How to plan a 5K Fun Run Fundraiser

Edit:  In 2014 I planned a color run and raffle, raising over $8,000.  For part two of this series, go here.  Part two is how I planned a color run and raffle 5K fundraiser.

Edit:  I have now created an entire website about planning a 5K and also ebook with forms, spreadsheets and sponsor packets.  Go to www.HowtoPlana5K.com to purchase the ebook to have access to the forms we used (including a bonus section about creating color runs)

 A few people have been emailing me asking me how we planned the Driving Jacks 5K this past April, I guess it’s time that time of year to plan a 5K!  Hopefully I can help some of you plan a successful 5K as a fundraiser for your organization to raise lots of money for your cause.  

While I was running my 8 miler on Sunday (training run for my marathon) I was thinking about how great the DJ5K turned out to be and what a big fundraiser it was.  There is a non profit I suggested hosting a 5K to and if they end up doing a 5K as a fundraiser they could raise close to $100K.  The more people and sponsors you have the more money you will raise.  Go get the people.  Build it and they will come (quick, what movie is that from?!)

Here are some steps to follow, but I have also included a F.A.Q. list below.

Step 1.  Pick a date!  Look online for a date that is free and book it.  Active.com is where a lot of runners go to choose their runs. 

Step 2.  Pick a route and get it approved by the city/town you are in.  Permits are a must if you are on the streets. You don’t want a fine!

Step 3.  Book your timing chip company!  It isn’t fun (I know by experience) to choose a date and have the timing chip company you want to use be booked up then you have to change the date or go with another company.  Before you start advertising make sure you have this locked (and your route permit)

Step 4.  Get a website up and running to start advertising.  Advertise on FB and any other social media you can advertise on (for free-tell your friends to spread the word also).  Post weekly updates on your website about the 5K to keep people interested (we used a blog format-see the f.a.q. section below).  Also you can advertise by printing a small flyer and adding it to other running events race packets.  Ask the race director of a few races that are before your event and ask to add a flyer for your event.  You might get a few registrations that way!

Step 5.  Put a sponsor packet together and start getting sponsors

Step 6.  About a month in advance you can order the t-shirts and awards.  Start working with the t-shirt company and getting quotes before then, but don’t place orders until you know how many people will be at the event.

Step 7.  Plan for miscellaneous items to bring to the 5K, plus items that you will need.  If it’s not written down someone will forget it!  Delegate each item to someone.  Some suggestions: walkie talkies, clip boards, extra pens, door prize tickets, cups, bibs, napkins, paper plates, trash bags (you will use more than you think!), cups (average two or three per participant), extension cords, camera, awards, door prizes, laptop, tables, t-shirts, chalk, food, water jugs, serving utensils, ice, water, sponsor banners, money bag (for onsite registrations-keep an eye on this!), goodie bag items, signs, etc.  I am sure there is more, just brainstorm for every scenario.

Step 8.  Have each committee member have a specific duty and give them volunteers.  See F.A.Q. below

Here are some questions that I have been asked about our 5K:

How long did it take to plan the 5K?

I came up with the idea while on a trip back from Nacogdoches with my friend Hector (also a committee member) in September.  We started to really work on it in December, but we were holding bi-weekly conference call meetings since October. Not much was happening until we got our first sponsor in December.

How did you get sponsors?

We created a sponsor packet and each of the committee members were supposed to get at least two sponsors each.  Not everyone got two sponsors, but our goal was to get as many as possible and having everyone individually responsible for two helped a lot.

Edit:  I have now created an entire website about planning a 5K and also ebook with forms, spreadsheets and sponsor packets.  Go to www.HowtoPlana5K.com to purchase the ebook to have access to the forms we used (including a bonus section about creating color runs)

Where did you get the t-shirts and was that a big budget item?

We had two different shirts, purple for the volunteers and white for the participants.  The white shirts were about $4 each and the purple ones were about $6 each, plus you had set up charges and misc fees (we were a nonprofit so we didn’t pay sales tax).  Work with your t-shirt company for the best deal, but you might be able to get them for even cheaper if you add them as a sponsor (offer to put their logo on the back of the shirt).  We used Bull Shirts in Houston and they were wonderful to work with and very professional.  The t-shirts were a big budget item, but necessary. 

