Next Friday we celebrate Munda's life in a BIG way. Come - and bring your friends, neighbors, and folks you meet along the way! Here are the details.
WHAT:
Benefit Dance in Memory of Munda DiIulio, organized by Aero Energy
WHEN:
Friday, November 6, from 7:00 to 11:00 p.m.
WHERE:
New Oxford Social & Athletic Club Pavilion
200 West Golden Lane
New Oxford, PA
Tel. 717-624-8321
Click below for a Google map and directions:
View Larger Map
TICKETS:
$10 each, available for purchase at the door. RSVP (suggested, not required) to Joyce Miller.
OTHER CONTACT INFORMATION:
If you get lost on the way, contact the club at 717-624-8321, or me (I'll try to help) at 202-550-6583 (cell).
Other things you might like to know:
DJ:
There will be a DJ playing a variety of music; bring your requests!
FOOD:
There will be food: BBQ & Hot Dog sandwiches, pasta salad, cheese & bologna, veggie tray, chips & pretzels. Beer & soda also included. There is no cost for the food, it is included in the $10.00 ticket cost. For an extra buck, however, you can purchase a double Jello shooter!
RAFFLE:
The dance will coincide with raffle that already includes 45 items, among them:
2 Penn State baskets
Steeler Basket
Texas hold ‘em Poker set
Wine basket
Christmas basket
Numerous “Mary Kay” baskets
Wal-Mart gift certificates (5)
Gift certificates to area restaurant
2 rounds of golf at the Bridges
Nice watch
Designer sun glasses
50/50, "13" JARS, and DOOR PRIZE:
The ticket to the dance enters you in a drawing for a “Tail Gate” grill valued at $200.00.
ATTIRE:
Some asked me, so I have to write that for you, it's black tie.
For everyone else, John Deere green, Penn State colors, or Steelers colors are a plus, and cowboy boots and denim are always in fashion, but you can just come as you are.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Clouds and Sun
It has been a rainy time in so many ways, these past few weeks! But there are glimpses of sun. Shauna's sister, Luck, has been spending her weekends with Shauna to help ease the loneliness. Sisters! (See below.)
This past weekend my sister Shannon and cousin Taylor joined them, and they had a great time. What's that about Taylor dressing up as a chicken?!
Meanwhile, Ray and I spent the weekend training hard for the upcoming races - a marathon on November 1 and the big 50-mile race on November 21. On Saturday we ran 18 miles, and on Sunday we ran 16. For some reason, 6 and 1/2 hours of running really fills up a weekend, mainly because it also requires a lot of eating and sleeping!
It also requires a bit of putting ourselves back together; Ray and I are both nursing minor injuries from the wear and tear of training - Ray's knee and my ankle. It's just what happens when you push yourself for so long. We do a lot of stretching, soaking, rubbing, icing, heating, and popping Advil - and a little whining (mostly me).
This coming weekend we will run a full marathon - 26.2 miles - in Manchester, New Hampshire. It will be the last run we do over twenty miles before our big race, and the 12th such run we've done this year. An even dozen - woo hoo!
For those of you who are doing the math, that's over 240 miles. Combined with all of the other training runs, we've run over 1,600 miles this year - the equivalent of running from Washington, DC to Denver, Colorado.
I just hope that we can make it through the weekend without making our injuries worse. From here on out, we only need to run another 125 miles before the big race! We're so close.
More to come!
This past weekend my sister Shannon and cousin Taylor joined them, and they had a great time. What's that about Taylor dressing up as a chicken?!
Meanwhile, Ray and I spent the weekend training hard for the upcoming races - a marathon on November 1 and the big 50-mile race on November 21. On Saturday we ran 18 miles, and on Sunday we ran 16. For some reason, 6 and 1/2 hours of running really fills up a weekend, mainly because it also requires a lot of eating and sleeping!
It also requires a bit of putting ourselves back together; Ray and I are both nursing minor injuries from the wear and tear of training - Ray's knee and my ankle. It's just what happens when you push yourself for so long. We do a lot of stretching, soaking, rubbing, icing, heating, and popping Advil - and a little whining (mostly me).
This coming weekend we will run a full marathon - 26.2 miles - in Manchester, New Hampshire. It will be the last run we do over twenty miles before our big race, and the 12th such run we've done this year. An even dozen - woo hoo!
