RandyStep.com - Obsessed Runner

New Year's Day has officially moved to March 1st!

randy sunglasses Soon after becoming dictator, Julius Caesar decided that the traditional Roman calendar should start in January, not the traditional March date. The average January temp in Rome is around 50 degrees, so I guess Julius figured it was a good time of year to make fitness resolutions. I've decided to stick to the old calendar, if you want to join me we still have some time to dream up our resolutions, especially when it comes to running! That said, we also have time to pick some target events to run this year, or should I say... next year, after March 1st! Let's kick the year off at Shamrocks & Shenanigans 5K & 1K, March 10th in Ann Arbor. 100% of the bottom line goes to Save A Heart, an organization which benefits the Congenital Heart Center at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital. The event donated over $30,000 last year!

Let is snow, we have time!

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner ... Running late.

PS: HUT, HUT, Join us before the big game and earn your spot on the couch! The Super 5K Roadrace on February 4, 2018 in Novi, MI will get you in the game day spirit... and wait until you see the post race spread! Multi-functional headwear and touch screen gloves to all entrants, medals and pint glasses to all finishers!

PS: By the time April rolls around your new resolutions will be in full swing. Join us April 14, 2018 in Dearborn, MI for the Martian Invasion of Races 5K, 10K, 13.1M, 26K, 26.2M and Kids' Marathon! Sweet suncatcher fill medals to all finishers, tech shirts to all entrants... Join the invasion!

2018-01-10 - I admit I'm cheating winter a bit

randy flowers I jumped in my car to get to a place to run out of the wind and cold ... And 18 hours later ended up in Florida. Watching the temp on the dash work its way from -7 to 80 was highly motivational! A couple audio books helped make the drive less painful. I've been enjoying tropical trail runs and will sneak in a half marathon this weekend before heading back on Monday. If at all possible, punch a hole in winter with a warm escape, just another tool to get us through. Next weekend, January 20, I'll be road tripping up to Traverse City for the Bigfoot 5K and 10K snowshoe slog, come join me! Life it too short not to throw in a spur of the moment road trip, north or south.

Do something spontaneous,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, running shirtless today.

PS: Get out your green gear, shamrockers, the Shamrocks and Shenanigans 5K and 1K are back and more shamrockin' than ever! Hit the streets of downtown Ann Arbor with us on Sunday morning, March 11th, 2018. All proceeds of this charity event support Save A Heart, an organization that raises funds for the patients and families of the Congenital Heart Center at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital.

2018-01-03 - Time to trick yourself into it

anna winter Happy new year from the Baby Goat! I hope your resolutions are in full swing and getting out the door for your daily run has been a breeze. If you're like me and that isn't the case at all.. it's time to pull out our bag of tricks... to trick ourselves out the door.

In the new year I have committed to running at least 1 mile a day for the first 100 days of the year. I love this idea, but the execution is a little tricky. For my first day, I used my favorite trick, ask somebody who is more reliable than I am to run with me. It worked so well in fact, when I got home and I was going to ask my husband if we could skip it because it was too cold, he already had his clothes on and was ready to go... and out the door we went. Yesterday, I once again decided it was too cold, so I decided to slap my Garmin on and run laps around the house. After 5 minutes and 13 seconds of that torture, I ran downstairs, put on my running clothes, ran down the driveway and into the night. I'm not sure what this trick would be called but... something like "do something terrible and you'll get so sick of it you'll be dying to run out in the cold." I haven't decided yet what tonight's trick will be, but I'm excited to see what creative way I get my butt out the door.

Pull out that bag of tricks,

Baby Goat, a not quite as obsessed runner who is excited to trick my way into 100 days of the daily run... and beyond.

PS: I love taking over the midweek because I get to shamelessly plug MY favorite events! Join me and all my trail loving friends at the 32nd running of Trail Weekend on April 28th and 29th, 2018. Try 5 miles, 13.1 miles, 26.2 miles or 50K on Potawatomi Trail in Pinckney, MI! If you're not already obsessed with running around in the woods... you will be after this one!

PS: BEER! Do I have your attention? The Hightail to Ale 5K is back for 5 YEARS OF CHEERS on May 11, 2017! I love this beautiful 5K course on the riverfront in Detroit... and who doesn't love FINISHER BEER?

