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Dear Friends and Members of Club Fat Ass,
It's almost December! Yikes, where has the year gone? With gray days and lots of running in the rain, it's time to think positive and start planning our training and racing for 2010.
Please remember to get your club registration in before 1 December to be included in the draw for a membership refund. The other deadline not to miss is the custom order for Club garments this year. If you'd like a collector's edition no-stink, long-sleeve 2009 CFA t-shirt, be sure to sign-up to the Club before 31 December 2009.
Do you have Christmas presents for everyone on your "A" list yet? (What do you mean you've not even given it a thought? What do you think about on those long runs, anyway?) An annual membership in Club Fat Ass is a gift that gives all year long. If your loved one's needs are more along the lines of a hoodie, BBQ apron or (gasp!) a thong, check out the Club Fat Ass store for great gift ideas or get the classic CFA shirts here!
Don't forget that winners of our 2009 contests will be determined at the end of December. While the time for 2009 running resolutions is past and it's late in the season for earning Club participation points, everyone still has a chance to win a membership refund in the travelling t-shirt contest or a foot care package from our friends at Kintec Footlabs in the Refer a Friend contest . Make sure you have your photo contributions up on Flickr (or send it to me) and promote them with your friends for the best chance to win. More about our contests in the newsletter below.
Happy Trails,
Sibylle Tinsel
Chief Executive Fat Ass
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UPCOMING EVENTS
 Flash - Foolish Gerbil 100 Mile Trail Run. 21 November - Vancouver, BC. A 100 mile run on the trails in Pacific Spirit Park. