The Wicked Running Register February 2010 Est. Jan 2010 Priceless

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ QUOTE OF THE MONTH “If you want to become the best runner you can be, start now. Don’t spend the rest of your life wondering if you can do it.” - Priscilla Welch, masters great who won the 1987 NYC Marathon at age 42 WICKED KUDOS

From Melissa Jaynes: “Shout outs to all of the Wickedly goofy runners from WRC that showed how we New Englanders do it through the sleet in Florida. Congrats to all who ran the half, full, or were nuts and ran the Goofy Challenge!!!” (Read more about the Disney Goofy challenge from Team Touchette in Review Your Run) From Alison Phelan: “To all the WRC members who volunteered at the Frosty Four. Thank you - you were all so helpful and a great bunch of happy runners to work with!” ”Happy Birthday to Kerry, my ‘sweet 16 y.o.’ daughter, who is having a birthday on February 18th!” From Doug Bollen: “Great job by Eileen Dunn directing the Olde Salem Greens Snowshoe Classic.” From Amber Woolfenden: “Wicked Thanks to the Sistahs who got me running again at the Wicked Frosty Four. Special thanks to Kathey Moskal for staying with me during the run!” Wicked In the News… The Salem News that is, with a headline over the masthead on Saturday, January 2, Page 1 with a teaser to read about the Frosty Four in the sports section. We got bumped from the lead by the cold water dunkers down the Willows…argh! We also got a shout out on page 1 of the Salem Gazette with a continued page of some cool photos, with space also shared by the plungers- drats! From Tim Short: Thank you to all the Wicked Runners who donated their old, tired, and somewhat stinky shoes to the Nike Reuse-A-Shoe Program.

Happy birthday to John Mahoney (front row center) who started his birthday by doing a Salem Willows loop with WRC friends. John is one of the most unselfish runners in the Club. He started the Monday night “slow runs” with the catchy slogan “no pace too slow”, and stands by the principle that no one in the Club should ever run alone unless they choose to. So if you you’ve ever thought of running with the Club but worry you may be too slow, trust us, you won’t run alone if John can help it! L to R back row: Debbie, Annie Rose, Jay, Ann, Doug Front Row: Moe, birthday boy John, Tim Photog: James Deluca.

Retraction: In the January newsletter I erroneously reported the hibernation of the Thursday Night Salem Common running group which meets at 6:45 p.m. Apparently they are still on the run! Join them Thursdays, 6:45, at main entrance to common near Hawthorne Hotel, and post run at the Engine House, and see Mia’s invite to all under Running Personals.

Page 2. RUNNING AROUND… Upcoming Races and Events

Look for the Wicked Logo for official Wicked Events or Grand Prix Races. Wicked Running Winter Party, Saturday, February 6, 3 p.m. Moose Lodge, Salem. The WRC Social Director, Shannon O’Donnell, has set up an alphabetical system to determine who brings what to the pot luck. Drop her a note at shannonmaryod@gmail.com if you need more information.

Families Welcome! See wickedrunningclub.com for more details. Sunday, February 7, 10 a.m. The Great Stew Chase 15k. If you haven’t signed up yet, get on it because this is the first in our Wicked Grand Prix. Not ready to run a 15k? You can still be part of

the event as a Wicked Volunteer. Contact Kathey Moskal at katheyatc@aol.com if you can help. stewchase.com

Monday, February 8, 6:30 p.m Wicked Board Meeting, Salem Senior Center, Broad Street, Salem. All members welcome and encouraged to attend! Thursday, February 11, 6:30 p.m. Planning Meeting: NSMC/Wicked 10K race. Salem Senior Center, Broad Street, Salem. Wicked will be teaming up with North Shore Medical Center in organizing this race. Lots of details will be discussed during the meeting but if there are any

questions before hand please send them to Tim Short. Sunday, February 21st, 11 a.m. Hampton Half, Hampton, NH. Fairly flat and scenic coastal run, an experience that will be as memorable as whatever weather you get that weekend. For information go to: http://www.hamptonhalf.com/halfatthehamptons.

Sunday, March 21, 5k at Olde Salem Greens cross country run. This is in the 2010 Park & Rec Race Series AND the Wicked Grand Prix, so stop your gripin’ and start your hill training! If you are not running but would like to volunteer, contact Kathey Moskal at katheyatc@aol.

Sunday, April 11: Great Bay Half Marathon and Inspiration 5k to benefit Exeter Hospital, Exeter, NH. Scenic country/ocean course for a good cause. www.greatbayhalf.com. Sunday, April 11: 34th Annual Cohasset Road Race by the Sea 10k, 1 p.m. This one shuts off at 1,770 so register early if interested. It is a beautiful, hilly course which is, true to its name, along the coastline. http://www.roadracebythesea.com Submitted by Julie Arrison: Sunday April 11: Doyle’s Emerald Necklace Road Race, 5 miles, 10 a.m. start; Can’t register on line, but I have faxable or mail-able forms if interested people want to send me your address to: juliearrison@gmail.com. Post-race sponsored by Sam Adams…need I say more? The course is 5 miles of paved roads and has a couple of easy hills. From NE Runner: 2010 Pub Series Announced Get out your pencils, your pens, your computer calendar and highlight these dates and places!

