One day left to Go Far Go Fast!!!

Today’s final lead-up photo to Go Far Go Fast may have you thinking about how you’re going to stay cool for the big day. It’s going to be a great day and were really excited to see you. Here are some tips to staying cool:

Drink more than average fluids today, don’t be dehydrated going into the race.
Run easier than you had planned if necessary.
Wear light clothing.
Where a hat.
Run through our cooling "super-soaker" and sprinkler stations
Drink electrolytes like Gatorade
Take a seat in the shade before the race.
Ice will be available and we suggest you bring a water bottle full of it.

You can still sign up tonight at the fairgrounds from 6-8 pm or tomorrow morning until 9:30 am. Need more info, go to www.wix.com/jschulten/gofar

Go Far Picture of The Day...2 days to go!

Today, you may be having this conversation with your kid. Here's a skit to help.

Mom: “Hey Johnny, do you want to race the Go Far Race on Saturday June 1st?”
Johnny: “I Don’t want to, Reggie Smith always beats me. I’m going to be embarrassed.

(Mom contemplates a good answer.)

Mom: Johnny, I am going to tell you something really important.

Not everyone wins all the time. That’s just a fact of life.

Johnny: But what about getting a trophy. I want one because they are really cool.

Mom: Sure the trophies are cool, but the reason we do things like the Go Far race is to realize that it’s OK if you don’t win every time as long as your having fun trying. Trying hard and the good feelings that comes after a big effort is truly what makes you happy.

Being happy and healthy IS the trophy.

(Johnny is not completely satisfied with the answer, but is interested in the fact that lots of his friends will be at Go Far Go Fast..)

Johnny: Do I get to roll down the big grass hill at the fairgrounds with my friends?

Mom: Sure

Johnny: After I race, I know one thing that would really make me happy mom.

(Mom knows the drill here)

Mom: Dari Serv?

Johnny: With Rainbow Sprinkles!
…OK, sign me up!!!!

We're all busy these days, working, getting food on the table, driving kids to activities, or  just trying to keep up. Somehow sandwiched between all the fun, I got it into my head that the trophies for Go Far Go Fast had to be truly unique this time around. The Go Wild theme seemed like a really fun  one, something you could really run with. Needless to say, I did a big swipe of my calendar and began the process of getting myself covered in hot glue, epoxy and moss.  I was floored when a company down in Florida named Safari Ltd. was incredibly generous and donated 120 animals to be the marquees of the trophies. I hope they somehow know that their generosity will help so many kids GO FAR. In doing so, so have they!

After a trip to Michael's crafts to stock up on glue sticks and moss, I knew I would have to go local to create bases for these creations. Tyler from Torrison Stone would scratch his head and chuckle when he would see me rummaging from his discarded stone pile armed with a bucket and a hammer. With a smile on his face, I could sense his thoughts that, "yes,  the Go Far lady has lost it this time." 

I had stones for the animals to stand on, but now I needed bases for the brass race engraving plates. Getting on that job was a wonderful guy named Noah, owner of "Ultimate Kids", who makes classic wooden toys. Remember wooden toys that existed long before i-devices?  He makes really neat tables, swings and games all out of his homespun woodworking shop. He's Santa's Durham connection.

My small kitchen would become a whirling center for activity for two weeks. Animals were everywhere, epoxy stuck to the tiles( sorry honey). There were drill bits scattered, a hole drilled in my hand followed by band-aid wrappers,  and moss in every crevice of the room. I had hungry kids because I was too busy to feed them and there was no place to cook anyway. After cutting each stone, each animal's habitat would begin to come about as I added colored sand, moss, bark, flowers, dead wood or whatever I could find in the woods behind my house. Each statuette was getting its own personality. While the camel needed to be in the desert, the polar bear needed an ice flow. How did Noah manage to build that ark with so many temperature zones?

 All throughout, the cat would sit among the animals and consider the animal kingdom growing around him. He thinks he's the king of it after all. 

The process continued at trophy night, a storied Go Far tradition that usually includes a glass of wine and lot's of hot glue! We would glue, laugh, be merry and heckle each other over our inability to stick a rock to a wood base. Oscar our friendly lab in residence would play the role of DogZilla and send some of our animals flying off their bases and right into the animal hospital. It's always a night to remember. 

