Be Seen! Be Safe!

Hello again dear readers! Ben here, back with another episode of Run, Bigfoot, Run and today we are talking about safety. As a sometimes instructor, I always stress the importance of wearing reflective clothing, bright or white is not good enough. When I go out for early morning runs before the sun comes up I'm wearing something reflective, and a headlamp. I'm amazed at the number of people that are in all black or just a white shirt and think that's enough. It's a good way to get hit.

 As a BibRave Pro, I sometimes get to test products and offer a review or chat them up on the social channels. I recently received some Brilliant Reflective strips to test and here are my thoughts. Being a Pro with BibRave does not influence my decisions and if you want to learn more about BibRave visit www.bibrave.com.

Don't hold the iron up to your face to see if it's hot. 

So Brilliant Strips are super easy to apply. Simply remove the backing and apply them wherever you feel the need to be seen. Included on the packaging is a front/back image of the best places to put them. Or you can iron them on. I used the iron on strips in my testing and they held on tight, and were super easy to put on. Simply get your iron hot, they provide the temps that work best, place the strips where you want them and cover with a paper towel. I used 2 towels on top of each other and it worked fine. Press down for 30-40 seconds and BOOM, you will shine like a rock star at the Grammies!

If only I ironed everything as well as this.

Once your done, peel off the protective plastic and your reflective. The photo at the top of the page is taken with the flash on my phone so they certainly are bright.

If you want more information, or want to order your own go to Brilliant Reflective and pick up some for yourself. You can get single packs of one color or multi packs.

You can also follow Brilliant on Instagram or Twitter with the handles below.

Insta: @brilliant_reflective
Twitter:@brilliant_safe


As always, thanks for stopping by and hope to see you hear again soon.

Got Gum? Run Gum review

Welcome to the blog, today I tried a new product called Run Gum. I received free samples, but had to pay S&H, so it was somewhat free. Anyway, that fact did not influence this review.

 I received 3 flavors and tried the Mint this morning. The package contains 2 pieces of gum and each one is about the size of a nickel and slightly thicker. The taste starts off like an energy drink, and after chewing for a few minutes you can taste the mint so it's not too bad.

 After about 15 minutes the gum starts to get that stale feel and your ready to spit it out. Since I was running and didn't want to spit it out on the road I just tucked it between my gums and lip and kept going until I found a trash can.

Did I feel anything? I had one piece which is about the equivalent of a soft drink, so I did feel a little like I had more energy. I will have to try with 2 pieces and see if there a noticeable difference, but from first impression I would Run Gum
a shot. It will not replace an energy gel during a half or full, but at the start of a race could give that little boost your looking for.

back of package

All the Goals!!!

So it's 2018 and everyone and their mom are making resolutions for the coming year. While I don't resolve to make resolutions I do believe in making goals for the coming year. I always try to set some attainable goals, such as PR'ing certain races, and others like running 2018 miles for the year.

About 10 years ago I was working as a manager at a Sports Bar and the company culture used the book Raving Fans, which worked toward setting your goals at 15% increments so they are attainable. Once you reach that goal just set a new goal. It's the one self help book I've enjoyed and followed and still try to to this day. Setting a simple goal gives accomplishment and you're not beating yourself up trying to reach something unattainable.

So let's get to my goals for 2018.

1. 1. PR Everything. I've noticed that as I've gotten older and   started running with a group (Thank you Rogue!) I PR'd several distances last year. Two of those, the half marathon and 8k were over 4 years old! I PR'd my full distance but I know I can do better as I was pacing someone to get them a PR. This year I'm looking to get them all.
2. Well, I will run 2018 miles and maybe a little more. In 2017 I managed 1300+ miles but battled with injuries and health problems. I don't foresee that happening this year. I'm working on my hips and core more and cross training so I can get this goal. It comes out to 5.52 miles per day, or 38.6 miles a week.
3. Break 20:00 at a 5k. This is my white whale and I was planning on doing this in 2017 but other things came up and I only ran one 5k, which I PR'd for the course. Track work and the increase in mileage will help me get there so we shall see.

Granted none of these are the 15% I spoke of earlier, but if yo're just starting set some easy goals like running your first 5k or 10k or maybe that first half marathon. Always try to set something easy for yourself and then the harder goals will themselves become easier.

