I have been going to the Ohio High School Track and Field Championships since 1986 when I first took a young athlete named Eric Harsh to get a sense of the stadium and the excitement of being there. He was only a sophomore at the time, but had his sites on winning the 1600 meter race before his high school running days were through. Two years later, he would return and race against the defending state champ at that distance, a boy that had beaten him the week before at the Regional meet…the State qualifier. He had not let it discourage him and went on to outkick that runner, and the field, to win the race that day. He went to Indiana University to continue his running career, but we remained the best of friends to this day. I saw him recently at Heidi’s art show…he is her Godfather…and we talked about the upcoming State meet. I invited him to come down with his daughter the night before and join the other runners and fans I had gathered for our annual overnight campout at Alum Creek State Park. He’s not a camper, but assured me he’d look through the house to see what gear he had. He texted me the next day to report.
“The only camping gear I seem to have is a bag of marshmallows,” he wrote.
“No matches?” I countered.
“Actually…no.”
At least he and his daughter want to. I’ve managed to get probably 10 different people into the back country of the Adirondacks by first introducing them to the fun of camping at Alum Creek State Park. There they get some wonderful conveniences…a bath house with warm showers and flush toilets, picnic table, fire pit, a ready supply of wood and a Bob Evans down the road a piece. Still, it gets them in a tent and a comfortable sleeping bag, the smell of smoke on their clothes and the value of sitting around a campfire with nothing else to do except swap stories of running…and life. It really doesn’t get any better and, I think, makes them want to take the next step…an extended stay in some pristine mountains only eight hours away. I’m hoping to work the magic on Eric and Sydney with this trip.
I did another tough Survival Workout before our Mother’s Day gathering. Holly’s dad was making a wonderful dinner…but it would be very fattening and so I came home and made a blender full of my famous smoothie, downing the last of it as we served the meal. It worked to perfection, keeping me to one serving and a small one at that. I’ll be climbing in six days and wouldn’t mind taking a few less pounds to the peak.
Survival Workout: 60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150.
Calories burned: 600.
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