When feeling happy, heading out for a run increases the joy; on the flip side, a good run can also chase away the blues. The run is one of life's great coping tools, truly a gift to those of us who run. When the bombs went off in Boston, we headed out and ran, when our friend Amy was fighting for her life after being hit by a truck, we ran. Grief shared is grief diminished, we grieved, we shared. As I listened to the tragic news story of the 19 firefighters killed in the line of duty I felt the need to run, to think... I was struck by the thought of why we build memorials and how important it is to have a place to share our sense of loss and to give tribute to those who gave their all. I've mentioned recently that a new memorial for local fallen first responders will be dedicated on October 5th at the corner of Hines Drive and Haggerty Road with the first running of the "Heroes on Hines" half marathon and 5K, where all proceeds from the event will go to cover the cost and ongoing upkeep of the memorial. The memorial will be a place for families to grieve and a place for the community to come together. Please join us as the running community once again comes together for each other. Commit now at heroesonhines.com

Run for them,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who is proud of our great fitness community

P.S. Heroes on Hines is perfect for a last long run, two weeks out from the Detroit Free Press events. Many of us will run some miles before the start to get in our final long marathon training run, more info to come on this.

P.S. Selection of the 50 Best Running Stores in America is underway! Vote for Running Fit!