Posted by: Brian S-ski
By all accounts, it was a great weekend in Hot Springs for the Little Rock Roadrunners. Many of us booked rooms at the famed Arlington Hotel for Friday and Saturday night and made a nice weekend of it in Spa City. The Spa Pacers hosted the Spa 10K/5K for the 29th year and things kicked off on Friday evening with packet pickup and a welcome reception at the Arlington.
On Saturday morning an easy warm up mile took us to the Hot Springs Convention Center where the races start and end. After last year’s freezing temps, the 45 degrees or so felt perfect at the start. The first two miles of the course are a deceptively gradual uphill, running along Central Ave past the Arlington and then a lap around Whittington Park before the real fun begins. The race course heads into Hot Springs National Park and up West Mountain Drive. Up a huge hill, then it levels out a bit and then back up another. Just about the time you are considering heading over to the side of the road and yacking up last night’s dinner, the road screams back down the mountain and before you know it there is only a mile to go.
LRRC was king of the mountain as both our male and female squads won the team competition at the race. Leah Thorvilson was the overall female winner to lead the women. Jenny Weatter, Mary Wells, Tina Coutu, Alea Humes, Becky Humes, Ginea Qualls, Shareese Kondo, Alesa Davis, and Coreen Frasier rounded out our female team.
On the men’s side, Steven Preston set a 30 second PR to take 3rd overall. Brian Sieczkowski, Kevin Golden, Bill Diamond, Joel Perez, Steve Yanoviak, Greg Helmbeck, John Russell, Harold Hays, Bill Torrey, David Williams, and Dan Belanger were the rest of the 1st Place men’s team at the race.
After the race was the annual Arkansas RRCA Awards Ceremony back at the Arlington Hotel. Our own Leah Thorvilson was crowned Arkansas Female Runner of the Year while Bill Torrey was named Race Director of the Year for the Capital City Classic 10K! After the awards were handed out, the LRRC members hit the town with much to celebrate. Make sure to put the Spa 10K weekend on your calendar for 2010, it is a must-do.
Leah Thorvilson: Arkansas RRCA Runner of the Year
Bill Torrey: Arkansas RRCA Race Director of the Year
Posted 9 months, 2 weeks ago at 10:51 am. Add a comment
Posted by: Preztc
Just something here to let you know about “what’s happening”…..First we have a meeting on Thursday, November the 19th where we will vote on the drafted by-laws. We will have a nice slide show of Arkansas photographs from Steve Twaddle.
I have to call out our past president (sorry Ginea) she asked via posting on forum if we were to have a Thanksgiving day run. Now I have had several customers come into Gary Smith’s Easy Runner store asking the same thing and I of course direct them to our newsletter and website to read the info on line.
The Thanksgiving Day fun run will start with Paul Ward being the Head Turkey at the Full Moon parking lot on Kavanaugh Blvd at 7 am. So far a lot of interest for this run so good way to talk up club and help get new members, please spread the word.
The Christmas Party also is listed in the newsletter and will be held at the Capital City Room, Capitol and Woodlawn next to State Capitol Bldg. December 19th. This will be just LRRC (whereas before we have had a joint party with the bike club and ARK) but please bring a guest to enjoy the company and spirit of our club and Christmas. Our club provides soft drinks, wine, beer and will supply ham and turkey. Please bring a side dish (of food) to accompany and of course YOU.
We may organize other fun runs around Christmas and New Years so would like to hear from those interested. More later 
Posted 9 months, 3 weeks ago at 9:31 pm. Add a comment
Posted by: Preztc
LRRC Team Women did not delay in catching up to LRRC first place male grand prix team. The 2nd annual Soaring Wings Half Marathon held Saturday, October 24th, saw 1000 runners start in the crisp, chilly air but under CLEAR, BLUE skies with SUN. As the rain has been relentless in the past two months the crowd support and runners were enjoying the bright conditions. The course was rolling and had some steep inclines with wonderful aid stations every mile and half. Great goodies at the end too-candy, pizza, granola bars, hamburgers, and more stuff I did not see as was enjoying visiting with runners and they seemed very pleased with this race. The men’s team were second this time, guess they already knew they had the title so they let Conway win (actually Conway had awesome talent there). LRRC Grand Prix team, the amazing male members who ran the race: Steven Preston, Kevin Golden, Bill Diamond, Imari Dellimore, David Williams, Joel Perez, Bill Torrey,Kevin Groustra, Brian Watson, Jeff Maher, Keith McCain, Harold Hays, John Russell,Ron Sanders Jr, Dan Belanger, Carl Northcutt.
