It occurred to me that Her Times 5K race (10/5/13) ought to have it’s own Facebook page so we can support, encourage, and get to know one another. Join us here.

Me and Erika Muhammad from Safenet

Look what I get to deliver this week — nice, fat checks to three good causes!

With all the deposits in and bills paid (thank you ERC secretary, Dottie M.!), the Her Times 5K women’s race was able to donate $1,500 to our primary beneficiary, Girl Scouts Western Pa; $1,000 to the ERC’s  Beach No. 1 Shelter project; and $500 to SafeNet.

Thank you to all of you who participated and not only did something good for yourself, but for others, too!  And…thank you to all those ERC members and friends and family who help me pull this thing off each year!

Mark your calendar — next year’s race is Sat., Oct. 5.

(I’ll probably move the start time up to 8 a.m. so that anyone who wants to participate in the annual Breast Cancer walk that’s typically held on the same day at 10 a.m. can still do so).

I wrote a race wrap-up with some of the inspiring stories I heard/saw/witnessed at the Her Times 5K race this year and it ran in the Her Times special section in today’s home delivered papers.

Here’s a link, in case you missed it, but if you can find a print version, check that out because it has a lot more photos.

Do I owe you a shirt from the Her Times 5K?

If so, never fear…they are coming.

It’s just taking a little  longer than we expected because the vendor is having some trouble finding more of the hot-pink shirts. He’s sure he’ll be able to find them, it’s just going to take a week or two.

As soon as I get the shirts, I will get them mailed out to those of you that I owe a shirt!

Thanks for your patience.

Chuck Orton, Dan Cass, me, Joe Kisiel (my oldest brother) — these guys have had my back at the HT5K since it’s inception in 2005.

As race director for the Her Times women’s 5K I get all the kudos and glory (and also the criticism…though there’s never much), but there are many, many, many people who help me pull this thing off.

I am certain I will forget someone (and please forgive me if I do), but here goes:

Chuck Orton and Dan Cass got up at the butt-crack of dawn (not even dawn) to drag nine million items out of the ERC storage locker. Then, they set up/tear down the entire race course (cones, signs, parking, barricades, etc). In between, Chuck ran the finish line volunteers and Dan road marshaled. These two guys — one of which is my husband and one of which is my old running partner — have been with me since Race #1 and are probably the two who endure the greatest amount of my whining, bitching, fretting and freaking out prior to race day. I’m eternally grateful…and completely dependent on both of them to pull this thing off.

Dave Comi with Ange Eberlein (6th overall) and Pam Wassell (5th overall, first master).

Dave Comi, ERC President, has always been there for me, too — answering questions, calming me down and helping me in ways too numerous to list.

Mike Vieyra spent hours devising a new course this year and meticulously measuring it.

DJ Kelly, aka Larry Kisielewski

DJ Kelly aka, Larry Kisielewski has been pumping up the volume and getting us ready to run since the very first race in 2005.

Dottie Mahoney is the ERC Club’s treasurer, aka “the money lady” who helps me keep track of race finances and cuts me checks almost as soon as I hand her the receipts.  She’s also a friend who, each year, is a great help with registrations. This year, she got a break as we pushed registrations online.

Lisa Shade is my Erie Times-News liaison, and also my friend and running partner.  Lisa, too, has been there from Race no. 1 assuring me that nobody cares if it rains…they’ll come and run anyway (and they d0).

Designer and friend, Holly Waychoff, helps me each  year with my application, my t-shirts and  my awards.  She also serves as a listening board for my incessant whining.  Holly is not a running friend…yet, but…I think she will be some day, right, Holly? (I’ll get you eventually.)

Jim Lang, timing-guy extraordinaire (Big White Trailer timing), who I am fairly certain wanted to throttle me at least a three times this year, but never let it show.  I promise, promise, promise we will use chips next year (You all heard that, right?…Jim, you now have witnesses).

Running friends, Leanne Parmenter and Heather Dunkle, my niece-in-law, Bethany Kelley, and my parents, Joe & Willie Bruce, came over on Thursday night to help me fold and sort nearly 800 shirts.

