100 Mile Club Participant Profile: Isak Boltares, Runner and Rockstar!!

Our Guest Blogger, McKinley Head Coach Mrs. Potts,

shares a story about one of her fabulous students...

Incredible Isak with just a few of his many race numbers.

Second grader Izak Boltares from McKinley Elementary, has really caught the 100 Mile Club® spirit. Over the Thanksgiving 3 week break, he participated in four different 5K runs! He has become a running machine!

In one of the races, the Lake Norconian Run,he placed 5th in his age category. Way to run, Izak! From there he went straight to the Peppermint Ridge, Love Walk. That's two 5K's in one day! Izak also ran the Plymouth Turkey Trot, which supports spinal chord injury patients. His last 5K was the Eastvale Cares race. He runs all his races with his partner and Dad, Eric Boltares.

His dad wants him to know, "how important it is to live a healthy life style and that being healthy goes with you forever, not just when you're young."

Izak's mom, Kathi Boltares, says all this running has "opened him up a lot "

When asked why he likes to run so much he replied, "Because it makes me feel happy."

Izak is a great example to his fellow Mountain Lion runners. He shows up every morning to run the extra laps ready and energized. He has already made it 61 miles toward his 100 mile goal. No doubt he will acheive success this year.

Izak, we at McKinley and at 100 Mile Club®, are all so proud of you!

The Boltares Family doing their thing, helping local charities and earning MILES!!

Yup, I'm definitely a "doer"...

A shirt we saw at Eisenhower this week. So awesome!

If you are not making mistakes, then you are not doing anything. I am positive that a doer makes mistakes. ~John Wooden

So this week, I relied a LOT on that quote and so many others that talk about how ok it is to make mistakes and how this is how you learn, blah blah blah and on and on... Really though, making mistakes is a drag. A HUGE drag.

It seemed like every single day this week was mistake after mistake, and it took all I had to realize that:

1. You can learn something from every mistake.
2. Really terrific things can come from your circumstances (no matter how difficult) if you are open to the idea that everything happens for a reason and that what is meant to be will certainly find a way to come about.

Constant effort and frequent mistakes are the stepping stones of genius.
~Elbert Hubbard

Oooh, that one makes me feel way better. I'll take it. :)

Mistake #1. Not-Received FAX Order.

Monday. It turned out that one of our sweet schools in Big Bear (Hi, Baldwin Lane!!) had sent in a FAX order that we never received. Someone must have gotten it because it went somewhere, just not to us. :( Knowing that this enthusiastic school had been waiting for Teacher Materials for so long made me feel just awful. So, I did what any hyper-focused, slightly insane doer would do.

I estimated the number of teachers at Baldwin Lane based on their population, packed up 30 Teacher Materials Kits, dropped my daughter off at school, and drove straight to Big Bear. Hoping that the school was actually open that day (you never know), I decided that as long as I was doing whatever I could do to make the situation better, all would work out. Worst case scenario would be that Paris and I would have a nice lunch and hit the Alpine Slide on the way home. ok.

The school WAS open, everyone got their materials, and it all worked out. The principal was in the ofice that day and we chatted a while about 100 Mile Club and how it will fit in to the city's vision of a healthier community. Ahhhh, problem solved. Yay.

On our way home, my phone rang and it was one of my fabulous 100 Mile Club Head Coaches. I can't even remember why she called, only that for some reason she asked me where I was. OH! I told her, We had a major fax nightmare and I am up in Big Bear delivering some stuff. She gasped and told me that Big Bear was her old stomping ground, and then asked what school I was visiting. I told her, and again..she gasped!

(This is where I was reminded that everything happens for a reason...)


Baldwin Lane was where she had taught for YEARS, and the new principal was a dear dear friend of hers with whom she had not spoken in quite a while. She immediately hung up with me and called the school where the principal just happened to answer. After tears and laughter about all of the mixups and circumstances that led to their reunion, we all agreed that it was all meant to be. The two have reconnected and are going to visit one another's schools to help with 100 Mile Club. I didn't feel so bad about the FAX mistake after that.

Mistake #2. OOPS! Where is the back of the shirt?

On Thursday, I picked up a ton of shirts to put in incentive packages for delivery JUST in time for a number af assemblies. One Coach (The fabulous Michele Sapp from Tuscany Hills) even sent her unsuspecting husband to pick up her Incentive Package order for a really BIG school assembly the very next day. We got everything done just in the nick of time. Woohoo! I was feeling all sassy and accomplished because everything was almost done before the holiday week ahead. Yep.

My phone rang laaaate that evening. Turns out that the shirts that were picked up had no printing on the back! What? WHAT?? So, I did what any hyper-focused, semi-insane doer would do. I packed up a whole bunch of tees and woke up early early the next morning and drove to the school with replacement tees.

The great thing was that I got to visit their 100 Mile Club Morning Group and attend the BIG assembly. We snapped this photo at the end:

Our newest 25 Mile Club Kids at Tuscany Hills. And their shirts ALL have backs on them. :)

I was so thrilled and honored to be able to visit that I forgot that I was there because of a HUGE mistake in our shirt orders. It all worked out. It always does. Phew...

Mistake #3: You cannot turn right on red when exiting the 15 freeway on to the 79 in Temecula.

Yep, I got a ticket on Friday, delivering Incentive Packages. I turned right on red right smack dab in front of a mototcycle officer! Had I known or seen the sign, I certainly wouldn't have done that. Yeesh. Believe me when I say that I had a nice good cry after that one, and after the week that was behind me.

Then I stopped to think. What was the lesson here? There is one...there has to be one.