Did you use a timing chip system?

We had a timing chip system company drive to Houston to time the event.  There is only one in Nacogdoches and she was busy (there were two other 5K’s in the area that day), so Run Wild Sports Timing drove up (we paid per mile in addition to his per person fee for him to drive up).  Google timing chip companies in your area or you can go to a local 5K and get the timing chip companies phone number and website to call them.

How did you get door prizes?

We got door prizes the same way as we did sponsors, going door to door asking!  Start with family and friends then ask for referrals on Facebook.  If you tell friends what cause you are doing the 5K for, most people will help.

What about the day of the event?  How did you decide who did what?

I am a super freak O.C.D. planner.  I had a spreadsheet with every committee member, what they would be doing at what time, what they needed to bring from home, and what other volunteers they would be assigned.  For instance, Robby was in charge of the timing chips and bibs.  He needed to bring the timing chips, safety pins, and a first aid kit from home.  Anything having to do with the timing chips he was assigned to, from helping set up the timing and p.a. systems to coordinating the awards that were given out to the winners.  By 6:30 am everything needed to be set up and the awards needed to be finalized at 8:30 when they were announced.  I knew that we would start right at 7:30, the winners should be back no later than 7:45ish, and we would be handing out awards no later than 8:30.  We ran on time.  I like schedules, like I said; I am a super control freak planner.  If you have a plan down to every detail, you can work around small hiccups along the way.  If you show up and say ‘well, I wonder what’s going to happen?’  I know what will happen…everything will happen and you will get your butt handed to you, then you will wonder what the heck happened.  Plan ahead! :) 

What about a logo or theme?

We had our logo designed by a graphic designer that actually designed the Driving Jacks logo a few years ago.  Sometimes t-shirt companies offer t-shirt designs as part of the price. 

Did you go to any 5K’s to watch them plan or run one?

I have done a ton of 5K’s (but this was my first to plan), so I knew a bit about 5K’s in general.  I emailed a few different 5K’s in the area and asked them questions like this F.A.Q.  Just go to one in your area and observe how they do things.  Most organizers are happy to help you answer questions, just be patient with them, a lot of them volunteer their time and it might take a few days for them to respond to your questions.

How did you determine the budget?

I knew that our timing chips would cost X amount, and t-shirts would costs X amount so once we determined the participant fee ($20-$25 is average for adults, $10-$15 for kids) we had a base outline.  I tried to keep our expenses to less than half of the registration costs.  If your registration cost is $20, have no more than $10 in expenses so the other $10 will be money raised, but try and aim for about $6 or $7 per participant (or less).  The more participants you have, the cheaper the cost per registrant will be.  Once you cover the costs of the timing chips and misc expenses, all other money raised will be icing on the cake!  I created a spreadsheet with formulas on how much money we had raised between sponsors and participants fees.  I am a spreadsheet nerd.

What about awards?

We had age group awards in 10 year age ranges and also 18 and under.  Male and female two deep.  Next year when we have more registrations we will add more awards.

How did you get people to register for the 5K?

We used active.com for the registration process.  Some timing chip companies offer registrations as part of their timing package, but we just went with active.com.  The fees are minimal on Active and they has a super easy to navigate website for the participants and for the committee, plus you can pass the fee on to the participants.

Did you have any big groups register for the 5K?

Yes!  We held a team registration contest to get more people registered.  As part of the registration on active.com you can add a team and they can recruit their friends as members.  The largest team we had was about 25 people and the smallest team was about 3 people.  When we were making announcements after everyone had finished and were giving out door prizes we announced the winner and had the entire team come up to get their award.  We wanted something everyone could share so we had a cookie cake with their team name on it.  Unhealthy? Yes! :)  Side note on active.com team registrations:  When a person registers with a team they get a small discount (I think 10%) so be sure to include that in your budget calculations.

What about an email address and website?

We purchased a domain name for $12 a year and signed up for a free blog on blogspot.com to forward the domain name to.  Drivingjacks5k.org forwards to drivingjack5k.blogspot.org.  You can easily edit the layout and add pages to customize the look.  I like using a blog format because you can post updates on the site and your participants can easily find new information pertaining to the race.

