Live Uncommon - Never Giving Up, Always Giving Back.

Countdown - LU Games minus 23 days - LU Press Conference

wow there is a LOT of LU stuff goin down..

YOU, aka LIVE UNCOMMON, are busy affecting change...

changing the World..

making happen The Greater Good.

way, way, way cool.

urgent timing on this Countdown release --

tomorrow - Wednesday May 28 -- 7:30PM --- LIVE UNCOMMON Press Conference.

community Mayors from Davenport, Rock Island, Bettendorf, Moline...

as well as Police Captains from each City..

will join forces tomorrow in kicking off the LU 4-day RUN WITH ME for Suicide Awareness & Prevention.

Yup.

suicide.

catapulted into focus by recent and local losses.

suicide awareness and prevention is the crux of the LU 4-day RUN WITH ME.

yes, we said 4-day RUN WITH ME.

like, 4 days in a row.

24 / 7.

that doesn't mean YOU or anyONE running 24 / 7 for 4 days.

it DOES mean a contiguous 24 / 7 RUN for 4 days straight.

but not by ONE.

by many.

by YOU.

we ask that YOU relocate your daily RUN to incorporate your mileage into this effort -- joining for a portion -- 30 minutes, an hour, a SHIFT of a couple hours -- to RUN WITH ME..

for Suicide Awareness & Prevention.

causes don't get much more worthy than this --- LIVES.

YOUNG LIVES..

ANY LIVES..

prevented from being lost to suicide.

get YOURself to the LU Press Conference tomorrow night:

WHEN --- 7:30PM tomorrow (Wednesday) May 28

WHERE --- Skybridge -- (inside on the south end -- nearest the great Missippi River) 121 W. 2nd Street, Davenport

HOW -- however YOU can get there

WHO -- awesome, UNcommon YOU

WHY -- prevent the loss of any LIFE to suicide

see YOU there...

LU Santa Gump Run for Toys for Tots

Yo Ho Ho Ho, Team. . .

Let's go do that voodoo. . . .YOU do. . .so well. . .

What's LUp?

LU Santa Gump Run..

..for..

..yup..

..the Greater Good, of course.

TOYS FOR TOTS.

we say "Dream It. . .Live It."

YOUR very own LU Teammates...

YOUR very own LU Race Team HEROES..

JEFF DEPPE and ANNA RAYA...

...dreamt it...

...so...

..time to LIVE IT, baby!

..19 MILES..

..run what, when, how YOU can...

...take your lunch break...

..take your off block...

..take yourSELF...

..to the route and jump on the sleigh...

..park your car along the way...and..

....RUN LU RUN...

..gotta work?

..don't run?

..just can't make it?

..no worries...

...drop a TOY or a cash/check donation for TOYS FOR TOTS at the LIVE UNCOMMON Roof Top Drop Stops listed below between now and Thursday end....

..YOUR LUs and sleigh will fly by on the 19 MILE ROUTE....

..and...

...deliver each and every ONE to the FINISH LINE ---

..at the ONE and the ONLY ----- WHBF CHANNEL 4 ---- 5PM NEWS with STEVE LONG and NICOLE KILMER...

..Yup...

..click here to email the Crew with any questions...or just BE THERE FOR THE MAGIC SLEIGH RIDE...

...and LIVE IT.


 

Ms. Magnificent Mallory Heads to Washington

In and out of the water, Magnificent Mallory is making her mark.  What? You say you don't know who Magnificent Mallory is???  What??

Well, the Crew was once asking that same question -- Mallory who? 

Okay, so you know about super swim team  BPVA Piranhas, right?  LIVE UNCOMMON Charter Swim Team?  Ya know?  Well, if you know about them, you know it's a swim team packed not only with talented swimmers, but led by incredible coaches and board members whose aim it is to guide these young athletes to becoming not only the best swimmers they can be, but more importantly, the best PEOPLE they can be.  Yes, BPVA Piranhas are NOT just about swimming.  This link will transport you to a page where you can get to know the good Piranhas and their mission, a bit better.

But first -- Magnificent Mallory ----

Okay, so some cool person within the BPVA Piranhas sent word to the Crew back in...hmmm...March of last year.  So, like a year ago.  The word was - Mallory, a 13 year old girl Piranha, was having surgery, literally, the NEXT DAY in Iowa City, to have her spine straightened.  We were all like, okay, spine straightening.  Hmm, that sounds tricky.  We heard facts like "to correct a 65 percent curvature of hte spine", and we, again, were like "whoa, that doesn't sound good". 

But...it was not until we received picture message of an X-ray of Mallory's spine BEFORE surgery, that we all got the true scope of this undertaking.  Check it out.  Kinda wild, right??  Wow.

At that time - a year ago - we sent out word to YOU - the Team - about Mallory and her soon-to-be-straight spine.  We attached the BEFORE image and told YOU how she was heading into surgery, and asked that YOU send Mallory an encoraging word.

And....YOU did.

The Crew hand delivered your notes to MALLORY along with custom LU BPVA gear that had resulted from a donation to the LU fund, in MALLORY's name, by the good and very cool anonymous person within BPVA Piranhas, when MALLORY was home from Iowa City and recovering.

And HOW she was recovering!  This is how, when, and why Mallory earned her "Magnificent" title.

LU sources caught wind of a few tidbits about Mallory's charachter - about how she is not only Magnificent, but truly UNCOMMON:

"As MALLORY was being wheeled away for surgery, she saw that her mom and dad were upset (and trying to hold it together) and she said to them "It will be ok…I'm ready for this."  

In the recovery room right after surgery, the nurse asked her if she needed anything and she said, "Yes, tell my mom and dad to stop worrying.  I'm fine."  

That evening when Dr. Weinstein came to see MALLORY, he asked if she had any questions.  She asked him three things:  "How much taller did I get?  How do my insides look (meaning did she still have her six-pack abs)?  How did the other girls' surgery go today?"  

Finally when she found out she was being released from the hospital, she gathered up all of her unused snack tokens (the hospital gives these out to their patients and families to use during their hospital stay) and gave them to the other patients on the pediatric unit."

Pretty cool, huh?  We think so.

Only 5 weeks out from surgery, she was totally off all pain medications, had returned to school on almost a full time basis, played her flute in her school's band concert, and was looking forward to a brief performance as Princess Leia (from Star Wars) in the 7th/8th Grade Spring program.

THEN, in April, MALLORY was invited by Head Coach Marc Long (IA Hawkeye Swim Team) to visit them during their practice at the Campus Recreation & Wellness Center in IA City!  NICE!

We are told that during this recovery time, MALLORY was constantly talking about how she might make a difference in other peoples lives with her recent experience of having the spinal fusion surgery and her recovery process.  She had the idea of potentially creating a story book about her scoliosis journey, and it was suggested to her that she somehow become comfortable to speak more in depth about how scoliosis has changed her life and how she is LIVING UNCOMMON to overcome this daily obstacle.  She reflect upon it and she was very inspired to reach out to others who are going through this challenge and to be a part of their support system.  She had the opportunity during visits to the U of IA Hospital to meet up with other families...it was eye-opening for MALLORY to meet the parents and to see how they were feeling about it all for their son who was undergoing the surgery.  And she learned a valuable lesson of "paying it forward" by helping others understand that there truly is a light at the end of the spinal fusion surgery tunnel.

So....it's cool and admirable to think and reflect about these things, yes.  But to actually DO them -- now THAT IS WHERE IT'S AT...

MALLORY wrote and published her story.  YOU can read it right here.

The U of IA Hospitals distribute copies of her inspirational story in her own Uncommon words, to patients currently walking in MALLORY's shoes, spine-wise.

At Iowa City Hospitals, Mallory was in the kind and capable hands of Dr. Weinstein.  Dr. Weinstein has performed many, many of these surgeries on many, many individuals, but never on anyONE like MALLORY.  Under the guise of meeting with MALLORY at a recent check-up to ask that she sign his copy of her book, Dr. Weinstein's true purpose of meeting with MALLORY was to discuss this:

"Every year Dr. Weinstein attends an event called "Research Capitol Hill Days" in Washington, DC with other surgeons/physicians with AAOS (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) to request federal funding for musculoskeletal research.  Each of the attending surgeons takes a patient with them to personally advocate for the future of musculoskeletal care.  Dr. Weinstein asked Mallory to go with him to be his patient representative!!!  While in Washington, she gets to go with Dr. Weinstein in front of various Senators and Congress representatives and tell her scoliosis story! How cool is that!  Another neat part of this: The AAOS creates a patient vignette booklet that contains a brief bio of each patient and the booklets are given to the Senators and Congress representatives as part of the documents for requesting the federal funding."

So.....Mallory was selected by Dr. Weinstein to be a patient advocate for research funding for AAOS (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons).

Here is the verbatim of how it went down on the hill in Washington DC, from MAGNIFICENT MALLORY'S MOM:

"Yesterday, along with her surgeon, Dr. Weinstein, and his third year resident surgeon, Dr. Andrew Pugley, she visited with four members of Congress today.  During these visits, Dr. Weinstein explained the nuts and bolts of his musculoskeletal research and research funding while Mallory was the living example where their research has taken modern medicine.  The idea is to show here's where musculoskeletal science is today and hopefully impress upon them to continue to provide federal funding for their research so that advancements in medicine will continue and improve.  

The cool thing about having Mallory go in front of them instead of just the surgeons is that she was able to tell her story from her own perspective about how her life was before the surgery and how much better it has become since her surgery.  She presented herself in a professional way (totally rocking the business attire requirement for speaking on Capital Hill) not just with her words but by sharing pictures and explaining to the representatives about the things she can now successfully do - without pain.  She simply grabbed their attention both verbally and visually which, in turn, created more questions from the people she was speaking to as they yearned to learn more about her progress.  It wasn't just a room full of people nodding their heads as she spoke.  They wanted to hear more details of her experience and actually see the pictures that she had prepared to share.  There were a lot of "oh, wow - you can do that since surgery?!" comments from them as well.

One of the true goals for a patient advocate like Mallory is to be THE ONE whose spinal fusion surgery procedure can be looked back upon years from now and the surgeons can state "that was the way we used to fix spinal curvatures but due to our continued musculoskeletal research and procedure advancements, here's how this disease is treated now!"

Bill, my husband, was THE ONE who went with Mallory during these visits and he said he was amazed to see the "poise" come out of his little girl throughout this event.  He says "She's not my little girl anymore - she is a very mature young lady who is going to make a big difference for others throughout her lifetime."  Yup, we are very proud of our Magnificent Mallory!"

We beleive it is safe to say "we all are" --- proud of MAGNIFICENT MALLORY, that is!

and that is Life OUT of the pool.  Here's an update clueing the Crew in about MALLORY's swimming:

MALLORY had an exciting day in February (MALLORY has not competed in a swim meet for a full year before this) as she participated in a local swim meet - the first one since her surgery!  She competed in both the 100yd Freestyle and 100yd Breaststroke with great success!!  Her best time for the 100yd Freestyle had been 1:04.26 and she swam it on Saturday in 1:05.80!  Only 1.54 seconds off of her best time - it was truly amazing and she was SO excited.  Her best time for the 100yd Breaststroke had been 1:25.91 and she swam it on Saturday in 1:30.16!  Only 4.25 seconds off of her best time - not bad since breaststroke has never been a strong one for her.

Mallory is going to continue swimming throughout the year and will be joining the Pleasant Valley High School Girls Swim Team as a freshman this fall (in August).  She is practicing hard and gaining strength and endurance along the way to help her continue to do well with swimming.  She loves the sport!

Here's a video clip of MALLORY swimming!

As truly incredible Mallory's spine is -- both BEFORE and AFTER her surgery. . . .the spine DOES NOT define the girl.  Not this girl.  What do you say, Team?  Mallory IS pretty Magnificent, yes?

on the 14th Day of Christmas....

....my True LU gave to me.....

...400 pounds less LU...!!

once again the Crew has been inspired...by....YOU....

4 LUs today.  Representing the Movement.  Representing the 14th Day of Christmas Uncommon (and yes we realize we are releasing this 14th Day of Christmas on the 16th Day of December - we are behind but each verse is SO worth singing that we simply must catch them all up for YOU!!)

4 LUs representing 400 pounds of NEVER GIVING UP.  That's what we said - 400 pounds.  Whoa.

NEVER GIVING UP.

You know what we're talking about, right?

"LIVE UNCOMMON -- Never Giving Up, Always Giving Back"??

Yeah, we know you know.  We know you know because we see YOU LIVE IT.

You DREAM IT.... You LIVE IT.  UNCOMMON.  Whatever your particular dream -- Dream It...LIVE IT.

For these 4 LUs - today representing the Movement, the 14th Day of Christmas Uncommon, 400 pounds of NEVER GIVING UP --- it meant changing their own worlds, their Lives.  Here are their stories....

but first let us say this -- we, the Crew, set out to write this verse about these 4 LUs and their significant NEVER GIVING UP weight metamorphases.  But as we did our writing thing, we realized that this super significant weight change, was such an INsignificant factor in WHO these LUs are, and WHY they are UNCOMMON.  So, that being said, read on and say hello to the LUs of the 14th Day of Christmas....

BRIAN BELHA --   Here's how the Crew got to know BRIAN -- about 12 hours before the START of LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series Event #2 - RUN FOR RENEWAL benefitting PROJECT RENEWAL, JEFF PAUL called in a favor.  JEFF put a call into the Crew inquiring about the delivery of gear for new LU Teammate BRIAN BELHA.  BRIAN, JEFF said, had made a donation the previous week and had hoped to run under the LU flag that following morning - April 21 - at the RUN FOR RENEWAL.

The gear was not ready.

LU Production had been in overdrive, shipping gear all over the country and re-stocking LU Exclusive Retailer ACTIVE ENDEAVORS.  BRIAN had actually run to ACTIVE ENDEAVORS that night in an effort to secure gear - in lieu of his custom gear arriving in the mail - for the next day's Race, but was thwarted there -- SOLD OUT!  A piece of Night Gear was pulled in the wee hours of the morning from the never-before-released inventory and re-routed to the RUN FOR RENEWAL Race venue.  JEFF got a message to BRIAN that gear would be waiting for him at the LU VUP Clubhouse at the Race.

So on race morning, the Crew finally got to meet new Teammate BRIAN BELHA - a super nice, enthusiastic, super-fit guy with a great smile.  When asked how he came to the Movement, he says "JEFF PAUL".  How?  Do you work with JEFF?

Nope.

BRIAN shares that he has been following JEFF's blog for years, and recently, JEFF has been sending BRIAN training workouts to follow to maximize his progress.  BRIAN is excited to race this particular morning because JEFF is going to run WITH him.

Yep.

This is so apropos.  When describing why JEN and JEFF PAUL are UNCOMMON #1 and #2, it's often said this way -- JEN and JEFF are, first off, devoted to each other -- have this great 'in love' marriage thing going on -- respectful, appreciative partnership.  They're awesome, fully-engaged parents to these little versions of themselves - with little unique identities revealing themselves every day.  They are both full-time, respected, high-acheiving professionals, both with Master's Degrees.  They are in a league almost of their own athletically, and only growing faster, stronger every day.  They GIVE to the World in so many ways - leading by example - treking a positive path.

And, then it always comes to this - most important of all, in LUs opinion ---  JEN and JEFF are the nicest, most humble, most encouraging people you could have the good fortune to come across.  We have said, literally, these words about them -- Even at their elite level, they are the first ones to say 'Come run with me!'  And they mean it.  Running shoulder to shoulder, stride for stride, with eachother, with everyONE.

BRIAN expressed that he's excited to go after his goal of a low 20 time, and looks forward to "someday" running a sub 20:00 5K.

LU Crew PIX BY SOLIS captured this amazing photo of BRIAN and JEFF that day.  Before the Official Times were in, the Crew texted JEFF to see how BRIAN fared regarding his goal for the day.  Check it out -- BRIAN ran a 19:59.

Nice.

Here's what BRIAN had to say about his experience on Race Day and his experience with JEFF....

"I knew it would be close as far as my new PR going into the race. However, that may be the only chance I would ever get to break it with Jeff running with me. So I knew I would have to dig deep and give everything I had. What an awesome guy, he gave me confidence and words of encouragement the whole way. He is the kind of person that you want to do your best for. I did get tired with about 4 minutes left and he said don't lose this race here. If your gonna lose, do it at the finish. I just thought that was something people could use in our everyday life's. Don't quit until its over. That is another reason why I wanted to be in a Live Uncommon shirt that day. I felt like I was paying tribute a little bit. I lost 110 lbs a few years ago and wanted to start showing what living uncommon can do for you.  I will definitely be ordering more gear.
 
                        Thanks, Brian"

We were like, "WHAT????" This guy lost 110 pounds????  Whoa!!!  Crazy - who'd have guessed??  Well, now we know.  And now YOU know.

BRIAN did go on to make another donation, get into more custom gear, and to keep doin his thing.  Sightings by the Crew of Brian and Fam at the Royal Ball Run for Autism in Milan, IL, and capturing BRIAN knocking off his first-ever HALF MARATHON at LU Series Race #6 - OUCH! benefitting the Wound Foundation, in August -- crossing the Finish Line with fellow LU and 2012 Race Teamer NICK VILLAREAL (you know NICK VILLAREAL, right, of the 5 Dudes named NICK aka 5th Day of Christmas).  That's what the Team does, ya know - joins forces to help eachother achieve, reach goals, LIVE UNCOMMON.  And the Crew captured BRIAN again at LU Race Series Event #7 - the QC Marathon, where BRIAN came in at the exact same time as he did in the OUCH! -- a smokin 1:36.

BRIAN is not slowing down in 2013, when goals include qualifying and taking on the Boston Marathon, while striking the ever and all important Balance of his roles as appreciative and loving Husband to beautiful Brittney, full-engaged Dad to Keyaria, Jake and Alex, dedicated Professional as 2nd Shift Electropating Leadman at the Rock Island Arsenal, and versatile community Volunteer.

Thank YOU, BRIAN.  JEFF inspires YOU.  YOU inspire us.  You honor the Movement.  You ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.

SARAH GARMAN -- The Movement is especially excited to introduce new Teammate SARAH GARMAN!  SARAH comes to Movement after running the full at this year's QC Marathon.  SARAH tells it that while doin her thing out there on the course, she was admiring the very cool LU gear all around her, the many cheering squads along the course also sporting the gear, and then the big LU semi trailer marking the Half Way point on the full marathon course, and so she was like 'what's up with all this?'  The next day she did what all the world does -- she Google'd it.  Finding the LU site she sent this in....

"Hi. My name is Sarah and I ran the Quad Cities marathon today. I noticed a lot of your shirts and loved them. I was wondering if I was able to get one of them and how much they are? The ones I saw at QC had the shiny reflective on the back (like it was sparkly). Do you know which one I'm talking about? If you have any questions you can call any time. Thank you!!"

We ended up decking out SARAH in super-custom QC Marathon 26.2 gear with her name and official race time and in a custom NIKE 1/2 zip pullover.  She flew the LU flag during her running of the Chicago Marathon and during her take down of the Chicago Lakefront 50/50 where she ran 50K --- um, that's 30 miles!!! -- in 4:52.  Here it is again - SARAH ran 30 miles in 4 hours and 52 minutes in against a headwind on the Chicago Lakefront.  Whoa.

Okay, but here's the thing about SARAH GARMAN -- just like LIVE UNCOMMON, SARAH is NOT just about running....  no, no....no way...

So....she ran the full 26.2 at the QC Marathon, right?  Yeah, she did and that's impressive in itself, right?  Yes.  But here's the kicker -- the QCM was not SARAH's first full marathon BUT.....it was her first marathon she ran on her own.  What do we mean?  Well, typically, SARAH runs marathons as a guide for DAVID KUHN.  Pictured above is SARAH with DAVID KUHN,  a visually impaired runner, and fellow guide BRIAN GUIDA.  SARAH and DAVID take the Movement to DeKalb, Illinois, while BRIAN hails from Oregon, Illinois.

We had the pleasure of sitting down and chatting with SARAH before her Chicago, and wow.....what can we tell ya?  Um...let's see.... SARAH is this incredible little package of goodness.  Besides a fully-engaged mom of two boys, SARAH works as a full-time caregiver for young man with Muscular Distrophy, with whom she has been with for several years.  Pretty cool, don't ya think?

What else?  Well, even though SARAH is undeniably a Runnin Girl now, she hasn't always been.  LU learned that a short two years ago SARAH 55 was pounds heavier and could NOT run a step.  In 2006, she raised her shy hand and participated in a Walk to Run program in DeKalb and under their guidance SARAH shed some 55 pounds and insecurities in a short 5 1/2 months, while gaining confidence and a true love of running.

