Michiana Runners Association

The Kick-Off is on! 

It seems every year on our Kick Off Friday the weather is like this!  Take care in driving and please if you feel it it too treacherous do not come! But, we will be there!

Join runners and walkers from all over the Michiana area this Friday evening at Metro Run & Walk, 3522 Grape Road, Mishawaka.  Win great door prizes–free entries to local races, running gear, and more.  Bring your family and friends to help us kickoff the new running season and celebrate the great sport of running!

• 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm – take advantage of the best deals of the year at Metro:  25% off clothing–shirts, pants, jackets, and winter accessories; 15% off shoes and an extra $10 off sale shoes; purchase training shoes and get 25% off minimal shoes. 
• 5:30 pm – register for the MRA for 2012 and enjoy food and drinks provided by the MRA.  Membership pays for itself many times over.  Your $10 individual membership in 2011 would have provided $60 in discounts at local races. 
• 6:30 pm – MRA Overview, 2012 Officer Elections, and 2011 Awards.

The annual MRA Kick-off is coming…join us at Metro Run and Walk on Friday, January 13th at 6:30 p.m. Come shop with special discounts just for MRA members, starting at 5:30.  The Membership meeting begins at 6:30 including Officer Elections, Race Circuit and Membership awards. Refreshments will be served.   You will have the opportunity to join or renew your membeship and socialize with fellow runners.  We look forward to seeing you!

Ann, Bruce, Don and Ryan

Friends of Granger Paths Needs Your Help!

Please attend the informational meeting on Wednesday, December 14, 6:30 pm at Northpoint Elementary School, 50800 Cherry Road, Granger.  As runners, we need to support Phase 1A of the multi-use path along Adams Road connecting Mary Frank and Northpoint Elementary Schools to the Harris Twp. Library, including many of the surrounding neighborhoods.  A very small minority is against this much needed improvement so we hope to pack the place with informed people who care about health and safety.  Find more information at www.grangerpaths.org.

MRA Team Trivia Wed. 11/30 at Between the Buns

Join your fellow runners Wednesday, November 30, 7:45 pm for team trivia at Between the Buns, 1803 South Bend Ave in South Bend.  Trivia is free to play with a $2 minimum purchase.  Please RSVP to Jess Carlson at carlsonjess7@gmail.com.  Due to the popularity of this event,  please contact Jess if you are attending.  All are welcome. More Info: www.betweenthebuns.com/Trivia.html.

The Final MRA Circuit Race is Saturday, December 3

The 3rd annual St. Nick Six 6k Run & 3k Walk at St. Joseph Catholic Church in South Bend begins at 10:00am on Saturday, December 3rd.   Now in its third year, the St. Nick Six is one of our area’s rare winter races and always draws a great crowd of enthusiastic runners, competitive racers, and die-hard supporters of St. Joseph Grade School.  The race will begin with the ringing of the church bells on North Hill Street, in front of St. Joseph Catholic Church in South Bend.  The course follows the East Bank Trail, north toward Holy Cross College and loops back to St. Joseph Church, where participants can relax with hot cocoa and Christmas Cookies while they wait for results and prizes.  Professional chip timing will be used on-site, and participants will take home a goodie bag stuffed with fun treats, including a Tech Shirt. Register online by Thursday, December 1 at https://www.signmeup.com/site/online-event-registration/78807/SMUCalendar.

Friends of Granger Paths Needs Your Help!

Please attend the informational meeting on Wednesday, December 14, 6:30 pm at Northpoint Elementary School, 50800 Cherry Road, Granger.  As runners, we need to support Phase 1A of the multi-use path along Adams Road connecting Mary Frank and Northpoint Elementary Schools to the Harris Twp. Library, including many of the surrounding neighborhoods.  A very small minority is against this much needed improvement so we hope to pack the place with informed people who care about health and safety.  Find more information at www.grangerpaths.org.

The December-January Edition of RPM is Now Available

The new issue includes a Fit for the Fit Gift Guide featuring stories from RPM retail advertisers and gift ideas from local stores, gyms, and services.  Also, our very own MRA VP, Ann Amico Moran, contributes a great story on Michiana’s Dynamic Duos–five area couples who work out and work for the community. Additionally, the issue contains information on winter runs, cross country skiing, water intake, and a report from the PanAm games.  Click on www.raceplaymichiana.com to view the online version or pick one up at a local restaurant, health club, gym, or wellness focused business.  To submit an article, a photo, race information, or advertise email Jan at raceplaymichiana@sbcglobal.net.