On top of this race being very well organized, a somewhat challenging course and a fundraiser for youth camp, it saw the LRRC ladies team capture the Grand Prix team title (for the FOURTH year in a row)! The (Wonder)Women’s team on Saturday: Jenny Weatter, Tina Coutu, Mary Wells Alison Acott, Mackie Buckelew, Rebecca Humes, Ginea Qualls.
Thanks Ladies! Proud of both our teams. This was a great race with wonderful spirit, my favorite part was at the end when the kids’ place the finishers’ medal on you. So glad to have signed up in time as it was sold out and many of my friends were not able to get in. Make sure to save the date for next year.
Posted 10 months, 1 week ago at 8:19 pm. Add a comment
Posted by: Presto
With a win at Chile Pepper, the LRRC has clinched the team title for the 2009 Grand Prix Series. So with 4 races left in the schedule the men can sit back with a beer and cheer on the women as the continue their sprint to the finish for the women’s team title. Or at least that’s what they would like to do!
Arkansas Cross Country Agri-Park
Our own Glen Mays was the top male Grand Prix finisher in a time of 34:23 and Leah Thorvilson the top female Grand Prix finisher in 36:52. The course was a little muddy, but not as bad as was expected. There was some re-routing around the starting line, which was pretty much a mud pit. Overall, a great day for a brisk cross country run!
If you have not participated in this event, I suggest you add this to your race calendar for next year right now. It’s currently the only cross country event on the Grand Prix series. Good change of pace from the road races we do most of the year. Also, you can stay after the race and cheer on some of the best collegiate cross country runners in the nation. This year, the Okky State Cowboys took home the men’s team title with a glamorous 1-2-3 finish.
Oklahoma State Men Capture Collegiate Team Title
Hope to see everyone among the 1,000 participants in the Soaring Wings Half-Marathon this Saturday in Conway. This is the state championship half-marathon for the Grand Prix series.
Posted 10 months, 3 weeks ago at 10:11 pm. Add a comment
Posted by: Radke
Just getting ready for the Twin Cities Marathon was a challenge I have never faced. At the end of the Dam Nite Run I tweaked my hamstring on the final hairpin turn. I would rest it for a few days, ease back into it, try to push it, re-injure, and repeat. After 4 weeks of this I ran out of time and had to suffer through in order to get ready for the Tupelo Marathon.
I cut out hills, tempo runs, and speed workouts. Main goal was to survive and get through TCM. I was so far behind in training for TCM, I figured I needed more miles. So, the week of Tupelo I emailed the race director and asked if I could upgrade and run the Full instead of the Half. I ran the marathon fighting the hamstring the whole way… somehow finished and won. I gave it pretty much all I had… 2:43.
After Tupelo, I took a week of light running before trying make a last push for TCM. I increased the miles and tried to increase the intensity, but really struggled. When I pushed, the hamstring screamed back at me, but I was out of time so I hit it with ice and ibupropren. As a PR seemed out of reach, I decided to go for 2:39… try to help Leah Thorvilson get the A standard for the Olympic Marathon Trials…wasnt even sure the hamstring would hold up for 26.2 in the cold.
I planned to run the 20k at the Arkansas Marathon as a time trail kinda thing, but got lost on the way to the race and didn’t make it on time. In hindsight, this probably was a good thing because the impending fight with Josh Holt would most likely have gone to the bitter end thus stressing the hamstring. I ended up running an uninspired 10 mile tempo at a pace much slower than I wanted. I was totally dejected.
The week before TCM, I met up with Holt planning to hit a 10 mile tempo. I decided to run 8 just to be safe and save some for TCM. During the run, the hamstring would not loosen up, so i decided to cut it back to 6 miles. During the run, I decided to let it rip for 2 miles. Holt and I cruised miles 4 and 5 in the 5:30 range. Confidence was starting to build.
