Finale

Today is the regular season finale. Another great forecast is in the works and has mid to high 50s for the final OLP TRY of the year.

The group is meeting at 5 with a 5:05 start time. That still means mostly dark to actually dark as you finish your running so please pair off or group up and make sure that everyone gets out of the park safely. Flashlights or headlamps would be nice for anyone running more than a two miles.

Stay tuned to the Facebook page for "off season" running meet-ups including continued running on Tuesday nights at various after-dark safe running locations. I am usually unable to attend which leaves you in more capable hands to orchestrate the runs.

As most of you know today is a very important day. So I wanted to take the time to remind you to be sure to take advantage of today and do something that many people around the world think we take for granted. Whether you did it this morning already and sneak it in tonight at the last minute it is VERY IMPORTANT for you to go out and ...

Think about TRY and the running accomplishments that you and the group have had this year. Whether you did another marathon, your first hymon, a unique trail run, a new group relay race, a relay "great" race, another group relay race, a trail marathon, another hymon, a 5k, a 3.5 mile "challenge", or any of the various other running "races" that group members have put themselves through...take a moment to think back.

There is plenty of time in the calendar year to add on more races - from jingly balls, to wonderful runs, to turkey trots, to frozen trail races, but with the end of regular TRY for 2016 think of your accomplishments and learn from them - both good and bad lessons - and consider what you will do the same or different in 2017.

That's it...nothing else of note to do today...

Frost on the Pumpkin

Despite the cold start to the day, the hourly forecast is saying high 50s at TRY time.

Counting tonight, we have TWO SESSIONS of regular TRY left. BUT, next week falls after the change back to standard time, so I recommend moving the TRY meetup time based on what was done last year - shifting 30 minutes earlier for next week. Hopefully I remember to bring that up tonight.

For those who care about lights on the lake, it opens for cars on Wednesday the 16th with a "Salute the Troops Night" (free with military ID). Monday the 14th is the stroll night and Tuesday the 15th is the dog walk night.

That's it...I'm all hallows eve'd out!

Whatever Floats Your Boat

Somehow it will be 35 or so degrees cooler this week at TRY time. Forecast is putting it in the low 40s.

Counting today, there are THREE weeks left of regular season TRY. Next week will be normal time and then there will be one week after daylight saving time ends...I'll have to look up how we handled that last year. (I'm guessing I wasn't there since after dark is not kid friendly.)

Predicting the future:
I thought Prancercising was going to be a thing. I thought carrying your own drink cup was going to be a thing. I thought elevation training masks were going to be a thing... (I'm way too lazy to link back to those specific predictions but feel free to search the archives.) So, my predictive skills have not been very good at all. But, this showed up in my FB newsfeed and since I clicked on it, it continues to show up constantly. I don't know if anyone else is seeing this so I wanted to pass it on...

Salt therapy and float therapy are coming to Syracuse. It appears the latest estimate is for a January opening. Somewhere on Erie Blvd. Here is the local Facebook page with all sorts of links and details, but here is the article from Yahoo! I read about "floating like Eleven in Stranger Things". (I assume you do not get to visit the upside-down, but details are sketchy, so maybe?) It's not immediately obvious if all the floating tanks are sensory deprivation tanks as well? Or if there is some sort of choice for which type of "float" you want to do? (From the simple pictures it sure looks like there are different size tanks that are used - but no indication yet on what the Syracuse location will have.)

That's all I have...you'll thank me when you are floating your troubles and this winter away come January.

The Summer That Won't Quit

Somehow, it's another Tuesday TRY with high 70s at TRY time. This one might hurt a little.

Counting tonight there are FOUR weeks left of regular season TRY.

And since this is such a long article that is REALLY IMPORTANT to read, I'll end my writing here in the hopes you continue. This was from Runner's World in the past week and about your hips and glutes and proper running form. (Is the minimalist movement as dead as this article claims? Duerr?)

Pork, The One You Love

Cloudy and low 60s at TRY time. Fall like, but still leaning way to the side of great weather.

The countdown to the end of regular season TRY is on -- counting tonight there are FIVE weeks left.

On 10/11/12, my oldest boy was born. Tonight after TRY you can join us at the Village Burger for a tasty, but slowly served, burger followed by some funfetti cupcakes. No need to bring anything for the birthday boy, except a happy birthday wish, either at the park or at VB for those who can join in.

The "Run of the Dead" is this Saturday (the 15th) right in Liverpool. There is a video right at the top of the page that shows off a lot better zombie action than I assumed they had. Certainly looks interesting! (If you are into that sort of thing.) My sister-in-law plays a role in this event because her and other North Syracuse Wilderness Search and Rescue volunteers do most of the work getting the course prepared...and then get a minor kick-back of money from each participant. (So it becomes one of the WSARs bigger fundraisers for the year.)

Does anyone want to check out a local Y?
Catherine's membership (And I assume any other main member?) currently has the option of "gifting" a two week trial membership to as many friends as she can find to take up the offer. (Then if you end up joining, she does get a free month herself, but that is very secondary to you guys taking advantage to see if the Y is worth your time.) I am thinking someone like Malinda? Or Tim and Lindsay? Bill? People that live super close to the "new" one in B'ville that maybe have never seen the inside? Membership is month to month, so for anyone looking for a place to get runs in through the winter, it may be worth considering for 4-6 months? (The B'ville one does have a 1/8 mile track.)

No matter which Y you would want to check out, Catherine just would need to know that you are interested - gives them your name - and then you get two weeks free. You do have to start your two week trial by the end of October. (And it just so happens that at the B'ville Y they are doing a 2 week yearly pool maintenance the last week of October and first week of November, so that would limit what you have access to during your trial.)

For those who have never thought about the Y as a gym choice - a membership gets you into "all" the Syracuse area Y's, including the one at OCC - which has that very nice indoor track for winter running.

Do you have a choice of what time of day to run? Because SCIENCE is now claiming it is better to run in the evening. (TRY time is probably a bit too early to be considered to ideal time...but at least it is close?) Of course, I've often heard that running in the morning is better for weight loss, so who knows with these studies and how they come up with their numbers?

Meat eaters only from this point on:
Lastly, I posted this on TRY, but another way to ask people: Who would be interested in buying locally raised pork next late September or early October? My brother-in-law proved the concept this summer raising 5 of them, but next year is willing to double his herd. (But needs the "order" soon so that he can put the request in with the farmer that will have the piglets in the spring.) This year the price per half pig ended up being a little less than $300 for about 70 pounds of meat. You get a lot of choices for the cuts you want. (Hams versus steaks, what types of sausage, ribs or not, etc.) The pigs are raised on my families old farm in Croghan and the meat market is just outside of Lowville.

