QUICKSILVER ORIGINS
Finding a name is hard work; it takes many ideas, days, hours of throwing names out there. Combine coffee with a tired mind makes for Einstein-like thinking (in Scott's own words)... If we could do something with the Roman God Mercury...? He was the fastest of all; he was also the messenger. Mercury is a chemical element also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum (symbol: Hg). Think liquid metal. Since hydrargyrum is hard to pronounce, we went with QUICKSILVER.
Team. What does team mean? Why not group or club? A Team comprises a group of people linked in a common purpose. A group in itself doesn't necessarity constitute a team. Teams normally have members with complementary skills and generate synergy through a coordinated effort which allows each member to maximize his/her strengths. Team members help one another realize each other's potential, and create an environment that allows everyone to go beyond their limitations...
QuickSilver Running Team is born!
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MEMBER NEWS
With the winter fast approaching, it's getting dark earlier. We are moving to Genesis Rec Center NOVEMBER 1st. Meet in the Booster Juice area. You do not need a Genesis membership. Day use lockers and washroom facilities are available. Saturdays meet at Good Earth off of 8th street.
Tuesday 6:30pm Genesis
Thursday 6:30pm Genesis
Saturday 8:30am Good Earth
Our Year End wrap up party is Saturday night, Dec 3rd. Potluck. Mark it on your calendar! RSVP online here.
Our 5k, 10k, half and full marathons go ahead again in January. In the meantime, group runs for the rest of the year are informal. Relax and enjoy the down season. Spend some time with your friends and family and let them know you value their support as you work towards maintaining your active lifestyle. Maybe they'll join you for the next sessions...
COACH'S CORNER
Sunset is now just after 7pm. Carry a headlamp or flashlight; a basic one is fine. Headlamps are readily available at stores like Canadian Tire, or any outdoors store, for under $20. If you prefer, you can wrap lamps around your wrist or put them on a waistband. We also recommend an armband and small flashing light for your back - the flashing bike lights that cyclists use work well, or use Donna's suggestion to buy the little $4 ones from Can Tire. Reflective clothing: if your running jacket isn't reflective you can purchase reflective strips from fabric stores and make your own arm bands with a safety pin. or wear a safety vest.
Gord from Gord's Running Store (awesome guy) will be coming up to Airdrie to do a Winter Clothing talk to prepare you for chilly weather and offer layering tips.
In a nutshell, a longsleeve technical fabric base with a wind jacket or vest over top can serve you most of the winter. Err on the side of being warmer rather than colder, but remember that you will warm up quickly once moving and if you're sweating heavily you will cool down rapidly, especially if it's windy. When buying winter clothing look for covered zippers to avoid chafing your neck or use a band-aid or tape to cover the zipper. When worn around your neck, a buff - basically a tube of lightweight fabric - is easily pulled up to cover your chin or entire head. Consider removing earrings (noserings, likewise!!) before cold weather runs. Thicker socks like Smartwool or double layering drymax or coolmax socks works well to keep your feet warm; you may have to adjust your shoe size to accomodate the bulk. New Balance Calgary's discount remains in place - mention that you are a team member and give your name at the checkout to receive 15% off.
Winter specific shoes usually have an impermeable upper and more aggressive lugs on the sole, like trail shoes. In the winter some people duct tape over the upper mesh areas to prevent snow and moisture from seeping in. If you are taping shoes make sure you have them ON while you do this to avoid inadvertently taping your shoes too small to fit the volume of your feet. Airdrie paths are cleared in the winter so you should be fine in your unmodified, regular shoes. You likely won't need spike systems like Yak Traks, or gaiters either though we can review that in the next issue. Or just ask - your team members have plenty of knowledge to share and an eagerness to do so.
RACE REPORTS
Congrats to everyone who completed their fall races, including some first timers! We are proud of each and every one of you. As always, check out Facebook for the latest photos, updates, and race summaries and don't hold back in sharing your experiences with the others on the team. The Back9 was a success with 88 runners who raised nearly $1000 for the Canadian Liver Foundation. Ngan and Ann will be traveling to Athens to complete their marathon walk! We apologize for the missing massage therapists and will be enlisting a different provider next year. Lack of massage notwithstanding, we received very appreciative comments from runners who loved the atmosphere and warmth with which you guys and ladies infused the event. Lourdes got her photo published in City View, and Kim is our new Airdrie Echo poster girl! Thanks so much to both the volunteers and the runners for acting as welcoming hosts to the out of towners. You are all so generous with your time, resources, and spirit. We're looking forward to next year's fifth anniversary. It's going to be special!
