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Capital City Half Marathon News: 2005 Archives

Celebrate Your Capital City Half Marathon, Commit To Be Fit 5K Effort At Fat Eddie's Victory Party On Thursday, April 21 Starting At 5 PM

All Penguins know that every running and walking event takes the courage to start. When there are 38-mph winds and sideways snow, it demands even more to finish.

And, that's just what thousands did at the 2005 Capital City Half Marathon and Commit To Be Fit 5K.

The pictures are even harder to believe when you consider all of the 60- and 70-degree days Columbus has had before and after race day.

In perhaps the greatest weather irony of all, John "The Penguin" Bingham and Jenny "The Coach" Hadfield experienced better conditions a couple of weeks earlier at the marathon in ... Antarctica.

For a host of laughs, tears and tales of inspiration, please visit www.capitalcityhalfmarathon.com for the many "war stories" that have been submitted by finishers. If you have a tale of your own, please be sure to send it to the Penguin.

Now, it's time to celebrate all the training, effort and planning by all of the 2005 participants, partners and volunteers with a Victory Party on Thursday, April 21, when all are invited to return to Fat Eddie's (next to the start/finish lines at PromoWest Pavilion on Neil Avenue in the Arena District). For directions or information on other upcoming events, please visit www.promowestlive.com.

Beginning at 5 pm, this happiest of happy hours will feature acoustic sets by Columbus music legend Willie Phoenix. Willie's scheduled course performance was canceled due to the weather conditions (something about snow, rain, wind and electricity) so we're bringing him in to headline these festivities.

Additionally, John Bingham Racing will hold prize drawings for autographed copies of Marathoning For Mortals, special edition Capital City Half Marathon shirts and complimentary 2006 race entries.

We will also be giving away trips to the 2005 Chicago Distance Classic (August 7, 2005) and the 2006 Arizona Distance Classic (March 12, 2006).

Please pass this invitation on to all of your fellow runners and anyone else who you think should participate next year. Admission is free and there will be food and drink specials available throughout the evening.

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WINTER'S LAST WORD

Snow, wind assail half-marathoners

Sunday, April 3, 2005
By Madelin Esquivel
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Distance runners usually have two main needs when they stop: water to stave off dehydration and bandages for blistered feet.

But many who completed yesterday's Capital City Half-Marathon were also craving something else: blankets.

"The high winds about killed me," said Columbus resident Bo Keene as he sat shivering in front of a portable heater, steam curling off his soaked sweat pants. "People thought I'd be discouraged by the weather, but I was determined to finish."

Keene had walked the 13.1-mile course in about four hours wearing just a T-shirt, a light coat and his sweat pants. After sunny days in the 70s last week, yesterday's blast of flurries—a record for the date—caught him by surprise.

He wasn't the only one.

"Everybody we saw had cold issues," said Debbie Long, a nurse manager with Max Sports Medicine Institute, which handled medical care for the event. "A lot of runners didn't bring dry clothes, and a lot don't like to wear long pants."

The Max Sports crew was ready for the weather, even if participants in the half-marathon weren't.

"It's Columbus, Ohio. It's April 2," said company President Brad Cochran. "You prepare for all elements."

The temperature dropped to 33 degrees by 11 a.m.—about the time when the first half-marathon runners reached the finish line. About 1 1/2 inches of snow fell throughout the day, obliterating the date's previous high of 0.2 inches, in both 1993 and 2001.

The 50 blankets that the Max Sports crew started with were quickly gone. At noon, they sent for 100 more blankets from Riverside Methodist Hospital.

"It's the toughest day I've ever seen; the wind never let up," said John Bingham of John Bingham Racing, the half-marathon's sponsor. "People suddenly found themselves in a situation they've never been in."

The winds reached 38 mph yesterday, said AccuWeather meteorologist Michael McAuliffe.

Josh Ordway, of Columbus, won the Half Marathon with a time of 1 hour, 9 minutes and 33 seconds. Erin Ford, of Columbus, was the top female finisher in 1:25.14.

Jared Mills, of Sunbury, won the Commit To Be Fit 5K in 17 minutes and 31 seconds. Gay Lyndsi, of New Albany, was the first female finisher in 17:44.

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CAPITAL CITY HALF-MARATHON

Couple in love run their way to better health

Wednesday, March 30, 2005
Dennis Fiely
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

CHRIS RUSSELL | DISPATCH

While his fiancee, Renae Smith, keeps an eye on him and Buddy the dog, Dave Hamrick uses a treadmill in preparation for the Commit To Be Fit 5K Run/Walk.

