shoes tied by dad, all pre-race rituals completed. Time to head to the start.

We had already met up with Carmen and her husband James and son Jumanne....the family that runs together....and at the start line Asia got in front of them all. But that was ok, because she knows the course, and I knew Jumanne would pass her like he was shot out of a cannon.

Race director's announcements, National Anthem, horn sounds and they are O F F and running across the first wooden bridge.

The course is two loops around Gallup Park and is very spectator friendly. Jerry was already out at the 1 mile and I went back to the mile-and-a-half spot. When Asia passed Jerry the first time she was 5th female. When she got to me she was 4th, and at 1.5 miles her time was 9:22!!!! Next lap around, when she passed Jerry she was 6th female but passed one when Jerry cheered her on. I was waiting near the finish, where I could see her coming from a distance but still see the finish line clock. Jumanne blew past 2 walkers on the right and looked like he was floating. (Some people just make it look so easy!). Asia came around the corner with a nice sprint to the finish, encouraged by her teammates who were working the finish line detail. Her time was 22:28, her second best 5k time ever. She finished 1st in her age group, 6th female, and 20th overall! Not a bad way to start her Sunday.

While we waited for the results to be posted, I had the opportunity to talk about Operation Jack (http://www.operationjack.com/) with some folks who had picked up the flyers. Hopefully some more support will come Sam's way from the Ann Arbor running community.

We watched the Kids dash and then the always inspiring Jason's Walk. There were 3 participants this year, 3 children with Cerebral Palsy in their walkers, making their way around the course to the cheers and applause of all the runners and staff. It is always so emotional, after watching the 5k race and people like Asia and Carmen, Jumanne and James, who make running look so easy, and then to watch these children who struggle just to get the walker to move. Hopefully someday there will be more effective treatments to help them.

It always makes me realize that, for all her challenges, Asia is pretty darned lucky. And so are we.

# 103, The Gallup Gallop

2010-07-11T20:23:00.003-04:00

Operation Jack Flyers, strategically left around the park.

Lining up at the start.

First lap around the park, she was 9th female.

3oth Anniversary of Huron River day, commemorative oar given to age group winners.

This is a fun 5k that celebrates Huron River Day in Ann Arbor. Asia has run it 5 or 6 times. The course is a combination of asphalt and wood chip covered trails. There are wooden bridges that can be slippery after a rain or in high humidity. The race starts a little late......9am....so it can be kinda warm out there! The course is twice around the park, so there are several places for Jerry and I to watch and cheer. Asia had a great run, with a time of 23:12. She was 2nd in her age group and 6th female overall. Instead of a medal, this year the age group winners got a small, hand-crafted wooden oar, in celebration of the 30th Anniversary of Huron River Day. Kinda cool, huh!!!

Firecracker 5k.....#102

2010-07-04T19:26:00.010-04:00

Asia found a new gear today......But as usual, I'm going to do things backwards. ***ANNOUNCEMENT*** This is going to be one huge, run-on paragraph, because for some reason I can't enter line spaces tonight. So ya'll put in the paragraphs where you think they belong, because I can't. Maybe I can change font colors to indicate paragraphs........we'll see how that works. Last week was the Solstice Run. It was the first time Asia had run that race, and she did really well........just 10 sec. shy of a PR for a 10 mile run. Lotsa fun, and all that, and hopefully I can write more about that race later, but right now I really want to write about the Firecracker 5k. Yesterday was the 2nd Saturday long run of Running Fit 501's Summer 2010 session. Katie and Asia had planned to run together, even though they are not officially training together this summer. Katie is working on her speed since qualifying for Boston and is training with a faster pace group. Asia struggled some over the winter to keep up with that group, so Coach felt Asia would benefit from running with a different group. (I really hesitate to call it a *slower* group, because they are still danged fast!). Asia's schedule called for her to run 10 miles yesterday....Katie planned to run 14, so she went out for a 4 mile run before practice started.The group was scheduled to start at 7am in order to finish before the heat of the day. I left Asia with Katie and the group and headed out to the first water stop. At each of the first 3 water stops Asia was easily keeping pace with the rest of the group, running between an 8:15 and an 8:30 pace. As usual, Katie had to reel her in on several occasions when Asia would get out in front. At the 4th water stop, Asia was slightly behind, and by the the time they arrived back at the meeting spot, Katie and Jen both said Asia had tired between mile 7 and 8. Still they finished not that far behind the rest of the group. After the run, Asia asked Katie if they were running together at the race on Sunday. Katie replied, "No, I'm racing, and so are you. I'm gonna try to beat you tomorrow." We left practice, ran some errands and went home to get ready for a birthday party yesterday afternoon. This morning I fixed Asia's tried and true race day breakfast of Jimmy Dean's Hot Sausage and scrambled eggs, plus a little canteloupe on the side. She had selected her American Flag shorts for the race, in honor of Independence Day. We arrived in Ann Arbor about 7:30 for an 8:00 AM race start, plenty of time to get her bib and timing chip. While Jerry was supervising as Asia did some warm-up laps I went to get her checked in. (I have been dealing with a badly sprained foot for about two weeks now, so my walk up to the registration table was not at my normal speed. My slower-than-normal pace allowed me to look around more than usual). I found myself seeing so many people that I/we knew and it really made me conscious of just how many people we have come to know through Asia's running career. So many wonderful people...... I claimed her bib #, timing chip and race t-shirt and made my way back through the crowd to where Jerry and Asia were waiting. The lines for the porta-johns was ridiculous, so we made our way to the start. Jerry gave Asia a kiss for luck and headed out for his viewing/cheering spot along the course. Most of Asia's best running buddies were already there, right up front....Katie, Jen, Gwen, Jon, Michael, Aaron, Rick, Carmen, then Gianna arrived and Ted and Claudio, who were not racing today, stopped by to wish everyone well. And then it was National Anthem, *Runners take your mark! Get Set.!* And at the sound of the horn, they were off and running. I waited for Asia to cross the timing mat and set my watch. This was a spectator-friendly course, in that the runners passed by us once before the finish. With Jerry out on the course, that gave us at least 4 opportunities to cheer for Asia and her team before the finish. At races like this Jerry and I stay connected by cell phone to report the results as we see them. I am always at the finish with the watch, and Jerry alerts me who's coming down the course to the finish next. When the group passed by the first time, Asia was well out in front of Asia and Carmen.........but that's happened before, and it almost always changes by the finish. When the first finishers had rounded the last corner and were on their way down Liberty Street, I crossed to the other side to have a better view. Jerry called them out as they passed him, and one by one, they streaked past me to the finish: John, 13, Jumanne (Carmen's son) 43, Aaron, 51, Rick, 52, Jon, 54, Gwen 65, Eric, 80, Gianna, 99.....and then he started yelling for Asia..........she was on the home stretch and the clock read 20 minutes and some seconds! (In order to get a PR in this event, Asia had to run it faster than 22 minutes and 49 seconds.) I could see far enough down Liberty street, and Asia's American Flag shorts were distinctive enough, that I could spot her from quite a distance away. I'm sure the poor folks around me are functionally deaf now from my screaming. Asia crossed the finish line in 21 minutes, 40 seconds! A 1 minute, 9 second PR! Her pace was 6:58, the fastest she has ever run a race! I limped/hobbled to the finish line and met her at the water station just as Katie came running up, eyes big as saucers, "That was like, a minute PR for her, wasn't it? I couldn't catch her! I'd just catch up to her, and I'd say, ' Great job Asia, you're doing awesome' and she'd take off like she was shot from a cannon! She helped ME get a PR today too, just trying to keep up with her!" And one-by-one her teammates came up to congratulate her on a fantastic race. Carmen, Gwen, Jen, Jon, John, Aaron, Rick, Ted, Michael, Claudio, Gianna. Their joy for her, and their pride in her accomplishment was almost overwhelming. Even though she beat Carmen, Katie and Jen, I don't think they could have been any happier if she were their own sister. Katie said, " I wanna race with you in another 5k and get a sub-21:30!" And, of course Asia immediately wanted to know when that race would happen! We all hung around the Running Fit Store, eating giant muffins and Rice Crispie treats waiting for results to be posted and for the Award Ceremony to begin. The award medals were given 5 deep in each age group and the Running Fit 501 team cleaned up! John (Katie's husband) was 1st in his age group, Aaron, 1st, Rick, 3rd, Gwen, 1st, Gianna, 1st, Asia, 3rd, Katie, 5th, Carmen, 1st and Jen, 4th, Linda 4th, and Beth 5th!! (And remember, most of these folks ran at least 10 miles yesterday as part of their regular training runs!) Jerry took pictures of each with their medals. We almost didn't go to this race. We were talking about sleeping in, something we rarely get to do during the summer race season. But so many of Asia's team mates were running it, and encouraging her to run it too.........that I decided to take her if she wanted to go. Well, duh! Of course she wanted to go if the rest of her buds were going to be there. Jerry almost didn't go. He was feeling stressed and over extended and thought the day would start off better if he didn't get up before the crack 'o' dawn and didn't rush out the door at 7am. In the end, he decided that if he stayed home, he still wouldn't get outside til 9am or after.........about the time we'd get home after the race.........so he decided to go. And, as it turned out, it was a race neither of us would have wanted to miss.