Until next time, lace up and go run!

Ben

Last 5k and The Big Announcement!

So this weekend was huge! Not only was it my first and last 5k of the year, but I also had 2 reveals I made over on Twitter and Instagram Sunday and Monday.

 First the race. This was the local Toys for Tots 5k which I have ran for the last 5 or 6 years so it's my streak race. Over 600 people came out and filled a van several times with toys for the Marines to give out as part of Toys for Tots. Since the entry was a toy there were no shirts or medals but the directors do give out ribbons for age group awards. The course is a lollipop out and back with a hill coming back around mile 3. This is also a goal race for several local Girls on the Run groups so there were plenty of reasons to stay after and cheer.
 It was a 5k so I don't have a lot of details but I finished 2nd in age group and beat my course PR by about a minute, so I finished the year strong. I plan on having a year in review after Christmas and talk about some goals I will carry over to 2018.

The other bit of news that I already posted on Instagram and Twitter is that I was accepted as a Bib Rave Pro and a Nuun Ambassador. I consider this a huge privilege and look forward to sharing the experience with everyone.
 As another bonus I will have a page for race discounts up this week and sharing product discounts with everyone as well.


Until next time, keep the laces tight

Ben

Discounts!!!! Get Your Discounts Here!!!

Welcome to your one stop shop for Race and Product Discounts. As this is updated all the time, check back often and I will post on Twitter as well. Follow me @bwachter70

   

I am also an ambassador for the Blue Ridge Marathon. Use BRMBEN20 for 20% off any distance!

 

Holiday 'FUN' Runs

Happy Holidays everyone. I was going to make this another race review but I thought I would talk about Holiday races, AKA Turkey Trots, Jingle Runs, etc. etc.

   Since 2013 I have taken part in the Thanksgiving Turkey Run 5 Miler hosted by the YMCA in Southern West Virginia. We go there every year and stay with the in-laws and it has become a tradition of mine that when we're up I take part in this race. Every year there's a cold snap that lasts Thanksgiving day but still I go and so do a lot of others. The one thing I like about this race is people come to race. They have trophies for age group winner and overall top 3 male and female runners. They even have a separate walking category.
   A lot of people say that Turkey Trots are for having fun with your friends and shouldn't be about competition. The fact is I have fun when I'm competing against others, most people do. If you want to run along and enjoy it, by all means go for it. I will be right there cheering you to the finish like I do at other races.
   I think the holidays are pretty crazy with the traffic, family you don't really see and shopping that goes on, that reminds me I need to start shopping myself. If you want to race, go race. If you want to have fun, go have fun. A holiday run is what you make of it.

As for my results, I placed 3rd this year and broke a 4 year old PR! #gettingbetterwithage

Richmond Marathon Recap

This was my third year running the Richmond marathon and it was the best one yet. Once again I was a pacer but moved up to the 4:45 group from 5:30. I have to say it felt a lot better pacing closer to my normal pace and look forward to doing it again.

  After my health scare I decided that I was done running fulls after this year but finishing at 4:46 just gives me the desire to run one for me. So it comes as no surprise that I'm getting back in the game.  I'm thinking something in the Spring would be a good choice. 

 Anyway back to the marathon. As I was saying I was the 4:45 pacer and started with 3 people running with me until mile 9 or so. Two of the pacers started in the wrong corral so we didn't catch them until about mile 4 but we ran together for awhile until they stopped at a water stop to long. I stopped long enough for the runners I was with to get a drink and we pressed on. Soon I was down to one person running with me, a woman named Carrie that had never broke 5 hours at a full and really wanted to. Since she was the last runner with me I was determined to get her across the line and make her goal. We had some time banked but she started to get leg cramps around mile 23 so we started to walk/run the rest of the way. 

 Her husband and children were at mile 26 waiting for us and I have never seen a look of determination like I did on Carrie. We rounded the corner and ran all the way to the finish. After thank you and hugs and a finisher photo together, I realized I'm not done with the marathon. I've still got miles in me and goals I need to make. And that is my Richmond Marathon recap.

P.S. It really is a lovely race, the neighborhoods and town really get behind it and there are people cheering almost every step of the way. If your looking for a fall event, give it a try.