Speechless

I don't get surprised very often, but yesterday my friends and family get an A+ for totally blowing me away. Some of you may know that about halfway through the Summer Swing 5K Series, we had a visit from Mayor Gary Fuller and his son. Seems they had heard a little about our run series and wanted to come out to see for themselves. Apparently he liked what he saw. Friends, we do have a unique event that is great for community relations. All of you deserve a pat on the back for the way you pull others in and make them feel welcome. I have a feeling that our friend Alvin may have been doing a little behind the scenes work, but it appears that Mayor Fuller thought it would be a good idea to brag on all of us a little. Apparently for about a month now, friends and family have been doing a little sneaking around, gathering information, making a few phone calls, etc. - that resulted in a very nice recognition ceremony at the August 18 Opelika City Council meeting - for yours truly. Actually Mayor Fuller read a very flattering proclamation to me - and declared August 18, 2015 as Doug Underwood Day(now I gotta deal with the big head!). My entire family and at least a dozen AORTA members were there (you think I might have become a little suspicious about that, but my family had spun a pretty good story about the "real" reason we were there, and I completely bought in). Much thanks to Alvin, Bob Banks, Bob and Monica Kennis, Lori, Vince, and Brody Connors, Cyndi and Corey Walp, Kim White, Dawn Kohn, and Tom Turkington, for taking time to come. That was really special! If I missed someone be sure to let me know when we run into each other again. Things were happening pretty fast and I was surprised and overwhelmed. Thanks to all of you, friends and family, for making me feel pretty special. We do this for fun and it is more play than work. I really look forward to our runs each week. Even so, this is a moment that I will remember for the rest of my life. Love you all, Doug

It's a Wrap

Here are the results of our last run in the series, run 14. It was a great summer, and I really enjoyed seeing each of you on a regular basis. We had 187 different people participate, not bad! Much thanks to Alvin Walls for his help each week, and to the Boone family for the many times they brought things to eat. Also congrats to Kim Smith, Shane Newsome, Hugh Campbell, and Kermit Davis, for perfect attendance for the series. Several of you missed only one week (Bill Lacy, Jessica Lien, Roger Lien), which is pretty impressive. All in all, a great series, and a lot of fun. For those interested, some of us run year round on Tuesday night, just for staying in shape and having fun. We will meet on Tuesday nights at 6pm at the Opelika Sportsplex, at the amphitheater on the North side of the Sportsplex. Any and all are welcome, any pace, any distance. Bring your own sports drink and come join us. Any questions, get in touch with me at durunforfun@yahoo.com or call/text 334-524-5021. Sure enjoyed the summer! Hope to continue to see many of you in the days to come. Doug

Pizza RunTonight

Last run of the series - and sure to be hot - but a very low chance of rain. Will be providing pizza for all - so don't miss out. See you this evening. Doug

Run 13 - Rainy but Cooler

Here are the results of run 13. That little shower cooled things off quite a bit, and I saw some faster times for many of you. We knocked out two watermelons afterward, so if you missed, it will be next year before we do that again. :) However you can still take advantage of our pizza run next week. Don't miss it! See you then - Doug

Watermelon Run

Don't forget, our July 28 run will be rewarded with cold watermelon. See you next week - Doug

July 21 Run - And the Next Two

Here are the results of this evening's run. You guys are amazing, all of you. Running/walking in this summer heat is not for everyone. Hats off to all of you! OKAY, as promised, next week we will have our Watermelon Run. That's right, just show up and run or walk and I'll treat you to cold watermelon at the finish line. It's a reward for a great Summer Swing 5K season, that is coming to a close. Only two more runs and we will finish up on August 4. I'm planning on the last run being Pizza Run, so be sure to be here. More on that later. See you next week - Doug

Weather on July 21 Run?

Who knows? Right now I don't see any thunderstorms in the area, but 6pm could be a different story. No way to tell. Odds are, we will be able to get our run in, although it will probably be very hot. See you this evening. Doug

Certified Crazy

Here are the results for run 11 (July 14). As hot as it was, I would think that some would consider us "nuts" for getting out there and running a 5K. Maybe we are! But I sure saw a bunch of sweaty, happy people finish it up, so maybe we are OKAY after all! With only 3 runs left we can see the end of the series. We still have not had our pizza run or a watermelon run, so I better get busy and get them in the works. More on that later. Run easy and take care - Doug

Be Prepared

It will be nothing but HOT this evening. Be prepared! This would be a good day to back it down a little and not worry about setting a PR. Just finishing will be enough! See you this evening. Doug

