President 's Message NEWSLETTER. Lehigh Valley Road Runners

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Damian Little
6 years ago
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This race is the oldest in the Valley but just nudges out the Emmaus 4 Miler by a few months.

A little trivia, South Mountain was once a 20K and for years Emmaus was a 10K. Next up is our Ice Scraper Series, a free race for Club members.

1 NOVEMBER/ DECEMBER 2016 NEWSLETTER Vol. 32, Issue 6 NEWSLETTER Lehigh Valley Road Runners Established 1993 President 's Message by Neal Novak November brought the 40th running of South Mountain 10 Miler & 5K. This race is the oldest in the Valley but just nudges out the Emmaus 4 Miler by a few months. Jill Forsythe and her team did a marvelous job with the race and increased the number of runners from previous run by a wide margin. A little trivia, South Mountain was once a 20K and for years Emmaus was a 10K. Next up is our Ice Scraper Series, a free race for Club members. The series runs from December through March, always a great time with hot drinks and food at the end. Squished in between the Ice Scrapers is the very popular Super Bowl 10K, a distance that is rare these days. Registration for both is open and filling fast. Don?t forget the Club?s online store accessed through our web site; with Christmas on the horizon you can surprise your favorite runner with some great Club gear. Membership, you should receive a reminder of renewal 30 days prior to your due date. Keep in mind that the Club now has membership running from the 1st of January to the end of December. Don?t be left out of Club news and events by not renewing. Our annual?dip in da Creek? is in jeopardy, the water is only ankle deep and if we do not get significant rainfall in the next month and a half we may have to cancel, but the New Year?s Day 5 Miler and lunch afterwards is not in any danger. Note the flyer. Check out the article on the Club?s philanthropy. Every time you enter a LVRR race you are contributing to your local community and not to someone?s pocket book. As always, Good running. Neal

Race Calen dar Saturday 11/ 12/ 16 9:00am Lehigh Gap Nature Center More or Less 10K Trail Run & 2 M Scamper Slatington PA www.lgnc10k.

com Wednesday 11/ 23/ 16 7:00pm Lights in the Parkway 5K Lehigh Parkway Allentown PA www.runlehighvalley.com Sunday 12/ 11/ 16 10:00am Ice Scraper Winter Series #1 Lehigh Parkway, Allentown www.lvrr.

2 Race Calen dar Saturday 11/ 12/ 16 9:00am Lehigh Gap Nature Center More or Less 10K Trail Run & 2 M Scamper Slatington PA Saturday 12/ 10/ 16 9:00am Christ m as Cit y Classic 5 Miler & Candy Cane 5K YMCA Bethlehem PA christmascityraces.com Wednesday 11/ 23/ 16 7:00pm Lights in the Parkway 5K Lehigh Parkway Allentown PA Sunday 12/ 11/ 16 10:00am Ice Scraper Winter Series #1 Lehigh Parkway, Allentown Thursday 11/ 24/ 16 9:00am Pumpkin Pie 5K YMCA Nazareth PA Saturday 12/ 31/ 16 1:00pm Peepfest 5K SteelStacks Bethlehem PA peepsfest Thursday 11/ 24/ :30am Run for the Diamonds 9 Miler Berwick PA Sunday 01/ 01/ 17 noon New Year Run & Social 5M & 5K Emmaus Community Park Saturday 11/ 26/ 16 9:00am Hist oric Turkey Trot 5K Bethlehem PA historicbethlehem.org Saturday 11/ 26/ 16 10:00am Quakertown Rotary Habitat 5K Quakertown United Methodist Church Sunday 11/ 27/ 16 10:00am Dirty Bird 15K Trail Run French Creek State Park, Birdsboro PA

Reflect ions From a Race Direct or by Jill Forsythe This year, our South Mountain race donated all of the unclaimed 1st place turkey certificates to one of the soup kitchens associated with Second

