Kids Running - Adirondack Sports & Fitness

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6 Adirondack Sports & Fitness KIDS RUNNING 101 CONT. FROM PG 1 Shamrock Shuffle in Glens Falls on March 19, has a three-quarter mile Leprechaun Leap. In April, the Delmar Dash in Delmar on April 2 offers one-quarter, one-half and one-mile options and the St. Peter’s Keys Run in the Saratoga Spa State Park on April 22 has T-shirts, ribbons and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream cone coupons for all milers. For a unique family event, head out to Dodge the Deer at Schodack Island State Park (new location!) on April 23. This is as close as you can get to Disneyland in New York with “Dodge” the deer, “Chase” the chipmunk and “Bully” the bear joining in the fun. New this year is the Diaper Dash, an 80-foot “crawling” race on grass with bottle stops every 20 feet. There are two age groups, 0-11 months and 11 months and up. The rules are clear: everyone participating must wear a diaper. As if that isn’t enough, there is a Dodge drawing contest and games to keep the kids amused while their parents run the 5K. Older children who would like a more structured program are invited to join the Stockade-athon Youth Marathon. For 25 days preceding the November 12 event, youngsters run a mile each day. They are supervised by a parent and encouraged to keep a log. Mile 26 is the Stockade-athon loop around Schenectady’s Duck Pond on race day. Summer Camps, Year-Round Clubs and Groups If your kids yearn for companionship on the run, there are also summer camps and year-round clubs and groups. The Adirondack Runners, under the guidance of Heidi and Bob Underwood host a fourweek camp for 11 year-olds through 12th graders which culminates with the Cole’s Woods Cross-Country Run in Glens Falls on August 13. According to Heidi, “Our biggest goal for kids is that they learn to love running through the company of kids their own age and with workouts that are appropriate for their level.” This isn’t Minnesota—the lakes and ponds don’t tend to be conveniently linked together. To make the best use of our water you have to “carry” your boat, sometimes through some pretty rough country.What is required is a canoe that’s not too big or too heavy. “Lost Pond” boats have met this need for 25 years.With hulls built entirely of Kevlar or carbon fiber, ranging from 12 to 16 pounds.All are known to be speedy, comfortable and safe. Prices range from $995 HORNBECK BOATS 688 Route 9, Latham 783-6798 www.absolutefitnessequip.com Local clubs are affiliated with United States Track & Field and can be found by visiting www.usatfadir.org. Many focus on the cross-country and track & field Junior Olympics. Junior Olympic competition is in two-year age groups, which means that younger kids will not get stuck competing with those who are physically more developed. Athletes need not belong to a club or school group, but must have a USATF membership card. According to Nicole De Pasquale, USATF youth chair, the goal is to provide a positive experience. Athletes “encourage each other to do their own personal best … and parents are all very encouraging, cheering equally for the first and last runners.” The USATF local clubs are an especially good deal for elementary kids who are ready for a more structured program than their school may offer. For example, to $1,995. Call or write for more information. We always have boats in stock, and a demo pond where you can try them. We’re 90 minutes south of Lake Placid and 90 minutes north of Albany. In the Adirondack Mountains, of all places! Troutbrook Rd, Olmstedville, NY 12857 518-251-2764 www.hornbeckboats.com M-F 10am-7pm Sat 10am-6pm or call for appointment according to Mark Tebbano, the Clifton Park Track Club was founded to introduce youth ages 8 to 14 to cross-country and track & field, with the goal of getting youngsters ready for competition. Registration is in April and their season runs from May through July. Contact Mark at tebbanom@aol.com. Lake Placid hosts a fall IronKids Cross-Country running program which is entirely supported by the Ironman Community Fund. In the winter, they switch to cross-country skiing and biathlon. Email Rich at rtcostanza@adelphia.net. Averill Park Road Runners are currently very active in track & field, cross-country and also participate in local road races. Go to www.timesunion.com and select “Communities.” For a more diversified club, try Country Mills Eagles which also includes music, cheerleading, volleyball, etc. and is open to both kids and adults. � ADIRONDACK RUNNERS SUMMER TRACK SERIES AT QUEENSBURY HIGH SCHOOL IN SUMMER 2005. PHOTO BY BRIAN TEAGUE Visit www.cmeagles.org. Some of the YMCA’s, such as Southern Saratoga County branch, offer kids running groups so check with your local YMCA for more information. Whatever route you take, try several of these options as your children’s interest and ability level grows. And always remember that the most important thing is to have fun. Even if your kids eventually decide to focus on other sports, they will look back on their running days with pleasure and may return as they enter adulthood and have less of an opportunity for team play. Laura Clark of Saratoga Springs is an avid trail runner, snowshoer and crosscountry skier.She is a children and young adult’s librarian at the Saratoga Springs Public Library. THE RUNNIN’ OF THE GREEN (ISLAND) 4-Mile Race & Kid’s Fun Runs Saturday, March 11 at 10am (Snow date: March 18) Village of Green Island, Legnard-Curtin American Legion Hall, 35 Cohoes Ave Presented by Hudson-Mohawk Road Runners Club, Adirondack Association USATF, and Village of Green Island Entry Fees – Pre-race: HMRRC member $10; Non-Member $12 All Applications received after March 8 or day of race $15 Application – www.hmrrc.com • Short sleeve t-shirts to first 300 registrants Kids’ Fun Runs – $1 day of race only (finishers ribbons to all) Awards – Top 3 M/F runners. Top 3 in 5-year age groups. New: Top 10 age-graded runners. USATF (must have 2006 USATF number): Top 5 M/F in Open division; top 3 M/F in 5-year age groups in Masters (40+). Team: Top 3 USATF-registered teams, M/F Open, Masters M/F. Race Director – Ken Skinner: kennyskin@earthlink.net HMRRC Grand Prix & Adirondack Association USATF Championship Race