Once again I'm doing it backwards

2010-06-06T20:19:00.005-04:00

The giant collage poster of 100 race pictures.

Asia and Linda Doll at our table.

Asia and Coach Gina at the Stampede.

It's self-explanatory!

Once again I'm doing it backwards but I'm too tired to care.

Here are some pictures of the giant Rice Crispie treat, the Stampede, and the Expo.

# 100!!!

2010-06-06T17:07:00.006-04:00

Jerry and Asia before the start. Notice the Bib # 100!!!

Part of our fabulous team!!

Asia and Jenny, a friend she ran with in high school.

The last shreds of pulled pork! The Buffalo Wild Wings were long gone!!

It was a crazy week! There was something going on every night. Monday was the holiday, Tuesday night was RF501 practice, Wednesday the Fair opened with a parade and rides; Thursday, organizing stuff to take to the Expo. Friday morning I arrived at work to find not 1 but 2 giant Rice Crispie treats, one with 100 in M&Ms and the other with 100 in Hershey Kisses that my friend Mary had made for Asia. Later Friday we had Asia's Person Centered Planning meeting, then the Stampede (the celebration dinner before the Dexter-Ann Arbor (DxA2 from here on) race, then back to Milan for the Fair week fireworks. Whew!!

Saturday was the DxA2 Expo, and Coach Gina was kind enough to arrange a table for us to celebrate Asia's 100th race. We really wanted to use the opportunity of the race to show the abilities of persons with autism. There was a wonderful article in AnnArbor.com on Tuesday that brought a lot of attention to our table. http://www.annarbor.com/news/milan-woman-overcomes/ We used the time at the Expo to talk about Asia's running career as well as raise some $$$ for Operation Jack/Train4Autism. Linda Doll helped me set up the booth and man it until early afternoon. We had a blast!

Last night was exciting! After hearing all day that storms were in the forecast, when none had materialized by bedtime we went to bed without a care in the world! At 2:30 a dear friend called from many miles away to tell us there was a tornado virtually in our backyard! And then the power went out!! Fortunately, we have a whole-house generator, so we were back in the juice and could monitor the storm movement on TV...........well, I did..........Jerry went back to sleep! I guess he figured if we were carried off to OZ he would know it soon enough.

At dawn the power was still off, and one of the things we didn't connect to the generator was the stove.....figuring that we could microwave or use the grill. Well, Asia's preferred and proven *race day breakfast* of Jimmy Dean Hot sausage and scrambled eggs required the grill, so at first light I was in the back yard frying up sausage!

The power was back on by the time we left, but the whole night/morning had thrown my timing and organization off, so we left without Asia's fuel belt and *chocolate water*. Operator error!!

We met up with and took pictures with as many of the team as we could before time to line up at the start. Katie, Gwen, Jen, John, Joy, and the rest of *Team Ted* took Asia with them to get a good place at the start. Asia doesn't pass people well, so the closer we can get her to the front, the better overall race she will have. It was scheduled for an 8:30 Start time, right? NOT! The storm last night had taken a tree down across the course and would cause a 30 minute delay while crews with chainsaws cut it apart and hauled it off the road!

OK, cue the mad dash to the port-a-johns!

At 8:50 we found Asia's starting group again and sent her off with them. Jerry and I made our way to the front timing mat to try to get an accurate start time for her.

National anthem, wheelers off and gone, and ...........*Runners take your mark!.........GO!!!!*

We watched as Asia and her group crossed the start and dashed off to the car to beat them to the 2 mile point.

John, Katie's husband, was the first of our team at the 2 mile. We ticked them off........John, Claudio, Farsad, and more, and then .......whoa!! There was Asia at a better-than-8:30 pace!! Fast forward to mile 5, she had slipped back a bit but was still doing amazing. On to mile 8.5, snapping pictures of the team as they passed, little did I know that somewhere along the line my camera got switched to video mode. So what I thought were snaps of the runners turned out to be a flash of them going by, followed by pavement, shoes, grass, and the inside of my race bag :>( ........sigh.......Hopefully Jerry's turned out better!

