ROCK THE RUN 2013

Congratulations, Rock the Run team! YOU DID IT!

We couldn't be more proud of our Rock the Run team that trained hard for the P.F. Chang's mini, half, and full marathon. Leading up to the big day, they spent many early mornings and late evenings logging hundreds of miles and raised thousands of dollars in support of music education for Ear Candy Charity.

A big THANK YOU goes out to our many local supporters including Racelab for their support with training and clinics, Rigatony's for sponsoring our pre-race team dinner, Ideas Collide for our Rock the Run logo that our team proudly wore on race day, and the East Valley Spine Center for hanging out in our team tent providing post-race massages for the runners.

We're so very thankful to everyone who supported our team. To the friends, family, and colleagues of each our team members we thank you for supporting their journey to the finish line! It was the P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Marathon so with music at every mile, we're sure everyone was inspired as they ran for music education! Congratulations to our team's top two fundraisers, Rebekah Zeeuw and Tony Darling, who combined raised close to $5,000.

Thank you and congrats again to each of our Rock the Run team runners: you're all ROCK STARS! We hope that you are getting some much deserved rest and relaxation this week and we hope to see you again at the start line in 2014!

If you're interested in being a part of Ear Candy's Rock the Run team or for more information contact info@earcandycharity.org.

I Run For...

Thousands of athletes continue to participate in races annually, but charity running has created an even greater boom in the popularity of endurance sports. Runners looking to give meaning to their races and training bring in millions of dollars to support varying causes each year. P.F. Chang's Rock 'N' Roll Arizona alone, has a list of over ten charities to choose from, all of which are worthy causes to support.

Reasons for choosing a specific charity to support differs from person to person, but one of the biggest draws is a personal connection. For those that run to beat cancer, many run in honor of loved ones who have passed or in celebration of those who continue to fight. Individuals will have their support decorated on shirts, plastered on signs, or even have it written all over their body. After all, when it's written all over your arm, it's impossible to not stay motivated during every mile of your race.

When I decided to join the Rock the Run team and raise money for Ear Candy Charity, one of the first things I asked myself, was "who or what would I run for?" I'm by no means a musician, nor am I parent or an educator,but I still knew that music education was so important to me. But I needed to figure how music was going to motivate me. What was my connection to music education?

For me, I'm always looking for the things in life that can bring us as people all together. There are language barriers and cultural differences that can sometimes set us apart, but there are also many universal ways of communicating that can link us back, such as through non-verbal activities like sport, dance, movement, and...music. For many young students, music is a way to express themselves. If we really want kids to develop their own voice, we need to let them use it in whatever form possible even if it's through learning chords, playing notes and reading sheet music.

So I'm running in honor of the musicians, the parents, and the educators who believe in music education for children. Most of all, I'm running in celebration of my own parents, who listened with the utmost patience while 'Three Blind Mice' was played on my recorder on repeat, who drove me to and from piano lessons, and most of all, who taught me to love music.

Who would you run for? It's not too late to sign up to run as part of Ear Candy's Rock the Run team. We have an upcoming information meeting coming up, come out and meet fellow team coaches and team members, and get all your questions answered.

Rock the Run Informational Meeting:
Thursday September 13, 2012 (5:30 - 7:00 pm)
Ear Candy Office (200 E Curry Road, Lower Level Tempe, AZ 85281).

Why I Chose to Run in 4/4 Time

This is a guest post from one of our Rock the Run participants, Tony Darling. Tony will be running in the P.F. Chang's Full Marathon on January 20, 2013. Support Tony as he trains & fundraises with Ear Candy Charity's Rock the Run Team.

This January I will be participating in my 7^th marathon.  I started running nine years ago as a way to lose weight and get healthy.  I ran a couple of half marathons and decided to move up to the full marathon.  I think my thoughts were similar to most beginner runners:  It should only be twice as hard to run a marathon as a half marathon.  WRONG!!  Well maybe “hard” is a little strong. “Challenging” might be a better word choice.  In 2007 I ran the Chicago Marathon in 90 degree heat and had a great time. (“Great” being a relative term.)  The crowd’s reaction to the 35,000+ runners taking to the streets was so amazing.  Chicago is the only marathon I have participated in that I did not raise money for charity.   I decided to run for charities because I wanted to make the 26.2 mile journey something bigger than myself.  I chose each charity because I personally knew someone whose family was affected by the disease or issue.

This year I chose to run for Ear Candy Charity because it supports an issue and cause that I am very passionate about:  Youth Music.  It allows me to combine two of my favorite things: running and music.  It seems hard to believe but I started playing trombone 38 years back in Aurora, IL.  I remember wanting to play the trumpet but my band director knew I would be getting braces in the future so he thought the trombone might be easier once they were on.  I remember playing “Mambo from the Congo” in my first concert like it was yesterday.  I attended music camps in Junior High and went on to major in Music Business at the University of Southern Mississippi.  

Music has always been a part of my life.  Instead of ringing bells as a kid, my family and friends played Christmas carols at the Salvation Army kettle.  It has allowed me to play before thousands of West Aurora and Southern Miss football and basketball fans as well as perform with my high school jazz band when we were the opening act for Buddy Rich and band.  I have walked in many a parade both in Junior High and High School as well as a member of Legion and community bands.  Most of my closest friends I have are the ones that I performed with during my time in school.

The joy that I get from performing, whether marching on the football field on a Saturday afternoon or in an auditorium is not something you can describe, you have to experience it. (just like running a marathon)  That is why I chose to run 26.2 miles for Ear Candy  I want to give someone else the opportunity to have a chance to make not only music, but memories and friendships that will last a lifetime. 

“Music is the movement of sound to reach the soul for the education of it’s virtue.”

-       Plato 

Gearing Up to Rock the Run

I recently became the newest addition to the Ear Candy team. Fresh out of graduate school at ASU, I felt eager and excited to become a contributing member of the organization and was more than ready to hit the ground running. Well, I soon found out Ear Candy Charity became one of the official charities of the P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon & Half Marathon, taking place Sunday January 20, 2013. So what better way to hit the ground running than, well, to be literally running?

I have had every excuse in the book to not have run a half marathon in the past, obviously because "I'm not a runner." Oh, and you know, "I just don't have time." On top of which, "I'll never be able to fundraise that much". And my personal favorite, "I hate running!"

This time, I’m out of excuses because I’ve decided to run the P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona half marathon not only for myself but in support of music education. As part of Ear Candy Charity's Rock the Run team, it will be 12 weeks of training combined with fundraising. I’ve never run a half marathon before, but knowing that all the funds I raise will be going towards helping Ear Candy’s programs to support youth have access to music education, just might be exactly what I need to help get me through all 13.1 miles.

If you want to join me and Rock the Run with Ear Candy, check out our web page for all the details about the race and program: Ear Candy Charity - Rock the Run. 

As part of the Ear Candy team, you'll get:

• 4-months optional race training
• Nutrition and hydration support to ensure injury free training
• An official Ear Candy Team Shirt 
• A Dri-Fit Ear Candy team jersey to wear on race day
• Invitation to a complimentary team pasta dinner two nights before the race

Throughout the 12 weeks of training, I'll be posting updates about the Rock the Run team. So stay tuned and follow along, and hopefully we'll see you at the start line!