Shari Robinson at Forte Marketing always delivers (literally) the shirts. I never have to worry if the shirts will come in on time because I know Shari will make sure they do. This year, she even got us bumper stickers when I got the grand idea to make some two weeks before race day.

Rhonda Berlin and Robin Smith worked their tails off with me at pre-race packet pickup.

Frank “the enforcer” Mainzer, myself and Chuck Orton

Frank Mainzer and his wife, Joan, have also been there for me from race No. 1, too.  Joan always helps at registration and Frank keeps order— literally — pointing out the day-of-race versus preregistered lines, and then he heads to the finish line to keep order, too.  He also brings a tool kit for race day that contains anything…anything a race director could ever need, including a step ladder, hammers, nails, three kinds of tape, etc.   Frank is a retired brain surgeon, so his penchant for order and preparation is understandable and completely appreciated by this race director!

Registration workers are on the front lines and, this year, thanks to some registration database problems, they had the daunting task of telling a lot of women that we were out of the shirts that they thought they  preregistered for and fixing a lot of problems (wrong names, ages, etc.). They took the heat for me this year and, ladies, I love every one of you for it: Mary Kaye Pazder, Laurie Thompson, Rana Evanoff, Sheryl Barner, Suze Carstarter, Theresa Wigham, and Robin Smith. I owe you, girlfriends.

Road marshals are the guys keeping you safe out there and making sure you stay on course. Because of the new course, I needed more than I have in past years and several guys stepped up. I can’t imagine WHY they’d want to spend two hours cheering on ladies, but…. I’m glad they do .  This year’s marshals/great guys: Clarence Mason, Greg Wigham, Joe Kisiel, Tom Shade, Tom Twohig, Jack Byers, Jim Carstarter, Ken Berlin, Cameron Livondoski and Ted Williams.

Marshals Ted, Tom T. and Jim C. went above and beyond this year, making sure the kids’ courses were measured out and marshaling those as well. Thanks to all you guys for having our backs!!!

Trisha Clark and Tracy Jenks working the finish line

Finish line workers help Jim Lang with results. Were not for all these folks pushing buttons, entering bib numbers and reminding you to “stay in the order you finished” at the finish line, the results would not  be as fast or accurate. Thank you to: Robb Frederick and his son, Jackson;  Dennis Albrewczynski and his sons, Joey and Matt; Jason Parmenter; Tracy Jenks; Trisha Clark; David Comi; Teresa Wigham and Suze Carstarter.

My sister-in-law, Jodie Cass, and my daughter, Kelly Cass, helped with the kids races, cheering and handing out prize packs to each finisher. They also helped out in the kitchen with my mom, getting the post-race refreshments ready.

Rick Godzwa, ERC merchandise sales, put together some good deals for the ladies (he knows we love a bargain!)

Thank you to Marnie Mead from Erie Moms (and Dads).com for the GREAT kids’ race finisher bags this year. The bags were stuffed with fun things for the kiddos this year. (note: they especially loved those inflatable swords!)

The Girl Scouts Western PA handle the babysitting each year and I love, love, love them for it. It’s a valuable service to offer at a women’s race and they do a bang-up job each year. I never have to worry about babysitting because I know Courtney Soder and her volunteer Girl Scouts have it covered!   Thanks also to Nancy Irwin at GSWPA who makes sure everything is taken care of.

Assistant park ranger Jeremy Rekich makes sure the Rotary is open, the bathrooms are clean, and that I have all the barricades, etc., that I need for my race. PISP rangers are always wonderful to us and we, as a club, try to show them the love right back by taking care of the park and being sure to leave no trace of our races.

OK…..I think that’s it.

Whewwww……see what I mean? It takes a village.

That said, I need more villagers.

I’m really bad at asking for help, but I know I need help if this race is going to continue because I have no doubt that it’s going to continue to grow.

So, stay tuned because I’ll be putting together a Her Times 5K race committee and asking for volunteers to take on certain segments of the race preparation/execution. Being the organized, anal person I am, I will be sure that you know exactly what the duties are and what’s expected of you before you sign on because I know that you are busy, too, and you need to know what you are committing to.

Thanks to all those who have helped us more than DOUBLE the attendance at this race over the last few years.  Imagine what we can do in the next five years.

