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7/14/2018

Global Run Challenge Profile: Running is an important part of who I am but it's not all that I am says Verity Breen

RUN THE WORLD: As a kid Verity Breen ran randomly. "I was beginning to tool my intrinsic nature inside where "the runner" lived," says Verity.   She was the youngest of four adopted children living in Australia.  When Verity was 22 (1989) she was engaged to be married to a guy who was doing the triathlon.  "I followed him when he swam, and swam too," Verity says.  She also started to run with him some nights after work.  "One night I felt a sudden gush of adrenaline and got bored with the pace and took off, beating him back to his parents house.  This was not well received. Anyway, for another reason he called off the wedding."  She got really into the triathlon and in fact in 1991 she was on the National Australia Team at the Triathlon World Championships.  "It was this ton of triathlon racing that lead me to realize that running was the great love.  Here I am three decades later of racing, still in love."  So how important is running to Verity?  "It's the one thing that is always there for you, it picks you up on down days, it carries you along on happy days and it makes me feel fully woke as I am using my entire body and mind as one.  However if you tie your identity up entirely with being seen as a runner you discount your other gifts and interests and are at a loss for who you are if at some points one must rest, recover or not race and be patient.  Running is an important part of who I am but it's not all that I am," she says.  She has run over 150 marathons and one stands out.  "Maybe on a amusing note was my Maui Marathon win in 2012.  My husband came home from work Friday afternoon and I asked him how he would feel about me flying to Hawaii to do a marathon.  He said, sure! When?  I said "tomorrow" he burst out laughing.  So on a cheap flight I managed to get for 300 bucks, he dropped me off with my small bag and wished me luck."  The next morning she was at the start line.  "Early into the hot race on an incredible one way coastal course I found myself in the lead.  Whoa.  With an 8 minute gap till the second female and the entire road to myself I was in racing heaven. As I rolled into the awesome finish chute in first hot as heck but so happy I was just amazed that I had pulled this off."  She is married to Randy. They met at Bondi Beach in Australia and got married exactly one year later.  They have two dogs, has a garden and lives in Northern California.  In 2007 she started Thirty Birds, her own brand of women's running apparel.  Asked about this challenge.  "The Run The World Challenge got my attention.   It's great to be accountable and to connect, to encourage people to move and run and share the challenge of piling up miles together as we virtually circle this amazing globe together one stride at a time.  Moving together. Love it." (07/06/18) Views: 156
Bob Anderson

The first ever Run The World Challenge Team has already logged in 4,092 Miles since July 4

The Run the World Global Run Challenge started July 4th.  Our goal is to login 24,901 miles (40,072k) within 30 days.  We wanted this to be a Global event and it is. Our team of 200 has already run and logged in miles in 17 different countries.  Our mission is to reach our goal but we also want to motivate, inspire others and celebrate running.  A sport we love.  Our team range in age from 11 to 81.  Team member Abbey Cannon sums up our mission,  "I think the Global Run Challenge is great because it shows that even though we are all at different levels and may run for different reasons, we in the running community from all over the globe can all come together to work for the same goal." Our team is amazing.  Willie Korir from Kenya has already logged in 173 miles. 51-year-old JR Mintz has logged in 112 and 74-year-old Frank Bozanich has logged 112 miles as well.  Grace Padillia has logged in the most miles for females with 72 miles.  Becca Pizzi who ran a marathon on each continent in seven days earlier in the year has logged 60 miles.  There are many amazing performances.  You can follow all the action on our Run The World feed.  We still have a long ways to go but we have almost already covered the distance between San Francisco and Iceland in eight days.  This is more than just logging training and racing miles.  It is a celebration of running.  To help remember what we are doing we have an official shirt and a medal when we finish.  Just click on the link and we will get out the shirt to you right away.  If you didn't join us this time, we will be doing this same Global Challenge again starting August 29.   (07/11/18) Views: 134
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Jennifer Bayliss is working on one major goal - to qualify for the Olympic Marathon Trials

RUN THE WORLD: Jennifer Bayliss (47) discovered running in the third grade.  She says, "Laura beat me in the 50 yard dash on the sidewalk in P.E. class at school. I did not like that. I really wanted to beat her and all the boys."  In high school and college she still wanted to beat all the Laura's and the boys. She did until injury took over her collegiate career. "I did manage to capture All American status, a conference championship title and run at the NCAA's before having to call it quits."  15 years later she returned to running as a master once her kids started driving and she found a little time to lace up her shoes.  How important is running?  "Running is where I push myself to reach goals, believe in myself, have confidence, trust the plan, feel fit and healthy, connect with people, see beautiful places, have stories to tell, learn how to deal with good and bad stress, and mostly have a blast."  Just recently she ran the Boilermaker 15K in Utica, New York. She clocked 56:59 (which is 6:05 per mile).  She was the 5th American Master woman. She was pleased with her performance as she pursues her ultimate goal.  "My goal is to run an Olympic Trial qualifier for the Marathon. For women, that means at least a time of 2:45. My plan is to race myself into shape with a hybrid of a plan- a little short, long, trail and training and racing distances from the mile to the marathon."  Jennifer is a Road Runners Club of America Certified Coach.   How did you find out about this challenge?   "I heard about the Run The World Challenge from Rosaura Briceno-Tennant and Bertrand Newson and thought- these are my friends, my people-I want to do what they are doing because they are awesome people and runners." (07/10/18) Views: 128
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Pulkit Singh went out one morning at 3:30am to escape the pressure of his job and started running

