After graduating from high school, Erica Sapp began running when her father invited her to join him as his "accountability partner" while he prepared for his Army PT tests. Erica was no stranger to athletics; she was a ballerina growing up and danced throughout high school.  She wanted to stay active and remain in shape after graduation and found running to be the "perfect solution".

            Erica's favorite race, "hands down", is the McGuire's St. Patrick's Day 5k. She also loves the PRA's Seafood Festival 5k and the Disney Half Marathon. In fact, she will be joining a few friends and PRA members for the Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon on October 1^st in Orlando. The group is also planning to return to Disney in January 2012 for the marathon - Erica's first!

            One of her favorite parts of running is "watching the sun rise over Pensacola Bay on my morning runs along Bayfront Parkway." She describes it as a "little slice of bliss handed down by God each morning." She enjoys running because of this spiritual aspect as well as the "sense of balance and all around good feeling" that running brings to her life. She adds that the free beer at the end of the races certainly doesn't hurt! J

            Erica grew up in Bonifay, Florida. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Political Science/Pre-Law in 2007, after completing an internship in Washington D.C. for Senator Richard Burr (NC). Since then, she has been working diligently on her Master's Degree in Political Science/Public Administration at UWF. She'll be graduating this semester! She is also employed at the law firm, Beggs and Lane.

            With full-time work and school, plus training, Erica has little free time at the moment. She recently began paddle boarding with Fitness on Board and LOVES it. (Translate as: A new paddle board would be the perfect graduation present!) She can also be found traveling, relaxing on the beach, and spending time with her friends and family.

            Erica is one of the newly elected Members of the Board of the Pensacola Runner's Association. She's looking forward to contributing to our running community through involvement in the organization. So, be sure to look for Erica at the next PRA race- one of my favorite's - the Membership Run. 

At least once in your life you probably have seen Olyympic swimmers competing in the butterfly event. It's a grueling race that takes innate ability, technical skill, and dedicated training. I doubt if many of you watched the competitors exhaust every ounce of energy at their disposal at the finish of the race and then said to yourself, "If they were real athletes, they would swim the freestyle." 

 

I'm a racewalker. Good racewalkers have innate ability, technical skill, and dedicated training. But I bet that many runners don't consider racewalkers real athletes. If they were real athletes, they'd be running.

 

Racewalking is an event in the broader sport of track and field, just like the hurdles or long jump. It's been an Olympic event for more than 100 years. The world record holder for the 50K racewalk --31 miles--completed the event at a pace below 7 minutes per mile without running.

Once you are going faster than about a 13:00 minutes per mile pace, it takes more energy to race-walk that speed than it does to run. A runner going at a 10-minute-per-mile clip may be loafing along. The racewalker beside her is working hard -- just like someone swimming the butterfly stroke would have to work really hard to keep up with someone swimming freestyle.

 

I want this article to answer two questions for someone who is or has been a runner. First, why would I want to learn to racewalk? Second, what is racewalking?

 

Here are five reasons why a runner like you should want to learn to racewalk:

1.       You might find this is an event at which you excel. You'll never know if this is your sport if you never try it.

2.       You might be able to continue aerobic training while recovering from a running injury. Racewalking is highly aerobic but low impact. Many racewalkers were runners who first tried racewalking after suffering a running injury.

3.       You might be able to extend your competitive lifespan. As some people age, their joints can no longer take the pounding of training for running events but they miss competition. They find that racewalking doesn't hurt their joints and they can compete in judged racewalk competitions. I know two people competing nationally who are older than 90.

4.       You might find racewalking a good cross-training activity that helps your conditioning. It's highly aerobic and uses 95% of the muscles in your body, while running uses only 70%.

5.       Most of all, you might enjoy it.

 

Many if not most, racewalkers rarely compete in judged racewalks. They racewalk for its health and fitness benefits and for the social friendships they develop with other racewalkers. Also, some racewalkers were never runners. They were pedestrian walkers who wanted something more aerobic than just walking.

Racewalkers frequently enter road races with runners and try to maintain a legal racewalking form even though there are no judges to disqualify them. You gt significant personal satisfaction coming in ahead of runners when you know how much more effort it takes to racewalk a given pace.

 

What is racewalking? The official definition has two parts. The language is a bit legalistic, but the essence is this: (1) It must appear to the human eye that the racewalker never has both feet off the ground at the same time, i.e., there is no visible "in flight" period as there is with running. This contributes to the low-impact nature of the event. (2) The lead leg must be straightened at the knee at the time of heel strike and must remain straightened at least until the leg is vertical beneath the body.

 

The first part of the definition doesn't cause new racewalkers much problem, but the second part takes some practice. The racewalking technique helps one walk quickly and efficiently while staying within the bounds of the two-part definition.

 

You can learn the basics of the racewalking technique and begin enjoying its benefits in less than half an hour, but you can spend years mastering the technique. Dr. Alan Poisner, a friend from Kansas, took up the sport in his 50s. Even though he was getting older, he got faster every year for 8 years as his technique improved.

 

Some people racewalk at an easy pace, just like some people jog slowly. But racewalking can be just as physically demanding as elite-level running if you want it to be. The aerobic conditioning can be the same. You can get your heart rate up just as high when racewalking as you can when running.

 

Resting heart rate is a fairly good indicator of aerobic condition. I've been racewalking for about 5 years and always train with a heart rate monitor. For the past couple of years when I would drive out to an area to train in the morning my heart rate would drop to 48 beats per minute. This spring I've been training for a marathon and my resting heart rate has been going down to 43 or 44 beats per minute. Not bad shape for a man who must turned 60.

 

So, runners, give racewalking a little respect. Better yet, give it a try.

 

(In 2009 Bohlen won Silver and Bronze medals in the 55-59 age-group in the 5K and 1500m racewalks at the National Senior Games at Stanford University and that September placed 24th overall out of more than 2,600 finishers at the New Albany, Ohio Walking Classic 10K, the largest all-walker race in the country. For more about racewalking, check out his website at www.boomerwalk.com .)

Allie Nelson           Brewton Middle School

Jordyn Hill              Scenic Heights Elementary

Bailey Depricst   Biloxi Jr High

 

Gary McAdams - 6/18/2011

Kenedi Fisk             NB Cook  

Madison Fisk         NB Cook

McKenzie Gaber  Rhodes Elementary

McKenzie Smith   Defuniak Elementary

Jacob Leonard      Aletheia Christian

 

 CONGRATULATIONS!!!

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