#104 "run like mike" Rutka 5K

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.

Catching up

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

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

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

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

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

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