Saturday, July 11, 2015

Making Great Strides - the Sunriver Striders!


In January 2014, a group of  senior Sunriver residents joined together to form a group that wanted to walk! 
Walk short distances, walk long distances, walk despite the weather, walk in different places, and walk to
make a difference.  Back then, none of us would have guessed just how far we’d go!  In our 1½ years of existence, the Sunriver Striders have walked thousands of miles!  We found ways to make a difference in our own health and willingness to compete and set unexpected goals for ourselves, but we’ve also found that, by walking or running in local races, we can contribute to regional causes. 


To date, our members have competed in over a dozen races, raising funds for some great local charities.
At the same time
we’ve lowered our blood pressure and increased our flexibility and endurance.  Several of our members have had joint replacements or other
compromising health issues, but that doesn’t stop us from taking on new challenges.  We walk weekly on Saturdays in and around Sunriver, but we also haves a sub-group who have named themselves the Long Haulers who take on greater distances on Wednesdays as we train for ½ marathons, our longest distance to date.

Two of the Striders have set a goal of walking 2015 miles in 2015 and already close to attaining that!  Our group has also extended to our younger generation; in the recent Pac Crest Sports Festival we had youngsters in their 30s join their parent Striders for ½ marathons, triathlons, and 10Ks.

And we’re just getting started!

Who knows where the next year will take us!