PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

PRESIDE= NT’S MESSAGE

Greetings, fellow runners! I hope everyone is staying motivat= ed during these cold, wintry days. Is it just me, or has it been unusually harsh this year? These days more than ever I apprec= iate my training partners and all of you I see on the paths and the city streets. Setting up running d= ates, looking forward to the coffee runs, and to post-run “hot-tubbing̶= 1; - all these things make it easier = to get out the door and to hit the streets and trails.

A few things to keep in mind regarding winter training= : 1. Dress in layers - remember, you’ll be generating more heat when running. One guideline I̵= 7;ve heard is to dress 20 degrees cooler than it actually is outside. That sounds ridiculous when itR= 17;s barely above freezing, but I know I have been running in turtleneck and lig= ht jacket on even some of the coldest days we’ve have had lately. Once you get going, you’re g= onna get warm. Even so, don’t forget your hat and gloves; cold hands and burning ears will cause you to c= ut your run short. 2. Keep hydrated – you may not = seem as thirsty as you are during the hot, summer months, but it’s still important to get plenty of fluids, no matter what the season. Keep plenty of water and Gatorade = on hand. 3. Get plenty of rest – winter training can be even tougher on your body than those long, hot summer runs,= and the footing can be less than ideal. Getting the rest you need can help you stay focused and stay upright! Be careful out there. And remember, if you have to miss = a day of running because of weather conditions, or any other reason, don’t stress about it! If you belon= g to a gym, get in there and cross train; it can help your running down the road.<= /p>

Speaking of grueling winter runs – thanks to my = teammates Jim Hoffman and Ron Harmening for contributing to a great time at the 2004 HUFF. Our team, Tommy G. and = the Shondelles finished in 13th place this year in the team standings. Our own Greg Smith and Steve Ulric= h did the entire 50k, and Bud Stiffler was on hand for the entire run as well. Great job everyone! I understand there was= a good group at Kevin and Debbie

Harry’s annual New Year’s Day Run; I so appreciate the efforts our members make to create running (and eating!) events! We also had a great g= roup at the Kennekuk

Roadrunners’ Siberian Express on January 8^t=
h- read more about that road trip in Kathy’s Korner.

Stay healthy! I’ll see you all at the Annual meeting and awards presentation= on February 5^th.

Happy trails,

Tommy G.

Editors= Note

How abou= t a new Pacer. Sure ! Why not?. Due to unforeseen problems, circumstances, e-mail problems, down loading problems,= we need to make the Pacer a bit less complicated… not boring, mind you, = but less complicated, so e-mailing will be easier. While all this retooling is going on, our current issue may be a bit teensy weensy. Not much going on t= his time of year, no road series schedule yet, broken hips, ice storms, snow, downed trees, marathon training….all these factors have contributed to this mini issue. With the ann= ual meeting coming up, road series schedules in the offing, changing dates for = the White River Run, Spring in our sights…future issues will certainly be jampacked with informative, ju= icy, shocking, yet inspiring stori= es. So please enjoy this new endeavor with an open mind and an eye towards the fut= ure. Who knows where we can go from here.

Trainin= g for a Winter Marathon

It’s too cold,&= nbsp; there’s too much snow, trees are down, it’s too icy (and all the ex= cuses in the above article). I don’t want to hear it. Sure, conditions are tough, but when the= going gets tough, the tough get goi= ng. Running in this weather is not easy, but it certainly is

achievable. When you’re training for a Winter marathon, there’s not much choice except to Just Do It! Your president, Tommy Goodson and yours truly have been training for the Las Veg= as Marathon taking place January 30. With all the bad weather, we rarely misse= d a training run, always at least finding the roads passable even if our prefer= red trails were not. I have to admit that one of us wimped out on the night of = the ice storm when it was still possible to run at Shady Side, as the limbs were just starting to topple down. On a positive note, I have found out first hand that running with a faster partner helps one make great strides.

Certainly we all need to be careful running in this ki= nd of weather, but with the proper running clothes and a little ingenuity, runnin= g in winter weather can be lots of fun.