Email addresses are free on several sites like Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, etc.

Did your 5K committee have meetings?

The DJ5K committee was spread across Texas!  I signed us up on freeconferencecall.com and we called in weekly with updates.  I wrote down everything that happened and sent out meeting minutes as well as a to-do list for each person to finish before the next week.  During the meeting we just went one by one and gave up update as to what we were all doing and what progress we had made for the week. We didn’t see a need to meet face-to-face (and it would have significantly lowered our committee member count!) since you can call in from anywhere.   For the members who weren’t able to attend the meeting that week I just asked that they send me an update by 5 pm and I would give their presentation updates during the meeting for them.

Edit:  I have now created an entire website about planning a 5K and also ebook with forms, spreadsheets and sponsor packets.  Go to www.HowtoPlana5K.com to purchase the ebook to have access to the forms we used (including a bonus section about creating color runs)

What about finish line food and drinks?  What about water stops?

One of our committee members worked at a grocery store part time and she was able to get them to donate water bottles and bananas for the finish line.  Set up a meeting with your local grocery store manager and ask if they will donate anything to the 5K.  If they can’t donate, ask if they can give you a significant discount or the items at cost to save money.  If they give them to you at cost, they aren’t losing anything.  You need to start this process a few months in advance since they will probably need to speak with a higher up for approval.

Water stops-for water stops we had a special water stop sponsor option on the sponsor packet.  They water stop sponsor got to put a banner at the water stop and had the option of volunteering for the event at the water stop in their companies shirts/outfits.  We did end up having two water stop sponsors, but they choose not to work the event but we did have their banners on display.  Make water stops fun with a boom box (do people still call them that?  I am old school. Yo!)  Also, plan for 2-3 cups per person at each water stop and fill them as you go.  If you buy to many cups, use them next year.  It’s better to have too many than not enough.  You don’t want people dying from dehydration on you.

Finish line-we had water bottles, bananas, and misc fruit at the finish line that were all donated.  I wanted kolaches or donuts (Sugar is bad, bad, bad, but yummy, yummy, yummy!) but we couldn’t find a place to donate them in time.

How did you communicate with everyone to make sure they were OK and running on schedule?

We borrowed walkie talkies and each committee member got one plus each water stop.  I couldn’t figure out how to work my stupid walkie talkie so everyone called or texted me on my cell.  It was dead at the end of the day. LOL.

How many participants is an average amount for a first year 5K?

I don’t know the average participants nationwide, but with ours we had about 130.  We were competing with two other 5K’s that same day (one was free and in the parking lot next to us!) for registrations so we had a lower amount.  Our organization is pretty big on campus so we were able to get the word out, but our goal was 250.  We will hit and then exceed that number in years to come!  I would say 100  is a good number to aim for and budget for, but shoot for 250. 

How much money can we expect to make?

We made around $3,000 after expenses, but a sponsor matched what we raised and so we raised $6,000.  We had income from sponsors plus registrations to make the $3,000, of course the more sponsors and participants you have the more money you will make.  Pick a number and start working towards getting more and more registrations.  The numbers below are examples of how much registration fees would bring in, then you add your sponsor amounts, then subtract your expenses.

For example:  # of registrations. 

$10,000.00	500 x $20
$6,000.00	300 x $20
$5,000.00	250 x $20
$4,000.00	200 x $20
$3,000.00	150 x $20
$2,000.00	100 x $20
$1,000.00	50 x $20

Where did you get your bibs?

We got them from an online company called bibnumbers.com, you can customize them to your event with colors, logos, and numbers.  We started them out at #619 because that is how many free rides we gave out the first semester of operations (Driving Jacks is a free designated driver program).

How many people were on the 5K planning committee with you?

There were about 5 alumni members that met via conference call every week, and then we had a committee of Driving Jacks members (about 6 or 7 I think) that would meet every few weeks.  The alumni group would concentrate on timing chips, t-shirts, awards, etc and the DJ Nacogdoches group would do anything we needed to be done in Nacogdoches itself.  For instance, a student must apply for a permit to use the facilities and since we couldn’t drive up there easily apply for the permit, they did it for us. Or they would reserve tables and walkie talkies, put up flyers, hand out sponsor packets to companies in Nacogdoches, etc.   They were our feet on the street since we couldn’t be there.  The alumni members each live about 2.5 hours to 5 hours away from Nacogdoches plus we all worked full time, so it was hard for us to travel to Nacogdoches for little things here and there.  The DJ Nac committee was awesome!

