Selling shoes--the first 90 days...

I decided to give it a full 90 days of observation before I spoke of this mad adventure of selling running shoes. My initial summation is this. "Wow".  I am all over the place with what to make of it. The diversion of people--their needs, sometimes at odds with their requests, the stereotypes broken once you engage in conversation, the funny, the sad, the hopeful, the inspirational...they all walk through the door...

In spite of the chaos of working week-ends while still trying to train for marathons and have a life, I LOVE THIS JOB. I especially love this job because of the customers. It may be a customer with a complicated need to work through. My favorite customer in this category so far is the somewhat overweight customer starting the "Couch to 5K" program that hated any shoe with an arch...She ended up with a pair of New Balance Minimus shoes, which I often refer to as ballet slippers. It's one of the few shoes in the store that indeed, has no arch. Once I put those shoes on her feet she hit the treadmill and said, "Bingo, this is it".  I also love the customer that shatters a stereotypical thought, like the thin, small framed guy who just took up running. As I had him remove this socks and shoes to walk barefoot I thought to myself that I was wasting his time with the gait analysis, as I was sure he was a neutral runner...well he ended up pronating so badly he left the store with not just a stability shoe for pronation, but a full blown motion control shoe. I have to admit I love the customer who thinks he knows what he wants and I can convince him to get what he needs and still walk away happy, like the guy who wanted Newtons because all his triathlete friends wore them...So I put him in Newtons, but I made him run on the treadmill. He couldn't get those shoes off his feet fast enough. (Trust me, he didn't need to be wearing Newtons)...But my favorite customer of all is the one who has the inspirational story, like the guy who lost over 100 pounds and is on a tear to get out there and jog his first 5K. They all have that light in their eyes, quoting that same message, "You just have to get out there and do it". So simple, yet so profound.

Of course, some customers are not as pleasant or fun to work with, but nonetheless just as important. A man brought in his wife with advanced Alzheimer's to be fitted for running shoes. The only rationale I could think of was maybe she used to be a regular customer as a walker or runner and still insisted on coming to Luke's Locker, I don't know, but it was very sad. We have a few customers that are just plain mean and ugly, but luckily they are rare, as rare as they are in the running community itself, which makes sense I guess. Then there's the customer that is injured and wants you to fix them. They want you to put them in a shoe that will make them all better. I do the best I can, but usually it's not the shoe, which is a tough pill for some to swallow, especially if a race is looming. The ones I have the most trouble with though, are the children who have the overbearing parent, like the 8 year old boy whose dad was barking that now his son can go "run some PR's"...In my brief moment with him I told him to have fun running, because that is all that matters, and just hope that the thought stuck in his brain somewhere...

So in just one day here is sample:
1. A lady who just qualified for Boston at her first marathon (Chicago), and was able to register in time for Boston 2013.
2. A lady who actually referred to herself as "not a real runner" because she only ran a few miles a few times a week. (I set her straight).
3. A guy that currently wore a size 3XLshirt , but is well on his way to a 2XL...He had suffered blood clots from a surgery and was finally back to walking 4 miles a day, every day.
4. An older man that was putting off ankle surgery, but his ankle was so swollen I really had to work hard to find a shoe with a large enough "throat" for it.
5. A preschooler that wanted a shoe with shoe strings instead of velcro.
6. A woman that wanted only the pink Nike Free 3.0's and nothing else.
7. A real looker of a woman who needed black shoes because she was a waitress at a gentlemen's club, and her feet were killing her. FYI, Nike's Pegasus Shield is black and water resistant. I really felt sorry for my male co-workers for not getting to work with her, ha ha.
8. An older woman who is running her first marathon in over 10 years because her sister wanted to run a marathon, so they are running the Marine Corps marathon together in matching outfits.

Obviously, with 90 days into it I have a lot more to learn...mostly about shoe technology...I'll save that one for the next blog. So far I am trying to keep an open mind, but there are shoes that I only bring out by request and when I do I exercise considerable restraint. To be continued...

Marathon #28: Baltimore Marathon, 2010

Here's what I wrote when we (Kathy Murgas, Bill Baxley, Laura Steen-Patterson, and me) returned from Baltimore...

Ironically, the beauty of the marathon can sometimes be in its ability to draw the ugliness out of the very core of our souls, to strip away every protective layer and leave us out  there in the bright sun, bare, naked, UGLY...nowhere to hide...Somehow we find something within us to conquer it and bust through the "ugly place" and make our way, miraculously, to the finish line.
I thank God that not all marathons are like that...but this one sure as hell was...at least for me...

OK, short version: Kathy: 4:00 flat, Bill: 4:16, Laura: 4:09, and me, 4:12. Perfect weather, a bit windy, but not a factor. Course: beastly hilly. In my opinion the course is harder than Boston, but I knew it would be hilly, so no excuses. But that doesn't mean it didn't beat me to a pulp. We are all happy with our finishes and our ridiculously huge blinged out medals to boot. In total, it was a great day and a great trip overall.

Ok long version. (sigh). Hey, you knew it was coming.