Okay, so Team, LOOK AT THIS GIRL.  Would you have imagined she dropped 85 pounds??  She did.  AMAZING.  And we say, SARAH - good on ya, girl!

Helping others and GIVING to the world around her?  Well, that's always been in SARAH....the Movement she just does it in LU gear now.  SARAH answered the LU tap and will be lending her considerable experience, expertise and compassion to the upcoming 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON LULUs.  What is that, you ask?  What are the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON LULUs??  All we can tell ya at this particular moment is that the LIVE UNCOMMON LULUs are gonna some wicked cool chics, like SARAH, who are going to change.....ALOT.  We'll bring ya the know on the LULUs in a future Day of Christmas Uncommon.....

These next two LUs of the 4 LUs of the 14th Day of Christmas, are aka LU Heroes.  You know that that means -- LIVE UNCOMMON Race Teamers.  Both running as part of the elite 2012 LU Race Team, now and forever HEROES of the Movement -- these two gentlemen committed to raise a minimum of $700 for the Charities benefitting from the 2012 LU Race Team.

JOSIAH CAMPBELL -- we say it like this -- JOOOOSIIIIIIIIIIAAAAH CAMPBELL.  JOSIAH is....CM 59 --- meaning Charter Member 59, aka 59th ONE of all time on the LU roster, like first two weeks of the Movement time frame kinda guy.  JOSIAH is....LIVE UNCOMMON Race Teamer who raised - with the help of Family, Friends, and lots of good, generous folks - $725.60 for the 2012 LU Race Team Charities.  JOSIAH is this crazy nice, down-to-earth, guy -- Husband, Dad, Professional, Many-Times-Over-Marathoner, Volunteer Extraordinaire.  JOSIAH is less of a man than he used to be -- in pounds, that is....

Here are the first words from JOSIAH to the Crew way, way back in July of Year One:

"Thank you for hand delivering my shirt, sorry I was not home when it arrived but your message was relayed to me that night.  I wore my new shirt proudly the next day (Saturday) on my weekly long run as I train for the QC Marathon (photo attached) and I’m looking forward to proudly wearing it at future events.
 
I am also interested in how I can become more involved, with events, activities etc. I have a passion for exercise and have been looking for a way I can give back through that, especially to help other people like me turn their lives around and start living a healthy active lifestyle. I was an athlete all my life growing up, but I struggled with my weight for years and years. After college I started exercising less and less and soon found myself over 300 lbs. and it wasn’t until a major health scare 3 years ago and the realization that I might not be around for my 2 young boys if I didn’t do something that I decided to make a change. I started working out again and running, soon after I set a goal to run the Bix7, a race I never thought I would be able to complete, but I trained and made it through and I have been addicted to running ever since completing 10K’s, Half Marathons, Marathons and hopefully this fall my first Ultra Marathon.
 
People like Jeff and Jen Paul and others have inspired me, regular folks with jobs and kids doing extraordinary things and I greatly want to do the same.
 
Thank you,
 
Josiah Campbell"

JOSIAH obviously DID get more involved -- stepping forward to do his HERO part as a part of the 2012 LU Race Team.

And just look at JOSIAH -- would YOU ever have guessed it???  Super JOSIAH at over 300 pounds???  Extraordinary.  And yet, only a small facet of WHO is JOSIAH CAMPBELL.

JOOOOOSIIIIIIAAAAH - thank YOU for being interested, involved, passionate.  Thank YOU for passing it on.  YOU inspire many - the Movement, the Team, the Race Team beneficiary Charities, the World...

JUSTIN MARSTON -- is a man of few words, but of big heart.  JUSTIN didn't wade into the Movement by making a donation for gear and then seeing what else he could do.  No no.  JUSTIN dove right in headlong and without pause, in February of 2012, not as a Teammate, but directly as a Race Teamer.  What is the difference, you may be asking?  Well, typically, a generous, cool person such as yourself, will make a donation via the website or at Exclusive Gear Retailer ACTIVE ENDEAVORS for gear -- your LU ID.  This is the most common of the UNCOMMON doorways to the Movement.  The LU roster is brimming with TMs - Teammates who have brought their forces to the Movement this way.  WE DIG YOU, TEAMMATES!!  JUSTIN, however, dove straight for the deep end.  You see, JUSTIN joined the Movement straight off the bat as part of the LIVE UNCOMMON Y1 Race Team.  That is impressive.  We actually are not privy to JUSTIN's exact pathway to his decision to step forward to do this, we only know he deserves all the LU kuddos we, YOU, can bestow on him, for his role as LU Race Teamer.  You see JUSTIN - and JOSIAH and each of their fellow 23 Race Teamers - stepped forward, signed on the dotted line, to run in and raise awareness and a minimum of $700 to be spread across the 7 Charities behind the 7 LU Race Series Events.  Pretty big and daunting commitment, don'tcha think?? Not for JUSTIN.  Here's what we know about his "WHY" to raise his hand to help:

"A little background on my self, three years ago I smoked 2 packs a day and weighed in at 275 pounds. I got tired of what smoking was doing to me and decided to do somethingabout it. I was no were close to being a runner. I was the kid in high school who thought running a mile was going to kill me. Now I run 40 mile weeks. My goals this year are to run all 7 races for live uncommon and raise money for a great cause, the 50K Wildcat Den run and in January of next year to run the 50 mile Running from an Angel in Las Vegas. I don't run fast I just want to run. Thanks again."

ARE YOU KIDDING???  Kicked smoking AND 100 pounds to the curb????  AND runs for the LU Race Team????  Those are some SERIOUS challenges.  Serious LIFE changes.  What can we say??  RIGHT.  ON.  JUSTIN.  You are IT.

A couple of more words directly from JUSTIN (snipped from an email to LU Race Team Captain JOHN O'BRIEN just after 2012 LU Series Race #1 - the CASI St. Pat's Races) will give you an idea not only about this guy, but also about the diversity of your Y1 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team:

"Hey John,
I have a couple questions for you. I was hoping to meet some of you at the race but my son wasn't feeling well. He stuck it out to run his 1/4 mile and after my race he was ready to go. First question I have is where can I get the official race times. The CASI race was only my 2nd race so I am kind of new to this. My first race was The North Face 50K endurance race in Wisconsin. I am working backwards. Second question I have is who would I contact to buy my son a Live Uncommon shirt with my race team name on it. Last question of the day, do any of the races have restrictions on them as far as age. My son who is 8, wants to try and complete one of the 5ks with me. He gets to about a mile then needs a break but we can work on that. I just think it would
be neat to have him run with me even if we walk some of it. Thanks"

Team, can you see how non-hardcore JUSTIN and the LU Race Team is about running??  Because, JUSTIN is NOT, and LIVE UNCOMMON is NOT, just about running.  So don't be scared.  Don't be intimidated.  YOU can be a HERO of the Movement too.  YOU can be LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team.

JUSTIN and son rocked the course at LU Series Race #2 - Run for Renewal benefitting Project Renewal.  This pic is worth a thousand Uncommon words....  and is really what it is all about.....  Way to go, JUSTIN, the Movement saLUtes YOU!!

JUSTIN is still working on his $700 fundraising goal. If you have the dough to spare for the Charities, please consider making a small donation now by clicking on JUSTIN's pic there and you will be transported to his fundraising page...  JUSTIN, and the 7 Charities, THANK YOU.

Team, like we said at the start, when we sat down to write this verse, this 14th Day of Christmas ---- the Uncommon thread that bound these 4, was their individual, signicant weight loss.  However, as we wrote and you read, we realized that their weight loss is hardly what defines them.  It is barely mentioned in their 'stories' above.  No, the Uncommon thread that binds them, that makes them truly UNCOMMON, is their spirit of Good, their commitment to GIVE.  Hmm.  Kinda cool, huh.  Yup.

So....let's sing it for these 4.  For these 400 pounds that no longer exist.  Sing it loud and proud ---

On the 14th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me.....  

....400 pounds less LU.....   ...13 LUs under 13 who are so amazing that there is no 12th, 11th, 10th, 9th Day.....     ....8 LU Endorsed Foot Race Events in 2013......  ....7 LIVE UNCOMMMON Series Races in 2012......     ....6 vaLUes of LIVE UNCOMMON....   ....5 Dudes named NICK...   ...4 Friends of FRANZEN.... ...3 LMTs.....  ..2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs.....  ...and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!

you know you can sing these again and again and again by clicking on the links attached to the verses above, right?  you can also find them on the calendar on the HOME page too.  Get busy singing along!

on the 13th Day of Christmas....

....my True LU gave to me.....

.....13 LUs under 13...

Are you ready for this????

Let's begin with little, little LU poster girl -- AILA MOYLAN.  AILA is the sweet little first born of proud mom and dad JAYME and KELAN MOYLAN aka LU Charter Members 33 and 34.  AILA is now proud and helpful big sis to twin brothers who, Grampa Moylan says, are the future Doubles Wimbledon Champs.  AILA already has her first Title -- for inspiring the most "awwww's" at any given showing of this pic!

OWEN PAUL -- this is a kid who is just going to DO stuff.  Growing fast and furious at 2 years old, OWEN is packed full of energy.  LU sources report that he is quite the dare devil.  They say HE HAS NO FEAR. He recently broke his foot while taking commands from older sister PAYTON to leap off the stairs.  OWEN is obsessed with riding his bike and, during the winter, rides his stationary bike in the basement (we wonder where he got this idea -- from Super Dad and Pro Triathlete JEFF PAUL maybe???) or goes for a spin in the garage. Let's see -- tough, determined, absolutely fearless of any challenge -- remind you of anyone??  The Crew thinks OWEN is maybe a little chip off the JEFF block??  Becoming his own OWEN block.  OWEN loves trucks, cars and watching yo gabba gabba!  Oh, and one more note - we're told he kinda digs dogs too!

MAYA WHEELER -- besides being one of those children who when you see them, you almost can't believe a kid can be that beautiful, MAYA's beauty radiates from the inside out.  LU sources tell the Crew that MAYA possesses the kind of pleasant, giving demeanor that just makes you smile.  MAYA recently became a big sis to BROKLYN and sources say she is she is an outstanding bedtime storyteller - specializing in Christmas stories!  With mom and dad (fellow LUs JANE and KENNY WHEELER) teachers, and coaching Girls Track at Pleasant Valley School, and also the Long Blue Line, aka, PVGXC, aka LU Charter Team #1, aka Pleasant Valley Girls Cross Country, aka 2012 Iowa Girls Cross Country State Champs, MAYA has role models bountiful!

PAYTON PAUL - this little LU cutie is the big sister who dared little bro OWEN to jump off the stairs, landing OWEN with a broken foot!  PAYTON is 4 1/2 years old and in preschool. She loves learning, Barbies and coloring/crafts.  This past year, PAYTON has started to enjoy running and often wants to lace up for a lap around the block.  She ran 10:40 in the mile at the recent Turkey Trot (whoa that is FLYING for a little 4 1/2 year old!!!). She is very proud of the medals she has earned and is trying to coach her little brother into trying a race.  Um...have you seen this little girl run??  We have.  PAYTON is ALL IN when it comes to race time.  The LU Camera Crew witnessed her run the entire LIVE UNCOMMON TORCHLIGHT PARADE -- 4 MILES -- in little pink flip flops!!  Like she RAN the entire way!  PAYTON has focus and determination.  And talent.  The crazy-fast, crazy-intelligent, crazy-nice JEN PAUL is PAYTON's proud mom and we would say PAYTON is a JEN "mini-me", but PAYTON is definitely her own girl, carving her own, Uncommon path.

LANDON and TAYLOR MIGAWA -- veterans already to the road race, these two UNCOMMONers represent in the 1 MILE distance events all over the the region.  LU Crew recently spotted LANDON with mom at a race in Iowa at midday, before heading to Illinois for an afternoon race event.  Nice!  LANDON and TAYLOR are two who are LIVING UNCOMMON at home, in school, on the race course, and volunteering with mom and dad (LUs STEPHANIE and TROY MIGAWA).  And no wonder -- dad and mom LIVE UNCOMMON too, and mom just happens to be one of LUs esteemed Race Teamers, aka Heroes of the Movement.  LIVE UNCOMMON tips its hat to LANDON and TAYLOR (and mom and dad too, of course)!

SARAH PAUL -- is a girl already excelling in Balance!  She has to - she is one busy girl!  SARAH is 6 and is --- Daisy Scout, Soccer girl, Swimmer (with LU Charter Swim Team - BPVA), Runner (loves to run with running-buddy PAYTON PAUL), IRONKID Triathlete.  Wow!  And that is all on top of being an outstanding daughter, sister, student, and all-around super nice, helpful girl!  We did mention that she's only 6, right??  Well, again, this a is a lucky girl with a Super Mom -- AMY PAUL is -- among many other things -- teacher, runner, LU Race Teamer, aka Hero of the Movement.  So, SARAH sees how it's done.  And then does her thing.  Uncommon style.  Right on, SARAH!

MAGGIE KILBURG -- is an super active, super versatile 7 year old.  A busy 1st Grader starting basketball season this very week!  MAGGIE takes after mom (and fellow LU) MARY -- talented in Tap, Jazz and Ballet Dance.  Have you ever tried Dance steps??  It is NOT easy, and it IS a workout!  MAGGIE is also in Gymnastics where she is being promoted to 'Super Star' level.  Hey, we already knew that MAGGIE is a Super Star!! 

SOPHIA KILBURG --  is accomplished by any standard.  Throw in she's 12 years old and this girl SOPHIA is nothing short of amazing and UNCOMMON!  SOPHIA is in 6th Grade where she is an exceptional student, and in Band.  She is an outstanding at piano and plays for Jazz Band, as well as "just" piano.  SOPHIA is also a Ballet & Jazz Dancer.  This fall she auditioned for, and made, the Holiday Pops Children's Choir.  Sources tell us she loved performing at the iWireless Center with the QC Symphony.  SOPHIA is now working hard to prepare for the upcoming piano competition season.  Good luck, SOPHIA!!!  Oh, one more tidbit about SOPHIA and MAGGIE KILBURG -- we have seen these two on the track, and, well, they are QUICK!!  Just one more thing these two Uncommon girls can do well!  Of course, their dad IS superfastie STEVE KILBURG.  Nowadays STEVE confines his running to a meager 10 miles or so on the treadmill PER DAY! but when he was road race competing --- um, this guy could NOT be beaten.  Like WAY fast.  STEVE is co-propietor of esteemed running store - RUNNING WILD, from which all LU NIKE gear springs. 

ADDIE FORD -- you may have seen young ADDIE in the news lately.  ADDIE and mom SHANEY brought their significant forces to the Movement last summer.  ADDIE got in some gear (of which she has long since outgrown) and she went about her way, doin her thing wearing the LU flag.  We spotted her in the news a week or so ago and tracked her down.  The Crew went out with notepads in hand to get the scoop on UNCOMMON ADDIE and got the low down from those who know her best.  Our sources tell us that some very specific words that come to mind when they think about Addie -- fierce, determined, competitive and beautiful from the inside out.  We're told that from the day Addie was born, she was determined -- she was born over a month before her due date and was only 5 pounds! but little ADDIE very quickly proved to be a very fierce bundle of joy who was, thankfully, healthy and happy.  ADDIE has grown into a beautiful little girl.  She loves all sports and is very competitive.  ADDIE plays soccer and basketball for Dad's Club.  Addie participated in the local Punt, Pass and Kick contest just on a whim.  (This is the stuff that was in the news)  ADDIE's Family happened to be at a local event for kids and ADDIE saw there was a contest and let her mom know she wanted to compete in it.  She won at locals, sectionals, and recently won the Team Championship in Chicago for girls age 6 - 7.  ADDIE has a drive in her that is a little Uncommon, she won't stop until she gets it right.  We're told ADDIE always has a smile on her face and seems to exemplify everything for which Live Uncommon stands.  When her mom heard about Live Uncommon last year, her mom says she was on the website and ADDIE asked her what she was doing.  Her mom explained what Live Uncommon was and ADDIE said she wanted to be a part of Live Uncommon as well.  The rest is history, and although she has long since outgrown her LU shirt, ADDIE still carries her string bag to every practice she has.  Pretty cool, huh?  Yup.  ADDIE FORD is pretty cool in the LU book.  We've got to get you some more gear, girl!!  P.S. on this story -- ADDIE's mom SHANEY is one amazing role model -- she an another fellow LU volunteered in Haiti!!  Right on, Team!!!

LOGAN PAUL -- okay so check out all this guy does -- Cub Scouts.  Baseball.  Tackle Football.  Soccer.  Running.  Swim Team (swimming for LU Charter Swim Team - BPVA Piranhas).  IRONKID Triathlete.   Recent (and very impressive) achievements include: making the Bronze Team in Swimming, and running in his first 5K -- the Run With Carl (he LOVED it, by the way, and is planning on future 5Ks).  In his second year as a Rising Knight, LOGAN was the starting Center for the Red Team of Rising Knights Football where his team went 6-0 and tied as League Champs!  LOGAN was named to the All Star Team in baseball, where his favorite position is 1st Base, and also won the Sportsmanship Award.  LU sources clue in the Crew, reporting that LOGAN would often congratulate opposing team players for nice hits, and once informed the opposing 1st base coach that his player's shoe was untied.  Right on, LOGAN, we sooo dig this!!  By the way, LOGAN has an incredible dad to look to as a truly Uncommon example - LU JUSTIN PAUL is one heck of a nice-do-the-right-thing kinda guy.  We dig him too. 

LAZARUS HENSCHEN -- this guy is wicked cool.  LAZARUS is a Roller Derby kid and his derby name is Kitn 'O War.  He's part of what they call the Orphan Brigade.  This is a cool group of kids who skate roller derby and then do good stuff in the community (like volunteer at the animal shelter and whatnot).  Oh and we went to a practice and Number One - it looked super fun....and Two - these kids were sweating something fierce -- it's obviously a good workout.  So all these kids at this practice we went to were really, really cool kids.  Like they were super polite and respectful and appreciative that we were there to talk with them.  It was really pretty humbling, we must say.  Okay, so that's the Orphan Brigade.  But we're talking about LAZARUS.  So this group was cool, right?  Well, this kid in particular - LAZARUS - is really cool.  He and his mom volunteered at the LU Adventure Race this June and at night took part in the LU Torchlght Pararde with their whole Family.  But here's the thing -- lots of individuals from the LU Crew have had the pleasure of meeting this kid LAZARUS on different occasions here and there, and, well, he's just super cool.  He's different, ya know?  He is just "HIM".  And, well, this sounds like a broken record, but, that's just pretty cool.  To just BE YOU.  Whoever YOU are.  LAZARUS does that - he's just HIM.  Who's "HIM"??  He's polite.  He has the courage to speak up when a situation isn't congruent with the LU values.  HIS values.  His mom says LAZARUS has called her out for not LIVING UNCOMMON a time or two!!  (and we know his mom - LU ELLONYIA YENNEY and she DOES in fact LIVE UNCOMMON).  Let's just say he's not just wearing the gear, ya know?  He's LIVING the Life.  Pretty cool. Yup.  We like LAZARUS.

MADDIE CASE -- Maybe you've heard of MADDIE CASE?  If you haven't, you will.  If she's written about in the paper, they will probably write something like this:  "Maddie Case is an up and coming cross country and track star...."  That info will be accurate of course, but it will not tell the whole MADDIE CASE story.  MADDIE IS an up and coming cross country and track super star.  She's actually not so much "up and coming" as she just "IS".  Right here, right now.  MADDIE is the Iowa State Champion for 7th Grade Cross Country.  Um...yeah.  Do you know what that means exactly??  It means MADDIE is THE FASTEST 7th Grade girl in the entire State of Iowa.  Pretty big deal.  And she's winning a bunch of road races too now -- QC Marathon 5K, Lagomarcino's 5K, Red Cross 5K.  Those are just to name a few.  You get it - MADDIE is fast.  But that is not ALL she is.  No no.  LU sources tell us she is this kind of girl -- does her homework on Friday night.  Friends with everyone.  Nice to everyone.  Resposible big sister.  Keeps her room clean (um.. we actually SAW this.  It's true.)  Appreciative.  Wait, what?  Appreciative.  She has this amazing, supportive, loving Family all around her and she really appreciates them.  Here's the thing.  MADDIE runs fast.  And MADDIE runs fast because......SHE CAN.  What??  Here's the deal -- MADDIE's mom -- she had this form of bone cancer in her leg back when she was still in high school.  The kind of cancer that gave odds MADDIE's mom wouldn't make it through.  But.....she did.  And fast-forward a bunch of years and MADDIE's mom married MADDIE's dad (high school sweethearts) and had three amazing girls (MADDIE is the oldest).  Her mom cannot run anymore.  MADDIE can.  So MADDIE does.  And she does it fast.  And now she does it for the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team.  Which means she is running to raise awareness and dough for the Charity that means alot to her - MAKE A WISH.  MADDIE CASE - she's wicked fast.  But more than that, she's wicked Uncommon.  And she, like the 12 other ONES on this page, and like YOU --- are going to CHANGE THE WORLD.