I needed to slow down. Mentally and physically. The ticket remided me to slow down and BE where I am, not be in such a rush to get to the next thing, and to (for Pete's sake!) read signs.

So this week, I am slowing down. (Yes, I am!!)

Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valueable lessons. ~Anonymous

I am thankful to have the freedom to reflect on my mistakes and learn from them.

I am thankful for all of our 100 Mile Club Head Coaches who are fearless and fun.

I am thankful for all of our 100 Mile club Kids who inspire me every day.

I am thankful for my GPS, Gingerbread Lattes, and QuickBooks. And sushi. :)

But mostly, I am thankful for my family: My husband Glen, and my beautiful children, Paris and Millie Rose, my mom and dad, and my sister, Lora...they put up with my mistakes most of all.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Enjoy your week!

100 Mile Club Kids Give Back at Love Walk 2009

I look forward to Love Walk for loads of reasons. The most important one, though, is that it is held at such a civilized hour!! I was able to get up, have a leisurely cup of coffee, and head over to Crossroads in plenty of time to get everything done. The warm sun shone down with that gorgeous light one only seems to get on a perfect Southern California autumn day.

It was a spectacular one, and our kids stepped out and made a difference

at LOVE WALK 2009.

Most of us enjoyed a quiet morning before heading over to the event, but not the Boltares Family!! They used their free morning to complete a quick little 5K run around Lake Norconian in support of the Norco Kiwanis Club and the Lake Norconian Foundation and THEN headed on over to lend a HELPING FOOT to Peppermint Ridge. They arrived right on time in their Norconian tees and ready to earn another one here at Love Walk. All in all, the kids ran 3.1 miles at the 5K (and came in 4th place, by the way!) and another 5 at Love Walk. Unbelievable! Here is the beautiful family ready for event #2:

Everywhere you looked, there were kids in red 100 Mile Club shirts...ready to go! The coolest thing, though, was that they all rallied in the spirit of The Ridge, put on their new Love Walk tees, and set off to make a difference.

The kids completed their first mile with the Ridgers and then had the option of running on for up to 5 miles credit. Oh my! They took full advantage of their time...some walking or running right till the end of the event.

Here are the Beautiful Wheatons holding up the number of miles they completed.

These cute little guys completed all five miles! Woohoo!

The 100 Mile Club has members of all ages! In the foreground, one of our 100 Milers from Garretson, and smiling in the background is one of our participants from Valencia Terrace. Both of these ladies outlapped me! :)

We snapped this photo near the end of the event. This picture represents, lets see...at least 5 different schools. All told, there were *107* 100 Milers that actually signed our guestbook this year. Certainly there were some who didn't sign. There always are.

The following schools were all gloriously respresented at LOVE WALK 2009:

Vicentia ES

Valencia Terrace

Peppermint Ridge

Orange ES

Temescal Valley ES

CFIS

Eastvale ES

Colony HS

Garretson ES

Washington ES

Barton ES

Harada ES

Todd ES

Rosa Parks ES

Susan B. Anthony ES

Raney ES

McKinley ES

Sierra Vista ES

Auburndale IS

Warner ES

Eisenhower ES

Franklin ES

Our top *6* 100 Mile Club Helping Feet schools from Love Walk 2009 are:

:::drumroll pleeeeeeease!!::::

(keep going!)

Is the suspense too much??

:)

Harada

Franklin

Washington

Eisenhower

CFIS

and in 1st place, winning a spectacular Disco Ball Trophy....

Orange Elementary!!!

We will deliver your trophy soon. In the meantime, know that every time you reach out to help our local charities by walking and giving back, YOU make a diffference. The love you give will radiate out just like the light coming from these fun little disco ball trophies.

Next up...

100 Mile Club's

Walk for Kids 2010!!

March 13, 2010

Cesar Chavez Elementary

Save the date!! Woohoo!

:)

100 Mile Club's Grand Opening/Ribbon Cutting

We REALLY DID cut a ribbon and though you can't really see them in this photo, those scissors were BIG and gold and sharp!

Please remember, I am a teacher first and foremost, so when a couple of our board members mentioned that they wanted us to have a Grand Opening for The 100 Mile Club, my first reaction was...

Huh? What? Grand Opening...really? why?

This is all relatively new to me, this world of business and non-profits, and grants, and partnerships. I am learning (FAST!), but still, I didn't quite understand what a Grand Opening was all about, or why 100 Mile Club, an organization that is so big, philosophically-based, SCHOOL-based, and spread-out should have a Grand Opening/Ribbon Cutting Event. We don't even have a physical place, really. We are a people-based organization, not a store or anything, so I was understandibly confused. O_o

(By the way, a Grand Opening/Ribbon Cutting event is affectionately and efficiently called a GORC in certain circles, so when it was originally proposed to me via text message as, "We need to have a GORC for 100 Mile Club...", I was like GORC? What is this GORC? What am I missing? Help me understand!!!).

So...I did what any normal confused person would do:

I googled.

Here is what I learned...

Once an organization is organized and ready to receive more clients, it will then sponsor a Grand Opening event.

A Grand Opening is stating that there is a special event planned. Often this is achieved with a party type atmosphere such as: food, music, prizes, balloons, giveaways, festive signs, and so on.

Still others go a bit further and have a ribbon cutting ceremony, where an oversized pair of scissors is used to cut an over sized ribbon to "officially" open their doors.

Generally, a Grand Opening is regarded as a promotional way for an organization to state that it is completely ready to serve its clients proficiently and professionally.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_opening

OK. Got it! We can do that...