For those of you who are doing the math, that's over 240 miles. Combined with all of the other training runs, we've run over 1,600 miles this year - the equivalent of running from Washington, DC to Denver, Colorado.
I just hope that we can make it through the weekend without making our injuries worse. From here on out, we only need to run another 125 miles before the big race! We're so close.
More to come!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Bittersweet Disneyworld
In mid-October, Munda's wife Shauna and their kids and grandkids took the trip to Disneyworld that they had all planned together. The idea of the trip gave Munda hope when times were tough. It was hard for Shauna and everyone to take the trip without him. But after looking at the pictures - below are a few - how can you say that Munda wasn't with them? He was in their hearts, and in the faces of his sons, daughter, and grandkids - in their eyes and their smiles.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Run With Us - Two Marathons in Fifteen Minutes
No. 1: Baltimore Marathon, October 10, 2009
No. 2: Steamtown Marathon in and around Scranton, PA, October 11, 2009
No. 2: Steamtown Marathon in and around Scranton, PA, October 11, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Initial Results
Thank you so much for the encouragement, Shauna, Luck, and everyone! We did it - we ran two marathons back to back, or as they say among crazy marathon runners, we "doubled." I'll soon post here the photographs and video we took of the Baltimore and the Steamtown (Scranton, PA) marathons, held on Oct. 10 and 11, 2009, respectively. For now, here are our results:
Ray Rogers
Baltimore, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 26 minutes, and 17 seconds; finished 194th out of 310 in age group (37th percentile)
Steamtown, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 27 minutes, 19 seconds; finished 80th out of 95 in age group (16th percentile)
Krista Shaffer
Baltimore, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 35 minutes, 21 seconds; finished 85th out of 161 in age group (47th percentile)
Steamtown, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 35 minutes, 40 seconds; finished 108th out of 141 in age group (23rd percentile)
Ray and I paced ourselves much slower than our best marathon times so that we could be sure to complete the back-to-back marathons. (Ray's best time is 3 hours, 8 minutes, and 22 seconds; and mine is 3 hours, 39 minutes, 25 seconds.) Our pace for the 50-mile race in November will be even slower - probably 12- or 13-minute miles.
An initial observation about these two races is that they couldn't have been more different. The Baltimore Marathon was huge, very urban, and very crowded. It drew a lot of people for whom it will be their first and only marathon. The course is designed to showcase the city's downtown - and probably also to not cause TOO much traffic disruption. Most of the onlookers were friends and relatives of people running the race.
The Steamtown Marathon was small and rural. The course is designed to be fast - overall, it's downhill. It attracts a lot of regular marathon runners as well as younger runners who are trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon - generally a very fast group. (You can see that Steamtown people are a lot faster if you look at how Ray and I placed in our age groups in the two races.) The onlookers were townspeople who made signs, decorated their yards, and handed out orange slices or lollipops or whatever else they thought runners might like.
I think you can imagine which one Ray and I liked better! I can't wait to show you the videos. More on the ASAP.
Ray Rogers
Baltimore, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 26 minutes, and 17 seconds; finished 194th out of 310 in age group (37th percentile)
Steamtown, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 27 minutes, 19 seconds; finished 80th out of 95 in age group (16th percentile)
Krista Shaffer
Baltimore, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 35 minutes, 21 seconds; finished 85th out of 161 in age group (47th percentile)
Steamtown, 26.2 miles: 4 hours, 35 minutes, 40 seconds; finished 108th out of 141 in age group (23rd percentile)
Ray and I paced ourselves much slower than our best marathon times so that we could be sure to complete the back-to-back marathons. (Ray's best time is 3 hours, 8 minutes, and 22 seconds; and mine is 3 hours, 39 minutes, 25 seconds.) Our pace for the 50-mile race in November will be even slower - probably 12- or 13-minute miles.
An initial observation about these two races is that they couldn't have been more different. The Baltimore Marathon was huge, very urban, and very crowded. It drew a lot of people for whom it will be their first and only marathon. The course is designed to showcase the city's downtown - and probably also to not cause TOO much traffic disruption. Most of the onlookers were friends and relatives of people running the race.
