Team Eye and Ear Kick-Off Dinner

Last night was the kick-off dinner for the members of the Team Eye and Ear marathon team. Kristina, the Team Coordinator, arraigned for a pasta party in the MEEI café with Fred Treseler as the guest speaker. What a great event!

First off I met Hilda Chow, who is an accomplished marathoner. This will be her 6th marathon! The great parts for me were 1. She actually reads these blog posts, 2. She doesn’t think I’m slow, and 3. her motivation for running the marathon is somewhat related to mine. Her daughter utilizes the services of the Audiology department at MEEI. My motivation, grandpa Rufus, started the firm that built many of the machines used by the Audiologist at MEEI and installed the sound proof rooms, served on standards committees concerning Audiology, and served on the MEEI Board of Trustees. Talking to Hilda and hearing her speak about her motivation helped me remember mine. Thank you Hilda – Run Strong!

Fred is the president of Boston-based TRACS, Inc., a global sports marketing and event management firm, which is responsible for the design and execution of John Hancock running initiatives. He is a running industry expert and director of several John Hancock programs related to the Boston Marathon. His presentation included a video of the marathon route with helpful course and training tips. Seeing the route again was fantastic. It is amazing how the course is burned in my memory. I found myself thinking things like “Here comes the Dairy Queen,” “That is the corner Karen watches from,” “Here comes the mile 10 water stop where I’ll see Mary, Laurie and Jim,” “Is that where Vince was standing,” “There is that damn dip under Mass Ave.,” and finally “The Finish” which brings back the entire flood of joy.

Finally, it was great to meet other members of Team Eye and Ear, compare training notes, catch up with the other multi-year team members and see the other Saturday morning faces.