We're going to tell you more about the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team, and MADDIE's role on the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team, and the other Heroes on the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team, and YOU potentially on the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team, in a future Day of Christmas Uncommon.

But for now, know MADDIE CASE is on YOUR Team -- on Team LU.  With AILA and OWEN and MAYA and PAYTON and LANDON and TAYLOR and SARAH and MAGGIE and SOPHIA and ADDIE and LOGAN and LAZARUS and YOU.  And that is one heck of a Team.

One more word --- although we mentioned the proud parents of these 13 amazing and truly UNCOMMON LUs, we purposely did not include any of their pics in this release...because...these 13 UNCOMMONers are UNCOMMON in their own right.  They are their own ONE.  Know what we mean?  That being said, LIVE UNCOMMON does firmly believe that young ONES are usually a shiny reflection of what they see around them -- YOU.  Shiny apples from the tree.  YOU are the tree.  So today, on this 13th Day of Christmas Uncommon, we saLUte these 13 ONES.  And we saLUte those of YOU who are leading, guiding, investing.... 

So we were planning to bring you a 13, 12, 11, 10, 9 Days of Christmas to get us all caught up with the verses of this nice, snappy little tune, but.....  the thing is, who wants to share a page with these 13 UNCOMMONers????? 

Seriously, do you really think anything else we could talk about would get its due attention when these 13 are on the same page???  Um....probably not. 

So...for today, this 13th Day of Christmas, and for THIS version of this nice, snappy little tune, (this is LIVE UNCOMMON, right??  which means we get to do everything we do outside-the-box-follow-no-template-UNCOMMON-style, right??)

.....well then, this is how THIS version of the 31 Days of Christmas Uncommon is gonna go ----

.....on the 13th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me....   ....13 LUs under 13 who are so amazing that there is no 12th, 11th, 10th, 9th Day.....

....8 LU Endorsed Foot Race Events in 2013......  ....7 LIVE UNCOMMMON Series Races in 2012......     ....6 vaLUes of LIVE UNCOMMON....   ....5 Dudes named NICK...   ...4 Friends of FRANZEN.... ...3 LMTs.....  ..2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs.....  ...and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!

on the 8th Day of Christmas...

...my True LU gave to me......

okay, wait.  We know we're a couple of Days behind in this song.  Sorry.  This verse, like all of them, is SOOOOO worth reading on what is now actually December 11.  So, please do....  We will give you a full day to take this one in and then we'll will catch us up to current just before the close of 12/12/12.....  now..back to the song....

On the 8th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me.....

8 LU Endorsed Foot Race Events in 2013...!!!

on this 8th Day of Christmas Uncommon, we take a look back....and we take a look forward.  As we announce this, and each of the 8 LU Endorsed Foot Races in 2013, it is important that YOU know WHY these events have made the LU cut.  So do us, and YOU, and these events, a good deed, will ya, and read the entirety of this release.  Get to know the WHY.

LIVE UNCOMMON is pleased to announce --- ONE by ONE --- the Y2 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series!

All Race Series Events endorsed by LIVE UNCOMMON have been selected based upon their GIVE BACK to the world.  So be confident that your well-earned TIME, ENERGY, and RACE REGISTRATION FEES are going to a worthy Cause.....not just to a race looking to make some dough.  Ya know?  Yup.

All Y2 Race Series Events have LU Teammates behind them in some significant way -- either serving as Race Director or Title Sponsor or something big like that.  We knew they were out there - Races with LUs behind them.  We sought them out.  We found them.  We bring them to YOU......

This is what the Movement is all about -- YOU -- the TEAM.  Bound by the Uncommon thread compelling YOU to make a difference.....to change the world.

Your Y2 Race Series Events are driven by your LU Teammates, for a Cause that matters to them.  YOU can help them make a difference.  YOU can change the world by participating in these LU Endorsed Events.

1st on the LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series --- the Pre-Season LU Travel Team Warm Up -- RED FLANNEL RUN in Memory of LUKE ALTMIX SIMMONS benefitting YMCA

This event is endorsed by LIVE UNCOMMON for many reasons.  For those LUs who have been on the roster from the wee hours of our existence, you may remember getting a tap....a call to action...on July 27, 2011.  This was like only one month into Y1.  Do you remember??  We do.  The Crew was moved by your answer to the call.

For YOU LUs who are newer to the Movement, first of all, thanks for being YOU -- LU.  The Movement is better, stronger, more....thanks to YOU.  What can we say?  We dig you.  Secondly, about that call to action, we will try to recap and connect all the dots for you...  ...on Day 18 we will tune you into the original LU call that said it all....but you're gonna have to wait for that one.  But it will be worth it, we promise.

JIM SIMMONS brought his force to the Movement back in the start of it all.  JIM told the Crew at the time, that he felt COMPELLED to do so.  Here's why --

JIM experienced the tremendous agony of losing one of his three cherished sons, exactly four years prior to that LU call to action.

On the Friday of July 27, 2007, JIM’s son, LUKE ALMIX SIMMONS, was on a trail run in Matthews Winters Park west of Denver, Colorado, training for his second year of participation on his employer's team in the Colorado Relay. Luke loved his first Colorado Relay, enjoying the athletic challenge, the fresh air and scenery of his beloved Colorado and the camaraderie of his teammates.

Less than a half-mile from the end of his run that July day, a fast-moving Colorado storm sent a bolt of lightning that ended Luke's life. He was 24 years old.

JIM said he was compelled to join the LIVE UNCOMMON movement because LUKE LIVED UNCOMMON.….EVERY DAY.

In JIM’s words, “LUKE would have been all over this.”

In the years since LUKE's passing, JIM and Family have been the catalyst in making a difference in the world in ways they believe LUKE would have made a difference.  Raising funds via an annual Walk with Luke event for the past years, LUKE's Family has donated substantial proceeds to scholarship funds, the construction of a rock-climbing wall, and the YMCA, to name a few.  During these years, Friends and Family of LUKE huddled together and ran in the Colorado Relays - the event for which LUKE was training.  Two of LIVE UNCOMMON’s Teammates - co-founder MICHELLE RUSSELL and daughter GABIE were honored to participate on TEAM LUKE’s running of the 2009 Colorado Relay – a 195 MILE, 30-LEG RELAY OVER THE ROCKIES.  Here's how MICHELLE summed it up:

"We never had the pleasure of knowing LUKE.  We only know him posthumously through his dad.  I was assigned the longest and highest leg of the Relay – a half marathon starting at 10,000 feet and cresting at over 13,000 feet elevation.  A good portion of the inclining trail was deep and narrow just like a bowling alley gutter.  The runners were very staggered on the trail and it was more or less a solo run.  As I approached the summit it was very quiet, the vast expanse of sky becoming a 360 degree horizon.  And it was then that something amazing happened.  The image of LUKE’s photo rose up in my mind, and a feeling rose up in me….LUKE was there.  I am sure of it.  I shared this with LUKE’s family later.  My daughter and I took part in the Relay and TEAM LUKE together.  It was a very powerful and moving experience.  We remain extremely honored to have taken part in TEAM LUKE and it is a time, place, feeling we will never forget."

LUKE's Family recently made the decision to funnel all their efforts towards one event in memory of their LUKE.  With the YMCA's mission - to build strong kids, strong families, strong communities through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all --  in alignment with LUKE's passions, JIM SIMMONS and Family have made a significant donation to the YMCA in honor of LUKE.  The YMCA's annual fundraiser will now be run, by all, in memory of LUKE.  Pretty cool, huh?  Yup.  Pretty freaking cool.

What do we say at LIVE UNCOMMON?  We say alot of cool things, we know.  This one -- LIVE UNCOMMON is NOT just about running.  Most of us have run at some point....in some race....on some solo Saturday morning run...somewhere....somewhen......for a REASON way, way bigger than just running.  Maybe someone you love and care about was really sick or suffering.  Maybe YOU lost someone close to you -- like JIM has -- and you were aching over it.   Maybe a good friend of yours lost someone close to them and you were feeling helpless to help them.  And you took it out on your run.  And it helped you work it out a little.  MORE than just running.  It's powerful.  YOU are powerful.   

We ask that YOU -- LU -- join the LIVE UNCOMMON Travel Team and make your way with us, with your TEAM, to DesMoines on February 16.  We - LIVE UNCOMMON - will RUN WITH LUKE.  Come run with us.  Run with JIM.  Run with LUKE.  Run with, and for, WHOever, whatever, makes it more than just running for YOU.  Or just run.  That's pretty good too.

Click on the pick of LUKE up there and register NOW.  Register before DECEMBER 15 -- yes that's only like 4 more days!! -- and register for $10 bucks less.  Totally worth it.  After you register, forward your registration confirmation to us at liveuncommon@russellco.com and we'll throw some LU gear your way just because we dig that you're on the LU Travel Team --- our 31 Days of Christmas Uncommon gift to YOU....

now...let's sing!!!    Ready???  Go!!  ......on the 8th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me.....  ....8 LU Endorsed Foot Race Events in 2013......  ....7 LIVE UNCOMMMON Series Races in 2012......     ....6 vaLUes of LIVE UNCOMMON....   ....5 Dudes named NICK...   ...4 Friends of FRANZEN.... ...3 LMTs.....  ..2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs.....  ...and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!

on the 7th Day of Christmas...

....my True LU gave to me.....

....a couple of days off (to reset the Balance, ya know)...  ..so we are catching up the Days now..

Here is Day 7...

Let's begin again, then, shall we?

On the 7th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me......  ....7 LIVE UNCOMMON Series Race Events in 2012 !!!

The 2012 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series Events was comprised of, yup, 7 Race Events.  The Uncommon thread binding all 7 ??   All 7 were selected based upon their GIVE BACK to the world.

The 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series Events have been selected and will be announced to YOU during the 31 Days of Christmas.  As a matter of fact, we have one such announcement scheduled for release to YOU on Day 8  -- the very next verse of this catchy little song we've been singing together.

So keep singing along -- we've got some Uncommon stuff on the 2013 Race Series for YOU.

As we look forward, we will also look back.  In 2012, the LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series kicked off on an Uncommonly warm March day in downtown Davenport, Iowa.  Hosted on historic 2nd, Brady, and 3rd Streets, the event set an all-time record -- bringing over 3,500 runners across the START and FINISH LINES of the 1/4 Mile Tot Trot, 1 Mile Family Fun Run, and 5K Competive Race.

Most importantly, and the reason this event made its way onto the 2012 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series, the event raised awareness and funds for Charity.  The Charity of the Day was CASI -- Center for Active Seniors, Inc.

CASI is a not-for-profit serving the needs of active seniors since 1972.  2012 marked the 30th Anniversary of their annual fundraiser - the CASI St. Patrick's Day Races!

Here's a bit about CASI ---

CASI's mission is to provide services that meet the needs of older adults, and fosters respect, dignity and quality of life. CASI has a professional staff dedicated to the advocacy of seniors and all issues facing our aging population.  And let's face it -- we are all leading healthier lives, leading us to LONGER lives - we, or someone we know and care about, can either currently benefit from the services CASI offers, or will someday.

Besides boasting daily activities, classes, community forums, a fitness center and educational activities.  Additionally, CASI operates an adult day care facility, serving seniors with early onset dementia, seniors with specific physical needs and seniors who enjoy a daily routine filled with physical and mental activities and social interaction.

Jane’s Place also provides caregivers with much needed respite and allows caregivers to continue to work.To provide services that meet the needs of older adults, and fosters respect, dignity and quality of life.

on the 6th Day of Christmas...

...my True LU gave to me....

...a REMINDER.....of the 6 vaLUes of LIVE UNCOMMON....

FAMILY.

Spouse. Parent. Son/Daughter.  Brother/Sister.  Uncle/Aunt.  Grandparent/Grandkid.

Whoever YOU are to whomever is FAMILY.  Fully engage today.


WORK ETHIC.

Professional.  Student.  Part-time.  Seasonal.  Washer of dishes at Home.  Cleaner of your own room.

Whatever YOU do.  Do it with your utmost today.


FITNESS & HEALTH.

Run.  Walk.  Bike.  Swim.  Dance.  Cheer.  Row.  Yoga.  Train.  Ski.  Skate.  Bowl.  CrossFit.  Golf.  Tennis.  Climb.  Base/Basket/Foot/Racquetball.  Soccer.  Hike.  A thousand other methods.

Whatever YOU do for your BODY, MIND, SPIRIT.  Do it with focus today. 


GIVING BACK.

Tutor.  Mentor.  Coach.  Visit a lonely neighbor.  Walk a dog at the shelter.  Donate to the Food Pantry.  Drop clothes to a domestic violence shelter.  A million other ways.

However YOU can.  Find a way to GIVE BACK today.


BALANCE.

Your Time.  Your Energy.

In a time when every second counts, our Time and Energy are our most valuable of all assets.

Invest them thoughfully today.


EXCELLENCE.

Family.  Work.  Fitness.  Giving Back.  Balance. 

Do them all, all in.  LIVE UNCOMMON today.



Ready now?  To do it all?  All in?  We know you are.  Because YOU ARE the ONE.  YOU ARE the RevoLUtion.  YOU ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.

So....let's sing it now...loud and proud....to set the mood for the day ----

On the 6th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me........a Reminder of the 6 vaLUes of LIVE UNCOMMON.......  ........5 Dudes named NICK.......   .....4 Friends of FRANZEN.....    ......3 LMTs........   ........2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs.........   ....and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!!

Nicely done.  Track back a verse by clicking on the Day of Christmas you feel like belting out again!

on the 5th Day of Christmas...

...my True LU gave to me...

5 Dudes named NICK!!!  and a deal....(louder please)

We hear today just happens to be the St. Nicholas Day.  EVERYday is NICK DAY at LIVE UNCOMMON....

NICK.  What a good name, right?  Solid.  Strong.  Cool-guy-you-want-to-know kinda name.  Lucky thing for us, for YOU, that we have 5 of these solid, strong, cool-guy-you-want-to-know NICK dudes on the roster.

Here they are.....

NICK SCOTT.  Mr. SCOTT is LU's most recent NICK acquisition.  This NICK joined the Movement in August of this year and all we can say is that we are stoked that he did.  Here's what we know about the guy -- NICK SCOTT is a proud Iowa State grad who brought the fruits of his top notch education back to the Quad Cities area from which he hails.  The Movement is truly honored that NICK flies the LU flag all over the region, competing in events from the 5K to the IRONMAN 70.3 (whoa).  LU Crew has yet to shake this man's hand in person, but has captured his fleeting image a time or two as he flies by the FINISH LINE like a blur.

Since his LU inaugeration, NICK SCOTT has been one busy NICK.  NICK hit the Chicago ground running for his second take down of the 26.2 miles up there.  The Chicago Marathon is only a hash mark on the wall for this guy -- this year alone NICK has knocked off: Kansas City 5150 Olympic Triathlon, QC Triathlon, IronMAN 70.3 Kansas, Firecracker 10K, Bix 7, OUCH! Half Marathon, HyVee 5150 Olympic Triathlon DesMoines, KC Marathon and is now training for IronMAN Tahoe in September of 2013.  Um...can you say 'tough'??  Well, also say 'nice'....

From the ONE who may likely know him best, NICK SCOTT's very own true blue MORGAN BENSON tells the world her NICK is one stand up guy.  Here's what our MORGAN source says:

"Nick is a driven, self-motivated, and selfless person in all areas of his life. He will talk your ear off about triathlons if you let him, and is always willing to dedicate his time to helping anyone, especially another athlete. I wouldn't be where I am today as a runner if it weren't for his motivational advice and inspiration!"

Sounds like MORGAN is a keeper, NICK.  Thank you, MORGAN, for sharing some tidbits about NICK with the Team.  And thank you, NICK SCOTT, for bringing your force to the Movement.  We dig you.  Alot.

Next NICK -- NICK VILLAREAL.  Hmm.  What can we say about NICK?  Not enough.  This guy - NICK VILLAREAL, that is - is also one of the good guys.  NICK VILLAREAL was introduced to the Movement back in the summer of 2011 just after LU was launched into the world.  We believe we can thank NICK's sister ALICIA VILLAREAL for that intro, since she - ALICIA, that is - is LU Charter Member 22 (that's way, way early on in LU life -- we're talking first week kind of timeline).  NICK made his LU debut a couple weeks after his sweet sis, claiming the CM71 LU ID.  We can further track back NICK's LU origin to none other than JEN PAUL.  Because.....it was ALICIA who opened the LU doorway to her bro NICK...it was JEN PAUL who gave ALICIA the LU nod.  Here's how it happened -- ALICIA was driving down the road one day and sees a billboard.  She's intrigued -- "LIVE UNCOMMON" she says to herself.  Hmmm.  And what makes her do a triple take is the realization that the chic on the billboard is her former cross country coach from her days at Davenport North High School.  Hmmm.  Back in those days, LIVE UNCOMMON billboards (there were two that were launched to announce the launch of the RevoLUtion - one of JEFF, one of JEN)....anyway, back in those way early days the billboards had the website address on them.  So ALICIA went home and typed in liveuncommon.org.  She found LIVE UNCOMMON, made a donation, got some sweet gear, wore it while she did her Uncommon thing here and there and everywhere, and NICK was like, "LIVE UNCOMMON...what's that?"  And the rest is in the LU history books -- NICK becomes CM71 and we, the behind the scenes LU Crew, do our happy little jig dance.  And, as always, the Crew did their research.  The reason we can tell YOU about ALICIA seeing the billboard and noticing it was her high school XC coach, is because she - ALICIA - told us about it.  The Crew wrote to ALICIA to thank her for her donation and ask very politely how she came to know the Movement.  When we got in the know about the JEN/ALICIA connection, the next thing the Crew did was to tell JEN about it, so JEN could do the happy little jig dance too.  She did (the happy little jig dance, that is) and then she went on to share with us the awesomeness of ALICIA, and all the VILLAREALs.  JEN's words to the Crew were something like, "oh ALICIA's a great girl! and that's because her Family is a great Family!"  Pretty cool, don'tcha think?  We did.  We do.  

The Crew's first sighting of NICK VILLAREAL was at the 2011 QC Marathon when he breezed past a majority of the pack to come in around 1:30ish in the HALF.  Alot of the Crew was running that day and at first saw NICK only from the back, blinded by his speed and the flash of the "R" on his back.  The Crew captured this pic of NICK at the FINISH that day there he was after 13.1 miles looking fresh as a daisy.

When 2012 first rolled around and details of that upcoming year were being released, The LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team was launched.  It's funny - there was talk back here about reaching out to NICK and personally inviting him to consider signing on --- we had a certain 'feeling' about him.  We knew he was literally running all over the country taking in and knocking down Marathons and Halfs everwhere he went.  We thought the LU Race Team might be right up this guy's alley, ya know?  But, we also didn't want him to feel obligated or pressured in any way.  Seriously, serving on the LU Race Team isn't for sissies.  In Year One - 2012 - serving on the Race Team meant not only signing on to run the 7 LU Series Race Events (ranging from 5K to Marathon), but simultaneously raising awareness and funds (minimum of $700 each) for the Charities behind each of the 7 Races.  No small task, right?  Well...The Race Team was forming....growing...  ONE by ONE the LU Heroes were stepping forward to take this journey....to make a difference for the Charities.  Ya know that happy little jig dance the Crew does when we welcome an LU to the Movement?  Well, the Welcome-to-the-LU-Race-Team is more like a break dance.  Let's just say that these guys are a pretty big deal and we are in awe of their GIVE BACK.  Pretty cool stuff.  Okay, so this brings us back to NICK VILLAREAL.  As we're thinking about what a good 'fit' NICK would be for the LU Race Team, the LU Inbox chime goes off and what do you know??  Yup - NICK VILLAREAL is on the Race Team.  Come on, we know you've got some moves, bust out a few for NICK, will ya?

