Track Shack Blog

Keeping Central Florida Fit

It happened again!  It certainly makes me wonder how many others are realizing that it is time to take action!  Time to bring your running shoes down to the store and let us re-evaluate you, your feet and your running form. 

Twice in the last couple weeks customers have come in with their shoes and told us, its just not working anymore…When was the last time we worked with you, we’ll ask…Well, they’ll say, you did fit me once and then I found the same model on-line so I just assumed…tsk,tsk,tsk…

These two customers found out the hard way, through injury, that it is important to get fitted when it is time for new shoes, and it is our job to look at your shoes, talk to you about what’s going on injury wise, and re-evaluate.  Remember, a bargain is only a bargain when it is right for you. 

Well, my new shoes seem to working out well.  I couldn’t figure out my own knee pain recently and realized (with some help from others) that I had not changed out my shoes in many months!  See, we are learning all the time!  I had a great eight miles yesterday as I gear up for Princess Half with my sis…

See you on the roads!

Betsy Hughes

2012 has been and will continue to be an incredible year for sports and I just love being part of that.  We kicked off the year with another successful Disney Marathon Weekend and then just a few days later, Jon and I traveled to Houston to watch the Marathon Olympic Trials and saw first hand the USA London Olympic team finish!  Talk about excitement!  The roads and finish area were packed with loud and enthusiastic spectators; Jon thinks I was one of the loudest:)  I tried hard to keep everyone posted on Facebook but I didn’t want to miss any of the race itself.  I was able to meet and chat with Desiree Davila and Deena Kastor afterwards and congratulate them on great races.  Deena didn’t make the team this year but she was so inspiring to watch waving to the crowd as she neared the finish. 

Excitement was in the air all over Houston that evening…not only were the new Olympians being celebrated, the hotels were full of screaming football fans as the Pats and Tebow…oh I mean the Broncos, were playing; and this after the 49ers and Saints played.  Plus,  the Houston Rockets were playing at home.  And Jon and I were trying to get in early so he could prepare to run, not race, the half marathon the next morning.  Sunday was another day of running and seeing friends.  Jon ran most of the half with Joan Samuelson, met up with other friends on the course and as I sat at the finish, I was able to cheer Dan and Bryan Gollins on.  Dan worked with us at Track Shack for a couple years; he had a great run, 1:13!  What an exciting weekend, we can’t wait till the London Olympics this summer!

Guest Blog from Elizabeth Hunter, Director of The Eyeglass Project

In a world where we have access to all kinds of luxuries, it is hard to imagine living life without access to something as simple as sight. If we can’t see the newspaper, we buy a pair of readers. If our world is blurry, we get a new glasses prescription.

The large majority of us have some sort of refractive error that requires a simple pair of glasses to enable us to see clearly. The same is true all over the world. The difference for people that are less fortunate is that many have no access to a pair of glasses.

So there are people walking around legally blind, that require no heroic intervention to give them sight, other than a simple pair of glasses. It seems like a pretty wonderful opportunity to change people’s lives!

We started a charity called The Eyeglass Project. I know it seems ironic, a LASIK practice working to get people in glasses. 3D LASIK is amazing. I personally am a big fan of it. It provides an end to the inconvenience of glasses. But then what’s left? A pile of glasses that have lost their purpose.

In May of 2012, a team from Hunter Vision will take used eyeglasses donations to the Dominican Republic to bring clear vision to those who don’t have access to it. But we can’t do it without your help. The donation of your used eyeglasses, something so seemingly simple, could give sight to the blind.

Hunter Vision is partnering with TIME Ministries to bring those used eyeglasses (and any others we can get) to those who need them. We began collecting eyeglasses on December 10th and continue to have drop boxes at Hunter Vision (located in the RDV Sportsplex), and Northland, A Church Distributed.

So far, through our community rallying together, we have already collected over 500 pairs of eyeglasses in a matter of weeks! We will continue to collect donations in the New Year at several additional locations including adding a drop location at Track Shack for those picking up race packets.

What do you think of being a part of this? How about telling your friends too? It doesn’t require money, just a pair of glasses that you don’t use anymore. At each of our drop locations, we will have tags for your glasses that give you the option of sharing your information with us. The purpose of getting your info is to let you see the difference that your glasses made. Our hope is to be able to send you a picture of a very happy person in glasses that were once your own. What fun!