Here are some photos to give you an idea of what half of a pig involves. We ended up with about 20 pounds of ham and ham steaks, and 5 pounds of bacon. 15 pounds of sausage. And then ribs, all sorts of pork chops, tenderloin, shoulder, ...

Here are the coolers that were both full:



Here is the bacon (disappointingly little, but super tasty):


Here is almost all the rest of the meat (a couple small pieces wouldn't fit and kept sliding off). Hams and shoulder on left. Chops and steaks in the middle and our sweet and hot sausage on the right.:


Here is part of the custom cut order form to see the decisions you have to make:




This year no payment was due until the end, but with him expanding to non-family members, there may be a minor down payment asked for in the spring? (I trust all of you so am not too worried about it.)

Fall In Love With Running

Fall is here on the calendar and also with our overnight temperatures, but at TRY time the mercury will have fought its way to an almost summery 70 degrees. Unlike me, this summer just won't quit!

Kelly has already posted about the group run - it will be quarter mile intervals for those able. As a non-runner myself, I didn't feel it was my place to chime in, but I'm glad the group vote was to attempt some form of group intervals again. (It is the only choice that allows for some semblance of a group run when there is such a diverse group of people running. And is even written up in our charter.)

The running part:
Slight, but lingering, injuries, my own apathy, and my own obesity all contributed to a poor spring and summer for me running-wise. Once September arrived I rebooted my running and turned off my watch and turned off my thinking about my runs. It has given me a clean slate and allowed me to slowly "fall" in love with running again. It has been refreshing! So I wanted to encourage anyone who reads this that is in a running rut - take a week or two to think about what you enjoy about running. And ask yourself what it would take for you to "fall" in love with running again over the next couple months? (There are a myriad of reasons that people run. Re-find your own specific reason!)

The fun but educational part:
You've certainly seen Truck Nutz by now.

And hopefully you've had an in depth discussion in the past about "neuticles".

But have you embraced the latest bike safety craze...the naturally inspired invention known as "bike balls"?

You're welcome!

Again?

Yet again we have an low-to-mid 80s forecast for TRY time. Soak it in and let the sweat times roll!

I will not be able to attend again, which is getting to be entirely too common of an occurrence. (Today's excuse - it's Wegman's appreciation month at "The Strong National Museum of Play" and this is the day that worked best for Catherine and her parents to go...so we'll be on our way back from there at TRY time.)

Something to file away for next year:
My oldest sister and my niece took part in a very special sounding race on Sunday. They talked so highly of it that I decided to feature it here for future reference. I liked that it had such a unique "heart" to the event...

The race is called "The DeWitt PFA 5K" and the course is along the canal. This year was extra special because it was held on 9/11 but it is not just for 9/11.

In the race's own words: "TheThird annual "DeWitt PFA 5K" is a run/walk designed to remember and support those emergency services personnel who lost their lives in the line of duty. Although held on September 11th, the run memorializes those heroes who risk and unfortunately lose their lives on a daily basis. Starting and ending at the Town of DeWitt 9/11 memorial site, the route takes participants along the Erie Canal before turning and heading back.

Proceeds from this event will be donated to the “National Fallen Firefighters Foundation”, a 501(c)3 not for profit organization that supports families and fire departments of fallen firefighters."

My sister and niece both got to select someone to run for (a fallen hero), including a picture, and said the finisher medal was top notch and you can see they both got roses as well. There was also a 1/4 mile kids fun run that she recommended to me (I think for my sons, but maybe for ME?!) for next year.

#neverforget

Post Labor Recovery

It is the summer that just keeps giving! Low to mid 80s at TRY time.

I'm gonna drop the friendly act and just get to what you want...more SCIENCE! This time it is sad for me personally and probably explains a lot about what I look like. Once upon a time I used to drink gatorade (full strength) as my water at work...I have cut way down on that but once in a while still convince myself I need a sports drink to replenish after sweating some. Well, with the amount of exercise I do these days this article would say that is bullcrap! It turns out most people don't need sports drinks when they exercise.

OK, we got the running related requirement out of the way. So here is the fluff. SCIENCE! says it is probably better to sleep naked. (Probably safe for work, but make sure know one has a sight line, so they don't misunderstand the PG-13 content.) Go ahead, ladies, we'll follow your lead...sleep naked.

And where better to sleep naked than on a cuddle mattress?! I can't embed the related video here so will have to share that in the Facebook group itself.

That's it for this week, enjoy your Labor Day!

Going Into Labor (Day)

I was all set to say that we are close to cooling off, but aren't quite there yet today...then I looked at the 10 day forecast and I saw that next Wednesday (September 7th) has a forecasted high of 90 degrees. NINETY degrees. In Syracuse. And I was like what the heck is going on? What-the-actual-heck?! The only conclusion is that #suebroketheweather. Sue has broken a lot of crap over the years, but to break mother nature? It's amazing and revolting at same time. SUE - enough. ENOUGH!

For tonight - low 80s, some sun and some very annoying car traffic at TRY time. I would say to enjoy it while it lasts, but, thanks to Sue, apparently summer is going to last until winter. We are transitioning into a two season cycle: Sue and Elsa are going to be our new seasons from this point forward.

I have personally proven that the hand printable New York State Fair coupons work and work well. Family and friends saved well over $10 yesterday on things we would have bought anyway. Cha-ching! If you are going, and like saving money, do yourselves a favor and print out the whole set, or use my "cheat sheet" image below of my guess at the most useful ones.




Now that I've explored about 2/3 of it - the redesigned fair is "interesting". Parts of it now seem like they are abandoned and ignored, some vendors got totally screwed with their new locations, and it can be confusing to find an old favorite. BUT, it is so much easier to get through some once crowded locations and the sight lines and walkways are much more open. Certainly there are some pluses and minuses, but it isn't dull and isn't the same which makes for fun fair outings this year.

For those of you who expect something related to running. Here it [sort of] is:
You know how I predicted "elevation masks" would be the next big thing? And that I expect Jake to show up any week wearing one? Well, they haven't exactly caught on fire yet, but I did see one in full, open use at the B'ville Y this past spring. And now a study has come out using SCIENCE to prove that they work. Kind of. But not in the way that you (or they?) expected.

Read the full details in this active.com article (Will take up to a few minutes to read), but the conclusion for those who don't want to read it, is that they are already changing their name and their claims and were never an elevation mask, after all. (They are now called "training" masks but still have a promising future in improving endurance performance.)

