Girls on the Run SoleMates event at Garmin Chicago features guest speakers, giveaways
from Garmin Blog
This weekend, Garmin is celebrating its partnership with Girls on the Run SoleMates at our Chicago store. Garmin has been a supporter of Girls on the Run for several years and in 2010 became a proud National Sponsor of Girls on the Run SoleMates, the organization’s adult charity running leg. Starting at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 31, 2010, at the Garmin store at 663 N. Michigan Avenue, the Garmin/Solemates event will feature special guest appearances by Girls on the Run founder Molly Barker and Coach Jenny Hadfield, cofounder of Chicago Endurance Sports and columnist for Runner’s World and Women’s Running magazines.
In addition to inspirational presentations by Barker and Hadfield on the life-changing benefits of Girls on the Run and training with Garmin, the Chicago store event will feature an innovative new trade-in program that is popular at events in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series. Customers bringing in old GPS-enabled Forerunner® watches can get $25 off a new Forerunner, and the working units that were traded in will be donated to Girls on the Run. The morning event will also include product demonstrations and various giveaways, including CamelBak and Clif Bar products and a Garmin Forerunner 110 running watch as the raffle’s grand prize.
"Our jobs – yours and mine – are to give girls back the ‘ideas’ that are uniquely theirs,” said Barker, who founded Girls on the Run in 1996 as a four-time Hawaii Ironman triathlete with advanced degrees in social work. “To put their individuality, their inner strength, their ‘girlness’ at the core of all we do. To provide life-changing opportunities for girls to recognize and truly experience their genuine beauty – inside and out, and to celebrate their voices, their spirits and their bodies.”
“Echoing the purpose of Girls on the Run, Garmin’s mission is to improve lives,” said Stan Brajer, director of Garmin Fitness Sales and Marketing. “Our fitness products help people attain their goals personally and collectively while giving individuals, families and friends more ways to exercise together, build self esteem and get the most out of life’s every minute and every mile.”
The Girls on the Run SoleMates program provides a great opportunity for adults to give girls an example of healthy living while ensuring the future success of Girls on the Run programs that benefit the lives of thousands of young women every year. SoleMates participants are male and female athletes who pursue individual goals, such as participating in a marathon or triathlon, to raise money for local Girls on the Run councils.
While Garmin as a company has long provided local support through sponsorship and the donation of product, Garmin employees have also donated considerable time and talent to the local council of Girls on the Run of Johnson County, KS, as volunteer coaches, running buddies and SoleMates participants. “I can't think of a better way to use my passion to help others than by fundraising for Girls on the Run through SoleMates,” said Rebecca Sommers, Senior Copywriter at Garmin and local Girls on the Run board member. “I've had the opportunity to experience Girls on the Run from several different roles: coach, volunteer, mother of a participant, board member and fundraiser. All of those roles bring their own set of rewards, but none quite equal the payoff of seeing the Girls on the Run principles lived out by girls in the program.”
Registration for Girls on the Run SoleMates is $26, and members agree to raise a minimum of $262. Participants are supported through exclusive premiums and promotions, online fundraising tools and support and additional incentives for participants who surpass the fundraising goal. More information is available at http://www.girlsontherunsolemates.org.
How Girls on the Run supports SoleMates participants:
- Easy online registration process and online fundraising
- Welcome packet complete with an exclusive Girls on the Run SoleMates New Balance technical t-shirt and other branded gear
- Training Manual with marathon and half marathon plans for any level developed by Jenny Hadfield, co-author of best selling Marathoning for Mortals
- New Balance running shoes to the top 100 fundraisers and other incentive prizes/contests
- Group training runs (varies per city)
SoleMates participants doing the 2010 Bank of America Chicago Marathon can receive:
- Access to heated Girls on the Run SoleMates tent in Charity Village
- Private gear check and access to private portable restrooms before and after the race
- Food, drinks & other essentials before, during and after the race for runner and family
Now available at Garmin’s Chicago store, Forerunner 110 fills the needs of runners of all levels by focusing on simplicity without sacrificing accuracy. In addition to displaying real-time pace, time and distance, Forerunner 110 can display current heart rate data when users are wearing a Garmin heart rate monitor. Available in three sleek and stylish color combinations – black/gray, charcoal/red and gray/pink – Forerunner 110 looks fashionable on the run, in the office or out on the town. At Garmin Connect (http://garminconnect.com), users can quickly and easily log their workouts, track their totals, set goals, share workouts with friends and family and participate in an online fitness community of more than 20 million activities around the world. Learn more about Garmin’s fitness products at http://www.garmin.com/intosports.
