ShamRockers USA

ShamRockersUSA Trains Youth to Run,
Gain Confidence With Graduate Programs
By DIANE LYONS
13.1@ShamRockersUSA.com

ShamRockersUSA, Inc. was formed in 2007 in Sarasota, FL, to “Teach Teens to Run Half Marathons Around the World.” From the ‘Elite,’ the original seven young men who ran the Walt Disney World Half Marathon in 2008, ShamRockersUSA grew into a non-profit corporation created solely for kids 10 to 18. This age group often has out-of-control childhood obesity and unhealthy eating behaviors, and is a stage of development that can be precarious and potentially dangerous for a young child who may not have a strong sense of self-esteem.

I felt there was a lack of fun running programs for young kids, especially for those who might not be very athletic. We take kids who have never run before and introduce them to the benefits of running. One of my favorite mottos: “Get off the couch and get on the streets.”
These youths are the “I Generation,” so named for their quest for Information, their love of the Internet, and their high level of Independence. They are fiercely independent yet crave social groups and crowd camaraderie. This is apparent by their use of social media where they talk to friends all over the world yet maintain control of who they “friend,” what that friend sees, and the level of access to their personal information. Running is perfect for them because, as I have been describing it for years, “Running is just you and a pair of shoes against the road.” These kids train in a group setting yet are truly in competition only with themselves.

I teach the kids long-distance running through my own version of run/walk -- I am all about endurance, not about speed. And because we make the training fun and exciting and have a high return rate, this requires me to continually update the programs. At the end of 2008, I had about a dozen kids who had been running with me for nearly two years and they wanted something more. Having just run four of the half marathons in southern Florida that spring, I noted to myself that the kids could do this, too. The first of the “Four Leaf Graduate” programs was born.

To become a Four Leaf Team member, the kids must be a graduate of another ShamRocker program and be personally invited by me. They did not need to have previously run a half marathon; in fact, of the nine kids who quickly registered, only two had already run a half marathon. The kids were beside themselves -- extended training runs, new routes, and exercises were planned -- and a real attraction was the limousine ride to two of the races.

ShamRockersUSA starts them in the Fall Team with an eight-mile program, then graduates them to the Summer Grad 13 mile-program where they train for the Walt Disney World Half Marathon. The Four Leaf Program grew out of these initial training runs to offer an opportunity for greater accomplishment and achievement. ShamRockersUSA, Inc. is an “Official Disney Endurance Sports Running Club” and we run all of the Disney endurance series races.

For the first Four Leaf, we started with the 2010 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend in January. Believe it or not, it snowed! In the first snowfall in Orlando since no one knows when, the day started at 3 a.m. for us in the Epcot parking lot. Wrapped tightly in blankets and wearing four shirts, three pairs of pants, over-leggings, mittens, hats, and scarves, we watched the first flurries flutter past our heads. By the bang of the start gun, the flurries were pretty thick; by Mile 5, the temperature had warmed just enough to turn the snow to rain and get us soggy. Then the temperature plummeted once more, causing frozen roads and ice crystals on our caps. Our feet were cold but we happily survived the day without injury. I then ran my second Goofy the next day, which happened to be the fifth annual race, and again, the day was even colder and offered 40 plus mph winds.

At month’s end, I had the kids meet at a local parking lot at 2:45 a.m. as they awaited the first limousine ride of the program -- to Miami. When the brand new, sleek white Lincoln Town Car arrived, suddenly the kids weren’t so tired! We arrived in total style, ran the Miami ING Marathon at sunrise and by 10 a.m. were back in the car for the three-and-a-half-hour ride home. Yes, we all took a nap.
Next up, the Tampa Bay Gasparilla Distance Classic. This limo ride was a stretch Expedition SUV, black as night. Arriving around 4:30 a.m. with very little sleep once again, we picked up our bibs, ran the 13.1 miles in the cold sunshine, partied a bit at the post race event then headed back home. One of my runners took second place in his age group.

We ended the program in mid-March with the Sarasota Grouper Run in our hometown of Sarasota. It was great to have all the families watch each youngster cross the finish line. The Four Leaf program now over, this awesome team of nine kids earned the right to take a break -- they had been running since the previous July. But still they attended the training runs every Saturday and helped me with the Fall Team program and they hosted these new young runners at the Disney Muddy Buddy in May. Several will be back, yet again, in July; two will run the Disney Full Marathon with me in 2011.

Taking a limousine to Miami and Tampa certainly made the race easier; the race directors really worked with us to come in that morning, receive our runner bags, and run the race that morning, then have a safe drive home. Next year, we will start the New Four Leaf graduates at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend again, then we’re off to Tampa once more -- but we changed the program to now include the Tampa Bay Gasparilla Classic Bud Light Challenge where the kids will run the 5K and the 15K on Saturday, then the half marathon on Sunday -- three races in two days! We will again conclude the program at the ING Miami Half Marathon; limousines and hotel nights are included for these road warriors.

Since the beginning in 2007 in Sarasota, nearly 100 kids have ‘crossed the finish line’ of a race for the very first time. Now expanded to include triathlons and international travel, the new ShamRockersUSA Teen Running, Tri & International Travel Club, Inc. was formed with the goal of taking the programs international. In 2009, ShamRockersUSA hosted five families who crossed the ocean to run the Cork City Marathon Relay in Cork City, Ireland. We will return to run this race again in 2011 with a stop over in Paris.

Coaches and runners throughout the nation, and around the World, are encouraged to contact me for the opportunity to operate your own ShamRockersUSA Program in your city. You may contact me, Diane Lyons, at (941) 321-6208 or via email at 13.1@ShamRockersUSA.com. Our website: www.ShamRockersUSA.com.