Do they make a pink one for ladies? I would love to see a lot of Lady Bane's running around at the park next year. (What it is really going to take is for a company to come up with a cute face to put on them...once you can look like a super-hero or really anything that isn't completely awful to look at...I would expect a big increase in sales. Where is Disney and Marvel on this?)

Fair Enough

This weeks forecast is for beautiful summer weather around TRY time - 80 degrees and sunny. (At some point it is hard for me to come up with new excuses on why I don't run!)

With the fair now just a couple days away I've been doing some research on what days make the most sense to go and I found that the coupon booklet from previous years is now available as a printable file right off of the fairs website. So, do yourself a favor and print out the pages you may use from this .pdf.

Or, if you are like me and do not want to waste paper, check out this condensed sheet off the 10 most likely coupons I would use. Note that all three slushie coupons are on the page and there is no limit to how many you can print...so it is like printing money.


(There are a several other coupons that others may make use out of - so check out the link above to make sure you are not limited to what suited my taste. You would have to be a Bavarian [roasted] nut to not take advantage of at least a few of these.)

Back to running:
At some point I feel that everything that can be written about running, HAS been written about running. So it makes it impossible to find new and interesting material for the old timers in the group. But, rehashing some stuff may refresh the memory for those people? And maybe some of this is new to the less experienced runners? With that in mind I thought the article in the weekend Fleet Feet newsletter was sort of interesting. It is called "Learn to Love Summer Running" and is a couple minute read on what heat does to your body and what benefits you can glean from suffering through some hot runs. It feels harder on super hot days, because it is harder (science!). Your body works harder, so the key takeaways are to take it a little easy, certainly, but also to use that extra body stress to improve your running fitness. When cooler weather comes in the fall, you will be a little better off than if you dodged all the hottest days or hottest times of the days.

This last article was shared by a former co-worker of several of ours on Facebook, so I read through it and found it fascinating. It has running at its core, but is really a human interest piece and shows how recently the world really sucked and how simple acts of decency could change peoples lives around him for the better and his for the worse. Do yourself a favor and take the 5-10 minutes to read about "The White Man In That Photo".

(Full disclosure: I'm sure I "knew" that photo and that moment was about a running event but something about the gloves on made my mind remember that it was about boxers. Not that boxers wear gloves like that...but with the gloves and the fists I had somehow misremembered what the lead-up to that moment even was. Shame on me - even though the type of sport they competed in was irrelevant to the moment and the gesture.)

Headache

Tonight's run will be threatened by scattered storms to general storms based on the hourly forecast along with some mid-80s temperatures. Choose wisely! (Like Jake did.)

I will be out of town today visiting family so will not be available (again) to help coordinate in any way.

With the state fair starting at the end of next week I am going to declare the vote closed and say that the second Sunday, that is the 4th of September, is TRY night at the fair. So if you have an interest in seeing Daughtry or you just want to be at the fair for some food, folks and fun, plan accordingly.

This past weekends big news was a successful finish of the Peak to Brew relay race by some TRYers and friends. From what I could tell from stalking from a distance, much fun was had, no major injuries were sustained and everyone ran their proper shifts. (Which when there are 48 shifts to do, not having to deviate from the plan is a major accomplishment.)




Finishing a race like that is a victory in itself so I did not even bother looking to see what place they got or how they compared to other co-ed teams or check to see how close they were to their own estimate. I assume they weren't the only team doing this but have no idea how big of a turn out the event got. I'll leave any of those unique and interesting details for one of them to write up if they choose to put together a post race report for friends and family (and TRY) to enjoy.

That's all I've got. I have been plagued by a headache since midday yesterday so I'm giving up and am saying "no mas".

There is Still Time

Current forecast is for a sweltering 90 degrees Tuesday, so like C & C Music Factory, this weeks run is going to make you sweat til you bleed. Run smart. (Typically by 5:30 the danger has passed but if the heat index is still high, consider scaling back your run, or even doing laps/intervals around Angela's TRY-angle which would allow for some running through Mr. Mister and keeps you close to the drinking fountain.)

I stopped by to cheer on and check out the Corner Store Country Run and it was as advertised...a barn raising good time with a swag bag to die for. If you want to get more freebies than you can physically carry back to the car with you...keep an eye out for this event next year.

Here was my haul, which was only "this small" because I stopped stuffing my bag:




This Friday and Saturday some TRYers are on a team taking part in the Peak 2 Brew relay race. (This is not a Ragnar. Ahem! Nothing to see here.) Perhaps someone from the team can provide information on how to best track the team progress? And perhaps someone on the team will volunteer to write up a summary for us, post race, so that we have some idea on what it's like to share a van with 5 other equally sweaty people caused by insanely doing this during the dog days of August. Woof-woof.

This Thursday night, I have "organized" a simple Syracuse Chiefs outing in the attempt to get several young kids to come out and enjoy the game together. (Preferably with their parents.) It was also done as a way to pass along the invite to TRYers. If anyone is interested - let me know and I'll pass along the details. Here is the graphic I made, which shows the time and dollar night specials. (Along with some Olympic thing?)

The New York State Fair is closing in on us. The leader, and probable winner, for the TRY Night At The Fair is the Sunday before Labor Day featuring Daughtry as the 8 pm concert. Apparently him losing American Idol was not enough to sway people into listening to Toto? (You can still vote in the FB poll if you want to feel the rains down in Africa.)

I stumbled upon this "new" feature of the fair this year and thought it was rather cool. Too bad it is a Wednesday and hardly anyone (that works) will be able to take advantage. But, since we have some bikers in our midst I wanted to make sure they saw this.



The "paper" just posted this excellent summary of what's new and different this year with the layout. It's the biggest changes in decades from what I can tell and certainly will make things unfamiliar, but hopefully in a good way?

Country Theme

This weeks hourly forecast is for high 70s and with a reduction in humidity at TRY time, so it should be a summery pleasant night for those of us who skip every week. Ummm, I mean, it should make for a pleasant, summery, feel to the run.

If you haven't already noticed them on Facebook, be sure to check out a couple of recent posts. Berms has provided some fun group shots and candids from the Boilermaker and from her BM flushing party. I have added a poll for preferred night or nights for heading off for a group outing to the state fair. For those who might attend and have an opinion, please vote.

This weekend:
Coming up this Saturday is the "Corner Store Country Run" promising "down home family fun". There is a 5k starting at 8:30 followed by a "Country Fair". It is $5 for the fair only, $10 for the run or $15 if you want to run and be officially timed. So it is about as cheap as it can get and from word of mouth and their own advertising it is about the "best post-race ever". Supposedly a ton of sponsor swag, food, live music, carnival games and two free beer tickets for adults. I am suspicious that it matches the Boilermaker post race party...but for only having to run 3.1 miles to get there and theoretically being able to move around while there, it just might compete?