Whew! The 19th annual Disney Marathon Weekend is over and it was so great!  What fun it is to see familiar faces at the expo and at the finish of the events.  We are surrounded by almost 50,000 people from around the world all weekend so to see a friend from Marathonfest,  or Susan and Tara speaking at the expo, or to see Matt from our Day of Race staff run, and to see lots of Galloway volunteers at the race, it just puts a smile on my face.  We work with really great folks from Disney, Jon and our staff are fortunate to work with people who care that the race is successful for each and every participant. 

Thanks to our Track Shack Event staff, our Track Shack folks and all our friends who worked hard, almost round the clock, to make so many runners’ dreams come true.  And finally, after four days of not running myself, tomorrow I’ll see you on the roads!

Betsy

Well, Happy New Year, Jon and I wish each of you, our customers, our staff and family a happy and healthy year.  In many ways I’m glad to say so long to 2011.  Although there were many positive and productive times, we also had several difficult and trying times.  I think that continuing to work at staying fit really helps us mentally when bad news hits.  I was the mom who told my kids to have a big glass of water and take a spin around the block when things seem rough.  ( I can just see them roll their eyes as they read this.)

On Friday, I had a brainstorm.  I am always trying to do a million things at once so time management is super important to me.  I was chatting with a customer about the new year when it hit me.  2012 has two fewer syllables than 2011.  Imagine the extra time we’ll have this year! Extra time for that extra mile, the extra workout in the gym and even an extra hour of sleep now and then:)

To our family and friends who are beginning a new year after not so great news in 2011, know that we’ll think of you often and we’ll be constantly sending you good and positive thoughts.  You’ll be with us on the roads as we trudge along to stay fit and have a little extra energy each day.  A new year, and a new you!

See you on the roads at the Disney Marathon Weekend!

Another year is almost over.  Do you think years go by faster as you get older or faster because of technology?  Hmmm…all I know is I’m so glad that I can still get up and go for a run in the morning.  That is doesn’t matter that I’m slower, don’t go as far, but that I just still enjoy it.  I’m thankful that I’ve had very few injuries in my adult years, sure my back isn’t great, but that taught me to become strong in other ways so I could continue to run.  I’m certainly done with anything super long but I look forward to running a half marathon with my sister and daughter in late February.

Enjoy your Christmas or Hanukkah week…We are open normal hours this week except for Christmas Eve when we’ll close at 3:00.  We have so many great gift ideas for you,unless of course you receive a Track Shack gift certificate for a present, then come on in and check out our shoes and our great apparel.  This is the fun time of year where we can wear some long sleeves:) And the colors this season are so great!

Have fun with your family and friends, I know we are looking forward to a busy house with Emma and Chris coming home.  Chris is our new graduate in the family, now we have a Gator and a Seminole alumnus. See you on the roads; we’ll try to be quiet running through our neighborhood Christmas morning…what a great way to start a special day!

Jon and I often wake up to music as our alarm.  This morning’s song was a James Taylor one we love, “I’m going to Carolina in my Mind…”  It had extra significance for us today; yesterday afternoon a dear friend and colleague, Jeff Wentworth, passed away.  It was very unexpected and incredibly sad, Jon was there to say goodbye and support Jeff’s wife, Marcia.  The running community has been affiliated with Jeff’s experience and hard work for many years.  Jeff was an outstanding runner at NC State, hence the significance to the song this morning.  Jeff also worked as the administrator for the Florida division of USA Track and Field, directly under Jon, worked with Disney Sports for several years and for many years was often the official scorer of many, many high school cross country and track meets.  Jeff, we’ll miss you so much and Marcia, you are in all our prayers and thoughts.

Contributed by Seasons 52

This is truly the season for living life to the fullest. But living well also includes the things we do to make our lives better. Like getting and staying in shape. And nurturing ourselves with flavorful, healthy foods. Since you’re reading this blog, you’re most likely already getting the exercise you need (and hopefully we’ll see you at the Seasons 52 Park Ave. 5.2k on January 21st.) So we’d like to offer you some creative and simple ways to live well via your kitchen this season, courtesy of Seasons 52 Executive Chef Clifford Pleau.

We begin with the creamy dips that are a must for any holiday party, and the rich sauces that add such depth to your favorite entrées. Chef Pleau encourages you to keep dipping and pouring—it’s the holidays, after all—but consider replacing the heavy, high-fat ingredients with nonfat cottage cheese, nonfat sour cream, nonfat yogurt or silken tofu. You’ll dramatically reduce the fat and calories, and it’s likely your guests won’t even notice the difference.