The Steamtown Marathon was small and rural. The course is designed to be fast - overall, it's downhill. It attracts a lot of regular marathon runners as well as younger runners who are trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon - generally a very fast group. (You can see that Steamtown people are a lot faster if you look at how Ray and I placed in our age groups in the two races.) The onlookers were townspeople who made signs, decorated their yards, and handed out orange slices or lollipops or whatever else they thought runners might like.
I think you can imagine which one Ray and I liked better! I can't wait to show you the videos. More on the ASAP.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
One Down, One To Go
As I write, I'm propped up on three pillows in a hotel room in Scranton, relaxing after 26.2 pretty hard miles of running through Baltimore followed by a 200-mile-drive. Ray is sprawled on the floor, trying to stretch out some hard-to-reach leg muscle. After I finish this note, we're going to switch tasks and places.
What a day! But we did it! But I'm too tired to write much, and we have to get up at 5 tomorrow to get the starting line of our next marathon here in Scranton. So for now, I'll just write: Ray's time was 4:25ish, and mine was 4:35ish, more or less as planned. Ray and I documented this race very well; we each carried cameras and took pictures and videos. As soon as I am able, I'll post them. For now, here's a photo each from before, during, and after the 2009 Baltimore Marathon:
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What a day! But we did it! But I'm too tired to write much, and we have to get up at 5 tomorrow to get the starting line of our next marathon here in Scranton. So for now, I'll just write: Ray's time was 4:25ish, and mine was 4:35ish, more or less as planned. Ray and I documented this race very well; we each carried cameras and took pictures and videos. As soon as I am able, I'll post them. For now, here's a photo each from before, during, and after the 2009 Baltimore Marathon:
The run was harder than we expected; Ray and I both had pains in knees and ankles. But after stretching a few times throughout the day, we feel pretty good tonight - ready to run another one. So on that note, good night. More tomorrow, okay?
Friday, October 9, 2009
A Mile Is a Mile Is a Mile
Yesterday I drove to Ravens Stadium in Baltimore to pick up Ray's and my race packets and numbers for tomorrow's Baltimore Marathon.
Wow!
Everywhere you looked, there were reminders of how huge this event is. The stadium is huge; it will serve and the starting and finish line. As I stood in line there to pick up our packets, I was flanked by thousands of other runners; over 20,000 will race on Saturday. When I got to the front of the line, I met with one of thousands of volunteers, who reached over to one of thousands and thousands of boxes and pulled out packets for Ray and me. And all of those thousands and thousands of people were eager, excited, and full of nerves. It was intense!
I got a huge knot in my gut. This is so different from how I usually run, I thought. Will I be able to focus on my goals for this race? Will I be able to relax, shut out all of the overstimulation, and make it a good run?
Then I remembered the 1986 basketball movie Hoosiers. It's about a small town Indiana basketball team that makes it to the state championships - remember? (The team's Coach Dale is played by Gene Hackman.) When the team arrives at the imposing sports complex where the championship will be held, Coach Dale gets out a tape measure and has them measure the basketball court to show them that it's the exact same size as the one back home.
Munda lived that way; he was the same in every situation, and everyone "knew the same Munda." And he did well in everything. He had that kind of integrity.
So instead of thinking about all of those runners, I'm going to think of Munda's example.
Wow!
Everywhere you looked, there were reminders of how huge this event is. The stadium is huge; it will serve and the starting and finish line. As I stood in line there to pick up our packets, I was flanked by thousands of other runners; over 20,000 will race on Saturday. When I got to the front of the line, I met with one of thousands of volunteers, who reached over to one of thousands and thousands of boxes and pulled out packets for Ray and me. And all of those thousands and thousands of people were eager, excited, and full of nerves. It was intense!
I got a huge knot in my gut. This is so different from how I usually run, I thought. Will I be able to focus on my goals for this race? Will I be able to relax, shut out all of the overstimulation, and make it a good run?
Then I remembered the 1986 basketball movie Hoosiers. It's about a small town Indiana basketball team that makes it to the state championships - remember? (The team's Coach Dale is played by Gene Hackman.) When the team arrives at the imposing sports complex where the championship will be held, Coach Dale gets out a tape measure and has them measure the basketball court to show them that it's the exact same size as the one back home.
Munda lived that way; he was the same in every situation, and everyone "knew the same Munda." And he did well in everything. He had that kind of integrity.
So instead of thinking about all of those runners, I'm going to think of Munda's example.
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