4/11 - Doyles 5M, Jamaica Plain, Ma 5/23 - Evans Run 5K, Norwell, Ma 6/6 - Corrib Pub 5K, West Roxbury 9/12 - Mighty Meehan 5K, West Dennis, Ma 9/19 - Portland Trail to Ale 10K, Portland, Me 10/17 - Paddy's Shillelagh Shuffle 3M, West Newton, Ma

Page 3. RUNNING AROUND… Upcoming Races and Events (Con.) Sunday, May 30: Boston’s Run to Remember 5 Miler and Half Marathon. Very popular race with Wicked runners, and a great historic course in and around Boston. http://www.bostonsruntoremember.com Sunday, July 4th, Harvard Pilgrim Independence Day 10k at Patriot’s Place, Foxborough. This inauguaral race is expected to sell out, so check it out! http://www.patriotplacerace.com/ Ongoing Wicked Group Runs… Monday nights, 6:15 p.m. from Dane Street Beach, Beverly, Tuesday and Thursday mornings, 5:30 a.m. from Front Street Café, Salem, Thursday nights, Salem Common near Hawthorne Hotel, 6:45 p.m. and Saturday mornings, 8 a.m. from Forest River Park, Salem. Don’t see a time that you like to run? Feel free to send a shout out the Club for some company.

Got info to share about an upcoming event or race for the March newsletter? Send it along to bethogrady@yahoo.com.

RUNNING PERSONALS

Boston Marathon Volunteer Sign Up The Boston Marathon volunteer site is up and running, so if you are not ‘running’ sign up today to be a wicked volunteer. Anyone over 18 is welcome, so send the link along to your family and friends to sign up as well. Just let them know they will be on their feet for hours and will be covered head to toe (literally) in goo by the end of the day. But aside from that, it is a behind the scenes experience every runner should experience. You also get a nifty Boston Marathon jacket from the BAA for your efforts! To sign up, go to: http://www.bostonmarathon.org/Volunteering/BostonMarathonVolunteer.asp Select the link: ENTER ONLINE APPLICATION After filling out your personal information, choose option "Join: I want to join an existing Volunteer Group." The password is: go_wicked. John Mahoney is coordinating this effort, so drop him a note when you are official or with any questions: reconfig@gmail.com.

From Kathey Moskal: “I would like to invite members to go to the website wickedrunningclub.com and fill out a member profile under club info. With so many new members in the past year, it would be great to be able to read and learn about each other. Mine was so out of date that I decided to update it and noticed that there are only about 6 or 7 profiles!” An appeal sent to WRC members regarding charity runners for inaugural 13.1 Boston Half in June: My name is Alison and I am the Team Challenge Manager for the New England Chapter of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. Team Challenge is a comprehensive training and fundraising program whose participants range from seasoned athletes to novices who want to get in shape, triumph over a challenge and meet other motivated people. We are excited to announce that our organization is the official charity partner of the inaugural 13.1 Boston half marathon, which will take place on June 27th. Our information meetings are in February and the 16 week training program begins in March. Do you think Team Challenge is something members of the Wicked Running Club would be interested in? If so, would it be possible to mention our program in an upcoming email blast, newsletter or on your website? Also, after completing our 4 month program, many participants catch the running bug. We encourage them to continue and would be happy to suggest your running club. Thanks for your consideration and support. Alison Rosenfeld, Endurance Manager, Team Challenge Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America l New England Chapter 280 Hillside Ave l Needham, MA 02494 l www.ccfa.org/ne arosenfeld@ccfa.org l P (781) 449-0324 x12 l F (781) 449-0325 Tripping over your sneaker lacings? If you are like me, you may have been taught the wrong way to tie your shoes- those incompetents! Check out runnersworld.com/knot for the real deal!

Page 4. Got some ‘slightly used’ running shoes to donate? If you missed the Nike Recycling bin deadline, bring them along to a Saturday morning run and TR Ramsdell will donate them to local charities. *Slightly used= no one but you would know you ran 400 miles in them ! From Allison Rourke: As most of you are aware, the Wicked Winter Banquet is just around the corner. Those of you who were at last year's banquet may remember the "Get To Know Your Fellow Runner" trivia game that I organized. Due to its popularity, I have decided to do it again this year. Here is how it works: 1. Send an email to arourke1@gmail.com with your first and last name and a random fact about yourself. The more obscure the better, and the game works best if you do a NON-running fact. Examples from last year include: odd hobbies, funny nicknames, '15 minutes of fame' stories, etc. Anything goes, as long as it is PG since this is a family event. 2. On the night of the banquet, I will post the names and facts and will challenge everyone to see if they can match them up correctly. We will have a larger venue this year, so I promise to make it more user-friendly! So, start your trip down memory lane, reconnect with old friends, and see what crazy, funny or downright bizarre fact you can come up with. Let the games begin! See you all at the banquet. A Word About the First Race in the WRC Grand Prix by TR Ramsdell The first race in our new revamped Grand Prix series is the 15K Great Stew Chase. It will be held on Sunday Feb 7 in Lynn, MA. They don’t have online registration, but you can go to the website and print out the application and mail it in, or register on race day. If you register before Jan 30, they will guarantee your shirt size. Interesting race in that, if you don’t want a shirt, your entry fee is only $12, or $25 with the shirt or a ball cap. You choose. And did I mention you get fed after? I know it's difficult to get out there and start the racing season off with a race this long, but Wicked runners can do anything. I've seen you all out there, running in the snow and cold. This is a great way to kick off the racing season. Let's get as many Wicked members as possible at this. C'mon, who's in?! www.stewchase.com. A Note from Mia Poppe, To members new and old: This is just a reminder that the No Rest for the Wicked 5kish Thursday night run that leaves from the Salem Common at 6:45 p.m. and eventually winds up at the Engine House is still going strong throughout the winter. To sign up for reminders, etc., join our group our Facebook Group,. “No Rest for the Wicked” Weekly 5k”ish”. MORE 2010 RUNNING GOALS: Sarah Carrier: “First goal is to complete the Disney marathon (my first!) with a smile on my face and wanting more. I would love to break 2 hrs in a 1/2 marathon. And maybe, JUST maybe, seeing how goal #1 goes, perhaps complete marathon #2 in the Fall. Oy!” (Update from Sarah: “Disney was great. My official time was 5:08:59. I blame that on my photo shoots at the magic kingdom!”) SEEN & HEARD “ON THE RUN”

