Heaven Can Wait weekend has once again come and gone. The 10th offering was better than ever. This event never ceases to amaze me. Packet Pick up at the shop was smooth and well run and we thank all the organizers and volunteers for their efficiency and good nature. As you can imagine, we're excited for the opportunity to host packet pick up since year one. Every year it's a lot of energy, mildly overwhelming, and ultimately really fun and rewarding. There is so much energy in that event and to watch it all come together is truly impressive. Charlene and all the organizers deserve a lot of credit. Sunday morning was beautiful. I helped organized the finish line again this year and thank all who came out to help. It's a great place to see everyone finish, dole out high fives and repeat "stay in order and keep moving!" about 500 times.
This year was clearly my favorite year since I got to watch so many of the Learn to Run group finish. The pic is a few of them who gathered at the FZ before hcw. Roberta (the impetus for the group) who said she couldn't run 2 minutes back in January, ran the whole thing and finished in under 40 minutes! My new friends Nikki and (different) Roberta who I previewed the course with on Wednesday both finished in under 47 minutes. There were too many accompishments for one post but needless to say the enthusiasm was high. Great to see people accomplishing great things. Look for a HCW video in the next day or two.
This summary of the weekend wouldn't be complete with bragging on our own Melanie and Colleen. Melanie is the new TPG poster girl since she took 4 minutes off her last years HCW time and took second in her age group (we're not sure she's actually missed a Tuesday Perf Group yet, really). Colleen wasn't around this weekend (we'll never make that mistake again) because she was off in Utah running the Squaw Creek 50 miler. She went into it with severe trepidation because her calf had been giving her much grief for the past week+. Somehow, however, she pushed through and finished well ahead of her goal. We'd all be astonished if we didn't already know how tough Colleen is. Whew, sorry for the rambling post but there's a lot to say. And we haven't even hit Dirty Half weekend yet. Rest up-Teague
A couple new Brooks shoes are now in the fold at the FootZone and both are exciting in different ways. First is the new Brooks Launch. This is a fun, lightweight neutral shoe that will work for some as a trainer and others as a racing shoe. There seems to be plenty of cush and a smooth ride to complement a spectacular heel fit and comfortable upper. The Launch will grab attention first for its flashy looks but I expect this shoe to find a niche for the way it performs. The second shoe, the Ravenna, is one I've been anxiously anticipating ever since i saw the sample back in December. This is a stability/guidance shoe geared toward mild to moderate overpronation. 
There's plenty of cush but the platform is well grounded and balanced underfoot. The overall profile and smooth heel transition should make this shoe equally appealing to runners and walkers. Overall, the fit is very secure, grabbing the midfoot and heel pretty aggressively while opening up nicely in the forefoot. I'll be very surprised if this doesn't end up a winner for many active fz customers. Good to start the week with a busy Monday and some fun new shoes. Cheers-Teague