So we set a date, found a place, and went for it. We chose McKinley Elementary School in Corona for our Grand Opening location for so many reasons, but mainly because 100 Mile Club was raised at McKinley. (FUN FACT: 100 Mile Club was BORN at Washington Elementary in Corona, my very first school, in 1992.)

The Corona Chamber of Commerce is amazing at GORC's (see? I'm learning!), so the work was relatively simple. I didn't do a whole lot to plan it. The other details were worked out by Board Member Ellie VanDoornum, who is a rockstar in every way.

We contacted the following caterers and extraordinary people to help us feed the people:

Windy Plum Farms, who made a whol bunch of the. most. delicious. Blue Cheese Grapes EVER! To die for. Thank you, Mark Neely!

As you Like It Catering sent over perfect cookies and dessert tasties for everyone!! YUM! Thank you so much to Rachel and Phyllis for being so nice. :)

Backwoods BBQ got it done with scrumptious PASTA BOLOGNAISE and Cole Slaw. We all left STUFFED! Thank you to Mayor Steve Nolan for your omnipresent support.

and Sweet Moments, made hundreds of mini cupcakes and surprised us with this:

Not only was it the most adorable cake ever...it was DELICIOUS! Laurice, you are Wonderwoman.

Spahrmedia. We wanted to document this occasion, and Michael Spahr stepped up, taped the whole thing for us, and took testimonials, too! He is so much fun and would be a great choice for any occasion. Plus, he sings a mean Barry Manilow and will be able to edit my little speech into something that actually makes sense! Yay! :)

The above businesses help out always and support 100 Mile Club with whatever that can, so please keep them in mind when you need something for your event or family. They are FABULOUS!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You know when you have an event or a party, and you have this vision that nobody will show up and you will just be standing there in an empty room with decorations and cake and it's just you and food?

That so DID NOT happen!

We had a blast. Coaches can from near and far to see what this was all about. They met and networked with local businesses and hopefully made meaningful connections. The kids danced and laughed and ate tiny cupcakes (so did some of the grownups!). We got to recognize our coaches and volunteers, and the Chamber of Commerce did a great job of coaching me through the evening. I was just thrilled to see everyone all in one place!

Video is coming, thanks to Spahrmedia, so look for that soon. We are a fun group, that's for sure!

Our precious Corona Queens came out to show their support!

Special thanks to the following people who helped at our Grand Opening/Ribbon Cutting on Thursday:

Deb Potts and Mrs Badger's Class for making the tables look amazing as always!

Ellie Van Doornum, for making everything look so easy.

BJ Walker, for being the calm in the middle of the storm. We so need you.

Roberta Hartman and the McKinley PTA, for set-up, balloons, and spirit!!

Janette Neumann, for the cake, flowers, and 100% enthusiasm always.

Dot Lubin, for helping with everything that noone else wants to do. And doing it with a smile. I love you.

Glen Gonsalves, for putting up with 100 Mile Club literally IN THE HOUSE all. the. time.

City of Corona, specifically Mayor Pro Tem Karen Spiegel for showing up on your busiest day and speaking so kindly of 100 Mile Club and its vision for community wellness and health.

Mayor Pro Tem Karen Spiegel presenting us with a certificate of appreciation and saying very, very nice things about 100 Mile Club. I was nervous and slightly overwhelmed.

Corona Chamber of Commerce. Thank you to the Ambassadors and Chamber President Bobby Spiegel for coming out and showing such tremendous support always.

Chamber President Bobby Spiegel helping spread the word!

Corona Norco Unified School District for the use of space and to CNUSD Board member Michell Skipworth for speaking and showing us supprt in words, actions, and spirit.

Thanks to the HEAD COACHES, friends, and students that attended and gave testimonials, too. We couldn't have done it without all of YOU!!

100 Mile Club® Event Sanction Criteria

The 100 Mile Club® Group raised over $1400 for The Foundation for Community and Family Health on September 26, 2009! Not bad for a bunch of kiddos! :)

Are you an organization who would like 100 Mile Club® to sanction and promote your walk/run? If so, please read the following Sanctioning Criteria and let us know if you think your event might be a good fit for our Helping Feet program.

If an event meets the following criteria, it may be sanctioned by 100 Mile Club® pending board approval.

• The 100 Mile Club® is permitted to staff a booth (EzUp, table, etc…) at no cost where mile credits may be distributed. Our booth should be placed in a highly visible spot so our families won't miss us.


• 100 Mile Club® SponsorWear may be offered to donors at said sanctioned event. This is an opportunity for community members to sponsor a student in their area.


• The walk is at least one mile.


• If it is a race, there is an option to not race and still fully participate.


• It is open and FULLY accessible to all ages, races, and disabilities.


• Strollers must be permitted so that parents may walk with their children. Some of our walkers are as young as 4 years old, and they need their parents with them...


• Monies raised directly benefit local programs or organizations. We want our kids to understand where their donations are going and to physically be able to see the benefits of their involvement.


• It is not in conflict with other local previously sanctioned events. We want your event to be THE only one that we promote on a given day.


• It is not a “politically charged” or a religiously-based event. This is a grey area, (we know) but we don't want anyone in our 100 Mile Club® to feel marginalized as a result of the mission of any of our Sanctioned Helping Feet events. The decision of our board is something on which we rely and trust 100%. They know when an event "feels right" or not. Their decision stands.

Once a walk/run is officially sanctioned by 100 Mile Club®, the following may/will take place:

1. Your organization will be given permission to place our logo on your event literature to let kids and families know that they WILL receive miles for your event. It WORKS, and your event will draw many families who wouldn't normally attend (those mile-credits are a real draw)!



