Run It Fast®

This is the finisher’s medal for the ING Miami Marathon that was held on January 27, 2013 in Miami, Florida.

Both the middle and the palm tree spin! Very cool, colorful, and sparkly medal! Here is a pic of the back of the medal:

And here is a pic of the half marathon medal which is also a spinner:

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[Medal photos submitted by ALWYSRUNNEN, follow her on Twitter @ALWYSRUNNEN and by Darius, follow him on Twitter @dzoid11]

This is the medal for the Rose Bowl Half Marathon that was held on January 27, 2013 in Pasadena, California.

Very cool that the medal is stadium shaped and of course, has the rose. Nice!

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[Medal submitted by Danny Medina – Follow him on Twitter @Mr_Danny_Medina]

This is the medal for The Snowmans Half Marathon that was held on January 26, 2013 in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.

The Snowmans Half Marathon is part of the Winter Warrior Series. The snowman looks pretty warrior like, right? 😉 You’d have to be to run a half marathon in the snow in Michigan in January!

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[Medal submitted by RIF #108 Mark Sikkila – follow him on Twitter @MarkSikkila]

Here is the finisher’s medal from the Swamp Stomper 50K that was held in Millington, Tennessee on January 20, 2013.

Gotta love a medal that advertises exactly what you’re in for!

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[medal submitted by RIF #116 Nicholas Norfolk. Follow him on Twitter @absolut_zer0]

This week’s Run It Fast – The Club Profile is #89 Stewart Crouch. Stewart is not only speedy but he has a LOT of self control. You’ll have to check out Stewart’s profile to see what I mean. Ha! 🙂

Meet Stewart

INFO

Name: Stewart Crouch
RIF #: 89
Twitter: @swcrunner
Facebook: http://facebook.com/ANGrunner

STATS

Years Running:    35
Favorite Race Distance:  Half Marathon
Favorite PR: 5K 
Favorite Race:    Houston Marathon / Half Marathon
Favorite Bling:    Boston Marathon
Next Race: Boston Marathon
What Makes You FEEL Fast?:   When I can hang with the young pups! : )

FUN RUNNING QUESTIONS

Why did you start running? 
Because I wasn’t growing fast enough to play football.

Who inspires your running and why?
Everyone,  People that I know set goals for themselves and I see them go through the ups and downs of training.   Seeing them accomplish their goals makes me want to push myself even harder and set new goals for myself.

If you could go for a run with any famous person (living or dead), who would it be and why?
Sebastian Coe – He was my high school inspiration.

What is your favorite go-to pre-race meal?
Night before I eat Spaghetti and in the morning before a race a banana and oatmeal.

What is the thing you splurge on after a race?
Blue Bell Dutch Chocolate Ice Cream – From the little creamery in Brenham, Texas.

How many pairs of running shoes do you have and which pair are your favorites? 
10 pairs of shoes, 4 still in the box.  My favorite shoe is Saucony Fastwitch 4.

Why do you race?
I like to race to see where I stack up with other runners and I love to compete.

Big races or small races? And why?
Both – I like to do big 5K/10K races because there is more competition  and makes you push yourself harder.

With his kids and Robin (on his right) at a 5K

What was your biggest “don’t” of a race?
Don’t go out too fast.

What running moment are you most proud of? 
The first moment was in high school when  I broke the mile record that had been standing for over 10 years.  Recently, it was being able to run 51 miles in the Trail of Fears which is my longest run to date.

At the Houston Half Marathon

***

I cannot believe he has four brand new pairs of shoes and they are still in the box! No way could I do that. I don’t have the self control for that! 😉 Seriously though…I think it was interesting that Stewart started running because he couldn’t play football yet he’s been running for 35 years. He obviously found out he was good at it and he must enjoy it, right? It’s kind of funny how things work out that way. You can apply that to running itself. Maybe you are good at sprinting because you are Bolt fast (I wish!). Or maybe you excel at long distances because you have great endurance. Or maybe your running “thing” is trails or cross country because you’re fearless. There are so many options we have with running that we can continue to grow and not be bored for decades. If you aren’t having fun or you’re in a rut with your running, try something else. You never know what hidden talents you might have. I’m glad Stewart found out running was one of his talents!