Until death do them part, they will strive to be faithful partners in health more than in sickness.

Dave Hamrick and Renae Smith will combine lifelong commitments to fitness and to each other when they get married Saturday, shortly after they finish the Commit To Be Fit 5K Run/Walk — part of the Capital City Half-Marathon.

"It is important to me that he hangs around for a while," Smith said of her older and overweight fiancé.

Dressed in their sweats, the couple expect to huff and puff down the aisle to a makeshift altar at PromoWest Pavilion.

The promoter, John Bingham Racing, has billed the event as "the biggest wedding reception in the history of Columbus."

Fitness is an important part of their pledge — especially for Hamrick, a 36-year-old Mansfield resident who works for a Columbus home-finance company.

Eighteen years of junk food and inactivity increased his weight from 190 pounds in high school to 301 in January, when his doctor deemed him borderline diabetic.

"My weight gain happened so gradually, I hardly even noticed it," he said.

His father's death of cancer last year and his pending marriage to a woman 12 years younger and 185 pounds lighter prompted him to ponder mortality and quality of life.

"I got to thinking that I couldn't stay on the path I was on," he said. "I knew that if we had kids I wouldn't be able to chase them around or play ball with them."

A 5K is little more than a fun run for Smith, a 24-year-old Columbus veterinary technician who ran track and cross-country at Plymouth High School in Richland County.

But the 3.1-mile distance is a formidable challenge for Hamrick.

"He tried to run one with me in October and couldn't finish," said friend and training partner Brent Stark. "He stopped — drenched in sweat — after walking the first mile."

Bingham Racing founder John Bingham introduced the Cap City Half-Marathon and its accompanying 5K last year to give runners modified distances that focus on the joy of movement more than the grind of competition.

"A 5K can be just as empowering as a marathon for somebody like Hamrick. It took me six months to do a 5K," said Bingham, a reformed smoker, drinker and couch potato who writes a monthly column for Runner's World magazine.

Training since January, Hamrick schedules 1-mile runs four days a week and jogs/walks 3 miles two days a week.

His modest regimen has produced measurable results.

In three months, he has lost 16 pounds and decreased his total cholesterol from 217 to 183. He also has experienced better sleep and a drop in blood sugar.

Hamrick surprised Smith when he suggested they be married at the finish line.

"I thought it was a dumb idea at first," his bride-to-be said. "But the more I thought about it, the more I liked it. We're meeting a challenge together to better our lives."

Almost a dozen race sponsors stunned the couple with donations of decorations, gifts and food.

"Our wedding wouldn't be nearly as fancy if we were paying for it," Smith said.

Getting to the church on time might pose one logistical problem.

Stark and his wife, Mandy, will be hustling to finish the 13.1-mile half marathon so they can join the wedding party.

Hamrick, on the other hand, is running for love, not time.

"I want my wife to see that my commitment to her is deeper than just putting a ring on her finger."

dfiely@dispatch.com

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Westerville Central sophomore runs to thank 'miracle'

Thursday, March 17, 2005

JEFF HUNT
ThisWeek Staff Writer

By Lorrie Cecil/ThisWeek

Westerville Central sophomore Savannah Shurelds was diagnosed with ARVD as a freshman and told she would die, because there is no cure for the disease. Doctors have since cleared her to return to playing sports because the disease is no longer there.

Savannah Shurelds didn't experience the United States Olympic ice hockey team's upset over the Russians in 1980. She wasn't born until eight years later.

But after being told she had to give up running because it could be fatal, she has answered Al Michaels' famous question with an emphatic yes, she does believe in miracles.

Shurelds, a 17-year-old sophomore who plays soccer and competes in cross country and track and field at Westerville Central High School, was diagnosed with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD) in the fall of her freshman year.

ARVD is one of the leading causes in sudden death in young athletes, and according to the disease's Web site (ARVD.com) it's a genetic, progressive heart condition in which the muscle of the right ventricle is replaced by fat and fibrosis, which causes abnormal heart rhythms.

It is estimated to affect one in 5,000 people, and although it is a relatively uncommon cause of sudden cardiac death, it accounts for up to one-fifth of sudden cardiac death in people younger than 35.