2. 100 Mile Club® will place your event on our calendar for families and kids. Our families regularly look here for opportunities to earn more miles and give back to their communities. They know that they will be welcomed and appreciated at your event :)



3. If you send us literature, we will place information in our Incentive Package shipments and pass out information when we are out and about (networking meetings, inservices, expos, meetings...). We just keep information in our presentation box and put it out on the table with our literature.



4. 100 Mile Club® may send a representative to pass out credit slips. This is usually something that happens, but in the event that we are unable to send a rep, we ask that you offer credit slips to those families that request them.

If you feel that your event may qualify for a 100 Mile Club® Sanction, please email us at events@100mileclub.com and we will get the ball rolling...

HELPING FEET!! Earn Miles and Give Back!

Part of the mission of the 100 Mile Club® is to give back and teach the value of community service. We acknowledge the ability of each individual to do what they can to help local charities For this, we have our newly named "Helping Feet" program!

We carefully choose specific charity walks/runs in our local communities so that our participants can do three things:

1. Give Back in a really fun way. Many of our children have never attended community events or any sort of group walk or run. Helping Feet™ teaches our kids that giving back is FUN and feels really good. Participants can meet 100 Milers from other schools and even see and run with their teachers!! It is a win-win situation.

2. EARN MILES! The charity events we sanction are those where our kids can earn at least 3 miles. There will be a 100 Mile Club booth or table at each of the sanctioned events. Here, students pick up a certificiate of completion for the event with the total number of miles completed.

3. Earn Community Service Hours. 100 Mile Club offers community service hours for qualifying schools and groups in addition to miles! Woohoo!

100 Mile Club Participants take their Event Completion Certificate back to school where their miles are counted toward their 100 Mile Club goal, and they receive accolades from their teachers and coaches!

It's a beautiful thing.

Find out more about 100 Mile Club Helping Feet events in your area on our website under CALENDAR OF EVENTS...

100 Mile Club Mailbag: Questions and Answers for YOU!

My son is in the 100 Mile Club at Sky Country E.S. He picked up his slip that said he ran the 5K in Eastvale so he can earn the three miles. However, he has also run in the Citrus Heritage Run in Sept (also a 5k) and is thinking of running Mission Inn. Can he get credit for those runs as well? I still have his race bib from Citrus Park as proof that he ran there. It has his name on it also. Thanks for encouraging him to run!

Aleta, Mira Loma, CA

Thank you for the excellent question! The ultimate goal of The 100 Mile Club is for your son to complete 100 miles AT SCHOOL during a single school year. That said, as long as your son is working his hardest at school and logging miles diligently, I see no reason that his miles at these charity events can't count. We just don't want him to REPLACE miles from school with these race miles. Ultimately, it is up to your site Head Coach...please visit her or send her an email with this question. I will support the decision that she makes. :) Thanks again for your question! See you out and about!

What about miles logged walking to and from school? My daughter walks to school every day and plays soccer, too. Her coach makes her run a lot! Can we count those miles?

Please clarify with your child, teachers, and staff that miles for The 100 Mile Club™ may only be counted while AT SCHOOL. Sports practices, after school, to and from school, etc etc should not be counted. Doing so truly cheapens the process and makes it reeeeeaaaallyy easy for certain kids to get to 100 miles, while other less fortunate students watch and wonder…

The Mission of The 100 Mile Club™ is to provide to all students the opportunity to experience the powerful feeling of fitness and TRUE personal success by Accepting the Challenge of running (or walking) 100 miles at school during a single school year.

The words AT SCHOOL truly help us focus our vision and clearly state that miles completed must be done at school while on track.

Students may not count laps/miles completed with parents at home, during sports practices, etc etc…We need to keep everyone’s experience and journey consistent, and we cannot do this if kids are given “free” miles, miles for soccer practice, etc etc.**

Helping Feet Events are one other way to earn more miles, help your community, AND meet other 100 Mile Club Kids & Families!! Part of the mission of the 100 Mile Club® is to give back and teach the value of community service. We acknowledge the ability of each individual to do what they can to help local charities For this, we have our newly named "Helping Feet" program! Click here for more information...

The only other "outside mile" exceptions are those who are on home-hospital instruction. We do have one student undergoing treatment for leukemia walking on his treadmill at home. PLEASE help us reinforce this. The 100 Mile Club™ is an at school activity, and allowing for extra miles for some while others do not get the same opportunity truly cheapens the process. Also, Team Spirit piece is removed since all are not sharing the same experience.

We want our students to experience this journey together.

**We do have a school that allows students to log ONE MILE A WEEK at home. The kids and parents have to fill out a special form and have a parent signature. For this particular school, they and I worked very hard to keep with the integrity of the 100 Mile Club project while also honoring specific time restraints at their particular school. It works for them, and it can work for your school, too. Just be careful, keep the mission clear, and make sure to honor everyone for their efforts.

Eastvale CARES!! Family 5K and Health Fair

It was dark when we arrived to set up for the Eastvale Cares Family 5K and Health Fair. PITCH DARK. I knew that the chill in the air was only temporary, so I didn't even bring my jacket out. Instead, I relished the cold...the heat was certainly on its way.

We were greeted by welcoming smiles and folks who, despite the early dark hour, were ready to go. Four high school volunteers helped me unload my car, and we were set up in no time.

