Contact Pam
Select Page
Select Page
Cap 10K goes virtual in 2021, marking third consecutive year without in-person race

Cap 10K goes virtual in 2021, marking third consecutive year without in-person race

by | Feb 1, 2021 | Blog

This year’s Statesman Capitol 10,000 will go virtual. Chris LeBlanc photo

The 2021 Statesman Capitol 10,000 is going virtual once again.

It will mark the third year in a row that the in-person race has been cancelled. A strong storm swept through on race day in 2019, forcing organizers to call it off, and the pandemic spurred cancellation of the popular spring event in 2020.

“Both in the interest of the health and safety of our participants and in anticipation of the city of Austin significantly modifying or canceling our large-scale in-person event, we are moving our 2021 Cap10K race to a virtual format,” said Jeff Simecek, Statesman Cap10K race director. “We are grateful for our running community’s continued understanding, as well as their support of our race and beneficiary, Marathon Kids.”

The race, the largest 10K in Texas and the sixth largest in the nation, was scheduled for April. 1. Now participants can run any of 10 different routes between April 11 and 30.

Contactless drive-through packet pickup is planned for April 9 and 10. That event will feature live music, giveaways and more. Packet mail delivery is also available for $11, which will cover the cost of postage.

The Cap10K’s training program, Austin’s Coffee House 10K Sunrise Coffee, is under way and features new training routes  and helps support local businesses.

Registration is $40 for adults. One dollar from every 2021 Cap10K registration goes to Marathon Kids, which helps elementary students run a cumulative marathon spread out during the school semester. Participants can also make an additional donation when registering, which the Statesman will match up to $10,000, at Cap10K.com. For more information go to Cap10K.com/virtualrace.

About Pam

I’m Pam LeBlanc. Follow my blog to keep up with the best in outdoor travel and adventure. Thanks for visiting my site.

Where is Pam?

Click to open a larger map

Follow Pam

These running shoes are perfect for Texans

These running shoes are perfect for Texans

by | Jan 29, 2021 | Blog

Brooks made a special edition version of its popular Launch model for the Houston Marathon. Photo courtesy Brooks Running

Imagine wearing a pair of Texas flag-themed sneaks the next time you make a dash across the Lone Star State.

Brooks designed these limited edition running shoes as part of a line of merchandise it created for the Chevron Houston Marathon. The race, scheduled for Jan. 17, was cancelled because of the pandemic, so Brooks offered the shoes to running stores around the state that carry the brand.

Here in Austin, Fleet Feet Austin, 211 Seaholm Drive, nabbed a small supply. When the store’s operating partner, Ari Perez, tweeted a photo of them this week, he triggered a mini-run.

The blue and white shoes – a special version of the popular lightweight, neutral balanced Launch line – feature red soles and a white star on their toe box. They sell for $100 and come in men’s and women’s sizes. (And if Fleet Feet sells out before you nab yours, check Academy, Zappo’s and the Brooks website, which all have limited supplies.)

“I think it’s beautiful, right?” Perez said. “Hey, man, that’s Texas on your feet!”

Perez has already stashed a pair in his closet for safekeeping. He says he’ll break them out for special occasions, like Texas Independence Day on March 2. I think they’d go great with a pair of those groovy Texas-flag shorts that were popular a few years back.

Perez, by the way, says he’s noticed a bit of a running boom lately, related to the pandemic. People who normally would head to the gym for a workout are exercising outside instead.

Keep an eye out. Some of them might be sporting a little bit of Texas on their toes.

 

 

About Pam

I’m Pam LeBlanc. Follow my blog to keep up with the best in outdoor travel and adventure. Thanks for visiting my site.

Where is Pam?

Click to open a larger map

Follow Pam

Cap10K picks Marathon Kids as 2021 race beneficiary

Cap10K picks Marathon Kids as 2021 race beneficiary

by | Sep 4, 2020 | Blog

The Capitol 10,000 is a rite of spring in Austin, Texas. Photo by Chris LeBlanc


The Statesman Capitol 10,000 – which always ranks high on my must-run list, but was cancelled in 2019 due to a storm and in 2020 due to a pandemic – has announced Marathon Kids as the beneficiary of its 2021 race.
The 2021 event, presented by Baylor Scott & White Health, is set for Sunday, April 11.
One dollar from every registration will go to Marathon Kids, a non-profit organization that helps students run and walk up to four cumulative marathons during the course of the school year. Race participants can also choose to make an additional donation when they register, which the Statesman will match up to $10,000.

The Cap 10K is one of my favorite races of the year. Chris LeBlanc photo


Registration is now open at Cap10K.com. Registration is $35 for adults and $20 for ages 10 and under.
“Since the first Cap10 back in 1978, this race has been about bringing the Austin community together in the name of good health, and Austin’s kids are the heart and the future of our city,” Jeff Simecek, the Cap10K race director, said in a press release. “I’m happy that our race and the Austin running community will support Marathon Kids in their mission to get kids active and set them on the path toward a lifetime of good health.”
Marathon Kids marks its 25th anniversary this year. The program is provided for free in all Austin public schools, as well as hundreds of other schools around the country.
“Helping kids develop a love of running that will serve them their whole lives has always been our mission,” says Marathon Kids CEO Cami Hawkins. “Now, with so much uncertainty in schools and life in general due to COVID-19, it’s more important than ever for kids to move their bodies and reap the benefits of exercise for their physical and mental health”
The organization recently unveiled a new digital lap-tracking app and reporting program called Marathon Kids Connect. Teachers, coaches, parents, and volunteers can use the platform and app to connect, get involved, and support their student runners in making progress, hitting milestones, and celebrating achievements.
To kick off its 25th anniversary season in Austin, Marathon Kids is inviting the community to join a 25,000-mile virtual relay. Throughout September, participants will run or walk, adding their miles to the collective goal of running a distance equivalent to the circumference of the earth.
To register, go to marathonkids.org/weruntheworld.