As each animal found it's way to it's new base the excitement was palpable.  I can't wait til each trophy finds it's way into the hands of a well deserving child. Each one of these was made with love and with the belief that each child is unique and has a greatness to share with the world. These awards come from digging deep on my end and theirs. 

Go Far Go Fast will come and go on Saturday and it will mark the completion of the program's seventh year. I invite you all, runner or otherwise, young and old to join us at this event and feel its energy.  I hope the kids go wild for Go Wild! I know I have.

I have a great friend who helped me make some super cool Go Far Go Fast signs for the big race on Saturday. I was so excited that I put them up all around town at businesses who were nice enough to oblige. Within two day's, all but two signs were gone.  The signs may be gone,  but no one will steal away my creativity. So my answer to this dilemma came in...wait for it...a photo! Big surprise, I know! So here are the photos so far.

Go Far Picture of the day: 3 More Days!

            Taking this picture from the middle of Deerfield’s cow pasture, I pet my new friend and asked her if she would run with the kids at Go Far Go Fast on June 1. Considering the Go Wild theme, I though she many be interested. She declined with a friendly MOOOO but happily told me that she would be busy making some of her delicious chocolate milk for the runners after their races. Did you know that chocolate milk is one of the best recovery drinks? It’s full of protein to help in muscle recovery and coming from Deerfield Farm, it’s full of love from some of our happiest local cows.  You’ve never experienced chocolate milk til you tried Deerfield’s! Come out and race and join the fun. www.wix.com/jschulten/gofar

Go Far sign of the day. 4 days left to get involved.

Do you have to be a running maniac to participate? Nope...just be energetic like this group of kids from Memorial School! Enter today: www.wix.com/jschulten/gofar

Go Far, Go Fast, 5 days til the big event! The First unofficial day of summer called for a big splash in the pool with a Go Far sign of course! Get your form here!: www.wix.com/jschulten/gofar

Pete and Jeremy take some warm-up laps together before some speed-work. Mentoring works! Go Far Go Fast is only 6 day's away. The event acts as a celebration of wellness. We spend the year bringing wellness to kids at school, but on this day we need you to bring the wellness to us! This event is a town celebration for your commitment to wellness. Whether you play baseball, skateboard, figure-skate, dance, play soccer, run, swim, do martial arts, go for walks or whatever your favorite activity, Go Far Go Fast celebrates your commitment to being healthy. Like everything we do at Go Far, no child is left without support and each participant is cheered through the finish line! Everyone who participates is part of something big, something that shouts out: I want to Go Far in life!  Get your form here!: www.wix.com/jschulten/gofar

When it comes to sports, many of us go to games and competitions because your an integral part of a team. It doesn't happen without you.When it came to developing Go Far, the same thought came to mind. Our program comes in strength of numbers. While the mantra of our program is based individual achievements, Go Far is assessed by our collective successes.

Go Far Go Fast is on June 1st. The event acts as a celebration of wellness. We spend the year bringing wellness to kids at school, but on this day we need you to bring the wellness to us! This event is a town celebration for your commitment to wellness. Whether you play baseball, skateboard, figure-skate, dance, play soccer, run, swim, do martial arts, go for walks or whatever your favorite activity, Go Far Go Fast celebrates your commitment to being healthy. Like everything we do at Go Far, no child is left without support and each participant is cheered through the finish line! Everyone who participates is part of something big, something that shouts out: I want to Go Far in life! 

 Strong and Coginchaug kids, I know you're out there. Go Far Go Fast may seem like a race for little kids, but here's the deal. You're the ones that inspire! By running on June 1, your playing an important role in bringing our community together. You're wellness transcends being competitive or winning. Come out and play, you wont regret it.

 Enter by May 24th to get the shirt or enter on race day. 