Run 10 In The Books

Here are the results of run 10. Hot evening, but everyone survived! Much thanks to Alvin for helping at the finish line. Also, a big thank you to those of you who chipped in and bought a replacement portable grill for me. It was a big surprise! And, I might add, much needed! The old one is pretty much worn out after 3 years of service. I'm hearing that Alvin was the master mind behind it, but he won't confess - so I'll just say thanks to all of you. Your might have noticed Robert there taking pictures of everyone. He does work for the local newspaper so you just may see yourself in print soon. Time will tell! See you next week! Doug

Shirts Ready

For those of you who have not picked up your technical shirt, I will have them with me this evening. See you then! Doug

Run 9 In The Books

Here are the results of run 9. It was a great evening for a run, and it was good to have a few new faces, as always. I've started distributing the new shirts - they look great - so be sure to come next week and pick up your shirt (if you ordered one). Much thanks again to Alvin for his assistance (finish line), the Boone family (cookies), and RehabWorks (their advice and assistance). Hope to see all of you again next week, as we move into July. Hot! Doug

Rain or Shine?

Here at lunchtime, it's hard to tell what the weather will be doing this evening for our run. The hourly forecast I'm looking at says that the rain will be gone by 4pm and that we should not have a problem at 6pm. Time will tell. I have the new shirts in and they look great. I will have them ready for you this evening. If you have not paid for your shirt yet, either cash or check will be okay ($12 per shirt). See you this evening - Doug

Run 8 In The Books

Here are the results of run 8. Another hot evening, but some pretty tough runners did surprisingly well. Seems like when I ask you all to take it easy, you knock it out of the park! Shirts are being screen printed this week, and I should have them for you next week. Looking forward to that! Doug

Yes It Was HOT

Here are the results for run 7. It was definitely the hottest run of the series, so far. I was amazed at how well our runners/walkers handled it. I was soaking wet, just standing at the finish line capturing results! Not to beat a dead horse, but here is your final reminder that the shirt order is going in today. If you want one (see image below), you will need to email me today at durunforfun@yahoo.com or call/text me at 334-524-5021, to place your order. Cost is $12. Again, much thanks to Alvin for his help every week. Thanks also to the Boone family for bringing food, and to RehabWorks for their expert advice. See you next week! Doug

First Run Results

We are off to a great start - perfect weather and about 50 showed up for our first run. If you were not able to join us this week, be sure to come next Tuesday. We should be wide open - ready to go with the grilling, ready to take orders on the new shirt (see in post below this one), and ready to enjoy seeing friends and enjoying these relatively cool evenings. The results are posted here and in the link in the right margin. Other race information is there as well. Much thanks to Alvin for assisting at the finish line. I could use some additional help so let me know if you are on the injured reserve list and would like to lend a hand. Ready to take orders on the new shirt - $12 for a good technical shirt - that's hard to beat. See you next week - Doug

Ready to Run?

OK, everything is set and we are ready to go. Hope to see you on Tuesday May 5. Run starts at 6:15pm as usual; be there by 6pm to register. All of the race details are posted in a link in the right column of this page. There is also a course map and the Summer Swing Concert schedule. Believe it or not, I got the shirt design finished early. It's a technical shirt with high wicking properties, and will be very reasonable in price, as usual. Available in adult and youth sizes. Will plan to take orders for a few weeks and then have them available in June. More details later.

Looking forward to seeing you on the 5th! Doug

SUMMER SWING 2015! GET READY!

Wow, finally, time to crank up our Summer Swing 5K Series! First run is scheduled for Tuesday May 5. We will meet at the Denson Drive Recreation Center as usual, with the run starting at 6:15pm. Fourteen weeks of non-stop fun, making friends, and maybe even improving your run, if you feel so inclined! I will post all the details here within a few days. Meanwhile I'll be digging out the clock, timer, cones, coolers, mile markers, and all the odds and ends we will be using in a few short weeks. I could really use some volunteer help as well. Please give me a call at 334-524-5021 if you want to lend a hand. I need help at the finish line and at the grill. Alvin has already offered to help and he's looking forward to seeing all of you at the finish line. I'm trying to get an early start on the shirt design; maybe this year I can finally get it done BEFORE we start the series. That would be the first time in 8 years. Yep, it's been 8 years since we started this up. Or is it 9? I'll have to dig out some of the old results to find out. Anyway we'll keep the price of the shirt at cost, just like we do everything else. Where else can you find a 14-race series for $10? See you soon - Doug