Did you need more volunteers than you thought?

The current members of Driving Jacks were our volunteers and several other people as well.  I would say we had about 30 volunteers plus committee members?  I think it was enough, but we could always have used more.  Mainly the volunteers stood on the course and directed the runners (long story, but there was another 5K in the parking lot next to us that was sort of on the same course as we were so our volunteers stood on the course in lime green shirts directing people-we know that it wasn’t a good idea but we didn’t have a choice!  Like I said, long story.  It worked out though), but some of them were at the registration table, the water stops, and the finish line.

Did the setup take a long time the day before and the day of the event?

I got to Nacogdoches the day before the event around lunch time.    We had some miscellaneous small items to do and some stuff to pick up, but for the most part we had done everything ahead of time.  We did walk the entire route (in the rain!) and decide where to add the signs, where we needed volunteers, and where all the registration/food tables would be set up.

The day of the event we all got there by 5:30 and started setting everything up.  We unloaded the cars and sent a group of about 5 people to put the signs in place (see below about signs).  We set up the registration table with the t-shirts, then the awards table, the food tables, the water stops, and timing chip system.  We were done with everything by 6:45 am and the race started at 7:30 am.  We were done taking things down and cleaning up by 9:15 am.

Edit:  I have now created an entire website about planning a 5K and also ebook with forms, spreadsheets and sponsor packets.  Go to www.HowtoPlana5K.com to purchase the ebook to have access to the forms we used (including a bonus section about creating color runs)

How did you go about getting your route approved?

We used a pre-approved route from the US Track and Field website (Go here and put in the area you want and a list will come up or you can pay them to create you a customized one).  We were staying on the SFASU campus area only so we didn’t have to get the city’s approval, only SFASU’s approval.  In regular cities you would need to talk to the city hall and they will get you a permit.  You might have to call around to a few different places to find the correct office.

How did you mark the course?

We had a committee member walk the entire route and decide what signs we needed (I think there was about 60 of them total) and we had them printed with arrows.  We had these donated (a committee members friend owned a sign company), but you can ask if you can them printed at a discount (offer them to be a sponsor).  We also had volunteers pointing (and cheering) participants in the right direction every so often along the course.

I think that is it!  Hopefully your event will be a success.  Feel free to email me if you have any specific questions that I didn’t cover.  I love hearing your success stories, I am so glad I have been able to help so many people with this post! :)

Edit:  In 2014 I planned a color run and raffle, raising over $8,000.  For part two of this series, go here.  Part two is how I planned a color run and raffle 5K fundraiser.

Edit:  I have now created an entire website about planning a 5K and also ebook with forms, spreadsheets and sponsor packets.  Go to www.HowtoPlana5K.com to purchase the ebook to have access to the forms we used (including a bonus section about creating color runs)

Acaxu Cashew Wine

While in Honduras I bough a bottle of wine that is made on the island, the brand is called Acaxu.  Now, mind you that since I don't drink very much and I only like Moscato or Moscato de Asti wine so this purchase might seem dumb, but I don't care because who ever heard of cashew wine?  It's cool!  Take that wine and liquor stores in America (who am I kidding, I go to Kroger to buy my wine. LOL).

A few years ago I bought a cool wine holder while I was in Costa Rica that holds a bottle of wine in the air.  Isn't it neat?  I looked in Honduras for one but they were double what I paid for it in Costa Rica.  Anyway, I put my cashew wine in this holder on the counter instead of in my dining room table (my dining room table has a six slot wine holder section on it).

From the brochure attached to the bottle:  Acaxu wine come in three variations Dry, Semi-Sweet (I got this one), and Sweet.  The Dry and Semi-sweet versions can be savored on their own, accompianed with cheeses or taken with your food.  They pair well with white meats and seafood, as well as with the Oriental, more spiced foods.  Cashews are known as the 'fruit of memory' because it strengthens the brain's activity and stimulates the growth and repair of the body's tissues.