The 7th Annual Her Times women’s race this morning was 719 finisher strong! Woot, Woot!

More to come on today’s events (I’m tired, my friends), but…for now, see race results here.

See my photos from the race here.

Congrats to all the ladies who went the distance and THANK YOU to my legion of volunteers (men and women) who made it all possible.

P.S. If you have an award coming to you…and you didn’t pick it up, you can do so at the Plymouth on Monday night. I’ll be at the ERC meetings (race year 2013, followed by the membership meeting) from 6:30 till 8ish.  We’ll be in the front meeting room.

Last night, with the help of a few friends and family, we sorted and folded 740 shirts and labeled 700 bibs. We’re ready for you.

Packet pickup is TODAY at the Erie Times- News from 11 to 1 and 4 to 6 p.m.  I’d suggest you pull all the way to the back of the building to avoid congestion and walk up the sidewalk to the front lobby (big glass doors…main entrance).

Please don’t just stop out front and throw on your flashers because it’s a one-way drive and it will take longer than a few seconds to pick up your packet. The lines are particularly long at noon.  Last year, traffic got backed up all the way to 12th street and the police came in screaming at us. Ugh. I prefer that to not happen again.

I have Her Times bags for only the first 500 women who registered (pays to preregister) and I’m likely to run out of shirts today (I have 68 shirts for late entrants/day-of-race), so…get there at 11 a.m. if you’ve not registered and want a shirt.

I do, however, have PLENTY of finisher’s stickers (check them out in the photo below). Every woman who goes the distance will get one of these at the finish line.

P.s. Don’t forget to bring a little cash if you want to shop at the ERC merchandise table — they’ll have some special discounts just for the ladies.

More race info — including a course map — here.

My husband Dan helped me with the race shopping on Saturday night.

We’re (almost) ready for you, ladies!

By the way, there are a lot of great guys who make this women’s race possible, some have been with me since that first horrible (sleet, rain, hail, snow) race — like my husband, Dan; my faithful friend and old running partner, Chuck O.; our D.J, Larry Kisielewski; ERC Pres. Dave Comi; my big brother Joe K., etc.   I think I need to introduce you to some of them in a future post (stay tuned).

Race Notes

Here, in no special order, is a giant list of crap you need to know about the race. This will be handed out with the packets, but…I figure some of you like plan ahead, so here you go:

• The race goes on rain, shine, snow, sleet or hail. No weather will stop the race with the possible exception of lightening, in which case, we’ll have a rain delay.

• I have the world’s worst weather luck — plan for rain….likely cold rain

• There will be NO WATER STOPS on the course. Please carry water with you if you think you might need it. There WILL be water at the finish line and in the Rotary Pavilion after the race.

• If you picked up your shirt and race number on Friday, you need not check in anywhere on race day morning. Just report to the start line in front of the Rotary Pavilion before we yell “go” at 9 a.m.

• You must have your bib number and it must be pinned to the front of you (on top of your clothes/jacket).

• You must have a bib number to get results and to be eligible for awards.

• We are not using chips. Jim Lang (Big White Trailer) is bib timing.

• We start at 9 a.m. sharp.

• There are restrooms at the Rotary, but not many, so expect LONG lines. Do what I do and stop at the Ranger Station or McDonald’s on your way down.

• Park at Beach 6 and walk .3 miles to the start (Rotary is between beaches 6 & 8).

• Beach 8 is also available for parking and is also .3 miles from the start.

• Don’t park on the road or side of the road, or the rangers will ticket you.

• There will be NO PARKING at the Rotary Pavilion. The race takes up the entire width of the road, so no cars will be permitted.

• Day-of-Race registrants may not get a shirt on race day. We will give you a discounted price or you can choose from the shirts that are leftover. We won’t order for size unless we need dozens.

• Her Times shopping bags are for those who pre-registered by the deadline (9/21). We ordered based on that number (500). Kids will not receive a bag.

• Babysitting will be held in the Rotary Pavilion. A troop of Girl Scouts and their leader will be babysitting. You must sign in and you must pick up your child by 10:30 a.m.

• DJ Kelly will be playing all your favorite women’s power songs to get you raring to race.