A little insider information - the Corner Store enterprise bought out the formerly family owned Nice and Easy brand, so that is why there is a tie-in to central New York. And while that is possibly old news, this was brand new to me: They partner with a local children's charity in each city they come into and last year and again this year that charity will be...wait for it...Paige's Butterfly Run!

Learning that made me even more curious about showing up. It is kind of a misnomer to say that I want to support the event now...because clearly they are not making any money with the handouts they are doing and the price-point they have for the race. But I do like the idea of physically supporting it, even if it is a corporate entity attempting to buy our love? I'm very buy-able! I know a couple TRYers that plan to do this and while I have my boys to myself that morning I am pretty sure that I'll show up with them and pay for the country fair part only. (Or perhaps sign up for the untimed race and only do one lap? I really have no interest in 90 pounds in a stroller on those hills though.) Let me know if you plan on being there either to run or just to watch and I'll make sure all TRYers know to keep an eye out for each other.

Something educational?
This short article from active got my attention - "10 Things Running Coaches Wish You Would Stop". Since it is an annoying "click-through" type I'll provide the bullet points that caught my attention (emphasis added is mine):
Failing to put in the time and effort required.
Letting emotions dictate your decisions. (this was opposite of what I thought - runners getting excited and wanting to go too fast, too soon)
Comparing yourself to others.
Skipping Strength Training
Over training.
Not listening to your body.
Making excuses. (Which amused me, because weaseling out of things we would rather not do is what separates mankind from the animal kingdom. Well, except for the weasel.)
Not Asking Questions.
Snacking before and after every run. (Over estimating the amount of calorie burn from your short runs.)
Training harder rather than smarter.

Normally Prequels Are Lacking:
But something about this one immediately caught my eye! I was unable to watch it while in the movie theater but now that it is entering the "On Demand" phase and soon to be on Netflix, I was just curious if anyone is interested in what sounds like a very intriguing movie night?!

Dual Endings

This week the forecast is for low 80s and sun at TRY time.

Nothing to do with running, but everything to do with time. Somehow, a simple coincidence of life has aligned itself that two TRYers have lost grandmothers this past week. A-jax and Malinda lost grandmothers just three days apart. I do not read anything into this unfortunate coincidence, but it does serve as a reminder that life is fleeting, our peak years pass all too quickly and that time remains undefeated. Surround yourself with people and activities that bring energy and joy into your life and shed those people and things that do not.

The official race photos are getting less and less fun to screen capture, so I'm just going to include the free to share Team Beef finish area photos from the Boilermaker.

A lot going on here...strollers? With something other than just kids in them? (Anyone have any insight into that?)


A veteran.


A veteran.


A rookie. (Who is such a dedicated mother that she expressed milk along the way and carried it with her to take home for the afternoon feeding. Impressive!)


The last of our TRY herd.


And I was stopped randomly while throwing away some trash at the after party. Not sure where this was posted but Team Beef found it.

Ready, Set, Run

If I happen to pass away on the Boilermaker course on Sunday morning and you read this post posthumously, know that I loved you all. Well, except you, you, and you. And especially YOU. But with those few exceptions, I did love all of you.

This weeks only important topic is the post Boilermaker gathering on Tuesday night, meaning there is no TRY (at the park). You should all have been invited to through the FB event. If not and you want to know details, get a hold of me.

For those that can come, please read the details in the Flushing The BM Away event and then use the comment section to coordinate what you are bringing for side dishes or desserts. There is no need for everyone to bring something (no need for a feast), so especially for those of you coming directly from work - I would rather have you there on time to enjoy the evening then have you have to stop and buy food right during rush hour and be delayed substantially doing so. We will make sure that there is enough to go around.

Despite no TRY, there is big goings on this week at the park. There is a "Onondaga Lake Fest" at the Willow Bay end on Saturday. Here is some reference material I've read:
A description of the worlds largest rubber duck was written back in June. (Where is Ernie when you need him? I challenge anyone to listen to this entire song and NOT get it stuck in there head for hours.)



Last week there was a better description about everything to do with the entire days activities.
And you can go directly to the Lakefest website.

Seems really interesting! Not sure that I will make it but will at least attempt to get within viewing distance of the duck with the boys. (Could be an interesting view of it from near the Amphitheater at that elevated viewing point almost directly across from our weekly meetup area?)

...do de rubber duck...

That song is so catchy! (But in a good way?)

In my final attempt to cram Caroline Kole down your throats...well, for now, anyway, and to get the rubber duck song out of your head, I'll share three videos of partial songs from Friday night's show. (With apologies for my poor quality video and audio versions.) Caroline did an excellent job, I expressed my love for her in front of a hundred witnesses (true story...Malinda can confirm) and did not get a restraining order, and it was an awesome concert again. I highly recommend catching her if she comes back through the area again.

...do de rubber duck...

One of her own songs, that works well for TRY - Ready, Set, Run:



...duck, rubber duck, duck, rubber duck...

A song for the non-country folks - her cover of Billy Jean:


...do de rubber duck...

And a country cover that is almost as old as Caroline is (somehow this song is 16 years old?!) - Goodbye Earl:



[Finally, that one forced it out...cause the duck had to die]

Sue Continues To Break Everything

Since this is so important:

Next week is the traditional post Boilermaker party and we will NOT meet at Onondaga Lake Park. Details to come - but for now just know that the Bermans will once again be hosting on the hill.

This week - mid 80s at TRY time. So a simmering afternoon to prep for the mighty BM. Plan your sweat glands accordingly.

Sue "I break everything" W is in town but is too good to join us for TRY. She is, however, willing to grace the Liverpool area with her presence at about 7. She is "up for anything" (except for running at TRY, apparently) so we just need to let her know where the gang ends up going out after the run.

New to the Boilermaker (BM)? Or new to how TRY does the BM? Or just have lingering questions about a past BM that you are afraid to ask? Please consult the official TRY guide to the BM. (It explains EVERYTHING...but if you have questions - you can discretely get them to me.)

Did you see the FB event that I put together for the Caroline Kole concert in Pulaski Friday night? They are offering a deal on tickets through Wednesday (ask me how) (so it is 2 for $10...or basically FREE to see an amazingly talented 19 year old singer that may or may not be super famous one day. Like "The Voice"? Or "American Idol"? Those singers have nothing on this young woman - so stop ignoring me and come on out and have a great night in the presence of greatness.

