SWFTR BULLETIN              January 2012

     The first thing of importance for this bulletin is to announce the 2012 SWFTR Banquet to be held at 6:00 p.m. on February 4th at El Conquistador restaurant in Garden City.  Keep watching for more information as there are plans to have a group run preceding the main events.  Obviously, dress is not formal (unless Roger wears his famous "running suit").  Be sure and add up all the area races you ran between January 2011 up until the date of the banquet.  I don't think we actually have any 2012 races before that date this year, so I guess it's a moot point this year.  Now those races are also entitle you to bonus tickets if they gave a SWFTR Discount, and an additional two bonus tickets if they had a certified course (such as Leave a Legacy Run).

Race directors also receive tickets and bonus tickets for the drawing as well.  Make sure your membership is current, so bring your checkbook and pay your dues to Wes at the banquet.

     Elections are also held at the annual banquet, as well as our annual business meeting.  Also be thinking about possible nominations for Race of the Year.

     I regret to inform that the Chili Run in Liberal was canceled this year.  I'm doubtful of having the Super Sunday Shuffle this year either.

I'll check into the Pancake Chase in Liberal which would be scheduled for February 18th, and I also need to check into the date for the Frost Your Fanny Run in Ulysses.  The Saints Challenge that was held at Liberal in February last year will likely be moved to April to coincide with the Saints Hall of Fame weekend rather than with basketball homecoming as was the case last year.  That might also lead to juggling the schedule of the Little Big Run to accomodate the Saints Challenge. Both of these were afternoon races last year, so that shouldn't be too hard to do.

     Several races are already confirmed and have reserved the clock. These include the Livin' Green Run in Guymon, OK on March 10th.  Rick has added a 10-K in addition to the 5-K for this year.  On March 24th there's a new race in Minneola called Steps of Courage 5-K.  On March 31st there's going to be a 5-K race in Tribune which will culminate a "Couch-to-5-K" program.  At Satanta, the Run Down Cancer 5-K & 1-Mile will be held on April 14th.  The Guymon pioneer Run 5-K will be on May 5th, and the Satanta Run on May 12th.

      The schedule really filled up last year including many first-time races.  There are some new races again already coming up this year.  How many of last year's first-time races will repeat this year I don't know yet, but I'll be keeping information forwarded to Susan Ellis for the SWFTR.com website and to Joanna Grant and Esther Rice who are keeping the SWFTR Facebook pages updated.  Check those sites for up-to-date information, and of course you can inquire of the editor of this newsletter/bulletin to find out what hasn't made it into newsletter form yet.  If you have any race information to share, please do so with those self-same contacts to spread the word.

      I have word of a new scholarship race to be held in Hutchinson in late March.  When I have more info I'll send it out and also pass it along to the previously mentioned contacts so those resources may be updated as well.

FUN WITH NUMBERS

      Some of you might remember I was on a quest to run 105 races last year.  Actually, the goal number kept rising as the season went along.  In last March the goal was just 70 or 75 races, but by the end of September I'd already hit 80.  The number 105 had some significance due to the fact that Kansas was celebrating its sesquicentennial and 105 is the number of counties in Kansas.  Also, in late July/early August, I found out that Chris Campbell was battling cancer again and would not be racing any more during 2011.  I'm looking forward to seeing him back on track in 2012, but in the meantime, I dedicated the remaining 2011 races to show support for him.  I then started wearing a wristband with his initials, and the first event where I did so was Arkalon the first Saturday of August.  As it turns out, I ran 46 races wearing the wristband in support of Chris, and of course Chris lives in Oklahoma, the 46th state.  I reached the 105 race goal on December 17th at Kinsley. 

      It was a memorable year, and there were many memorable races and experiences.  It included a streak of 32 consecutive weekends with at least one race.  There were five weekends with a least four races, two of those were back-to-back, and two of them were five-race weekends.

Only one of those was a three-day weekend.  I tied my previous record (March 2010) of 13 races in one month twice in 2011 (April and July) and broke it in October with 14.   It might sound like a huge accomplishment, but there was actually a lot more driving than running involved here.  The races added up to just under 300 miles for the year, and when I add my only non-race run (the 2011 pre-banquet group run), it just nudges over 300.  The traveling miles are another story, that reached 12,500 miles.  That's more than 40 times the running miles.  It included races in seven states (also a PR), and 55 of them were 5-K's. Another 30 were only one-mile. 

      To put this in perspective, my friend Kendall Payne of Coffeyville and formerly of Dodge City generally runs around 1,000 miles per year, as long as inclement weather or injury doesn't prevent him. Esther Rice also has this worthwhile goal of 1,000 miles during 2012.  I recently read of a man who ran 153 marathons in one year.  He did three every weekend.  My longest race was only a half-marathon.  I'll bet he really appreciated those three-day weekends when he might not have to double up with two in one day.  My goal for this year is to train more miles although I'll still race a lot, I don't think I'll come close to 105 again anytime soon.

            See you at the banquet!

     

-- Emery