How to help the Larsen family

You have all probably heard by now the very sad news about Steve Larsen. We are overwhelmed with sadness. Steve was a good friend and a great guy. He was an amazing athlete and businessman, but most of all it was easy to tell that his pride in life was as a husband and a father to five beautiful kids. The world does not seem right without Steve Larsen.

Since it has happened, all we have been able to think is "how can we help" and we have heard that from some of you as well. So we wanted to let you know how we can all help to support the Larsen family:

Celebrate his Life: Steve's Memorial Service is Saturday, May 23rd at 1 pm at Les Schwab Amphitheater. Many people are planning to meet at Drake park at 12:30 and run or bike to the service.

Contribute to the Steve Larsen Memorial Fund that will go to the Larsen family. This fund is set up at Umpqua Bank. You can drop a check off at any Umpqua bank branch, at Fleet Feet Bend or at Footzone or you can mail a check to:
Steve Larsen Memorial Fund
Umpqua Bank
390 SW Century Drive Suite 100
Bend OR 97702
Hopefully, you will also be able to contribute online in a few days if you check this site: http://www.rememberstevelarsen.com/

Or, if you prefer, Katie Caba is kindly organizing dinners for the family. You can donate money that will be used to purchase gift cards at dinner places for the family. (Also by dropping off a check at Fleet Feet or Footzone.) If you want to donate a home-cooked dinner, contact us and we can put you in touch with the right people.

Finally, next Friday afternoon (May 29th) at 4:30pm there is an exhibition steeplechase, the only non-high school event open to the public, being held at Summit High School as part of the Oregon Elite Championship Meet. They are asking for a $5 minimum donation as a fundraiser for the family of Steve Larsen.

Steve brought so much to our community. We want to rally around the Larsen family so that they know they are not alone.

My time with Steve Larsen

Just sad.  That is the feeling that has been overwhelming me since Tuesday night when I first heard of Steve Larsen's collapse.  

The sadness is in so many areas.  Mostly, of course, for his family.  Then, for the community.  In a town that seems to be overflowing with great athletes, he topped the list.  How cool was it that we got to compete in local races against one of the best in the world?

I met Steve years ago through other local runners.  I was immediately drawn to his presence.  Handsome, fast, extremely personable, he had a magnetic presence.  In time, he became a friend.  I respected his opinions on training, real estate, and life.

When I first thought of opening a Fleet Feet store, he was the first person that I confided in that I was thinking about opening a running store.    When he gave me a whole hearted endorsement, I felt like I could finally really dive into the project.  

As my realtor, he was the total professional.  I remember feeling trepidation in using a friend as a realtor, but as in all things in his life, he was the total professional.  I had more respect for him professionally and as a friend after buying our building than before we started.  

My last contact with Steve was last Thursday.  We got together in the morning at the shop and shared a coffee before I opened the store.  We talked about the normal stuff;  training, upcoming races, some real estate gossip, and family.  And, now he's gone.  Steve was a mentor to me.  And I miss him.

So, as a town, I hope we can celebrate his life.  I won't lie, its hard for me to find positives right now.  It doesn't seem fair.  How can you do ALL the right things and end up having something like this happen?  Steve was the picture of health and fitness.  He was a great family man and a trust worthy businessman.  So, it just doesn't sit well with me.   As time passes, I hope that I can look back and just look fondly that all he accomplished and created; and that is a lot.  Right now my thoughts and prayers are with his family and I look forward to celebrating his life this Saturday.

Lastly, many will be gathering in Drake Park at 12:30 this coming Saturday and running, walking, or cycling to his memorial service which will be right behind the Les Schwab Amphitheater.  I hope to see lots of you there.

Sincerely,

Rod Bien

Lots Going On!

Darla, on her way to the win at Mac Forest 50K!

Man, I sure need to be better about updating this blog!  There is always so much going on that I get overwhelmed on where to begin.

So, I'll start with the Eugene Marathon.  We have just started a "Fleet Feet" racing team.  We sent over three of our athletes to tackle the course.  Laura Kantor ran her first marathon in 4:46. Laura owns a very special place in our heart.  She was one of our fist customers and has lost well over 100 pounds in her journey as a runner.   Another one of our runners, Dave Krayeski, who ran his first marathon in 3:48.   And lastly, our own Chad Baker, who coaches both of those runners, ran the 1/2 marathon in 1:41.  So, a big congratulations to them and everyone who toed the line in Eugene.  I'm hoping to be able to get over there next year!

Secondly, two more Fleet Feet racers went over to run the McDonald Forest 50K this last weekend.  Darla Askew did okay.... NOT!  She won!  She has become one of the quicker runners in the PNW and we are all very excited for her!  Chris Askew, her husband, also ran a great race to finish just seconds behind her!

And, here at the shop, we've been busy with the coming of spring and summer.  Lots of new shoes on the wall which is always fun.

Our training groups have been a blast as well.  Our 1/2 marathon and "No Boundaries" beginner running programs are going great and it has been so exciting for us to see the progress of the runners as each week passes.

Now, let's get out there and run!!