From Mile 8.5 we headed for the finish. Parking in A2 is always a challenge, but we found a space in the structure at 4th and Liberty, only a few blocks from the finish line. We arrived too late to see John cross, but Claudio and Eduardo had just finished. I slipped inside the gate and made my way to the finish line on the runners side while Jerry headed up the block to alert me to all of our finishers and to get that last minute sprint out of Asia. One by one they crossed the line, some looking better than others. Jerry met up with our friend Maryann, who had driven down from Pinckney to witness the historic 100th race.....Asia had guilted her for weeks into coming so even the storms of last night couldn't keep her away! We knew from previous runners the time lapse from when Jerry saw them to when I saw them cross the finish line. When Jerry spotted Asia and I added the seconds to when she could cross, I realized that she could have a PR and started cheering for her even tho I couldn't see her yet. Her actual time was 8 seconds over her PR time, but still an incredible race! She finished in 1:47:56...totally on her own. 8:15 pace. It was her best race of the year so far, and a fantastic time. We finished the morning off at the Taste of Ann Arbor, where Asia ate her fill of Buffalo Wild Wings and pulled pork. What a great day! Thanks to everyone who sent good wishes in advance and those who were there today to cheer in person!

#99

2010-05-09T09:45:00.005-04:00

This is the one race that Asia doesn't eat *race day* breakfast (Jimmy Dean Hot sausage and scrambled eggs) before. It's the Milan 5k, at the beginning of Discover Milan Day, and there is a pancake breakfast after the race. I make Asia's soy pancakes to take with us and the cooks are kind enough to fry them up for her.

Yesterday couldn't have been much nastier (in my opinion). May 8, 45* temps and winds of 45 mph driving the cold, soaking rain. BUT, Running Fit runners train in everything, so Asia took it in stride.

This was the first race I hadn't pre-registered her for in a while, and it worked in our favor. There were only 2 ahead of us in the late registration line and about 30 in the pre-reg line. We got her number, took a picture of her in her Operation Jack shirt, and went to visit with some old friends we hadn't seen in a long while.

When it was time for the race to start, Coach Porter said he was going to do a false start for the newspaper. He meant for the runners to pose as if taking off, but I took him literally.....a false START, not just pose.....so when the gun sounded, I held Asia back, thinking she would be confused. But wait.........why weren't the other runners coming back to the start? OH NO, that was the real start........take off Asia!! By then the walkers had started (small race) so she had to navigate around them, which is not her strong suit. ...sigh....plus, I didn't start my watch. Operator error x 2!

I went inside the Senior Center for a while to warm up, then went back to the finish line to wait. This isn't a race where we get to see the runners once they leave. I started my watch off of Coach Porter's at 16 minutes and spent some time talking to his oldest daughter Kyle, who ran with Asia in high school. What a treat! She's grown into a wonderful young woman.

At 18 minutes and some change the first runners came thru. Jerry was in town and could see them turn one of the last corners. He said the wind was so bad that the walkers were having trouble just moving forward.

Finally at 25 minutes and some seconds Asia appeared on the bridge. We knew it would be some time before the results were posted, so we headed up to meet Jerry for breakfast.

The results still aren't posted on the website, but Jerry saw Coach Porter later and Asia was 2nd in her age group! Good for her! Number 99 is now history. On to 100, the Dexter-Ann Arbor Half Marathon on June 6!

Burns Park 10K 2010

2010-05-02T17:16:00.009-04:00

Asia, Inez, Eric, Eric S. Michael and Carmen, at the start.

Coach Gina, finishing the 5k!

Asia rounding the corner at about 1 mile.

Carmen at the finish, and her husband James, who ran the 5k then went out to finish with Carmen.

Down the hill to the finish!

Well, this was Asia's 4th race of the year, and I think it was her best so far. After a very *uncomfortable* (her term) long run last Saturday, I took her to Arbor Wellness for a massage and some serious stretching. Asia's right hip was bothering her, but getting her to admit it, and agree to stop running that day was the hard part. She was ok at 2 miles, slowing down at 5, really behind her group at 7, at which point she finally admitted that she was *uncomfortable* but still wanted to run. At the 10 mile water stop, she was quite far behind the rest of her group, and finally, reluctantly, agreed that she should be done for the day. We ran some errands and then went home so I could schedule some appointments.

Asia doesn't stretch. Her coach and team tried during high school and she would go through the motions, half-heartedly, but not really doing it. Since then, I've tried to duplicate her coach's stretching routine with Asia before races but it was more for me than for her. Coach Gina works on stretching with each group before the long runs on Saturday. Watching Asia do it is almost comical. So it's no surprise when, about this time before a major race, that she has some issues.

This time, as before, the fine folks at Arbor Wellness worked their magic, and after a couple of visits, Asia felt fine. She even did the stretches they showed her at home in the evenings. And when prompted, she did them before the race today. Maybe we're entering a new era............nah!!!

After a brief thunderstorm, and some heavy downpours early this morning, the skies settled themselves into a gloomy overcast, with 63 degree temps and high humidity. Not an ideal race day, but not the worst they've run in. Asia got a spot near the front with Michael, Carmen, Inez and her Eric and Eric Straka, all Running Fit 501 team members and at the sound of the horn, they took off. The concept of negative splits is foreign to Asia. She goes out hard and runs that way until she can't anymore. Her coach has tried, Lord knows she's tried, to get Asia to go out slower and gradually increase her pace but it's like fighting gravity.

Near the 1 mile spot Asia was the 3rd female. Near the 2 mile she was still the 3rd female and still ahead of Carmen but we suspected it couldn't last. At the halfway point she had dropped back and was a little behind Carmen. I was at that corner, urging her to catch Carmen. Asia gets juice from people cheering for her, so strategically placed cheerleaders can change the outcome of her race. By about mile 4 she and Carmen were within an arms length of each other. (Cue Adair to dash across the park to the 5 mile viewing spot.) At 5 miles I shouted, "Asia, you need to push Carmen, she wants a PR today too!" And Asia took off like a bullet, passing Carmen! Carmen said later that when Asia passed her she said, "Are you tired?" When Carmen replied, "Yes, I am!" Asia said, "Good!"

Jerry was on the hill at about the 3 mile spot and I was at the finish. Carmen beat her, but Asia ran a great race, finishing in 48:54 and 2nd in her age group! Carmen was 1st in her age group. Way to go both of you! That was fun to watch. And a big shout out to the folks at Arbor Wellness for getting Asia back up to speed!!!

Oh, and this was Asia's 98th race since finishing high school, and not including Special Olypmics 5k races, which are not recognized by Athlinks.

Next Saturday is Number 99!

Sam Felsenfeld @ Boston 2010

2010-04-19T20:18:00.010-04:00

Sam at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, 2010

I can't imagine running even 1 Marathon.........ever. Beyond that, running more than one a year, seeing how my team trains for that, is remarkable.

Having said that, what Sam Felsenfeld is doing is, quite simply, mind boggling. Sam is attempting to run 6o marathons (no typo there folks......that's S I X T Y full marathons, in 2010.

