The Spring Into Shape 5k Trail Run took place Saturday, April 25th, at the University of Minnesota-Duluth campus.  Ninety-nine runners took part in this year's race in cool, sunny weather.  Half the course was run on campus streets and half the course wound through trails in the Bagley Nature Center.  Full results are available here.

Erik Escher won the men's race with a time of 16:57.  Erik felt strong the entire race and was pleased to accomplish his goal of running under seventeen minutes.  His 5k personal best is 16:20 in track.  Besides running in track and road races, Erik feeds his running addiction by working at the Duluth Running Co. in his spare time.  He is registered for Grandma's Marathon in June and is hoping to finish in under three hours.  Erik is a sophomore at UMD majoring in business management.

Hannah Zimmerman won the women's race in 22:15, edging out Alana Schwanke by four seconds.  Hannah was thankful for the nice weather and surprised at the relatively good condition of the trails.  Hannah is training for Grandma's Marathon and used the race to get some speed work in.  If all goes well, Hannah hopes to meet the Boston Marathon qualifying time of 3:40 for her age group.  Hannah is a junior at UMD majoring in exercise science.

Mike Teitelbaum has run every Spring Into Shape and finished in 25:49 this year.  Mike's son Zack also participated, completing the course in 26:57.  Mike was pleased that he did not walk at all and finished with a faster time than last year.   Besides running, Mike also enjoys doing triathlons.  Mike is planning on signing up for the Triathlon Training Program, cumulating in the Brewhouse Triathlon in August.

Cheyenne Deters finished with a time of 25:31.  Cheyenne loved the trails in the Bagley Nature Center and enjoyed the challenge of the hills.  After hitting the treadmill all winter, Cheyenne is happy to be outside running in nature.  Cheyenne plans on running the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon in June as well as the NMTC Spring Trail Series.

Posted by Kris Glesener, photography by MS Kapoor.  Many more pictures are available at Kapoor's Picasa Site.

Pictures from the Fitger's 5k on April 18th in Duluth.  All photos my MS Kapoor - more available at his Picasa Site.

Thursday, April 16th at Lake Superior College (2101 Trinity Rd, Duluth) we'll be watching the 2004 production of Saint Ralph. It'll be in the South building (the new addition) on the second floor, room S2964.

With the Boston marathon right around the corner now is the perfect time for this movie about a teenager training to win the Boston marathon in the early 1950's.

The room will be open at 7pm and we'll start the movie at 7:30. It's a potluck so feel free to bring something to snack on or beverage to share - no alcohol allowed.

If you need directions or have any other questions, please e-mail Kelly at: kelly@northlandrunner.com 

Hope to see you there!

Runner of the Month: Meet Sara Cherne

  We've all experienced this, you are at a race, standing next to a complete stranger and you wonder, what is this person’s story?  Well, if you've ever run a marathon, chances are you stood next to Sara Cherne.  This is her story.

            A Minnesota native, Sara grew up in Ely, the entry point to the BWCA.  She has now made her home in Duluth.  This mother of one didn't get her start in running during high school, like so many have.  She waited until she was 40 to make her debut.  Perhaps this inspired her now police officer daughter to join the cross country team when she attended Duluth East H.S.

            Sara turned 60 this year and is still going strong.  The marathon is her favorite race distance even though every time, she questions her sanity at mile 19.  These thoughts at mile 19 have never stopped her though.  Over the past 20 years she has run 151 marathons, several of those were ultras!  The most memorable of those was her second Grandmas marathon where she came around that last bend and saw the clock at 3:28.  At the sight of knocking 32 minutes off her previous Grandmas attempt of 4:00 it was all she could do to contain her excitement.  Sara was even overall women winner at the Pride of Canada Marathon!  Of course she was the only woman at that race, but a win is a win! You might not know this but Sara is a pretty quite person, she does however enjoy speaking in formal type situations.

            Like so many of us, running has become a part of Sara's life.  The reason she runs, she says is, “It's exercise. It's oxygen getting into my system.  Its gives me a feeling of independence and strength.” She enjoys running races and the people she meets.  Running wasn't always so great for Sara.  In the early days she would get side aches, ick!  But eventually the side aches would fade.  She would run a few blocks with her dogs, which then turned into a few miles.  Pretty soon Sara's dogs got wise to her mileage and would hide in their kennels when they saw her coming.   These days Sara mostly trains by herself, occasionally running with others when schedules permit.  She has even been known to hit the trails with her skis and snowshoes in the off season.

            This small town Minnesota gal isn't afraid to skip state lines for races.  To date she has run in 27 states!  Some of the more notable races include Boston, Big Sur, Chicago, Seattle, New Orleans, Leading Ladies Marathon, Phoenix, Louisville, and Memphis.  Sara ran a quirky, smaller marathon in Norwalk, WI  in which you are given a flash light for the ¾ mile stretch through a dark train tunnel, neat!  This year Sara is registered for Grandmas Marathon and is mulling over races in Atlanta and Colorado-Steamboat Springs.  Look for her this year at Fitgers, Park Point, The Whistlestop and trudging along the Half Voyageur course.

            An insider’s look at racing with Sara would show you that she likes to stick to spaghetti the night before, and prefers peanut butter toast and cereal on the morning of.  Good solid runner’s meals!  Everyone has a brand of shoes that just “work” for them, those shoes for Sara are any style of Saucony's.  During a race, Sara uses either energy gels or energy jelly beans every seven miles.  She is inspired by watching running races and listening to stories told by other runners.

            When asked what advice she has for new runners she says, “Listen to your body, especially if trying longer distances.  Don't be too concerned about times in racing.  Mostly enjoy the feeling of being able to run”.  I think all of us, not just beginner runners, can benefit from those words!

            Sara isn't looking to hang up the old running shoes any time soon, but knows it's inevitable.  She hopes it will be like how Forest Gump quit running, “One day I'll just say, that’s it!”  Good plan, but in the mean time...run, Sara, run!  So next time you are at a race, look around for Sara, now you know her, and you can share your story!

Written by: Kelly Raether-Prevost  

Runner of the Month is our way of shining the spotlight on local runners.  If you know of a runner that has an interesting story that deserves to be highlighted in an upcoming edition, let us know!  Send in your submissions for the June Runner of the Month by April 15th to, info@northlandrunner.com.  Please put "nomination" in the subject of the email and include(if possible) a phone number and or email address for your nominee(s).  Thanks to Lisa Messerer for this months nomination!

Here we go for round two of a Northland Runner sponsored movie night!

Thursday, March 19th at Lake Superior College (2101 Trinity Road in Duluth) we'll be watching Chariots of Fire. It'll be in the south building (the new addition) on the second floor, room S2941, which is to the right at the end of the hall.

The room will be open at 7pm and we'll start the movie at 7:30. It's a potluck so feel free to bring something to snack on or beverage to share - no alcohol allowed.

If you need directions or have any other questions, please e-mail Kelly at: kelly@northlandrunner.com 

Hope to see you there!