When WRC member Tracie McLaughlin (left) was told she would be working at a cold and windy spot on the Frosty Four course, she didn’t complain- she simply showed up prepared by dressing head to toe faux fur. That’s the Wicked Way! Check out Melissa Jaynes’ blog, http://arunningstitch.blogspot.com. As she states: “While not advanced at either running or sewing, I enjoy both immensely. A running stitch is a basic and crucial stitch in sewing and well--running in general is now crucial for me:)” Melissa is currently training for the Burlington, VT Marathon, Memorial Day Weekend 2010. Melissa also cries at dead animals she sees on the road during her runs, so what are the odds we saw not one but two of them on a 7 mile loop through Marblehead? She held it together though!

Page 5. SEEN & HEARD “ON THE RUN” (Con.) Wicked nice couple Shannon O’Donnell and Peter Raymond met at the Mill Cities Relay 2008, so the 2009 was their anniversary. Nothing like Love on the Run. Q: Who nearly slept through the Frosty Four race until Tim Short called them on the cell to “hoof it on down” to the post party? A. The Chic-Fil-A cow! (No, he didn’t say ‘don’t have a cow man’ when Tim called him, he said something more like “Holy &#@*, that’s today?) In an email from Rachael Hunt: “When Tim Short first joined Wicked, he was nicknamed “Fast Tim” by Tim Clarke. Now they’re both pretty darn fast!” During a weekend run in early January, Sarah Carrier, Shari Hewson and Allison Rourke came across a smashed telephone pole on Bridge Street in Beverly, along with some Police and Fire trucks checking out the scene. Lucky for them, their running pace did not align them with the hit and run drunk driver who had just crashed into the same spot they were jogging by moments before. Seems like angels not only fly, but run too! When Doug and I took a holiday weekend trip to Chicago, we tried to find a running club in the city to meet up with for a weekend run, and while a few clubs did get back to me, no one had a regular weekend run. We ended up meeting the Chicago Nike Run Club from their downtown store and shared the run with some locals who gave us great tips on the area and good eats. Watch out Disney Princess Half Marathon, the Wicked princesses are on their way, along with our Princess “Action Skirts” to be designed by Stephanie Cooper’s mom. The skirts will be velcro so we can whip them off if we need to perform any good deeds during the run. Along with Princess Stephanie will be Princesses Shari Hewson, Beth O’Grady, Sue Keezer, Lori Wentzell, Lana Popova and Michelle Campbell. From Alison Phelan: “Allison Rourke is a talented stage manager who loves to volunteer her time and effort at local stage theater groups. She has done this many times for the Wellesley Players, one of New England’s oldest community theater groups.” From Doug Bollen: “Bob Grant is VP of the Boston Marathon training group for the L-Street Running Club and also a member of Wicked. He would be a great resource for members on marathon training.” New Parents Rachael Hunt and Colin Maclay are taking on the Martha’s Vineyard 20 Miler in February. That’s one way to whip yourself back into shape! Doug Bollen: “When Jeff Citroni first decided to start running two years ago, he could barely run ! mile. Not discouraged, he stuck with it and his first race was the 2009 Frosty Four. And last September, he completed the Wicked Half Marathon. He is now a WRC member and a D5K regular.” From Alison Phelan: “WRC night at New England Running we really fun. Kerry won a gift certificate worth $120 for having the winning list. We had to write down the 7 summits of the world and she came up with all of them...so she was pretty happy seeing that she is ready for some new running sneakers. The speaker, Wendy Booker, was very inspirational - what a woman - she's got MS, but yet she has plans to climb Mt Everest in March. She's already done 5 I think! It's pretty amazing, she looks ordinary enough...but she's not!” Karen Giroux refused my offer to take my mittens to warm up her chilly digits toward the end of the Derry 16 Miler. Apparently it had something to do with my persistent wedgie and my attempts to correct it during the race. Or maybe it was my runny nose. Or maybe I should just leave this out all together. Or maybe not! Sally Holtzman grew up on a farm in rural Pennsylvania on a healthy diet of “eat what you can grow or hunt”.