Shurelds was active in sports nearly all of her life and thought her athletic career had ended when diagnosed. However, because of what she claims to be a miracle, she's returned to competition and will compete in the second Capital City Half-Marathon on April 2 in downtown Columbus to help raise awareness of ARVD.

"Now that I know I can run and my life is back to sports, I even push myself harder and I push others," Shurelds said. "I feel like a new person and have a greater appreciation for life. It makes me look at my life and my attitude toward sports differently."

Shurelds' first bout with the onset of ARVD came when she was 6 years old.

However, doctors at that time told her it was athletic induced asthma, so the Shurelds family went on with life as such until almost two years ago when Savannah was competing at an eighth-grade track and field district meet and collapsed with severe chest pains.

"I wasn't breathing," she said. "And after getting checked out by a doctor, they didn't know what it was, so I was sent to get a (magnetic resonance imaging) and that's how we found out I had ARVD."

The initial testing was done through the Cleveland Clinic, where she was told if she kept competing, she'd die.

"(Savannah) and I were standing there (with a doctor at the Cleveland Clinic) and they said very bluntly, 'She has ARVD,'" said Cindy Shurelds, Savannah's mother. "And we were like, 'What is that?' (The doctor) then said it's a heart disease. (Savannah asked) if she can still play soccer and run and they said, 'Well, no, and you're going to die.'"

That was news the mother and daughter didn't think they heard correctly.

"I certainly thought I misunderstood him," Cindy Shurelds said. "Then the doctor said it's fatal and there's no cure and (Savannah) would eventually die from this. It was a rough, crude awakening to ARVD."

Savannah did what most young teenagers would do, and her mother did what any mother would do.

"Sports was my life," Savannah said. "I fell apart and cried every night. And I didn't know what I was going to do with my life."

"I looked up anything and everything on ARVD (on the Internet)," Cindy Shurelds said. "I found that Johns Hopkins has a whole unit devoted to this disease and that's why we contacted them."

Further testing through Johns Hopkins confirmed the disease, but the family wasn't going to give up.

After nearly eight months had passed since being diagnosed, Savannah was scheduled to have heart surgery.

But before that procedure, her mother contacted Johns Hopkins to have more tests performed for a third opinion.

A day before her surgery, the family went to Johns Hopkins for further evaluation, and while in Mount Vernon visiting family on their way back, they received a phone call.

"It was (Dr. Richard Sterba)," Cindy Shurelds said. "I was paranoid. He asked to talk to (Savannah) and said to trust him. Then I heard her squeal. She dropped the phone and just ran. I picked up the phone and spoke to him, and he said what he told her was to grab her soccer shoes and start running. I said how could that be? He replied with, 'We're giving her 100 percent clearance. What we thought was there is not any longer.'"

Since returning that phone call, making up for lost time is what Shurelds has been doing. She was part of Central's 1,600-meter relay which won the Division III regional championship last year, and then last fall she finished 22nd at the Division II cross country district meet.

Savannah said she has her mother to thank for getting back on track.

"It was my mom," she said. "She was determined. She knew how important sports were to me. A mother wants to give her daughter everything she can to make me happy."

It was a few days before hearing the news that she was disease-free that Savannah actually made a couple of statements regarding her health.

"Since she couldn't play soccer, we thought she could do the stats (for the team)," Cindy Shurelds said. "It was one evening after a scrimmage at Olentangy. It was kind of stormy, but it cleared up on the way home and there was a gorgeous rainbow following us home. Savannah watched it the entire way home and it was directly over our house. We got out of the car and she said 'See that rainbow, that's how I know I'll be OK'."

"It was like a miracle," Savannah said.

"She's not kidding," her mother said. "It was a miracle."

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Registration on Record Pace for Capital City Half Marathon

(Columbus, OH—February 11, 2005)

Online registration for the 2nd Annual Capital City Half Marathon and Commit To Be Fit 5K, scheduled for April 2nd in Columbus, is running over 100% higher than last year's inaugural event, according to event organizers.

"We have over 1,500 online registrants as of this morning," said John Bingham Racing President, David Babner. "On this date last year, we had 714 runners and walkers registered. It is obvious Ohioans want to start living a more healthy and active lifestyle, and this event is a great way to help them take the first step."

Last year's inaugural Capital City Half Marathon and Commit To Be Fit 5K drew 4,000 participants. The new half marathon course includes a lap around historic Ohio Stadium, and the festivities include the Capital Kids Mascot Chase and a finish-line party and concert at PromoWest Pavilion in the Columbus Arena District.