1 Year in the Books

Well, we just had our one year anniversary as a store on April 4th. It's been cool to look back and see how we have grown. I remember our first "group" (I'll use that term loosely) run as it was just Laura Kantor and me out for a run. She still comes to EVERY single workout we provide and is one of our true store representatives.
It's equally fun to look back at the moment as we seem to have really gained some major momentum over the last few months. We've been busy and our programs have just been a ton of fun. In short, I feel very lucky. Lucky that people like to support the store and even more lucky to truly, truly love what I do. It never feels like work and I look forward to heading to work every single day. Sure, we had a lot of challenges to overcome during our first year but it makes it much more satisfying to now look back.
Moving forward, our mission is the same. We want to define what a true walking and running specialty store is supposed to be about. It is all we do and is our one and only focus. We want to help people achieve their goals with fitness. No fluff here. We love to talk biomechanics, shoes, nutrition, and technical clothing. It keeps things simple not to muddy the water for us and our customers know what to expect from us. We may not be who you want to come to for a fashion consult, but you'd be hard pressed to find a group of employees that has more real world experience in the world of road and trail running. It's not a hobby for us, it's a lifestyle.
Anyway, I just wanted to thank everyone for supporting and believing in our cause and we will work harder than ever to keep you in the right shoes and on the path toward better fitness.

"No Boundaries" begins!!!

We had a really exciting day last Saturday. It was the kickoff of our first training program, "No Boundaries". After lots of 'stressing out' about the details, the event went seamlessly and we had an absolute blast with our 60+ participants. One of my favorite things about owning a Fleet Feet Store store is getting people excited about running and walking! We had seven very experienced coaches and were inspired by the stories of our participants. From recently battling cancer to struggling to lose weight, to just not knowing where to begin with running, we heard it all. It was inspiring! For our first week, we ran and walked a full mile and everyone came back excited to do it again this weekend. All in all, just a fantastic day. We can't wait to do it again this weekend with our walkers and runners set to tackle 1.5 miles out there!
We feel lucky to have such a fun, outgoing, and excited group to work with! Our end goal is to finish the Heaven Can Wait 5K Walk/Run. What a great event to support and to train for!

Fleet Feet Bend Invades Hawaii!

In mid-March, a group of Fleet Feeters headed to tropical Hawaii for some sun, warmth, pig, fruity drinks, whale watching, snorkeling with turtles, beach time, and, of course, running and racing.

To get things started, on March 14, Sean ran to the sun on Maui. Actually, he ran Run to the Sun, a race starting at sea level and finishing 10,000 feet and 36 miles later on top of Mt. Haleakala. This year, however, brutal conditions (70 mph winds on-course, 120 mph winds at the summit) forced race organizers to stop the race 2 miles and 700 feet short. With crewing and cheerleading from Gina and Dave, Sean was able to barely hold on for the win. And his purple body at the finish proved to the race organizers that they had made the right call to shorten it.

Sean, en route to the Sun.

Up next was the St. Paddy's Day Run 'til You're Green 5k, also on Maui. Dave, Gina, and Sean all showed up in their green for this warm rain-drenched race. Gina ran to a p.r. of 25:26, good for 7th girl and 1st in her age group. Dave rocked to a p.r., too, in 20:48, good for 4th in the old man's age group. Sean finished in 17:12 for 3rd overall.

Dave and Gina, pre-St. Paddy's Day run.

Sean and Dave, hanging out in front of the bag piper dude.

While Dave flew back to the cold of central Oregon, Gina and Sean continued their vacation on the Big Island. On March 20, they found themselves at the starting line of the uber-low-key Friendship 5k. Gina ran strong and steady through the humidity, and despite a small detour near the finish, she won in 25:30. Sean took off fast and strong, determined to run sub-17. When he got to where he thought the turn around was, there was no cone or person there, nor any runner anywhere in site behind him. So he went a little further. Still no turn around or runners. Oops. So he re-traced back to where he started seeing runners again, got back on course, and rallied for 2nd place in 18:57 on his 3.5 mile 5k. (Sorry, no pictures from this one.)

Fleet Feet's Hawaiian grand finale was the Big Island International Marathon in Hilo on March 22. Through the early start, humidity, tough first 10 miles, rain, wind, and sun, Gina was able to p.r. in a smokin' 4:15:32, good for 2nd in her age group (which was worth a gift certificate for some tasty Hawaiian candy). Sean planned on starting easy and finishing strong...however, the opposite proved true. Still, he was happy to finish his Hawaiian running vacation with a 2:56:52, good for 3rd overall (he won a gift certificate for some tasty candy, too).

Gina finishes her p.r. marathon.

Sean, wishing the finish line was 4 miles closer.

Here comes No Boundaries...

Well, we are on the eve of our first beginners running program called "No Boundaries". This is a program for people who used to run and no longer do or do not have running as part of their daily life and need some guidance and companionship out there on the roads.
Tomorrow those folks will be running 1 mile out there on roads and around Drake Park. We have 60+ signed up so we have a real nice, fun class set for everyone. With some of the most experienced runners in Bend as coaches, our "newbies" will be in good hands. I'm sure it'll be a little chaotic as we dive into our first training program but we just can't wait. We've met a lot of the folks as they've come in for last minute advice and asked us to check out to see if their shoes are "run worthy". Its been a blast and I can't wait to wake up tomorrow morning!
We'll also be starting our 1/2 marathon program (we are the official training program for the Pacific Crest Marathon) on April 5th and we will have an informational meeting this coming Tuesday at 6 PM. If you want more info on the program, click here.
So come on in, meet some of the coaches, and get ready for Pacific Crest 1/2 Marathon with us.