Thank you to our volunteers:

• Dave LaVelle. His calm and kind spirit was so welcome and appreciated. Thank you to him for taking time out of his busy busy day to be with us.
• Mark and Ellie VanDoornum. Both are such enthusiastic forces within this organization. Thanks for being there, helping all of our kids get credit, and getting the word out about our upcoming Walk for Kids (March 13, 2010!)
• Samantha Troisi and Danielle Shapiro. Fabulous volunteers that came to help from Corona Fundamental Intermediate School. They were enthusiastic, efficient, and smiley. Both did a great job finding students at the Health Fair who still needed a mile credit slip for the 5K and 1-mile Fun Run. Thanks, ladies!

This was our second sanctioned run of the 2009-10 100 Mile Club® Cycle, and once again, the kids came out in force!! The following schools were represented:

Vandermolen*
Eastvale*
Orange*
Barton*
Harada
Rosa Parks
Garretson
Susan B. Anthony
McKinley
Washington
Sky Country
Corona Ranch
Corona Fundamental Intermediate

* Our top participating schools!! (Stats based on signing the 100 Mile Club Guest book and receipt of 100 Mile Club CREDIT SLIP.)

This event had such a great community spirit...families seemed happy and ready to take on the challenge of what was, for many, a first 5K!!

Chapter Profile: Tuscany Hills ES, Head Coach Michelle Sapp

My 100 Mile Club Kids!

by Michelle Sapp, 100 Mile Club Head Coach: Tuscany Hills Elementary

We are 1 month into our new 100 Mile Club Program at the boys school and all the kids are doing great! On Friday I got to already award 7 kids their 25 mile goal tshirts. Very cool! These little studs (yes, including my 2 little competitive souls) are going to hit WELL over 100 miles by the end of the school year. Got to keep up with them, I got 30 in for the month - not bad!?! All the kids, teachers and parents at the school are so excited about this program - very neat to be a part of it. Highly recommend bringing it to your kids school! http://www.100mileclub.com/














Every Friday morning before school from 7:45 - 8:45 for the last month about 100 of the students plus their parents & some teachers have been at our morning walk /run - very cool thing to see.

All the classes charts are in the multi purpose room for the kids to see their progress each week.
















These are my first 7 kids to hit the 25 mile goal! Ryan, Blake, Brandon, Willy, Bronson, Shane, Trevor...Blake already has 39 miles & Brandon 35 - crazy boys !!!!





















When they run on Friday mornings they get a mark every time they complete a lap, 4 laps = a mile. They did just a few on Friday..... Blake logged in 23 laps & Brandon 20 laps.

Earning our miles together - Cary has a little catching up to do to get his shirt!

Coach Sapp and her 100 Mile Club Kids have hit the ground running...LITERALLY! Amazing implementation and spectacular adoption of the mission and ideals of The 100 Mile Club!! Go, Tuscany Hills, GO! ~Ms. Lubin~

Developing Integrity and Honesty, or What if They Cheat??

"Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching."

Some of the most valuable and life-changing learning experiences in The 100 Mile Club occur when a student is challenged by his own sense of what is right and wrong.

So you catch a student who has been less than honest about his/her miles...what to do? Well, first, stop. Don't flip out. Take a deep breath and ask yourself *why* he/she may be exhibiting this sort of behavior. Nobody WANTS to cheat. I believe that wholeheartedly. Some confessions I have received over the years:

The Noble Cheater: AKA "But I was just trying to help...The best example of this is the boy whose grandmother was flying in from Egypt and he wanted to have his shirt when he met her at the airport. This was a rough one, because his good friend loaned him some lap sticks with a promise that he would "pay her back" the following week. This was a rough one. We sat the two down and explained that although we appreciated the thoughtfullness and teamwork, what they did was, in fact, cheating...and was quite dishonest. We had the boy return his "dishonest" sticks to his good friend, we all had a little chat, shed a few tears together, and then we gave him time to complete his laps before the plane arrived.

The superacademic overachiever who simply could NOT STAND that someone was actually "beating" him at something school-related! We reminded him that this race was only against himself and that he needs to refrain from comparing himself to others. This was not easy for him to hear. We readjusted his miles, shed a few tears (see a pattern?), and we coached him through the year, helping him recognize his own personal successes. Yes, he did make it to 100 miles, but this was one of the hardest things he had ever done at school.

The Blatantly Over-the-Top Exaggerator of Miles. This sweet child reported in an outrageous number of miles after a 10 minute jog with is class... Well, after we all looked at him with total confusion, I simply wrote down a reasonable amount, pulled him aside and kindly pretended that he didnt know how to count laps (maybe he did, maybe he didn't...it wasn't my place to judge). I retaught him, reminded him about being honest, and to ask me if he was ever unsure of how to count his miles.

So.

What should you do if you face a student with a less-than-honest tendency?

Take the student aside and ask him/her without judgement. You can say something like, I'm not sure that you have been wholly honest about your miles, and I want to help you so that when you earn your milestines it will feel really good and RIGHT. Remind them about the lifeskills of HONESTY and INTEGRITY and let them know that if they earn a milestone by being dishonest, they will know in their hearts that they cheated...it will feel bad.

Usually they will tell you what's going on and at that point, you help them get back on track, adjusting their miles accordingly. Do this quietly but deliberately. Don't impart punishment by not allowing them to run...they want to please you and themselves by showing you that they CAN do it right. Let them prove themselves to you.

Maintain and preserve your student's dignity, but don't let him/her "get away with" continuing the behavior. Kids know when you care and they really do love being held to a high standard. Same with 100 Mile Club. Some kids just have to test the waters. Hold fast to your standard, all the while providing the love and support necessary for a child to feel true personal success. They'll figure it out...

...and so will you. The fact that you are allowing your students to experience this journey means that you "get it". Trust yourself, refer to your PYRAMID OF SUCCESS when you get confused about what to do. It works every time.