The Capital City Half Marathon is one of four events in The John Bingham Racing Half Marathon Series (along with Cincinnati, Chicago and Tucson, AZ). Once an overweight, smoking, drinking, couch potato, John "the Penguin" Bingham, is now an avid runner and the most widely-read running author in the world, with a monthly column in Runner's World Magazine and four best-selling books, including The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed and Marathoning for Mortals.

"We are so pleased that Central Ohioans are getting the message that they can take control of their lives and defeat their most difficult opponent—themselves," said Bingham. "The Capital City Half Marathon and Commit To Be Fit 5K is a celebration of athletes of all ages, shapes and sizes... fast and slow. Our seven online training programs have something for everyone... from walker to run/walker to runner."

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Headaches help Brown get back on track for running

Thursday, December 30, 2004

JEFF HUNT
Enterprise Staff Writer

It's funny how a simple headache changed Rudy Brown's life.

Roughly three years ago, the then 33-year-old Pickerington resident sought relief from the headaches at a local Urgent Care medical center.

Little did he know it was a pain that would change him forever.

At the time, Brown weighed in excess of 375 pounds and unknowingly suffered from high blood pressure and type-2 diabetes, which was later diagnosed when he was referred to further medical treatment for his headaches.

After a visit to the hospital and family doctor, Brown was put on prescription drugs so he could get a grasp on his newly found medical conditions. However, the weight stayed on—he claimed he weighed in excess of 385 pounds—and finally said enough was enough.

"I was looking for some sort of relief," he said. "I went to a program to get help."

In mid-July of 2002, Brown embarked on what he calls "a long journey to get in shape," enrolling at the Central Ohio Nutrition Center, where he enrolled in the Opti-Fast program.

"It's a liquid-diet program that also involves counseling and being weighed once a week, as well as being educated about food," he said.

Brown, who served in the Army from 1986-92 when he weighed 195 pounds, always enjoyed running and wanted a way to appreciate it—again. He said after hitting the 300-pound mark, he was unable to accomplish that feat.

"I got to a weight I couldn't run anymore," he said. "I really missed running a lot."

That was enough of an incentive for Brown to drop the pounds—and shed them he did.

He lost 100 pounds after the first seven months of the liquid diet that allowed only 800 calories per day in five servings.

Brown, who enrolled at the nutrition center with his wife, Michelle, credits the strict diet for his weight loss, but also his own willingness to drop the pounds.

"I credit that program with 50 percent of my success," said Brown, whose wife lost 69 pounds in the duration of program. "The other 50 percent was exercise. I was walking and lifting weights a little bit and then I started running."

It was the running aspect that appealed to Brown the most. By last April, he was down to 197 pounds and competed in the Commit To Be Fit 5K (3.1 miles) Run which is part of the Capital City Half-Marathon (13.1 miles) in downtown Columbus.

The second-annual event will be April 2. Brown's goal now has escalated to completion of the half-marathon.

"I'd like to win my age group," he said. "I'm the middle-of-the-pack runner."

He also recruited his wife and his aunt, Laurie Rufalo, along with Matt Krueger, a co-worker, to partake in the 5K.

"I would like to see how many people I can actually get to live a healthier lifestyle," Brown said. "I'd love to become a personal trainer and get certified."

Brown, who said keeps his weight between 195-205, claims getting in shape literally saved his life.

"I really feel I'd have been dead or hospitalized with a heart attack or something," he said.

THE EVENT—Even though this is the half-marathon's second year, it's already gone through some changes. Two miles of the course will now go through the Ohio State campus, which includes a lap around Ohio Stadium.

"What a thrill it is going to be to run around the Horseshoe," Columbus mayor Michael B. Coleman said. "I can just see some folks striking the Heisman pose as they pass by the stadium."

The Capital City Half-Marathon is operated by John Bingham Racing. Bingham was once in Brown's shoes, as he weighed 240 pounds, smoked and drank alcohol.

"As with all JBR events, the Capital City Half-Marathon will be a celebration of athletes, young and old, fast and slow," Bingham said.

Four thousand participants from 29 states and three different countries competed in last year's inaugural event.

With such a huge success last season, the field has been limited to 7,500 this year.