During the week of TCM, I cut the miles way back with hopes that the hamstring would heal enough to survive an attempt at 2:39. I have only broken 2:40 once… at the LR Marathon 6 years ago. Throughout the week, I became restless and easily agitated, due to the lack of ‘runner high’. I just wanted to run to get rid of all the extra energy. The Thursday before TCM, I met Leah, Imari, Jason, and Glen for what turned into a spirited 6 miles at 6 min pace. I didn’t struggle, but it wasn’t easy either. It did feel good to run.
So….. now that the prep is over… fast forward to race day.
For some reason I knew I would do good even though I had no reason to feel that way. My training was minimal, I was nursing an injury, and didnt sleep well the night before because I shared a hotel room with a snoring Imari.
Race day was cool.. low 40s. Perfect weather… no humidity. I gave Leah a hug at the start then we warmed up separately. I say a prayer wishing everyone good health. Everyone goes to the line, and I get behind Leah…somewhat to protect her from the people behind and somewhat to protect me from her.
The gun fires and off we go. I say to myself… 6:01 minutes per mile = 2:39. Hold the pace. Dont burn yourself out at the beginning. I stay behind Leah for half a mile or so. It is impossible to run 6:01.. my legs wanted to run. I see the women’s leaders and think.. how about I go say Hi. So I do. I figure Leah will pass me somewhere down the road. First mile goes by at 5:40 something. I figure, I will stay here for a bit, let the legs loosen up before settling into pace.
Miles keep flying by… 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,…. then we come up on 10. The crowd support is amazing. People line the steets all along the course. It is a huge event… bands, drums, costumes, people everywhere, beautiful course….water stations everywhere…. TCM does it right. I am cruising and figure…. if I can hold this until mile 20, I will get 2:39 for sure.
It occurs to me, my hamstring doesnt hurt. How can this be? I keep going… half way point… 1:15:30 something. I am gaining 10-15 seconds on 2:39 every mile.
I think… uh… this is gonna backfire and Brian Ski is gonna be relentless with his taunting. It becomes more difficult to log the miles. I keep thinking… get to 20.. hold until 20. Around 18 or so, I am running stride for stride with the women’s leader. I am on her right side going into a right turn. I dont know what she was thinking, she tried to cut the corner but I was there. She leans in, ducks her shoulder, and throws an elbow into my side. I shrug her off, hold my line, and dont jump the curb… dont want to tweak the hammie. She says.. ’sorry’. I say ‘no problem’. I note… she is a strong vetren runner… steady.. probably running close to her best.
We get to 20 and I decide that I have had enough… time to salvage…drop it back to 6:00 and cruise it in to the finish. Then this little girl passes me. I mean she is tiny. I think.. eh… she will probably beat me, but I am gonna make her earn it. I pick up the pace. We run together for a bit clipping along at 5:40s. She is fast, but doesnt have much strength on the hills. She is young and hungry.. started slow and picked up the pace. 6:00 is looking much better than 5:40s… so I let her go and drop it back to 6:00. She hunts down the leader and eventually wins. I expect Leah to pass me at any time.
Just trying to hang on...
Somewhere around 22 I hit the wall.. mentally… all I have to do is finish it up and I will get a PR. I pray… let me finish this… give me strength. Finally I pass mile 25… I know I am going to make it and get a PR. Just after mile 26 another woman passes me… I have nothing for her.. dont say hi.. just let her go. A couple of hundred meters go by, then another lady passes me. I let her go, then speed up and say to her… “that is 3rd place right there… go get it!”
She hears me and picks up the pace. She charges forward and closes the gap. I think.. she is gonna get it! I cruise it in, watching. From my point of view it was too close to call. I hope she gets it, but find out later that she does not.
I hold the pace and as I approach the line I see the clock.. just over 2:35.
I stop, kneel, say a quick prayer of thanks, then finish it up and cross the line at 2:35:36… a PR.
Completely unexpected. I was blessed. Then it hits me.. Leah didnt pass me. I come back to the finishers chute… watching the clock tick. I look down the last stretch… Leah isnt coming. 2:36… 37.. 38… 39… my heart breaks… I failed… Leah needed me and I wasnt there… went for the PR instead. 40… 41…42…43..44. I cant take it anymore and leave.
So.. the challenge was not the hamstring…although I got a PR, I lost sight of the ultimate goal… Team LT. For this I have much regret. Next time Leah.. we will get PR’s and A-standard.