Today he completed his 20th this year.......2 days after completing his 19th, and one week after completing # 17 and #18 in the same weekend.

All marathons are equal.........in distance, that is. They are all 26.2 miles. But there are marathons, and there are MARATHONS, and today's was a MARATHON....the Boston Marathon. The Granddaddy of Marathons. The 114th Boston Marathon. The world's oldest marathon. The Holy Graile of Marathons. You don't just get to go to the website, sign up, pay the entry fee, and run Boston. No. You have to qualify....run a certain pace according to your age....to be able to go. And then you have to register in time, because it has become so popular that the registration closes in record time these days. Tens of thousands of runners strive every year to qualify. Most don't make it. Sam did.....along with 25,000 other amazing runners (some from *my* team.)

Most of the other runners had done their 20 miler, their taper, their carb-loading, and tried to rest the night before Boston. There the similarities end. Sam ran a marathon last Saturday, one last Sunday, and one on the 17th....2 days before Boston. For Sam, there is no taper. Sam runs at least one marathon a weekend, sometimes 2, in honor of his son Jack, who had autism. Sam is trying to raise awareness of autism around the country, and to raise funds thru Operation Jack and Train4Autism, a group which allows athletes to raise funds for the autism-related charity of their choice. Members of Train4Autism have all been touched, in some way, by autism.....a child, the child of a friend, a cousin, aunt, neighbor....who has/had autism. Someone who meant enough to them to want to help make a difference, to help make their lives better.

Sam got up this morning and boarded the bus, just like the other runners. But there again all similarities ended. Sam had already raced in 19 full marathons THIS YEAR before today. 19!!! Plus a couple of 5k and 10k runs ......... just ......well, just because they were there, and so was he. And, in case you're curious, he has a job, and a family that he adores, and misses like oxygen when he's on the marathon trail. But his job has some flexibility built in, and his family totally supports what he is trying to accomplish. His wife, Tiffany, holds down the family fort, and counts the hours until Sam is home again.

I had the privilege of tracking Sam at the Boston Marathon today. With today's modern technology, I could enter his bib # at the Boston Marathon website and get updates at the 5k, 10k, 15k, and so on, through the finish. I was tracking members of *my* own team as well. Sam popped up first, and the race was on. 3 hours and 3 minutes and 48 seconds later Sam crossed the finish line, with his best time of the year, AND qualifying to run Boston again next year!!!

I just don't think I have superlatives adequate to discribe that.

I've never met Sam, tho I hope to one day. But I'm proud to write about him and to support what he's trying to accomplish. Asia will run her 100th race in his honor on June 6th.

Next weekend Sam will be racing in the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon in Nashville on April 24th. If you're around, go cheer him on. If you're running that race, look for the guy in the Operation Jack shirt and give him a shout out. If not, check out his results at http://www.operationjack.com/ . If autism has impacted your life or the life of someone you know and love, and you're so inclined, make a donation.......or simply pass on the site to your friends.

My Team by Adair

2010-04-19T20:01:00.005-04:00

Ok, a couple of disclaimers here: 1. I am not a runner, never have been, never will be. Anything I know about running I have learned courtesy of Coach Gina and the Running Fit 501 team. 2. I LOVE *my* team! I call them my team because I have the privilege of pouring water for them at the water stops on Tuesday practices and most Saturday long runs, and I get to know them by bits and pieces. I've seen how hard they train, how they care for each other and support each other. I've seen them run on days so cold that their eyelashes freeze; in snow up to their calves; on ice that would challenge the Detroit Redwings Hockey team; in downpours that would be challenging to drive in, much less run through; on days hot enough to fry an egg on the pavement (well, almost, maybe, but you get the idea.) There may be some friendly competition between members, but when the rubber meets the road, they are all there for each other. They cheer for each other, they strategize races, they rally at the finish line for a late finisher. They are, in the best sense of the word, a family...........a family created not by birth but by choice. Sometimes family members move on, and new members join, but it's like an ever-expanding circle....it just keeps getting bigger. When Asia was invited to join the Team 4 years ago, we had no idea where it would end up. Little did we know how warmly and completely she would be embraced by the Team. Little did we know that there would be a place for us too. We are so happy to be a part of that family.

Boston Marathon 2010....part 2

2010-04-19T19:24:00.005-04:00

Well, the 114th Boston Marathon is now in the history books, and with it, the names of our Running Fit 501 Team Members who ran it. Between Jerry and I, we were able to track most of the team and text their times to others who weren't close by a computer during race time. The Boston Marathon website only allows you to track 5 runners at a time. Jerry was able to open more than one browser and track 5 in each, but I was limited to 1 browser with 5 runners only
:>(. But it all worked out. So here are the times we have, as of about 4:30 this afternoon, collected courtesy of Coach Gina:

Rob Marshall: 3.12.54
Claudio Salas: 4.04.21
Farsad Fotouhi: 3.20.57
Rob Morgan: 3.13.53 Congrats Rob on a fantastic finish!
Trevor Young: 3.26.58
Marie Wolfgram: 3.24.55 way to go Marie with even splits!! You rocked!
Stephanie Roehm: 3.28.40
Jim O'Brien: 3.34.04 Andrea Walrath: 3.44.54
Joy Racowski: 3.42.44
Doug LeMaster: 3.36.54 way to go Doug! Nice even splits!
Gwen Frederickson: 3.38.39 PR!
Zoe Thompson: 3.44.58
Erin LaRusso: 3.35.42
Sahoko Little: 3.49.04 PR!!
Yana Parfenuk: 4.08.57

Congratulations to you all! You are all rock stars in my book! We are so proud of you and happy that you have achieved this goal and had this amazing experience. We can't wait to hear the stories when you get back to Ann Arbor. Enjoy your evening and the rest of your stay in Boston. We love you all!

(Hopefully there will be some pix to post in a day or so.)

Boston Marathon 2010

2010-04-18T20:04:00.011-04:00

The girls show off their matching LIVESTRONG singlets.

Unfortunately not everyone was at the store for *picture night*

Well, here they are.....our Running Fit 501 2010 Boston Marathon team! I'll be tracking them tomorrow and will report final results as soon as they are confirmed. They've trained throughout the long winter months and we're so proud of all of them. They earned their spot at this celebrated race, and we know they will all have an amazing day.

