A couple things

First off, a huge thank you to those who have registered early. It helps motivate me:-) and makes it a little easier to predict the number of people who will be running.If you have mailed in a registration and don't see your name on the confirmed list. Fear not. Larry's on vacation and will send me an updated list of mailed in entries as soon as he gets back.

The Minnesota Trail Running Series calender is up to date now and has added a few races. There is now a 5k trail series which the Chester Woods 5k is part of. It lists Essex Park as the location(?), but it is actually at Chester Woods.

Go Trail Running

This is a great website. If you use facebook I highly recommend you become a friend of gotrailrunning.com you'll get comments from the forum and occasionally some really great videos
http://www.go-trail-running.com/index.html

Changes for 2010

Last year, as soon as the race was finished and everything was picked up. we started brainstorming to see what could be improved for the 2010 race. I decided that the finish was just too far away from the registration area.
If we put the finish near where the shelter is we can improve on getting the results out faster, all the food can be in one place, and the showers/bathrooms will be much closer. The finish will be much more festive as there is a lot more room for people to cheer on their friends.
The changes in the 10 mile course are as follows. The start will be right in front of the registration shelter. There will be a small extra loop in the east meadow when you first hit the trails. At about the 4 1/2 mile mark you will take a long winding downhill trail to the first river crossing. Miles 6 through 9 are the same as always,(including the Big Dam Hill:) Rather than finishing before the fishing parking area, you will carefully cross that, back on to the trail that winds along the lake, and continue back to the registration shelter.I eliminated a few of the meadow trails and opted for the long downhill to the creek to allow for the extra distance back to the shelter. We will have to watch for fisherman possibly loading or unloading their boats at the parking area. I will have someone to help guide the runners through that spot, it shouldn't be that busy.
The 5k run is pretty much the same , it will start out on the road, go towards the park entrance, then head out to the woods. After a beautiful view of the valley below the dam, and a nice run along the hill over the lake,you will take the same trail back to the shelter area.
Both routes can be seen on the links on the right side of this blog. Be sure to click on the satilite view to see it properly.

Our official race starter for 2010

Last year our race starter (Jim Benike) was a veteran of many races and has run thousands of miles. This year we are going a different route and have chosen someone who ran their first race last January.

Tracy McCray was a host of the very popular "Tracy Mccray Show" on KROC radio. She now spends her time writing columns for the Post Bulletin and pod casting the "Goodnight Jeff show".She is also back on the air with the Broad Talk show every Thursday on KROC.

What caught my eye was the fantastic column she wrote on March 10th called " Run to finish"

Not only is this a great philosophy for running but isn't a bad way to think about life in general.

Enough of me babbling read this column written by a true professional.

When I was a teenager I would never have admitted this, but it's true that growing up in a small town has lots of advantages. Having only 37 kids in your graduating class sounds like a nightmare to those of you with 500 classmates. But there's an upside. Whether I wanted to be in the choir, the band, the school play, or in any sport, I just had to show an interest. There were no tryouts. Just show up, come to practice, and you were in. That said, I did try out once for cheerleading, and I didn't make the cut. But I got over it. Really, I DID!Lack of athletic ability didn't stop me from joining the basketball and track teams when I was a teen. Athletics was an odd choice for me because I didn't like to run. Who signs up for the track team when they don't like to run? I found a way around that problem though. I was part of the weight team. The skinny girl throwing the discus caused a few snickers amongst my competitors. But what I lacked in bulk and muscle, I made up for in "technique."Last fall, I, the non-runner, signed up for a "Learn to Run" class at the Running Room in Rochester. I had been invited to the class and had planned to prove to myself once and for all that running was not for me. How could I write off those people who loved to run, if I didn't try it myself? I had always been fascinated, and I'll admit it, confused by people who "loved" running. How in the world could finishing a marathon contribute anything to your life? It looks painful, seems like a waste of time, and sounds just plain sounds crazy to run 26.2 miles all in one day. Isn't this why cars were invented? I'm sure you will guess what happened next. I fell in love with running. Somewhere between a 2-minute run/1-minute walk, and the feeling of euphoria one gets from a good dose of exercise, I decided to keep at it. My first 5K was on New Year's Day, a sunny, cold morning that held as much importance for my classmates and me as the Boston Marathon.Recently, I stumbled upon some running advice that changed my outlook on more than my new hobby. Some runners are motivated by the time in which they run a race, or the number of miles they can squeeze in during a weekend run. Others run marathons (or in my case half-marathons) with the goal of "RUN TO FINISH." This means that you don't care how fast you run the race. You take walk breaks. You enjoy the run. The plan is to finish the race no matter what your time. I've started to think run to finish is more than a plan for running a race, it's a new way to look at life. Start every day or week or month with the goal of slowing down to catch your breath and enjoying the path you are on. Maybe you will run a long race or a short race, who knows? Don't worry about the end or when it will come, enjoy where you are and just Run To Finish.Lace up your attitude and give it a try!

THANKS, Tracy

For those who are wondering?

The Chester Woods Trail Run (10 mile) will be part of the Minnesota Trail Running Series in 2010. The calender for MTRS is being put together and will be posted very soon. http://www.uppermidwesttrailrunners.com/mntrailseries.html