Up Next: Nov 13. Last Chance Half
Dale's Report: The Gorilla Run was a fun, 14.3 Km fund raising run held Sunday, Oct. 16. The race, which attracted about 460 runners, including sixty six 3-person relay teams, is a fund raiser for the Calgary Zoo conservation programs and the foundation supporting African mountain gorillas, which number only about 720 in the wild. It was a beautiful fall day for the run with little wind, mostly blue skies and the temp hovering just over 0C when the race started at 8am at the Calgary Zoo.
This over-eager runner got carried away at the start, running with the lead runners many of whom were relay runners only having to go 5 km or less, but soon toned down my pace. With camels and buffalo cheering us on, the gorillas were sleeping, I kept up a steady pace of 5.45 min / km or about 11 km/hr , finishing 3rd in my age group with a time of 1 hr, 16 min. This runner had a great day, taking home a medal and a couple of great door prizes, including a Gorilla Run hat and a coupon for a pair of New Balance running shoes!
(Dale! Is this what you mean by "Gorilla Run hat"?!)
Let's hear how your races went! We'd also love to profile you, your achievements and your sources of inspiration on our website. Send us a photo (optional) and your chosen team number, along with things of interest like: How you got started running, Favorite tunes while running, Running Heroes, Favorite and Personal Best runs, Fave routes, What you'd like to accomplish through running, What you like best about running, etc etc. Anything you want to share! A few examples are already online. Email your profile to quicksilverrunning@hotmail.com.
CONTEST
Did you know that the Around The Bay 30k event in Hamilton ON has been around for even longer than the Boston Marathon? Both races are profiled in the movie "Saint Ralph" which was filmed in Toronto. The Calgary Marathon has a history as well and if you're the first to tell us in what year the inaugural Calgary Marathon took place you'll get a special prize (value $10).
Also, New Balance is doing a survey re: winter clothing and would like your input. Should only take about 15 mins or less:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/3ZZWPWW
KITCHEN COUNTER
ASIAN INSPIRED TURKEY MEATLOAF
Amanda Keip, President’s Choice Cooking School Coordinator Huntington Hills, from President's Choice Cooking Class: Affordable Family Feast
1pkg ground Turkey
½ cup Oatmeal or bread crumbs
1 Egg
1 clove Garlic
A thumb size piece of Ginger or equivalent pre-minced ginger in tube
1 small Onion, finely chopped
3 tbsp roughly chopped Cilantro
1 fresh Chili
1 ½ tbsp Sesame Oil
3 tbsp Hoisin Sauce
¼ cup chopped toasted Cashews (optional)
Salt and Pepper
Preheat oven to 375F. Grate ginger, mince garlic, finely chop chili, roughly chop cilantro, add sesame oil, hoising sauce and put into bowl. Add ground turkey, egg, oatmeal, cashews and season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix until well combined. Press into pan or muffin tins. Loaf pan – approx 1.25 hrs; 9X9 pan – approx 50 min; Muffin tins – approx 30 min
PISTACHIO, PROSCIUTTO AND PUMPKIN RISOTTO
Aurora Dowell, Chef at The District, from President’s Choice Cooking Class: Squash Not Just For Sport
1 cup pumpkin, small dice
200g chunk of Prosciutto or smoked ham, sliced a half cm thick and cut into dice (Superstore deli will cut to your specifications)
2 Leeks, white only, washed and sliced thinly
2 cloves Garlic, sliced thinly
1 ½ cups Arborio rice (aisle 26) or any medium grain rIce
5-6 cups warm Chicken Stock (if using canned/boxed, use ½ water and ½ stock)
1 cup Dry White Wine
1 cup 35% Cream
½ cup grated Parmesan or Asiago
3 tbsp Butter
A couple sprigs of thyme and rosemary, chopped finely
½ cup Pistachios, shelled and coarsely chopped
S&P to taste
In a large skillet cook the prosciutto to render out the fat. Add the leeks and garlic and sweat. Add the rice, stir to coat and cook the fat into the risotto for a few minutes. Add the wine, cook it into the rice. Add the pumpkin. Ladle the stock into the risotto one ladle at a time, waiting to add the next ladle until the first is absorbed. Stir frequently. Continue adding stock until the rice is just about al dente. Add the cream and reduce. Finish with herbs, butter, cheese and pistachios and season with S&P as needed.