Page 6. REVIEW YOUR RACE

There was a Wicked big crowd at the Disney Race Weekend in January as follows: The Mickey Mile: Kyle Hewson Disney Half Marathon: Ken & Shari Hewson, Stacy Adams, Denise Ramsdell, Courtney Ramsdell, Mara Mendelson, Caron Weiner Disney Marathon: Matt Adams, TR Ramsdell, Andrew Bencal, Sarah Carrier, Sarah Hayes Goofy (Half Marathon Saturday AND Full Marathon Sunday): Deb, Steve and Liz Touchette, Billy Shea, Colin Doherty, Shannon Tassel

DISNEY'S MICKEY MILE by Kyle J. Hewson On Friday, January 8, 2010 I ran the Mickey Mile at the Disney Sports Complex. Liz Touchette had bought me a shirt and put my name on the front and on the back she wrote, "If you are reading this you are behind me". Steve Touchette drew the Mickey hat and ears on top of the "K" in my name. Some of the Wicked members signed my shirt - it was really cool. Mom walked me over to where all the other kids were and I met a boy named Alex. There were a lot of kids. Colin and Terri Doherty came to cheer me on. Mickey came to say hello to everyone and start the race. Dad went to the finish line to wait for

me.. I saw Mom, Colin and Terri and waved to them. I was running with Alex for awhile and then . . . Alex was reading the back of my shirt! This was my third year running in Disney. This year the medal was a Mickey Medal. I had a lot of fun and next year I am going to run the 5K. I give this race 5 cats!

RATING THE DISNEY GOOFY CHALLENGE WEEKEND by Deb ‘Sarge’ Touchette

Team Touchette gives it 4 Cats to the Goofy Challenge weekend. The only thing preventing a 5 Cat rating was the weather, which was outside the race director’s control, and the 5:40 AM start times. Record low temperatures across the southeast made for an interesting start—30 degrees followed by rain, hail and then sleet for the Half on Saturday followed by 28 degrees and a stiff wind on Sunday morning for the Marathon-both starts in the dark. It was clear the race volunteers were ill equipped after the Half for the crush of wet, tired and cold runners attempting to make it to the front of the line for bag pick-up (we opted to avoid the bag drop-off for the marathon) and some Wicked runners were left waiting for a long period of time for a return bus to their resort.

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The rest of the experience was pure Disney. The Half was over before the sun (there was none) had a chance to come up leaving a full day (if you were dressed properly—sweatshirts, windbreakers, hats and gloves) for exploring the Magic Kingdom. There was no desire to swim in the Pirate themed pool as even the lifeguards had winter parkas and mittens on. The Marathon was fun as we ran through all four of the parks and took the time to have some pictures taken with our favorite characters. Frequent water stops (if you were able to avoid the ice forming on the ground), candy, fruit and licorice made it that much more enjoyable. After 2 days, 4 parks and 39.3 miles a trip to Epcot for a drink in every nation was on the itinerary. However, exhaustion set in and the party broke up after a visit to only the second country and an old English pub.

We would give the post race food only a two Cats but the expo, the three race shirts, the mesh race bags and the three finisher medals get a five.

Team Touchette will be going back (what are the chances of two record cold spells in a row) and perhaps the 5k will be added to the challenge.

THE OLDE SALEM GREENS SNOWSHOE CLASSIC Reviewed by Tricia Pini The first-ever Olde Salem Greens Snowshoe Classic looks as though it will become a classic. Reports have been circulating that the Snowshoe Classic was the largest snowshoe race ever in New England! Nearly 200 entrants arrived at Olde Salem Greens to strap on their “running” snowshoes on a chilly sunny Saturday morning for the 5k race across the golf course and onto the “yellow” trail through Salem Woods. If you know who I am, you’re well aware that I’m a pokey-runner ---- you could call me “12-Minute Tricia” since that’s my fast run nowadays. I had never worn snowshoes before, never mind race in them! I was hesitant about registering for the event when Race Director Eileen Dunn told me to mentally prepare for the shoeing by considering my time for a 1mile run would be equivalent to 1k in snowshoes!!! Wanting to be supportive of Eileen’s event I said, “Alright, I’m in. But be prepared to have me out there for 90 minutes!” She showed me the map of the race route. I have hiked the yellow trail with cranky Cub Scouts at least once a year for the past 6 years, and it always seemed to take nearly 2 hours each time with the young tired and whiny urban scouts. I thought I was in for trouble! Luckily I have some racing friends who are nearly as pokey as I am, and they were at the Snowshoe. Jeanne Vural helped lead the back of the pack, and suddenly was running away from me and Shelby Soloff (who I met through Jeanne at a couple of Salem road races). My back was sore, and I decided I was walking the entire route. (My chiropractor would give me a verbal lashing if I had to confess trail running in snowshoes at my scheduled appointment 2 days after the race!) Shelby supported my plan by leading me in a brisk walking pace. As I mentioned earlier, I have hiked the yellow trail in the past, and knew there were some “descents” that I have trouble negotiating on a warm spring afternoon with bone dry trail beneath my hiking boots. Being a scout leader, I felt it was only right that I “be prepared.” To help me successfully “shoe” through those tricky spots (remember, probably not trick for you, but me? Heck yeah!) I wore my snowpants. That’s right—snowpants. My plan was to sit down, kick my snowshoes up in the air, and gracefully slide down the “hills” in my snowpants. You may laugh, but preparedness paid off when I sat down and slid in 2 spots. As if it weren’t embarrassing enough that I actually had to execute my plan, I think a volunteer from Dungeon Rock Racing had the pleasure of witnessing one of my slides! My apologies.