RUN THE WORLD: Pulkit Singh (26) took a high pressure job after graduation in 2015 in the Steel City of India, Jamshedpur.  He started feeling burned out and he needed to do something.  "It was one normal working day that I woke up on unearthly hours and went out for a run.. It was 3:30am, I started to run and since then I have never looked back. I got infected by the running bug."  Running has changed Pulkit's life. "Running is like a tonic/medicine to my everyday routine. The pressurized work culture of my company hasn’t changed but my patience, tolerance and attitude has completely changed. Today I remain active even after working for 12+ hours a day. Running has taught me the art of ‘perseverance," he says.  He completed his first marathon in 6 hours 9 minutes.  " I am proud of the fact that I was on my feet for 6 hours. Under hot blazing sun I completed my first marathon (FM). People criticize runners who walk while running their FM. I have an altogether different aspect for this. Many a time it came in my mind that I should give up and consider a respectable DNF and come back next year in a stronger avatar. But the glory which waits at the finish line motivated me to complete."  He has many goals but one is to run the 100th annual Comrades Marathon in 2021.   Pulkit has to say about this challenge.  "The fact that you have a challenge in front of you motivates you to bring out the best in one’s own self. Once the Run The World Challenge concludes we are all winners, no matter how many miles we have logged. The fact that an individual takes up a challenge is in itself terms him/her to be a winner because they all gave up their comfort zone for a better/fitter tomorrow. You never know whom you are motivating indirectly"       (07/10/18) Views: 124
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Ram Venkatraman talks about the running scene in India and how important running is to him

RUN THE WORLD: Ram Venkatraman started running in 1997 when he was working in Uganda, East Africa. He had gained some weight and like so many of us could only run five minutes at first. However before long he moved it up to 90 minutes every day for six days a week.  “I ran along the beautiful roads fronting the Victoria River where the source of the River Nile is situated,” Ram says.  Running became a very important part of his life.  “Running is my meditation, my relaxation time. If I don’t run for a week, I start getting irritable. Running has improved my health as I used to get recurring bouts of cold and cough but that has diminished with running,” he says.  His club is the Mumbai Road Runners.  “The club came out of an idea to do a once a month long run along the Mumbai marathon route, basically in order to familiarise ourselves with the route, meet up and greet with friends at the end of the run, have breakfast and go home,” he says.  Subsequently it has grown by leaps and bounds and now have numerous other activities like monthly yoga, football, Frisbee, awards nite, workshops etc.  “We now also fund underprivileged runners by contributing to their registration fees, travel, stay etc.”  The running scene in India has taken off exponentially after the Mumbai Marathon came to India in the year 2004. “Since then there have been numerous marathons and half marathons in all the big cities plus Tier I and Tier II cities as well. Running clubs have sprouted up everywhere – some formal and most informal. People have begun to take running seriously mostly from the health point of view,” says Ram.  Asked what he thought of this challenge.  “It is a fantastic challenge which is bringing together people from all over the world for a single cause. It is magnificent. So many people – elites as well as amateur runners joining to achieve a target is monumental.”    (07/07/18) Views: 123
Bob Anderson

Global Run Challenge Profile: Mary Menton has been running for over 25 years and loves it as much now as ever

RUN THE WORLD:  Mary Menton has been running for over 25 years.  She works full time as a family Advisor Dignity memorial.  "I protect families on the worst day of their life before someone passes," Mary says.  "I have been doing this for 3 and half years and I love it as much as running."   She gets up around 5 am to run before work and if needed does a second workout in the evening.   "Running to so important to me and it always will be.  It provides peace, its like a drug.  It not only is a physical addiction for me but it is mental as well.  I need to be exercising and running.  Its a feeling and enjoyment people who don't run can't understand what it is like to be a runner," says Mary.  She was one of the top 10 Americans at the Boulder Boulder 10k and she qualified for the Marathon Olympics Trials three times.  "As a Master the work is more difficult," she says, "because we are older the injuries are much higher.  I am dealing with an injury now.  As a master it is much more relaxing and I am not so hard on myself."  She discovered running as a young girl while, "watching my older sister and a AAU sprinter.  My mom would pack PJ’s because track meets were all day. So my little sister and I would be let loose running around the stadium.  I was in awe of the runners."   Mary has three girls.  "Sara is working for the Court of Appeals in Denver. She is a lawyer.  My daughter Megan is a RN living in Denver.  My 3rd daughter Ryan will be a Senior at Trinity Catholic."  What does she think of this challenge?  "The Run The World challenge is another one of Bob Anderson's fantastic ideas.  His passion for the sport is infectious. He is not only an advocate of running but a motivator to everyone. Having the Run The World challenge spreads the importance of running and keeps people together for a common interest."  Mary's current goal is to start running regularly again and get back to 50 miles a week.  (07/12/18) Views: 96
Bob Anderson

Sam Chelanga is retiring from running to enlist in the U.S. Army but why now?