Roehm, Stephanie - 8132

Walrath, Andrea - 8287

Racowski, Joy - 9278

Kohlitz, Shannon - 9587

Wolfgram, Marie - 9970

Thompson, Zoe - 12490

LaRusso, Erin - 13051

Parfenyuk, Yana - 15926

Frederickson, Gwen - 17208

Little, Sahoko - 20494

Salas, Claudio - 4007

Morgan, Rob - 4457

Fotouhi, Farsad - 5498

Marshall, Rob - 6633

Young, Trevor - 8227

O'Brien, Jim - 10555

LeMaster, Doug – 12710

We'll also be tracking Sam Felsenfeld, with bib # 3081. Sam is attempting to run 60 marathons this year to honor his young son Jack, who has autism. Sam ran his 19th marathon this year yesterday, April 17, in Charlottesville, WV, with a time of 3:21. Monday he'll race at Boston. You can read all about it at http://www.operationjack.org/ and see his impressive times in the 1st 19.

Another young man we'll be tracking is Andrew Bryant of Seattle, Washington. Andy ran the Boston Marathon last year with a time of 3:05, and is aiming for a sub-3 this year. Andy, like Asia, has autism and is an accomplished runner.

Have a great run everyone!! We will be the wind at your backs!

2010 Martian Invasion of Races

2010-04-11T20:28:00.006-04:00

Coach to Asia before the race, " Asia, I want you to run really hard!" Asia to Coach, "What are we doing Tuesday at practice?"

Asia and Rick, about mile 5

Asia and Rick, cruisin' to the finish line!

Rick, Asia and Michael

John flying to the finish!

Rick, Gabe, Asia, John, Gwen, Ted, and Jen

Plate 1 of the post-race meal!

It was a day made for racing, and that's what our Running Fit 501 runners did! They came out in force and showed those Martians who rules this universe!

0.22.19 7.11 Sahoko Little PR

10K

0.42.48 6.53 Ted Stilber PR by 4 minutes!

0.57.03 9.17 Jane Peters-Arnold

0.57.38 9.18 Joanie Freed PR

0.58.13 9.22 Dave Matteson PR

0.59.52 9.38 James Freed PR

1.02.35 10.04 Rhonda Barnes

1.06.30 10.42 Joanne Smith PR

1.14.43 12.02 Jenn Barry

HALF

1.31.22 6.58 Craig Frankland PR

1.49.32 8.22 Laurie Hartman PR

1.50.04 8.24 Greg Sloan

1.51.12 8.29 Michael Mester

1.51.47 8.32 William Fox PR

1.53.57 8.42 Rick Neubert

1.53.59 8.42 Asia Renning

1.53.59 8.42 Kumiko Berger

1.54.38 8.45 Beth Remke PR

1.56.33 8.54 Cathy Kolpacki PR

1.57.25 8.58 Dianna Banka

2.02.03 9.19 James Kibbie PR

2.02.12 9.20 Harriet Lindsay

2.10.15 9.57 Amy Lawson

2.14.32 10.16 Haewon Uhm

2.17.48 10.31 Beth LaCasse

2.21.39 10.49 Melissa Boyea

2.24.12 11.00 Eileen Latini PR

2.25.14 11.05 Rod Smith

FULL

2.51.31 6.33 John Sytniak 1st AD 4th OA PR by 10 minute

3.11.27 7.18 Eduardo Matsuo 1st AD

3.25.40 7.51 Aaron Pratt
3.25.48 7.51 Jon Cioffi PR by 7minutes!

3.36.14 8.15 Katie Sytniak PR and BQ!!

4.18.43 9.52 Sarah Juster PR

4.22.30 10.01 Emily Garvan PR

4.30.20 10.19 Solomon Rajput PR

Birthday!

2010-04-04T17:30:00.003-04:00

It was a long winter, but not a terribly harsh one. Some snow, nothing the team couldn't handle. A few cold Saturday runs, but nothing sub-zero, so they were fine. There were never any frosty eyebrows at the water stops. Still, we're all glad for the warmer days. Many on the team have their destination races coming up.......either the Martian Half or Full Marathon or Boston. Asia decided after the Detroit Marathon last fall that she likes half-marathons better, so she's running the Martian half next Saturday. ***Hmmm, for some reason I can't enter line spaces, so this will likely be a run-on paragraph unless I can come back and edit it.*** Today is Easter and also Asia's 29th birthday. Yesterday we took rice crispie treats (thank you Mary) and brownies to practice. At 3pm we arrived at Mongolian Bar-b-que in Ann Arbor with Anita, Jeff's mom, and met Aaron, John and Katie, Samantha, Carol Vollink, Sandy, Asia's bus driver, and her husband Roger, for a birthday dinner. Asia had a great time with her friends and as always, enjoys any all-you-can-eat buffet! Today she opened more gifts, including Popcorn-opolis popcorn from Meg, Jeff, and Cate! It's been a great day!!

Running Fit 501 Team Gives Back

2010-01-17T11:29:00.005-05:00

On Saturday morning, January 16, 2010, a large number of the Running Fit 501 Marathon Training Team met in Ann Arbor for the last off-season run of the, well, off season. But rather than just a Saturday long run with friends, this one had another purpose. One of our members, Marie, is a trainer for the LIVESTRONG program at the Ann Arbor YMCA. The program provides cancer survivors with the opportunity to build muscle mass and muscle strength, increase flexibility and endurance, and improve functional ability, at no cost to the participant. But it still cost the Y to run the program.

On Saturday, the runners participating in the long run each donated $5 to the LIVESTRONG program, with the goal of raising $100, which is the amount needed to sponsor one participant in the program for the entire 12-week session. We had so many runners turn out and donate that there was enough money to sponsor 2 participants! (The $5 donation was not expected or required to participate in the run......as with all off-season runs, all who showed up were welcome.)

This is just another example of the huge heart of the running community! Thanks to Rob and Marie for organizing the run, the course (although some of the runners would argue that point), the water stop, and the fund raising! And thanks to all the runners who participated! Cheers!

And, of course Asia was there, so happy to be running with her team again. They couldn't hold her back for the first 5 miles. She ran with Katie's husband John and the fast guys until a traffic light slowed her down. She waited at the water stop, then the finished the final 5 miles with Katie, Jen, Carmine and Gwen. Wicked hills on the course!

Operation Jack starts Friday!!!

2009-12-30T12:33:00.000-05:00

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!

2009-12-30T12:31:00.002-05:00

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..........

2009-12-30T12:14:00.002-05:00

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!!!

2009-12-30T12:00:00.002-05:00

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

2009-12-30T11:44:00.004-05:00

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

2009-12-30T11:35:00.004-05:00

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

2009-12-30T11:27:00.002-05:00

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

2009-12-30T11:18:00.005-05:00

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!!!

2009-12-30T10:56:00.007-05:00

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

2009-10-20T12:33:00.004-04:00

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

2009-10-20T12:25:00.003-04:00

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............