Next next NICK.  NICK SACCO.  NICK SACCO is.....let's see now where do we begin?  NICK is.....a teacher - high school math (Trig, Algebra, all that tough stuff).....coach (XC, baseball, maybe more) and ya know how much we dig good teachers and coaches, right?  And NICK is both.  Hmm.  Well, then add to the mix that NICK SACCO is on the 'good guys' list, like NICK SCOTT and NICK VILLAREAL.  Check this out -- NICK came to the roster way way back in July of 2011, right? (so NICK SACCO is a CM) Like, in the first week or so.  When the Crew wrote to him to thank him for his donation, NICK writes back to tell us that he wants to make sure he gets his new gear in time run in it at the ST. JUDE's 34 Mile Run event.  Yeah.  NICK SACCO likes to run, no doubt... 34 miles is no lazy morning jaunt.  But NICK wasn't running those 34 miles for the sake of the 34 miles.  Nope.  NICK was running them for ST. JUDE's.  Pretty impressive.  So right off the bat, the Crew was tipping our hat to NICK SACCO.  There are alot of good Causes out there doing good things for the world.  ST. JUDE's is way up there.  Running, or doing anything for that matter, for a CAUSE is pretty cool.  LIVE UNCOMMON tips its hat to all the events, running or whatnot, out there in the world which are organized for the purpose of serving 'the greater good'.  Not just to make some money, but to DO SOME GOOD, affect some GOOD on the world, GIVE BACK.  The LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series is comprised of events selected based upon their GIVE BACK.  The funds ($17,500 in 2012) raised by the LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team, are distributed across the Charities behind the Series Events.  It was no suprise to the Crew when NICK SACCO chimed the LU Inbox again in March to sign on the dotted line to serve on the LU Race Team.  NICK SACCO - Teacher, Coach, Marathon Man, Hero.

One more tidbit about NICK SACCO.  We told you he's one of the good guys, right?  Well, all three of these NICKs -- SCOTT, VILLAREAL, SACCO have more than just running to make their hearts beat faster...  All 3 NICKs shared their Uncommon-ness with someONE on and off the race courses this year.  NICK SCOTT with MORGAN BENSON......NICK VILLAREAL with ANNA MULLEN (ANNA was inspired by NICK to take up running in 2011 and conquered her first ever Half Marathon with him in Disney World last January!).....NICK SACCO with HEATHER SOON-TO-BE-SACCO (wedding date July 13 next year!).

Okay, that's 3 NICKs.  But this verse is "The 5 Dudes named NICK".  So what's up with that??

Let us tell you what's up with that.  Our Next Next Next NICK is NICK EMORY.  And our Next Next Next Next NICK is NICK MITTON.  All the Crew knows about these two Teammates is that they are obviouly cool dudes because they have generously supported the Movement and are probably walking or running or biking or swimming or break dancing around town somewhere doin their Uncommon thing in their gear.  NICK EMORY and NICK MITTON came out to do their glowy thing with the Team in June at the LU Torchlight Parade and  maybe the Crew caught them on camera in this photo.  Zoom in....

So those are the 5 NICKs.  What did we tell ya?  5 smoking cool dudes, right?  You can say it.  Even if you're a smoking cool dude yourself, you can still recognize a fellow smoking cool dude when you see one, right?  Give the 5 Dudes named NICK an LU nod...

Oh, wait -- the deal!!  Today -- ACTIVE ENDEAVORS (you know LU Exclusive Gear Retailer) well today is Customer Appreciation Day.  That means 20% off EVERYTHING in the store.  Not LU gear though.  You can't take 20% a donation, ya know.  Anyway, besides the obvious fact that ACTIVE ENDEAVORS does SOOO much for the Movement (they carry the gear without taking a 'cut' AND they donated the $5,000 for the LU Scholarship awarded to SAM STAVER, MICHAEL BYRNE, GRANT LANG in June) ACTIVE ENDEAVORS is hands down the coolest store for miles and miles and miles.  Sweet stuff in there -- and today it is ALL 20% off.  Get in your LU gear and give your LU saLUte to the peeps at AE.

Alright....ready to sing??  Come on, you know the words...  On three.  One, two....

on the 5th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me..........5 Dudes named NICK!!....and a deal............4 Friends of FRANZEN........3 LMTs............2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs..........and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!!!

Missed a verse?  Click on the days and we'll take you to the words so you can sing along...


 

on the 4th Day of Christmas...

...my True LU gave to me....

4 Friends of FRANZEN!!!  (wait --- we think we can hear you singing!  nicely done!)

LIVE UNCOMMON - the Team....the Movement....the RevoLUtion....is designed to make a difference in the World, so that the World can make a difference.

JEN and JEFF PAUL were selected back in Day One of the RevoLUtion to serve as LU poster peeps -- an 'image' to look upon as a visual reference...someONEs to 'make you look' and then make you ask, "Hmm...LIVE UNCOMMON...what's up with that?"

JEN and JEFF were selected not because they LOOK the part, even though they do.  No no.  They were lifted up because they ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.  They LIVE it.  You dig?  Don't get us wrong here -- LIVING UNCOMMON - striking the Balance between Family, Work, Fitness, Giving Back - doing these with our utmost, with Excellence - this is an achievement that IF ever actually struck, is very difficult to maintain.  There is only a finite amount of Time in a day - fitting it all in is not easy.  Minutes, even seconds count.  No, it is not easy.  We believe that to perfectly LIVE UNCOMMON is something most of us will attain briefly and intermittently, but for which we must constantly and continually aspire.  This REACH is what makes us grow, improve, LIVE UNCOMMON.

So....in the beginning days, JEN and JEFF were the 'faces' for us to look to as an example of what it means to LIVE UNCOMMON.  They served, and continue to serve, the Movement by inpiring us to look, to take notice, to ask questions....and then ultimately...to take action.....  It was an epiphany moment way back in the conversation days, before LIVE UNCOMMON was anything but a seed of a thought, when the RUSSELLs asked eachother, "putting someone, JEN or JEFF up on a billboard -- what does it DO??"  The answer was this - we want to challenge the world to look, ask, emulate.

And ONE by ONE by ONE by ONE it happened.  The Team came to BE.  And as each ONE took up the challenge, THEY BECAME THE ONE to inspire another.  And another.  And another.

YOU become the 'face' of the Movement when you join the LU roster and throw the LU flag on your back.  YOU become the inspiration for the next ONE.  YOU become the Movement because YOU ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.  Pretty cool, don'tcha think??  Yeah, it's pretty freaking cool.

We are so fortunate behind the scenes here at LU to do the happy little jig dance every day when we are privileged to read emails from YOU telling how and why you came to the Movement.  Many times it's the story of "I keep seeing all these people at the races with really cool shirts on...I figured they must be the elite runners...so i looked you guys up...I love what you do!"  It's pretty cool for us back here to read this stuff.  And if it's cool for us, we're thinking it will be cool for you too.  Because we are all bound by one Uncommon thread...dreaming bigger, reaching higher...  Many times we learn that someONE was inspired by someONE else who changed their lives significantly.  Metamorphisized.  It can be a reawakening of an almost lost dream...something you always said you wanted to do and now IT's TIME....  Run, Bike, Swim, Dance, Walk, Zumba, GIVE.  It's all good.  It's actually way, way better than good. 

So...lots of buildup to this point, but it's all worth it....here, now, allow us to introduce to you to ---- DUANE FRANZEN.  Here are the first words we heard from DUANE after writing to him to thank him for his generous donation and to ask him to introduce himself:

"I wouldn't call myself a runner, more just a life long athlete trying
new things. I was a state qualifier in track but was more of a sprinter
over 20 years ago. :-) I did my first two road races this year, the
b-rrrry scurry and then the CASI 5K and that is where I seen all the LU
stuff, I saw the neon yellow shirts and liked them but figured they were
for the most serious of serious runners. I run for cardio, cutting bf
etc. I'm in Max Muscles maxformation contest right now, since December
2nd I've went from 233.5 pounds to about 197 right now through hard
work, watching calories and maintaining energy balance, and more hard
work and suppliments. About 13-14 years ago I was competing in MMA and
was off and on involved in training fighters until about 08. That's me
in a nut shell, a 39 year old former athlete trying to do things still
and make my mark!"

So we got DUANE on the roster and in some gear.  Right on, right?  He had his gear personalized too with a codename kinda word..pretty cool.  Anyway, this all happened back in early April of 2012.  It was in July that we had our first sighting of DUANE and this pic on the left is literally our first eyes on the man who is DUANE FRANZEN, LIVE UNCOMMON Teammate #343.  We creeped on him a little from behind, trying to figure out who he was exactly based upon his gear (did you know that a tremendous amount of thought goes into the design of the gear so that it can be visibly tracked back to it's origin?  It's true.).  It only took a moment to figure out who was this LU and then we tapped him on the shoulder and gave him a "hey, Duane!"  This was at the Firecracker Race in East Moline, by the way, on the 4th of July.  In the portapotty line as a matter of fact.  It was one hot day too, whoa.  But it was a magical moment in that hot sun, meeting DUANE and his lovely wife before the START gun.  Wait, it was a START cannon.  Anyway, that's how we, YOU - LIVE UNCOMMON - came to know DUANE FRANZEN.

So THEN we find out that Mr. DUANE is like a morphed man himself.  As the months roll by, from April to September, so do the pounds - by and off DUANE.  As a participant in the Max Muscle MaxFormation, DUANE as undergone a DUANE reformation.  He looks great, feels great, does great (things, that is).  So great, in fact, that he has been featured in an ad in Muscle and Fitness Magazine.  Nice!  The super cool thing about it is that DUANE, through his DUANE reformation MaxFormation journey, eventually got to the bottom of  years' worth of frustration over symptoms such as general apathy and such.  The issue was finally diagnosed as Low Testosterone.  DUANE says he then navigated through feelings of shame and embarrassment before deciding that he could serve others similarly afflicted, by standing up, throwing his shoulders back, holding his head high, and sharing his story.  Now, his story is broadcast in a national magazine.  Pretty cool stuff there, don'tcha think?  We do.  We are confident there are guys out there who are grateful to DUANE for helping to shine a cool light on this sensitive issue.  We applaud DUANE for being the catalyst.  Furthermore, DUANE has served to inspire fellow participants in the MaxFormation to join him in his, our, YOUR, pursuit to LIVE UNCOMMON.  Here is an snippet from an email in early September

"The four of us in the article attached from last month are interested in wearing uncommon clothing and doing the relay at the QCM.
Where do we sign up your website?
How do we purchase shirts for the race?
Anything else I should know?
We want to promote our weight loss and Live Uncommon! :)
Thanks!"

This was from JENNIFER COLLINS who got the ball rolling for herself, DUANE, JASMINE FORD, ANGIE NIPPER, and MARK DANN who, besides taking on their own personal reformations through the MaxFormation challenge, came out to show it loud and proud as LIVE UNCOMMON Team Max Relay in the QC Marathon!  Right on, Team!!

DUANE, JENNIFER, JASMINE, ANGIE, and MARK do their thing, inspiring us, and hopefully YOU, to get up, get out there, GO.  Whatever that "GO" means to you, get it done.  The strength of the Movement is behind you....

DUANE was the ONE who inspired JENNIFER to ask some questions and then LU.  JENNIFER was the ONE inspired JASMINE, and ANGIE, and MARK.  That's how it works. 

The Movement saLUtes DUANE, JENNIFER, JASMINE, ANGIE, MARK.  They are, YOU are, the ONE.....

Here we go now......on three.  One, Two...  "on the 4th Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me.....4 Friends of FRANZEN....3 LMTs and an LU MASSAGE...2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs......and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!

miss a verse?  find the words to sing along to all the Days by clicking on the links on the Days above..

on the 3rd Day of Christmas...

...my True LU gave to me....

3 LMTs and an LU MASSAGE!!!   (you are singing, right??)

read on...sing on...hum on...   just make sure you make it to the bottom of this page -- 1st of a few LU gift ideas for the season -- LU MASSAGE for someone on your list perhaps??  All the dough goes to the fund... 

What do we say at LIVE UNCOMMON??  Ooo, big question there....so many truly good things..

LIVE UNCOMMON believes it only takes ONE to change the World...and we are ALL the ONE.

LIVE UNCOMMON believes those who are ABLE to help, are OBLIGATED to help....and we are ALL able.

how about this one ----

LIVE UNCOMMON is NOT just about running.

On the roster -- runners for sure, yes.  Cyclists.  Swimmers.  Triathletes.  Dancers.  Yogas.  Zumbas.  Pilate Peeps.  Snowboarders.  Skiers.  Roller Derby.  Tennis.  Football.  Basketball.  Baseball.  Softball.  Volleyball.  Throwers. 

And none of them doing ONLY their sport.  No no.  They are doing it all - GIVING their all to Balance -- Family, Work, Fitness, Giving Back - striving to be Excellent in each facet.  Not easy. 

And you know what?  Sometimes they, we, YOU need a little recovery time.  A nudge to relax.  Take a nap.  Take a day off (from training).  Hopefully, this "recover/relax/off" is part of your routine so that the result is PREVENTING injury or overstress, rather than RECOVERING from it.

On the LU roster are 3 talented and endorsed LU LMTs.  That means we've checked them out, climbed on the massage table and tested their hands.  We've found the best of the best for the best (YOU).....we found them on the LU roster and they are now lending their skills to YOU.

LAUREL DARREN, LMT has been on the LU roster from almost the very beginning.  Sponsored by none-other-than JEFF PAUL, the Movement is fortunate to have LAUREL on the Team.  LAUREL is not only a supreme LMT, also an avid athlete in almost every sport listed above, and one of the most tireless voLUnteers around - GIVING of herself to every Cause near and far.  LAUREL most recently brought her talents to the pros at the Ryder Cup and to LU Pro JEFF PAUL at his recent IRONMAN in Tempe, Arizona.  We will bring you more on LAUREL, aka LU MVP #1, later in this 31 Days.

MARIE WOMBLE, LMT has been on the LU roster for nearly as long as LAUREL and has served as the LMT to the 2012 LU Race Team, traveling with the LU VUP Clubhouse to all LU Race Series Events.  MARIE is strong and takes no prisoners when it comes to knocking out those knots and trouble spots.  Mom to son, Christian, hard-working MARIE has donated several days' worth of her talent to the Cause and made her lifetime debut as a runner in last year's YMCA Turkey Trot.  Like LAUREL, MARIE possesses a huge commitment to GIVE to the world, and challenges herself everyday to LIVE UNCOMMON.  The Movement is proud to endorse her as LU LMT.

MADIE HART, LMT is our newest LU LMT, but hardly our newest LU.  An LU Charter Member, like LAUREL, (Charter Members are the first 100 to bring their forces to the Cause), and a 2012 LU Race Teamer -- MADIE has been on the roster since almost Day One.  By all accounts (we have sent the troops in to test MADIE's hands as an LMT) MADIE has got what it takes (and then some) to have earned the LU endorsement as LU LMT.  Specializing is Swedish, Deep Tissue, Sport Massage, and PreNatal (yes, PreNatal), this girl has got your needs covered.  Just like her fellow 24 LU Race Teammates, MADIE committed to raise awareness and funds for the 7 local charities supported by the 7 LIVE UNCOMMON Series Races in 2012.  MADIE, and each of the 25 Race Teamers, is responsible for raising a minimum of $700 for these local charities.  MADIE still has $400 to go.  Toward this endeavor, MADIE is donating 31 "IN-HOME" MASSAGES to LIVE UNCOMMON!!!  What does that mean to YOU?? For one, it means this massage comes to YOU -- so like when you're feeling like a noodle and nap when the massage is finished, well, you're already at your house and can fall straight onto the couch or into bed (trust us, this is a bonus)...   It also, and more importantly, means you can help MADIE help the 7 charities, while at the same time helping yourself or someone in your life, by reserving a LU MADIE MASSAGE -- 100% of your dollars will go to her Race Team effort (will go to Charity -- will go to help a very worthy Cause).

A word about MADIE HART aka LU LMT -- one of those people who make your day better just by running into them.  Caring daugter/sister/mom-to-Mr.Cat....dedicated professional and super hard-working girl (MADIE will graduate from St. Ambrose this May, having earned her HUMAN SPORTS PERFORMANCE degree in 3 years AND simultaneously earning her Massage Therapist Degree!!) MADIE is a versatile athlete, and GIVER to any and every good Cause.  She is, like LAUREL and MARIE and YOU, an Excellent Person who is the walking personification of LIVE UNCOMMON.

We hope, if you get massages, or have ever wanted to try a massage, you do so now.  It will be good for YOU...good for the Causes...  Click the LU LMT Badge below and you will be magically transported to an email to us so we can make your reseversation.  Oh, we almost forgot -- we are throwing in Limited Release LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team Crew gear with your reservation!!!  Book it now - there are only 31...... 
....now ready to sing along so far??  "On the 3rd Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me....3 LMTs and an LU MASSAGE!!....2 ROBERT BEARDSLEYs!!!.....and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!

on the 2nd Day of Christmas.....

...my True LU gave to me....

Two ROBERT BEARDLEYs!!!!!!  (are you singing??  we're going to ask you this everyday, so start singing)

Those of you out there who know the guy - ROBERT BEARDSLEY - know that you're lucky to know the guy, right?  So knowing TWO of them - ROBERT BEARDSLEYs - well, we're talking Power Ball lucky.  Yup.

Here's how we (YOU) - LIVE UNCOMMON - came to have two on the roster.....

So back in Y1...about five weeks into the RevoLUtion (LIVE UNCOMMON launched on June 21, 2011)......an email comes through the website - to us back here - with notification of a big donation for gear.  This donor selected like almost every piece of guy-gear on the site at the time, and made a big, generous donation to cover it all.  So we were stoked!  The question behind the scenes here was "so who is this guy??"  He had selected customization on a couple of the pieces -- "RUN, BIKE, SWIM" and "TRIATH-ELITE" - so we all assumed this guy must be a bigtime JEFF PAUL caliber kinda guy, right?  Makes sense, right?

Whenever any donation comes through for gear, a couple of things always happen behind the scenes --- the Crew does a happy little jig kinda dance, and then they do as much research as they can to learn about the newest LU so we can welcome them as warmly as possible via the LU Thank You.

So.....in the case of this big donation for all this TRI gear for this unknown ROBERT BEARDSLEY, the Crew did the same thing YOU probably did to find this website --- they Googled it (Googled "ROBERT BEARDSLEY", that is...).  We pretty much expected to find a bunch of triathlon results and stuff like that.

The Crew did find some race results out there.  But they were from like Junior High School meets and stuff.  And then they came across a mention of a ROBERT BEARDSLEY - Altar Server.  We all scratched our heads on this one, and then we were like "alright..this is cool....this is like a KID we're talking about..this is VERY cool."  So...we went ahead and wrote to ROBERT BEARDSLEY and asked him - is this for you? How did you come to know of the Movement?  Thanks for your generosity and support, by the way!!!

And here was the reply:

"Yes I am a triathlete and I first heard of live uncommon because my social studies teacher Jeff Paul inspired me a lot to be a triathlete. He is also a big supporter of live uncommon so that's how I've heard of live uncommon."

Pretty cool, don't ya think?  We thought so.  JEFF PAUL, very literally, 'inspiring' someone to REACH HIGHER, DREAM BIGGER....  Yup.  Pretty cool....

So we just HAD to meet this "kid".  So we did.  We made the delivery to ROBERT BEARDSLEY at a cross country practice that summer where we met not only him - ROBERT BEARDSLEY - but ANOTHER ROBERT BEARDSLEY and a KIM BEARDSLEY too!

On that particular day, back in August of 2011, ROBERT BEARDSLEY - known as ROB - was the only LU in the BEARDSLEY Family.  It wasn't long, however, before not only ROBERT BEARDSLEY - known as BOB (and known as ''Dad" to ROB, and as "one wicked cool guy" to the rest of the world) - and KIM (ultra hip mom of ROB) and KENDALL (super cool volleyball playing, student counciling sister of ROB) were all representing.

And they all do it so well - represent the Cause, that is.  ROB -- turns out LU Crew's first assumptions were right on the money -- ROB BEARDSLEY IS A JEFF PAUL CALIBER KINDA GUY.  And we don't just mean on the triahtlon course (although at the powerful age of 15, ROB IS A SPECTACULAR TRIATHLETE already)....ROB is UNCOMMON at home, in the classroom, on the cross country field, and the wrestling mat, all over the TRI course....and he GIVES to the world around him, is a Scout and a versatile voLUnteer....

ROB is an LU Charter Member (one of the first 100 to step forward to join the Movement), and an LU TRIATHLETE, having competed in the 2012 LIVE UNCOMMON Adventure Race and ROB holds the LU title for making the most generous donation for gear in one swipe.