Accommodating and Modifying for ALL

When I created The 100 Mile Club, I asked myself:

What would be a perfect balance between challenging and attainable?

For MOST kids, 100 miles works perfectly. Three miles a week. Not too easy, not too hard. For some, however, there needs to be some adjustment. And that's ok.

Sometimes, the balance between challenging and attainable must be adjusted to help some participants achieve TRUE personal success.

Pre-school, kindergarten. Besides being so tiny and cute, most of our preschoolers and kindergarteners are on 1/2 day at school, and for this reason, we have used "mini miles" at many of our schools . Mini Miles are simply 1/2 mile =1 mile. When these little ones run, we still call their "miles" miles...we just calculate them differently. No big deal.

Last year at one school, we looked at the statistics of the kindergarten classes who did mini-miles and compared them with our regular 1 Mile=1 Mile classes. Our mini-mile kindergarteners earned their incentives at just about the same time as our other classes. It WORKED! So...try mini miles for the little ones. The statistics match, and the little ones find it much more attainable, yet appropriately challenging. We found a balance! YAY!

Individuals with Disabilities. There are as many modifications as there are disabilities, and every single individual is different. Use your best judgement or talk to your adaptive p.e. coach about appropriate challenges for your student/s.
For most, again, walking a mile is perfect...but if you need to, simply figure out what your student can do "3" of each week. That can be their "mile".

We have had students with specific physical disabilities do swimming, walking a specified distance using their walker, rolling in their wheelchair, and even physically rolling across a mat as miles. Nothing is off limits, as long as you allow all individuals to do their best at whatever activities are appropriate for them.

You can start with this document: 100 Mile Club Mile Equivalents. It will help you make some decisions about appropriate mile-equivalents for your students with disabilities.
If you need to, just call. We can help you figure out something really good for every child. I have never had a child unable to participate...ever. We can always make 100 Mile Club work for everyone. 100 Mile Club's beauty is its flexibility. :)

Remember, YOU know your students best. Help each of them to do what they can do and you and ALL of your students will undoubtedly reap the rewards of 100 Mile Club participation.
The 100 Mile Club has the potential to be life-changing for many of our students.

• 
  Many students have never completed an activity that takes such long-term planning and goal-setting.


• 
  Many students discover hidden athletic talents and go on to participate in sports and activities in high school and beyond.


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  Others simply learn a little bit more about themselves through this journey to 100 miles and apply this new knowledge to their educations, their overall wellness, and their relationships with others.

The 100 Mile Club really is all about Accepting the Challenge and experiencing the journey to success with others, and I am incredibly excited for anyone who takes that on, in whatever form it happens to be...

Our Local Fight: Our First HELPING FEET Event

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."

- Helen Keller

Hot.

It was going to be one of those days you wish you could spend either tightly sealed inside an air-conditioned house, or floating on some cool body of water somewhere. Instead, thousands of participants chose to brave the extreme heat and walk in support of their mothers, grandmothers, aunties, sisters, and friends...Our Local Fight against breast cancer, The Foundation for Community and Family Health's annual walk, was a huge success!!

Our 100 Mile Club kids showed up in droves to lend their Helping Feet to a great cause. Over 100 kids came out and walked or ran either 2.2 or 4.4 miles on one of the hottest days of the year. Not one complaint. Not one.

My mom and I arrived at Dos Lagos just before 6:00 in the morning to set up our booth. After a few minutes of confusion and a good cry, we settled in. This is always an emotional day for everyone, and I usually spend the whole walk on the verge of tears. That, on top of the fact that I was running on 4 hours of sleep made for quick-to-arrive emotions all day.

Our booth was situated right at the finish line, which was perfect...we were able to get mile credit slips to most of our kids. I am sure there were still quite a few who didn't ever find us, so we'll field frantic phone calls this week. If there is one thing I know for sure, it is that kids are SERIOUS about their miles. They should be. They. Want. Credit. Thankfully, we had plenty of volunteers:

• BJ Walker, thank you for being there all day! You even helped clean up!
• Alice Fujita, you took the best pictures ever, and passed out billions of credit slips. Thank you!
• Ellie & Mark VanDoornum, thanks for walking and representing. We needed you out there.
• Michaela Hamilton, you rallied your school. You guys had the MOST walkers ever! You win!!
• Tom Munoz, thank you for jumping right in.
• Mom, THANK YOU for helping me set AND clean up...you are Superwoman.
• All Head Coaches, thank you for coming out and encouraging your students to give back. That's what it's all about.

Do you see the grey Accept the Challenge tee? :)

We had 100 Mile Club Kids from so many schools!! The following schools and groups were represented at Our Local Fight...GREAT job to these schools and coaches:

CFIS

Prado View

Adams

El Cerrito

Orange*

McKinley*

Garretson*

Riverside Christian

Raney

Temescal Valley

Eisenhower*

Todd

Peppermint Ridge

Rosa Parks

Sierra Vista

Barton

Norco High

Vicentia

Corona Ranch

Washington

California School for the Deaf, Riverside

* exemplary participation!!

Then just like that, Our Local Fight was done for another year...great job to all of our kids and families! Together, our kids raised over $1,400 for The Foundation.

We are doing something great for our children. If we can guide this young generation to seek health and learn to give back to their communities, we have done something monumental.

Thank you for helping guide our children toward health, wellness, and community spirit.

In every community there is work to be done. In every nation there are wounds to heal. In every heart there is the power to do it.
~Marianne Williamson

Welcome to The Movement!