Sam Chalange is going to retire from professional running after finishing 4th at the USATF 10k Championships at the Peachtree Road Race July 4 in Atlanta. Chelanga, 33, is going to enlist in the U.S. Army. On July 29, he will report to Fort Jackson in South Carolina for basic training.  Then it will be off to Officer Candidate School in Fort Benning, Georgia, beginning October 15.   Even though Chelanga says he grew to love running, he was never motivated by medals or glory. He won four NCAA titles and five U.S. titles on the roads as a pro (he became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2015).  Other things were moe important to him, a college degree, helping his family and home village back in Kenya, representing the United States, supporting his wife, Marybeth, and their two sons.  When asked what his proudest accomplishment in running was, he says that it wasn’t a race, but instead the moment when he realized he was actually going to graduate with a college degree “because that is why I started running.” The obvious question is why now? He was the top American finisher at last year’s World Cross Country Championships, finishing in 11th place. This year, Chelanga ran a half marathon personal best of 60:37 in Houston in January, finished 14th at the World Half Marathon Championships in March (again, he was the top U.S. finisher), and won the U.S. 25K title in May. He has plenty left in the tank. Which is precisely why Chelanga felt it was important to join the Army now. “I’ve done everything that I wanted to do in running,” says Chelanga, who achieved personal bests of 13:04 in the 5,000m and 27:08 (still the collegiate record, set in a very famous race where Chris Solinsky ran 26:59 and Galen Rupp 27:10) in the 10,000m. “I’ve got more than I asked for when I came in…I don’t want to wait until I’m old. I feel young, I feel fresh, I feel like I have a lot of energy and I want to take this job when I’m going to serve at the best level of my ability.” (07/06/18) Views: 67

This Boston Marathon qualifier is going to be run on a track inside the Gillette Stadium, 100 Laps

Boston-area marathon runners and Patriots fans are about to have their biggest dreams come true. Gillette Stadium is hosting its first marathon on Sept. 28. The Boston Marathon qualifier is open to 100 runners. Participants will run more than 100 laps on the warning track around the field. The track is USA Track & Field certified and will be the first Boston Marathon qualifier ever run entirely in a NFL stadium. All runners must meet a $5,000 fundraising goal and the proceeds will benefit the New England Patriots Foundation. The race will begin at 5 p.m. Runners will also be treated to live music and appearances by Patriots alumni and cheerleaders. (07/07/18) Views: 64

World Cup Soccer, Wimbledon and British 10K all this weekend

This weekend more than 10,000 runners will descend on the streets of London for the 18th Virgin Sport Westminster British 10K. Hosted by ASICS, the race takes in London’s most iconic landmarks, from Big Ben to Trafalgar Square. This year, it’s a celebration of movement and music: the streets of Westminster will be transformed into a British street party – expect Union Jacks, summer vibes and live bands and DJs at every kilometre. You’ll pound the streets to the beat. It’s set to be the hottest sporting weekend of 2018 – and not just thanks to the heatwave. The race takes place on Sunday, the same day as both the Wimbledon men’s final and the World Cup final – even more incentive to cross that finish line in record speed. (07/10/18) Views: 59

A higher percentage of men dropped out of the 2018 Boston Marathon than women, here is why

In April, The New York Times published an article explaining why women had been less likely to quit the 2018 Boston Marathon than men.  The author, Lindsay Crouse, reported that 5% of men had dropped out, compared to 3.8% of women. That means the dropout rates had increased almost 80% since the 2017 race for men and just 12% for women.  Crouse spoke to a number of experts in different fields, including elite distance coach Steve Magness, who told her: "Women generally seem better able to adjust their goals in the moment, whereas men will see their race as more black or white, succeed or fail, and   if it's fail, why keep going?"  That is to say, for women, simply finishing the race may be important; for men, winning (or beating their personal best time) may be key. And the implications of this gender difference go beyond marathons, or athletic prowess. Muriel Niederle, a professor of economics at Stanford University, has done extensive research on gender differences in competitiveness. Generally, she's found that men are more likely to enter — and win — competitions than women are.  But Niederle could speculate as to why the Boston Marathon turned out the way it did.  "For women, just the fact that they finish the race has a higher value for them" than it does for men, Niederle told Business Insider. What's more, that's not necessarily something they decide in the moment, midway through the race — it's something they know from the very beginning.  "Women have more to lose in terms of how they think of themselves, or how they think others will view them, when they give up," Niederle said. "That could make it much more costly for her."  That's possibly because of gender stereotypes that suggest women are relatively weak, or not resilient. If they do quit — a marathon or any other kind of competition — they risk playing into those gender stereotypes, she said. (07/08/18) Views: 58