2017-12-28 - I love winter running!

randy holiday5k I just love winter running. The extra cushion from a light crunch of snow under my shoes, the sparkling frost that forms on my hat, the traction device I wrap around my shoes to give me a no-slip-macho feeling as I run recklessly across ice patches, mastering the environment. Ok, the truth is, winter is here so you might as well love it or leave it, no matter what you REALLY think of it. Keep saying your new mantra until you almost believe it, "I just love these long, cold, dark winter runs, I just love winter running ..." Extreme runs give a lot of bang for the buck, that said, run smart when the temps are this low. Start into the wind, run a short loop you can bail on at any sign of trouble. No heroics, just get it done!

Let's get out there before the weather turns nice!

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who loves winter ... Sure.

PS: Winter WILL eventually end. When it does, join us for our FIFTH ANNUAL Thirsty 3 Series! This not-so-serious racing and drinking series takes you on a tour to our favorite local beer, wine and hard cider facilities! Get your beer on at the Hightail to Ale 5K on May 11, 2018 in Detroit, MI, Your wine on in Jackson, MI on August 18, 2018 at the Running Between the Vines 5K, 5 Mile and Half Marathon... and then make the trip to Flushing, MI on October 7, 2018 as we SKEDADDLE for HARD CIDER at the Scrumpy Skedaddle 1K, 5K and 10K! PRICES GO UP DECEMBER 31, 2017 AT 11:59PM!

2017-12-13 - The little things... are the big things

anna winter Baby Goat STEPping in today to help get your butt out the door!

Winter has settled in here across Michigan and getting myself out the door for the daily run has reached peak difficulty. I don't know about you, but for me the little things ARE the big things. If I can't find a pair of running pants I like or there aren't any clean socks... there is a 97% chance my run is not going to happen. Let's make the daily run easier on ourselves by knocking out the little obstacles. Get the laundry done, make piles of running outfits you love for the entire week, line the shoes up at the door with the laces UNTIED and get the phone out to make running plans with your friends. Hey, it still might not work... but a clear path to that door is sure going to make it easier to get out of it!

Knock out those little obstacles,

Baby Goat, a not quite as obsessed runner who is headed home to throw my beloved Balegas in the laundry so I might have a chance to make it out the door this week!

If it was easy...

randy holiday5k We don't run because it's easy, we run because we get it. Those who don't get it joke that the only time you would catch them running would be to the refrigerator or from a grizzly bear but never to just get in a run. As we layer up and head out on a snowy day with an icy headwind, our neighbors are sure to be shaking their heads and wondering if we have lost our sanity, especially if we crack a smile... a smile that comes because we understand that the reality is a run like this is saving our sanity, and yes, can be just plain fun.

Laugh at the weather and get in some miles,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, laughing all the way.

PS: Speaking of laughing... Join us for our FIFTH ANNUAL Thirsty 3 Series! This not-so-serious racing and drinking series takes you on a tour to our favorite local beer, wine and hard cider facilities! Get your beer on at the Hightail to Ale 5K on May 11, 2018 in Detroit, MI, Your wine on in Jackson, MI on August 18, 2018 at the Running Between the Vines 5K, 5 Mile and Half Marathon... and then make the trip to Flushing, MI on October 7, 2018 as we SKEDADDLE for HARD CIDER at the Scrumpy Skedaddle 1K, 5K and 10K! PRICES GO UP DECEMBER 31, 2017 AT 11:59PM!

2017-12-06 - Not a time to be a running hero

randy ecuador200 From Turkey day to New Year's Day, our daily run is getting attacked from all sides, from endless parties and treats, finding time to shop, bad footing, wind, cold, short and dark days. Yikes! This is no time for running heroics and goals that may be doomed to fail, it's time to hunker down and just commit to the basics. Promise yourself to just get out the door for a minimum number of days for a minimum number of miles, something realistic, just enough to take in some fresh air and jiggle the fat. We can come back in January without too much erosion of our base, ready to ramp up to greatness!

Run off what you can today, we'll burn the rest in January!

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner, sharing what for me are rare, realistic thoughts about the daily run. Dang.

PS: HO, HO, GO! There is one last chance to run with us in 2017. Join us Saturday evening, December 9, 2017 at the Holiday Hustle 5K and 1 Mile in Dexter, MI! A festive fun run full of flashing flare and jingle bells you wont want to miss... Online registration closes tomorrow, December 7 at NOON!