As the marathon grows near we’ve tapered and dis= cussed how our immune systems might be a bit stressed. So wouldn’t you know = that Tommy came down with a bad sinus infection the week before we were to leave? Luckily we knew a very good doctor, and after a couple very stressful days Tommy started getting better. We’re due to leave for the airport in a= bout thirty hours. Tommy doesnR= 17;t like to fly but I think once we get to Las Vegas, we’ll have a great winter marathon experience. Remember….What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. However we’ll let you know how things went next issue.

Editors note:<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> I know quite a few of our me= mbers are preparing for and running in marathons and other races. Please let me k= now if you have any interesting experiences so they can be shared with all our members.

&n= bsp;

BATB= OY ON HIATUS

Batboy has been found fr= ozen solid, a victim of flying through the recent ice storm. His rigid body was seen being drag= ged by a mountain lion in the woods outside Mounds State Park. As shoc= king as the news seems to be, some people seem more surprised about the mountain lion sighting. Differing opin= ions range from that of a

very hairy man walking on all fours to a Siamese kitte= n, rather than a mountain lion. However all sightings concur that this strange= animal was dragging Batboy. Batboy’s body was recovered by a recluse living in a local cav= e. Local residents say that Batboy’s heart was still beating and that in recent days shrieking cries were heard emanating from that cave. If this is true and Batboy has tha= wed out, we may be able to expect more stories on Batboy in future issues.

Editor’s= note: The existence of Batboy is neither confirmed nor denied by this publication. Readers should each weigh the facts and come to their own conclusion. With = that being said the ARRC board offers a large reward and a trip to Maui, Hawaii to any person or persons with objective evidence of Batboy’s existenc= e.

= ;

Kathy&#= 8217;s Korner

For the second year in a row, a group of ARRC members = made the trek to Danville, Illinois to participate in the Kennekuk Roadrunners first event of the new year, the Siberian Express. You may recall last year’s adventure, recounted in these pages, where our group managed to reach the race just in time to sign up and line up for the start, after a mechanical breakdown, a vehicle rental and a race to get to = the start line on time – what a ride!&nb= sp; This year’s trip was quieter, but no less adventurous (or profitable) for the fearsome foursome who braved the winter weather to take part in this event.

In the week leading up to the race, Anderson and surrounding communities we= re hit by a major ice storm. Loss of electricity, as well as various members nursing injuries whittled our group down to four – your prez Tommy G., Ron Harmening, Wray Jean Cornwell = and me. We woke to 4-5 inches of = snow that morning, but made the decision to give it a shot and head out – = we could always turn back if weather/road conditions turned against us. We made to the Kickapoo State Recr= eation Area without incident, got our race bibs and tried to figure out what to wear. It was cold, with sever= al inches of new snow, and we knew there’d be mud and water hazards. Once we got it all sorted out, we = made our way to the start for the 7.6 mile trail run.

Everyone had a great run; Tommy and Ron bettered their times from last year, as I did, but then again, I walked the race last year, finishing in just under the two hour time limit. I’m happy to report Wray Jean and I finished together at 1:30. It was snowy, muddy, wet

and wild, but great fun. After collecting our prize at the = finish line – a nifty little gear bag – we headed back to the car to c= lean up and head to downtown Danvil= le to the post race party and eats.

The Kennekuk Road Runners host a great party, with a D= J, dancing, good food and all the beer or Pepsi products you can manage for five bucks. There are door prizes galore, as well as a shot at the Jar ‘o Money, which was won last yea= r by Dr. Ron, and taken home this year, according to the announcer, by either Tammy or Tommy Goodson – unbelievably, Tommy wasn’t at the t= able at the time his name was called, but his poor penmanship enabled me to coll= ect the prize as “Tammy”! After picking up his prize, Wray Jean and I waited for Tommy and Ron= to return to the table; when they came in I informed them that one of our group won the Jar ‘o Money for the second year in a row! I didn’t at first admit it r= eally belonged to Tommy, but eventually I had to come clean. The look on his face was priceless= ! We’re gonna go for a three-p= eat next year – hope you can join us!&nb= sp; Check out the Kennekuk Road Runners Race schedule at http://www.kennekuk.com.

Kathy Wehrley

PS – For those of you interested in trail runs, = the 2005 DINO (Doing INdiana Outdoors) race series begins March 12^th= at Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis. Check out their schedule for 2005 = at http://www.dinoseries.com/= run/schedule/. We usually get a van load to= gether for these runs and we have a great time.