I sampled the wine when I bought it but I haven't opened the bottle yet, I just think it looks pretty on the counter!  Who wants to come over and drink it with me?!  We can have a craft night! haha. :)

Battle of the Piney Woods

The Battle of the Piney Woods was this weekend and it was held at Reliant Park.  BotPW is a football game between  the best college ever, Stephen F. Austin State University and their rival Sam Houston State University.  SFA and SAM have been playing this huge rivalry since 1925 and I have attended 5 out of the last 8 BotPW's.  The game had a record number in attendance at 26,185!!

On Friday night I went to a party hosted at the Westin Hotel off of Gessner towards West Houston.  I saw a few people that I knew, networked for a little bit, and went shopping at the t-shirt table. :)  As I was driving out of the parking garage I saw this SUV and I had to take a pic.  Love it!

Some of you might know that SFA hasn't always had the best football team, but we have heart!  Some years are better than other years at football, this year is not one of those better years (so far) unfortunately.

I went to the drink/food area and got a drink.  I didn't see any margaritas so I had to settle for beer. 
Beer Guy:  What kind of beer would you like?  Me:  I don't know, I don't like beer so you can choose.  I just need something to take the sting out of when SFA loses the game.  Beer Guy:  That's messed up.  Me:  I know, but I don't think SFA will win.

Best shirt ever! There were  some really funny SFA and SHSU shirts at the game that people were wearing.  There was one that they showed someone wearing on the jumbo screen that said "Lumberjacks take it up the Axe" haha.  I think that is really funny, you have to have a sense of humor.  My favorite shirt against SHSU is below.  Best shirt ever!  (for those of you that the jokes are lost on, SHSU is in Huntsville and Huntsville has a huge prison in the town.  Convicts=Orange.  Get it?)  (SFA's mascot is the Lumberjack, we 'raise' our Axe or say 'Axe 'em Jacks' or 'Kiss my Axe'  or 'Kick some Axe' hence the 'Take it up the Axe' shirt.)

Driving Jacks members and Alumni were plentiful at the BotPW!!  There are a few missing, but this is a majority that we could find.

Every time the Lumberjacks would score a cannon would go off, the cheerleaders would carry flags across the field, and the Lumberjack mascots would do pushups until they counted the score of SFA's points.  (picture courtesy of Spencer Streetman!)

The SFA band at halftime performing.  I am not sure what all songs they played, but I know that My Girl was one of them!  Sam Houston's band performed also, but I wasn't paying much attention. Sorry. :/

At the end of the third quarter we were behind by about 20 points.  We tried to catch up and came close at 41-52 when we had the ball, but the passes were incomplete at the 29 yard line and the SHSU Bearkats won the game. :(  If would have been able to make that pass we might have been able to tie the score up.  That's ok Lumberjacks!  #NextYear we will #KickSomeAxe

At the end of the game we all hold up our Axe and sing our school song. This pic is of the band and football team. 

I loved the game even though we lost.  I got to see tons of my SFA friends that I haven't seen in awhile except for on FB.  Next year we will come back with a vengance Sam and beat some Bearkat bootie.

Axe 'em!

Crazy Town = 14 Miles

Today I set a new PDR with my 14 mile training run at George Bush Park!

I woke up at 4:45 so I could be on time for this run at 5:30 am. I met with my group and we headed out on the trail.  For the last two nights I haven't been able to sleep very well, and since this trail has no lights within one mile I was ready to fall asleep on the trail.  I didn't though and I kept pushing on. While I was in Honduras I didn't run at all since I forgot my running capris and my sports bra (Grr!) so going from no running to running the longest distance ever.  :/

The sun started coming up at at around mile 7 so I took a pic and turned around.  Throughout the run I had a package of Clif Shot Blocks and some pretzels to get me through this training run.  At mile 13.2 I got so excited because I realized that this was the longest distance I have ever ran (previously 13.1 miles at my half marathon), when I first started the run I knew that it would be the longest, but once I hit 13 everything after that was a PDR.  Next is 16 miles (next weekend), then 18 (December). 

I will say that marathon training has been more difficult than I anticipated, but I am still going at it.  Every run I am getting closer and closer to my goal, one step at a time.

