2012 Holiday Running Challenge! Who's game?

[ERCougar]

A big thanks to Moliere for putting this together. I think I already mentioned that I was suffering from low motivation when this rolled around (for good reasons - I'd just reached a goal) and this helped me get back into what has been the toughest training season of my life by far.

Happyone blows my mind. Every stinkin' day. I ended up taking off a few days here and there. Everybody did. Except Happyone, who would get his miles in no matter what. Even a small injury to me would have given him the win, and it's only by virtue of the unobtainium (and an awesome pair of Mizunos) that I came out ahead.

I've been thinking long and hard about the charity. Originally my motivation to win is a small local charity that helps out families with children with brain tumors, a subject that is near and dear to my heart. But this was a community challenge running and I think something more directly tied to our community running is appropriate. I was very moved by ERCougar's plea and the fact that he is fundraising through the not insignificant miles he put up over the challenge.

So my choice is the Joints in Motion Training Team Arthritis Foundation, sponsoring ERCougar (not his real name, in case you were unaware). I realize the information for donation has been removed from this forum so we may need to privately pass it around via PM. I hope nobody minds (and especially ER).

Wow...thanks, niku. I've been away from internet access but had received some messages and checked this out today. I'm really touched--I know how much that cause means to you.

I'm really overwhelmed by the generosity of people on here. I learn plenty of things from the people on the board, but I'll put the impact of the kindness of strangers/virtual friends at the top. Thank you.

And thank you to Moliere for setting this up. It was a lot of fun and got me out a few days that I might not have otherwise.

See you DWers in a few days! Good luck!

And I'm happy to share the link:
2013jimdisney.kintera.org/ercougar

[CJF]

No interest in going from New York to New York this year?

[Eddie]

No interest in going from New York to New York this year?

I'm in. I'm hoping to run more miles this year than last (I suppose I need to see how many I ran last year first) - but having something for the "between races" times to help keep me going wouldn't be a bad thing.

[Moliere]

No interest in going from New York to New York this year?

I'd participate but I can't manage it over a year. I just don't have time. I actually got more swamped that usual during December as I would have liked to do a little more on the challenge that just passed.

Also, the longer the time goes the less interest it tends to garner. It's likley that a year long challenge will flame out at some point. Just my observations. I don't want to sound negative as I'd participate and stay in the whole year, but I plan on running all year anyway.

[PaloAltoCougar]

No interest in going from New York to New York this year?

I'm a little concerned about a really lengthy (in terms of time) challenge, as our attention spans tend to be short and interest may wane after a few weeks. On the other hand, it would be cool to see the mileage totals pile up, and we could come up with a bit of a travelogue as we traverse the world--I was thinking about a run/walk/ride from Point Barrow, Alaska, to Ushuaia, Argentina.

I would also include cycling, but multiply cycling mileage by a fourth or a fifth to make it better reflect effort relative to running/walking. BTW, Mrs. PAC, whom I would not include in a CUF challenge, rode 5,000 miles last year, and I think that's roughly equivalent to 1,100 miles of pavement pounding.

Doing a global effort of some kind with broad participation would be very motivating, fun and interesting.

[Moliere]

And I'm happy to share the link:
2013jimdisney.kintera.org/ercougar

So for those that wanted to participate in the charity portion of the challenge, this is the link you can use to make that donation. It ended up being around $30 per person (just under 3,000 miles at $0.01 per mile). You don't have to return and report when you made your donation, but I will say that I made mine last night

[eldiente]

So for those that wanted to participate in the charity portion of the challenge, this is the link you can use to make that donation. It ended up being around $30 per person (just under 3,000 miles at $0.01 per mile). You don't have to return and report when you made your donation, but I will say that I made mine last night

Thanks again Moliere for the challenge and the worthy cause

[CJF]

I'm a little concerned about a really lengthy (in terms of time) challenge, as our attention spans tend to be short and interest may wane after a few weeks. On the other hand, it would be cool to see the mileage totals pile up, and we could come up with a bit of a travelogue as we traverse the world--I was thinking about a run/walk/ride from Point Barrow, Alaska, to Ushuaia, Argentina.

I would also include cycling, but multiply cycling mileage by a fourth or a fifth to make it better reflect effort relative to running/walking. BTW, Mrs. PAC, whom I would not include in a CUF challenge, rode 5,000 miles last year, and I think that's roughly equivalent to 1,100 miles of pavement pounding.

Doing a global effort of some kind with broad participation would be very motivating, fun and interesting.

I like the idea of adding cycling at 20%. Really, what was accomplished in six weeks is pretty close to what we would need to average for the year. About 68 miles a day. niku and happyone do that on their own. With all the incredible cycling done by many here, I bet we could get close to twice around world as we add people along the way. I need something to measure my improvement with this year. I think it would be fun.