Run Tampa

Run Tampa Group Run on Famous Bayshore Sidewalk, Sunday, August 15th, 7 a.m.

Join us S U N D A Y morning , August 15th, for a great Run Tampa group run on the famous Bayshore sidewalk, site of the acclaimed Gasparilla Distance Classic and 5k. It's not too early to start thinking about that race! If you've never done it before, now's the time to start training; make it your goal and train with us.

We'll depart from Patriot's Park at 7 a.m. and run to Ballast Point Park, which is about 2.5 miles. Beautiful run! We almost always see dolphins!

Patriot's Park is at the intersection of Bay to Bay and Bayshore Blvd.

If you have trouble finding the park or us, call Deb at 813-416-4638.

We'll run out to the end of the pier, then circle around on the jogging path in the park before returning to Patriot's Park. Bathrooms and water fountain at the park.

That's around 5 miles; however, don't feel like you have to go that far. Turn around at any point. No minimum distance, and walk if you want. That's fine, too.

No rules, here, just fun!

Runners in pursuit of more mileage will continue in the other direction towards downtown. Or, people wanting to do more miles might want to meet at 5:45 or 6 a.m. and return to the park at 7 to join everyone else for the last segment of their long run, a good option for people training for a marathon, but make sure you're in a group for safety before dawn.

All speeds, no rules, no fee; everyone is welcome. If you've never joined a group run, please give it a try. No one will push you to go farther than you want to go, and I always encourage everyone to go their own pace.

We will have some people walking the whole distance and others doing a walk/run. You do what you want to do. We'll just be glad you came! Good way to get started running and be inspired and encouraged by others!

Publix Gasparilla Weekend 2010

Another great Gasparilla Weekend has come and gone, and true to form, it was an amazing weekend of racing. I understand the 5k was a bit soggy, but if the comments I read on the Gasparilla FB page are any indication, spirits were still plenty high. What's a little rain when you've got all those glorious endorphins surging through your veins, anyway?

Race Director Susan Harmeling reported a record number of participants this year, at around 25,000, and that's no surprise. Running seems to be continually gaining popularity, and this event has a great reputation in the running community. I never miss it.

With a 5k, 5k walk and stroller roll, 15k, marathon and half marathon, the weekend offered something for everyone. Sadly, it was the last year for the marathon, however.

Congratulations to all the winners, to all who finished, to Race Director Susan Harmeling, the City of Tampa, sponsors, and volunteers.

Check this photo slide show on TBO.com and Bill Ward's article here for more details.

You Have Got to Get Out the Door

 - by Bill Davison, The Running Center, runcenter@aol.com

A good number of people started this year by running a Gasparilla event or possibly a Disney event. Many people focus the entire year on one of these events and then don’t do any other running events the rest of the year. The human body needs the proper diet and ongoing exercise or it thinks it is going into hibernation and starts gaining weight. So you have to show up either at more of the local races or start getting out the door to do your daily exercising. We advocate attending as many of our local races as you feel you can handle. The local 5k races allow you to set a goal for a completion time and you can compete against yourself.

The general wisdom of exercising on a regular basis recommends four days a week of aerobic exercise. You need to maintain your heart rate in the 60% to 80% zone of your maximum (one standard used is 220 minus your age is your maximum heart rate) for 30 minutes and you need to do some type of weight resistance training two days a week. This schedule should be maintained for the rest of your life. Next time, we’ll talk about running clothes and shoes.

2010 Gasparilla Marathon Will be the Last

On Sunday Gasparilla Race Director Susan Harmeling announced the 2010 Gasparilla Marathon will be the last. In fact, the marathon and half marathon actually raise more money than the shorter races; however, the marathon puts a great burden on the City of Tampa in a time of budgetary shortfalls. Bill Ward's Tampa Tribune article states that only 1,800 entered the 2009 marathon, while the half marathon attracted a record number with almost 4,400 runners. See Ward's full article.

Spectator Information for Publix Gasparilla Race Weekend

If you are a runner and you have run in big races before, then you know how hard it can be to meet up with friends and family after the race, and you know the logistics of maneuvering before and after a large race as well as the typical difficulty of trying to spot friends/family along the race course.

But, this race is likely to include many first time racers, first time Gasparilla runners/walkers and so forth; therefore, I thought I'd share these tips which will make it easier for friends and family to enjoy watching and/or running in the Gasparilla race(s):

Running Up to Gasparilla Race Weekend

Well, this is the final runup to what is arguably the biggest running weekend in Tampa, actually the biggest race weekend in Central Florida and one of the biggest in the Southeast. That’s right, folks, the Publix Supermarkets Gasparilla Race Weekend is next weekend.