Page 8. THE OLDE SALEM GREENS SNOWSHOE CLASSIC (Con.) Earlier, when I arrived to pickup my freebie rental of Dion Snowshoes, I spied a toboggan leaning against the wall inside the clubhouse. Fearful that I might not be able to slide in my pants, and potentially badly injure myself, I brought my whistle with me for my trek in the woods (another trick from my bag of Cub Scout expertise). I thought it would be easier for Eileen to find me on a possible search-and-rescue mission with her version of ski-patrol rescue equipment if I were able to blow my whistle. About 1:15:00 into the race, she felt confident enough to send Bill Woolley out to find me ---with no toboggan I tow! Lucky for Bill we had about " mile left. Shelby and I crossed the uphill finish line just under 1:21:00, nearly a full hour after the front runners! All in all it was a great event: well marked trails; awesome raffle prizes (none for me); lots of “wicked” super volunteers; free snowshoe rentals with instructions on how to wear them; hot coffee, tea, chocolate; and a large spread of post-race food (even lots left for us race closers). Finally, I absolutely love my comfy Snowshoe Classic wool socks because, honestly, how many race shirts does one girl need?

I have to give the Olde Salem Greens Snowshoe Classic a rating of 5 cats!!!!!!

Got a race to review? Send your review, a photo and your Wicked Cat rating (1-5 cats with 5 cats being the meowest) to bethogrady@yahoo.com.

“I'M ALSO A WRITER.”

I posed a few key questions to WRC Member James DeLuca of Beverly. So grab a cup of coffee and a throw blanket, and put your feet up because he has a lot to say! Are you really a writer or are you just so competitive that you said that to one up me? Well, I'm certainly not trying to one up anyone when it comes to writing. If you've ever read anything I've written you'll see right away that at best I can one up a six-year old and only then if the kid wasn't a native English speaker. But that question of whether or not I'm really a writer is a good one. I took up writing the same month I took up jogging. It was November in 2002 and I was looking for things to do to as an escape from the monotony of a course load that included X-Ray Diffraction as a free elective. I went on to win three short fiction competitions, an essay contest and write two complete, if not good, novels but I haven't completed any fiction since 2007 so maybe I can't call myself a writer anymore.

I thought I heard a rumor you were also a scientist, fact or fiction? It is more than a rumor that I am a scientist but again there is an asterisk. I hold a degree in Physics and I have published my collegiate work on the thermal properties of metallic nanostructures. The asterisk is that I do not have a Ph.D. and that I work as an engineer at Axcelis Technologies. If anyone in the club has kids in need of free tutoring in calculus (or any other math course I guess) or in physics I can offer that, but for the most part I think of myself as an engineer these days.

Page 9. If you are an engineer, why did you have a hard time opening the screen door at Tim Short's mother's house? From my courses in quantum mechanics I learned that you can never know precisely the location and velocity of a particle at the same time and since I knew that the door was closed and therefore knew exactly that it had a velocity of zero, by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, I had no idea where in the universe the door was. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. Does anyone ever call you Jim, Jimmy or JD, or is it always James? A few people have called me Jim, Jimmy, Jimmy D, Big D or Jake over the years but none of them ever stuck; I'm not sure why because I answer to just about anything. It could be that the only other James I know goes by either Jim or Jimmy so it's just easier for me to go by James. I've heard you referred to as "Big Game James". How did you get that knick name, and do you think you've lived up to it? Mike Toomey gave me the nickname "Big Game James" on the track last winter. I think it was the second time we met so it may have half been a mnemonic to remember that my name was James and half a joke that I was going all out at 200's on the track with no one watching and no official time. I don't think that I have lived up to the nickname...yet. On the biggest stage of my career (the Rotterdam Marathon), I was carried off the course by an EMT who could not speak English. On the second biggest stage (the Madison Mini Marathon) I set a half marathon PR by over 12 minutes but ended up considering the race a disappointment because I was on pace to break 1:20:00 at the ten mile mark and ended up fading back to slower than 1:23. My best performances have always come in little races when no one was watching, there were no prizes and all I have to show for it are times on coolrunning. So I have lived the attitude that I think inspired the nickname but have not yet lived up to it's face value. At one point, I said I wanted to be called "Little Game Beth", but you said that was silly. That hurt my feelings. Do you remember that? I remember that, and I'm sorry I hurt your feelings. (Isn't that just the most annoying apology ever? I hate it when people apologize for how their actions make you feel rather than for their actions that hurt you. That said, I'm just going to be a hypocrite and explain my reaction, but I am sorry for not explaining this at the time so you could understand where I was coming from.) I was a member of a fraternity in college and received the nickname Mr. Bean for my resemblance to Rowan Atkinson. Not everyone in my pledge class was so lucky with their nicknames. One of my friends was officially nicknamed "Asswipe". For the next three years I lobbied and fought to try to stop any of our pledges from being given nicknames that could be construed as demeaning or that were meant to make him feel small. My reaction to oppose the "Little Game Beth" nickname was because if someone who didn't know you read it on the website it could be seen as a nickname implying that you don't bring your best effort to races. Is it true you run a speakeasy in your cellar? No. I do not run a speakeasy in my cellar. I do not have connections that smuggle rum down from Canada and moonshine up from the South. I am also not wearing a fedora right now. Really. I'm not lying about any of that stuff. I do have a bar in my basement but they ended prohibition so I buy liquor for it at the liquor store and I lost my fedora the other night. I am trying to turn my bar into a speakeasy but I just haven't found a jazz band to play in the corner yet...and I haven't found a poker table I like for the back room yet. Plus I hate smoke so I don't think I'll ever get that stale cigar smell into the curtains that really gives that authentic touch to any good speakeasy. What is your favorite race? I don't really have much of a favorite race. Since I finished my rookie year or racing on any kind of regular basis last October there are not a whole lot of races I've been to twice, but if I had to choose a race to not to miss any year it would be the Derby Street Mile. Even in a 5k you can slow down for a moment to recover if you go out too fast or you can pick it up if you start to slow but more than any other race on the road the mile exposes all of your weaknesses whether it is pacing or fitness and I love lining up for that challenge even though I have plenty of weaknesses that show up on that course.

