the shirt off my back

Two great things just came together like pb& j, milk and cookies, pizza and beer... running and relief effort! Inside Texas running is calling for new, unused race t-shirts to provide clothing to Hurricane Katrina (and probably Rita) victims. Although we haven't registered yet, ahem, maybe we can donate our Big Ten t-shirts?? Anyone else w/ new, unused t-shirts can mail them to:

Inside Texas Running
14201 Memorial Drive, Suite 204
Houston, TX 77079
281-759-0555 phone

Speaking of t-shirts...seriously, ours are at the printer (thanks to apoz!) and should be completed by early next week so i'll be contacting you soon.

p.s. another great combo ... eating and relief effort! many restaurants around the country are donating a portion of their profits from sales tomorrow (sept. 27) a good excuse to eat out! unfortunately, the only restaurant in ann arbor participating is cosi. fortunately, i've been liking their salads recently. and their bread has gotten better.

the big 1-0

the big ten 10k race is sneaking up on us - a mere two weeks away. half of us did this last year and it was brutal. i don't think we heeded the warning that "runners should be prepared for a challenging 10k" seriously. we think it was mostly difficult because it was the first really cold day of the fall season, like 30 degrees, and we hadn't acclimated to cold weather yet. that, in combination with four miles of hills through the arb made it memorable - in a bad way.

but this is a new year and it'll be interesting to see if it's an easier race after all the running we've been doing all summer. there are a few cool things about this race. for one, the t-shirt last year was pretty cute, one i'd actually wear which is sort of unusual for road races. second, they serve big ten burrritos afterwards. nothing like a burrito to refuel you at 10am. third, it benefits the arb which just might be the best plot of land in this little town. and finally, they have a raffle. last year, apoz took home the plum prize of a pair of pearl izumi sneaks. but this year...are you sitting? they're raffling off a pair of mizunos. which means not only great shoes but that the hot mizuno rep will be there, too. reason enough to run if you ask me.

anyway, we should register soon. t-shirts are only guaranteed up til, um, today. but, i'm not doing this alone so who's in??

proof

apoz w/ spre...note the resemblance?



some pics from the crim from both before and after the race. how cool are our jerseys?

oh, btw, the t-shirts arrived from rei and are in process of being printed up. i know your just itchin' to get them - they'll be on their way soon! yeehaw.

more to life than running

warning: this is an off-topic entry. it has nothing to do with running. i just wanted to post a bit about the devastation in new orleans. katrina did more damage than anyone could imagine. new orleanians always "knew" that the city was at risk for major hurricane destruction given engineering of the levees and the below sea level perspective, but until now they've been pretty lucky. camille was the last bad one and... whoa. just now it just dawned on me that all of km's sister's names are the most destructive hurricanes to hit nola. spooky, no?

anyway, many of you have asked about how my friends are doing there and i thank you for asking. most of them evacuated to texas, arkansas, shreveport, etc... to the closest relative or friend they could find. others remained on emergency duty at the big o - as someone's got to run the place. generally, it's a safe place to be as the hospital is located just outside orleans parish (read: slightly higher ground) and it has generators designed to keep things running for several days under emergency situations. fortunately, the hospital was relatively unscathed unlike other hospitals ... they lost power, ac, and water for a couple of days but they are all now restored. they haven't lost a patient due to hurricane conditions and is one of the few capable hospitals in the area. you can read a first hand account of their experiences on chris' blog.

those who stayed will be separated from their families for at least a month, if not more. one friend will enroll her kids in school in maryland.

i've spent the past few days down at the beach in nc. we saw the USS Whidbey Island docked next the marina we use. i had heard just that day that this ship was en route to the gulf to provide support. it was docked there on thursday and friday...not sure if it left yet but it was loading up the military convoy and supplies. it was a pretty amazing to watch that type of operation being mobilized. hopefully, it's on its way down there now since it'll take some time to make it down there and they needed help, like, five days ago.

i hope you all will do your part to help out. many of you have experienced the energy and life that new orleans offers...let's help get her back on her feet.