I'm taking over the blog today for some shameless Bia promotion. But we'll get to that in a minute. To set the stage, I'm re-posting an entry I wrote while we were in Singapore in February [scroll to the bottom if you remember this entry]:
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Some
of my running friends may already be familiar with the story of Sherry
Arnold, which has reverberated through the online running community over
the past month. Briefly, Sherry was a mother/wife/runner/teacher
living in Montana. She left her house for an early morning run on
January 7 and never returned. Two men have been arrested for her
murder, although very few details have been released about the
investigation, and her body hasn't been found. [*EDIT: Her body was found in March. The two men were charged, and confessed. Neither knew her personally. They were out driving around in the early morning, high on something, when they saw her, kidnapped her, and ultimately killed her.*]
I first heard about the incident on SUAR's
blog. SUAR normally writes hilarious and very true blog posts about
the struggles, successes, and sometimes necessary bathroom antics of
being a runner. [If you're a runner, her blog should be in your Google
Reader.]
But
SUAR and Sherry are cousins, and as the story of Sherry's disappearance
and the investigation unfolded, SUAR's blog took a turn for the serious
as she shared her confusion, grief, and mourning with her readers.
Ultimately, and with the blessing of Sherry's family, she organized a Virtual Run for Sherry on February
11, 2012. Runners all over the world responded. They printed bibs,
formed groups, and planned to run together in Sherry's memory. As of
Saturday night, over 20,000 bibs had been printed. SUAR, thank you for making this happen. You are amazing.
On
Sunday morning in Singapore (which was the evening of Feb. 11,
Montana-time), Kee-Min and I completed our Run for Sherry. While many of
the virtual runners in the US were battling bitter cold, snow, and ice,
we headed out into 85-90 F and ~90% humidity. To be honest, I hardly
noticed.
 |
| This one's for you, Sherry. [And no, we did not just jump out of the swimming pool.] |
Our course was
nothing fancy - just a 5 mile loop to and around the Pandan Reservoir.
It was a route we've run many times while staying in Singapore. But
today's run was different.
Today, I wasn't running to find quiet, to burn calories, or to clear my head.
I wasn't running an interval, or a tempo, or a fartlek.
I wasn't running to train, or to race, or to recover.
Today, I was running for Sherry.
I
was running to grieve. I was mourning the loss of Sherry's life, as
well as the innocence, security, and comfort that were lost in her
attack.
I was running because I believe that a run should be a refuge, a lesson, an escape, and a passion - but never a burden, a fear, or a prison.
I
was running to feel powerful. Baseless and random violence leaves a
feeling of helplessness in its wake. Moving forward (literally and
figuratively), under the power of my own body, was a small step toward
regaining a feeling of control.
I was running because I train outside, by myself, in the dark, at 6 AM and 8 PM.
I
was running to feel strong, and to send that strength to Sherry's
friends, co-workers, students, running club, family, husband, and
children.
As we came in to the last half mile, some lyrics floated through my head, courtesy of Matthew Wilder...
"Ain't nothin' gonna break my stride
Nobody's gonna slow me down, oh-no.
I got to keep on movin'.
Ain't nothin' gonna break my stride
I'm runnin' and I won't touch ground, oh-no.
I got to keep on movin'."
Don't worry, Sherry. We're gonna keep on movin'. We know you would.
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So why bring this all back up again now?
So why bring this all back up again now?
Well, during the last mile of our Run for Sherry, Kee-Min and I started talking. We talked about running, about safety, about GPSes, and about connecting a GPS to some kind of safety alert. We tossed around a pile of ideas, potential roadblocks, and possible solutions. Of course, neither of us had the expertise to bring such a project to fruition.
However, the ladies behind the Bia Multi-Sport GPS Watch had some of the same ideas and the know-how. Now, they are working to bring this product to life. There's some pretty sweet technology going on in this sucker, so check it out. In addition to its small size and (allegedly) fast GPS connection time, the major selling point for me is the safety alert. Push & hold a button for 3 seconds, and your GPS coordinates are sent to a number you set/provide. For an annual fee, you can also have it set to contact emergency services.
They have the technology, and the prototypes - but they still need some funding to bring the project to the marketplace. Right now, they are in the homestretch of a Kickstarter campaign here, and they have less than a day left to meet their funding goal. So please, please - go over, check it out, and if you are able, toss in a donation. They are offering some excellent incentives for different levels of sponsorship, and you will only be charged if they meet their goal. So check it out (today!!!), show some love for this technology, and, most of all - think about how this *could* make a difference in the life of a runner/biker/hiker/skier that you love.
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