March 7, 2009 Newsletter

THIS SATURDAY AT-A-GLANCE

Mileage: 20

March volunteers:
Set-up – Sherry and Clark Osborne
Breakdown: Rick Kanatzar
Food:

Bananas: Mike Schrader

Bagels: Mira Reverente, Robin Solis
Water and aid station/s: Various

TRAINING CORNER
By George Arita, Advisor of Training
Georgerunvta@aol.com

SATURDAY’S RUN

This Saturday, instead of the previously scheduled 12-mile LSD run, we will do our first 20 miler. The change was made (see last week’s Newsletter) to accommodate the inaugural Ventura Half Marathon that is being held on March 15 and that many of our members will be participating in. So be prepared for the longest run of our training schedule.

We will start at the Main Street bridge as usual, but instead of running north, we will run south (towards the Ventura Pier) for two miles, turn around at the 2-mile mark and run back to the bridge. From there, we will travel along the usual northbound route to Mile 8, turn around and head for home. The southern leg will be 4 miles while the northern leg will be 16 miles, giving us a total of 20 miles. Don’t forget a supply of GU or other gel to energize your long run. I will consume one at the start and three or four more along the course. Naomi will be woman-ing the water station along the way. I suggest we all give her a sweaty hug on our way out and on our way back. That way, she’ll need a shower afterwards just as much as we will (perhaps more so).

Next Saturday (March 14), the day before the Ventura Half, for those running the Half, I recommend either a rest day or a short 2-3 mile run (at 10K pace). For those not running the Half, you can do the LSD 12 miles.

Congratulations to the RV finishers of the Napa Valley Marathon held last Sunday. They all did good and made us proud.

ESSAY

For the past week and a half, my time has been largely occupied evaluating scholarship applications for the Ventura College Foundation. As a result, I have not been able to write a training essay. Sorry. Hopefully, I will have one ready for next week.

CLUB NEWS

*The Great Race of Agoura - Saturday, March 28th

Help our club have a strong presence at this race by signing up or volunteering!

There's still time to sign up for one of Ventura County's most popular races! The Chesebro Half-marathon is 97% full while the new Pacific Half-Marathon is about 40% full.

If you are not keen on racing that weekend but are planning to come out and watch, please consider volunteering at the Inside Track booth. More details in the next newsletter/s or e-mail Mira Reverente at mirarev@hotmail.com to signify your interest in helping out.

*Inside Track on Ventura County Star

This article came out in the online edition of the Ventura County Star. Read on.

NEWLY-MERGED RUNNING CLUB RIGHT ON TRACK

Mira Reverente
Tuesday, March 3, 2009

The club is an eclectic mix of runners, walkers, newcomers, veterans, sprinters, long-distance runners, social runners, fitness enthusiasts and aspiring athletes. Students, retirees, stay-at-home moms, full-time employees and entrepreneurs, are also part of the current mix. Welcome to Inside Track Running Club (ITRC)!

Home base is Inside Track, the specialty running and triathlon store on Main Street, in Ventura. Back in August 2008, Inside Track had two distinct running clubs. There was ITRC, the shorter distance training club and RunVentura, the marathon-training club. The two clubs recently merged and will now be known simply as ITRC.

Members of the two merged clubs have a lot to look forward to. "There will definitely be more members to run, walk and socialize with. All members will now have access to group runs/walks Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays," said George Arita, ITRC training adviser.

ITRC has also lowered its annual registration fee. Members will still get a shirt, 10% off store purchases, discounts on race entries, among others. "We will also have a non-racing training calendar that emphasizes fitness and well-being, rather than marathon racing. With the merger, I hope we can expand or maintain the fitness, recreational and social aspects of our training program," said Arita.

Both the store and the club are owned by 2009 Carlsbad Marathon champion Josh Spiker. The Ventura native hopes that the merger and the accessibility of more resources will bring the running community together. "I hope people will take advantage of the club's various running opportunities, have fun and also meet their personal goals at the same time," said Spiker.

So what are you waiting for? Lace up those running shoes and join the fun!

*For more information, visit:

INSIDE TRACK, 38. W Main St. Ventura, CA 93001, tel no. (805) 643-1104, www.runventura.com

*Birthday greetings

March 8 - Josh Spiker, Lisa Anderson
March 15 - Tom McKiernan
March 20 - Marianne Owczarski
March 21 - Yinyin Goh