2009-10-16T12:20:00.005-04:00

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

2009-10-15T12:23:00.003-04:00

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

2009-09-20T19:21:00.004-04:00

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

2009-08-23T18:28:00.005-04:00

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

2009-08-19T12:29:00.006-04:00

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

2009-08-08T16:54:00.003-04:00

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

2009-08-08T15:38:00.006-04:00

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

2009-07-13T12:45:00.001-04:00

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

2009-06-21T20:52:00.000-04:00

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

2009-06-21T20:49:00.001-04:00

Water Stations at Saturday long run.

2009-06-21T20:06:00.004-04:00

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.......

2009-06-15T12:27:00.001-04:00

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

2009-06-13T16:39:00.000-04:00

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

2009-06-02T19:16:00.000-04:00

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.

2009-06-02T19:12:00.000-04:00

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

2009-06-01T21:59:00.001-04:00

Still MORE pix from DxA2 race

2009-06-01T21:55:00.001-04:00

More pictures from DxA2 run

2009-06-01T21:48:00.000-04:00

Dexter-Ann Arbor Half-Marathon 2009

2009-06-01T19:48:00.000-04:00

After a fortifying breakfast of Jimmy Dean Hot Sausage and scrambled eggs, Asia's typical race day breakfast, we left for Dexter. After meeting up with Katie and John, and Katie's best friend Pam, in the parking lot we walked to the school to meet the rest of the team. It was a gorgeous, clear, cool June morning and everyone was ready to run. The team had received their new race singlets the day before, so most of our people were in blue.

Because Asia has a tendency to go out too fast at the beginning, Katie has been working on keeping Asia with her during practice runs. This is not an easy task. It's not so critical on the local runs, but will be very important at the Detroit Marathon in October, when the course carries them across the Ambassador Bridge to Canada and back thru the Windsor Tunnel. Rather than keep calling her back, or urging her on faster, she and Asia decided on a code word that would mean, "Asia, slow down" or Asia speed up a little" depending on the circumstances. The code word was BURRITO. I could only imagine what would go thru the other runners' minds if Katie had to shout out "BURRITO" at the top of her lungs several times on the course!

After some pre-race pictures John took off for his warm-up run and the rest of us made our way to the starting line.

Katie and Asia found their spot in the mass of runners and I made my way to the front, close to the timing mat so I could get an accurate start time on my watch.

There was one wheeler entry this year, but I'm sorry to say I can't find her name. The crowd of runners and spectators sent her off with cheers and applause. There were 2434 runners waiting at the start.

As soon as Katie and Asia crossed the start Jerry and I took off for our car and raced to the 2 mile point. We realized quickly what a difference it made having our team dressed alike. We could look for the distinctive blue singlets and THEN look at the faces. We were able to see, cheer for, and photograph many more of our runners. We spotted Claudio, who looked strong, and incredibly fast. That was the last time we saw him......he beat us to every stop. We saw Rob, Marie, Stephanie, Michael M., Gianna, Eric, Aaron, Rick, Andrea,and many of the others. After Asia and Katie passed us, We made another mad dash for the car and headed for the 5 mile point.

We had brought "chocolate water" (Gu + water) for Asia and an extra water bottle for Katie, even though there were water stations at every 2 mile point along the course. Katie grabbed Asia's water from Jerry and kept on going.......and so did we....on to the 8 mile point.

At mile 8 everyone still looked good....their excellent training paying off! After a quick water bottle handoff, from Katie to me this time, we took off for downtown Ann Arbor and the finish line.

The crowd lining the street was almost impassable. We could see that Andrea and Claudio had already finished but had no idea of their times. Heather caught up with us and filled us in on their amazing finishes. Claudio finished in 1:23:12 and Andrea in 1:34:59.

We finally found a thin spot in the crowd and elbowed our way to the front to watch for our girls. Katie and Asia finished in 1:50:08 and 1:50:09...PR times for that race for both of them!! Katie was thrilled that she didn't have to use the "secret word" once! She said later that she felt they had evolved into a great running team.

We made our way to the team area to wait for John to find us and for pictures with the team and their medals. As we left the group to go have some lunch Jerry and I marveled again at our great good fortune to have found this amazing group of people. They have not only embraced Asia as one of their own, but also accepted us as part of the running family too! And then there's Katie, who has gone beyond being a running partner and become a true friend to Asia (and us).

Thanks to you all in Running Fit 501 for another great season. The short break will be harder for Asia, who misses you all terribly. See you in a couple of weeks!

More pix from the "Graduation".

2009-05-30T20:26:00.000-04:00

Winter 2009 Running Fit Team

2009-05-30T20:23:00.000-04:00

Asia and Coach Gina

2009-05-30T20:15:00.000-04:00

Running Fit 501 Winter 2009 Graduation

2009-05-30T19:36:00.000-04:00

Today was the last long run of the winter 2009 session of the Running Fit Marathon Training Team. To celebrate, several members baked for days, decorating cookies and cupcakes with 501 frosting in all the color groups. Coach gave awards and certificates to Color Group coaches, Top Dawgs and Experts. Asia got an award for her nearly 11 years of consecutive days of running. Coach shared a story with the other team. After she finished her first marathon, the first words out of her mouth were, "I'll NEVER do that again!" When she met Asia as she crossed the finishline at the Martian Marathon in April, the first words out of Asia's mouth were, "How much do I run tomorrow Coach?"

For many of the members, the Dexter-Ann Arbor Run tomorrow http://dexterannarborrun.com/ is their destination event......the one they have trained for all winter. Some are running their first ever 5K. Some are doing the 10K, and others, like Asia, Katie, Aaron, Claudio, Andrea, and others are running the half-marathon. In all we have 61 team members competing in one of the races tomorrow, down scenic Huron River Drive. There are 3 places along the route where Jerry and I can see the runners pass. It's a point-to-point race, so Jerry and I will drive on a road parallel to the race and cut over at several intersections to take pictures and cheer.

After picking up Asia's race packet, with her bib number and timing chip, we picked up Chinese food from Saigon Garden in Ann Arbor. Asia can't carb-load on pasta, so she eats rice......lots of rice. And Kung Pao chicken.

The batteries are charged in the camera, her feet are wrapped, to hopefully help prevent blisters. Next is making the "chocolate water", GU + water, pinning the bib number in place and securing the timing chip. And then resting for the evening.

The finish line is in downtown Ann Arbor, and the race coincides with the "Taste of Ann Arbor" a food fest, featuring local restaurants who sell their specialties in booths lining main street. Food, and lots of it......Asia's favorite way to end a half-marathon!

Stay tuned tomorrow for results and more pix.

Prom 2009

2009-05-27T19:38:00.000-04:00

Last night was Prom for the 2009 graduates of the Washtenaw Intermediate School District Young Adult Program and alumni. As an alumna, Asia was invited, and she skipped practice with her running team to go!

