August 2, 2009 Darnd’st Du coming back to San Marcos August 16 There is still time to register for the Darnd’st Du Duathlon on August 16 right here in San Marcos. The event will be held out at the Tanger Outlet Center; and this year the event is the Texas State Duathlon Championship. There is a limit of 500 entrants for this year since it is the State Championship. The race consists of a 5K run, followed by a 30K bike ride and then another 5K run. The race begins at 7:00 a.m., but even with the early start the temperature will heat up rapidly. There will be plenty of aid stations; and runners are advised to take advantage of them, especially during the second 5K run when it begins to warm up. If you have never watched a big race like this, then try to make time to watch the athletes as they compete in this duathlon event. The 5K run will head out Centerpoint Road for an out-and-back run, followed by a 30K bike ride that leads back from Centerpoint Road and along scenic York Creek Road, and then head back along Old Bastrop Highway. Watching 500 athletes run and then ride some very high-dollar bikes as they speed along the back county roads is something to behold. While you will see some of the finest conditioned athletes competing for the awards, you will also be motivated to see some of your local friends attempt the race. Some of the local athletes will be very competitive and make a good representation for San Marcos. You will also see the newcomers to the sport, and some athletes that just want to be part of a large event; that will make you think that, with a little training, you could be part of this race. As with most events of this size, organizers are always willing to accept volunteers to help out. It is quite a feather in San Marcos’ cap to be able to host this event; and we want the athletes to know what a great city we have to visit and compete in. Volunteers are the key to making this happen, and the beneficiary of the race is CASA of Central Texas, which makes volunteering even more rewarding. Contact Eloise Hudson at CASA here in San Marcos for volunteer duties. On another subject, I was reading a short informative article in this month’s Reader’s Digest. While this magazine is not your typical source of information for runners, there is an occasional tidbit that proves beneficial to athletes. This one came from a very reliable source in nutrition. Nancy Clark, RD, is well known for her book, Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook, is one of the contributors, as well as some researchers from the University of Texas at Austin. One of the more popular subjects for athletes is getting enough nutrition and energy during workouts and races. There are many kinds of energy sources touted in health food stores, running stores, etc., for athletes to use to fuel up during their runs. The researchers at the University of Texas mention that you can get as much energy from a simple bowl of whole grain cereal and milk as from the very pricey sports drink. Nancy Clark has her own sources of energy to replace the various sources sold in sports stores. As an example, instead of energy bars such as PowerBar or Clif Bar that cost from $1.25 to $1.75 a serving, an athlete can chew on some Fig Newtons or granola bars or cereal bars for about 30 to 70 cents a serving. It amounts to quite a saving for the wallet. Another popular source for athletes is the gel packets such as GU Energy Gel, Clif Shot and PowerBar Gel that cost from $1.25 up to $2.50 per gel packet. Clark’s recommendation for substitution is to try honey sticks, Go-Gurt, or single servings of applesauce that only cost from 20 cents to 50 cents a serving. For those candy lovers that like to chew their energy, the Sports Beans, Luna Sport Moons, etc. that go for $1.25 to $2.00 a serving can be replaced with jelly beans, dried fruit or raisins that bring the cost down to 35 cents to 75 cents a serving. If you are looking for that extra energy during a workout, there is a much cheaper option to follow. At a race, if you want to impress other runners that you are in the elite-runner class and need to have the appropriate food to be part of the “in” crowd, go for the high-dollar energy sources. Otherwise, go shop at the grocery store and get the same type of energy for much less cost. Dr. Maurice Johnson - better known around San Marcos as “Moe” - is a professor in the Department of Health, P.E., Recreation and Dance at Texas State University - San Marcos. Moe has been a fixture in the San Marcos running community - both as a runner and race organizer - since way back when Moby Dick was a minnow. 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