The Sgt. Daniel Vasselian Memorial 5K

On November 11, 2014 By The Running Griffin1 Comment

Having a lot of extra vacation time to use up before the end of the year, it’s always nice to be able to take a day off, unwind a little bit and maybe get a run in. Today afforded me the opportunity to take a day off from work and head over to Abington, Massachusetts to take part in The Sgt. Daniel Vasselian Memorial 5K.

Sgt. Vasselian’s family decided to host this first annual run to pay tribute to all of the veterans who have served so nobly on behalf of our country. It was touching to see so many veterans in attendance at today’s race.

USMC Sgt. Daniel M. Vasselian was killed in action while conducting combat operations in Helmand Province, Afghanistan with Bravo Company 1st Battalion 9th Marines. Sgt Vasselian; known to most as Danny or “V”; brought a light into the world that will never soften. Danny will always be known for his sense of humor, his laugh, kind heart and his ability to find the good in anyone. He brought happiness to everyone he met without realizing the true impact he would leave them with. Despite his gift of bringing humor and a lightheartedness to almost any situation, when it came to his passion in life; he proved to be one of the most fearless and determined Marines that we would ever encounter. He lived his life for his wife, family and friends and he laid down his life; not only for them – but for the freedom of a country that will be forever grateful to him.

The race started and finished directly in front of the Abington Police Department and the crowd of runners was amazing for a first annual race. Prior to the runners taking off on the pavement, Vasselian’s wife Erin and his military comrade Sgt. Aaron Alonso took to the course. Alonso lost both of his legs due to an IED attack while serving in combat.

The course took runners through residential side streets of Abington and twist and turned through some neighborhoods. Once hitting the mile 2 marker, everything changed. Runners made their way into a cemetery and ran past the grave of Sgt. Vasselian where two Marines stood guard. As we ran by, runners blessed themselves, chanted an “Ooo rah” or simply had the same emotions sweep across them that I felt. Though I have never served in the military, the amount of respect that I have for our veterans is endless and running a race on Veterans Day to show my support was a simple way to show that respect.

Coming into the finish line, motorcycles lined the last stretch into the finish and members of the veterans motorcycle club American Infidels stood cheering runners in.

I finished today’s Sgt. Daniel Vasselian Memorial 5k with a time of 22:12, good for 7:08/miles.

The race raised funds for the Danny V Fund and given the success of the race I truly hope this is the first of many races to come.

MA FOP Lodge #28 3rd Annual New Year’s Day Frozen Five Mile Run

On November 2, 2014 By The Running GriffinLeave a comment

Registration is now open for the MA FOP Lodge #28 3rd Annual New Year’s Day Frozen Five Mile Run!

Where can you go on a New Year’s Day Morning, take a five mile run, support the Fraternal Order of Police (a charity organization) and have an ALL YOU CAN EAT breakfast afterwards for only $25.00? Come join MA. FOP Lodge #28 for their 2015 3rd Annual Frozen Five Mile Run. Trophy for first place overall Male and Female winner. Awards given to first and second place Male and Female in six (6) different age categories, 0-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59 and 60+. Water station and timing provided. T-Shirts will be provided to all PARTICIPANTS. Bring a guest for breakfast at no extra charge!!! (Just not the whole family!!!!)

You can register for this race online by clicking here. I hope to see you there!

Dog & Grog Jog in Providence, RI

On October 19, 2014 By The Running GriffinLeave a comment

Last Sunday afternoon it was down to Providence, Rhode Island for the Dog & Grog Jog hosted at the Wild Colonial Tavern in the heart of downtown Providence.

This race is like none other. If you have done a really race before you sort of understand the gist: run your leg and then your partner takes off and the first team to finish wins. However, the Dog & Grog Jog adds a little excitement to the mix. Teams are made up of four runners and our team (named Corned Beef and Kapusta paying homage to the Irish and Polish lineages of the team members) heard about what to expect at the relay and conquered the challenge with some smiles and belching.