About Pam

I’m Pam LeBlanc. Follow my blog to keep up with the best in outdoor travel and adventure. Thanks for visiting my site.

Where is Pam?

Click to open a larger map

Follow Pam

Butler Trail updates: New bathrooms, a new deck, floating islands and cheese for a cause

Butler Trail updates: New bathrooms, a new deck, floating islands and cheese for a cause

by | Jul 9, 2020 | Blog

A new deck and rain gardens has opened near the Four Seasons Hotel. Photo courtesy The Trail Foundation

And now, some updates about the Butler Hike and Bike Trail, which for the moment remains open …
• First, you’ve got one more spot to pee, people. The new Festival Beach restroom has opened, replacing a crappy (sorry) facility at Edward Rendon Sr. Metro Park.
• You’ve also got a new place to take a different kind of break. A new deck has opened on the north side of the river, next to the Four Seasons Hotel. The unofficially-named Brazos Bluffs area features bench seating, rain gardens and behind-the-scenes infrastructure to prevent erosion. The project cost $438,000, according to Heidi Cohn, executive director of The Trail Foundation.
• Antonelli’s Cheese Shop will host a virtual cheese tasting on July 17, with a portion of proceeds benefitting the Trail Foundation. The “Cheese 1010: The Seven Styles of Cheese” class will costs is $40. Participants will pick up their cheese plates curbside the day of the event. (Wine pairings are also available.) The hour-long class will be followed by a 15-minute question and answer session, all done via video conferencing.
• Notice those floating islands of vegetation at the east end of Lady Bird Lake? Those aren’t lily pads, they’re wetland structures that provide habitat for plants and animals, and help with carbon sequestration, water quality and temperature regulation. The foundation installed the structures in February.

A new restroom has opened on the Butler Trail at Fiesta Gardens. Photo courtesy The Trail Foundation

About Pam

I’m Pam LeBlanc. Follow my blog to keep up with the best in outdoor travel and adventure. Thanks for visiting my site.

Where is Pam?

Click to open a larger map

Follow Pam

Maudie’s Moonlight Margarita Run goes virtual – and the trail will remain one-way at least through May

Maudie’s Moonlight Margarita Run goes virtual – and the trail will remain one-way at least through May

by | May 6, 2020 | Blog

That’s me, posing with an unidentified runner, at the 2018 Moonlight Margarita Run. This year’s race is going virtual. Photo from 2018 race by Chris LeBlanc


The Trail Foundation’s biggest fund-raiser of the year, the Maudie’s Moonlight Margarita Run, is going virtual.

That means you can run the 5K race on your own time, wherever you want. The party half of the event will take place in October, and everyone who registers and runs the virtual race now will get a couple of free drinks then.
“Apart but together we can still celebrate the Trail while keeping our city safe,” said Heidi Anderson, director of The Trail Foundation, a non-profit organization that works to maintain and improve the beloved 10-mile Butler Hike and Bike Trail around Lady Bird Lake. “The Trail Foundation is grateful to everyone who is registering and supporting our efforts to ensure the Trail is in the best condition possible, even during these unprecedented times.”
These unprecedented times, in case you haven’t heard, have meant a temporary conversion of the Butler Trail to a one-way route. People are discouraged from using the trail at all right now, because it’s difficult to maintain a 6-foot social distance on narrow stretches of the pathway, but asked to travel clockwise if they choose to do so.
“The trail, at the Austin Parks and Recreation Department’s direction, will remain one-way at least through the end of May, and then they will re-evaluate,” Anderson said. “Our counters actually show that the majority of folks are complying. Depending on the day, between 75 and 85 percent of folks are moving clockwise.”
In the meantime, the one-way signs that were put up a few weeks ago are still disappearing. Another round of signs to replace them will go up today and Thursday. (Seriously, folks. Leave the signs alone. It’s a waste for the foundation to use its donations to keep replacing signs torn down, thrown away or swiped as souvenirs.)
As for the race, once you register online at https://eventdog.com/a/eventpage.php?eID=31787&refData=website, the foundation will send you links to create a virtual bib and submit your results. Everyone who signs up gets a T-shirt, and the first 700 will get a $10 Maudie’s Tex-Mex gift card.
You can run or walk any route you choose – on road, trail, treadmill or track – as many times as you want between June 4 (that’s the day after Global Running Day) and July 4. Send in your best time to compete against other virtual participants.
I try to do the race every year. I love the combination of fun and food, and the festive, outdoor atmosphere. I hope to see you at the October party.

About Pam

I’m Pam LeBlanc. Follow my blog to keep up with the best in outdoor travel and adventure. Thanks for visiting my site.

Where is Pam?

Click to open a larger map

Follow Pam