Running to the Aid of Our Youth
It is hard for these runners to believe, but they are just 2 weeks away from their longest training run of the Marathon ROCKS 2009 season and 4 weeks away from race day at the VA Beach Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon on Sept. 6.
These intrepid beginning athletes have spent the last 3 1/2 months running hard and raising funds for Easton ROCKS youth development and enrichment programs and the new Teen and Family Center to break ground soon at the YMCA in Easton. Each runner committed to raising a minimum of $1,000, and all will have met that commitment by the time they crowd in with 15,000 other runners from around the country at the starting line.
We've been lucky all season with relatively low heat and humidity, many volunteers to people our water stops, and not a whole lot of rain. The slow economy made fund-raising a bit more challenging this year, but like Marathon ROCKS teams of the past, our runners faced the this challenge like they do their Saturday morning long runs--with confidence and courage.
We Eat 14 Miles for Breakfast
Starting at 6 a.m., August 22, the Marathon ROCKS VB.5ers will don their racing singlets and hit the roads, neighborhoods, and rails-to-trails of the Town of Easton for their biggest run of the training season! The run will end in triumph at Idlewild Park near the playground where their families, friends, and others from the community will help them celebrate a fantastic season. Fourteen miles is a long way, but our runners are more than ready for it.
The picnic is due to start at 10:30 a.m., which is when we anticipate the first of the VB.5 runners to cross the finish line.
Congratulations to Our Top Fund-Raiser
Faith Butler (right) with Laurie the Wine Coach and Fellow Teammate, Pam HarrisOur all-time top fund-raiser in the 3 years that we have been doing Marathon ROCKS is Faith Butler, who is one of five runners who will be racing both in VA Beach and in the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC, on October 25. She raised nearly $7,000, and will be enjoying a week away at a beach house in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, thanks to Debbie and Brett Whitehead.
Marathon ROCKS Is Nothing Without Sponsors...
Marathon ROCKS would not be the success that it is this year without help from the community. We would like to thank MidShoreLife.com for giving our runners the ability to write blogs on our Web site and for their supporters to donate at their blog spot. ShopMGI.com, proprietor of sports nutrition food and beverages, made a generous financial sponsorship this year for the team. We also want to thank Shore Pediatrics for their continued help and the Greene Turtle for giving us five friends' days to help with our runners' fund-raising efforts.
...and Volunteers
It takes real people power to support a team of 50 runners on Saturday mornings. Every 2 to 3 miles, we put out water stops for our runners stocked with water, Gatorade, Swedish Fish, pretzels, ice, cold paper towels, spritzer bottles (the kids love to spray the runners with these), and plenty of cheering. We want to thank our regulars, Gene Blades, Charlene Deshields, and Rebecca White in addition to the youth and our runners' families for coming out to help take care of the team. You ROCK!
A Special Thanks
We also want to extend a special thanks to Laurie the Wine Coach; Susan Langfitt; Mirta Bradner; Foxy's; Cookie Lee consultant, Jennifer Bullock; our local Pampered Chef consultants; and the many other local businesses who have helped our runners in their fund-raising efforts.
We're Not Done!
The end of the VB.5 training season is only half of the Marathon ROCKS program. On August 22, the Marine Corps Marathon participants will be doing their 20-mile training run. Look for their pace groups around town, wearing red.