Posted 10 months, 4 weeks ago at 8:10 pm. Add a comment
Posted by: Presto
The Roadrunners traveled down I-30 to Benton to tackle the Arkansas 20K. When all was said and done both the LRRC men and women’s teams took home the 20K titles. After an interesting start where the lead-pack of runners paced the pace car (see below), Leah Thorvilson came in as 1st overall female in 1:22:24. That was after taking to scenic detours. 1st at the beginning when the lead pack missed the first turn because of the pace car not being ready and the 2nd when almost back to the finish line thinking the girl directing runners was yelling “Go Leah, Go Leah”. Go…No…Same thing : ) Other LRRC women completing the 20K include: Jenny Weatter (3rd Overall Female, way to go Jenny!), Mary Wells, Sarah Olney, Tina Coutu, Mira Lelovic, Ginea Qualls, Becky Humes, and Donna Trawick.
Wondering why the pace car is BEHIND most of the runners?!?
On the men’s side, Josh Holt of CCC won in a time of 1:13:51. Kevin Golden was the first LRRC, 5th overall finisher, and 2nd Overall Male Masters in 1:22:20. LRRC would go on to take the next 6 places on the men’s side! Other LRRC men completing the 20K include: Steven Preston, Imari Dellimore, Scott Anderson, David Williams (3rd Overall Male Masters), Bill Diamond, Joel Perez, Bill Torrey (3rd Overall Male Grand Masters), Ross Bolding, Raj Bhanot, Brian Watson, Keving Groustra, Daniel Butler, Jeff Maher, John Russell, Dan Belanger, and Jesse Garrett.
I want to give a shout out to all the GREAT volunteers who came from all over the state to help support this race after the Saline County Striders lost a large portion of the volunteers they had gathered in the last week before the race. It goes to show you the greatness of RUNNERS! Keep it up. Overall, the race was a good time and the post-race hot dogs hit the spot (Thanks to Charles Gattin!).
We also had 3 women members competing in the Arkansas Marathon that day as well. Alison Acott and Michelle Rupp (new PR!) came in as 2nd and 3rd Overall Females. Tammy Walther also completed the grueling double out-and-back course. You go girls!!!
Next up on the 2009 Grand Prix Series is the Tyler Curtis 5K right here in our backyard. Hope to see a very large LRRC contingent. Check out this Monday’s Dem-Gaz Active section for an article on the race. Easy Runner will accept registrations from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday. Since this race is supported by the LRRC, if you are resting your legs this weekend, please contact Bill Torrey at (501) 231-3730 or bjtorrey@sbcglobal.net and lend your hands.
Steady as she goes!
Posted 11 months, 2 weeks ago at 12:45 pm. Add a comment
Posted by: Jesse Garrett
On September 5th, a number of Roadrunners set out on a weekend trip that truly redefined the word “awesome”. Not for the weak of heart or stomach, the weekend began on Saturday when LRRC crossed the river to invade and conquer the Clear Mountain 5K; continued on Sunday in rural Tupelo, Mississippi where we trampled the weak and hurdled the dead in the Tupelo Marathon and 14.2 miler; and ended with a Monday of fun and mingling with mascots in beautiful downtown Memphis, Tennessee in the Chick-fil-A 5K.
Saturday, September 5 - ARK Clear Mountain 5K - North Little Rock, AR
(The LRRC Racing Team blog post can be found here.)
Saturday started very early for most of us as we met before dawn to condense all of our baggage into two vehicles. Some pre-dawn thunderstorms had concerned us, but luckily they all went away as soon as the sun came up to make for a picture-perfect morning come race time. Then came a delicate conflict of interest as, since this is the 5K Championship in the Grand Prix, we wanted to give our best effort and earn points for our team and ourselves, but leave enough in the tank for the 29.3 or 17.3 miles that we had ahead in the coming days. This was not a problem for the LRRC team, whose 22 men and 12 women claimed the team championship, led by Justin Radke and Leah Thorvilson who started off her list of weekend accomplishments with a female course record and a female overall win. Sweaty, smelly, and giddy, we 10 humans and a horse named Sparticus set our sights on Tupelo.
Due east we traveled, getting a brief glimpse of Memphis and what was in store for us on Monday. Monotonous farms and soybean fields met us as we veered south into Mississippi, which was pretty much all we would see for the next day and a half.
