Walks: Sat-Wed, June 22-26

Helen has a word or two to say about gardening

So this might be my last blog post – one of over 600 I've written since the Shore Things blog came to life back in December 2007. I'll be passing the blogging baton along to Susan and enjoying life as a Shore Things civilian, though you might hear from me as back-up from time to time.

With no further ado: Saturday's walk features 14K for the Dubliners, and 12K for those doing the Midsummer. (Next week we begin the Ottawa schedule, too.) 7:30 am start, anyone? Sign in and have your say.

Monday and Wednesday, both groups have 8K and 10K. Wednesday evening will be from Occasions at 7 pm, and Jan and/or Trish will be planning a route – possibly with hills in it. I'll leave you gals to sort that out.

Congratulations to Norma and David for their very wet, hilly 10K in Barrie last Sunday. Norma's report:

As you can tell by the photos, it was a wet and soggy race on Sunday, albeit fun with some pretty landscapes along the route.  Neither of us were counting on the number of small hills and gradual inclines we encountered.  Nothing like the Beach hills but an upward grind all the same.  There was also a lot of puddle jumping and if you missed, well that just meant squishy shoes!  David ran the entire 10K clocking in at 1:01 and I power-walked it in 1:18.  There was no walkers category but they do welcome walkers.  The medal is the most useful I have seen.  It is a magnet and perfect for displaying on the refrigerator!

Thanks for representing, you two.

Birthday wishes go out to Greg – who happens to have the same birthday as our soon-to-be 20-year-old. Hope it's a great birth day for both of you.

Cheers, everyone. Welcome, Summer! And to all our teachers and administrators, happy last week of classes.

Will this work?

Good morning - this is a test post - my first; only 599 to go.

Perhaps we could have lunch at this quaint cafe after our walk today.

Susan

Walks: Sat-Wed, June 15-19

Top three walkers at last Sunday's Alfie Shrub 8K. Arlene and Libby took 1st & 2nd,
and Margy finished 3rd with a PB and a blazing pace of 7:38. Woot, gals!
Rainer modestly notes he ("the old boy") came in first walker in the 5K. Yay, Shore Things.

Saturday, for those who are joining us, we meet at Sunnybrook for what looks like an interesting walk, followed by brunch at Libby's. By now, you have either received Libby's invitation or my repost through our private group network. If you haven't RSVPd to Libby yet, do it now, silly.

The 6K group (though it says 10K on the schedule) will start at 8 am, and the 12K Dublin group has decided that 7:30 am is quite early enough, thank you. I've indicated my suggestion for the 12K route (or thereabouts) in my email. Let us know your preference in the comments.

As always when there's an alternative meeting place, some might prefer to walk from Tim's. Please sign in to say if you'll be doing this, so that no one shows up to find themselves walking alone.

Monday and Wednesday, both Dubliners and Midsummer-ers have 8K then 6K. Wednesdays with hills from Occasions seems to becoming a habit. Hills are our friend, hills are our friend! It's only 6K.

This weekend, we wish all the fathers amongst us a very happy Father's Day! And then, after we turn the corner of the week, it'll be Happy Birthday, Rainer. Hope you all enjoy your special days.

Dawn has asked me to post the list of volunteers who'll be stepping in to keep our club going. Thanks to you all! Please let Dawn, our club coordinator, know if you have any questions. These positions might evolve as we go and as we grow:

• Coordinator - Dawn (keeping a coordinating eye on everyone and everything)
• Blogger - Susan (keeping you informed every week)
• Race Scheduler, Interest List - Libby (let her know when you sign up for races)
• Web Managers - Lou-Ann and Sharon (will keep our website behind the scenes up to date)
• Route Planners - Trish and Jan (will be who you grumble to… not!)
• Events/Social Committee - Barbara B and Leverne (keeping it fun)
• Administrative - Sheila (keeping track of miscellaneous things, like t-shirt orders)
• Photography - Olwyn and Eileen (making us look beautiful)
• Moneybags - Charlotte (keeping up the good work)
• Helen - still doing the Shore Things books and calendars

Finally, in case you missed it, Norma's robins made the Beach Metro News. Check out the link.

Walks: Sat-Wed, June 8 to 12

An enthusiastic selection of our Niagara Falls Half Marathon crew

Well done all you Niagara Falls Halfsies! Our Ruth cracked the top three overall, as third-place walker, and Lou-Ann achieved a personal best with a sub-three-hour time. In fact, everyone had great results, and the rain held off. Hooray!

Here's a race report from Debbie:

We had a great weekend. The race course itself was beautiful, mostly along the river, very flat, passing by the Falls twice, with lush greenery everywhere. We shared pre-race and post-race meals together, some of us visited wineries and enjoyed wine tastings, some did an evening Ghost Walk of Niagara Falls, some visited the casino, etc. Highly recommended for a weekend getaway!

If you'd like to try this race next year, June 1, 2014, an earlybird rate of only $66 applies till June 30, 2013. Unconfirmed rumours suggest that some of us have already bitten. Here's the registration link. The Diplomat Hotel is also prepared to provide a break on the room rate, and to group all rooms together (thanks for arranging that, Rainer). Say Aye! if you're interested.

It's best to grab earlybird rates while you can. Besides the savings, you're assured of being registered. The Army Run Half, for example, is now full. I know there were a few who were still considering it.

Saturday's training: Dubliners, 16K; Midsummers, 10K. The 16K group might want to get it done earlier with a 7:30 start. The 10K group could start at 8. State your preference when you sign in, please and thanks.

Monday and Wednesday: Everyone has 8K both days. Monday night, weather permitting, will be business as usual from Loblaws at 7 pm. Wednesday, we all loved the hills from Occasions. Right?

This weekend is also Through the Garden Gate, the city's biggest garden tour – in case you hanker after some garden voyeurism. I'm volunteering on Sunday, so look for me if you go.

Maureen, if you're still reading this out in Ottawa, have a happy birthday from your ol' walking buds.

And remember that next weekend is the walk from Libby's. Please let her know if you're coming, if you haven't already done so. Right now. Before you forget. That's good gals and guys!