Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Art from my friend Neal


As a refugee of advertising, I still have a number of highly creative friends in various places around the country.  None of these people is more inspired and fun than Neal Foard from New York.  When I least expect it, I'll open the mailbox to find an amazing piece of hand-drawn art masquerading as a letter.  These packages are each unique masterpieces, with photo-collages, cartoons, wacky writing, and anything else Neal happens to dream up.  Like an airmail straight from Neal's brain.  This week, I was delighted to get this great running-themed drawing from him, entitled "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner."  It's so much fun that I had to share it with all of you.

Peter

popchips, meet the LA Marathon

By now you've probably tried popchips, the delicious snack chips with half the fat of potato chips. They're not fried, nor baked, but popped. Healthy and tasty all at once. I've been a fan for a couple years, so you can imagine how excited I am to announce that popchips is now part of the LA Marathon. Not only that, but we're collaborating on a number of super-fun activations. That's marketing-speak for cool things that you, the runners, get to enjoy. I'm not going to spill the beans yet on everything we're doing together, but I can tell you that they're bringing their legendary poplock dance crew to the event just to pump up the energy on race day. Stay tuned here for more news on popchips and the LA Marathon.

Peter


Whole Foods Market and the LA Marathon

We’re proud to welcome Whole Foods Market to the LA Marathon family. They sell the highest quality natural and organic products available, and that’s the perfect partner for an event like ours that’s all about improving your life with running. In the coming weeks, you’ll see Whole Foods Market represented in a number of ways at the LA Marathon. Look for them to make a big splash at the Expo (Hint: If you like to cook, you’ll want to pay attention to what Whole Foods is doing there). We’ll keep you up to date on everything we’re planning with this exciting new partner.

We’ll post a great Whole Foods recipe every week, and here’s the first one: Gluten-Free Morning Glory Muffins.

Top Ten Fridays--Favorite Running Route!

By this time you have probably logged many hours and miles preparing for the big race. Some of you are creatures of habit and like running the same route time and again. If you are anything like the folks at Marathon HQ, variety is the spice of life and you like to mix it up! For that reason we are compiling the top 10 running paths/routes for this week's Top Ten Friday list.

Send us your all time favorite route in the greater LA area and we'll post the results this Friday! Send responses to top10lam@yahoo.com.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

The Floods of 2000

Here's a clip from our ongoing series of recollections from Toni Reavis. He's talking about the LA Marathon in 2000, when torrential rainfall kept many of the spectators at home.

New Performance Nutrition Tip of the Week

Carbohydrates; complex or simple and Fat?

The body has two sources it uses for energy, carbohydrates and fat. The question is how much to have while training? If you find yourself doing all this exercise to prepare for the big day and you have hit a plateau, at the same weight for some time or possibly gained weight, you are asking your self WHY. Simply, you are eating too many carbs for your level of activity throughout the week.


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Monday, April 27, 2009

Springfield: Water and a lot more

If you're wondering what kind of water you'll be drinking during the 2009 LA Marathon, wonder no more.  For the third straight year we'll be rocking Springfield Water.  But Springfield's commitment doesn't end on the course.  They'll also be hosting the first-ever Kids Corner in our Expo, which we'll be telling you more about in the upcoming weeks.

On top of all this, what we're really excited about the Springfield KidsMarathon.  In partnership with Olympic medalist Rod Dixon, Springfield is helping us to promote exercise and nutrition to children in local elementary schools.  Participating kids will run 25 miles over an 8-week training period then finish the last 1.2 miles at the LA Marathon on May 25th -- complete with finisher medals and fanfare for their terrific achievements. 

We'll keep you updated on all things Springfield as we move closer to race day.

Peter


LA Roadrunners had a 20 mile run this past Saturday!


LA Roadrunners couldn’t do what they do without the tireless efforts of Rod Dixon, Salya Mohammedy (shown here) and Gary Dietsch. They are the ones who put in the effort every week to make sure that the Roadunners events go off without a hitch. This past Saturday, the Roadrunners covered 20 miles on their run, and the day was supported by our sponsor Salonpas.