PS: We're ramping up your 2018 running year over here at RF Events. Most recently opened? Our grooviest race of all! Join us for 3 days of peace, music and running at Run Woodstock on September 7, 8 & 9, 2018. Distances from 5 Miles to 100. Campsites are going fast so get in while the getting is good... and start the training in January ;). PEACE, MAN!

2017-11-29 - The daily run will get you there

I'm writing this by a roaring fire in a hostel perched at 13,000 ft on the rim of a volcano in Ecuador. Yesterday's 8 mile trek with 3,700 ft of climb got me here, made possible by my daily run. Our daily run will insure a fitness level that will prepare us for adventure when the opportunity arises. What I am experiencing while I trek through the Andes is not accessible to the average sedentary American. Another thought... the running lifestyle, finds us at times changing in our cars, or relieving ourselves in the facilitrees, these aspects of our play prepare us for adventure travel.

Today's run will take you far,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner ... Who is actually "running" very little this week, ha!

PS: Join us for an all inclusive running adventure and escape the cold this winter with the Dirt Crew! Mark February 16-23, 2018 on the calendar, head to THIS LINK to book your spot and you'll be on a direct flight to NOW Jade in the Mayan Riviera in Mexico in no time! Daily optional runs, Jammin' 5K & 10K, daily active schedule and more fun!

PS: 'Tis the season to give back! We're looking for volunteers to HO, HO, GO and help out with us at the Holiday Hustle 5K in Dexter, MI on December 9! Volunteers receive fun and festive flashing flare, a $30 voucher towards a future RF Events' Event and more! Check out volunteer opportunities here.

2017-11-22 - Thank you for running!

randy freep Feeling grateful back here at RF Events' headquarters as we come into the home stretch of the event year. We can't thank you enough for your support of our events and making it possible for us to live out our passion. To thank you for your loyalty, we are very excited to reward you in 2018 and beyond with our "Run More, Earn More" program, where you will get a $20 event credit for every $150 spent on event entries. It's a simple program with nothing to do on your part, we'll keep track, just run any event on this list and earn! More runners will line up tomorrow to run in a race than any other day of the year! The Turkey Trot is a wonderful, fun, family, fitness tradition that lets us earn our spot at the table and on the couch. Weather you run in Downtown Ann Arbor, Detroit or in any of the other thousands of Turkey Trots across America, you will be setting a fun, fitness example those on the sidelines, perhaps creating the spark and giving the gift of running to others.

Run, laugh, smile and hug each other to keep warm tomorrow,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who just loves Thanksgiving day.

PS: Because of your support, we have made donations from the bottom line of our events this year to: Karen's Trail, The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, The March of Dimes, University Prep High School of Detroit, The John Rogucki foundation, C.S. Mott Children's Hospital Save a Heart Program, The Novi Youth Council, The Ice Age Trail, The Riverland Conservancy, Angleman Syndrome Foundation, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, The Pinckney Trail Riders Association, Jackson Christian Athletics, Dexter Senior Center, Faith in Action, The Boy Scouts of America and many other worthwhile organizations. We especially thank those of you who made thousands of dollars of additional donations to these great organizations, you are amazing!

2017-11-15 - The run gives us quality outdoor time

randy snowshoe Most of us spend more time indoors when the weather turns cold. This is one reason we can appreciate running even more in winter, the daily run gives us a chance to spend quality outdoor time. Yes, we need to have the right equipment but with today's tech gear, it takes very little. A couple wicking layers, some outer layer to cut the wind, hat, gloves and perhaps a bit of shoe traction and we can run as far as we are fit to go! I'll see you out there, let's give each other a thumbs up and a wave!

Just say yes to running all winter,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who admits to not being a fan of winter, but a fan of winter running. We can't dress for the heat but you can for anything else mother nature throws our way!

PS: 'Tis the season to give back! We're looking for volunteers at a couple of our upcoming events. Gobble along with us at the Ann Arbor Turkey Trot on November 23rd or HO, HO, GO at the Holiday Hustle on December 9 in Dexter, MI. We've tons of fun positions available!

PS: GOBBLE GOBBLE, TURKEYS! 7 days to Thanksgiving! Hit the pavement with us at the Ann Arbor Turkey Trot 5K and Tot Trot 1K. This festive fun run is a great way to start your Thanksgiving day and get you in the turkey mood! Shirts to all entrants, medals to all finishers.