The 6th annual Run/Walk Trek for Life 5K will be held Saturday, June 25, at 9 a.m. at Thomas College in Waterville. The race benefits Hospice Volunteers of Waterville Area and L.N. Clark Inspiration Network. 

Advance registration is available online. Check-in and day-of registration starts at 8 a.m. The race starts at 9 a.m. and begins and ends at Thomas College.

The race route begins at 180 West River Road in Waterville at Thomas College and proceeds north towards Kennedy Memorial Drive. The route turns around at Roland Street and back then past the start to Eaglewood Drive (the sports fields) and down the back way through campus to the finish line.

Long-time Strider member Donnajean Pohlman is the event's race director.

Registration is $20. Register today!

Hospice Volunteers of Waterville Area (HVWA) is a non-profit organization founded in 1980 that serves 27 communities in Central Maine. It exists to provide non-medical support to individuals and their families during the last phases of life, to loved ones throughout the grieving process, and to educate the community regarding issues related to death and grieving. Bereavement services are available to anyone who has sustained loss either through illness or unexpectedly. HVWA is volunteer based and community funded. 

The L.N. Clark Inspiration Network is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, established in 2008. Its goal is to help Maine cancer patients and their families. So many people need support and services in many areas during their medical oncology journey. Its passion is to lighten the burden and stress for the individuals in a meaningful way. A cancer patient's journey is a massive challenge; trying to get help should not be.

To register: ​https://runsignup.com/Race/ME/Waterville/TrekforLife5K

The fourth annual Quarry Road Summer Race Series kicks off on Tuesday, June 7, with a 3K trail race at Watervillle’s Quarry Road Trails.

The series, a favorite amongst local runners, offers weekly races most Tuesday nights, starting on June 7 and continuing through August 16. Races start at 6 p.m. and distances alternate between 3K, 5K, and 8K. Free weekly fun runs for youth 12 and under are held at 5:30 p.m.

Runners can pre-register online for the entire nine-race series for $35 at www.quarryroadraces.com/registration.html

Runners also can register for individual races for $5 the day of starting at 5 p.m.  All race proceeds benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCA of Greater Waterville.

Last summer, more than 250 runners participated in the series. Numbers are expected to rise in 2016, according to Race Director Patrick Guerette, who organizes the series with support from the Central Maine Striders running club.

“We’re fortunate to have access to such an amazing facility right in our backyard,” said Guerette of the Quarry Road multi-use trails. “Each year runners bring more and more friends to the series to try it out. They have a great time, and keep coming back.”

Each week the overall Male and Female finishers will receive a gift card from that week’s race sponsor. 2016 sponsors include The End Zone, Selah Tea, Downtown Smoothie, It's A Good Pizza, and Big G’s Deli.

Series runners also compete for Overall and Age Group awards sponsored by New Balance, with their best time at each of the three distances (3K, 5K, and 8K) totaled into the overall standings.

​Fun run sponsor Inland Hospital provides healthy prizes for each youth that finishes the weekly fun run.

“The series is a great way to get in a workout with other runners from around Central Maine on some beautiful trails,” said Brendan Gilpatrick, Central Maine Striders club vice president.

“The Quarry Road trail races are fun, family-friendly, and welcoming for runners of all abilities,” said Alicia MacLeay, a Central Maine Striders board member and series participant. “And the trails add an extra level of interest and challenge. You’ll see everyone out there from kids completing their first race to top local runners blazing down the trails.”

Series Schedule
Featured races start at 6 p.m. Day-of registration opens at 5 p.m. Kids fun runs start at 5:30 p.m.
 
June 7: 3K
June 14: 5K
June 21: 8K
June 28: Makeup or Course Previews
July 5: 3K
July 12: 5K
July 19: 8K
July 26: Makeup or Course Previews
August 2: 8K
August 9: 5K
August 16: 3K & Awards
August 23: Makeup or Course Previews

For more info on the Quarry Road Summer Race Series, please visit www.quarryroadraces.com.
###
 
Contact: Patrick Guerette_
207-873-0684
pguerette@alfondyouthcenter.org
www.quarryroadraces.com
​

by Erzsie Nagy

​While it was definitely a hard decision to miss track season this spring at Middlebury, I am 100 percent sure that I made the right choice in studying abroad here in New Zealand. The only time that I’ve been on a track this semester was during a casual beer mile, but that’s not to say that I haven’t been racing.

I have been lucky (or crazy…?) enough to compete in some really cool mountain races, which has been something that I’ve always wanted to do. Unlike any races I have ever done, I am learning the beauty of racing on trails for over an hour at a time.

The first mountain race I entered here was called Three Peaks, a 26-km course that covered three mountains. This was my first time running with a backpack because we had to carry compulsory gear (leggings, rain jacket, gloves, hat) in case the weather took a turn for the worse. After my first experience with mountain races several weeks ago, my love of running was definitely revitalized. Running the Three Peaks mountain race was unlike anything I had ever done, and it pushed the preconceived limits that I had set for myself.

