Victory Monday

Don't forget, the Victory 10K in this monday. Run it.

volunteers needed

MDRA office manager Heidi is looking for volunteers for the Victory and City of Lakes races.

Volunteers are needed for registration, t-shirts & other early morning stuff - starting at 6:30 a.m. Everyone who helps gets a long sleeve shirt. Email Heidi at hmiler@comcast.net if you can lend a hand. Round up your friends, neighbors, kick ball team, kids, cell block & whoever else you can think of & help Heidi. She'd do it for you.

Perhaps helping out at a race will spark ideas for our bumper sticker contest. We've received around 20 submissions so far!

starting out strong

We've already received 2 entries for the bumper sticker contest (see previous post). We're not limiting your entries - so if you have five good bumper sticker ideas, send them in. In fact, you should send us five bad ideas. Our last sticker was "get your run on". The bar is pretty low people.

Speaking of getting your run, two MDRA events are fast approaching. The Victory 10K & 5K are less than three weeks away. Online registration is open.

The City of Lakes 25 is also looming on the horizon. Last year the race filled a week early, so register early this year.

goo review & new contest too

As promised last week, here's my review of Gu Roctane: It was fine.

I didn't barf, I didn't bonk. I didn't develop superhuman strength or the ability to do really complicated long division in my head. Although, I did work the Pythagorean theorem in to a joke shortly after consuming my Rocktane.

In other news it's time for another MDRA contest. Our most popular items at race expos are bumper stickers. Past slogans have included "We Run Minnesota", "I run, therefore I am", "I'd rather be Fartleking", and my personal contribution, "Get your run on". Dickensian.

Well now it's your turn to come up with a new MDRA bumper sticker slogan. The rules are; it has to be a new slogan (we'll check it against our master list of stickers past) and it has to fit on a regulation bumper sticker (under 10 words is best). Deadline is September 1st, and the winner will receive a bumper sticker, hat and singlet prize pack! We're going big with this one.

Email us your entry by September 1 & the MDRA board will pick a winner at our September meeting. Good luck, runners.

new goo review coming soon

At long last, there's a new energy food on the market. Rejoice! I just picked up the new Gu Rocktane - sounds pretty badass, doesn't it?

Rocktane is a bit pricey $2.50 each. It has 35mg of caffeine, double the sodium & potassium of regular GU and a bunch of amino acids, such as Histidine, Leucine, Valine & Isoleucine. Mmm... I loves me some Isoleucine. Just like mom used to make.

I'll be rockin' the Rocktane on an 18 mile run tomorrow. Will I beat the bonk? Or will my stomach explode in a gooey Vanilla-Orange fireball? Tune in Monday for a culinary review of this latest incarnation of malodextrin in a foil tube.

the games are about to begin

The Olympics kick off tomorrow, which I think is actually today for us. That whole date line thing has always confused me. Track prelims start Saturday, I think the 1500 is the first running event.

The opening ceremony promises to be awesome. When the host country invented fireworks, you know it's going to rock.

Just to get you fired up, here's the '96 torch lighting. I dare you to watch this and not cry.

that was a rough one

The Hennepin-Lake Classic went down yesterday morning. Conditions were, in a word, 'humid'. Conditions in two words were 'crazy humid'. I won't go in to conditions in three or more words, as I'd have to break out some vocab from my four-letter-word arsenal.

Fortunately, it appeared that everyone was smart enough to slow down a bit & stay hydrated. I didn't see any ambulances on the course, which is always good.

I did weigh myself on the fancy digital scale at the Y before & after the race. Even after consuming ~30oz of water after the 5K, I was 4 pounds and change lighter after the double header. That's a half gallon of sweat. That's nuts!

That's also why I waited until 3:00 to post this. My apologies if you were enjoying a late lunch while reading this entry.

team circuit race this sunday

Just a reminder that the Hennepin Lake Classic is this Sunday at Lake Calhoun. The 10K starts at 8:15 & the 5K starts at 9:30. The start is at the south end of the lake (Upton Ave for the 10K & 36th street for the 5) so plan your parking accordingly.

Me? I'll be biking to the uptown Y, running 2 miles to the start, running the doubleheader, running 2 miles back the Y, and the biking home. The remainder of my day will most likely center around the couch, pain killers & a stiff drink, though not necessarily in that order.

Note: the temperature this weekend will be approximately... ridiculous. Dress accordingly.