Thank you for sharing Stewart! Good luck at Boston! Run It Fast!

If you’d like to join Run It Fast – The Club or would like more information about it, please click this link:

Run It Fast – The Club (JOIN TODAY)

[All photos submitted by Stewart Crouch]

 This is the medal for the Louisiana Marathon that was held on January 20, 2013 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Love the medal and how they incorporated a shoe into it. Also, big congratulations to Beth who PR’d at the marathon! Here is a photo of the back of the marathon medal with an awesome slogan “Run-Eat-Dance-Laugh”:

And here are photos of the front and back of the half marathon medal:

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[Marathon medal photos submitted by Teal & Beth, follow them on Twitter @lifeisarun and by Joe Raymond, follow him on Twitter @JoeBRaymond]

This is the Silver Award for the Hong Kong 100 that was held on January 19-20, 2013 in Pak Tam Chung, Hong Kong.

There is a 32 hour time limit for this race and the Silver Award is given to the runners who complete it in under 20 hours. Congratulations to Bud for an awesome run!

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[Marathon medal photo submitted by Bud Salamon. Follow him on Twitter @BudSalamon]

This is the medal for the Icebreaker Indoor Marathon that was held on January 19, 2013 in West Allis, Wisconsin.

The marathon is run inside the Pettit National Ice Center and the runners must complete 95.5 laps for the marathon. That’s got to take a LOT of determination!

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[Medal submitted by We Run This – Follow them on Twitter @WeRunThisDotOrg]

RIF #10 Dianna Seda

This week’s Run It Fast – The Club profile is #10 Dianna Seda. The picture above is Dianna with one of her coaches. You’ll have to read her profile to see the reason for that. So check it out!

Meet Dianna:

INFO
Name:  Dianna Seda
RIF #:  10
Blog:  http://diannaseda.wordpress.com/  (Goal for 2013 is to post more!)
Twitter:  @DiannaSeda
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/dianna.seda
LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/in/diannaseda

STATS
Years Running: Been long distance running for the last 3 ½ years. However, have run consistently since I was 14!  <–Gasp! Let’s not do any math here!
Favorite Race Distance: Half Marathon
Favorite PR: 2:12:30 at Chicago Half Marathon 2012
Favorite Race: Hot Chocolate 15K in 2011
Favorite Bling: Love them all! Especially proud of Chicago Half Marathon 2012 which was my 1^st 13.1!

Next Races: So far…Shamrock Shuffle 8K, Soldier Field 10, Rock-n-Roll Chicago Half Marathon & Fort 2 Base (10 Nautical Miles) Year is still young, more to sign up for!
What Makes You FEEL Fast?:  When running the same race, when I realize  that my time has gotten better from one year to the next makes me feel GREAT!!!

FUN RUNNING QUESTIONS

Why did you start running?
When I was 14, my dad had asked my brother to go on a run with him. My brother said no and I remember very vividly how disappointed my dad looked so I spoke up and said I’d go. I lasted a whole quarter of a mile! I thought I was gonna just die! It hurt to breathe, I had a cramp in my side and I remember thinking “people really do this for fun?!” But, I stuck with it. I got stronger. I had some really good conversations with my dad. Over time, I found that I just enjoyed how a good run made me feel.

Who inspires your running and why?
My family inspires me to run.  They have all grown up knowing that I run. My girls find races for me to do. Last fall, they realized that a local zoo was having a fun run.  I had no idea until they pulled up the website and said, Go for it, Mommy!  It was certainly one of my more interesting runs, check out this crazy course that was mapped out on an app while I ran!

If you could go for a run with any famous person (living or dead), who would it be and why?
This is really going to sound goofy but quite honestly, I would just love to run with Forrest Gump! To have the ability and the time to just run and run sounds pretty great to me. No limitations on time, just free to go.