• Kids races are informal and start about 11 a.m. with the 1-mile race, then the ½ mile, then the ¼ mile, then the Toddler Trot.  Kids can do whatever distance they want. They will not be timed.

• The race course start/finish has changed from previous years, but it’s still a loop with a dog-leg start/finish.

• Stay on the inside lane at all times. Near the end, you’ll be instructed to crossover to finish on the lake road.

• Road marshals will help guide you. If you have the energy/breath, please thank them. They are all volunteers.

• There are no separate divisions (or awards) for the run/walk. You can run, walk or do a combination of both. Walkers will be asked to line up in back at the start.

• If you are running, you should be COLD at the start. If you are comfortable, you are overdressed.

• If you are walking, you should dress for the weather because you won’t get as heated as the runners.

• Bring a warm, dry shirt or sweatshirt to change into if you’re staying for the kids’ races/awards. You’ll get very chilled after running when your body cools and sweat dries.

• Pace yourself. The No. 1 mistake made by new runners is the start too fast.

• When you finish, run into the “chute” next to the clock. Volunteers will tear the bottom portion of your bib number off — this is how we compile results.

• It’s IMPERATIVE that you stay in line when you enter the chute so that results are accurate.

• It’s IMPERATIVE that you not go back through the finish line chute (or go in & come back out) once you finish so that results are accurate. If you go back to finish with a friend, please don’t go through the chute again — it really causes problems.

• There will be water at the finish line.

• There will be fruit, coffee and refreshments in the Rotary after the race.

• Awards will start about 10:30 a.m., before the kids’ races.

• Run results will be posted at the Rotary a ½ hour after the race. They’ll also be posted online at www.bigwhitetrailer.com and www.goerie.com/blogs/runnersnotes and www.erie-runnersclub.org.

• There will not be an ambulance on site, but we will have a first-aid kit and all the marshals/volunteers will have cell phones.

• The people helping at the race are all volunteers — please be patient & courteous.

• The ERC will be there selling merchandise & they’ll be offering some special prices for the ladies. Bring cash, though, because they don’t take credit cards.

Course/parking Map

Packet pickup

Packet pickup is on Friday, Oct. 5, at the Erie Times-News (front lobby) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. (please don’t come before 11 because there is no one there to help you).  You can pick up for as many people as you like…if you’re picking up for a whole office, do us both a favor & email me in advance (hertimes5K at aol) so I can get them ready for you.

If you can’t pick up Friday, you can pick up your packet at the Rotary Pavilion on race day morning beginning at 7 a.m.

Remember, packets will not be mailed in advance. Shirts don’t even arrive till Thursday.

We are OUT of bags for anyone who registered after the deadline (9/21). Pays to register early!

* Are you running?

* Any questions I didn’t answer?

It recently came to my attention that there was an error in the online registration for the Her Times 5K that gave entrants the choice to “ship to home” for $1.

That is an option that was for the Rock Erie Music Award tickets and should not have been offered for the Her Times race because:

1.) I don’t get the shirts until the day before packet pickup.

2.) It costs about $5 to mail a shirt.

So…if you paid the $1 for the ship-to-home option, you can expect to see that refunded to you in the next day or two.

We will have the shirts/packet pickup at the Erie Times-News, 205 W. 12th Street, on Friday, Oct. 5 from 11-1 and 4-6 p.m. (in the lobby) or ….you can pick up your packets at the Rotary pavilion on race day morning between 7 and 9 a.m.

Anyone can pick up your packet for you — so feel free to ask a friend or pick up your friends’ packets.  And…if you are going to pick up a whole bunch of people’s packets — email me by Thursday, Oct. 4 and I’ll try to have them all ready & set aside for you. Email hertimes5K(at)aol  (trying to avoid spammers by not making that a hot link).

Sorry for the misunderstanding. See you on Oct. 6! (Hope for good weather!!!).

Heather Cass
Her Times 5K race director

Guess WHAT?

You can now register for the Her Times women’s 5K at www.hertimes.com. (Ignore the “Price: $0.00 at the top…that’s for the registration, not the race…the race is $15 till 9/21…then it’s $20).

Please save me the data entry work & enter online (did I mention online registration is free, free, free?).

Register by 9/21/12 to be guaranteed a hot pink shirt on race day.