SMITH: One week to the starting line

August 13, 2022

One week from now you could be running in the News and Sentinel Half Marathon. Or not. It’s up to you. If you are not running in the Half or the Two-Mile Race, please be mindful that hundreds of people are. If you are driving anywhere in Parkersburg next Saturday morning you might be delayed for a while as runners and walkers make their way by. They, and the people who put the race together, have worked hard to get to this point of normalcy. It’s not too late to join them in either race by registering at NewsandSentinelHalfMarathon.com, or in person Friday at the Parkersburg ...

WELKER: The positive influence of sports and family in life

July 29, 2022

I have made many mistakes in my life as an athlete on and off the field of play. But haven’t we all. Now that I’m a retired teacher, coach, and official, I have thought about how athletics and family assisted me in coping with the challenges of living a life of personal fulfillment. I want to share with athletes in all sports the five principles I have learned participating in sports and gleaned from a caring family. ∫ Be Humble — Always take your classes in school and sports seriously, but not yourself. To do so, is the beginning of arrogance. Arrogance offends others and has ...

What to expect from your first half marathon

July 23, 2022

If you are signed up to run in the 2022 News and Sentinel Half Marathon, congratulations, you are going to take part in one of the best 13.1-mile races in the country on Aug. 20. Many people run the half year after year. If this is the first time you are going to be part of the event, I thought it would be good to outline exactly what to expect. Most people get the “full experience” by coming to the packet pick up the night before. Open from 2-9 p.m. in the Parkersburg Municipal Building, the packet pick-up is a great way to connect with other runners. After you pick up your ...

Pace yourself: It’s a (half) marathon, not a sprint

July 16, 2022

There is an overused saying that is often uttered to apply to many non-running events that take a while to complete. “It’s marathon not a sprint” is used to describe many things that have no tie to racing. The most important thing to remember about the News and Sentinel Half Marathon is — It’s a marathon, not a sprint — well, it’s half of one any way. You need to pace yourself. Go out like a jack rabbit and you will fade quickly. A few years back I was looking at photos of the first quarter mile of a few different half marathons. I noticed one young guy holding ...

Don’t get discouraged

July 9, 2022

A friend that has run more half marathons than he can count and around 50 marathons told me that in all those races he has only had a handful where he felt good the entire race. You never really know what kind of race day you are going to have until you start. Come Aug. 20 and the News and Sentinel Half Marathon and you will likely know what kind of day you are going to have in the first few miles. A lot of things have to go well for you to have a perfect experience. Running is like life though; you need to not get discouraged and push through the days where you would rather just ...

1 day in August

July 2, 2022

A road race is really at its core, a giant math problem. A whole industry exists to keep track of how much time it takes a runner to complete a race. It works like this: There is a radio frequency identification tag attached to the back of your race number. When you cross the starting line, you pass over an antenna that registers you have started the race and starts your time in a computer. People who toe the line before the race repeatedly register, so it is the last time you cross the mat that counts. When you cross the finish line another set of mats registers you have ...