The ballroom at Weber's Inn was beautifully decorated and there was music and snacks. You've never seen a more enthusiastic group of dancers in your life. Unfortunately, you won't see this one either, because the battery died in my camera after I took the pre-prom pix. .....sigh.... I am not yet used to the fact that it doesn't charge from the computer, when downloading pictures....I have to take the battery out and charge it separately. All part of the learning curve. But I WILL have it charged for the Dexter-Ann Arbor Half Marathon this Sunday!

Anyway, Asia had a grand time, dancing and snacking and seeing many of her teachers and old friends from school. Her teachers knew her running history and many knew that she had run a marathon. Some may even be at the half marathon this weekend!

For Women Only Race 2009

2009-05-18T19:58:00.000-04:00

Asia ran the For Women Only 5K race yesterday, for the 6th or 7th year. This year was quite different from the recent years. There were no "Girls on the Run" http://girlsontherun.com/ this year. Their group had gotten so large that they will have their own race in 3 weeks.

Asia ran with Julie from her team. Carmen started out with them, but finished a little ahead. Asia finished 2nd in her age group, with a time of 23:38, a 7:37 pace. She was the 22nd finisher out of 342. Carmen finished 2nd in her age group and Julie was 3rd. Another fine showing for the Green Team of Running Fit 501! Julie is running 2 1/2 marathons in the next 2 weeks. YIKES! She's doing Bayshore Memorial Day weekend and the Dexter-Ann Arbor 1/2 marathon on the 31st.

The Dexter-Ann Arbor half-marathon will be Asia's next event. She and Katie are running it together. That will be the last event of the Winter 2008 RF 501 session, with a short break until the Summer 2009 session starts.

The Weekend of Two Races

2009-05-04T19:47:00.000-04:00

Asia ran a 5K on Saturday and a 10K on Sunday. She was supposed to run 10 miles with her team on Saturday, but chose to run the Discover Milan Day 5K. This is the 3rd such race, put on by Asia's cross country coach from high school days. It's a good chance to run with the current crop of Coach Porter's elite runners as well as other folks in Milan who just like to run.

Following the race is a pancake breakfast.........which is not Asia's preferred race day breakfast, even tho she loves pancakes. On race days, Asia wants scrambled eggs with sausage.....and not just any sausage..........Jimmy Dean's Hot sausage. No bagles and peanut butter for this kid, uh uh. No banana and toast, no way. Sausage and eggs, and maybe a little fruit, if we have home canned peaches, or the canteloupe is especially fresh and tasty. And Asia is not one to eat breakfast twice, so we were stuck with waiting for the pancakes. Pancakes are closer to her normal PRACTICE breakfast of French toast.

Anyway, the morning was cool, but dry and clear. The runners took off about 7:30, and Asia was done in 25:04, which is closer to her daily running pace than her race pace. No PR, but she did place 2nd in her age group and got a medal and a hug from her old coach. It was a good morning, followed by pancakes!!

On Sunday was the 30th Annual Burns Park Run, in Ann Arbor. Asia has run this race several times, and last year PR'd there. There is a 5K run, which several of her teammates ran, and a 10K, which Asia and several more teammates ran. The course loops thru beautiful Burns Park and is very spectator friendly, which *I* like! This time we had the correct race day breakfast........sausage scrambled with eggs and a few slices of home-canned peaches, before driving up to Ann Arbor. Asia lined up with some of her buddies, and after some chip/mat issues, they took off. Jerry, Grizz, and I took off for the first spot to see the race. Asia always runs faster when we/others cheer for her, so we try to place ourselves around the course for maximum cheering advantage. And we're not above enlisting total strangers to cheer for her too! Gives her that little extra kick. We saw her 3 times before the end of the first loop at 5k, and her time was already better than the 5k the day before. She was looking good, and each time we cheered, she sped up. On the second loop, she was closing in on some of the faster runners from her team, and by the finish, or 400 yards from the finish, she still had a good kick, because when she saw Jerry up ahead taking pictures, she blasted past Heather. (To be fair, Heather had just done a Duathalon the day before! On a good day, no way Asia would have gotten that close.) Heather closed the gap as they blew past me to the finish. Asia beat Heather by 1 second. Heather was first in her age group and Asia was 3rd in hers. Andrea, another from the team, was the first female overall! And Michael finished 3rd in his age group. It was a great showing for the Running Fit 501 team!

And I learned not to mess with Race Day Breakfast!

Running Fit 501 Boston Times

2009-04-21T21:31:00.000-04:00

Boston Finishers:

5289 Patrick Carroll 3.03.41 7.01 pace, PR! BQ!
6282 Coach Rob Morgan 3.11.10 7.20 pace, PR! BQ!
7510 Coach Alex Walton (Seattle) 3.21.33
12805 Farsad Fotouhi 3.27.28 7.50 pace, PR! BQ!
Coach Claudio Salas 3.30.38 7.58 pace
14891 Courtney Johnson 3.33.07 7.58 pace, PR! BQ!
13201 Mary Gallagher 3.34.58
14165 Rick Neubert 3:36.34 8.15 pace BQ!
9854 Aaron Pratt 3.40.55 8.21 pace
16257 Katie Sytniak 3:46:59 8.39 pace
18857 Carmen Green-Lee 3:58:34 9.08 pace
24661 Tara Covet 1st marathon 4.41.19
24715 Kris Wolfe 1st marathon 6.00.05 13.45 pace
26006 Gene Gaunt 5:50:55 13.24 pace

Way to go 501'ers!! Can't wait to hear the stories when you get back!

Autistic Runner Excels At Boston Marathon

2009-04-21T14:08:00.000-04:00

majoritymag.com

Autistic Runner Excels At Boston MarathonApril 21, 2009 – 8:34 am

Andy Bryant, 27, crossed the finish line at yesterday’s Boston Marathon in a time of 3 hrs 5 minutes and 19 seconds good enough to place him in the top 6% of the 20,000 runners in the race. That’s a great accomplishment in itself, but when you take into consideration that fact that Andy is severely autistic its actually pretty amazing. Lacking the understanding of how to pace himself, Andy usually just takes off as quick as he can and relies on sheer will and determination to maintain it for as long as possible; which in this case happened to be 26 miles!
Bryant plans to continue running marathons for many years to come and with continued training hopes to eventually break 3 hour mark. Judging from his determination, anything is possible.
-JH
photo via Seattle Times

Today's the Day!!! Boston Marathon Day!!

2009-04-20T09:37:00.000-04:00

Here's a list of Asia's teammates from Marathoning 501 in Ann Arbor, MI who are racing today in Boston! Go 501'ers!! We are the wind at your backs!