BOB and KIM are both dedicated, valued professionals with JOHN DEERE.  Their commitment to the balance of Family, Work Ethic, Fitness & Health, Giving Back, Excellence is brightly reflected in their children - ROB and KENDALL.

The BEARDSLEY Family has given tremendous support to the Movement - coming out to the QC Marathon Pasta Dinner in Year One....and TEAM BEARDSLEY lit up the LIVE UNCOMMON Torchlight Parade in June, where ROB won the 4 Mile.  The BEARDSLEYs, as a Family, hold the title for most donations for most gear from/for under one roof.  The BEARDSLEYs have donated for gear through the Shop for a Cause as well as at Exclusive LU Gear Retailer - ACTIVE ENDEAVORS.  They wear it well.

LIVE UNCOMMON gives our heartfelt saLUte to our Two ROBERT BEARDSLEYs (and to KIM and KENDALL too, of course) for doin what they do, wherever, whenever they are -- They do, and they are, LIVE UNCOMMON.

So let's recap --- in B Flat please --- 'on the 2nd Day of Christmas my True LU gave to me....Two ROBERT BEARDSLEYs!!  ....and JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!"  Missed the first verse? click on the pic below to sing along....

 

on the 1st Day of Christmas....

....my True LU gave to me.....

....JEN and JEFF PAUL in RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION gear!!!  (are you singing this??)

Without JEN and JEFF PAUL and RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION, the Movment would not BE.  And so then, neither would we be singing this 31 Days of Christmas Uncommon song.  Makes sense to start the song with them then, don'tcha think??  We do...

Here's how LU came to BE...

On a January morning in 2011, JIM and MICHELLE read in the paper that the organizers of the CASI St. Patrick's Day Races were hoping to move their annual fundraising event - the St. Pat's Races - back to downtown Davenport, where it had originated over 25 years before. The newspaper article told of a city council meeting taking place that very evening to hear arguments for and against, and a vote to decide, relocating the race.  The RUSSELLs, being old enough to remember running the St. Pat's Race for many years when it had been run downtown, and further, remembering it to be a supreme event during those years, decided they would attend the city council meeting to lend whatever support they could, to a positive outcome - the race moving back downtown.   That night at the council meeting, two things went down -- the City Council voted to allow the St. Pat's Race to move back downtown...and the RUSSELLs met and chatted with the CEO of CASI (Center for Active Seniors) - the non-profit for which the St. Pat's Race is held annually to benefit.

A few days later, influenced by the 'GIVE' that comes out of the St. Pat's Race (the entry fees, the sponsor fees -- the MONEY -- actually goes to a worthy Cause - CASI - and is not simply collected for the sake of making money), RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION signed on as the Title Sponsor for the CASI St. Pat's Races.  You following this?  Because if you are, you may be struck by, as many have before you, the feeling that the LIVE UNCOMMON story, from the very beginning, has been the stuff of "wow, can you believe how that just happened to happen??"

Because the RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION name was going to be attached to the event, it was now paramount that the event live up to the RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION standard of excellence.  It was RUSSELL's mission to make sure the St. Pat's Race became a bigger, better event - for the Familes, the everyday runner, the elite competitor, the volunteer, the spectator.  It was in this interest of raising the caliber of the event, that the RUSSELLs reached out and personally invited JEN PAUL to come and run.  They didn't know much about JEN at that time, but did know that she was a great runner who would most likely win the Overall Female Division.  JEN was very humble regarding this personal invite, but she ultimately accepted.  So JEN and JEFF were outfitted in some RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION shirts for the occassion.

And so the day of the race arrived.  And JEN and JEFF and PAYTON and OWEN (their 3 and 1 year olds at the time) arrived.  The kids ran the 1/4 Mile Kids Run.  JEN and JEFF ran, literally, stride for stride in the 5K, striding JEN to a record-breaking 17:16 win.  JEN, the St. Pat's Race Event, the day -- each a success.  Pretty cool, yes?

Even cooler -- JIM and MICHELLE RUSSELL receive a Thank You card in the mail about three days later.  From JEN.  JEN expressed her appreciation to the RUSSELLs for their role in putting on a great event that she and her entire Family really enjoyed, and for having the confidence in her that allowed her to run an outstanding race.  Hmm.  The RUSSELLs were very moved by this action.

So...the RUSSELLs talked amongst themselves a bit.  They began to see that JEN and JEFF lives seemed to be in alignment with the RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION core values - INTEGRITY, COMMUNITY COA

So they created a couple more pieces of RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION pieces for JEN and JEFF.  So they could do their thing, win their races, while representing RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION.  And they did.  JEN and JEFF, that is.  They ran.  They won.  They wore the RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION name.  And it was very cool.

And the RUSSELLs, well, they talked amongst themselves about JEN and JEFF some more.  Like alot more.  The question on the table -- "WHAT are we doing here? We are not sports agents.  WHAT are we doing here?"  The real question they were asking eachother was "WHY are we so drawn to these two?"  So they talked about it more and more, exploring why they were so intrigued by JEN and by JEFF.

They came to this realization -- they were drawn to JEN and JEFF because of WHO they are, as defined by HOW they live.

JEN and JEFF -- devoted to eachother.  Fully engaged with their children.  Dedicated professionals (both with Masters Degrees even!).  Tireless givers to the World around them.  Wicked impressive athletes.  And applying Excellence to all of the above.

Nice. 

Is doing this - living like JEN and JEFF easy to accomplish??  Um.  No.

And that discovery was the basis of thought that is, now, LIVE UNCOMMON.

JEN and JEFF PAUL, since Day One of Year One, of the LIVE UNCOMMON RevoLUtion, have served as the personifications of the LU vaLUes.  They serve to inspire the RUSSELLs, the LU Team, the World, to dream bigger....reach higher....DO more.....more than what is expected....because it truly does only take ONE.....

.....to change the World.  JEN and JEFF, PAYTON and OWEN, YOU --- YOU reading this YOU -- YOU ARE THE ONE.

JEN and JEFF are still up to nothing but good, of course.  Both on and off the race course. JEN has won just about every single race she has entered for who knows how long now.  She's not counting.  JEFF is something like a three-time Professional IRONMAN.  The pair just returned from Tempe, Arizona where JEFF successfully completed the IRONMAN for the second consecutive year.  JEN, after 'retiring' for the season and having not run even one mile (really and truly she had not run even one mile) in more than a month, came out for the Turkey Trot and won it.  Of course.  JEFF recently accepted the call to lend his significant talents to coaching again -- this time Freshman Girls Basketball at Pleasant Valley High School.  LU sources say he is LOVING it.  And you gotta know that his team is loving it too.  Right on, JEFF!!

The Crew will catch you up on the particulars of JEN and JEFF's achievements in the later Days of Christmas Uncommon.  For now, the Crew just wanted to launch the 31 Days the same way the Movement was launched -- with JEN and JEFF PAUL by RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION.

A quick word about RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION.....2013 will mark 30 years for RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION.  In that time, JIM RUSSELL has, personally and corporately, given away over $1 Million to charitble causes.  This is a fact he would not tell you, but we will.  He is humble.  LIVE UNCOMMON, and the World, is grateful for his generosity and philanthopy.  It is important that we - LU Crew - recognize RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION's role within the Movement.  For, without their significant and continued support, LIVE UNCOMMON simply would not exist.

LU Privilege Registration - TURKEY TROT

Late Registration - LU Privilege Registration style - means it pays to wait......

But first ------

did ya know?

that every single Give Back Event LIVE UNCOMMON has endorsed, has broken its attendance record?  Yup.  Every. Single. One.

This is a big deal, ya know.  Every race has a goal it hopes to meet.  Ya know, fill their street with runners.  Make it a success.  Dig it?

And ya further know, don't ya, that LIVE UNCOMMON serves to shine the light on the races that serve a higher purpose.  Ya know what we're saying, right?  Like at LIVE UNCOMMON we say -- it is NOT just about running.

So the Movement sets out to single out the good guys...the ones who are in it to make a difference...for the greater good, kinda thing.  Ya know, not putting on a race to get rich, but to Give Back.  That's what it's all about -- the Give Back.

So....with the LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series officially past the finish line for 2012, all races have achieved great success -- all have surpassed their attendance goals, thus, ALL have made a difference for their worthy Causes.

LU has had a request.  From the Quad Cities YMCA.  Did you know that the Y is more than just a pretty cool gym?  Yeah, you probably knew that.  But...did you know ALL that it is?  All that it does??  We didn't.  And we still don't know.  But what we DO know is that it does really, really good stuff.  Mostly, what we know is that it TURNS NO ONE AWAY.  The YMCA, like LIVE UNCOMMON, is dedicated to helping to level the playing field for those young ONES who may need a bit of help.  Scholarships to camp...that kind of cool stuff.

So, the YMCA has reached out to LIVE UNCOMMON -- to YOU -- to help fill their GIVE BACK streets for their annual fundraising race - the TURKEY TROT.

Your registration WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE to a kid who needs it.  So do it. Right now.  Register. 

With the LU Privilege Registration it pays to be YOU.  YOU save $10 at GetMeRegistered.  You know the drill -- your LU gear is your ID -- wear it to Packet Pickup or risk the $10 charge smacking you in the face at that time.  NO GEAR, NO DICE, NO DISCOUNT.

but.......

because it IS Thanksgiving.....and LU has SO MUCH for which to be thankful.....and the YMCA is does so much good.....and because we REALLY WANT TO BREAK THIS RECORD --- they need like 300 more runners than they had last year --- how about if.....

you just do your Uncommon thing and spread the LU word -- sign everybody up with the LU Privilege Registration.

And don't wait.  If it's too cold on Thanksgiving morning....or you stayed out too late with your peeps you haven't seen since you went off to college....or if your whole Family is registered to run it or walk it but you all decide to sleep in instead....hey, you still are donating to a fantastic cause.  So do it, will ya?

Here's what you've got to do:

Do your registration thing at GetMeRegistered and at that time it asks for a discount code, it is:

LU2012

Can't get too much simpler than that.

It only takes ONE to change the world.  Be the Catalyst.

LAGOMARCINO'S COCOA BEANO 5K

Recommended by MICHELLE RUSSELL and everyone who has ever run this cool event:

This is a fast, flat, scenic run on what is traditionally a beautiful fall morning.  Central High School Band plays at about the 1 Mile Marker which is the entry point to Sylvan Island - where you run on a dirt path through the woods - it's very cool.  You finish on the bike path along the river and behind the iWireless Center to a crowd of cheering fans and then the race treats you to delicious Lagomarcino hot cocoa and chocolate.  You do NOT want to miss this race. 

Besides being a great race, MICHELLE RUSSELL recommends this event because of it's GIVE BACK -- portion of proceeds benefitting the Boys and Girls Clubs.  That's how it's done -- UNCOMMON.

Register by clicking on the Lagomarcino's logo up there and come out as a cute runner like ANIA PODGORNY (right) or as a zombie.....it's all good..............

SATURDAY OCTOBER 27
9:00 AM 5K
KIDS RUN

MAKE-A-WISH WALK FOR WISHES

JEFF PAUL --- ya know JEFF PAUL, right??  LIVE UNCOMMON poster guy because he's.....

Loving Husband and partner to the amazing super woman JEN PAUL and doting Dad to PAYTON and OWEN.....respected, dedicated Teacher of young minds......incredible all-around athlete and  Professional Triathlete.....tireless Giver to the World around him.....LU Race Teamer and raiser of awareness to many a local charity and of over $2,200 for those charities.....and mostly -- one heck of a nice guy....

Yup, that's JEFF PAUL...

He's doing the good deed again and asking that you join him and JEN and PAYTON and OWEN.

How, you ask? 

Come out and run or walk a 5K or 1 Mile (the PAULs are walking the 1 Mile as a Family) to show your support for the good stuff that comes out of MAKE-A-WISH -- granting wishes to children and adults with life-threatening illnesses.  It's really, really good stuff.

LIGHT THE NIGHT WALK

LUpdate

Launching on November 1
Announcement of the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Series -- all events selected based upon their GIVE BACK.  We are zeroing in on the finalists now....

Also will be announced -- details on how YOU can join the ranks of the LU Hero -- how YOU can be a part of the 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team.  Pretty cool stuff, bit different from last year.  Gotta keep shakin it up, ya know?

SWIM CAPS have made a splash at, yup, Exclusive LU Gear Retailer ACTIVE ENDEAVORS!!  We've got your skull covered -- Pink, Royal Blue, Navy, Black.

Shop at AE between October 4th and 7th and partake of the big Anniversary Tent Sale -- like literally everything in the store (except for LU gear, that is) is 20% off and everything under the tent is anywhere from 30% - 60% off.  Yup.  And you KNOW they've got the sweetest stuff there, right?  That's why they're the Exclusive LU Gear Retailer, after all.  Well, that and the fact that AE owner MATT OSTROM is seriously one of THE most generous Give Backing kinda guys out there. Well, anyway, if you swim and are Uncommon, you know where to go to get a cap that speaks.  And if you're going to get a cap, you may as well give an LU salute to the cool dudes who work at AE while you're at it.  They will SO appreciate YOU.

Um...LUKE RAYMOND!  LUKE is actually running the CHICAGO as a fundraiser for ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL!  LUKE'S already met and exceeded his $1,000 goal.  You heard right -- LUKE raised (with the help of Family and Friends and good people like YOU) way OVER $1,000 for charity.....   Pretty cool, don't ya think?  We do....

that is why....

because of LUKE's very huge GIVE BACK to a great charity, he has qualified to run as part of the elite 2013 LIVE UNCOMMON Race Team.  The Movement is honored and proud to welcome LUKE as an LU Race Teamer.  Right on, LUKE!

We'll be making an intro soon for another 2013 Race Teamer - JENNI RUUD who is committed to running for awareness for 'TRICH' which affects her family.  She's amaaaazing.......

Recommended by LU Race Team in October --

JOSIAH CAMPBELL - LU Race team - recommends:
LIGHT THE NIGHT WALK
Saturday October 6th
5:30 PM
Modern Woodman Park (River Bandits Stadium)
Benefitting Leukemia Lymphoma Society
click here for more info....

JEFF PAUL - Mr. Uncommon - recommends:
MAKE A WISH 5K
Saturdsay October 13th
10:00 AM
Modern Woodman Park
Benefitting Make a Wish
FREE event -- but do the right thing and donate what you can
click here for more info...

MICHELLE RUSSELL - recommends:
LAGOMARCINO's COCOA BEANO
Saturday October 27th
9:00 AM
iWireless Center, Moline IL
click here for more info.....

Watch LIVE UNCOMMON Charter Teams PVGXC and BETT GIRLS XC go head to head next week - Thursday October 11th - at the MAC Meet at Crow Creek Park in Bettendorf!

KATHARINE MULFINGER takes the Movement to POLAND

KATHARINE MULFINGER – LIVE UNCOMMON Race Teamer – took to the roads of Europe this summer as she broadened her perspective to the beautiful horizons of Poland.  She will bring this perspective to her students at Pleasant Valley Junior High, where she is passionate about one of LU’s highest regarded professions – Teaching.

KATHARINE and friends were part of a focus group in higher learning of the Holocaust.

Pretty cool………
KATHARINE is caps off her 2012 Race Team effort with the HALF MARATHON at the QC Marathon on September 23rd.

Besides running the LU Series Races, she has been raising awareness and funds for the worthy causes behind those events.

She has $93 to go and you can get her over the top (if she doesn’t raise it, it’s coming out of her pocket, so help the girl if you can)!

Donate a buck or two or five or ten or ninety-three!!  She, and the causes, will thank you!

Clicking on her photo (the one of her holding that yummy cake) will get you to KATHARINE’S fund page.

LU Scholarship Winner - DANA EWAN

did ya know?

IRELAND does it UNCOMMON

 LIVE UNCOMMON co-founders JIM and MICHELLE RUSSELL celebrate their wedding anniversary on the West Coast of Ireland where they were married many Uncommon moons ago….

…taking in a Give Back event while they are at it...

The JOG FOR JOCKEYS -- 5Ks held on Horse Race Tracks (yes actual HORSE RACE TRACK COURSES) across the country, starting simultaneously at high noon...and benefitting the Injured Jockeys Fund..

The 5K was 2-1/8 laps around the grass race track - the outermost track – where runners hugged the inside rail while navigating the divots all along the way created by the heavy hooves of the horses who normally claim the track.

UNCOMMON for sure….

MOONLIGHT CHASE PHOTOS

LIVE UNCOMMON Series Race #5 - MOONLIGHT CHASE went down last Saturday night in a candlelit Eldridge, Iowa.  Records were broken -- LUs tips the attendance scales over the 2,100 Runners Mark -- and UNCOMMON JEN PAUL smashes the Women's Record while capturing the Title.  Yup.  LU did it's thing.  Raising awareness and funds for the greatness behind the great event - The North Scott Chamber of Commerce will donate over $11,000 to community projects as a result of this year's record-breaking race.  Good work, Team.  All photos are are courtesy of LU Photo Crew PIX BY SOLIS and available at PIXbySOLIS....

ROYAL BALL RUN - JUNE 23RD

MVP #1 -- send some LU speak to LAUREL

you know her.

you love her.

you miss her.

here's what she's been up to........

LIVE UNCOMMON Team MVP #1 has been conspicuously not where we are accustomed to seeing her.  Distance Classic?  No...   Race for the Cure?  No....   Surely, then, TOMROV?  No....

Last sighting --- CASI St. Patrick's Day Races where she sat on the edge of the Race Course with a pack of fellow cyclists to cheer on the runners in the competitive 5K -- where Women's Champion JEN PAUL veered from the Race Course centerline to incorporate a LAUREL high-five.

Yes, LAUREL DARREN - LU MVP #1 - is AWOL. 

We say AWOL because there are many LAUREL friends and fans who did not give her leave to leave the QC.  There are swarms of athletes, business people, kids, parents, peeps of the World who are missing LAUREL.  She is a presence whose absence leaves a gap.

but, alas, these same LAUREL friends and fans, these same athletes, business people, kids, parents, peeps of the World -- while we all miss our LU Girl -- we are so very excited to know -- to report to all of you reading this -- that she is doin her UNCOMMON thing as only she can -- that's why she's MVP #1 -- that she is way happy -- that she is making her UNCOMMON positive impact --out West.  Here's what she's up to today.....

Here's the latest.....

Today - June 13 - LAUREL is LU Crew to RAAM (Race Across America) Solo Rider KURT SEARVOGEL of Team Tarzan.  This RAAM trek takes riders 3,000 Miles across the country from OCEANSIDE CALIFORNIA -- where LU LAUREL worked her Massage Therapy magic on KURT before he got on the road -- to, that's right, the East Coast.

Side note -- did you guys know that LAUREL DARREN is personal Professional Massage Therapist to none other than UNCOMMON JEFF PAUL?  Yep.  It only makes sense -- the touch FROM the best ON the best... 

When KURT hits the hot hills of ARIZONA, LAUREL will be stationed atop a scorching mountain top, waiting for her rider KURT, with a most important re-fueling aid ------

two OREO cookies.

Yep.

Tricks of the trade.  Solo ride 3,000 miles cross country?? 

Get the right people on the Crew (non better than LAUREL DARREN)....get the right fuel in the system (OREO cookies, baby).

We'll be waiting for a picture of this.............

Way to go, KURT!!!  You are in the best of hands with LAUREL on your Team!  The strength of the entire LIVE UNCOMMON Movement is with you too.....

Give it up for KURT, Team.

....Send the vibes......  to KURT....to LAUREL..

Send some speak right here.

RACE FOR THE CURE

JP FLYNN, recent graduate of Bettendorf High School on his way to Montana State University on a full-ride, invites YOU to run with him and his Family as they support Race for the Cure - LIVE UNCOMMON Series Race #4 - this Saturday, June 9, in Moline, Illinois.  JP runs in honor of his mom, who is, thankfully, a Survivor, and proudly wears that badge of honor on his shoulder for the World to see.

LIVE UNCOMMON is proud to endorse RACE FOR THE CURE as 2012 Series Race #4 - an undisputed GIVE BACK EVENT.

RACE FOR THE CURE offers online registraton until 7PM tonight and then in person at the Expo all day tomorrow - iWireless Center Moline, Illinois - 7AM - 7PM.

LU wants YOU

Okay....

So you know about the RevoLUtion, right?  Yeah, we know ya know because if you're reading this, you know.

And you know we have a bunch of stuff going on this year, right? 

