My 2 Cents

Bunion Derby Part 2 – A Tribute to Black History Month

by vince February 28, 2011 Book Reviews

“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me… All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” – Jackie Robinson In November 2010 Monumental Effort published the story “The Bunion Derby – Part 1”.  On the eve of the 3rd edition of The Mother Road 100-mile run, we briefly presented the [...]

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The Bunion Derby – Part One

by vince November 13, 2010 Book Reviews

“It winds from Chicago to LA, more than two thousand miles all the way.  Get your kicks on Route 66” – Nat King Cole On November 13th and 14th, Monica Scholz will run in the third edition of the Mother Road 100-Miler in Oklahoma, and in the process she will eclipse her World Record of [...]

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Trail Runner: One Dirty Magazine

by vince October 27, 2010 Book Reviews

“Trail running is a unique sport…that transcends the mere act of running and embodies the essence of being in the outdoors.” – Brian Metzler, Founding Editor of Trail Runner Over the course of our first year of blogging, Monumental Effort has reviewed nearly a dozen (what we thought were) inspirational books on running.  From memoirs [...]

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Into the Wind

by vince October 7, 2010 Faces

“I’m not a dreamer, and I’m not saying this will initiate any kind of definitive answer or cure to cancer, but I believe in miracles. I have to.” – Terry Fox During my latest race south of the border (Arkansas Traveler 100-miler, report to follow…), I ran a few early miles alongside a couple of [...]

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Barefoot Running and Fixing Your Feet

by vince September 19, 2010 Book Reviews

« My feet are like gnarled old tree branches. »  – Dennis Rodman Does anyone else feel inundated, and frankly really annoyed by all the talk about the barefoot running craze?  Sure I’ve read and very much enjoyed Christopher McDougall’s bestseller “Born to Run”.  I’m also a strong advocate for minimalist shoes.  Whether I’m running a [...]

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Ode to Race Directors

by vince August 30, 2010 Monumental Efforts

    Our tenure as Race Directors has come to a close,So I thought I’d pay tribute with some poetic prose.For nearly a decade we have organized the Iroquoia Trail Test,With these duties behind us, it’s time for a well-deserved rest. If you’ve ever staged a run, you can appreciate the work requiredTo get every [...]

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Once a Runner

by vince July 31, 2010 Book Reviews

“In order to win you’ve got to avoid losing first” — Dick Doobey, football coach at fictitious Southern University Since I started writing reviews, first for the Burlington Runners Times newsletter then here at Monumental Effort, one book that has been recommended to me on occasion is Once a Runner by John L. Parker Jr. [...]

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First Term Report Cards

by vince June 7, 2010 Faces

“My report card always said, ‘Jim finishes first and then disrupts the other students’.” -comedian Jim Carrey We are nearly halfway through 2010 and Monumental Effort thought it would be a good idea to revisit and assess some of the stories we have covered this year.  As the academic year winds down most teachers are [...]

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Earth Day – Go Green

by vince April 22, 2010 My 2 Cents

“It’s not easy being green” – Kermit the Frog Happy Earth Day!  This important day has prompted Monumental Effort to offer hints and tips to runners on how we could be more environmentally conscious.  We are not suggesting that we are perfect when it comes to thinking about our planet, but we are hoping this [...]

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Rowboat in a Hurricane

by Bill April 13, 2010 Book Reviews

Last night I couldn’t sleep.  I tossed and turned, struggling to get comfortable in my king size bed, beneath my soft, flannel sheets and down filled duvet. At two in the morning I found myself splayed sideways across the bed and oddly my feet only lightly brushed the pajamas of my soundly sleeping spouse.  As [...]

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