Entry:www.wix.com/jschulten/gofar

I grew up in a sport where everything you learned was from riding on the coat tails of the older kid who was faster than you. I'll never forget taking a 200 meter lead on my older brother and trying to hold him off through piece after piece. Mentoring: there is no more successful formula in my book. Everyone gets faster and everyone feels better. The older kid thinks about the quality of teaching his own techniques while feeling good about helping the younger kid.  The younger kid learns the ropes and gets into the mindset of someday being fast like his mentor. Mentorship works. Knowing this benefit, when my son started running, I wanted him to have someone to look up to.  Coginchaug senior, Jeremy happily ran with Peter almost every Wednesday this year. He has allowed Pete to feel like he is part of a team.  You may have seen the two tearing up the turns along Main  Street. Thankfully, Jeremy has taken over so this parent can step back. A real friendship has grown out of mutual respect these boys have for each other.  Today, Peter had a very important "appointment" to get to at 2:30. He hustled down his middle school hallway so he could get to Jeremy's 2:30 Shoreline Championship race.   Throughout all of this, I proudly beamed watching these two boys; the one racing, and the one with such great hope for his own future. Together, they will Go Far. Thanks for sharing your time Jeremy, your future looks bright and so is my son's because you took the time to care. 

I am a photographer

I take pictures, lots of them.

I love what I do.

People shouldn’t be afraid to create.

It’s an amazing process.

My mistakes outweigh my successes 10 to 1.

That’s why any success I can get feels Mm Mm, good.

People ask me if I ever sleep?

Not really. (It’s 12:51 am)

My mind runs faster than a hamster wheel.

I practice a lot, especially because…

No one is born a professional.

I have no formal training.

I wish I had, it would make this puzzle easier to solve.

But then again…

You can learn a lot from You tube, your public l library, and your kids…

but mostly from your mistakes.

Speaking of practice, I did a shoot today.

Today’s mistake score: 20 to 1.

It rained at the most beautiful venue.

But that’s ok, we had fun.

It's clear to me now

That teens understand life more than we realize.

My daughter dressed as a Bond Girl.

She figured out that role in minutes,

by Googling “Bond Girls” .

Don’t worry mom, I wont let her out dressed like that.

She’s the most beautiful thing I’ll ever create…

Beauty and brains,

she reads five books a week.

To my fellow photographers…

I love natural light, but the flash seems unavoidable.

It never works when it’s supposed to,

nor do I understand the books that explain the intricacies of them.

I sometimes wish people didn’t have arms,

Because they are a pain to figure out how to pose.

Batteries are expensive…

And I find them in every pocket I own.

I ‘ll find em’ on the floor like lucky pennies,

But I don’t feel lucky when I step on one.

Am I the only one who feels this way?

I started taking photos when I was my daughter’s age.

It's a joy to witness her begin a life of her own creativity.

I majored in history and art history.

History teaches us everything.

I live for capturing people’s history.

Therefore my parents’ money wasn’t wasted on my college education.

Photography is the most gratifying and frustrating job all in one breath.

But how cool is it that it doesn’t feel like a job?

Did I tell you I love what I do?

I am a photographer.

A Note about this shoot: Thanks to my friend Lili Kinsmen for inviting me to Wadsworth today. Her family was having a beautiful party and she invited me to play with my camera before the event. She is incredibly generous and talented beyond imagination. She stuffed my car with props and dresses and let me go to town. My favorite shoots always involve her and I can't thank her enough for helping me whenever I try to reinvent myself. She has an amazing ability to put it all together. I can't wait for our next shoot!

I seem to spend a lot of time with hot glue stuck to my hands. It hurts a lot. Somehow over the years, I have become the queen of projects. I find that life is more interesting when it’s broken into many small projects. It keeps each day full of newness while at the same time, challenges me to improve on the things I already know how to do.  Last week, I spent my time building 110 trophies for the Go Far race. This one was a biggie, and my disaster of a kitchen was proof of the creative process. Moss was strewn everywhere, I drilled a hole in my knuckle, and I burned the midnight oil without a thought.  Creative projects always have some climatic feel to them; call it an adrenalin rush if you will.  Either way, it’s fun to know someone can get some happiness out of the stuff you make or help them create.  Knowing this all too well, I received a Dremel for Mother’s Day from my husband and kids.  How did they know?  I am so excited! The best thing about this purchase for my husband was that there was no line at Sears to buy the thing, all the men were downstairs in the jewelry department. There would be no popular Alex and Ani bracelet for me this Mother’s Day, instead I get to create my own brand. Ever since I was a kid, I wanted a Dremel.  I’ll shamelessly admit that the main reason I wanted it was for the huge accessory kit that it comes with, all so perfectly organized in a little plastic case. Jeez, I could make almost anything with it… well actually I can’t because I have no idea how to use the thing yet. But that’s beside the point! Sometimes the best purchases in life are the ones that feed a dream, especially a creative one. I bet there are lots of practical uses… Who needs a dentist, I got a Dremel! …”Just hold still kids”! Ok, maybe I’ll just stick to making trophies. Happy Mother’s Day to all the dedicated moms out there who are in my opinion,  the dream-makers! Here’s to equipping each dream-maker with all the right tools. 