And we're like almost halfway through the year.  Like, it's almost June.  Can you believe it???

So.....it's time......

JUNE 2nd.

RevoLUtion Events 1, 2, and 3 all culminate on JUNE 2nd. 

THIS.....IS....IT.

And do you further know....that...um...it takes kind of like a lot of work to pull stuff like this off?

It does.

And ya know how at LIVE UNCOMMON we tend to Dream Big, Make It Happen, Get It Done, Change the World, Be the ONE....  You know how it is, right? 

We know you know because YOU ARE the Dreamers, the Makers, the Getters, the Changers, the ONES.  You.

Dreaming up cool stuff, playing outside the box.  That's what LIVE UNCOMMON does.  That's how LU rolls.

And that's why you're reading this...because you like it that way.  Because you LIVE UNCOMMON.  Because YOU ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.

YOU.  We expect you to speak in the first-person about LU.  When someone asks you, "Um, so what IS it?  I don't get it.  What IS LIVE UNCOMMON?" 

Well, chances are if they're saying they don't get it, they might just not ever get it.  But.....if you DO want to try to explain....a simple and true answer is this -- "I am."  Because You are.

You ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.  You ARE the RevoLUtion.  You.  We.

We are a Cause.  We are a Movement.  We are a Team.  We are the RevoLUtion.

And these RevoLUtion Events ---- they are YOUR Events.  The LU Team is playing on the home field on June 2nd.

Let's get it done the way only we do anything - Uncommon.

So....we need your help, your hands, your Time and your Energy and your Talents.  On June 2nd.

RevoLUtion Event #1 -- Essay Contest
Okay, so all the work's already been done for this one.  The writers of the Essays actually did most of the work by sitting down and telling it like it is - How They LIVE UNCOMMON.  But.....the "jugding" of the Essays...now THAT is proving to be EXTREMELY hard work because LU has received some outstanding, very Uncommon Essays.  Wow.  Yeah, wow.  Of course, ACTIVE ENDEAVORS did a pretty big thing by writing a $5,000 check to cover the Scholarship Awards.  Yep.  Kind of a big thing, don't ya think?  Hey, that's why they are LU's Exclusive Retailer.  Cause they think like this - "those who are ABLE to help, are OBLIGATED to help".  Pretty cool, huh?

RevoLUtion Event #2 -- Adventure Race
Oooo...this is a good one too.  Yeah.....so this is LU's take on the Triathlon.  Only it has four elements, instead of three, but that last leg is still a secret anyway so it's all good.  And besides, when it's an Uncommon Event, a Triathlon could have TEN elements and still be right on.  Right?  Okay, so this is very cool.  It happens on June 2nd so that's the 'WHEN'.  It takes place at the Russell Construction Campus at 4600 E. 53rd Street in Davenport, so that's the 'WHERE'.  We already covered the 'WHAT' (Adventure Race).  We, and LU Team Doctors - OS ORTHOPAEDIC SPECIALISTS - are putting on this Event because we firmly believe in the Power of Youth to Change the World, so we're stepping in to do this just for them - High School Students, any grade, from anywhere - they are the only ones eligible for this Event because.....OS ORTHOPAEDIC SPECIALISTS has put up $10,000 ---- yeah, that's no typo -- $10,000 -- in Scholarship Awards for the Top Three Finishers in both the Girls' and Guys' Divisions.  Yup.  How bout them apples???  So that's kinda the 'WHY' and the 'WHO'.  But the other 'WHO' is YOU.  Because we need your help to get it done Uncommon-style.
What we need that day:
Course Set Up – 7:00 AM  sign up to help
Data Entry on Race Day – 7:00 AM – 8:45 AM sign up to help
Course Control – 8:45 AM – NOON (approx – depending on ultimate number of entrants - we have a Timed-Release Start which will put only one Racer on the Course every minute). sign up to help
This is an UNCOMMON event so it is not simply standing on a roadside watching runners go by.  No, no.  It’s going to be really fun to DO, to WATCH, to HELP.

Oh, hey, if you know someone in high school, get them registered right here right now.  There's still room...it's only ten bucks to enter...and it seriously is going to be a wicked good time.

RevoLUtion Event #3 -- Biggest Torchlight Parade
The Big Finale to the Day.  Alright.  This is big.  LIVE UNCOMMON has invited the World to step forward to Change It.  However you want.

This is a Come Out and Do It Your Way Event.  Here's the deal -- we are awarding the $15,000 in Scholarhships resulting from the Essay Contest and Adventure Race that night so we're throwing a kind of party.  We've got a stage and a band and we're going for a Record.  What Record?  A Guinness Book of World Records Record.  Biggest Torchlight Parade.

What does that mean?  It means we need YOU.  All of YOU.  To come out and walk or run or jog or skateboard or scooter or whatever on the "Torchlight Course" on beautiful bike path on the River there.  In the dark.  Wearing a headlamp or carrying a flashlight.

It is not a Race.  There is marked 3 Mile and 5 Mile Course and there will be a Time Clock at the FINISH LINE, but how you do it is up to you.  Turn around whenever you want.  Do it twice if you feel like it.  The point is -- come out and do your thing with the World.  You've got to sign your name too so that we can submit it to the Guinness Book guys.

That's the deal.  Oh, and this is a fundraiser, of course.  But here's the Uncommon --- it's YOUR fundraiser.  What does that mean, you ask?  It means that it's only $10 to enter at this point (late registration and so you are not guaranteed glow-in-the-dark LU gear by the Event Date so it's up to you if you want to get it for later or not (it is pretty cool, though, so you probably do want to grab some).

From the $10 Entry - $5 goes to the LU Scholarship Fund and $5 goes back to your Torch Team.  So you can sign up for any Cause you like and help them out.  Big Brothers Big Sisters?  Do it.  Lend them your Power.  Boys and Girls Club?  How about the Y or Project Renewal or your own Baseball Team?  You can literally sign up a Torch Team of your BFFs and have a pizza party or movie night or grad gig or whatever.  LU will cut you a check for your fundraising.  Sweet, eh?

WHERE: Isle of Capri - the Big Old Steel Covered Parking just west of the "bridge" to the Isle of Capri and just east of the I-74 bridge.  This is a very cool, retro venue.  Dark so we can do our Torchlight thing.
WHEN: 8:00 PM is Official Start Time, but get there like 7:30 PM, Awards Concert approx 9:00 PM til 10:30 PM
WHO: YOU and the World
HOW: However you want
WHY: That is up to YOU
Stand up.  Sign up.  Change the World.  Register here for $10.
 
Lend your hands to help?
Here's what we need:
Concert set up -- 6:00 PM -- sign up to voLUnteer
Torchlight Course set up -- 7:00 PM -- sign up to voLUnteer
Data Entry / Records -- 6:00 PM til 8:00 PM -- sign up to voLUnteer

In the meantime between now and June 2nd....between now that the next time we chat...

...pass this link on to that guy or girl or co-worker or jogger you see at the park everyday or that nice cashier at the grocery store or whoever speaks LU..  Make it happen.  Be the Catalyst.

and....

when you see an LU..    ..or an OS ORTHOPAEDIC SPECIALIST..    ...or are in ACTIVE ENDEAVORS doing some shopping..    ...or see a RUSSELL CONSTRUCTION truck on the road....    

Shoot out an LU salute, would ya?  Without this LU CREW, there would not be a RevoLUtion.

Yikes.

DO YOU KNOW THESE TRI-GUYS?

Another banner weekend for LIVE UNCOMMON.

LU Race Teamers -- JEFF PAUL, CHAD UHDE, AARON MAURER, and JOSIAH CAMPBELL traveled to Ogden on Sunday to compete in the Bluff Creek Triathlon which offered an Olympic Triathlon Distance Event -- .9 Mile SWIM, 24.8 Mile BIKE, and 10K RUN -- as well as a Sprint Triathlon Distance Event -- 500 Meter SWIM, 15 Mile BIKE, and 5K RUN.

All came home with Titles.

Uncommon JEFF PAUL is Overall Olympic Triathlon Champion.  Of course.

AARON MAURER is Olympic Triathlon Clydesdale Division Champion.





















CHAD UHDE crowned as Sprint Triathlon Clydesdale Champion.

JOSIAH CAMPBELL rounded out the day with a 3rd Place Finish in the Sprint Triathlon Clydesdale Division.

Congratulations, Gentlemen!  Good Work!  You honor the Movement with every step on you take on the Race Course, as well as how you tread the Course of Life.  Thank you for doin your thing under the LU flag.






Also very worth mentioning -- Uncommon JEN PAUL hit the road to compete in the Rockford Half Marathon on Sunday.  She won.  And broke the Course Record by almost a full minute - finishing 13.1 Miles in a blazing 1:22.54.  Wow.  Not surprising.  But Uncommonly well done.  Great work, JEN PAUL!!!

All photos are from the Distance Classic held on Mother's Day at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, and are courtesy of LIVE UNCOMMON Official Photographer PIXbySOLIS and all Event Photos can be found here. 

INSPIRING BRIAN

LU to IL

Hi guys,
 

Just letting you know that LU will be in this weekends Illinois Marathon...me along with teammate John Lancial will be leaving Friday for Champaign and will be competing in the I-Challenge. It consists of running a 5k on friday night and then doing the half marathon on Saturday morning. We both are super excited to show off our gear at this great event...we will let you know how it goes and will send some finishing pics as well...wish us luck!!!

CM Derek Elliott
John Lancial

Hey, DEREK!  Thanks fro the heads up!  The Team sends the good vibes with you, JOHN and ANNA RAYA who will also doin her thing at the I-Challenge.

Take a Team pic, will ya?

DANA EWAN signs on at Mount Mercy

DANA EWAN - LU Charter Team Girl - signs on to do her thing next year at Mount Mercy College.

DANA was the #3 BHS Girls XC runner at State this year and will be running collegiately as well as majoring in Science.

DANA is a top student at Bettendorf High where she also Co-Captained the Flag Corps and currently is running Track.

Congratulations, DANA, we'll be celebrating your future achievements at Mount Mercy!

THIS WEEK IN TRAINING

THIS WEEK:
From the Mouth of Maurer aka LU Road Coach

Hello Everyone,
 
I hope people are feeling good after another great weekend of running whether you ran the Project Renewal 5K or trained with the Leadville crew or did both!
 
Here are the plans and opportunities to run with people. Pick your poison and hope you have another great week of training.
 
TUESDAY
April 24th -
5:15 a.m.

Bettendorf High School football stadium - running stairs - feel free to come do whatever you want (stairs/track, combination) - Rick and John Byrne will plan to run stairs for about an hour

OR

5:00 am

6B46 road run with the CRAZIES. Plan for about 6-7 miles.

WEDNESDAY
April 25th
5:00 a.m. 

Jumer's Tower - running stairs. These are a little tougher as it takes closer to 50 seconds to make a climb as opposed to 20 seconds at the football stadium. Rick and John will plan to run these for about an hour as well.

OR

4:45 a.m.

Chad and Katie will be up at the BHS track doing some Yasso 800's. Feel free to join them if you wish. It is a great workout that does not take long, but you get a lot accomplished.

THURSDAY
April 26th
5:00 a.m.

I will be up at the BHS track for my sprint workout. I will be doing a 100's, 200's, 400's, and some Yasso 800's.

OR

5:00 a.m.

There will still be the 6B46 group meeting at the Y at 5:00 a.m. in case you don't want to do sprints and just want to get a road run in. I have to do my sprints on this day as it is the only time that will work for me. Feel free to choose either option.

SATURDAY
April 28th
4:30 a.m.

Crow Creek Park - running long. We will loop back at 6:00 a.m. to pick up others who want to start later. Unsure of whether there will be a 7:30 a.m. loop yet

SUNDAY
7:30 a.m.

QCDC practice run for the half marathon will be taking place at 7:30. Meet at Augustana at the track to run with the Cornbelt Running Club. If you are running the QCDC, then this is a great chance to feel out the course. Also, it is nice to run somewhere new to mix things up. I will probably be running this instead of the run on Saturday.

SUNDAY
1:30 p.m.
Geneseo

One more option for fun option for everyONE ---

LU Race Teamer, ANNE RYERSON, is one of many volunteer organizers of a new Race in Geneseo put on by the PTA and benefitting the three Elementaries.  ANNE’s husband, THOMAS RYERSON, is also LU and is one of the School Principals.  The Race is Sunday afternoon at 1:30 and here’s the link with the info. 
 
It would be pretty cool to support fellow a Race Teamer who, like all of you on this email, give so much to the Cause and to the World.
 
Anne drives down to the QC every weekend to train with the Team.
 
And…we do have to say this --- it would be pretty sweet to blast Geneseo with LU power in one afternoon and let the momentum of the Movement take it from there.  We WANT to be in Geneseo….
 
Send out the word.  And send up the word if carpooling can help accomplish this mission.
 
There is a lot to choose from. It is amazing to have so many opportunities to run and stay in shape with others. If you have any questions, please let me know. Otherwise I will see you out and about this week.

LUs run for $10

FROM THE MOUTH OF MAURER

have YOU?

 

UNCOMMON MALLORY

LIVE UNCOMMON is again inspired by ONE of its own.

MALLORY OBENAUF, 13 year old Teammate of LU Charter Swim Team BPVA - Bettendorf Pleasant Valley Aquatics – shows the World how it’s done – Never Giving Up, Always Giving Back.

Last November, coincidentally at the same time BPVA was applying for LU Charter Team status, Mallory was diagnosed with Scoliosis.  She kept swimming, of course.  Swimming, student-ing, daughter-ing, smiling.  Two weeks ago, at a follow up appointment, Mallory’s condition was confirmed to have gone from 65% curvature in November to 85% in late March.  She was scheduled for surgery in Iowa City.

Below are actual photos of Mallory’s spine before and after her surgery on March 29.  Wow.

Also below are actual before and after surgery photos of Mallory.  However, it is less obvious which is the ‘before’ and which is the ‘after’ – Mallory is all smiles in both.

LU sources verify Mallory is a LIVE UNCOMMON girl through and through – proving to be one of the best patients with the best attitudes the docs have ever seen.   Again, wow.

Mallory went home last Friday and is heading into six weeks of rehabilitation.   It will be tough.  Grueling even.  But for Mallory – just another day to smile her way through.  As positive as she is, she could use some encouragement from her mates.  Cause it’s not going to be easy.

Mallory looks forward to participating in the LIVE UNCOMMON Guinness World Record Torchlight Parade on the BPVA Torch Team on June 2.  Very cool.  Who knows – she’s so Uncommon she may be swimming laps by then!

Team, give a ‘hey’ to Mallory – she will dig it.  And it will make YOU feel pretty good too.  You can send her your good word right here.   

Mallory, the Movement is proud of YOU, honored and humbled by YOU.

the Straight and UNCOMMON

UNCOMMON UHDE

RUN BUDDY RUN-NERS

LUs JAY WHITMORE, JOHN DARMODY, ANNA RAYA, JIM and MICHELLE RUSSELL came out to support St. Ambrose Athletics in the form of the new race RUN BUDDY RUN in Davenport, Sunday morning.  JOHN DARMODY and MICHELLE RUSSELL came away with Overall Wins for the day and everyONE had a great Time.  Now, let's talk about ANNA....

ANNA RAYA, is.........

all about Family

a full-time professional and dedicated RN

an unbelievably NICE girl

and......LIVE UNCOMMON RevoLUtion Race Teamer (yep, this means she's one of the Movement's HEROES -- raising awareness and funds for the 7 amazing worthy Causes behind the 7 amazing Race Series Events. 

ANNA cut a full 2 seconds off her St. Pat's 5K time last weekend!

And she did this after competing the day before, Saturday, in the THIS RACE IS FOR YOU 5K benefitting NEW LIFE in Moline.

That's ANNA - supporting the good Cause wherever, whenever, however she can.  LU digs Anna.

Lend support to ANNA's effort to raise funds for the Causes with a simple click on her Race Team badge.  Your GIVE is genuinely appreciated by ANNA, the Movement, the 7 Causes....

JEN HART says it well...

My First Group Run and the Humbling Aftermath

I had no idea who I would be running with when I signed up to be part of the Live Uncommon Race Team. The promotions invited walkers to experienced runners to join. With a couple half marathons under my belt and many other miles on my own, it didn't occur to me to wonder what paces would be set on group runs. Through my few interactions with other team members I am learning that there are some fantastic runners that are part of the team. I am not a fast runner.

Yesterday the email went out announcing a 6 AM Saturday group run...15 miles. I am not at a point I can run 15 miles (nor have I ever run that far) so I considered doing my own run as usual. Something intrigued me about having people to meet and it was on a trail that was new to me. I debated. I finally sent a reply that I would be there but I was only running half the distance. I thought I could just turn around early. Another email comes. An offer to meet me at the half-way point, leave my car, and allow me to run with the group for half of their run. It meant getting up earlier but I could not come up with a good reason to say no. More commitment.

Fast forward...I joined the group this morning. I knew I would be behind most of them because my injury rehab still has me taking some walk breaks. I was not prepared to loose sight of everyone! Eventually I did catch someone who had stopped for a quick break and had a running partner again. Coming home I really struggled with being last. Even though I knew better than to push myself and flare up the recovering IT band, I am competitive and being last sucked. After about an hour of self-talk trying to put my brain back on the positive path, I went to the Live Uncommon website to check out some pictures that were mentioned. What I found spun my day around!

I can't recreate it for you. Please, take 10 minutes to check it out yourself. http://www.liveuncommon.org/page/news.aspx

Right below the pictures for the St. Pat's race you'll find some testimony about Project Renewal, the organization benefiting from the next series race. The stories I read abrubptly reminded me that I am not running for me. I am running for these 7 worthy organizations. Sure I would like to improve my running times, in a healthy way for my body. First and foremost, this adventure on the race team is not for me! My frustrations immediately disappeared when I realized I had turned things too much on me and forgotten my purpose. What a humbling few minutes that was.

I am so excited that I decided to check out those pictures! My view of the day is now reframed and it is still early enough that I can enjoy the day differently. Dare to be different today. Check out the link. Consider how you can help support the efforts of my teammates and me through the Live Uncommon organization.

St. Pat's

Race Series Event #1 – St. Patrick’s Day Races benefitting the Center for Active Seniors was a success by all accounts.  With well over 3,000 runners of all ages, the event took over the streets of an unseasonably warm downtown Davenport, good green fun being had by all, good green cash being raised for the worthy Cause – CASI.

the REASON.....RUN FOR RENEWAL

PROJECT RENEWAL

the SEED

Run Buddy Run

LU RevoLUtion Series Event #1

LIVE UNCOMMON RevoLUtion Series Event #1 - CASI St. Patrick's Day Races

LU Track Workout

Quick Call LU Track Workout

TORCH TEAMS SIGNING UP

Here we go....Torch Teams come out for fun and for the greater good....

TORCH TEAM #1 - JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY

Representing JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY is Laz Henschen.  Here's a snippet from LU mail to give you an idea of what a great people of the World are JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY:

"I just had to share...
Our Junior Roller Derby kids (co-ed 7-17 years old) do a community project each 3-month session. This session they decided to help an animal shelter.
 When I asked if we should do a donation drive to help the shelter or go there ourselves to work and they all responded "BOTH!!"
 I was so proud of the kids!
 I was thinking, if you could ever use help with some extra "boots on the ground" labor for your youth running program, please let me know. I would like for the derby kids to know that they can help other kids with their sports as well.
 If you would ever like co come watch a Monday night practice, just let me know."

We do (need "boots on the ground") and we will (come watch a Monday night practice)!

JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY says:

"Funds raised by our team are going to go to help the Quad City Rollers Junior Derby because they embody the Live Uncommon spirit and we never want to have to turn kids away due to financial hardship."

Way to go, JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY! We are proud to welcome you as TORCH TEAM #1

JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY and all Torch Teams will have their very own page, updated live-time with all members' names as they join, on the site when online registration goes fully-functional on February 17.  Get your Torch Team ready to roll.....

REVOLUTION Race Team

Introducing The REVOLUTION Race Team.....

The Race Team is honored to have JOHN O'BRIEN leading the way for us as Race Team Captain.  John comes to us fully qualified, having served as Mentor and Coach with the Leukemia Lymphoma Foundation's Team in Training in Boston for 8 years before arriving in the Quad Cities with John Deere.  John is a devoted husband and proud, fully-engaged dad, as well as dedicated professional, avid and passionate runner, and of course volunteer of the Uncommon kind.  LU is proud to introduce JOHN to the Team and thank him for raising his hand, stepping forward, and taking the lead.