Happy Running!
Don, Ann, Ryan, Doc
2011 MRA Officers

Happy Thanksgiving!  this is the time of year that our Race Circuit is coming to end and the planning for next year begins.  Join us this coming weekend, December 3rd in downtown South Bend at St.Joseph Grade School at the Saint Nick 6k.  Register online at Signmeup.com.  If you ran the Niles Thanksgiving Day run and didn’t check in at the MRA table please email Ryan asap fenstermakerr@1stsource.com. Mark your calendars for the Annual Kick Off Event at Metro Run and Walk on Friday, January 13th, 6:30 p.m.  Race Circuit awards, volunteer awards, fellow runners, discounts and cheer.   Race Circuit standings will be posted sometime this week.  Thank you for your patience!

Bike Michiana for Hospice will be held Sunday, September 11th at St. Patrick’s County Park, South Bend, IN.

Participants can register online at www.bikemichianaforhospice.org. The cost for riders who register before August 31 is $30; beginning September 1, the registration fee is $40. Riders 12 and under ride free.

The ride features scenic routes through country roads, live entertainment at each support and guidance (SAG) stop as well as a post-ride party at St. Patrick’s County Park with pulled pork, live music and a beer tent.

Courses include a 3.5 to11.5 mile family ride (riders can choose the distance) as well as longer rides from 25 miles to 200 K (124 miles). Helmets are required for all riders. SAG stops will feature some of the area’s leading restaurants including Fiddler’s Hearth, LaSalle Grill, Indulgence Pastry Shop & Cafe, Yesterday’s and Grande Mere Inn.

Registration proceeds benefit The Hospice Foundation and Bike Michiana Coalition. Riders may also use an online donation form to raise funds for The Hospice Foundation. One hundred percent of those funds will go to support the Center for Hospice Care’s mission to provide quality, compassionate care for anyone in need of hospice or palliative care services, regardless of their ability to pay.

For more information regarding the event or registration, contact Debra Mayfield at 800-413-9083.

Join your fellow runners on Wednesday, August 17 for live table-vs-table trivia, true/false and multiple choice on movies, TV, sports, music, history, geography, literature, current events, cartoons, and more.

Trivia is free to play with a $2 minimum purchase. All are welcome.
Location: 1803 South Bend Ave.
South Bend, IN 46637 574.247.9293
Time & Date: 7:45 pm, Wednesday, August 17, 2011
More Info: www.betweenthebuns.com/Trivia.html

Jess Carlson, our new MRA Social Event Coordinator, has a table reserved. She has taken over for Ryan Friesen who has moved abroad. Ryan has started a blog at http://www.keepupwithryan.blogspot.com/ if you would like to keep up on his travels. We would like to thank Ryan for his work spearheading our Social Committee and for his active involvement in the MRA and the local running community.

For trivia night, if you are coming alone or with someone else, join Jess at the MRA table. If you are coming with 3 or more people, call in so we can add another table. Contact Jess at carlsonjess7@gmail.com. Prizes for 1st, 2nd & 3rd plus a prize for the best (funniest) team name!

MRA CIRCUIT RACERS: If you ran Logan’s today, you might not have been able to sign in for the Race Circuit. I apologize. I was not able to set up a table or attend the race due to Pam having fractured her wrist and foot and having surgery. She is on the mend but I could not leave her alone. Please email MRA or me with your distance, your age and your time. Ryan and I will check the results page to try to locate your results but it helps if you email us. Again sorry for the inconvenience. Doc

The next MRA board meeting/party is Friday, July 22, 7:00 pm at Ryan and Katie’s new barn, 4124 Old Cleveland Road, South Bend 46628.

If you don’t have a GPS or can’t figure out directions, get on Nimtz Parkway and follow the signs to the South Bend Organic Resource Facility (they don’t live there but it is really close).

Bring a dish to pass and your beverage of choice if you would rather have something other than beer.  The MRA will pick up the brats, dogs, keg, and soft drinks.  All are welcome.