Saturday night, another night, and another great concert opportunity! This time it is a "Tribute to Billy Joel" at a very BM friendly time. (As in, you could pick up your race packet, stall a bit (eat dinner?) and then catch the show and still be back home in time for your early bed time.

Details here:

Note that a very special person to TRY is involved...none other than the most interesting man in the world! Also, a close second most interesting man...our very own Ronnie Z!

Just a  couple weeks after our first "Tri-TRY-tri" we had a "Quad-TRY-great race" on Sunday. Congratulations to Team "Beauties and the Beasts" for a division win in the "Bay Day Great Race in St. Albans, Vermont"!

Pictured (presumably): Beauty. Beast. Beauty. Beast.

It would seem Malinda ran, Drew biked and the LaRocque's rowed-rowed-rowed their boat? And it would also seem that three-way, four-way...you name it-way...it doesn't matter cause Drew is up for any sort of group action. Way to be flexible, Drew!

Filler

Mid-70s and slight chance of rain at TRY time. (Will we ever actually get rain?)

Last week I got caught up in the team effort and forgot to congratulate Eric V on his first ever half ironman. I don't have the knowledge to judge his effort but I know finishing his first one in those conditions could not have been easy. Congratulations on pushing through the heat!

Since I've got nothing this week...I might as well go for funny.

At least one TRYer has medical reasons for avoiding gluten (Celiac Disease) so this is actually sort of relevant! "Being gluten intolerant used to be limited only to those who are actually intolerant to gluten":



And a longer one passed along to me that has to do a bit with running and all to do with competing and doping in the olympics:




That's all I have. Enjoy.

Tri-TRY Tri

Tuesday's forecast is for summery weather but will feel like a nice break from the heat of Sunday and Monday. Come on out and TRY, TRY, TRY.

Speaking of which...in what I believe is a first for TRY, there was a tri-TRY tri-athlon team in Sunday's 70.3 Ironman. Congrats to Team "It Could Be Worse" (you need to add your own search for team name) on what seems to me was a solid performance. Tenth place in division seems great to me! (But I cannot see how to find division listings? Top 10 is top 10 though!) I'm glad that Drew and Matt did not melt and that Aaron proved that he is part Dory and can just keep swimming.

Hopefully you've all seen BOTH Paige's Butterfly Run photo albums I've posted on the TRY FB page. If not, and your name was tagged - it means that there are photos of you (or your significant other) in the album. Please dig through and see yourself for yourself. (Yes, I went through every single official photo looking for TRYers. Yes, I have a lot of free time on my hands.)

Speaking of Paige's...they are adding a new fundraiser for this year. It was just mentioned in their latest email - but I'll post here as well. Since some PBR regulars missed out this year, this could be of interest for doing something for the event? Who would have an interest in going to an all-you-can-eat clambake at the Spinning Wheel? Details:



(Or link here in case graphic does not work for people.)

Hmmmm. I guess I could pledge that if 5 people signed up from TRY to go that I would show up there in my shark suit? (Probably not a promise I should make? But then again, the suit is not going to wear itself.)

Finally a little tidbit of detail about an essential body part we don't think about enough. (No, not THAT body part! Trust me, Ron thinks about that part enough for all of us!) I was referring to "fascia". I'm not convinced that 'fascia is the frontier of body knowledge' but did find this short article on understanding fascia very interesting. Certainly would inspire me to foam roll more...if I actually cared about my body...or could find my foam roller.

Flagging

Is it just me or has this been a depressing last several days? (The ugly details of the Stanford case being everywhere, our well regulated militia going off the rails again, the Letchworth deaths, and now the Drab Bard himself returning?)

Oh well. Happy Flag Day! Forecast for TRY time is basically perfect - 70 and sunny with a touch of a wind.

After TRY at least a couple of us are headed to The Retreat for dinner. Anyone and everyone is welcome to join in there. (No need to RSVP/comment ahead of time, we will just wing it in the moment.)

As for running stuff - I know of 4 TRYers taking part in the big Syracuse triathlon this Sunday. Three as part of a team and one on his own. Good luck with all that and don't forget to have fun! Maybe I'll post race details directly to FB later this week since I did not think to research that ahead of time.

This suggestion was passed along to me - the dangers of doing a beer mile challenge. You might have to be a fan of the Bob and Tom show to truly enjoy this? But then again, we all enjoy epic failures, right?

That is all I have. The basketball game (despite being close) put me to sleep and this is the pathetic result. I have a snotty two-chebag that needs an intervention right now...

CC: And I Do Not Mean Carbon Copy

It's all about the Corporate Challenge this week. The CC "kicks" everything but the geese out of Onondaga Lake Park so there is no official TRY run.

Here are Syracuse.com's official details about the CC timing and parking information. Several TRYers should be running in the event and we typically have the non-participants who are willing and able to - meet up and cheer them on at about the 1/4 mile mark. If you can meet around 5ish, it is even possible to run along the regular park route. (The biggest issue is parking in town somewhere and getting into the park on foot.) Let me know if you want to do the pre-CC jog this year at 5ish. (Although there could be an issue for me and the boys since I cannot be out there if it is raining/storming. But I can still help coordinate those that will be there in a light rain.)

Loose ends:
It was all over Facebook but to make it blog official, the TRY centipede team once again captured the Paige's trophy for this years fastest centipede team. Congratulations to first time 'pede member Matt and first time 'pede champions Stevil and Grande Blanco! Team "Run For Your Lifeguard!" turned a rogue shark attack into something to celebrate. Thank goodness for gauze pads and quick whistles!



As an interesting aside, my 20 year old nephew saw the trophy and after saying what it was for, he asked incredulously: "You made a human centipede?!" Let's just say that the movies on the subject were the first thing to come to his mind. But at least he seemed really impressed we could run a 5k like that!


Hey Duerr, this paragraph is sort of running related!
On the successful heals of me pointing out that high altitude training masks would start to be seen around normal workout places and the not-so-successful prediction that Prancercise would become a a thing. I have stumbled across the next big thing in working out:
(Has anyone watched the movie "Her"? That is what this made me think of.)  It is a kickstarter project that gives a glimpse of what our workouts of the future could look (sound) like. It is called Vi and if you do not instantly think of "vee eye" the text editor, then I don't want you on my next agile programming team...but they pronounce it just "vee". If anyone can get through the video without wanting to take Vee and throw her off the nearest cliff than you are a better person than I am. Let's do another hill? I don't think so be-otch! Do the eff-in hill yourself...and if you call me "Champ" one more time I am going to turn you into a retro game console you stuck up little piece of AI. (Just kidding! I would be in love with her within about 10 minutes and would probably never need to talk to my first wife again. Which is where the reminders of the movie "Her" came in. Workout partner...it sounds a bit more useful than that!)

