Big Peach 5K Run/Walk

May 5 Atlanta, GA

Divas Half Marathon

May 20

North Myrtle Beach, SC

Cotton Row 10K/5K

May 28 Huntsville, AL

Cheetah Chase 5K/1mile

June 2 Little Rock, AR

High Country Triple Crown

June 16 - 7miles - 

Valle Crucis, NC

Aug. 25 - Half marathon -

Blowing Rock, NC

Oct. 5- 2miles - Boone, NC

Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon

Myrtle Beach, SC Oct. 21 

Race Directors

If you are interested in having your race become a Featured Event on the RJ website and this newsletter or want information on advertising in our print issue:

  Email:

rj@running.net  

We hope you've been enjoying the

beautiful Spring weather. The month of May is a busy one on the Running Journal race calendar with races of all distances. Memorial Day is a popular day for road races, including the Running Journal's Grand Prix season finale, Cotton Row 10K, in Huntsville, AL.  

If you are looking for a race to run on Memorial Day or any other time,  click here to find it in the Running Journal race calendar.  

The May issue includes coverage of two Running Journal Grand Prix events, the Gate River Run 15K and the Germantown Half Marathon. With hot weather not far away, Lee Fidler shares tips for staying hydrated on the run, Pete Rea discusses proper "warm-ups" and "cool-downs," and Teri Saylor shares runner's stories of encounters with "critters on the trail." All this plus more articles, race results, and our comprehensive race calendar!

If you are not currently a subscriber to Running Journal, see the special offer at the end of this newsletter and subscribe today!

You Might Be a Runner If...  

1. You've never seen your training partner in street clothes.

2. You know the 1, 3, and 5 mile markers in any direction from your house.

3. You spend more money on training clothes and gear than on work clothes.

4. You plan your entire weekend around your long run.

5. You want to run even on rest days.

6. The first thing your friends ask is when your next race is.

7. When you book a vacation, you check to see if there's a race there that weekend.

8. You keep all the running essentials in your car, just in case.

9. You call stocking up on nutrition "grocery shopping."

10. Your daily to-do list always starts with, "Go for a run!

(From Fleet Feet Sports, Memphis:www.fleetfeetmemphis.com)

It's Run for the Heroes-Run Across Georgia time. On May 23rd, individual runners will start their journey across Georgia at the National Infantry Museum on Fort Benning. Over the next five days, they will cross the state to Savannah. The relay race begins on May 26th. Money raised by participants and sponsors in this event will benefit the House of Heroes, which provides home improvements to military and civil safety veterans. 

52-year-old female Elena Shemyakina won four divisions of the 2012 Mercedes Marathon in Birmingham, AL. The Geneva, Illinois runner won the female overall marathon in 3:08:29, plus first U.S. citizen female finisher, plus the masters and grandmaster divisions. She finished 45^th overall.

"We (distance runners) are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon." (From FITniche running store newsletter, Lakeland, Wesley Chapel and Clearwater, FL, quoting the late Emil Zatopek, one of the greatest distance runners of all time. In 1952, Zatopek won the 5,000 and 10,000 meter races at the Olympic Games and at the last minute decided to run his first-ever marathon. He won. Zatopek offered an interesting piece of advice to distance runners: Gently touch the tip of your thumb with the tip of your index or middle finger to make sure arms and shoulders are relaxed.)

Outstanding volunteers of 2011 recognized by the Road Runners Club of America include Irene Steele, Carl Unger, and Rebecca Townsend of the Clarksville (TN) Running Club; Leslie Thomas of the River City Runners and Walkers Club of Parkersburg, WV; William Myers, Donna Cogle, and Melissa Currence of the Annapolis (MD) Striders; Marlene White of the Space Coast Runners of Melbourne, FL; Jerry Schenck, George Nelsen, and Gary Porter of the Peninsula (VA) Track Club.

Largest-ever gold medals will be awarded at the summer Olympic Games in London. Weight is 14 ounces and are more than double the weight of the previous five games. However, they're not solid gold. Instead, they're mostly silver with a gold coating. Value at current metal values is about $700 each.

Carolee Luther is the new president of the Columbus (GA) Roadrunners, succeeding Dr. Ed Lopez, who now serves as past president.

Jennifer Andress, new president of the Birmingham Track Club is enthusiastically broadening the reach and scope of the club. The new logo includes the state of Alabama "to signify the geographic scope of our membership." A list of new initiatives is also being pursued, including a new website, training plans for every distance, noted speakers for socials, a volunteer rewards program, and other initiatives.

The Nike 5K Championship will be held June 16 in Jacksonville, FL, and is open to men who have run under 17 minutes and women under 20 minutes. Nike running shoes will be given to each male who breaks 16:15 and to females under 19 minutes. It will be run on a five-loop course, which is ideal for spectators to watch. A separate open 5K will be held for other runners and walkers and is closed to participants of the championship race. 200 pies will be awarded to top finishers (men under 20 minutes, women who break 24 minutes qualify).

The Toad Suck Daze 10K and 5K will be held May 5 at Conway, Arkansas. If you collect shirts, that might be one to have.

Critters on the Trail 

By Teri Saylor

Even if you have never ever been chased by a moose at an 8,000-foot altitude, it is probably not hard to understand why Carolyn Quarterman, of Cary, NC, was ready to channel her inner monkey as she frantically searched for a tree to climb on a sunny summer day last year when she encountered a mama moose on a trail in Centennial, WY.

"I was out on an eight-mile, scenic run on a dirt road," Quarterman said. "Normally you would see deer and other animals, but nothing dangerous in the summer."

But she knew a family of moose lived in the area and she knew the mother had recently given birth to twins, though no one had seen her in awhile.

On this day, the mama moose, on the lookout for intruders, spied Quarterman, and began trotting along behind her.

An article posted on the Animal Planet website advises humans to run to avoid getting trampled. Click here for the rest of the article.   

Don't forget to send information on your race for the print and online Running Journal Race Calender, plus this Racing South Newsletter. It's easy to list your event. Click here to submit your race details to our race calendar today.