Cardiovascular Benefits Of Daily Exercise In School Children Are Evident Even After One Year
ScienceDaily (2009-05-10) -- School children as young as 11 can benefit from a daily exercise program in reducing their levels of several known risk factors for cardiovascular disease. An ongoing study, which began four years ago in the German city of Leipzig, shows already that children assigned to daily exercise lessons reduced their overall prevalence of obesity, improved their exercise capacity, increased their levels of HDL-cholesterol, and reduced their systolic blood pressure. ... read full article

As our summer begins, many of our schools are already off and running on Monday. Our year-round schools have my utmost respect. These teachers and administrators ended their 2008-09 school year on June 26th and in one week, completely reset and restart their new year! Talk about a whirlwind!

The article above shows us how in just one year, our children can improve their overall health. We knew this already, though. Our 100 Mile Club Kids are happy, healthy, focused, and fit! Let's keep moving!

If you are just getting started, or thinking of joining The 100 Mile Club "movement", check us out at www.100mileclub.com. We are here and ready for you.

The 100 Mile Club® is simple to set up and begin. You should be ready to “hit the ground running” the first day of school, or as soon as possible once school begins. Here are some guidelines to get you going. The following ideas, concepts, and procedures are extremely helpful and will make 100 Mile Club® run smoothly and positively.

Are you wondering how we think, and what we're about? Read on...

First... Accept the Challenge. There is a philosophical mindset that must be adopted and understood before beginning The 100 Mile Club®. For some, this is the hardest part.

Our philosophy is simple. We believe that every single student has the ability to achieve true personal success and a new level of physical fitness by Accepting the Challenge of running (or walking) 100 Miles at school during a single school year. These feelings of true personal success and fitness are ones that will carry a student to new levels of achievement in all areas: academics, athletics, and implementation of the valuable life skills identified in the bricks of Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success.

The 100 Mile Club® is a personal journey toward a very personal goal.

It is not a race with anyone but yourself.

We NEVER compare students. ever.

We never race or compete between classes or students to see who makes 100 miles “first”.
100 Mile Club® is not an external competition. The competition is with your biggest rival: yourself.

We celebrate all personal successes at the end of the school year. 100 miles or not, we award students together, celebrate together, and never separate out those that make 100 miles from those that do not.

The personal successes students feel while on the100 Mile Club® journey are unquantifiable but ever-present. We celebrate those most of all.

100 Mile Club® encourages team spirit by asking students to work together to help one another reach their goals. Often, we see the more athletic students encouraging and mentoring those that might need that little extra boost…it is wonderful to see students cheer for each other or run together to just make it one more lap.

100 Mile Club® does not publicly (e.g.-website, school announcements, etc…) identify or announce students who hit 100 miles until the end of the year awards presentation. Some students make 100 miles by mid-January…Each site has fun ways of celebrating their participants' personal successes and lets these individuals savor the inner rewards that come from humility, poise, confidence and friendship as they help others reach their goals, too. We ask that these students reach inside themselves and set new personal goals in order to reach their true level of competitive greatness.

The 100 Mile Club® is an individualized physical fitness program. Students will have the opportunity to exercise their bodies through stretching and running (or walking) activities as they move closer and closer to 100 miles and their very own gold medal. Please strike a careful balance between encouraging students to do THEIR best, honoring individual differences, and challenging students to reach to a new level of greatness.

The 100 Mile Club® is a life skills program. Through the personal experience of running (or walking) 100 miles at school, each student is given unique situations in which to truly experience each and every one of the life skills outlined in The Pyramid of Success.

Make sure you know your students. Some may have medical conditions of which you may not be aware, some may need to see their doctor before beginning a program such as this.

The 100 Mile Club® is uncomplicated, yet profound. We believe strongly that each and every student who Accepts the Challenge of running (or walking) 100 miles at school during a single school year will discover a phenomenal new part of themselves…the part that thrives on team spirit, hard work, determination and enthusiasm.

Once a child gets a taste of the deep and powerful intrinsic rewards of true, TRUE personal success, he or she will seek that feeling again and again…at school, at home, and in life. It's amazing.

Jogging is very beneficial. It's good for your legs and your feet. It's also very good for the ground.

It makes it feel needed. ~Charles Schulz, Peanuts

PENNY VOTE RESULTS

Just five minutes a day of sustained physical activity each day can prevent obesity in kids.

So, what's our new tee shirt color?? Remember, every year ALL 100 Mile Club schools and groups have the same color shirt. We do this for very specific reasons...

READ ABOUT IT HERE.

What started as a simple way to cast a few votes and have a little fun picking our next tee shirt color quickly evolved into a massive Penny Vote Tour. As with most things 100 Mile Club-related, what started as a fun and silly idea, backed up with with lots of passion and energy ended up HUGE and taking over everything!! This was true once again with The Penny Vote.

Jared Walker, a former 100 Mile Club participant and very busy IB student at a local middle school, volunteered to lead the charge. It was a great service project for him! Jared set up a booth at Walk for Kids 2009 and collected pennies in these cool vortex-topped water bottles:

The vortexes were all Jared's idea, and were soooooo cool!!

Color choices for 09-10 were as follows:

• Steel gray with white.


• True Red with navy.


• Forest Green with cream.

The kids (and adults!) had a ball watching the pennies, nickles, dimes, quarters, and even dollars go round and round and plop in to the color of their choice. klink! klink! klinklink! The coins kept coming!

So much was being collected that we decided to donate it to a local charity...The Circle of Hope Family Shelter was chosen to receive 100% of the proceeds from 100 Mile Club's 2009-10 Penny Vote. I don't even know if they know that yet. Do they know? I guess at the very least they will be pleasantly surprised. :)

These funny-looking (but fun!) containers travelled all over Southern California, and kids, parents, and friends all cast their votes with spare change. All the while, our collection boxes were getting heavier and heavier. Yay!!