Tired and anticipating our weekend ahead, upon our arrival in Tupelo, we picked up our packets and headed to our hotel rooms to clean up and get ready for the delicious Italian feast in store for us at Vanelli’s, where we would meet the rest of the Arkansas contingent (dubbed the “Five Families of Arkansas” in mafioso fashion). Much fun and much great food was had between the 18 in our party. Deep in enemy territory and with numbers on our side, SCS’ famous Sassy Gaines led us in a raucous Hog call which was returned by silence and apathy. Where’s your fans, Mississippi? After the meeting of the Five Families concluded, everyone returned to their room to rest before the dreaded 3AM (or earlier) wake up call.
Sunday, September 6 - Tupelo Marathon and 14.2 Miler - Tupelo, Mississippi
For those not familiar with Tupelo, there’s not much in the town of 36,000. The only thing the town is known for is being the birthplace of Elvis Presley, which was glaringly reflected in the goody bags we received for the race. The bag itself had Elvis on it, half of the items inside were Elvis related, the main tourist attraction is the house in which he was born, et cetera, et cetera. Believe me when I say that I never thought that I would ever find myself at an abandoned furniture warehouse in the rural outskirts of west Tupelo, Mississippi at 4AM on a Sunday morning, but I can honestly say that at that place and at that time, there was no place I would rather be. Unfortunately, everyone’s favorite running reporter Michelle Rupp fell ill on the morning of the race and made the very difficult but wise and correct decision not to run. It was up to the rest of us to put in our best effort in her honor and make her proud.
For those not familiar with the Tupelo Marathon, it is a very low-key affair. Due in part to its location on rural highways and starting so early, I have seen more fan support at 90% of the 5Ks I have run. But this is its draw. After the starting siren, I have never found such peace while running as I did amongst 549 other runners with nothing illuminating the road ahead except for a nearly full moon, the multi-colored headlamps of runners ahead and behind, and the glow bracelets on my wrists. I must preface this opinion by saying, being a relative newbie, my full marathon experience is nil, and I have just 3 half marathon finishes on my resume, but I feel I’m not alone in saying that the glitz and gimmicks of larger corporate marathons can sometimes bog up the complete experience. The Tupelo Marathon strips all of that away, leaving nothing between you and your finisher’s medal except for the powerful love of running that got us all into this sport to begin with. There are no bands on the course, only the beautiful sound of footstrokes of the runners around you.
At mile 9.2, I see the pace police vehicle with a tall fellow behind it, wearing… an Arkansas singlet. I almost didn’t recognize him because of the rolling hill I was climbing, but sure enough, our Radke was in the lead. 0.5 miles later, with no other runners in between, I saw a familiar face–the female leader Leah Thorvilson. I cheered her on and held up Gumby, my running companion, and she smiled and held up her steed Sparticus in return as we passed. I saw no other runners until 3 minutes later, when I saw more male marathoners coming my way. I went past the marathon turn-around point to finish my 14.2 Miler (to much Arkansan fanfare, including a famous Sassy “WHOO-HOO”, which I will never forget) to find that Imari Dellimore had won it! Steven Preston came in 3rd, Jenny Weatter was the 3rd female to cross the line, and SCS’ Charles Gattin was 2nd in the Masters’ division. LRRC and Arkansas had dominated the 14.2 Miler, and now began the wait to see whether we would own the Marathon as well.
The suspense was too much for Imari, who drove down the road to get an update of the leaders of the pack. Upon returning, he reported that Radke was still in the lead, but was being held together by “testosterone and duct tape”. Not too much longer, Radke came running up to the finish, received a very loud fanfare and stepped on the mat for a time of 2:43:14. Not three minutes later, Leah and Sparticus came galloping up the home stretch to finish in 2:46:10, clinching yet another course record.
Over the next few hours, more and more members of the Five Families finished their 26.2 mile feat. Dan “Master Plan” Belanger had the honor of having both marathon champions go back out on the course and escort him in. Eventually, Lisa Luyet, Presto, and I went out to join the Dan support group. Being the complete goofballs we are, it was decided that the last .1 mile was to be skipped (as in, frolicked). Rounding the final corner, hand in hand with some of the greatest friends I will ever have, skipping to the finish line for Dan’s stylish finish was an experience that I will never forget. It was also an experience that many onlookers will never forget, as I counted many faces of puzzled bewilderment. Sorry folks, you just wouldn’t understand.