Editors note: = We will be interested to see what happens if Kathy wins the jar O’ money next year.

Walk th= e Walk

&nbs= p; Greetings Walkers, Runners, and the ultimately curious!! What an amazing year coming to an end! I hope that you have all= been well and are preparing for a terrific Holiday Season. My distance quest has ended strang= ely; but not unusually for me. I developed left knee pain two weeks before the Tecumseh Trail Marathon. Therapy helped; but didn’t c= ure me enough. I ended up timing the marathon finishers. Congratul= ations to Dave Welch, Bill Koontz, Lonnie Smith, WrayJean Cornwell, and Steve Ulri= ch on completing a difficult course on a beautiful day! It killed me spiritually not to do= the race; but there was physically no way.

&nbs= p; Along came the HUFF ultra on Dec. 18^th. I had signed up a couple of months= in advance for the full. I had o= nly done thirteen miles in the last four weeks with the left knee issues. The knee was not right; but not re= ally painful. I rode up with Tommy= , Ron, and Jim. We got there early a= nd Jim helped with packet goodies until race time. It was not the typical snowy sub-a= rctic weather the HUFF is famous for. There was some ice and limited snow. Tommy, Bud Stiffler, Monte Hitchco= ck, Steve Ulrich, and I took off with the cannon blast. I started off slowly checking out = the knee. I kept the left knee sl= ightly bent. I did the first loop in 2:28:xx, only six minutes off my fastest loop, and didn’t feel too ba= d.

&nbs= p; Steve Ulrich and I hooked up midway through the second loop. It was great to have somebody to t= rek the miles with. If you didn&#= 8217;t know, Steve has completed the Indianapolis= half Marathon, the Knobstone Trail Half Marathon, the Te= cumseh Trail Marathon, and now working on the HUFF. He gets my vote and award as the t= op Clydesdale Ironman! We finish= ed the second loop at 5:11:xx. The s= un had come out and the trail became very muddy by our third loop. For me, a trail run is not a trail= run unless there is as much mud as physically possible. I have been in more mud. With tired legs and shoes retainin= g what felt like pounds of mud each, the trail became a slippery mess. We had to try to watch our footing= not to fall. We just kept on going. At four miles we looked forward to completing our marathon distance in six tenths with a 10K to go. We were pretty much by ourselves for most of the last loop. We kept racing the daylight hoping not to be cut off. We finished together in 8:26:xx. A PR for the both of us!!!!! My deepest thanks to Steve for hel= ping me complete this race. Many t= hanks to Dave Welch and Bill Koontz who gave me encouragement early in my race wh= ile they were doing a training run. My deepest thanks and apologies go to Tommy, Ron and Jim whom waited for me fo= r four plus hours while I trekked on.

&nbs= p; My favorite saying as I get older is don’t let your mind write checks th= at you body can’t cash. I crossed way over the fine line of guts and stupidity! I don’t recommend to anyone = to try what I did. I could have tota= lly damaged my left knee and never been able to do anything again. As I progressed through the course= , I knew I was going to pay for this race dearly. As the adrenaline wore off on the = trip home, I could hardly walk. Su= nday was revenge of the knee! I am= now using crutches. As dumb a stu= nt as it was, I am extremely proud that I made It! I guess it is what makes me,= me.

&nbs= p; What a great year!!! My congratula= tions to all of the Fun Runners, X-C Youth, and the great Walkers and Runners and spouses of the Club! You make= this World and much better and more fun place to be in. I look forward to seeing you after= I do some more Re-Hab. Happy Holid= ays!!

Greg

Upcomin= g Races

January 30, 2005 = Las Ve= gas Marathon

= = &nb= sp; Half Shell Half Marathon Key West, Fla

February 5 = &nb= sp; Indy Mini training run 5K Indaiana State

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Museum

February 6 = &nb= sp; Bank America Tampa Bay Marathon

February 12 = &nb= sp; Cupid’s Fling = Carmel, In

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Runner’s Forum

March 12 = &nb= sp; First DINO RUN Eagle Creek Park

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Dinoseries.com

March 19 = &nb= sp; Holliday Park Trail Run Indianapolis

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = = &nb= sp; Tuxbros.com

June 11 = &nb= sp; White River Run = Anderson. In

The Pacer January Februa= ry