What’s the most beautiful place that you’ve run?
There are actually 2 places that I have found absolutely beautiful when running and those are San Diego and Sunset Beach, FL. In both places, I found myself running for miles along the water with no destination in mind just the peacefulness a runner gets when your mind and body are in tune with your surroundings.  There is just something magical about running in a warmer climate by the water. So far, nothing quite compares to it.

Have you ever worn a costume during a race? What was it and for what race? If not, would you?
Yes! I just dressed up in a Santa costume for the Santa Hustle 5K in Chicago. It was certainly one of the funnier races that I have run. It was a little chaotic and rather hard to find friends amongst 8000 Santas! I would certainly wear a costume again for a race but note to self, leave the beard at home!  Hot, hot, hot!

How many pairs of running shoes do you have and which pair are your favorites?
Currently, I have 6 pairs of running shoes.  I’m a girl, I love shoes and I don’t care if I don’t need them, I must have them! However, my current favorite is my Brooks. The 1^st time I put them on, they just felt right. I was able to get a 10 mile run in and my feet felt great!

Why do you race?
I race to feel stronger and to challenge myself to do better.  Even with all of the races that I have done over the years, I still get those pre-race jitters. Lots and lots of adrenaline pumping…but, crossing that finish line is the best feeling.

What running moment are you most proud of?
I have to say that I am the most proud of the fact that I didn’t let myself get intimidated by attempting to run my 1^st half marathon. While a lot of folks here are ultra marathoners, I firmly believe you are a runner no matter what the distance as long as you do it.  To think that only a little more than 3 ½ years ago, the farthest I had run was 4 miles. When I crossed the finish line knowing that I just completed 13.1 miles, I cannot even describe the elation and pride I felt in myself. On top of this, the race had provided a service where you could be tracked in real time. My 5 year old daughter sat and watched the computer screen for 2 hours while mommy’s little dot ran. When I realized how important it was to her that her mommy could do that, it made all the training worth it.

Finally, let me know if there’s anything else you would like the rest of the club to know that we didn’t cover in the questions.
Since joining the RIF community, I have met so many wonderful runners across the world. To be a part of a group that is so encouraging and welcoming is wonderful.  In the past, I would generally sign up for a race last minute, but it has inspired me to look ahead at what I might accomplish.. I have even started investigating races around the country. Would love to run a race in another city!  Hoping to meet some of my fellow RIF’rs in the near future!

***

Love the reason Dianna had to start running and the reasons she has to keep running. Just like the example her father set for her, she is setting a great example for her daughters. What’s even better is that they have become a part of her running, whether it’s by helping her find fun races or by cheering her on. She’s also right about one very important thing. It doesn’t matter if you run marathons or ultras. In fact, you don’t have to race at all…@bayou might get me for this but yeah, I said it! 😉 Do whatever makes you happy and whatever keeps you running. If that means 3 miles or 100, it’s up to you. Just run! 🙂

Thanks for sharing Diana! Good luck at the Shamrock Shuffle and Run It Fast!

If you’d like to join Run It Fast – The Club or would like more information about it, please click this link:

Run It Fast – The Club (JOIN TODAY)

[All photos submitted by Dianna Seda]

The Bling Case had fewer submissions in December now that winter is upon us. A lot of the medals obviously had Christmas/Winter themes which was fun but there were quite a few “end of the world”/”last chance” submissions also. The world didn’t end so guess what? You get to vote! 🙂 We chose the 16 medals below for you to vote on in the last Best Race Medal monthly vote of 2012. The medal that receives the most votes for December 2012 will be included in the contest for the Best Race Medal of 2012.

Here are the Best Race Medal winners so far this year:
January – Inaugural Louisiana Marathon Medal 2012 
February – Surf City Marathon Medal 2012
March – Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Half Marathon Medal 2012
April – Flying Pirate Half Marathon Medal 2012
May – Safari Park Half Marathon Medal 2012
June – Navy Ten Nautical Miler Medal 2012
July – Sogonapmit Marathon Medal 2012
August – North Country Run Medal 2012
September – United States Air Force Marathon Medal 2012
October – The Showdown Half Marathon Medal (2012)
November – The Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon Medal (2012)

Pick your favorite December 2012 race medal from these 16 and vote!

Thanks for voting!

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