Roatan Honduras

This past week I had an amazing opportunity to travel to Roatan Honduras with my aunt and uncle.  I love to travel and this getaway was perfect for me!  I get three weeks vacation from work so I took a week to enjoy the beaches of Honduras. I have been on three trips this year (Philly/NYC, South Dakota-Mt.Rushmore and Honduras) and I want to continue that trend in 2013.  I am hoping to go to Vegas, Seattle (the home of Christian Grey :) ), Boston, and one international location.

For all my pics from my trip, go HERE.  Sorry my pics aren't the best, but my camera broke and I only had my phone camera. :/

My plane landed in Roatan about 3 pm and uncle picked me up at the airport.  The runway to the Roatan airport is really small and you are surrounded by water on both sides.  Really cool. 

Interesting/Sad fact:  Did you know that a REALLY good wage in Honduras is $20 a day?  That is just so sad to me. :(  I spend that on shoes or lunch and that's what they make.  We all should take a lesson from that.

Yoga-I had a private yoga session at Earth Mama's in the West End.  Very relaxing!  In the back of the cafe they have a pavilion where they host the yoga and it was so neat.  I definitely recommend checking them out if you like yoga.

On Wednesday night my aunt invited everyone from the Dive Shop over to the  house for dinner.  My aunt and I made mexican food (yes, I cooked!). :) We had wine and margaritas of course.  Can't forget the drinks.

I got to swim with dolphins while I was in Honduras at Anthony's Key.  For the first 30 minutes you are on the beach in shallow water with the dolphins watching them do tricks and petting them.  The next 30 minutes you get to snorkel with them in the enclosure.  The enclosure is a really big sectioned off piece of beach that houses about 20 dolphins (even babies!).  I would be snorkeling, seeing fish and other wildlife and all of the sudden a dolphin swims under me or right be me (close enough to touch).  Best experience ever!  We got to hang out with the dolphins when I went to Seaworld San Antonio back in May, but this was a million times better since I got to be in the water with them.  LOVED IT!  There were a ton of staff and I always felt safe with the dolphins.  None of them were even remotely aggressive.  The first 30 minutes I was with a dolphin named Margarita that was very talkative.  The trainer said that her mom (who I believe they said was the oldest dolphin there) just recently adopted another dolphin because it's mom gave birth to her and didn't want her.  :(  So sad.  She was the mom who gave the kid to the grandma so she could go party. haha.

Do you see the dolphin?!

This is the pathway to the beach from my aunt's house.  Isn't it pretty?  She is two minutes from the beach and a beautiful pier.

The pier by my aunt's house that I would sit on for hours at a time just reading my Nook (I finished a really good series while I was there and I will do a book review about it) and watching the waves.  Very relaxing.

Look at the sting ray!  This was taken right by Tyll's Dive Shop and the Blue Marlin.  This sting ray likes to hang out in this part of the beach.  I had never seen a sting ray in person.

We took a water taxi over to the West Bay portion of the island (we stayed closer to Sandy Bay) and went snorkeling.  I saw several starfish (they were by the sandy beach section in the white boey'ed swimming section) in this area (first time for seeing starfish).
 

 

My aunt and I went snorkeling on the reef at this part of West Bay.  My aunt kept trying to get me to dive, but knew I would freak out if I saw an evil shark or another equally terrifying sea creature coming my direction and I couldn't come to the surface any time (when you dive you can only come up so many feet per minute so I would be stuck-no bueno).  So when she said she saw a barracuda I got scared.  I mean, I have heard the song and I know they aren't the nicest creatures. It was far away so I was fine.

But then we saw an eel.  By this time we were in a shallow section of the reef and I had no where to go except on the reef that scraped the dickens out of me.  I clung to my aunt and she says I almost drowned her, but I don't think it was that crucial.  I was scared.  Eel's attack and I was not about to be attacked.  I didn't go snorkeling after that.

Now you see why I didn't want to go scuba diving?  I would freak out!!

This huge game of Connect Four was at BananaRama's on West End.  They had huge models of classic games you can play.  Did you used to play Connect Four when you were a kid?  I did!!!

What souviners did I bring home? 

This is a turtle necklace that this little boy on the street was selling.  His dad makes all the jewelry and has him go out and sell it at night after school until about 10 pm. :(  Then he has to go to school the next day.  Really sad.  