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What other interesting facts would the Club be surprised to learn about you? Here are six mostly useless facts about me that the Club might not know and/or expect: (1) My time for my first marathon was 4:57:39. (2) I have seen ET, Back to the Future and Top Gun in German but have never seen any of the three in English. (3) I did not start thinking of myself as a runner until the 2008 Witch City 5k, it was my first race as a member of Wicked, the first time I ran without music and the first time I skipped a football match to try to stay healthy for a race. (4) On more than 20 separate occasions I have set my alarm to get up for either the Tuesday or Thursday morning Club runs only to hit snooze too may times...I have never actually made it to one of these runs. (5) Growing up I never owned a video game console and never had cable television and though they both now have cell phones, my parents still have the same rotary telephone in their kitchen they bough for their first house in Wisconsin over 30 years ago. (6) In my senior year of High School I was voted "Most Likely to Conquer the

World"...to this date I have not done so, but our "Most Likely to Become President" hasn't lived up to that yet either so I don't feel so bad. Thanks James! And thank you for saving me from yet another bad knickname- after a lifetime of being called B.O. I’m not sure I could handle another one.

Next month… find out how Moe Kelley answered the question, “I am also a ____________” AN OPEN LETTER TO WRC FROM NEW ENGLAND RUNNING STORE Happy New Year!!! 2010 is here and we are looking forward to seeing you all at the races and here in the store. We all thank you for your continued support of New England Running Company and for helping make the North Shore a running mecca...whether you are looking to run on the roads for 3 miles or heading out for a 35 mile training run through the trails, all of your clubs make it possible for people to get together and run. Thanks again for supporting us through our first seven years of business. I am confident we will continue to exceed your expectations when it comes to service and knowledge of biomechanics, a.k.a.grabbing the right shoes for your feet! Over the last two years, even though the economy is suffering, our operating expenses have increased dramatically due to several different reasons such as shipping, rent, taxes, etc. It is these pressures that have forced us to offer a still generous 10% discount across the board to all of our supporting clubs effective January 1, 2010. We have thought long and hard about this as it is a very tough decision to make but we are in this for the long run (no pun intended) and want to be able to continue providing exceptional service and products to all of our customers. All of your clubs help sustain the running community on the North Shore and you should all be proud to make such a contribution. Once again thank you for your business and we look forward to your continued support for years to come. Please forward this message to your club members and please don't hesitate to contact me should any questions arise. Sincerely, The Staff at New England Running Company Wes Lassen, General Manager

