Author: Janell Weaver

Our fourth year was a tremendous success! There were 170 participants out there who braved the chill and covered 1596.8 miles.

Let me say that again for emphasis.

Collectively, in our three hour event, you all ran/walked 1596.8 miles. That’s over 500 miles an hour!!! And if we had been on a plane together we would have flown from R. B. Winter State Park to Denver, Colorado!  We also had 42 Virtual Participants in twenty different states plus one who ran in Canada.  I am completely blown away!  You are all amazing.

CJ’s Participants- photos courtesy Charlie Guttendorf

Last Friday night I was able to donate $6000 to this year’s beneficiary!  ADERS, or Autism Diagnostic Evaluations Resources Services, Inc., is a 501c3 nonprofit located in Montandon, PA whose mission is to be able to provide comprehensive autism services from diagnosis across the lifespan. They have several ambitious projects on the horizon, including renovations to a newly acquired large meeting space (which have begun!), a pilot social skills program for elementary kids, a day habilitation program, professional trainings, and much needed social events for people who are affected by ASD (they have an event coming up next month!) Please check out and ‘like’ their Facebook page.

Cullen handed Steve the check with a “Here ya go!!!”

As usual, I’d like to share some of my favorite comments from this year’s participants.

“I have to say that this was the most organized, friendly, and all around awesome race I have ever been to. I was absolutely freezing, and I stopped in to warm up with a half a bowl of soup and bread between laps and everyone was so friendly! The soups were FANTASTIC!!! I couldn’t believe how much food, snacks, and drinks you had available. The volunteers were so cheerful, even though they were probably freezing. I hope you continue with this race and I will definitely see you next year!” Heather

“I wanted to say thank you so much for organizing such an awesome event for a great cause. This race was so much fun! The energy facilitated by the dedicated runners and organizers would make anyone hyped up enough to run for 3 hours. It was so encouraging and exciting to see so many people come together to promote physical activity and autism awareness. This is a very unique combination! The positive energy and determination of the runners and volunteers was super motivating and inspiring. It made the weather conditions more tolerable!! I can’t wait for next year!”  Arielle W.

“Thanks for a great race this past weekend! And congrats to all the participants who toughed it out on a very chilly day!  Funny how a 1.6 mile loop can fly by, and before you know…you’ve run 20 miles!” Kelly H.

“I loved it!! What a fun event…even in the cold!!! I’ve never been to a race that is designed for the casual exerciser and the competitive runner! It was neat to see so many doing what works for them!! And it was my first trail “jog” in the snow!!!  Whether it is about resolving the challenges of autism or about your personal resolutions for the new year (or both)…don’t miss this run next year!!!  The food was free, the music was fun, the course is flat, the PEOPLE were fantastic, the fire was warm, the T is a keeper, and the cause is meaningful!!!  Thanks so much to everyone that came.  You would love this race because you can go farther or stop early, take a break and go again…it was fun!!” Christy R.

“Year four of CJ’s Challenge to benefit Autism charities. Collin and I have run every year. We love this three hour challenge on the trails at RB Winter State Park. The temp at the start of the race was a balmy 15′ degrees which was warm compared to the -8 our first year when Collin was only 11! Thank you for organizing this race and choosing a cause that is near and dear to my heart.  See you in 2018!” Tracy W.

“I ran more today then I have the entire month of December. I did 16 miles for a great charity for Autism, CJ’s Resolutions Challenge in a chilly 15 or so degrees on trail dotted with ice patches. It wasn’t easy and I’m definitely way out of shape but I’m happy with the distance I covered and glad that I was able to help out for this great cause and see some of my good running friends. Thanks for organizing this great event and also to all the friendly volunteers who helped out to make it a great success!”  Paul H.

“One of my favorite running events provided over 9.5 miles of icy trails and frigid temperatures but the people at this event have the biggest hearts and are so supportive! Happy to have spent the morning with many friendly faces raising money to support local autism charities! Great job as usual putting on a fantastic event!” Michele B.

Feedback like that helps keep us going.  I thank you all for your kind words.  Also, a special thank you to the Mifflinburg Community Ambulance Company for being available to come to our aid as needed. Thank you to Charlie for taking photos throughout the day. Thank you to all the volunteers who arrived early and stayed late to ensure a great event. Thank you A.W. Entertainment for the music- we loved it! Thank you to our Super Soup Ladies- that soup was oh so yummy and oh so necessary!

Nom nom!

An event like this simply could not be put together by a single person.  I could never say the words “thank you” enough to express how much gratitude I have for each and every one of you who helps make this race happen.  To my friends and family, runners, spectators, and volunteers who have for four years now, voluntarily froze beside me on the mountain, you believe that this is more than just a race.  You understand that we do this to honor my son, to shine a light on autism, to have the conversations that make an impact, to connect someone to the resources they may need, and to build a network of support that could last lifetimes.

And yes, we have a ton of fun, but surely, this is more than just a race.

See you next year!

The third race has come and gone and seems to be an annual favorite among area runners.  I thought it would be fun to present a recap in a “CJ’s-By-The-Numbers” format.   So here ya go!

3 – number of years CJ’s Resolution Challenge has been in existence

1617.6 – miles run by all those runners this year

Photos courtesy of R. Glendye, Precious Moments Photography

Finally. The post about CJ’s Inaugural Resolution Challenge.