Soon afterward, we rolled out with an exit worthy of rock stars, blaring music and yelling “Thank you, Tupelo!” to the wonderful volunteers still present. The Tupelo Marathon is a perennial trip for many of our group, and you can bet that I’ll be there next year.
It was with great relief that Michelle’s migraine had subsided and she was feeling much better. This news was dampered by some bad news, however: Michael Harmon had a pain in his lower leg that he had not felt since he had a stress fracture on his other leg two years ago. His suspicions ended up being correct. Heal up well, Harmon!
The night ahead brought us to the casino town of Tunica, Mississippi where we had many adventures on the town that perhaps shouldn’t be recorded or mentioned here. We had a blast. I’ll leave it at that.
Monday, September 7 - Chick-fil-A 5K - Memphis, Tennessee
The last day of our trip took us to beautiful Memphis, where we ran with 1,700 other runners in the Chick-fil-A 5K. The events of the last two days had left everyone beaten and sore, and the only reason we were here in the first place was to have fun and so the t-shirt would make sense. Dan and I ran the entirety of the beautiful (if not a bit too hilly for our achy bones) course together, which took us on Riverfront Drive, up Beale Street, and finally to a finish on the field of Autozone Park, where the Memphis Redbirds baseball team plays. I shouldn’t have been surprised to find out that Leah had completed the trifecta and won this race as well, and Imari, Presto, and Radke all got age group awards.
Imagine all of our surprise when we learned that because of her victory, Leah was also throwing the first pitch at the Redbirds game that day! It was a perfect end to a nearly perfect weekend that left me, and everyone else, reeling for days. Exhausted, and sad that it was all over, we crossed over the I-40 bridge over the Mississippi into Arkansas and began our journey home.
At the risk of turning this blog post from a race report into a sales pitch, I can truly say that I have become friends with some of the most outstanding people I have ever met and will ever meet during my short time as a member of LRRC. Seven years ago I drove through Tupelo without giving it a second thought. Never did I imagine that, thanks to my amazing clubmates, I would have one of the best weekends of my life there.
Posted 11 months, 3 weeks ago at 12:14 am. 1 comment
Posted by: Brian S-ski
The Arkansas Running Klub hosted the 5K State Championship Race in NLR once again this year and the LRRC crossed to the river in huge numbers to claim both the men’s and women’s team titles! Leah Thorvilson set the pace on the women’s side, winning in 17:12 to set a new course record. Our women’s team dominated in kind as Leah was joined by Mary Wells, Mira Lelovic, Tina Coutu, Shareese Kondo, Ginea Qualls, Rebecca Humes, Carol Torrey, Mackie Buckelew, Alea Humes, Alesa Davis, and Coreen Frasier to rout the other club teams.
Not to be outdone, the LRRC men showed up with a fearsome crew of 22 runners. Justin Radke, Imari Dellimore, Kevin Golden, Brian Sieczkowski, Steve Yanoviak, Bill Diamond, Steven Preston, Greg Helmbeck, Joel Perez, Ross Bolding, David Williams, Raj Bhanot, Bill Torrey, Kevin Groustra, Jeff Maher, John Russell, Dan Belanger, Roy Smith, Michael Harmon, Ron Sanders, Bryan Jones, and Carl Northcutt made up the male 5K State Championship-winning squad.
For the 2nd year in a row, LRRC swept the 5K state titles!
The LRRC men have now won the 15K, 10K and 5K state titles in 2009 while the women have both 15K and 5K titles. Looking ahead there are three State Championship races left this season: Cross Country at the Chile Pepper Festival, Half Marathon at Soaring Wings, and the Marathon at MidSouth. Let’s try to sweep all three!
But first is the Arkansas 20K in Benton on September 19th. If you’ve never run this race, I strongly encourage you to check it out as it is an Arkansas road running institution and back in the Grand Prix Series. And if you’ve never run a 20K at all, you’ll get a PR for sure! I was really looking forward to running this race since it was added to the GP for this year but then got sidelined with a stress fracture after the Toad Suck 10K. As my longest run post-injury has only been 8.5 miles, I’m going to have to wait until next year for a 12.4 mile PR. Look for me somewhere out on the course doing volunteer duty for the Saline County Striders. If anyone else isn’t up for the distance, please consider volunteering as well. The SCS recently learned that 24 of their volunteers have backed out with just a week until race time. If you can help out, contact the race’s volunteer coordinator, Maurice Robinson at mrobinson1124@att.net - I’m sure they could use a few more workers. Either running or working, hope to see you all there!