For Malinda's Canal run last week I used my only good erie canal jokes...and then stumbled upon a Bruce Springsteen version of the song that has someone stuck in my head for 30-some years. Why did Bruce sing this song? (I put it in a comment last week, but wanted it here for everyone to have a chance to hear. It also has the lyrics, so it is instructional to boot.) By the way, there are two versions of the lyrics - I had learned "15 miles on the erie canal" which is what Bruce sings here, but there is also an accepted (and earlier?) version that says "15 years...".



From touching on the "Wrong Hole" video again, I decided that the woman was worth looking up. It turns out she is some sort of internet/youtube celebrity and made not one, but TWO (that I found) other videos as follow ups to the break-out hit. These definitely cross way over the NSFW threshold, so save these for an appropriate place and time. It turns out that "Wrong" rubs a part of our community the wrong way, and this video does have a point...a hole is just a hole. Why label it?



And here is her version of the story. Nothing ground breaking here, but serves as an excellent spoof of the original...and when your well being depends on number of video views, milk one of your most popular video for all you can! Three years later? Starting to lose your viewers? Go "tap that well" one last time! If you are unfamiliar, be sure to go back that first one (linked above) because this one is not meant to stand on its own. You have to admit that the chorus is rather pretty, though.

My Apology

First off, I need to address the elephant in the room: I apologize for the lack of useful running content in last weeks blog post. Reaching a "new low", while saddening, was actually an impressive feat, considering there have been posts in the past with a talking bacon strip and a video of a song named "Wrong Hole"...in the same post! Seriously, just watch the embedded videos (discretely) for our previous, epic, low.

Duerr, I have contacted our finance department and they will be refunding your prorated membership fee for last week so that you can, hopefully, continue to get full value from your TRY membership.

Now for this weeks post:
NEXT week is the Chase Corporate Challenge at the park so there will be no traditional TRY meetup on June 7th. But we have a tradition of meeting up a little early, getting an optional jog in, and then going out on the course about 1/4 to 1/2 a mile and cheering on any and everyone we can see go by that we know that are doing the race. So, non-racers, get in touch with me if you would like to be a part of that effort.

This week - mid 70s and sunny, so should be a perfect night. Come on out and enjoy a slight break from this weekends heat wave.

This coming Saturday is the 20th annual Paige's Butterfly Run. We have one centipede division team running this year and hopefully a couple individual race runners. I'll be in touch with meet-up plans, but you can plan for a full morning: An early morning meet-up, running the race, kids caterpillar crawl, open walk 3k? event, award ceremony, and then a quick group pass through the Taste of Syracuse before it gets super busy.

While I really enjoy the event and hopefully everyone else does as well, I want to make sure people think about it a bit deeper this year on the 20th running of the race... Paige would have turned 30 this year. And with our very own Escalade having turned 30 just a few months ago it is very easy to guess at what Paige might be doing if she was around...celebrating a dating anniversary with her fiance, planning a wedding location and working up a guest list, and figuring out future living arrangements... It really is heart crushing if you think about it. Instead of all the fun stuff that most women get to do around the age of 30, there have been 22 empty years since Paige's untimely death. Well, not empty certainly, since her passing inspired this amazing event that has raised a ton of money over the years.

For all you TRYers that take part in Paige's this Saturday, please take some time to appreciate that our special connection with the event is a SPECIAL thing. Sure, the centipede thing gets a bit silly at times and we certainly have fun with it. But the event appreciates and returns that joy and has used us (mostly Malinda and Kelly) many times through fun photos. From being "cover girls" on the Syracuse paper to being the photo of the day for a weekend online, to being used as a whole team of "Band on the Run" in last years Fleet Feet newsletter's mention of the race - TRY has stumbled into a bit of a celebrity entity for this event. And I do not take that honor lightly. So please join me in embracing our role and putting on your best paparazzi smile for a few hours Saturday morning.

Lastly, an over due congratulations to Malinda for completing her first "hymon" two Sundays ago. She took part in the first running of the "Erie Canal Half Marathon" in Utica on the 22nd. Just from the name I can guess that the race was 17% "C" and 83% "anal", but I'll leave it up to Malinda to confirm my in-depth "anal-ysis". She took to the canal run like a mule named Sal would...to the point of finishing 3rd in her age group (assumingly losing to one neighbor and one pal). Congratulations Malinda! (And great job avoiding those low bridges.) Unrelated question: who else had to learn the Erie Canal song while in school? For some reason, that song has always been stuck somewhere in the recesses of my brain.

Pictured - Neighbor, pal, and Sal:




(Yes, we also have a TRYer that whooped a deer AND a trail marathon this past weekend, but I'm saving that story for a full treatment during a future week. So no need for any prima-Donna's to be offended that I missed something.)

I think that is all I have...saving some sillier stuff for next weeks "off" week.

Smile. Make it Memorable.

Finally we have an over 70 degree forecast for this evenings TRY session. Come on out and enjoy a perfect spring day. (With perhaps a touch too much wind.)

Nothing to do with running, but something that is going to have a HUGE impact on our running setting. Several ash trees in the park that our visible from our meet-up spot, or as we walk Angela's TRYangle, or even as you drive out the southern exit have numbers on them and tape around them. I assume that means the trees are planned for cutting down? But slight chance that they are just being monitored at this point or even being given the pesticide treatments mentioned? Here is a slide show article that came out yesterday from syracuse.com on how the county is dealing with the emerald ash borer blight. The pictures under the bark are rather amazing at the damage they can quickly do.

If all the marked trees in the park get taken down, it will a much different looking area. (And would take decades before any trees of significant size could take their place.)

Once again, nothing to do with running, but I stumbled across this interesting take on life. And most of us are alive, so thought it was worth sharing. My family went to "Sesame Place" in southeastern Pennsylvania over the weekend. It is a "mini-Disney" type theme park in that it is much-much smaller, geared towards kids about 10 and under, and easily do-able in a day. It has roaming characters (from sesame street), character dining opportunities, is kept super clean, and has a daily parade...so it sure seems like they are copying or paying homage to the Disney system. (It is actually a Sea World owned and operated park despite having no marine animals in sight.) Anyway, they do a very good job there and I do recommend it for families with young children. (For anyone over 25 and with no children - you may be surprised to learn that Elmo has become the superstar of the crew...definitely gets the Mickey Mouse treatment around those parts.)