The Vote ended on Friday, June 12. Our intention was to hand count the coins...the reality is that we ended up a the local market, standing in front of the Coinstar for a reaaaalllly long time. We had to pay a little percentage. OK. A big percentage. But we got it done.

Are you ready?? After all was said and done, the results are:

• Steel Gray with White: $51.70


• Green with Cream: $67.12


• Red with Navy: $110.65

TOTAL COLLECTED: $229.47 WOW! (This was mostly pennies, by the way.)

So, our new 100 Mile Club® tee shirt color for 2009-10 is:

RED WITH NAVY!

And the best part is that we got to cast our votes while giving back to our community...Thank you to everyone who voted this year! This just goes to show you that if everyone gives just a little, we can make a BIG difference.

Great job, everyone. I think next year this will be even bigger! We will involve more schools and have an online donation platform, as well!

IT'S ALMOST TOO SIMPLE: Fit Kids Do Better in School

Fit Kids Get Better Grades

By Michael O'Shea

Publication Date: 01/11/2009 PARADE MAGAZINE

As childhood obesity rates soar and kids spend more time sitting in front of their computers than playing outdoors, diabetes and other weight-related illnesses are on the rise. But physical health isn’t the only thing at stake. According to a study by the California Department of Education, kids’ fitness levels also may affect their performance in school. The study found that increased amounts of physical fitness translated into higher academic achievement at each of the three grade levels measured. The benefits were most evident in math scores. And girls, particularly those at higher fitness levels, demonstrated greater achievement than boys. Another study, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also found that increased physical activity had a positive effect on academic performance. Previous research has led doctors to surmise that exercise may encourage new brain-cell growth. A workout for your body also is a workout for your mind. Help kids get in shape, and they may bring home higher test scores and better grades.

The Research Is In! Fit Kids Perform Better

This 100 Mile Club student has a personal goal of running 100 miles each trimester.

Here he is with his first 100 miles and a BIG smile! So far, he's right on track!

Life is wild! I have so many blog posts in the hopper, but for now, I simply want to link you to two fabulous studies we found. Both were published in 2009 and tout daily physical activity in school. YAY!

What a month!

Take a look at this!

Physical Activity May Strengthen Children's Ability To Pay Attention
ScienceDaily (2009-04-01) -- Physical activity may increase students' cognitive control -- or ability to pay attention -- and also result in better performance on academic achievement tests, according to research led by a kinesiology and community health expert. ... > read full article

Physically Fit Kids Do Better In School

ScienceDaily (2009-01-30) -- A new study found that physically fit kids scored better on standardized math and English tests than their less fit peers. ... > read full article

What we'll do is link you to an article here and there before my blog posts. Keeping up on research and having fun!! That's what it's all about!

Local Tracks: Dedicated to Coach O'Neil :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

May 2009 bring you health, happiness, and miles!

Many of our 100 Mile Club® schools have asked about the different types of tracks I've seen while I'm out and about.

Then, I promised Coach O'Neil (Hi Monica...sorry it took me so long) a very long time ago that I would take pictures of some of the paths and tracks we have around the Corona-Norco area. I am sure that there are others out there, but I took pictures of a few that were designed differently from one another.

At first, I was just going to email the pictures to a few coaches, but I thought others might be interested, too. Sooooo, here they are. Welcome to Track Tour '09!!

The first one is at McKinley Elementary. This track is really low profile, but stays dry almost year-round. With the exception of a few puddles that disappear within hours (without any squishy mud left over), this track serves us perfectly. It is in use almost every hour of the day.

The entrance to the McKinley track.

Notice that this track is only 3-sided. The kids run on the blacktop and hop back on the track when they enter the grass area. It works for us.

Coming around the South end of McKinley's track.

This side stays shaded most of the day...it's right up against the fence so they only had to "do" one side on this part.

A close-up of the border and footing.

The bordering of this track is simply some sort of treated wood. The footing is decomposed granite. They dug downabout 4 or so inches all around and a load of DG was put in and rolled down. After the first rain and a few months more DG was added.

Next, Lee V. Pollard High School has a marvelous walking path. It meanders around and is landscaped so beautifully that it almost beckons you to get out and move! Like a little oasis at school. Look closely and you can see lights framing the entire path...

There are little outlet spots all around the path. I imagine people taking little chat breaks in there, maybe a picnic bench nestled in for lunch or break time, or maybe just stopping to tie shoes (goodness knows wee need shoe-tying spots!). They're like those pull out places when you drive up a mountain and you want to let people pass you. :)

Their border is some sort of aluminum...very thin but quite effective, and the path is filled with decomposed granite.

Finally, the site of our 2009 WALK FOR KIDS, Cesar Chavez Elementary School. We are all envious of this track!

It's a perfect 1/5 mile loop, about twice as wide as our other 2 paths, and is perfecctly flat. Spectacular!!

Their border is concrete on both edges and the track is, again, filled with decomposed granite.

Here is Chavez's track all decked out with 2008 Walk for Kids participants! This picture also helps to show how wide this track is...wow, huh?

Hopefully these tracks and paths will get your minds moving. If you have any good track/path pictures, send them over and we'll post them here, too.

No matter where you are, where you walk, or how you get those miles in, the important thing is to keep moving, do your best, and keep your goals in mind always.

As always, thank you for Accepting the Challenge, and we'll see you at Walk for Kids 2009 on March 14th!