Page 11. JUST WONDERING…What’s your favorite post run treat? Kathey Moskal: “Favorite post run anything - CHOCOLATE MILK!!!!!!! yummy :-)” David Long: “Toss-up: bananas or Ipswich Ale” Julie Arrison: “Powerade Zero and string cheese” Stephanie Hagyard: “A Banana and a huge jug of water with a splash of Gatorade.” Amber Woolfenden: “Bananas and peanut butter! Beer if it is a marathon.” Beth O’Grady: “Zip over to Salem Diner for bacon & eggs and maybe a Pesky sighting (That’s “Johnny Pesky”, not pesky ole’ Doug).” Tim Clarke: “Five Guys Burger” Peter Raymond: Banana Alison Phelan: “By far – CHOCOLATE MILK! It’s better than Gatorade nutritionally too!” Doug Bollen: “Gatorade, water, beer and a banana” Melissa Jaynes: “Chocolate milk always! And for those runs really requiring recovery, a warmed pita with chunky peanut butter and bananas with warmed honey drizzled on top! I recommend eating prior to showering due to leakage.” Shari Hewson: “Banana & water and then basically anything else I can get my hands on!” Kyle Hewson: “Gatorade and Clif Bars” Tim Short: “Pasta with meatballs! I know you didn’t ask for a favorite drink but TruMoo Chocolate Milk is delicious. How can you not smile when thinking about an ice cold TruMoo after a long run!?!? Plus it has 8 grams of protein!” Question of the Month - February: What is your biggest race or running catastrophe in memory? Julie Arrison: “I took a nasty fall one morning on Congress Street in front of a group of kids waiting for the school bus. My ipod went one way and my house keys fell out of my pocket…which I didn’t realize until I hobbled home. I had to go back to the scene of the crime to dig around the dirt and search the road for my keys.” Beth O’Grady: “That would be my flying face plant in the 2008 Corporate Challenge in Boston. A runner nudged me ever so slightly just as both my feet were off the ground mid stride and I went down so hard I skid for about 2 yards before I came to a stop. I hobbled through the rest of the race in a PR for this race, but the police officer near the Boston Herald who saw me limping back bruised and bloodied thought I had been mugged. When I said it was just a road race, he said ‘wow, tough race’ !” Stephanie Hagyard: “Luckily none (Knock on wood)” Peter Raymond “Me twisting my ankle while running the Wicked Frosty Four just a couple weeks ago. Thank goodness I didn’t sign up for the race series because Doug says there are no excuses.” Doug Bollen: “While directing my first race (5 miles) in Lynn 25 years ago at Lynn Boys & Girls Club where I was Program Director, the Lynn Item was the sponsor of the race and Item writer Tom Dalton got hit by a car running the race. All I heard was an ambulance rushing to the scene as someone backed up at the 4th mile mark and hit him. Tom now writes for the Salem News and we talk frequently.” Melissa Jaynes: “My biggest running catastrophe was on one of my first ever long runs, on a very hot summer day, in which I got lost in Marblehead and ran out of water. I finally asked a very nice woman watering her yard if I could drink from her garden hose. She gave me an ice cold bottle of water for the road and pointed me towards home!”

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Alison Phelan: “I ran my first marathon in Portland, Maine in October 2004 with Team in Training (TNT). I thought I had trained enough for it and just wanted to finish. But at Mile 18, I developed a problem with my IT Band which flared up so badly that I had to mostly walk the last 8 miles. However, my TNT teammates wouldn’t let me go it alone, so they joined me and walked/ran those last few miles together. Then with a ! mile to go, I spotted my daughters, who ran out to meet me. With tears in my eyes and holding their hands, we ran thru the Finish Line together. My time (5:02) wasn’t so impressive, but the main goal was to finish and to run thru that darn Finish Line, which I did with everyone’s help! Though, it hasn’t discouraged me, because here I am 6 years later-- training for my 9th marathon and I qualified for Boston in 2009!!” Beth O’Grady: “Just thought of another one! Doug and I visited the former head football coach at Kansas State in Manhatten, Kansas, and went for an early morning run. If you’ve ever experienced a thunder and lightening storm in the Midwest, you know how violent they can be. The sky opened up and it was perhaps the most frightening thing I’ve ever run in, but of course we still finished. Later that day the coach’s wife pointed out a memorial at the stadium for a coach’s young wife who had been killed by a lightening strike while running.” Shawna Erps: “I did a very small race in Salem when I first started running. Apparently the people ahead of me were waaay ahead and the people behind me were waaay behind me. I actually thought I was last. Anyway, because I was alone, I ended up with a police escort for about a mile through Salem. I felt like the President or Britney Spears, except that I was totally stressed about being last. I also almost took a wrong turn and the police officer was shouting at me which way to go. Not my best day!” Shari Hewson: “Disney Half Marathon 2008. While walking back to our hotel room I fell - hard! Landed on my elbow - blood everywhere - very "un-Disney" like! My elbow swelled up; I still have the scar and feel pain if I lean on the elbow a certain way. The worse part was I couldn't even say someone cut me off during the race or anything - I slipped off the sidewalk and could not regain my balance!” Kyle Hewson: “Witch City 5k - October 2009: I didn't listen to my parents and did not hydrate enough prior to the race. Had wicked sick cramping issues.” Beth O’Grady: “OK, just one more ! … I was at a conference in Newport, RI the week before the Richmond VA Marathon and went out for a quick 5 mile run before sessions were starting. I ran down by the mansions and got onto Ocean Drive. It was so beautiful I asked someone if the street would bring me back into downtown and they said yes, but failed to tell me how far it was. Needless to say when we introduced ourselves that morning and had to say something about ourselves, I said I had just run a half marathon by accident.” Tim Short: My first Boston Marathon was very difficult and pretty much totally catastrophe. I remember after passing the Power Gel station and heading towards Heartbreak Hill how bad my legs felt. I’ve never experienced so much pain in thirteen or so years that I have been running. There were tons of walking, lots of stopping and many thoughts of hanging up my shoes at the end of the race and not running another Marathon ever again. I finished in 4:15, which is my worse Marathon time. Though I had thoughts about never running another marathon again, I did end up getting back into marathon training and will be taking another stab at Boston this year! I guess the lesson I learned that day is that one can’t always run a great race every time.