I also bought a sterling silver starfish (sorry my camera phone doesn't take the best pictures) so I can add to my international travel charm bracelet to represent Honduras (I can't find a silver Honduras or Roatan charm anywhere! Do you know of a place?).

This is a salad and fork and spoon serving set.  They look smaller, but this is a set that you toss salad with.  Love the design on the handle and it is made of bamboo wood I believe.

LOVE this plate!  It's made of bamboo wood and it has four sections for food and sauces.  I wanted to purchase more of these, but they were sort of expensive so I didn't.

My for bracelet!  Yes, it's a fork.  There is a guy that hangs out in West End by the water taxis that has a table towards the end of the day (after 4 pm). He makes the most amazing jewelry that is so unique. My aunt bought some seahorse earrings and I wanted this bracelet.  He made this bracelet specfically for me with purple beads.  LOVE it. It's cooler in person, the pic doesn't do it justice.

I had a super fun time in Honduras and I can't wait to travel to another international destination.  Where should I go next?  I am thinking Jamaica!  My work pays for me to go on a mission trip every other year so I am looking into my options on where to go.  Haiti?  Nicargura?  Germany?  Africa?  Phillapines?  Russia?  IDK, I will get back with you when I decide.

These shoes

These shoes have taken me to a lot of places and have been great for a lot of different activities.

Where have they been?  What have they done?

These shoes went skydiving

These shoes went to Philadelphia

These shoes helped train for a half marathon

These shoes RAN a half marathon

These shoes traveled to South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore

These shoes trained for my first triathlon

And more that I can’t think of right this second

It’s also time for these shoes to be replaced.  Normally you should replace your running shoes every 300-500 miles, but these have gone waaaaaaaay past that limit (probably at least 1,000 miles).  You also are supposed to use your running shoes only for running and as you can see above, I did not do that.

What shoes did I replace them with?  Brooks Glycerin’s.  Aren’t they beautiful?  Love them!  I plan on keeping my old ones also, but these will help me train for my marathon in January.  I should be getting another pair between now and January, but we will see how it goes.

On the Go Oatmeal Packs

I will be traveling soon and instead of eating unhealthy for breakfast I decided to make my own breakfast on the go oatmeal packs.  I dislike instant oatmeal packs since they have so many preservatives and additives so I made these in less than 5 minutes.  When you are traveling you don’t have much room in your suitcase (carry on) or you tend to squish bananas or pastries making your breakfast mushy.  Plus when you get to your hotel, a lot of times they only have pastries or cereal which are not always good for healthy options.  Vote for On the Go Oatmeal Packs (and Pedro).

What you will need:

-Snack size Ziploc bags (or regular)

-1/2 cup of steel cut oats (regular oatmeal-not instant)

-Salt

-Cinnamon (or Pumpkin pie spice mix!!)

These travel packets will last for awhile and are easy to carry and don’t take up to much room in your suitcase.  When ready to eat them get a cup of hot water (ask a coffee shop or restaurant to give you a cup), add the oats, and let them soak for 5 minutes.  If you like to add peanut butter, coconut flakes, chia seeds, nuts, honey, etc. to your oatmeal, just add that to your baggie (honey might be hard to add, perhaps a travel container?).  Voila!  Done.  Easy to travel with breakfast.

Reese’s, Hershey’s, and Pretzel snacks

My work was having a Blend Season kickoff party at work last week and we were all encouraged to bring a dessert (they provided the pizza and drinks-Arnold Palmers at the ‘blending station’-a little oil and gas humor for you).  Anyway, I decided to make my usual dessert of that everyone loves and that doesn’t require a lot of time (15 minutes).  They are the pefect blend of salty and sweet.

I found this on Pinterest (follow me!) and I usually adapt it to whatever season

What you will need:

-1 bag of square pretzels (get the square, otherwise the chocolate will melt through)

-1 bag of Hershey’s Hugs and Kisses (you can use regular ones but these are prettier)

-1 bag of chocolate candies (Reese’s for Halloween/fall, Red/Pin M &M’s for Valentine’s day, Red/Green/White M&M’s for Christmas, ect.)