John will be coordinating Team Meets all around the QC at restaurants, pubs, cool places to hang and chat.  Keep your eyes and ears open for the word on where and when to meet John and get you in the know of how the Race Team works.

MADIE HART is the REVOLUTION Race Team's first Race Mate.  Madie tells us she took up road racing only last year at the Distance Classic 5K on Mother's Day, which hooked her on the road race experience, and then set and met her goal to improve her 5K time all season.  She accomplished 'never befores' at the Wild 5, Race for the Cure, Bix 7, Killer Bee, Nancy Kapheim, and QC Marathon Relay.  Madie says she was looking forward to this season of races and when she heard about The REVOLUTION Race Team, was excited to sign up!  As a St. Ambrose sophomore, Madie is called upon to be a significant communtity Giver, and so the REVOLUTION GIVE BACK is right on.  Besides a Dean's List student at SAU, Madie is simultaneously earning her Massage Therapy certification at the Institute of Massage Therapy (whoa - go Madie!!).  Madie plans to donate her Massage Therapy tips to her Race Team effort as well as the half split of a 50/50 raffle she has coordinated with SAU Athletics to take place at the Men's Volleyball game this Friday.  Now, that's what we're talking about -- creative, inventive GIVE.  Madie is well on her way already to making her $700 goal!  It only takes ONE to change the World.  Madie, you are the ONE.  We are very proud and honored to welcome you to the Race Team!

RICK SOLIS brings his strength to the REVOLUTION Race Team!  Fresh off a big win in the Biggest Loser Competition sponsored by his employer, Russell Construction, and benefitting Junior Achievement, RICK keeps his momentum going by signing on with the Race Team.  RICK is an avid athlete of all flavors -- run, bike, swim -- an accomplished Triathlete -- RICK's been a lifelong athlete in football, track, basketball, you name it.  Lending his prowess to a higher calling -- GIVING BACK -- is what RICK says makes the Race Team THE PLACE TO BE.

RICK SOLIS, LU welcomes you to the Race Team and tips its hat to your choice to help lead the way....

We are stoked about this --- ANNE RYERSON is in the house and on the Race Team.  That's right, ANNE RYERSON.  What? You don't know ANNE???  Well, let us introduce you....

"Hi!  My name is Anne.  I’m a mom to three amazing boys, and I’m an engineer (best get that out of the way now).  I’ve been running consistently for almost five years, after the birth of my second son.  Although I ran in high school, and some in college, I never considered myself a “real” runner until I ran my first and second half marathons in 2009 with Team in Training.  Then, I was hooked.   I’ve run through a pregnancy, ran a half marathon when my youngest was 6 months old, and have continued to feed the addiction while working, raising my three boys, and being the best wife I can be.  Now, I’ve taken on the biggest challenge of my running career (and possibly my life) by signing up for my first full marathon in 2012.

But that’s not why I joined the Live Uncommon team.  Nope, not at all.

In addition to running, there are a few things that I am passionate about:  Education, youth, and giving back to the community.  I’m one of those people that can’t resist a request to volunteer.  I’m pretty sure my husband rolls his eyes behind my back whenever I start to talk about the newest opportunity I’ve found.  So, when Live Uncommon announced the creation of the LU race team, I could.not.resist.  With this group, I have found something that allows me to merge my love of running with my passion for giving back to the community.  And, honestly, I am able to do this by running races I probably would have run anyway.  It was a no-brainer. 

And now, I ask you to join me in the revolution.  Run a race with us!  If you can’t run, walk.  If you can’t walk, donate.  Every little bit helps."

Wow...now see why we're so happy to have ANNE on the Race Team?  Yep, she's the real deal...she's UNCOMMON..

Oh yeah....LU signs Charter Member AARON MAURER as Race Team Road Coach.
MAURER --- hmmm...where do we begin? 

Aaron is happy husband....fully-engaged dad (Aaron brought his amazing son Aiden to the Race Team meeting Saturday)....do-it-all Middle School teacher (and robotics teacher-guy on the weekends).....8th grade basketball coach.....runner extraordinaire...... and one of THE nicest guys you'll ever come across.

Encouraging and positive every step of the way (and those are ALOT of steps he's running) this guy not only GETS IT DONE, he GETS IT DONE UNCOMMON.
Seriously....tune in to these links to get to know the Road Coach.  You'll see what we're talking about...
http://coffeeforthebrain.blogspot.com/2012/02/147-days-sunday-monring-long-run.html

http://www.dailymile.com/people/coffeechug
 

John, Madie, Rick, Anne, Aaron, Nicole, Nick, Justin, and all Race Teamers, will have her very own page here on the site when our webbies get everything up and fully-functioning on the 17th.  Come on, run with John and Madie and Rick and Anne and Aaron and Nicole and Nick and Justin....

You'll feel good about it...we promise...

KEVIN KEELING starts 2012 off with the Muscatine TRI

LU,

Here is a picture of Kevin from the Triathlon this weekend. I will get a picture of him in his Live Uncommon shirt for you soon!!

Sara

LU TM #273

Thanks, Sara, great pic! We hear there were lots of fellow LUs in the water, on the bikes and on the track that day with KEVIN.  Right on...

BURRRY SCURRY HURRY - JEN PAUL and STEPHANIE MIGAWA

Fun pics from the BURRRY SCURRY in Clinton, Iowa, on February 4....

That's Uncommon JEN PAUL and Charter Member STEPHANIE MIGAWA who ran as cupids over the 4 Mile course.  Yes, those are wings they are wearing -- could be the reason behind JEN's literal FLYING through the race.  Uncommon JEN not only won the Women's Overall, but did so while pushing 30 lbs of son, OWEN, in a stroller, and wearing a skirt.  Hmm.

Who are we kidding - it wasn't the wings.  It's all JEN.  Uncommon JEN.

Way to go, Cupids STEPHANIE and JEN -- you are LU....

DEREK ELLIOTT aka Winter Warrior

Couple of pics from sundays very tough Winter Warrior 5k...finished the coarse 32:56 for team LU!!!

Derek Elliott CM#81

Good work, Derek, way to go..........

LU NIGHT SAFETY GEAR

Okay...so these hats are AWESOME........No need to wear an extra safety vest or arm band.  Cover three bases with one piece of gear --- this hat makes you warm and safe and UNCOMMON.

The facts:

Certified 3M Safety Wear.  Reflector thread woven into the hat - very cool.  In the daytime, the reflector part of the hat just looks like a white stripe, so you're not glowing all day long, just when you need it -- to be safe out there on the roads in the early mornings and dark, cold evenings.  These are super soft, warm, and comfy.  You will love them.

You can find them in the shop.  Let us take you there...

THIS WEEK'S MORNING RUNNING GIGS

From the mouth (keyboard) of CM#56 AARON MAURER...

Oh, and by the way, we recommend...because, well, let's just say that MAURER GETS IT DONE....

"Happy Monday to all of you. Hope you had a great weekend. Wanted to send this out to let everyone know about running Tuesday and Thursday

Tuesday:

I have to get in a sprint workout tomorrow morning. Don't feel like you have to do it, but with my schedule this week this is where it fits in best. So we have two options and you can choose to show up wherever you wish.

Option 1:

Meet at the Y at 5 and run our normal 6-7 mile loop for those that don't want to sprint. I will not be there, but I know some of you will

Option 2:

I plan on running at the Bettendorf HS Track. Here is my sprint workout so you can judge what you want to do.

10 Minute Warmup(I will run from my house and arrive at BHS at 5:10)

18 minute workout - 18 x 30 second sprints - sprint for 30 seconds, active recovery 30 seconds, repeat for a total of 18 times

10 Minutes Cooldown - I will run home

If you wish to do the sprint workout let me know and I can do the warmup and cool down at the track, otherwise have a great run around town.

Thursday

Regular run time and place. I don't have my weekly workout in front of me, but I think I have a fartlek run so during the loop I will be picking up the pace for a short time. I did this run with Chad and it works fine for those that don't want to fartlek and just run a regular pace. We will meet at the Y at 5:00.

Hope this all makes sense. Let me know if you have any questions.

Feel free to send this out to anyone not on the list. If you have others who you would like to receive these emails let me know and I will add them.Aaron Maurer

Bettendorf School District

ELP Facilitator

Co-Teacher of 4th and 5th Grade ELP

6,7,8 Grade ELP Extensions

Lego Robotics Coach

8th Grade Boys Basketball Coach

http://about.me/coffeechug"

1st LU Charter Swim Team

LIVE UNCOMMON announced its proud endorsement of Bettendorf Pleasant Valley Aquatics (BPVA) as an LU Charter Team, at the team's home meet on Saturday, January 7, at Bettendorf High School.

BPVA was selected as the first fully endorsed LU Swim Team because they personify the values for which LIVE UNCOMMON stands - Family, Work Ethic, Fitness & Health, Giving Back, Balance, and Excellence.

Solidifying the Decision of Acceptance as an LU Charter Team, is BPVA's especially impressive commitment to GIVING BACK.  The Club is currently pursuing a partnership with 'Make a Splash' - a national program which brings Water Safety and Swim Instruction to underprivileged children who would otherwise not have access to a Learn to Swim program.  This is a big deal considering the second leading cause of accidental childhood death is drowning.

As a part of the registration "fee" for the meet, BPVA asked each swimmer to contribute a can of food.  Over 400 cans were collected this weekend and will be donated to the Misssissippi Bend Food Pantry.  Integrating ACTIONS OF GIVE BACK into the sporting event is an important factor in achieving LU Charter Team status.

LIVE UNCOMMON congratulates each of the 240 BPVA Swimmers, and thanks the BPVA board members who pressed through the rigorous application process required for consideration as an LU Charter Team, as well as for their steadfast commitment to guiding their young Club members to developing not only into high caliber swimmers, but into Uncommon PEOPLE OF THE WORLD.  Saturday's announcement is the culmination of application and research initiated in November of 2011.

Featured on the LU homepage is Miss ALLIE STECKER representing LU Charter Swim Team BPVA.  Besides being a top-notch swimmer with BPVA, ALLIE has been a varsity swimmer and two-time co-captain of the respected Pleasant Valley Girls Swim Team.  The sport of Swim is exceptionally time consuming and demanding.  ALLIE has balanced dedication to her Sport while excelling academically, ultmately earning Early Admission Acceptance into the Honors Program at the University of Iowa where she plans to pursue Pre-Medical Studies.  ALLIE is gifted musically and highly involved extracurricularly.  ALLIE appreciates the value of hard work in the pool, the classroom, and the work force - ALLIE has utilized her swim skills by working as a Life Guard and is now steering toward her long-term professional goals via last summer working at the Vera French Mental Health Center.  ALLIE has demonstrated a mulititude of volunteer and community GIVE BACK ranging from assistant coaching to church service projects to environmental clean-up.  On top, in front of, and behind it all -- and most importantly of all -- ALLIE appreciates and prioritizes her role in a loving, supporting, and fully-engaged Family.  For these reasons, LIVE UNCOMMON is proud to launch ALLIE STECKER as a "face" of the Movement.

GIVING on Thanksgiving - RIGHT ON!

MADY DOUCETTE represents the many, many LUs who stepped forward on Thanksgiving to GIVE BACK, to serve those who did not have a dinner at home to enjoy - at Mr. Thanksgiving's Annual Thanksgiving Dinner at South Park Mall in Moline, Illinois.

Wish we had more pics of the outstanding Uncommoners who were doin their thing that day including the entire DOUCETTE family, ELLONYIA YENNEY and young LAZ YENNEY, MADIE and GABIE HART, and of course LAUREL DARREN.  Hands were too full of food trays to hold a cameras....

LUs trottin with the Turkey

LUs caught on film at the YMCA Turkey Trot in Davenport, Iowa in the morning and doin their famous GIVE BACK thing at Mr. Thanksgiving's annual dinner at South Park Mall in Moline, Illinois in the afternoon.

Way to go, Team!  We dig what you do!

CM #67 KERRY DOUCETTE gives THE GIVE a nod

CM #67 KERRY DOUCETTE gives THE GIVE a nod:

" Hello LU,

I have been recovering slowly from the marathon. I had a wonderful time running the Marathon even though I finished limping but raising the money for the special olympics kept me going 2 the finish line. I am also very thankfull for all the support and donations from the LU crew!

I have been also seeing the Orthopaedics Specialists of Bett., for a possible Patella tendon tear and stressed IT band on the other leg.  :( I go back again this week to see whats next.

I've been laying off running but thinking of trying 2 run walk the turkey trot.  Mady our oldest might join me.  I sure miss running.  But I know I also have to heal for next year.

I think our Family is going to join Laural and LU on Thursday at 3 to help serve Thanksgiving dinner.  We talk about it every year but are usually out of town.  This year we are in town. :) 

I am loving the new attire for charter members!!  I was wondering if it is possible to get a womens heavy weight pullover in Pink?  No problem if not I also dig the green. :) 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving week,

Kerry Doucette # 67 :)

I have some Pictures from the race attached.  The close up picture is taken in the starting corral by corn belt members that we ran with every Sunday, what is the chances we'd run into people we knew starting the Chicago marathon?  good times  :) "

KERRY, so sorry to hear you're on the injured list, but very glad to know you're in the best of hands!

Incredibly honored you GAVE BACK to Special Olympics at the Chicago Marathon under the LU flag -- you're the ONE.

Yep, we'll get you in that comfy pink gear so you rock and roll in it on Thursday -- see you there..........

Callout from CM #7

....a little bit of runnin...a little bit of givin...

...brought to us, to bring to you, by CM#7:

Hey, LU!

Charter member #7 here.  So, as most of you may know I am  a massage therapist and I live pretty uncommon.

Something important to me is to SHOW SUPPORT for people I know who are attempting something they never thought they could.  My dear friend, LU member, and AMAZING LU endorsed MASSAGE THERAPIST colleague, Marie is attempting her FIRST RACE at Turkey Trot next Thursday.  Let me give you some back ground on MARIE.

A few years ago we were working together on RAGBRAI as Massage Therapists and she always wanted to "shed some lbs."

She wanted to do this to be in shape for our profession but also as a single mom be around for her son.  Marie is a HOOT and a HALF.  She is the THE MOST FUN MASSAGE THERAPIST EVER!!  WE had a blast on RAGBRAI..and she over the years has been super supportive of all my endeavors in SPORTS...she was my biggest fan for IRONMAN in 2009, she is just AWESOME!  Last year on RAGBRAI she LOUDLY and PROUDLY represented LU and let me tell you people knew what she was doing UNCOMMON!!!

I AM ASKING as a TEAM that anyone participating in the TURKEY TROT next THURSDAY in OUR GEAR to proudly and LOUDLY cheer MARIE on in the 1 MILE race.  This is her first attempt at the "addiction" many of us share (running).  As all of us know you gotta start somewhere. RIGHT LU??

Marie has shed some major weight over the last year and has really transformed herself major!!!

I am so so so so PROUD of her....and I want her to experience the exact same type of feeling many of us who LIVE UNCOMMON know...that "I DID IT....I am on TOP OF THE WORLD" feeling.  Close your eyes and re call when you crossed that finish line....YEP..that is what I want for her. 

LET's LIVE UNCOMMON, wear our gear and show support for someone who has no clue...that we are going to make a HUGE NOISE for her!!

Also, on a side note.  Over the last few years I have volunteered at Mr. Thanksgiving.  I think it would be AMAZING if a group of us showed up at Southpark mall next Thursday (if feasible) in LU gear ready and willing to serve.  That is an amazing experience and the Bright colors of LU would sure light up a room fast.

I will be there around 3:00 in LU gear with energy and a smile!! 

3:00 Southpark Mall

Moline, Il

Thursday November 24, 2011.

Sincerely,

LU charter member #7

Laurel Darren

What do you say, Team??  Can ya dig it?  Let's DO IT!!

The 5 Mile Race is at 9:00, but Marie does her thing in the 1 Mile at 8:30 so you'll already be there.  Show MARIE a little LU love.....

Here's a link to the Turkey Trot race registration. 

And for the Mr. Thanksgiving GIVE BACK -- hey this guy has been funding this endeavor PERSONALLY to the tune of something like $16,000 a year for the past 40 years.  Pretty cool stuff.  If you're in town and can take an hour of your day, please come out in your gear, with your Family, and give the gift of Giving.  It's gonna feel amazing........

Here's a link to a article in the Dispatch about this Uncommon Mr. Thanksgiving gig.

TRAVIS COLBY aka CALIFORNIA COLBY - YOU ARE LIVE UNCOMMON!

Whoooooaaa, Team, you have GOT to read this!!!

"I finished my first Half Ironman 70.3 triathlon this weekend in truly uncommon style. 12 miles into the bike course I fell victim to some railroad tracks and had a big crash, tearing up the left side of my body and picking up a Stage I or Stage II separated shoulder. I picked myself back up, fixed my bike to be rideable on the side of the road and without any assistance finished the last 40 miles of the bike course. Transition was painful as I couldn't raise my left arm above my head, but I still managed to change into my Live Uncommon shirt to finish the event. I went on to complete the half marathon run portion despite the physical problems. The total time for this former 325 pound couch potato was 7:06, slower than I was hoping but much better than the DNF I could have settled for after the crash.

Attached are some photos from the race. I'm sure better ones are coming because the course photographers seemed to take a lot of me and my injuries along the way. There are a couple of good videos as well, one when I am crossing the finish line where "Live Uncommon" gets an honorable mention by the announcer. You can find the videos and more pictures on my blog, http://finallyairborne.blogspot.com, in today's post. I got a lot of questions about my shirt in the finish area and I think you may be getting some new team members from California soon!

THE VIDEO OF THE FINISH WITH THE ANNOUNCER MENTIONING "LU" IS THE LAST PART OF TODAY'S POST ON MY BLOG. It was too big of a file to email, but you can pull it off the blog (http://finallyairborne.blogspot.com/2011/09/salty-cold-water-bloody-bike-crash.html).

-Travis Colby"

Whoa, man, we barely know what to say except, Travis, you are our flavor!  You, my friend, ARE LIVE UNCOMMON.  Seriously, no joke, we are honored to have you on the roster, super charged you are a Charter Member as we are well, well, well passed that mark now.  You out there doin your thing – LIVING UNCOMMON – inspiring us, spreading the word of the Movement without words, with ACTION…now THAT is valuable.  To the Cause, to the World. TRAVIS, we are impressed, inspired, in tune with you, man.................way to go.

One more thing --- we have GOT to meet you.  We may have to send a scouting troop to the coast……. 

EAST COAST ACTION - NICK SACCO STYLE

Qualifying for the NYC Marathon an entire year ago, NICK SACCO let nothing go during that year.

Finishing 26.2 in an Uncommon 3:40:59, NICK is LU on the road and sends back a few shots for the Team.

Wow, that bridge really takes the cake.  But then again NICK in his gear is pretty cool too. 

NICK SACCO, you know we dig ya.........

AARON MAURER GETS IT DONE AT THE GOV RUN

It's a dirty job, but lots of somebodies do it.....

LU MAURER Gets It Done on the muddy, hilly, swampy, uncommon Governor's Run course.  Here's a blow by muddy blow of his journey....

Right on, AARON, we are pickin up what you are throwin down....

"Last night I decided to go and run this race today. I really thought this was going to be a 4 mile run. I was not worried about time and just wanted to end the week with some good miles. I got myself around wearing my Live Uncommon gear and was ready to check out this race I knew literally nothing about.

This morning I learned that I need duct tape on my shoes. So, I applied some duct tape to my shoes. It proved to be somewhat helpful as my shoestrings never got in the way and get them from getting all junked up. I later learned that many duct tape their ankles and then connect it to the tape on their shoes. This ensures that you don't lose your shoes in the mud. Right away I realized the benefits to this. One kid was running with only shoe after the first mud jump.