You see, runners run 1.25 miles, a quick jaunt along one of the Providence canals and rather pancake flat running at that. Once the runner has completed the 1.25 mile run they then have to eat a saugy (a remarkably delicious hot dog) and drink a ‘Gansett before the next runner can go. The hot dog actually was not all that bad to get down but the ‘Gansett was a bit more tricky. Some runners were extreme in their techniques of conquering the challenge and others were quite precise in putting condiments on the dog, sipped the beer like a nice summer day on a porch or had to adjust their costume before taking on the dog and beer. You see, the race also features some pretty awesome costumes ranging from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Duck Dynasty, Glam Clams to Beach Bums and cereal characters to bumble bees.

Let it be known that next year, we likely will be back with a new name, some costumes and our eyes on taking down more and more teams. If anyone wants to assist with the training, please reach out for my mailing address to send packs of saugys and cases of Narragansett.

Register for the Monson Memorial Classic

On October 14, 2014 By The Running GriffinLeave a comment

The Running Griffin encourages readers to register for the Monson Memorial Classic. As part of Ovarian Cancer Awareness month, Monson Memorial Classic donated to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance in memory of our buddy Matt at Matt Reno Logo‘s mom who passed away from ovarian cancer several years ago.

The 19th Annual Monson Memorial Classic is a half-marathon and will be held on Sunday, November 9th. There is also a 5K option held on the same day. The Monson Memorial Classic road race was started in 1996, shortly after the deaths of Kelly Waldron and Kathy Waldron Perry. These sisters died eight months apart from different types of cancer. Kathy suffered with melanoma, and Kelly had breast, bone, and liver cancer. They were wonderful, loving people. This race is in their memory, and past proceeds have gone to American Cancer Association of Western Mass, American Lung Association, Quaboag Valley Hospice, and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. This year they are giving proceeds to Griffin’s Friends and Melanoma Education Foundation.

To register for the Monson Memorial Classic, please click here and be sure to thank them for supporting great causes!

Tower of Terror 10 Miler

On October 10, 2014 By The Running GriffinLeave a comment

You really can’t get better than a trip to Disney World with the family. The rides, the characters, the food, the pools, the sun, the smiles and so much more really make the trip to Disney World worth every penny! When you mix in a 10 mile road race, now you really have a vacation.

Thanks to Mrs. Running Griffin’s mother and aunt in tow for this jaunt to Florida we were able to leave the little Running Griffins with them while we made our way to Hollywood Studios to partake in the Tower of Terror 10 Miler. As with all Disney races, the race takes place outside of normal park hours and therefore has a moonlight starting time of 10PM. Runners arrived at Hollywood Studios and were greeted with a DJ blasting the tunes, a wall of what seemed to be 1000 port-a-potties, some food vendors and a lot of anxious, sleepy and runners ready to head out onto the course.

After getting into our corals, runners made their way toward the starting line and waves went off just about every two minutes to the second. Upon the start of each wave, fireworks and a laser show sent runners through the starting line and out onto the course.

At each mile marker on the course was a different Disney villain including Jafar, The Big Bad Wolf, the hyenas from the Lion King and more. What was interesting is that there clearly were a lot of people not interested in their running time and instead they queued up for an autograph and photo with each villain along the way. The highway was closed down completely (which only Disney can do) and runners traversed along the highway and into Disney’s Animal Kingdom park, ESPN Wide World of Sports and Hollywood Studios finishing directly next to a giant party at the Tower of Terror. Some of the most enjoyable running was inside of ESPN Wide World of Sports where we were able to run on a track, on a cross country path and into the baseball stadium the Atlanta Braves play Spring Training games at. The stadium had eerie music blaring, fans in the stands and smoke adding to the haunted ambiance of the run.

Mrs. Running Griffin and I decided that we would run the race together and had a great time running the race side-by-side. For a race that had thousands of people participating there was absolutely no way to get lonely on the course but it is always nice to be able to run with someone. We finished the 10 miler with a time of 1:44:19 and crossed the finish line right around midnight. After a quick beer and a bite to eat it was then off to Uber back to the hotel and head to bed!