-Oven

-Baking Sheet

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Put wax paper on the cookie sheet and spread the pretzels out flat

Add Hershey’s Hugs and Kisses to each pretzel

Pop in the oven for 4 minutes (set timer-it goes by quicker htan you think).  Yes, only 4 minutes.

Immediately add candies to the top of the chocolates, pressing down

Let cool and add to a serving tray or Tupperware container

Eat!

Toughest 10K-Kemah Race Recap

This is my second year to do the Toughest 10K-Kemah and also my second 10K ever (read last years recap here).  The Toughest 10K Kemah is put on by Running Alliance Sports that also does the Texas Bridge Series (which I am doing!). 

I spoke with my friend Debra about running the 10K and she said that 10K’s hurt because of the speed.  I asked her to explain and she said that 5K’s hurt the worst, then 10K’s, then ½’s, then full marathons.  She said you should push your pace to get done faster.  I said I only have one speed-slow.  I wasn’t aware that you were supposed to have different paces for different lengths of a race. Haha.  Oh well.

This race is one part of a three part race in the Texas Bridge Series.  First you run Kemah (10K), then Galveston (10K), then you run LaPorte by the Bay Half Marathon, and once you complete all three you get a fourth medal.  I <3 race bling!

 Last year the Galveston race fell on the weekend of Homecoming (it does this year too) and I choose to attend Homecoming instead of going to that race.  Honestly, it was because last year the Galveston didn’t have any race bling and I wanted race bling (2012 all three races have bling, then you get a fourth medal if you complete all of them), so it wasn’t so much about the homecoming thing last year. Haha.

My Uncle Roger and my Aunt Laura are running all three races with me and I am super excited! 

I woke up at my usual time at 5:15 am via a bratty cat that wanted to be fed and I was out the door by 5:30 am to head to Pearland to meet up with my aunt and uncle.  I got to their house around 6:20 am and while I was driving I noticed all the changes in my old part of town (they lived 5 minutes from me).  A lot has changed in the 7 months since I have moved.  I got to their house and I picked up my race packet that had a maroon technical shirt race tee and a hat.  It was supposed to have some coupon for the Kemah Boardwalk and the Galveston Pleasure Peir, but it didn’t.  :/  Oh well.  We left their house in Pearland to drive to Kemah and looked for a parking spot.  The race director had emailed us and let us know that they expected to have a record turnout this year (1,575 people) and to get their early to find parking.  Did we? Nope!  Haha.  We made it to the starting line about 7:25 and I really had to go to the bathroom, but I knew that if I tried to make it to the porta pottys I would never get to the race on time.  I held it. (Sorry, TMI).

The race director started the race on time, but I was so far back (so  many people) I didn’t cross until about 3 minutes after the timer went off.  For the first mile or so I was going weaving around people (some people were walking in the first mile) then I settled in a steady pace.  When I hit the bridge I cringed for a second, then I started climbing up it, slowly but surely.  As I was coming down the first pass I looked over and saw all the people on the other side already and thought ‘I have three more of these bridges to go.’  Woe is me at this point, but then I got my head in the game and trudged ahead.  Also, as I was towards the top of the first bridge I saw really fast people run by me and I figured out they were almost done!  I hate fast people. Haha.  I stopped at the water station under the bridge and drank a Gatorade and hit the overpass again.  I also took a gummy block for extra energy at this point (throughout the entire race I ate a half a package). 

The next three bridge passes went by fairly quickly.  I kept looking for my aunt and uncle and I saw them behind me on the other side of the bridge.  I REALLY had to pee but I kept telling myself that if I stopped my time would be off and I wanted to run this one as a PR.  I only ran at the water stops so I wouldn’t get sick while I garbled down Gatorade and water.  I finished the course around 1:18 on the clock, but I knew that I didn’t start until 2 or 3 minutes later.  I knew I had PR’d but I would have to wait for my official time to be put up for my exact PR. 

My official time was 1:15.22 beating my previous time by just shy of 7 minutes!!!!  This 10K is the only 10K that I have ever ran, and it happens to be on a very hilly/bridgey course so I am not sure what my actual time would be if it were a flat course without 10 million 4 bridge passes. 

 

The bling for this race is awesome!!  It has glitter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Oh, glitter you are the best.

See ya at the next race.