Another way to lighten things up is to eliminate the need for buttering or greasing pans before baking by coating your pans with extra virgin olive oil applied with a spray bottle—it coats evenly and reduces the amount you need to use. Or, if you prefer to go even lighter, consider using non-stick pans that require no pre-baking prep at all.

And then there are wonderful things you can do with vegetables. Roasting brings out the boldest flavor in vegetables, and roasting them in their jackets concentrates their flavors even more. (It also helps to lock in the nutrients.) Beets, carrots, onions, and plum tomatoes all taste better roasted, if we do say so ourselves, and make a wonderful accompaniment to so many holiday dishes.

It might seem counterintuitive at this time of year, but one of Chef Pleau’s most helpful tips is to keep flavors simple. Overloading a dish with too many ingredients may only confuse the palette. That’s not to say you shouldn’t combine flavors in creative ways, but sometimes less really is more.

This is a joyful time of year. A time to look back fondly at the year that was, to celebrate the holidays at hand, and to look ahead to the year to come. It is our wish for you that this year was memorable, that these holidays are festive, and that next year finds you living well. From all of us at Seasons 52, best wishes to you and yours.

ZESTY RED PEPPER SAUCE (Creamy / low fat)

Ingredients:

1 cup red pepper, roasted & pureed
1 cup cottage cheese, low fat
1 tablespoon cumin seed, toasted & ground fine
1 teaspoon blackening spice
¼ cup lime juice, fresh (2 each)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Chipotle Tabasco

Procedure:

•  Prepare fresh roasted and peeled peppers or use a drained jar of pimientos.  Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.  Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Notes: This recipe serves as an excellent dip for artichokes and grilled vegetables, a sauce for grilled chicken and fresh fish or a dressing over a tossed greens salad.

Makes:  16 oz

This is the week we count our blessings.  I’m so thankful I can get out of bed each morning and either go for a run or go to a spin class.  I’m definitely thankful for my husband and children and our extended family.  I’m thankful for friends that encouraged us after a family member received a life threatening diagnosis this year.  I’m thankful I work in an environment that is fitness and people oriented.  I’m thankful for all the employees we have that help us help others and for their commitment to this community.  I’m thrilled and thankful that my Publix re-opened.  I’m thankful that my computer works and that our phones at the store are working again.  I’m thankful that so many of you will share Thanksgiving morning with us at the Senior’s First Turkey Trot!

Congratulations to all our incredible Central Florida high schoolers who ran so well at state meet this weekend.  Colonial won the state 4A title!  Trinity Prep, Dr. Phillips and Olympia all had top finishers in their respective races as well.  I’m thankful that these young people have just begun a future of life long fitness and fun!

If I look like I’m talking to myself when you see me on the roads, I’m just counting my blessings!  Happy Thanksgiving week!

What an incredible weekend we had…it was non-stop, physically non-stopping and working hard and loving it.  We think sometimes, that we are probably living a dream.  Yes, Jon and I work hard, our staff kicks butt, but we are doing what we love.  Friday was busy selling and helping people finalize plans for our big race at Celebration on Sunday.  It was also the last day to promote and prepare for an awesome Saturday of working with the running/walking community, fitting them for shoes and encouraging them in whatever their goals might be.  Plus! Saturday was our homecoming event with Jenny Barringer Simpson and what a homecoming it was.  Jenny recently won the gold in the World Championship in the 1500 meters.  She is not only the USA Olympic hopeful, she is a graduate of Oviedo High School and the most gracious young lady.  If you missed your chance to visit with her and hear her speak of her running experiences, well; you missed a great time.  Hopefully she’ll be back one day.

Jenny joined us Sunday at our Founder’s Day 10k and ran the mile run with the kids.  She signed posters for hours and helped us present awards.  It was a super morning of great weather, a gathering of almost 3000 people exercising and promoting fitness and exhausting.  But did we (Jon and I) enjoy it?  Every minute…It is for real, we love what we do, love this sport and love the camaraderie of wonderful people. Have a great week and as Thanksgiving gets closer, think about all the positives in your life.  See you on the roads.  And, Happy Birthday again to the first Track Shack baby, our Emma, who was 25 on Saturday!