Friday, April 24, 2009

Santa Monica Beach Cleanup Tomorrow!

The Santa Monica Classic, which is now part of the LA Marathon group of events, takes place on Sunday, May 3rd.  This race raises money and awareness for Heal the Bay.  And we wanted to tell you about a great Classic event that takes place tomorrow--Saturday, April 25th.  In conjunction with Heal the Bay we're doing a beach cleanup with a ton of fun prizes.  Come on down and win free stuff while keeping your beaches safe and swimmable.

Join us from 10am-Noon at the beach immediately north of the Santa Monica Pier.  At noon we'll be raffling off Nike gear, Dodger tickets and Whole Foods gift cards.  Don't miss this great event.  Details can be found here.

MORE PRIZES!  Two lucky beach cleaners will also walk off with JetBlue Airways vouchers from LAX to JFK. 

Friday is now Top 10 Day

Ok, from here on out we're posting a Top 10 list every Friday.  We'll post a question early in the week, and then you can send us your answers.  We'll tabulate the results and publish the list on Friday.

For this week, we're starting off with our own list:  Our Top 10 favorite running songs here at Marathon HQ.

1.  Technotronic "Pump up the Jam"
2.  MGMT "Electric Feel"  
3.  Madonna "Hung Up"
4.  CSS "Jager Yoga"
5.  The Dandy Warhols "Godless"
6.  The Go! Team "Huddle Formation" 
7.  Arcade Fire "No Cars Go" 
8.  Muse "Map of the Problematique"
9.  U2 "Where the Streets Have No Name" 
10.  Josh Turner "Fire Cracker" 

If you want to send us your own Top 10 music list, send an email to music@lamarathon.com

Peter

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

New Performance Nutrition Tip of the Week

How to Avoid Hitting the Wall!

32 days and counting until the much-anticipated LA Marathon! Are you making the necessary adjustments in preparation for the big day? I have already given some pointers about pre-marathon nutritional and training programs; however, I thought I’d speak a bit about how the body functions DURING a 26.2 mile race while under constant pressure and exertion. Whether you are a marathon veteran or rookie, your body will undergo an extreme amount of stress and fatigue, especially during the last 8 miles. The trick is to know how to push through.
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Monday, April 20, 2009

Catch The Rabbit: LA ‘94

This is another in our ongoing series of Toni Reavis’ favorite LA Marathon moments. Watch this interview with Toni, along with race highlights, to see how one runner came out of nowhere to shock the Elite men’s field.

Peter

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Getting to know the route: Leimert Park

The LA Marathon travels through so many interesting parts of the city, and each neighborhood has its own unique story to tell. We turned Chad loose with his camera in Leimert Park, and he came back with a fascinating historical perspective on this community. See for yourself what Leimert Park is all about.

Peter

Run Stacy Run!

Tomorrow morning, all of us at Marathon HQ will be rooting for our Director of Operations Stacy Embretson.  She’s running the Boston Marathon for the first time.  In addition to her herculean efforts on all of the LA Marathon logistics, she’s also managed to get herself ready for Boston.  Amazing.  Good luck Stacy!

You can watch the Boston Marathon tomorrow on Universal Sports live coverage here.      

Peter

Friday, April 17, 2009

Recovery Rod Dixon Style


The Ice Chilly Bin

Roadrunners had a great 20 mile run Saturday April 11th.

For many years in my home town, Nelson, New Zealand after our long run (3hours +) we would get a large bin and put a plastic liner in, fill with water and then when we returned from the run put about 5-6 bags of ice in. (Good time to put that six pack in also). So after the cool down exercises and some light stretches we would take the plunge. (Good idea to have an old broom handle to bite on for the first 5-7 minutes until you adjust to the cold-just kidding), and then have a few drinks and talk over the training with your fellow runners. The key is to stay in for a minimum of 10 minutes and hold through for 15 minutes. Always keep warm on top and wrap the legs when finished sit and relax with your feet up for 20 minutes. The next day you will feel fantastic!