Page 13 NAME OUR MASCOT RESULTS

Say hello to our little friend ______________________. Not so fast WRC members! The winner will be announced at the Wicked Winter Banquet on Saturday, February 6th, and the member who submitted the winning entry will win their choice of a Wicked Running Club clothing item. My apologies to late entries made by several of you after I closed the contest at the end of the workday. I have been told since that the standard deadline is always midnight. For some crazy reason I thought 6 weeks, 5 weeks, 4 days and 17 hours would have been enough time. My bad! Late entries you missed out on were: Ed as in Wick-Ed, Titumba, McGonagall and Minerva.

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS WICKED?

Colin MacLay and Rachael Hunt must be psychic! They were sporting their Wicked gear all over the Globe before we started this feature. In the photo on the left both are sporting their Wicked gear on the Great Wall of China, and on the right Rachael flaunts her Frosty Four shirt in argentine patagonia - near fitzroy massif. Have you worn your Wicked pride someplace exotic or exciting? Send a photo along to bethogrady@yahoo.com. PRESIDENTIAL PERSPECTIVE by Tim Short

Two years ago I was lucky enough to attend the first City of Salem Park & Recreation Commission Awards Night. The room was filled with some of Salem’s greatest volunteers who had gone above and beyond the call of duty and who had given their precious time and energy to the City they love. I was filling in for then President Rich Tomlins, as the Wicked Running Club would be receiving the Innovative Program Award that night. When I accepted the award on behalf of the Wicked Running Club, we had just hosted our very first club road race; the Wicked Frosty Four. The euphoria of being part of such a successful event was still deep inside of me and I was so happy to be able to share just how wonderful and exciting the Wicked Running Club is with the other people in attendance that night. At that time we had no more than 70 members and those of us who were involved at the time with the club could have never imagined what was about to happen over the next two years.

Page 14 On Wednesday January 28, 2010 I had the distinct honor of attending the Third annual Park & Recreation awards night. Much like 2008, I was not only excited to be able to accept an award on behalf of Wicked, but also very proud to be part of such a wonderful organization that has done so much to improve the general quality of life in the City of Salem. Below is the information about Wicked that was included in the booklet for the ceremony that night: Since the 70-memberWicked Running Club was honored two years ago, it has grown to nearly 250 members and contributed to the City of Salem in many ways, including: hosting the Frosty Four Road Race on New Year’s Day; awarding scholarships for local high school students; conducting a holiday toy drive; initiating a sneaker recycling program; and Partnering with the Park and Recreation Department on the Wicked Kidz races and community movie night. The Wicked Running Club continues to flourish and provide a social and recreational outlet for runners of all abilities. Take a second to really let the last paragraph sink in. Wicked has come so far and has done so much since we received the Innovative Award back in 2008. At nearly 250 members now, with people from all walks of life, different fitness levels and different goals, the membership of Wicked has certainly done some truly amazing things over the past few years, and we continue to build on that success year after year. We inspire not only each other to do well in races, but we also have lots of fun doing it. So, while I was the one at the podium on Wednesday night accepting the award, it was really all of you who were accepting it right along with me. You see, this club isn’t just about a select few that are part of the Board of Directors. It’s really about every member that is part of Wicked Nation. Together we have achieved many great

things and receiving the Community Partnership Award from the City of Salem is just the most recent. I would like to thank everyone in Wicked, not only for making this such a fun running club to be a member of, but also giving your precious time and your energy to making the Wicked Running Club, truly the BEST running club around. Go Wicked! Thank you, Tim Short, President (Left, with Salem Mayor Kimberley Driscoll)

WICKED CONTACT INFORMATION: There are about a million ways to stay in touch with Wicked, just a few options are below: Got a question? You can e-mail the Board at: BOARD MEMBERS: President: Tim Short, tim.short1@gmail.com Vice President: Rich Tomlins, rrtomlins@gmail.com Secretary: Alison Phelan, alphelan2@aol.com Treasurer: Melissa Jaynes, melissa.jaynes@gmail.com Membership Coordinator: Annie Rose Willis, Annika729@aol.com Clothing Coordinator: Michele Campbell, michelejcampbell@yahoo.com At Large: TR Ramsdell, mopartr@comcast.net, Shari Hewson, shewson@cellsignal.com

Page 14 OTHER WRC VOLUNTEERS: Volunteer Coordinators: Kathey Moskal, katheyatc@aol.com and Paul McCabe, pmccabe1234@yahoo.com Wicked Grand Prix: TR Ramsdell, mopartr@comcast.net or Dan Barrett, Daniel.J.Barrett@Comcast.net Boston Marathon Volunteer Coordinator: John Mahoney, reconfig@gmail.com Social Director: Shannon O’Donnell, shannonmaryod@gmail.com Newsletter Contributions: Beth O’Grady, bethogrady@yahoo.com Wicked Website: wickedrunningclub.com. Website Questions or Problems: webmaster@wickedrunningclub.com

Wicked is also on Twitter and Facebook!

If you see a comment from a WRC member you’d like to respond to and their email is not above, drop a note to Membership Coordinator Annie Rose and she’ll forward your message to the appropriate member.

Please forgive anything I may have left out in error, or anything that I put in you wish I had left out. Please know

all the opinions and sarcasm contained within and not identified comes from me and only me. B.

Question of the Month for March: What inspired you to start running? Send your answer to bethogrady@yahoo.com.