"We strongly believe it can be a 10,000 person event in two years," JBR president David Babner said. "But as we grow, 7,500 is ideal this year in order to insure the best possible experience for everyone involved."

For more information on the events or to register online, visit www.capitalcityhalfmarathon.com.

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New Course Announced for Capital City Half Marathon Columbus, OH (Tuesday, November 23, 2004)

Columbus Mayor, Michael B. Coleman, and John "The Penguin" Bingham today unveiled the new course for the 2nd annual Capital City Half Marathon and Commit To Be Fit 5K, scheduled for April 2, 2005.

The 13.1-mile Half Marathon will once again start and finish at PromoWest Pavilion in the Arena District and wind through scenic and historic areas of downtown Columbus, German Village, The Short North and Victorian Village. New this year is two miles though The Ohio State University campus, including a lap around historic Ohio Stadium. (See maps)

"What a thrill it is going to be to run around the Horseshoe," said Mayor Michael B. Coleman. "I can just see some folks striking the Heisman pose as they pass by the stadium. With 4,000 participants last year, we had the biggest inaugural running and walking event in the Midwest, and we’re looking forward to an even bigger and better event in April of 2005 as many more central Ohioans commit to living a more healthy and active lifestyle."

The Capital City Half Marathon is owned and operated by John Bingham Racing. Once a 240-pound smoking, drinking, couch potato, Bingham is now the most widely read running author in the world with a monthly column in Runner's World magazine and four best selling books, including The Courage to Start and No Need for Speed.

"As with all JBR events, the Capital City Half Marathon will be a celebration of athletes, young and old, fast and slow," said Bingham. "Everyone gets a warrior's send off at the start, a hero's welcome at the finish line, and great memories to share at the post-event party at PromoWest Pavilion."

John Bingham Racing President, David Babner, announced the Capital City Half Marathon field will be limited to the first 7,500 registrants. "We strongly believe it can be a 10,000 person event in two years," said Babner. "But as we grow, 7,500 is ideal this year in order to insure the best possible experience for everyone involved."

Online registration and six online training programs are available for beginners to experts at: www.capitalcityhalfmarathon.com. The early registration entry fee is $45 for the half marathon and $30 for the 5K though January 31st and $50 and $35 respectively, after January 31st.

A portion of the proceeds benefits Capital Kids, Mayor Coleman's after school program for Columbus youth. And as the National Spokesman for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, John Bingham is pleased that the Central Ohio Chapter of Team in Training has chosen the Capital City Half Marathon as one of its official events.

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Kirk Herbstreit Prepares For Capital City Half Marathon with Team In Training

SportsRadio 1460 The Fan Co-host to Run Commit To Be Fit 5K

Columbus, OH (November 23, 2004) — Popular SportsRadio, 1460 The Fan afternoon Big Show host and ESPN College GameDay analyst, Kirk Herbstreit, will work with Team In Training as Herbstreit prepares for his second Capital City Half Marathon, scheduled for April 2, 2005 in Columbus. Herbstreit's Big Show co-host, Damon Bruce, who moved to Columbus in November, said he will run the Commit To Be Fit 5K.

Herbstreit's involvement is even more appropriate this year, considering the new course for the event, announced today, includes a lap around Ohio Stadium.

"My wife and I really enjoyed running the Inaugural Capital City Half Marathon last April," said Herbstreit, a former Ohio State University football quarterback and captain. "And it will be even more meaningful for us as we join Team In Training to prepare for the 2005 event and help raise funds to fight blood cancers."

The Capital City Half Marathon is owned and operated by John Bingham Racing. "As the National Spokesperson for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, I am extremely pleased the Central Ohio chapter of Team in Training has chosen the Capital City Half Marathon as one of its official events," said Bingham.

Team In Training is the world's largest sports endurance training program. Participants raise funds for leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma research and patient services in exchange for training, support and lodging to the event of their choice. Since Team In Training's inception, 220,000 participants have raised over $500 million.

The Central Ohio Chapter and Head Running Coach, Jim Tucker, are thrilled to join the Capital City Half Marathon as The Official Charity Training program. "The half marathon distance has become very popular and serves as a challenging endurance event for those new to the sport," said Tucker, who has been with Team In Training for over 12 years.

For more information on Team In Training, log on to: www.teamintraining.org/coh.

For more information on the Capital City Half Marathon and Commit To Be Fit 5K or to register online, log on to: www.capitalcityhalfmarathon.com.

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