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"FREE Buffaloes
in Our Lives"
e-newsletter |
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NEWS |
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Toastmasters Magazine Article: Vincent Kituku: Overcoming Life's Buffaloes
Meet Idaho's Latest Exports
Dr. Kituku
Elected Grand Marshal of Boise State University Home
Coming
The Race for the Cure |
Year II: Racing
for More Than Cure
Racing for the
Cure While Praying for Sue |
The Road to
Conquering Robie Creek
Dr.
Kituku featured in the Idaho Statesman |
Claiming Idaho's Highest Summit
Leading Amateurs to Success |
Robie Creek Vs Everyone (2006)
When Robie Creek Race Calls, You
Participate (2006)
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Doing Robie Creek as a Non-Kenyan Marathoner
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What makes the Robie Creek Race Less painful
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The Road to Conquering
Robie Creek |
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"Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't
work hard." Source unknown
April 6, 1992 was the day I reported at Idaho Power Company to
start employment. It was also the day I learned about the
annual Race to Robie Creek. Since then I have lived with an
unfulfilled desire to participate in that Race-that is, until
this year. But to refer my heart's pain for not conquering
Robie Creek as a mere desire is unfair. For twelve long years,
every spring that Creek has screamed on me.
On January 13, I committed to brushing aside the excuses that
have kept me out of the race for twelve years. I hit the YMCA.
That is when it first occurred to me that goals involving
physical challenges are different from the mental ones I am
accustomed to. I weighed in at a little bit more than 240
pounds and found myself unable to run on a treadmill for 15
minutes-not really an encouragement to enter the toughest race
in the Northwest. The half marathon race is 13.1 miles, an
8.4-mile climb to 4,797-foot Aldape Summit and a steep,
4.7-mile descent.
The date and time for the 2004 Race was set: April 17 at high
noon. My immediate tasks were basic: to build endurance that
could keep me physically active for a minimum of three hours,
and to knock off some weight. There was no way I could drag my
240 pounds through the brutal last mile to the summit.
The initial motivation propelled me through the first two
weeks. Every element of success became the fuel I needed to go
through the next challenge. Within four weeks my endurance had
developed to 60 minutes; but the ultimate measure of my
seriousness was when I realized that ten 10 pounds of me were
off. Not only that-my eating habits of four decades had
changed, as well as other routines. When preparing for trips,
I began to check ahead with the hotels to make sure they had a
fitness center.
Committing to a goal when aware of the initial challenges is
one thing. Overcoming the obstacles presented by unexpected
challenges is another thing altogether. Flu and body pains
were the minor ones. More difficult to combat was the
discouragement that set in when, after the initial successes,
I could not find one thing to be proud of in my journey from
mid February to early mid March. Five pounds of the lost
weight found their way back. I missed the registration by one
day. I had mailed a check instead of registering online.
Nevertheless, I found myself still determined to exercise
regardless of whether my weight loss was holding on or I ever
get into the race. I realized I was committed to more than a
race. It was something I only could do for myself. I had
fallen in love with what I was doing and hearing people ask,
"Vincent, have you lost weight? You look fabulous."
By the end of March I was running/walking eight to twelve
miles at a stretch and was fifteen pounds lighter. On March
30, I ran and walked to the Aldape Summit and walked downhill
three miles. I also discovered that what you wear, (e.g.,
socks shoes and underwear) not only helps to keep you
comfortable both uphill and downhill, but also affects what
you can achieve in this kind of regiment.
April caught up with me still unregistered for the race. My
efforts to buy a race ticket from anyone, who for one reason
or another was not going to participate in the race were
fruitless up until just two weeks before the race.
Three months of physical and mental preparation for the Race
to Robie Creek made events of April 17 2004 endurable. On the
day before the race, the weight scale registered 218 pounds
when I stepped on the plate. Even so, I still had some anxiety
about this humongous undertaking.
The mood of the participants, volunteers and supporters on the
day defies description. The atmosphere surrounding the myriad
of social fabrics of the Race to Robie Creek has to be
experienced, not described.
Two groups participating in the Race in one way or another,
left imprints time may never erase from my mind. One was the
volunteer group, whose support brought another perspective.
Their presence must be one of the reasons why many
participants find the courage and energy to complete such a
challenging endeavor.
The other was the group of senior citizens participating in
the race. They were both a humbling force and a major source
of inspiration. At the Race's moment of reckoning, from the
seventh-mile point to the summit at 8.4 miles, several senior
citizens passed me as if they had just begun the race. One
lady, probably in her late 60s, will stick in my memory. As I
struggled to reach the summit, I heard someone approaching
with heavy breathing. By the time I turned to find out who it
was, she caught up with me. Smiling, and with no sign of
relenting, she looked at me and said, "Hi son!" One more curve
and I never saw her again.
I hope and pray that when I approach my 70s and beyond I'll be
as active as these people.
I crossed the finishing line smiling and re-invigorated. In
retrospect, I realized that I have celebrated various
successes in life, especially in my academic and professional
endeavors. But nothing could compare to achieving this
physical goal. I retired my training T-shirt that I used on
the race. It was a special gift from my wife with BLESSED MAN
inscribed on the front.
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Lessons Learned During
Preparation
and At the Event
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1.
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Hard work, not just talent, is the main
currency that will get you through. |
2.
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No room for negative thoughts, whether in
practice or at the real thing. |
3. |
Expect the bitter truth. No one says the
race is easy. |
4.
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Average participants will do themselves a
favor by scaling the race course at least three times
before the event. |
5.
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For non-award seeking runners and walkers,
preparing and doing the thing with a relative or a friend
is the way to go. |
6.
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Graduate from indoor training. Hit rough
roads, hills and slopes in any weather. |
7.
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Learn what past participants write and say
about the race, but don't let what they say discourage
you. |
8.
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The long training times are excellent
opportunities for reflection and meditation. As a writer
and speaker I mentally wrote many articles (including this
one) and prepared speeches during practice. |
9.
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Let the people you care for know about your
undertaking. Their support will, at times, be the fuel you
need for one more training session. |
10.
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If you believe you can participate in the
Race to Robie Creek, probably you can. But there is only
one way to convince us that you can. You must do it. |
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