It was a gorgeous morning. Not a cloud in the sky, and cool crisp air.  Lots of positive energy flowing. A happy morning. And then the race started...First 3 miles all uphill and it was work from step one. Kathy was gone right away. Bill, Laura, myself, and a hovering helicopter stayed together for the first few miles. Finally, the helicopter left, about the same time Bill pulled away. I told Laura, "I'm really glad he finally left". pause. "I meant the helicopter, not Bill." :)
And it was harsh, those first miles. I was still easily blowing sunshine out my rear at this point, telling Laura how great the downhill will be when we get to the turn around. Once we turned around though, surprise, hill, and then bam, another hill. So it went: downhill, up, down, up...down. GEESH. Was running out of sunshine already...By mile 12 my sunshine reserves were depleted and I'm  pretty sure this was my lowest point in the race. I was realizing at that moment that this was going to be one of those marathons I mentioned above. (Trust me, I know the warning signs by now).

The "beauty" of the miles that followed is hard to explain, but I can tell you that sharing them with Laura as we went back and forth was priceless. What we didn't know, and wish we had, was that Bill somehow ended up behind us (popped into a medical tent around mile 16 I believe).
We could have suffered together! Anyhow, somewhere along the ridiculous climb from mile 16 to 20 ish I started to "come around", and salvage my race. I knew then that I would make it to the finish. It wouldn't be pretty, I'd have to walk some of the hills, but I was going to make it. Huge relief.

My main remaining issue was trying not to kill any of the half marathoners along the way, since they were running nearly their entire race along with us. (They kicked them off at an hour and 45 minutes after us and merged them in with us at mile 16...do the math). For those who like noise, chaos, crowds, half marathon runners darting all about you, this is your race!  At their 11 mile mark they had a cheering crowd. "11 miles! and only 2 to go". Inspirational. Mile 24 marker...cue the crickets chirping...Seriously, the full marathoners were simply lost in the crowd of half marathoners, especially as we finished, when they accelerated into their mad-hatter sprints to the line. The marathon finishers didn't even have our own finishing chute. The marathon runners were forced to come to a complete stop as the masses (mostly half marathoners) slowly filtered into a narrow opening in a gate. You could tell who the marathoners were, because we were all moving about in tiny circles, grabbing our knees, or some were even puking over the rails. And NO MEDICAL ANYWHERE. It was the most ridiculous finish I have ever encountered, and have already emailed the race director about it.

Once I pushed and shoved my way through the hole, and grabbed a mylar blanket I encountered girls with boxes of medals and made sure I got the full medal (ceremonial. Nice touch).
From there I was in the chaotic sea of humanity, trying to decipher where to go next to find a: the beer tickets, then b: the beer. I came across people standing in line for a dixie cup of soup. Really, REALLY? Sure enough I found the beer, and my peeps! We always know where to find each other! For some reason we decided to stand around a giant plastic drum positioned between two beer trucks and have our little celebration. And we were all so happy!!
 
 Later I will make my pros and cons and submit to marathonguide.com. The pros: The course was pretty, the people of Baltimore were out cheering for us, Baltimore is a great destination city, the race logistics were great (start and finish close to each other and hotels), great starting area (Camden Yards), and finish (Ravens stadium). Organized aid stations, mile markers, traffic control. Beautiful medals. Expo was decent.

Cons: besides the obvious half issues, and finish area, nothing really! 

October Marathon of the Month: Cape Cod Marathon

Cape Cod marathon

First, a little geography lesson for those of us who have no clue where or what Cape Cod really is...you northerners can scroll down to the next paragraph...according to Wikipedia, Cape Cod, often referred to locally as simply the cape, is a barrier island in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts. It's approximately 1-2 hours by car from Boston. From here the popular Martha's Vineyard and Natucket Islands can be reached via ferry. The cape is composed of 15 towns, and those towns separate out into smaller villages. The town of Falmouth resides within the "upper cape" area, and this is where the marathon is held.

The Falmouth Track Club has organized this marathon since 1978! It's always held on the last Sunday of October. Last year they added a half marathon, which runs on Saturday, giving runners the chance to participate in the "Clam Chowdah Challenge", which is running both the half and the full marathon races! There's also a 5-person relay in conjunction with the full marathon.

The marathon course is one of the most scenic courses in existence. It loops from the Village Green in Falmouth center, with long stretches of shoreline, farmland, colorful cranberry bogs, the villages of Falmouth with peaking fall foliage, and an incredible view of the Nobska lighthouse.  With the spirit of Halloween in the air, one may witness more costumes worn than usual as well.

Terrain-wise, as with most scenic marathons, this comes with a price: HILLS. Yes, the course is challenging, with most of the memorable hills in the second half. Most marathonguide.com comments with regards to the hills claim they are mostly rolling and "manageable", but none of these people appeared to be from Texas, so take heed.

The weather can be an issue, with the possibility of nor'easter storms rolling in, but the course is designed to minimize the effects of strong winds (or at least utilize as tail wind).  Last year they had storms roll in and out right before the marathon started, and near perfect weather the year before. Luckily, indoor facilities are used at the start line, as well as the finish, where reportedly the best clam chowder in the world is served.

There's a nice, small town feel to this marathon, as the marathon count is usually about 1,100 people, and last year's half was around 1,300 people, making race day logistics simple and somewhat stress-free. There's not a lot of hoopla on the course--I like that, but some people complained that it got lonely in parts. Also, some people complained that parts of the course are open to traffic, which is often the case, but maybe there was a lot of it--not sure. I think my only reservation about doing this marathon is that I'd hate to come for the marathon and have inclement weather make seeing the neighboring islands less enjoyable, or even impossible. The area certainly bills itself as a summer destination, but rates are a lot cheaper in the Fall!

This marathon has been on my list for years--someday I hope to finally do it!

Nobska lighthouse