Bib Number Name PR

5289 Patrick Carroll 3.09
5586 Coach Claudio Salas 3.10.36
6282 Coach Rob Morgan 3:13:01
7510 Coach Alex Walton (Seattle) 3.16.41
9854 Aaron Pratt 3.24.40
12805 Farsad Fotouhi 3.28
13201 Mary Gallagher 3.3014165 Rick Neubert 3:35
14891 Courtney Johnson 3.36:48
16257 Katie Sytniak 3:39:47
17868 Erika MacDonald 3:44:44
18854 Jen Fike 3.46.12
18857 Carmen Green-Lee 3:49:13
18909 Maria Sposita 3:49
24661 Tara Covet 1st marathon
24715 Kris Wolfe 1st marathon
26006 Gene Gaunt 3:505

Runman: Autistic man lives to run - Andrew Bryant running the Boston Marathon

2009-04-19T08:26:00.000-04:00

Runman: Autistic man lives to run - Andrew Bryant running the Boston Marathon

How Asia Got to the Marathon

2009-04-10T19:52:00.000-04:00

This was submitted it CNN's iReport, as a continuation of Asia's story, in honor of World Autism Awareness Day, which was April 2, 2009

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-242060

A little history......

2009-04-09T20:10:00.000-04:00

As a Korean orphan with multiple disabilities, Asia began life with more than her share of challenges. Born with a bowel problem, Asia had surgery to create a colostomy when she was 13 days old. After spending most of her first 2 years shuttled between hospitals and orphanages, Asia was considered by the adoption agency to be too institutionalized to ever be able to bond with a family. However, a week before her 2nd. birthday, Asia joined my husband Jerry, our daughter Meghann, and I to become part of our family.

At 2 years of age, Asia couldn't roll from front to back, sit unsupported, crawl, stand or walk. She was nearly 28 months old when she learned to walk and almost immediately learned to run.

The years between 2 and 12 were a blur of misdiagnoses, surgeries, and failed treatments. She was eventually diagnosed as Autistically Impaired. Finally when she was 12 we began to find therapies which worked and she began to blossom.

When she was in middle school, we wanted to get her involved in a sports program. We approached the cross country coach and he agreed to have Asia in his program. The girls on the team were amazingly accepting and soon treated Asia like a younger sister.

By the time Asia entered high school she was on the "A" running squad and consistently earned points for her team. In 1996 she was selected to carry the Olympic Torch as it passed through Detroit. In her junior year the team won the Regional Championship and placed 12th at the State Cross Country meet.

Asia's coach encouraged the girls to run during the summer off season, and at the fall banquet gave awards to those who ran 500 miles, or a certain number of consecutive days. One year of consecutive days became 2, then 3, and on June 10, 2003 Asia completed 5 years of consecutive days of running.

Unlike some high school runners, who are done running as soon as they graduate, Asia continued to run every day, an average of 5 miles a day, and competed in local 5 and 10K races. She often finished in the top 5 in her age group.

In June 2006 we met Kathleen Gina after a race in Ann Arbor. Kathleen, or Coach Gina, is the head coach of the Running Fit 501 Marathon/Half Marathon Training Team. Her summer session still has openings and she invited us to the next practice to see if the team might be a fit for Asia. Coach Gina selected several runners with a pace similar to Asia's for the first run. After a short introduction and a group picture, they were off. Jerry and I raced to the 2 mile water stop, anxious to see how things were going. The comment we heard most was, "Boy, she's fast!"

We soon saw the huge, accepting spirit of the running community. Asia was embraced by the team as one of their own. They admired her dedication to running and her spirit. They began encouraging her to run the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon in October. Coach Gina arranged for a pace runner to make sure Asia made it safely across the Ambassador Bridge into Canada and back through the Windsor Tunnel to Detroit. We were at the finish line as Asia and Pacer Bob crossed the line in 2 hrs. 13 min. and 17 sec. It was another milestone for her, and it wouldn't have happened without The Running Fit 501 Team and Coach Gina.

It is now 2009 and Asia is in her 7th session training with "her" team. She has run 7 half-marathons now and 14 other races last year. I recently ran a total of Asia's miles since she joined the team nearly 3 years ago. Conservatively, she has run over 5,000 miles. And with the exception of a short injury break in 2003, she has run every day for the past 10 years. Since 2001 she has run in 70+ races.

Asia's 28th birthday is Saturday and on Sunday she will run her first Marathon....the Martian Marathon in Dearborn, MI. Two of her teammates, who are running in the Boston Marathon later this month, will run as her pacers.

We don't know where all this will take her, but we are grateful for the opportunities that being a member of a team again have given her. She has no plans for quitting, and as long as she wants to run, we'll get her to practice and to races. Asia continues to inspire us and everyone who meets her. In spite of her less-than-optimistic start in life, Asia is grateful for everything, and joyfully blooms where she is planted.

This photo is courtesy of Brightroom.com

Asia Runs her first marathon

2009-04-09T13:34:00.000-04:00

On April 4, 2009, one day after Asia turned 28 years old, she ran her first marathon in Dearborn, MI at Running Fit's "Martian Marathon". What a great day, temperatures in the high 40s with sun and fun.

Read about Asia and her marathon here.

Asia Renning

The Run Thru Hell on Halloween

RF 501 Stats

# 106 Detroit Half-marathon

Chicago Marathon 10.10.10, or Asia, Jerry, and Adair's Big Adventure

CRIM 2010

#104 "run like mike" Rutka 5K

# 103, The Gallup Gallop

Firecracker 5k.....#102

Once again I'm doing it backwards

# 100!!!

#99

Burns Park 10K 2010

Sam Felsenfeld @ Boston 2010

*My Team* by Adair

Boston Marathon 2010....part 2

Boston Marathon 2010

2010 Martian Invasion of Races

Birthday!

Running Fit 501 Team Gives Back

Operation Jack starts Friday!!!

OK, so I'm still learning!

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

California Dreamin' Finale!!!

California Dreamin' Part 4

California Dreamin' Part 3

California Dreamin' 2009 Part 2

California Dreamin' 2009...Part 1

Catching up!!!

Detroit Marathon, Part 2

Alex's Marathon

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

Detroit Marathon, Part 1

Kensington Challenge

The CRIM.....8.22.09

The CRIM

Milestone

Catching up

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

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.

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

Running Fit 501 Summer 2009

501 Members DxA2 10K Results

501 Members DxA2 Half-marathon results.

Post-Race Pix

Still MORE pix from DxA2 race

More pictures from DxA2 run

Dexter-Ann Arbor Half-Marathon 2009

More pix from the "Graduation".

Winter 2009 Running Fit Team

Asia and Coach Gina

Running Fit 501 Winter 2009 Graduation

Prom 2009

For Women Only Race 2009

The Weekend of Two Races

Running Fit 501 Boston Times

Autistic Runner Excels At Boston Marathon

Today's the Day!!! Boston Marathon Day!!

Runman: Autistic man lives to run - Andrew Bryant running the Boston Marathon

How Asia Got to the Marathon

A little history......

Asia Runs her first marathon

My Team by Adair