www.AdkSportsFitness.com March 2006 7 SWIMMING by Terry Laughlin My two previous articles on breathing in the September and December 2005 issues, covered fundamentals – how to keep from choking and the importance of focusing on the exhale. In this installment, we’ll aexamine the specific techniques of breathing in rhythm with your stroke. The three most common breathing technique errors I see among unskilled or uncoached swimmers include: 1) Lifting the head for air. This hurts your body position and leads to use of the arms to “brace” or support the head’s weight, when they should be lengthening the body or “holding on to your place” in the water. 2) Turning only the head for air. This awkward action increases strain and torque in the neck and spine, and hurts your form. 3) Losing your front end. Having the lead hand collapse while breathing is almost universal among unskilled or unbalanced swimmers. When it happens you become less hydrodynamic and much of the propulsive potential of that stroke is lost. The best way to imprint an efficient breathing form – one that provides all the air you need and keeps your stroke long and efficient – is to practice the skating, underswitch and zipperswitch drills from the Total Immersion freestyle progression. But you can also improve your form with mindful swimming using whole-stroke practice of focal points that specifically address breathing mechanics. Here are those I practice most often myself. Breathe with your bellybutton. Not literally, but rolling to the air as if you intend to do so will help overcome number two above. You should attempt to feel as if you roll your body to the air and your head goes along for the ride. If you think of keeping your chin and sternum aligned – then allow your chin to travel a bit farther on its own – you ought to get ample body rotation and avoid the strain of just turning your head while your body remains Plenty of Air and a Smoother Freestyle prone. I also sometimes imagine that my breather is on the side of my rib cage, six inches below my armpit. If I take that part of my torso to the air, I always get plenty. Keep the top of your head down. Between breaths, your balance is best if you point your nose at the bottom and lead with the top of your head. While doing so, get a sense of having a laser beam, shining from the top of your head, at the leading edge of your “head-spine line.” You should keep that laser beam pointing straight to the horizon, or at the end of the pool, both between breaths and during your breath. You can work at this in three ways: 1) Keep the top of your head as close to the surface as possible, while rolling to breathe; 2) Press in the side and back of your head as you breathe; and 3) tuck your chin toward your shoulder as you breathe. Get taller as you breathe; stay tall as you come out of your breath. You’ll maintain far more momentum and speed during your breath, and get a more effective stroke following it, if you keep your leading hand forward, and in a good “gripping” position during your breath. To achieve this, concentrate on having your opposite hand continue to extend forward as you roll to breathe, and begin your stroke only as you begin to roll back down again. And the next stroke will be far stronger if you keep your fingers tipped down throughout. In virtually all unbalanced swimmers, the hand turns up (think of Diana Ross singing “Stop in the Name of Love”) during the breath, acting as a brace, not a gripper. May 18, 2006 6:25 PM Empire State Plaza � ROLL TO AIR, STAY LOW AND STAY TALL. COURTESY OF TOTAL IMMERSION A Breathing-Skills Practice Swim a series of three sets of repeats, with each set lasting six to ten minutes. Choose any repeat distance from 25 to 100 yards. To recover between repeats, do three (for shorter repeats) to six (if longer repeats) bobs, bubbling out as you bob underwater and getting air quickly and easily as you bob to the surface. You should rest for an additional one to two minutes between sets. Breathe every two to three strokes (not cycles) throughout. Swim the first round concentrating on breathing with your bellybutton. Swim the second round, concentrating on keeping the top of your head down. Swim the third round, concentrating on getting taller as you breathe. Which focal point helps the most? The fourth and final article in this series will be on breathing frequency and open-water breathing techniques in the June 2006 issue. Terry Laughlin is head coach of Total Immersion Swimming in New Paltz. This article is excerpted from a special e-book and mini-video on breathing skills to be published shortly. For more information, visit totalimmersion.net. W I L L Y O U B E T H E R E ? Entry materials will be mailed to the Team Captain of all organizations who participated in the 2005 event by April 1, 2006. If your organization didn’t participate last year, recruit your co-workers and form a team. Go to www.ghiwtc.com for entry forms or send an e-mail to ghiwtc@newkirk.com and entry materials will be mailed to you.
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