For those of you not in the know, this was a fundraising event that was first dreamed up back in September, but didn’t take on the form of a race until October. It was a lot of work, but it was well worth all the effort. So, after two and a half months of a lot (a lot, a lot) of planning and organizing, CJ’s Inaugural Resolution Challenge was held on Saturday, January 4th, 2014 at R. B. Winter State Park, Mifflinburg, PA. My best friends Crystal and Joe came to stay at our house as well as my Power Strangers teammates Jamie and Mike. I was so glad to have them here, because this group of people have run enough races that I knew their expertise would be priceless to me. We marked the course and hung tarps on the pavilion on Friday. It was bitterly cold and there was some fresh snow on the ground, but the freeze was really beautiful.

We had 66 people pre-registered for the race, and ended up with 77. Some were registered for RC Revolutions, a three hour event in which participants aim to complete as many laps of the 1.6 mile course as possible. Others chose the Last Man Standing. Held on the same course, this three hour event was formatted much differently. Participants ran timed laps that progressively got one minute faster than the one before it. We had prizes for the top three men and women in each event. Those who ran the most laps in RC Revolutions ended up running a little over 22 miles!!! And the top two runners in the Last Man Standing ran a total of 19.2 miles with their last lap being their fastest at a 6:19 pace!!! We got a lot of great feedback afterwards, below are my favorites!

“Awesome race this morning despite the tad bit chilly temperatures! A big thank you to Janell Weaver and all the volunteers that made this happen! I loved the format! Something new that I would have never thought of doing! Great job by everyone involved!” ~Sean MacMillen

“I could not agree more!!! Great job to everyone involved with making this happen. Highly recommend this event for next year. Even though it was a little chilly at 1 degree this morning they had 70+ runners come out and support this race. Race was definitely a unique challenge regardless of what format you ran.” ~John Johnson

“Loved this race! Do it again please!”~Tracy Wright

“Loved the format, perfect for the time of year and the weather. We had a great time, thank you!” ~ Janine Gusztaw

“Very enjoyable day. Congrats to all. Will be looking for this one next year.” ~ Shawn Brown

“It was 1 degree when we arrived at CJs Challenge in Mifflinburg…had a super great time despite the cold!” ~ Leanne Levesque

“Awesome race! I had a great time today, and I’m already looking forward to next year. To all the central PA runners out there – put this race on your calendar next year.” ~ Tom Cali

“Seven words – Do not miss this race next year. It was tough but a blast. The race was well organized, the trail was well marked, and the soup at the end was great. Now if they could only get the temps into the 60s so we could run in shorts and t-shirts, it would be perfect.” from Nittany Valley Running Club

You heard them, they want more! And I intend to give it to them! CJ’s Resolution Challenge will become an annual event that I hope will only continue to grow and evolve. Tentatively mark your calendars for the 2nd Annual CJ’s Resolution Challenge for January 3, 2015. I’ll do it as long as I can and as long as there is interest. But so far I haven’t mentioned the outcome of the fundraising side of all this. Was it successful? You bet it was! Through the sale of CJ Elephants, cash donations, basket raffle and race proceeds, we grossed nearly $10,500 for Operation Jack Autism Foundation and Geisinger’s Autism & Developmental Medicine Institute. In addition, we also received a $2000 donation for ADMI! A grand total close to $12,500 raised to fight autism. It was more than I could have dared to hope for. When I left the event site the day of the race, when everything was done, I just felt this overwhelming sense of gratitude. It was over. It was successful. I am still so grateful to everyone who helped in anyway, large or small. It all meant something to me. I’m grateful to my cousin Ange for being the first to sign up. I’m grateful to my mom and grandma for sewing over 280 elephants. I’m grateful for Sam from Operation Jack for the amount of time he spent helping me with all sorts of race details and for making the trip to be there on race day. I’m grateful for Megan, the community liaison from ADMI for bringing out information about autism. I’m grateful to the daycare staff from the Milton YMCA who care for my children as they would their own, and cared so much that they formed a team to race. I’m grateful to Ami G., CJ’s teacher, whose enthusiasm poured out to other parents. I’m grateful to Kristen B., another autism mom, who shared her story (and a few hugs and tears) with me. I’m grateful to the Mid Penn Trail Blazers, whose support really gave me flight. I’m grateful to my friend Kelli, whose birthday wish was for others to come race with her. I’m grateful to Amey J. for jumping in and helping with registration. I’m grateful for my sister Brandi and her boyfriend Kevin for doing some publicizing and making some awesome signs. I’m grateful to every single runner and walker who braved the arctic temperatures and for their enthusiasm through it all. There are so many people who deserve to be personally named that I know I’m forgetting. Please know how appreciative I am of your contributions. And mostly I’m just so grateful to God. He planted this idea and gave me faith. He inspired a lot of other people, and that gives me hope.

Thank you.

Wouldn’t it be great if I could go to a big box store and pick up whatever was needed for CJ’s Resolution Challenge, throw it in my cart, check out, and head home with everything needed to make it a fun, safe, successful day?!  Well here in Reality World it doesn’t work out that easily, but maybe YOU can help me out with that.  Presenting the RC Wish List!

Coffee and breakfast items for the start
Hot lunch & Gatorade (and maybe more hot coffee) for the finish
Paper items to eat from
Cash to cover the cost of insurance
Water to keep runners/ walkers thoroughly hydrated
Race bibs and safety pins
Timing clock (just on loan!)
EMTs to volunteer their time and skill
Resources for printed materials (ie flyers, race waivers, etc.)
Signs for direction from road
A way to mark the course
Two outdoor space heaters
Cash to cover ordering the event shirts
One DJ to volunteer his/her time and talents
Enough port-a-johns to support participants on race day (w/ TP and sanitizer!)
Items for basket raffle- gift cards, hand made crafts, business gift baskets…. whatever!

Think you could help?  Contact us today!