Once my legs had recovered from that 26-km adventure, I searched for another opportunity to test myself. Luckily, New Zealand has heaps of these things; I discovered the Queenstown Mountain Run and signed up after convincing a couple of friends to run it with me. I hadn’t been to Queenstown yet, and this seemed like a pretty solid excuse to visit.

I tried to think back to Three Peaks and my mentality going into that race. One of the reasons that I think it went so well for me was because I had no expectations. I ran to finish, to see what I was capable of, because it seemed like a cool thing to try out. Admittedly, it was harder to have that mindset for the Queenstown Mountain Run because I knew from that experience that I had a chance to place highly.

There were 4km, 8km, and 12km races, so naturally I picked the longest one! Because it rained the ENTIRE week in Queenstown leading up to the race, the courses had to be changed. So the race was essentially a hill workout on crack.

For the 12km race, we completed four loops up to the Skyline gondola and then back to a midway point along the course (but I think this was actually easier than the initial course because of the large amount of downhill in between each ascent).

I was surprisingly pretty calm at the starting line, and three key lessons that I learned from Three Peaks really helped me:

1. It’s okay to walk!! Seriously. Walk. While I had initially imagined that you are supposed to RUN for the entirety of mountain races, I quickly learned the importance of walking. It saves so much energy and (sadly enough) can be just as fast. And apart from the wicked fast guys floating up the course like gazelles, I wasn’t getting passed when I walked. Because everyone else was walking too! I would try to lean forward and press down on my legs in an effort to power up each hill. Then, I would start to run again when I was ready, which brings me to my next point:
2. 
   If you can control your breathing, you have ultimate control over your body. My dad has preached this to me before, and what do you know? I think he’s on to something. I use this tool as a way to check in with my body on my regular runs, but I find it especially helpful during these tough races. I time my breathing with my stride, which is almost like having gears while I’m running. An easy pace is as much as five strides spent inhaling and four spent exhaling (always one more breath in than out); four in-three out is also a pretty casual pace. During the race, I find that I can sustain three in-two out. This feels like an effort, but I know that I can keep up this pace for a while.
   
   When I couldn’t hold this breathing pattern and could only manage two strides per inhale, that’s when I started to walk. I knew that if I was to continue running, things would rapidly deteriorate (i.e. collapsing/memory loss/delirium). Once I regained control of my breathing, I would continue running. This strategy helped SO much. I think this is especially helpful for me because I tend to push myself over my limits without realizing it; by controlling my breathing, I know that I have control over my body.
3. 
   Don’t underestimate the downhills. Seriously. Don’t. I never imagined that running downhill was so difficult. But it takes extreme skill and strength. It also contributes the most to my post-race soreness (hello quads, I feel you). During Three Peaks, I was passed by more old guys on the downhill sections than I would like to admit. Yeah, those old guys will get you. I am still trying to find the right balance of running downhill safely and quickly. Because the course was so muddy in Queenstown, this made the safety part especially tricky. 
   
   I found it helpful to repeat words like smooth, confident, and light in my head. And I would do my best to NOT think about falling. As soon as you tell yourself not to fall, all you think about is the different ways in which you could fall. Positive thoughts only!

On the fourth and final loop, I was passed by the woman who ended up winning the women’s open 12 km. I was less than a minute behind her, and while it would have been nice to win (obviously), I did what I could. I am realizing more that I can only control myself during a race so there is no point in worrying about my competitors. When I was passed, I didn’t quit. I pushed myself the right amount and crossed the finish line in about an hour and a half, smiling!

It is so nice to finish a race without the delirium that I have been battling the past two cross-country seasons. I felt so accomplished and proud of my body, and I remembered the entire thing! And now NO hill on any cross-country course will ever feel impossible. 

Central Maine Striders
Wednesday, April 13th, 2015 at 6:00pm
Alfond Youth Center Library
 
Attending:  Alicia MacLeay, Tom McGuire, Ron Peck, Jim Moore
 
Report Outs:

• Treasurer’s Report by Ron Peck
  • No major expenses expected
  • Ron will talk to Patrick Guerette and Gines Satchithanandam about purchasing a new timer so that we have a backup
• Communication Report by Alicia MacLeay

• Ideas for newsletter were discussed
• Need to have an email address for the club besides the gmail address as that could potentially be sorted to ‘Spam’ or ‘Junk’ folders – info@centralmainestriders.com

 
Items of Discussion:

• Membership database
  • Discussion of responsibility for keeping the RunSignUp database current
  • Ron will look into it since he deposits checks from members who do not sign up or renew through the website

 
 
Next Meeting:  May 11, 2016 @ Alfond Youth Center Library
 
Minutes noted by Ron Peck