4 Reflect ions From a Race Direct or by Jill Forsythe This year, our South Mountain race donated all of the unclaimed 1st place turkey certificates to one of the soup kitchens associated with Second Harvest Food Bank of Lehigh Valley and Northeast Pennsylvania. A total of $100 was given to the soup kitchen located at Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Allentown. The money will go toward feeding hungry families in South Allentown. On November 6th the South Mountain 10 Mile race celebrated 40 years. I?ve been involved with this event from the sidelines for the past five or six years, stepping in as race director for the last two. No, I?ve never run South Mountain. But, I know many people who have and I have nothing but awe and admiration for all of the hillclimbers who run up to the Channel 39 building and back to Saucon Park. To put it simply, you amaze me. I could never dismiss the shorter 5K distance so please do not take offense for my secondary mention of the South Mountain 5K. Shorter but faster and in many ways harder because of the speed. Some runners are built for speed, others for distance. All running is challenging to us in one way or another which is why we all love doing it. From the sidelines, I have volunteered at the aid stations and helped at the finish. Over the course of the many years I?ve been involved with LVRR I have come to truly love volunteering. I believe it to be one of the most selfless acts you can perform, whether you?re supporting local runners at races, working in soup kitchens, dog shelters, hospitals, etc. Volunteers give their time freely and unconditionally for no other purpose than to help others. Assisting at races throughout the years, and other volunteer gigs around the Valley, has taught me the value of giving back. In return, I feel good about myself for helping others. Along the way I meet many wonderful people whom I otherwise might not have met. Being a part of a race committee kicks things up a notch. Eight of us met over the course of the months leading up to the race, planning things out and hoping that the running community would feel the same way about this monumental year as we were feeling. 40 years. That is a big deal. How many races in the Lehigh Valley can boast a 40 year tradition? Well, we built it, and they came. As many of you know, the amount of races continues to grow and as a result, the number of runners attending individual events continues to decline. It?s over-saturation at it?s finest. This year we were competing with the D&L Half Marathon, Oley 10 Miler and the New York City Marathon, all on the same exact day. To say we were worried is to put it mildly. But,

guess what. In 2016, our registration numbers hit a six year all time high. For that, the race committee thanks you. The volunteer effort to produce the South Mountain races totaled nearly 60 people.

Three weeks out from the race and no volunteers to speak of, we sent an email to the club membership asking for volunteers.

And to all of the runners who ran our races, I thank you. Proceeds from the South Mountain race go toward grants and scholarships that LVRR provides to the local community throughout the year.

5 guess what. In 2016, our registration numbers hit a six year all time high. For that, the race committee thanks you. The volunteer effort to produce the South Mountain races totaled nearly 60 people. All of those volunteers came together on November 6th and gave freely their time, energy, cheering and smiles to help 321 runners complete the 10-mile and 5K races. Three weeks out from the race and no volunteers to speak of, we sent an to the club membership asking for volunteers. I am so proud of all of the great folks who stepped in and signed up to help. To them, I say thank you. To my seven fellow committee members, I thank you. And to all of the runners who ran our races, I thank you. Proceeds from the South Mountain race go toward grants and scholarships that LVRR provides to the local community throughout the year. Grants such as the $2K that LVRR recently gave toward bringing a second Fusion Inclusion adaptive running chair to the Lehigh Valley. Grants such as the $1500 that LVRR provided to Bethlehem Area School District?s William Penn Elementary Penn Pacers, an after school running program. The money went toward providing the children with running shoes and gear. Did you happen to see the Penn Pacer students running our 5K? Ultimately, your race entries go toward grants like these, and scholarships to future college students. I would like to invite any future race directors out there who are interested in learning the ins and outs of directing an event to please reach out to me. I would love to have you be a part of directing South Mountain in It?s a very fun and rewarding job and I am happy to curate future club race directors using this race as an example. My is jillforsythe@gmail.com if you would like to get in touch. By the way, LVRR has another race turning?40? in 2017, the Emmaus 4 Mile Classic. Please come out and support the race as all of its proceeds support the Ed Thompson Memorial Scholarship and the Nicole Reinhart Memorial Scholarship. Kane Mendez with his family, participating in the South Mountain race Member of the Penn Pacers Running Club dashes toward finish line at South Mountain 5K FALL CLEANUP NOVEMBER 1PM General raking and fall clean-up. Food & refreshments provided.

