FROM THE PRESIDENT DAVE MAREK
H
ello runners,
We are off to another great year here at MDRA. It’s hard to believe we already have five of our spring races in the books with very nice turnouts for all of them. Thanks to those who ran and raced, and thank you to our volunteers for your help in putting these races on. We are also off to a great start with our Grand Prix series. There are still plenty of races to go so please check it out on our website if you are interested. It’s a very low key way to scratch that competitive itch if you desire. As I mentioned in my last letter we have been working on a few new things for 2017. Hopefully, you saw the news about our grant program we rolled out in April. As part of our mission we believe it is important to not only support the running community but to also give back and foster growth and interest. To that end, we announced the first MDRA Community Giving Grant and accepted proposals from groups or individuals focusing on participation and safety in running. This initial grant was for up to $500 and the selection will be made this month. Look for the announcement on our Facebook page, our website, or in our eNews email. This grant program is something we are very pleased to be able to offer and I hope our membership is proud as well. We are in a position now to make this happen because of the support of our members and your participation in our races and programs. Being able to give back, whether in our personal lives or organizations we are active in, is a great feeling and something I believe in and heartily endorse. And we plan to do this again in the future if this is successful and well received. Thank you for your part in making this happen and please help spread the word to organizations or individuals you feel may be worthy in the future. We have also recently announced a new trail training program that will begin this summer. There is no experience necessary and you will learn the in’s and outs of running off road. Similar to our spring and fall marathon classes we will target a goal race at the end of the class for those interested. There will also be guest trail leaders and speakers. We are very happy to offer this to those of you who have expressed interest in doing more trail running. Registration is now open and you know by now where to find more info – our website runmdra.org or our Facebook page. While you are there please check out our other programs as well including Thursday night track workouts starting in June, our Saturday morning Polar Bear runs and, believe it or not, the fall marathon training class starting right after Grandma’s Marathon concludes in June. Join us if you can and meet some of the great people we have at MDRA. A couple of those folks have made some news recently. One of our members (who is also currently serving on the board) just completed the North Pole marathon adding that to her Antarctic marathon back in 2015. Which proves she will literally go to the ends of the earth to run a marathon. Congratulations, Lisa Richardson! A nice little profile in the StarTribune as well:
Klare case of Richfield is all smiles during the mdra lake johanna 4-mile race earlier this year. Photo courtesy of Wayne Kryduba
http://www.startribune.com/minnesota-woman-conquered-antarctica-marathon-now-she-s-taking-on-the-northpole/418635663/ And member, Julie Balamut, was interviewed on Music with Minnesotans by Classical MPR. It can be heard here: http://www.classicalmpr.org/story/2017/03/31/bacharound-the-block-a-marathoners-music-with-minnesotans Julie uses classical music to help her in training and gives the MDRA a very nice shout out. She will be running her 25th marathon this year. Congrats, Julie, good luck in your training and thank you for the nice shout out! These are just two of the over 2,000 members we have and I am constantly impressed by the diversity and unique personalities of this organization. In closing I wish all of you good running and good health as we head into summer. I would be remiss if I forgot my usual reminder that we are always looking for volunteers for our races, programs and events so let us know if you would like to help. Also, if you are planning to be in Duluth in June for Grandma’s weekend please stop by our booth at the expo. We’d love to see your smiling faces!
Dave Marek President, MDRA Board of Directors
MAY/JUNE 2017
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