I learned how not to jump in mud. I jumped at an angle where my legs went in ahead of my body. I had a very hard time getting out because I kept falling backwards. I was immersed in mud way past my knees. This was a great start. I had already started slow as the beginning of the race was pretty bottled up. However, this later proved to be okay.
I also learned that this race is not 4 miles as broadcast. I always took the "shortcuts" along the way. These shortcuts may be shorter, but not always easier. I always took them because I felt like getting dirty and muddy along the way.
I also learned that trail running is tough. I have never ran on trails before. Ever! Can you believe that? This terrain was all brand new to me. Running up hills and then descending in a zig zag patter was tough. My knees and feet and my legs muscles were used in ways they have never been used before. And I loved it.
The course ended up being 6.2 miles for me. I know each person runs their own distance depending on what trail they decided to run on. It took me 62 minutes to complete according to my watch. I really wish I had a camera with me on the run to record some pics of the scenery. It was awesome. I saw some familiar faces out on the course. I saw many of PVXC girls out there in complete mud carrying a wagon and a broken skateboard(I think). There were also many Bettendorf XC girls as well. So great to see them out running. I saw a few other Live Uncommon members also.
I had a blast. This is one of the best races I have been part of. I know I could have ran faster, but there were times when the trails were just too bottled up to go around. What is so great about this race is that it is not about time. It was a reminder to sometimes run without worrying about time or tempo.
This was the race I needed. It really helped me get out and really enjoy running. I have not had that enjoyment lately. This was also great practice for my Living History Farms Race coming up in about 2 weeks. People tell me it is a lot like this race, but better which means harder and muddier. I think I have found a new race to consider - mud runs and adventure racing.
Congrats to everyone who ran today. Everyone accomplished GETTING IT DONE!"

KILLER BEE

One of the first races of October was on the fun, friendly streets around the beautiful SAU campus in Davenport - The KILLER BEE.

Alum RICK SOLIS and sophomore MADIE HART fly over the course like true KILLER BEES!

MMMMM...LAGOMARCINO's HOT CHOCOLATE 5K

LAGOMARCINO's HOT CHOCOLATE 5k benefits The Boys and Girls Clubs and so gets an LU round of applause!!!

NICK SACCO, JOHN O'BRIEN, MICHELLE RUSSELL, ANIA PODGORNY, MADIE HART, RICK SOLIS do their thing on the scenic 5K route in Moline, Illinois.  Go Team!!

PUMPKIN DASH!

Pumpkins, beautiful autumn weather, LU........

Little LUs MAYA WHEELER, PAYTON and OWEN PAUL, and MAGGIE KILBURG trade in their LU gear today for Trick-or-Treat wear!!!

Moms JANE WHEELER and JEN PAUL win the 4K and 8K respectively -- of course they do -- they are amazing!!!

LU welcomes RACHELLE EDMUND

RACHELLE EDMUND joins the Movement and tells us why --

"We found your team at the BIX 7 that she and I run every year. What an amazing philosophy and the kindest kids wearing LU gear that day..they were kind enough to give us the website and also sit and chat with daughter for a few minutes too. BLESSED!  

Thank you so much for all that you do..we are quite honored to be a part of your team! So EXCITED to start wearing our LU gear and I'm thrilled you still had some QC Marathon shirts ...I'm going to wear it in Vegas at my next 1/2 marathon ...with PRIDE! THANK YOU!!!"

LU photographers PIX by SOLIS found RACHELLE at the Pumpkin Dash in Davenport doin her thing in the 8K - go, RACHELLE!  LU welcomes YOU!

ZZZZZZUMBA on the Figge Plaza!

It's almost the last day of October - Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  On the 1st day of October, to mark the "meaning", LU held ZZZZZUMBA on the Figge Plaza.

This event was instructed by LU member SUSIE JOHNSON to raise funds and awareness for FAMILY RESOURCES.

Besides raising our hands to celebrate this worthy mission, we also raised over $200!  Way to go, Team!

DID YA KNOW?

DID YA KNOW that LU Charter Team #1 - PVGXC - achieved CHAMP status twice in one day??

Yup.  October 1st the Team came out to snag the Clinton Invitation in the morning, and then went on to GIVE BACK over 1,600 meals for starving people of the World both overseas and here in the QC, as part of KIDS AGAINST HUNGER at St. Ambrose University that afternoon --World Hunger Day.  The girls also raised the funds to purchase the food that later when in to the "building" of the meals.  NICELY DONE!

This is one example of why LIVE UNCOMMON is so very proud to endorse PVGXC as the first ever LU Charter Team.

Look for these Uncommon young women as we celebrate them and their achievements - both on the field and off - on LU billboards this week as they prepare for their State Title bid.  Girls, do your thing....

DISTRICTS

Pleasant Valley High School hosted the District Cross Country Meet tonight at Crow Creek Park in Bettendorf, Iowa.

The Girls ran under an absolutely amazing sky and in ideal autumn conditions.

LU Charter Teams PLEASANT VALLEY SPARTANS and BETTENDORF BULLDOGS earned team berths to the State Championship Meet next week in Fort Dodge by placing 1st and 3rd, respectively, in tonight's meet.

LU photographers bore witness tonight to these amazing young women bringing it all to the course - strong bodies, minds, spirits.  LU supergirls, we salute you......

The girls fly off the START LINE under a breathtaking sky.  Wow...pretty cool to be runnin on a day like this....pretty cool to be watching too..

look who ran with us!

LU came out in fast form at the QC Marathon on September 25.

Beginning and ending in beautiful downtown Moline, Illinois, this fast, flat and fun 26.2 mile course winds runners through four burroughs of the Quad Cities - Moline, Bettendorf, Davenport, Rock Island.

Runners cross three bridges over the mighty Mississippi - all runners heading over I-74...then 26.2 runners heading back over the Centennial....13.1 runners taking the historic Arsenal.

Three races share a gun start, or rather, a cannon start -- the FULL, the HALF, and the super fast 5K.

We present to you -- YOU -- LIVE UNCOMMON....

STEPHANIE MIGAWA chases husband TROY to the Finish in the 5K

MARY BETH MURRY chases down LU teammate, lifelong friend, and Russell Construction boss JIM RUSSELL in the 5K.  She caught him RIGHT at the Finish Line!!!

In the HALF....

ANNA RAYA conquers the HALF in a fast 2:02:09 - right ON, ANNA!

ALICIA VILLAREAL Dreams It...Lives It in 2:21:46!  Great work, ALICIA!!

DEREK ELLIOTT does his thing in a quick 1:58:28!  Way to take down the 13.1, DEREK!

Hey, how 'bout ERIN? LU BHSXC Charter Team Coach, ERIN FLYNN, does more than "talk the talk" -- hitting her goal time in the HALF - an impressive 1:45:17!  Way to "walk the walk", Coach!

One of the many committed Coaches with LU PVGXC Charter Team, JOSH HOFFMAN knocks out 13.1 miles in a cool 1:48:04!  Well done, Coach!

Wow - JOSH PAUL does it all -- getting the HALF done in a sweet 1:59:58!  Josh has also competed in several TRIs this summer and has just raised $300 for hunger awareness through his effort at the QC CROP HUNGER WALK -- Go, JOSH!  We salute you and your commitment to MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

Okay...this is what we're talkin about --- check out LUKE RAYMOND -- gets it done in the HALF, coming in with a fast 1:59:29 -- poses for a quick pic for our steadfast LU Photo Crew, PIX by SOLIS, then turns immediately around, in true LU fashion, to cheer on fellow runners.  NICE!

EMILY RAYMOND, makes it look easy and fashionable to get in a quick 13.1 miles on a beautiful Sunday morning -- 2:04:26!

LUKE and EMILY, we like your style -- you are LU through and through!

KELAN MOYLAN cruises to a 1:37:49 in the HALF -- Wow, way to go, KELAN!!

Okay, Little Uncommon AILA MOYLAN maybe didn't run the HALF with dad, but she was the show stopper at the QC Marathon Pasta Dinner Saturday night and we just can't help ourselves -- we've got to post this image of the Future of the Movement once again....

Talk about leading by example -- JANE WHEELER, Head Coach of PVGXC - 1st ever LU Charter Team - truly LIVES UNCOMMON.

She and husband, KENNY WHEELER are...absolutely devoted to eachother and to their beautiful daughter MAYA...dedicated full-time professionals and coaches, much more than mentors....outstanding athletes in their own right....give of themselves to the World day in and out...emphasize and realize the beauty and necessity of Balance.

The WHEELERS came out to the Pasta Dinner Saturday night in support of the Y1R and the Movement and then JANE did her thing in the HALF Sunday morning -- coming in an amazing 1:27:11 and 7th Woman Overall!!  Jane, LU tips its hat to YOU!

PHIL PANCRAZIO makes 13.1 happen in a quick 1:54:43!  PHIL is an avid runner, triathlete, photographer extraordinaire who LU is proud to call Charter Member...Nicely done, PHIL!

NICK VILLAREAL smokes the 13.1 course in 1:32:53 -- now that is movin........ Great work, NICK!

MICHELLE RUSSELL runs the first leg of the Marathon Relay on a team with her daughter MADIE HART and decides to keep going to finish the HALF.  She gets some good LU love from LU photo crew PIX by SOLIS.  Gotta love the love!

Now, this brings us to our FULL Marathon runners...get ready to be even more impressed...

Newlyweds Tim and Sarah Corcoran take on their first-ever Marathon (chose THE BEST marathon as their first!) in a very impressive 4:30 -- WAY TO GO, MR. AND MRS. CORCORAN!!!  We applaud how you truly LIVE UNCOMMON -- live, love, run together -- very cool.

NICK SACCO flies to the finish of his 26.2 journey in a fast 3:33:17 - very, very nice!  Believe it or not, this is a short distance for NICK -- he ran 34 miles for St. Jude's earlier this summer.  And that's just how your Teammate NICK rolls -- running for the good, changing the World, Making a Difference.  NICK, we dig ya.....

And here you see LU MVP LAUREL DARREN lending support to NICK and all runners passing her way.  Ahh, so much good stuff to say about LAUREL... we'll save her for a little later... 

First-time Marathoner AARON MAURER at Mile 9 of 26.2 -- looking good, AARON!  AARON took down the Marathon in a very sweet 3:54:22 - wow, way to GET IT DONE, AARON!!

"Here is my QC Marathon Race Report from my personal blog.

What an amazing race, the support was awesome, especially from my wife and kids who kept showing up at just the right moments and from Jeff Paul who was riding along the last 6 miles shouting out my splits to the 4 hour pace group and giving me encouragement, he really showed what Live Uncommon is all about that day. I was lucky enough to run a good portion of the race with fellow LU member Aaron Maurer whom I had met the night before at the pasta dinner. It was great to run with Aaron and I’m glad I was able to catch up with him at the end so we could finish together. I was able to finish under my goal of 4 hours at 3:54:15 bettering my time from last year by over 30 minutes. It was also really awesome to see fellow LU members Phil Pancrazio and Jen Paul cheering people in at the finish line after they finished their half marathons.

Next up for me is a Spartan Sprint on Oct. 15 and my first attempt at an Ultra distance at the Wildcat 50k  on Nov. 13.

Until then…

…do today what others won’t, so tomorrow you can do what others can’t."

Josiah Campbell

JOSIAH, you are a true inspiration.  Keep doin your thing out there.....

WQAD CHANNEL 8 NEWS runs two Marathon Relay teams in the QC Marathon!  Okay, so they handily deliver these miles.....how awesome are they delivering the News?  Seriously -- tune in......  Best choice in town, no question.

Team TENEMOS HAMBRE (WE ARE HUNGRY) took down the Marathon relay-style - teammates JULIA FLYNN (Pumpkin Spice), ALI STEIDL (Red Velvet Cake), ANIA PODGORNY (Onion Pierogy), MADIE HART (Strawberry Crepe), MICHELLE RUSSELL.(Yellowtail Scallion).  Loads of fun (and later food) was had on this day!!!

KERRY DOUCETTE and girls put in a prepatory 20 getting warmed up for the Chicago Marathon in which they raised funds for Special Olympics -- way to go, girls!!  Showin how it's done LU-style!!

Okay, now....take a look at LU MVP LAUREL DARREN.  She and fellow LU ELLONIA YENNNEY and their QC ROLLERS teammates propelled five Pammy's Kids in wheelchairs over the entire Marathon course!  Wow.  We can barely get over the goodness of their effort.  QC ROLLER girls, we are inspired by YOU.....

Stay tuned....many, many, many more runners to go...including more Relays and fans!!!

ZZZZZUMBA on the FIGGE PLAZA

Catch up on your zzzz's at ZZZZZZUMBA on the FIGGE PLAZA!

Don't worry - if it's cold or rainy or blah, we'll be inside the exquisite FIGGE LOBBY instead.

Second in the LU on the Plaza series, ZZZZZUMBA on the FIGGE PLAZA benefits (besides you) FAMILY RESOURCES, whose Mission it is:

"To strengthen children, families and
individuals by providing quality services that engage community resources to create effective solutions."

FAMILY RESOURCES was selected as this week's beneficiary because our ZZZZZUMBA Instructor Extraordinaires - SUE JOHNSON and ANGELA BAGBY are passionate about the GOOD that FAMILY RESOURCES does for our community.  Besides being a devoted wife and exhuberant new mom...dedicated full-time professional...ZZZZUMBA Instructor Extraordinaire...and great giver to the worthy cause....ANGELA serves on the FAMILY RESOURCES Board of Directors.

LIVE UNCOMMON concurs that FAMILY RESOURCES just plain deserves our support for the general GOOD they provide to the World.

So....come on out Saturday morning and get your ZZZZ thing on.  Earn that latte or croissant and real self-satisfaction that you've accomplished by 9:00 a.m. a good thing for yourself, for a good Cause, for the World.  MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

WHAT:  ZZZZUMBA on the FIGGE PLAZA

WHERE:  hmmm..let's see now...  ON THE FIGGE PLAZA (225 W. 2nd Street, Davenport)

WHEN:  8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m -- Saturday, October 1

HOW:  OPEN to LU members in gear and to all others for $5

WHY:  YOU ARE THE CATALYST

help Teammate KERRY DOUCETTE help SPECIAL OLYMPICS

"I am running in the Chicago Marathon in October. This is my FIRST marathon. I am running for the Special Olympics Team because I am a Special Education teacher. Seeing what these kids can accomplish warms my heart and motivates me to do great things. I want to help contribute to improving their lives and I hope you will too!
Kerry :)

I thank you in advance for visiting my fundraising website! 
KERRY'S LINK 
Donating through this website is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to support my fundraising efforts.

Many thanks for your support and don’t forget to pass this along to anyone who you think might want to donate too!"

Kerry Doucette

KERRY's husband, MIKE DOUCETTE, and his band (we can vouch they are very good!) are playing at Crabby's Bar and Grill:

826 West 1st Avenue
Coal Valley, IL 61240-9313
(309) 799-3300

this Friday night as a fundraiser for Special Olympics - come join the fun and help KERRY raise some money for a great Cause!

LU gives back to CORNBELT RUNNING CLUB

LU BHSXC Charter Team mates came out to "man the water stations" at the Nancy Kapheim Memorial Classic 5k and 10k at Schweibert Park in Rock Island Sunday morning.

They did more than hand out water to the hardworking runners, of course -- they cheered each and every runner as they made their way through the flat and fast course.  Even when it started to rain!

Good job, Team!

LIVE UNCOMMON was honored to present LU Charter Member and NKMC Race Director, DALE MANLEY, with a $200 donation to the CORNBELT RUNNING CLUB Scholarship Fund.

YOGA on the FIGGE PLAZA - results are in

It was a beautiful Saturday morning for YOGA on the FIGGE PLAZA.

LU members donated over $200 to fellow worthy cause, yogaG.  Saturday's session was led by yogaG founder, Sarah Johnson, who created yogaG to bring yoga to Domestic Violence shelters nationwide as a tool to empower women and children affected by abuse.

yogaG, we salute you!  And LU teammates who came out to MAKE A DIFFERENCE, you are the ONE....

INTRODUCING ANDREA REHM

A resounding "WELCOME" to new member, ANDREA REHM, nominated and sponsored by Charter Member and MVP LAUREL DARREN.

Here's a little something about our new Teammate:

ANDREA REHM was nominated by Laurel Darren. She is a Professional Ballet Dancer, Certified Pilates Instructor, Dance Teacher, Yoga Lover, and Arial Arts Student.
ANDREA grew up in Louisville, KY, where she fell head over heels for ballet. She began training full time at the Louisville Ballet School and finished High School at Interlochen Arts Academy, a boarding school for the professionally-bound performing and liberal arts student. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Hartford's Hartt School with a BFA in Ballet Pedagogy. While in the program Andrea studied the training of dancers, developing training programs for the college's pre-professional division of dance and teaching for Connecticut's Arts in Education Program in Hartford Public Schools. Through ballet ANDREA found a passion for teaching and continues to find that being able to share this passion with aspiring artists has been the most fulfilling part of her career and life journey.

Before moving to Davenport to dance with Ballet Quad Cities, ANDREA danced professionally with Louisville Ballet and Nashville Ballet, balancing her dance and teaching careers while studying Pilates. She has always felt a strong connection to the the physicality and athleticism of dance, and found Pilates as a way of communicating the sport of her art to others. ANDREA is passionate about people, teaching Pilates classes for dance students and working one-on-one with a variety of people including tri-athletes, office professionals, runners, ice skaters, and mothers to be. Pilates classes balance resistance-based strength training exercises and release work, focusing on breath support and core stability. Her number one priority is to encourage others to reach beyond physical 'limitation' in the healthiest way possible; working mindfully and efficiently. Andrea's philosophy for teaching is believing in the endless possibilities of a strong and healthy body. What does the 'P' stand for in Pilates? To ANDREA, Patients and Persistence.

Look for ANDREA leading LU Pilates on the Figge Plaza!!  See her do her thing....see her LIVE UNCOMMON...

PAULS CONQUER HY-VEE TRI

PAUL FAMILY - JOSH and BETH, JUSTIN and AMY, JASON and DEB all did their Uncommon thing at the HY-VEE TRIATHLON in Des Moines, Iowa, Sunday, September 4. 

"I just wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know that Jeff inspired my brothers and I to start competing in triathlon events in 2011. Justin, Jeff, and I warmed up with the Crossroads tri last month. Today, my wife and I celebrated our 7th anniversary by competing in the HV Tri. Beth did the run portion of a relay event along with my brothers' wives Amy and Deb. Live Uncommon teammates Justin, Jason, and I did the entire race.

The three of us were entered in the "Clydesdale" division. I finished in a shade over 3 hours with Justin about 20 minutes after me, but the most incredible part of the race was watching Jason finish the race with his daughter, Emily, and nephew (and fellow Live Uncommoner), Logan, running across the finish at his side. Jason nearly lost his life last October when he got into a terrible car crash on I-80 while coming home from work. He lost his left arm, but the doctors were able to save his life. Watching him give 100% effort today brought tears to my eyes. Jason and Jeff are inspirations to everyone they meet and Justin and I are very lucky to have them both as brothers.

Beth, Amy, Justin, and I all showed off our flashy Live Uncommon Ts. Beth said she got seven compliments on her awesome shirt during the run -- that's more than 1 compliment a mile! We love the shirts, but love Living Uncommon even more. Thanks again for starting the cause! I love your updates and wish I could attend more Live Uncommon events, but both of us work every weekend. Keep up the great work!!"
--Josh

Hey, JOSH, way to go out there!  Way to LIVE UNCOMMON!  That sound you hear --- that's a round of applause for you and your Family.  Happy Anniversary!!!

ANNA PEER captures the WIN

Charter Member #61, ANNA PEER, captures the varsity win at the Spartan Challenge at Crow Creek Park in Bettendorf, Iowa, Saturday, September 3 --- the XC season opener.

LIVE UNCOMMON applauds ANNA leading the way off the course as well -- Balancing big-sister obligations at home, a 3.94 GPA at school, a part-time job, state title aspirations, and a commitment to being a positive and encouraging friend and teammate, ANNA LIVES UNCOMMON.

Did You Know?

Did you know...that LUs LAUREL DARREN and ELLONYIA YENNEY and their QC Rollers donate a portion of The Gate from each of their home bouts?

Yep, that's right, the roller derby girls QC ROLLERS GIVE BACK!

The receiving charity from their August 27 season opener were the SPARTAN SPARKLES and the QC ROLLERS donated $383 to their very, very worthy cause!!

LIVE UNCOMMON invited members to witness the Uncommon experience of ROLLER DERBY at this opening bout.  This was an event most of us had NEVER seen up close and in person before.

These pics hardly convey how much wicked fun we had!!

LIVE UNCOMMON pledged to donate $10 per LU gear at the Bout.  Check it out -- yep, there are 15 sweet shirts in this pic (well, we counted BOBBY SOLIS and SARAH PAUL as one since they are members but didn't have gear).

LU was pleased and proud to donate an additional $150 to the SPARTAN SPARKLES that night.

Keep doin' your thing, QC ROLLERS, we like your style....

What are the QC ROLLERS up to next??

Well, they are comprising an LU 5-person relay and will be propelling 5 children in wheel chairs in the QC Marathon Relay!

Wow - now that's what we call UNCOMMON.

LIVE UNCOMMON in VAIL, COLORADO