An access door ("team members only") happened to be propped open and on the inside was a sign for the "team members" to read as the last thing they see before interacting with the public. It said: "Smile! Be memorable!" I have thought about that for a while and cannot decide if that is a great thing or a terrible thing? From the characters, to the ticket takers, to the popcorn seller, to the poor soul standing there for 8 hours just to turn people away from the ride that is not open yet...they are all supposed to be "on" from the moment they step out that door just so us paying customers can have our best experience possible.

How would your life be different, if for every interaction you had today, you did your best to ensure that it was in the running for the best interaction that OTHER person was going to have all day? What if you were tasked with being memorable to everyone you came across? Constantly?! It seems like it would be VERY draining? But, then again, for those who believe in the "bucket filler" outlook on life, perhaps it would often be reciprocated and you would find yourself with more energy?

It is an interesting thought experiment. Too bad I am too much of a 

 

to ever give it a try. (Someone please do this for a day or two and let me know how it turns out?)

The Ides of May

The forecast is for around 60 and clouds for TRY time.

The results of last weeks informal question about compression led me to this conclusion: we pay a lot to wear compression clothing, so of course we are going to convince ourselves that it works. And as silly of creatures as humans are - that belief itself is enough to be worth the money. 

For this week, I have a mis-mash of links.

First, for people newer to TRY that may wonder about the reasons behind doing interval running, here is yet another article explaining the why's, how's and when's of running intervals. It gets very basic in some of its explanation - so a great read for beginners. For those of you who skip all of my links know that it says to wait until you have a base, warm up first, and my favorite thing to repeat about repeats is that you should run your hard runs harder and your easier runs easier. (Do NOT run every run at the same pace/exertion, Susan! This will be a great test to see if she still reads the blog posts. #suebrokethetry)

I got to that link by starting to read about interval workouts - that is - interval training during non-running workouts. A study (SCIENCE!) came out about a "one minute workout" that showed that doing an interval based bike workout produced very similar results to a much longer bike workout. The key takeaway to me is that when pressed for time, work out smarter, instead of working out longer, and definitely instead of not working out at all. Here is the master article about interval workouts - with a few good links inside - but that points out that interval workouts should not be your only workout. (Keep in mind that I refuse to do ANY workout, but if I did workout, I would definitely do some interval workouts. Maybe?)

If you care only about running or getting in better physical shape, stop here. For those of you who care about random things, well, by all means - continue:

The completely overdone video version of what happens to you body when you don't have sex. Sure, I could list the bullet points for you here and save putting in the link, or you could read most/all of them in the short article...but that would not get them their precious video view...and what would be the fun in that? Let's just say that if you cuddled a Mickey Mouse plush doll as you fell asleep last night instead of cuddling someone else...well, you are missing out on some important health benefits. (Note: I am not signaling out any particular single people with the above example, I just made up an example behavior that a single person might or might not choose to do.)

Lastly, for some color directly in the blog, this humorous video on what a meat eater behaving like a vegetarian would look like. Obviously, way over the top, and completely based on a stereotypical vegetarian...and not like anyone I've ever met. But people like this must exist somewhere, because stereotypes do not get made out of thin air:

(If you can get through the "but none of the cucumber" line without a grin on your face, then you are a better woman than me!)

Run For The Border

No, not that border...did not want to risk running into Diego. I'm heading for a quickation to Canada so will not be around for TRY. The lure of a favorable exchange rate and a Groupon deal was too much for me to pass up.

The forecast looks great and mid spring-like so hopefully that will bring some of the new prospective TRYers out of the woodwork. Please greet them with open arms - but keep it tasteful.

May tends to be a little lax on the group racing schedule. Does anyone have any races of note coming up this month? In June we have what has become a celebration run for TRY - Paige's Butterfly Run. Please let me know if you want to be part of the Centipede Division team(s) for this year? Same price for the race, but five times the fun! It is Saturday, June 4th and we have about 2 more weeks to get in before the price goes up. Depending on the people interested, we do some creative shuffling and almost always come up with a decent solution. Plus we will need some team name and theme inspiration, even from people that know they cannot take part. I'm not sure if we've tapped out Stevil's imagination yet?

I have not done a lot of digging yet this season to find useful, running related, links to share, so I will start now. I like to sprinkle in just enough useful things to keep you coming back for more. Many of us have tried compression socks or calf sleeves. But do compression garments actually work for runners? Here is a short article with a mixed answer - science says no, but a believing mind says yes.

For those of you who have tried them. Are you a true believer? Do you have any proof? Is there any way to actually prove such claims. (It would seem to me that the placebo effect is probably as good as anything they can do physically.)

For anyone actually willing to answer my questions - please "reply" by posting in the comment thread on the Facebook group page. That will get the most visibility and save people from having to worry about checking the comments on the blog page itself.

Soggy Goat

Through the fog I can see a forecast of 60 and mostly cloudy at TRY time. Come on out and enjoy the pleasant spring conditions.

I was hoping for more inspiration but instead I went the easy, but very pretty, route and screen-captured a bunch of TRYers from the Mountain Goat Run on Sunday morning. It was fun to see so many familiar faces zoom past in Onondaga park and it seems like the race went well for most of you. Unfortunately there are a bunch of people with no photos available (at least at this point)...but with so many TRYers running, we still have several to soggy photos to see:

 

 



Cynthia has had much better looking days!



The Gerega Wave winner for 2016:



And a friendly rivalry 2 decades in the making:

Gone South

This week's forecast is for low 80s and sunny at TRY time.

Wait, wrong location! (Never let it be said that my first wife was not a very giving person!) This week's forecast is for mid 40s and cloudy at TRY time. That seems a lot more realistic! (Albeit a bit chilly for almost May.)

Several TRYers are on the final ramp up to the Mountain Goat run this Sunday morning. The extended forecast calls for perfect spring temperatures for an enjoyable race. Low 60s overall, so probably mid 50s at race time. The only thing yelling "May-day!" on Sunday should be your old PR. Choose wisely on your taper (or not) this week and go on out on Sunday and get your GOAT on! I have not fully planned my weekend, but listen for a familiar ring as you run through Onondaga Park near mile 4, just in case.

I'm experiencing issues with sketchy hotel wifi, but I'm pushing through for your sake.

I'd like to take a detour here and push for a special event for one of my "friends". OK, not exactly a friend but a singer that I like to push for once in a while because I think she is so cool and definitely very talented - Caroline Kole. She does primarily country music by trade, but in concert she mixes in some pop and oldies and does a great job with everything she sings. Oh, and she still is a teenager!