I can almost feel my English teacher friends cringe as they try to absorb the peril of my blog's many errors. At 41, there may not be much hope for this hack to have a grammatical renaissance. Thank goodness I can tell me my story in photos.  To spare you my writing pains, I've decided to share my daughter's poem so she can show can us how she magically intertwines words to tell her beautiful stories. I thank her many teachers from over the year who have guided my dreamer.  She blended these words together after an blissful trip to the rain forest last year. We laughed and sang the Indiana Jones theme throughout the long, rain-soaked hike. As each rain drop fell upon her, so did defining words that help her describe her experience. While my memories are so visual, hers' are more literal. While some may question the value of traveling with children, I cherish it for the very reason written below.  Travel with your kids! Do it because they will remember and retell  stories more beautifully than you could have ever imagined.

The Green Miracle
 Kate Schulten


Rays of golden sunlight pierce through the leaves                                                
as the wind releases a soft whisper of breath 
and the umber branches sway gently back and forth with rhythm  

The crunch of fallen twigs escape from under me
they cause sudden disturbance from the peacefulness of the forest…
I let a soundless breath escape my gaping mouth,                                                   
less blatant than the pitter-patter of the small white mice

Wet gleam of water droplets plummet before me…                                            
silencing any thoughts and drawing me ever closer

The rest of the world is dormant                                                                                   
as I explore this never-ending wonderland

Green leaves brush my face as I walk by…                                                            
they’re softer than silk 

Suddenly a bird graces the sweet silence with its entrancing melody              
the vivid tunes bring the small world to life…                                                        
and suddenly the lone bird is no longer solitary  

The canopy comes to life                                                                                                   
the brilliant colors flourish with every second                                                       
then the green treetops are imperceptible  

Brightly colored birds swoop down…                                                                           
creating a massive flurry of colors that mix in my eyes

This place is beautiful
The rainforest welcomes me

Our 11 year old boy needed to make an invention for a special assignment in the middle of April. We knew this somewhat dreaded day was coming because his sister had to do the same thing two years before him. For weeks, the dinner table conversation as well as all the outings in our life considered  this. What does one invent? It's funny how when the time comes, all we hear is white noise in our heads.  But, while out shopping one day,  inspiration came at Walmart of all places. He would see patterned LED automotive lights and jump excitedly like he does sometimes when he's had too much sugar. The light-bulb had lit in his head and the Pedal-Lit was born. Getting the invention to work took some failure (this was idea number two), and to reach usability, it took lots of tinkering. He played with battery types, wires, had a friend show him how to use a soldering gun, He created displays, made a light tester, learned about taking a marketing photo, produced a video and tried different adhesives to get the lights to stick cleanly. He worked on a name that would roll easily off the tongue.  It was a production, but he knew it was a good idea, because his dad had been hit from the side while commuting one dark morning. This would make him visible to the groggiest of drivers.

The invention would do well winning his school contest and then Peter receiving high merit at The Connecticut Invention Convention. Another kid won the patent and I could see the disappointment in his face. Disappointment was short-lived. On this overcast, early May morning, his sense of "loss" was wiped clean when he placed the pedal-lit on his head.  He would pull away from the house looking like a flying saucer was atop his head. His invention worked! He would ride down the street and I could see him from far away. He had learned the value of success. A mother's pride never runs dry, seeing his well-lit journey from home to school made for a Monday morning one could truly smile about. His future is bright.