Posted 11 months, 4 weeks ago at 9:12 pm. 1 comment
Posted by: sweetdaddycane
Minutes from LRRC Board Meeting
July 22, 2009
All Members Present
Discussed club shirts. Decided based on votes from the club to order Brooks technical shirts that would be sold to team members for $15.00, which is the cost of the production. All new club members or old members who have not yet received one are given a free cotton t-shirt and additional cotton shirts can be purchased for $5.00. It was decided that an email would go out to inform club members of the shirts and to request what they would like to have ordered.
Next topic of discussion was the revision of the By-laws. The following were the proposed areas of the By-laws that needed to be changed:
Article IV to reflect the family discount for membership dues
Article VI to reflect that there are 10 board members including President, President Elect, Past President, Treasurer, Secretary, Membership chair, Newsletter Editor, and 2 At Large Members
It was suggested that the terms for the officers be 1 year for the President, which would result in a 3 year commitment once the President Elect and Past President terms had also been fulfilled; and 2 years for the other offices with a rotation of which were being elected so that it wouldn’t constantly be a Board of all new officers.
It was also suggested that the CCC Race Director and Newsletter Editor be appointed until they choose to leave or are “overthrown” by the club, and that the At Large members be appointed by the President and be replaced every 2 years on staggered terms.
Section F of the By-laws dictates how offices are elected. Suggested that it should be announced via web or newsletter which positions are open. At that time nominations could be given to the president by 48 hours prior to the Board meeting. There was concern over how we would get an accurate representation of voting.
It was decided that a draft of the revised By-laws would be made and voted on by the board and then presented to the club.
Other topics of discussion were the responsibilities of the officers, and who should be in control of requested race help. It was decided that someone should be designated to be the lead in coordinating volunteer help for races and whether or not it is free should be determined by the level of help being requested. Also discussed what deems a practice as “official”. And what the club is liable for if it is an official practice. If an event is listed as approved by RRCA, our insurance will cover it.
Posted 1 year ago at 10:43 pm. Add a comment
Posted by: sweetdaddycane
Sweet Daddy Cane here to bring you a better late than never report on the crushing blow delivered to the Grand Prix series by the Little Rock Roadrunners at the Hope Watermelon festival 5K.
After finishing 2nd on both the mens and women’s teams at the 4 miler, the LRRC showed up in Hope hungry for wins….and they got ‘em. Glen Mays led the men’s team taking 2nd overall and just getting edged for victory by a young punk from Texas. Behind Mays were Kevin Golden (1st Masters), Bill Diamond, Brian Sieczkowski, Steven Preston, Greg Helmbeck, Kevin Groustra, Ross Bolding, Jeff Maher, Michael Harmon, Dan Belanger, and Roy Smith. Leah Thorvilson won the women’s title and led the LRRC ladies to their 1st place finish, followed by Mary Wells, Tina Coutu (2nd overall masters), Ginea Qualls, Alea Humes, and Alesa Davis. Most runners I talked to did not have their best times, probably because of the heat…but Michael Harmon took no prisoners and came away with not only a watermelon, but a big PR!
Glen Mays shows off the new LRRC temporary tattoo!
The race wasnt the only cause for competition OR celebration down in Hope. Ginea Qualls celebrated her birthday in style with some beers smuggled in to the dry county by a secret agent Dan…i mean….man… And possibly the most fierce competition of the day took place post race at the community pool. Harmon came back from his 5k PR to kill the backward dive division. The surprise competitor of the day in the pool was the mysterious Lee Epperson…now we know why he has not signed up for the Grand Prix, even though he is an LRRC member…he has secretly been perfecting his canonball! Well done Mr. Epperson. Rounding up the awards for our team was Brian Sieczkowski with his can-opener. Although this had to be deliberated on by the judges to determine WHAT a can-opener was. All other divisions of the dive were won in a landslide by a local boy whose name I do not know… he took home gold for the belly flop, half flip, jelly roll, side twist and facial splat. Hats off, young one.
The Grand Prix now takes a rest until we compete on our home turf at the Clear Mountain 5k Labor Day weekend. Until then, Sweet Daddy Cane, out.
Posted 1 year ago at 7:27 pm. 1 comment