LVRR OFFERS GROUP RUNS EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK.

7 LVRR OFFERS GROUP RUNS EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK. PLEASE CHECK OUR WEBPAGE FOR SPECIFICS AS TIMES AND LOCATIONS DO CHANGE PERIODICALLY. GROUP RUNS NEW YEAR'S DAY RUN & SOCIAL Run 5-Miles or 5K to kick off the new year! WHEN: Noon WHERE: Emmaus Community Park Following the run we will meet up at Emmaus Fire Company #2 for a Luncheon and Social.

2016 Grant Com m it t ee Updat e In keeping with the LVRR tradition of promoting and encouraging long distance running in the Greater Lehigh Valley, LVRR has an established Grant program that

In 2016, LVRR has awarded over $13,000 in grant monies to date.

8 2016 Grant Com m it t ee Updat e In keeping with the LVRR tradition of promoting and encouraging long distance running in the Greater Lehigh Valley, LVRR has an established Grant program that supports and promotes youth and adult health and fitness through running, setting aside funds to support this program. Grant Applications can be submitted electronically at any time during the year. In 2016, LVRR has awarded over $13,000 in grant monies to date. The organizations that have benefited from LVRR Grants thus far are as follows: Girls on the Run Pocono, Donegan Darters, Allentown School District Middle Schools Cross-Country teams, Catholic Youth Organization Track & Field team, Cheston Elementary track meet, Spark Running Club, Girls on the Run Lehigh Valley, Nitschmann Middle School Cross Country team, William Penn Elementary's Penn Pacers, Donegan Dashers, Bethlehem Area School District 53rd annual track meet. The LVRR grant program is funded by runners like you who attend our races. Race profits also feed our scholarship fund (seven scholarships are awarded each year) and provide free entry for children in our Kids' Series and St. Luke's Youth Run, and for adults in our Summer Series 5Ks and Ice Scraper Series (club members). In effect, when you sign up to run our races you are ultimately giving back to our community. Thank you, for making this possible. In addition the LVRR provided the City of Allentown the amount of $2,000 to repair damaged trails in the Lehigh Parkway LVRR Board of Direct ors Neal Novak, President Leslie Billowitch, Vice President Brian Shaffer, Treasurer Jill Forsythe, Secretary Lloyd Trego Loretta Dodson Chris Garges Brian Patterson Laurie Reinhart Bob Bodkin Meredith Longo Tim Lambert Lisa Bellito 9,375 Num ber of runners w ho have regist ered for our r aces in 2016.

9 Tim ing Com m it t ee Form ing Do you like to have fun? Are you interested in getting more involved in event management? Lehigh Valley Road Runners would like to form an official Timing Committee to work at seven LVRR races (listed below.) Ideally, we would like to have people to form?teams? so that no one is required to work every event. Ice Scraper 5Ks in December, January, February, March Superbowl Tailgate Trot 10K in February Emmaus 4 Mile Classic in April South Mountain 10 Miler & 5K in November We are looking for a couple of folks who: - Have a willingness to learn the RunScore timing program - Are able to troubleshoot basic computer issues Have a technical background - Are familiar with databases, bluetooth/wireless connections - Are able to stand for up to four hours, lift and carry heavy items (25-50 lbs.) - Are good at multitasking - Are not easily distracted (Race environment can be loud and distracting, at times) - Don?t mind possible extreme weather conditions (such as hot and cold) Some tasks of the Timing Committee will include: finish line set up and break down, race set up in RunScore, race day timing, printing results and award winners, etc. If interested, please send an to Leslie Billowitch with your interest and skills that you can bring to the team.

March/April 2016 Newsletter Vol. 32 Issue 2

www.lvrr.org Established 1993 March/April 2016 Newsletter Vol. 32 Issue 2 President s Message Once again the club finds itself in a very hectic period of planning our spring and summer races. Race committees