Every runner has one race and one medal to give for someone. One Medal is a program that encourages the gift of encouragement and empowerment for people who are going through what appears to be insurmountable adversity.
– Tom Garrity
The Black Hills Ultramarathon: 50 Mile Putting the running pack on her knee she pulled out a five inch blade, “You never know when this will come in handy out there, I always run with it.” Pondering my position in the back of a sprinter van, in the remote Black Hills...
“The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” – Robert Burns The plan was to run the Panther City 13.1 marathon on February 21, 2021. The “cold” reality, in the form of an artic polar vortex, postponed the race. My One Medal honoree, a combat veteran with...
The Surfside Beach Half Marathon was my first race in almost a year. It is a fun race on the packed slopping sand along the Texas Gulf Coast. It was my first race since the initial Pandemic restrictions. It was a race with several narratives....
Earlier this week I had a chance to learn more about Gabriele “Gabe” Grunewald and her broad base of support through the use of #BraveLikeGabe . In the spirit of One Medal, the Albuquerque Dukes Track Club dedicated a weekly run to her as a form of encouragement. On...
It is not often you get to take a picture with everyone in your race. Actually, I’ve been running for nearly ten years and it has never happened. Well, until the Runoff Runoff Marathon. In a cool 42 degree haze, the headwaters of the Rio Grande to our...
The Garrity Group recently pledged and completed a virtual 5K. While I am sure the staff covers that kind of territory in a day around the office, this was a special 5K is was for someone none of us ever met, AJ AJ was born February 25, 2016. His last days were...
The Cedro Peak Trail Half Marathon was going to be a challenge. It did not disappoint. At 7,600 feet above sea level, it was higher than Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Add in a cluster of runners on narrow trails… things are bound to get interesting! I ran...
The Ironman 70.3 Boulder triathlon was for my friend Pete. His cancer treatments were successfully wrapping up about the same time this race was occurring. When I started training for Ironman 70.3 Boulder, I had a variety of plans. The progression of...
Until June 2, 2018, I could state with confidence that I never stepped foot in Dexter, New Mexico. What a neat town. It is tucked away in the Southwestern New Mexico, surrounded by the oil industry. The Milkman Triathlon didn’t offer a finisher’s medal. However, they...
The Houston Marathon looked so good on paper. It is the city where I was raised in the state where I went to school. The city is about 5,000 feet lower than where I live, thinking it would provide a natural advantage because of all the extra air. Again, it...