Rod

Elite Runner Brian Livingston

The 2009 LA Marathon will feature Elite athletes coming from Kenya, Ethiopia and Morocco. And one runner from right here in Hollywood: Brian Livingston. Though he was born and raised in LA, Brian has run all over the world, and he brings an evolved perspective to marathoning, along with a tireless work ethic. We caught up with Brian just before he left for a high altitude training camp. If you’re looking to root for a local athlete on May 25th, this is your guy.

Peter

Thursday, April 16, 2009

LA Marathon Course Tour--SEE IT HERE!!

New Performance unveils the 2009 LA Marathon Course in a very cool video! Shot during those rare moments when the LA streets are free of traffic, this 'up close and personal' view of the course gives you a mile-by-mile rundown. Be one step ahead of the pack and get to know the course pre-race day by checking out the video below!

Julia

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

What is GeoGive?

Well, it’s a really smart way to raise funds for our Official Charities from mobile devices. GeoGive describes their program as “tomorrow’s fundraising” that enables “in the moment” giving. I couldn’t have said it better myself. We’ve set up a partnership between GeoGive and each of our Official Charities. So any of our participants that are fundraising can send this link to their friends or family for 'on the go' fundraising, check it out! go.geogive.com/lamarathon

Peter

New Performance Nutrition Tip of the Week

It’s Not a Sprint, It’s a Marathon.

To say we’re excited about May 25th around here would be an understatement. On May 25th the LA Marathon will take place and New Performance will be an Official Nutrition and Supplement Sponsor. As such, I thought it would be worthwhile to give some pointers to all those who are ambitious enough to take this race on – but don’t be mistaken, these tips can be used by anyone wanting to better their physical endurance and athletic performance.

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Monday, April 13, 2009

Enjoyed too much Easter candy?

We have the perfect solution--the Santa Monica Classic 5K/10K! Bring your friends and family and join Nike and Heal the Bay on May 3 for a great community run that supports a fantastic local cause, Heal the Bay! Sign up at santamonicaclassic.com before Wednesday April 15 to take advantage of the lower registration price. Wednesday is also the cut-off to choose the FastReg add-on to receive reserved front-row parking, and we’ll send your number and shirt to you one week before the event.

Monday, April 6, 2009

New Performance Nutrition


I want to introduce you to our newest partner, New Performance Nutrition. Founded by Matt Mahowald 14 years ago, New Performance Nutrition has been dedicated to improving the performance of of runners and athletes of all ages and abilities. They do very thorough in-person nutrition consulting, and they also have a high quality line of protein powders, supplements, vitamins and minerals. Matt gave me a personal tour of their program last week, and it was very impressive. Because nutrition is a critical component of any runner’s lifestyle, we’re going to give you a steady stream of tips and info from New Performance. Stay tuned for a lots of great information.

Peter

Friday, April 3, 2009

10,000 views on Youtube!

I’m not sure if this qualifies as a milestone, but we’ve surpassed 10,000 views on our LA Marathon Youtube channel. I hope that all of you will take time to view some of our videos. Chad Mann is doing a great job telling all kinds of stories for us, from historical highlights, to training tips, to the SRLA episodes. I’m excited to continue providing interesting and useful content right up through race day.

Peter

Arly—Episode #3

We hope you’ve been following along with us as we chronicle the journeys of Arly and Hayley as they train for the 2009 LA Marathon. Like any journey, this one has its ups and downs, but these two SRLA kids are persevering, and learning, on their quest for success. Take a peek at how Arly’s doing in the latest intsallment of this ongoing series.

Peter

Parents running with their kids

Here at Marathon HQ we’re obsessed with the concept of using running as an agent of positive change. That starts with kids, and we’re really proud of Students Run LA and the great work they’ve done by training over 30,000 youth to run the LA Marathon. The lessons learned from running will make a change forever in these kids’ lives. What’s also interesting is to see how parents can learn from running with their own children. Check out this video segment that we just finished on the subject.

Peter