So...who would want to see a national recording act that has had a couple videos get played on CMT stations...live and in person for 7 bucks? It's at an old theater made new in Pulaski where they put on fancy weddings and other modern events. Riverside setting, two bars, and a very intimate showroom with GA seating. My first wife and I saw her there last year and were blown away. Front row seats and probably the second best concert experience of my life. (I may never top meeting Faith...so that is number one.) Anyway - if you like country music, live music, or just talented people giving it their all, then I highly recommend coming to see this show. (Let me know if you are interested in being part of a group outing that night.)

The concert is Friday night, July 8th, and is currently $7 to buy tickets. (Goes up to $10 next week through event night.) You do not need to pre-buy, but I do want to get a group together to go out and support my girl.

Here are some telling videos of hers.
Her biggest "hit". Straight modern country pop:


And a very interesting mashup of a Kelly Clarkson song and Frozen:


And lastly, a song I do not like as much (not familiar with the original) but shows how she can get away from country and put on an impressive vocal performance making a song her own:

What Am I Grateful For?

This week:
The forecast is for mid 50s and sun, so it should be a pleasant run. (Although, chance of it being a bit too breezy next to the lake.) The good news is that a regular spring day will mean all the people that came out of the woodwork for the last couple amazeball days will stay home today and the park will be reasonably un-full. The group workout will be discussed in person as people are filing in.

A friendly reminder:
We have the pleasant problem of having a large group, so please be mindful of how much room we take up on the park trail. Especially at the beginning when all of us are together.

What are TRYers up to:
I believe the only race worth mentioning this week is the "Seneca 7". At least a couple TRYers are doing it on Sunday and I believe a few other runners that some of us know will be involved as well. Duerr are you willing to do a small race story for us to contrast it to the Ragnar version of a team race?

SCIENCE!
I had posted this article to the TRY FB page back in December, but it was the off-season so I do not know how many people would have bothered to read it...and we already have a bunch of new people in the group so I wanted to officially post it as part of a weekly update. Here are four simple rituals that neuroscience has "proven" will make you happier.
The summary is that you should ask yourself "what am I grateful for?" (answering the question is unnecessary - just the asking works), label your negative emotions, make "good enough" decisions, and touch people. I know, my mind was blown the first time too!

We will be implementing the TRY mandatory hugging policy (long hugs!) on any week that Meat Loaf shows up.

Escalade is back:
In honor of our favorite blind athlete (well, second favorite for those of us who know Shawn), I wanted to re-post a link that Escalade shared on her timeline this week. It is from popular mechanics and skews towards the techie side of the sport so it should appeal to the engineers in the group and has enough general information about "beep baseball" that others of you could find it interesting as well. It turns out that it skews wildly from the baseball we know, but the hitting mechanism is about the same. The fielding, running, and scoring mechanism all went in a way I did not expect. (I naively thought that blind people somehow managed to play traditional baseball. Which seemed crazy to me. It turns out it is still crazy...just in different ways.)

Well, She Is a Fast 12

The weather forecast is good enough and definitely an improvement from last week, so plan on a spring like feel to this weeks TRY meet-up. As the weather gets nicer in the next few weeks are when we typically get new faces showing up to TRY. Please be friendly and don't always sit back and wait for a leader to do introductions...if you see someone you don't recognize, introduce yourself and help them feel welcome. Thanks!

To make things, ahem, "run" smoother this year, we are dividing up some of the behind-the-scenes work of TRY. As always, we have a "recruiting chair", just need to figure out who we assigned that job to..., and we also have a "communications chair" who will be responsible for most of the blog updates and most of the occasional group coordination. But most importantly we now have a "workout chair" who will be doing the bulk of workout planning and coaching.

This weeks update from the workout chair:
"Excellent job of regrouping after each quarter last week. Keeps it a group run. Quarters spanned 90 to 120 seconds across the group. Expect to do a mix of quarters with a hill or two thrown in at the end. Not the faith variety."

A look back:
The PWP 5K Run/Walk was a success on Sunday. Turnout was down slightly but the fundraising behind the scenes was slightly more efficient so the early word is that right around $10,000 will be donated to the three causes chosen for this year. We, but I don't help with this part, so more correctly "they" do a really cool thing and run an essay contest for middle school students in the district. The winning essay entry is then chosen and the cause they wrote about is the cause that gets a "minor" donation along with the student who wrote the entry getting the recognition on race day morning. (This is the second year doing this and I just think it is a very fun tradition and ties in really well in how well the race fits into the community and school.) FYI - the two main benefactors get the bulk of the funds raised...so probably $4500 to each of those and then $500-$1000 given to the essay winning cause.

I want to extend a big thank you to all of you TRYers for the various levels of support you provided to this race this year! We even had a runner come out this year - Malinda came out and ran the course for the first time. The good news is she did great and was the second female finisher. The bad news is she got her doors blown off by a 12 year old girl. Like, by a minute. (So feel free to come up with some zings to give her when you see her in the next couple weeks. The classic "I've seen better runs in my shorts!" always works, but perhaps for the first time in her life you can say "You got beat by someone young enough to be your daughter!" and she cannot refute that. Or a simple "The Butler DIDN'T do it!" would be classy and succinct.)

Pictured: Two women and their arch-nemesis who you can clearly see is a CHILD -

Alright, enough about PWP for the year! (The good news is I don't have any other races this year to truly push on you guys.)

BUT, that doesn't mean I won't put out random suggestions!

A look ahead:
The Corner Store Run is coming back to Syracuse again this year. I believe I passed along a glowing review about it last year, but I am too lazy to search the archives to find out. The point was that this race had more giveaways than you could shake a Nice-N-Easy breakfast sandwich at! (The "Corner Store" now owns the Nice-N-Easy name. So, I was making a joke.) The race is only $10 (plus $5 if you want chip timing) and promises "Live Music. Food. Free Sponsor Swag. Carnival Games. Face Painting. And MORE!" Just a heads up that the music will most likely all be country music. It is on Saturday, August 6th and is the twice around the OCC loop for the course.

I don't have the will to push it yet this week, but it is overdue time to sign up to run with Team Beef for this years Boilermaker.

Who is around and bored Father's Day weekend? Do you know what sounds fun? Helping with bike security and bike related changeover stuff at the Syracuse 70.3! Maybe one of our triathlon people can explain to me what that would involve?

Trip the light fantastic:
One of our fringe TRYers - Eric has a very unique event coming up this weekend and will be providing a write-up soon on what exactly he has gotten himself into. In the mean time you can read a teaser on what looks like an official website about "Dancing With Our Stars".