Ugliest Runner's Feet Contest!

You know you're a real runner when your first toenail turns black or better yet falls off. LOL! I have one toenail that's a permanent honorarium to my first Marathon (NYC '97) Still an odd looking little booger, but each time I clip it, I have fond memories of that first exhilarating day. (Okay, I know...I need to get out more.) 

To celebrate the beauty that only a runner can love, RunnerDude's Blog is sponsoring The Ugliest Runner's Feet Contest! To enter, send RunnerDude a jpeg photo of your feet in all their glory to runnerdudeblog@yahoo.com. Be sure to put "Ugly Feet" in the subject line and then put your full name, location, and a little blurb about you and your "ugly feet" in the body of the email. You'll have until Friday, September 30th to submit your photo/entry. Then the first full week of October, all the entries will be posted for readers to view and vote on. Details on how to vote will be posted along with the photos. So, what are you waiting for, make a Kodak moment with your tootsies and send it in!

Oh yea! The winner gets a $75 gift card to RunningWarehouse.com! Hopefully he/she will buy better fitting shoes with the prize money. ;-)

To read more about Black Toe a common foot ailment for runners click here.

RunningWarehouse $50 E-Gift Certificate Drawing!

Today there are several great online gear and apparel stores for runners to choose from. One that I find myself returning too frequently is RunningWarehouse.com. The selection at this online store is great for both women and men and the customer service is awesome.

There's nothing I dislike more than to find a great online deal only to discover that the added shipping costs make the items even more expensive than before the sale price. Not a problem with RunningWarehouse. They offer free 2-day shipping and free return shipping if you find you need to return something. And....if you need something in a hurry, they offer overnight shipping for only $9.95.

I first encountered RunningWarehouse when looking online for some running shoes several years ago. I was really pleased with the experience I had and I've continued to shop their site. Today not only do they have shoes, but they also have a huge selection of running apparel and accessories (everything from energy bars to watches).

They've also added some other great benefits to runners visiting their website. They're new Learning Center offers a great array of video on everything from  how to select the right shoe to how to train in your 40s, 50s, and beyond. These quick-and-easy to use, get-it-at-a-glance videos are informative and fun to watch. 

And the Winner of the  $50 RunningWarehouse E-Gift Certificate Is...

Congratulations to Shelley Bowman of Texas, the winner of the $50 RunningWarehouse Online Gift Certificate! Her entry was #99 and that was the lucky number chosen by the True Random Number Generator. Some of you may know Shelley from her blog My Journey to Fit. Check it out when you can.

Thanks Joe for providing such a great service to the running community, your support of the blog, and the awesome prize!

New Contest! RunningWarehouse.com Prize!

Where are some unique locations you've run? What's the longest run you've done to date? What's your total cumulative miles? Have you accomplished an awesome challenge such as running across your state? Running the Appalachian Trail? Running Badwater? Getting up off the couch after 40 years of no activity and running a marathon? Fundraising and running in honor of a sick loved-one or friend?

RunnerDude would love to hear about your worldly running stories and unique accomplishments. Email your story and a picture of yourself (jpeg format) to runnerdudeblog@yahoo.com by midnight on August 31st. Be sure to enter "My Running Achievement Contest" in the email's subject line. Your email will be entered into a prize drawing. The great people at RunningWarehouse.com have graciously offered a $50 gift certificate to the winner which will be announced on September 1st. The winner's story will be featured on the blog first, but eventually each submitted story will be a featured post.

Runners Around the World: Amazing Locations and Accomplishments

It never ceases to amaze me the number of visitors that come to the blog from all over the world. This morning I checked and there were readers from Morocco, United Kingdom, Sweden, Czech Republic, Canada, and Australia. At other times, there have been readers from China, India, Kenya, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, Singapore, Ireland, France, Italy, Spain, etc.

It really is an awesome thing to have something in common (running) with someone halfway around the world. Through the blog, I've met awesome people such as Jeff in Canada who is an awesome wheelchair athlete and the founder of the Boiling Point Wheelchair Track Classic and Nathan who I first communicated with while he was stationed in Afghanistan. Nathan has since returned to the states and is running triathlons. And then there's Phil in Northern Ireland, Otto in Mexico, Christine in Canada and the list goes on and on. I may never meet these people in person, but they are treasured friends none the less.

All of this worldliness got me to thinking. Wouldn't it be cool to run around the world? I've heard of people running across the United States. Charlie Engle lives just down the road from me. He's the amazing endurance runner that ran across the Sahara Desert. But, what would it take to run around the world—in miles that is? I Googled this question and I discovered that RunThePlanet.com is actually sponsors such a challenge. The total mileage is 24,881 miles (40,043 kilometers). If you ran 10 miles a day, it would take you 6.8 years to complete the task! If you're interested in taking RunThePlanet up on their challenge, check it out at their website. Over 30 runners are currently enrolled and one person has actually completed it—Dave Kunst. His journey with his brothers is quite an amazing story.

Some other great places to connect with runners across the U.S. and from around the world include social running sites like Athlinks.com, SeriousRunning.com, DailyMile.com , and RunnersLounge.com.

Where are some unique locations you've run? What's the longest run you've done to date? What's your total cumulative miles? Have you accomplished an awesome challenge such as running across your state? Running the Appalachian Trail? Running Badwater?

RunnerDude would love to hear about your worldly running stories and unique accomplishments. Email your story and a picture (jpeg format) of yourself to runnerdudeblog@yahoo.com by midnight on August 31st. Be sure to enter "Around the World Contest" in the email's subject line. Your email will be entered into a prize drawing. The great people at RunningWarehouse.com have graciously offered a $50 gift certificate to the winner which will be announced on September 1st. The winner's story will be featured on the blog first, but eventually all the stories will be a featured post.