Weekend Playlist

Don’t stay inside this weekend.  Summers are short in southeast Michigan.  Get the family out and play and get in your 10,000 steps.

Bikers, there is a 5 day Wine and Cheese Tour beginning Sunday.  This seems a little pricey at around $700, but it does include 4 hotel stays.

Will run for wine; biking is questionable.

If a biking "event" is too much just grab the kids and some helmets and go for a family bike ride.

"It is better to play than to do nothing"
-Confucius

Running Events:

Melon Festival 5k – My doctor runs this one every year and he says it’s a blast. It is Friday night and the best part is that they take runners 5 years old and up.  The entire family can participate.

Farmington Run for the Hills – This event welcomes runners, walkers, and teams and raises money for the Oakland County Special Olympics.  I think they have 1k to 10k events at this one.

Island Lake Triathlon-  This is a Sunday morning event offering both sprint and Olympic distance tri’s.  What’s the difference between the two?  That’s funny, because every time I am talking to someone about running marathons they always ask, “How long is this one?” and then they tell me about their friend who just ran the 10 mile marathon???  Marathons are always the same distance 26.2 miles (1/2's are 1/2), but triathlons have options. 

Sprint: Swim is 200 meters to 1000 meters (usually ½ mile); Bike is 12.5 miles; Run is usually about a 5K ~ 3 miles
Olympic: swim about 1 mile, 40K Bike (~25 miles) and 10K run (6.2 miles)
Ironman: 2.4 mile Swim; 112 mile Bike; 26.2 mile run (full marathon); ½ Ironman is ½ of these distances

Me and hubby running the Columbus Marathon 2009

If you’ve never had melon ice cream before you have to check out the Melon Festival in Howell.  Yummy!!!  I also saw signs for melon wine this year.  I haven’t tried it yet, but it sounds interesting.  This is a fun event for the entire family and definitely a place you can get in your 10,000 steps without trying too hard.

Who doesn’t enjoy an outdoor summer concert? DTE is always a good time no matter who is playing. This Sunday night is Maroon 5 and Train.  I saw Train open for Cheryl Crow a few years back and they were fabulous, especially when they covered Zeppelin.  Two years ago I checked out Maroon 5 same place; same weekend.  I’ve seen them both and can tell you it will be a fun concert.

While getting your 10,000 steps each day, make sure to load up on fresh fruits and veggies too.  There are plenty of local Farmers Markets open this weekend.  They close down when the weather turns so take advantage of them while we have them. 

The Tigers are hosting the Indians this weekend.  Friday and Saturday games are at 7 and Sunday's game is at 1:00.  Let's go Tigers; let's go!!!!!  Should Leyland skip Porcello on Sunday and put in Verlander?  Yeah, if we want to win!

FAST FORWARD

August 27th, The CRIM in Flint offers many different races up to 10 Miles. (There is a discount if you sign up for the CRIM and Brooksie Way together.)

October 2nd, The Brooksie Way.  This one is in Rochester and made the list for scenic fall runs.  We ran it in 2009 and it is definitely my most memorable finish line.  My husband and I lost each other at the beginning of the race, but I caught up to him at around mile 11.  Realizing that we could finish under 2:00 we held hands and booked it to the finish line crossing together at 1:58.

October 16th, Free Press Marathon.  We are signed up for this one making it our second appearance in Detroit.  There is also a marathon in Grand Rapids for the western side of the state on the same day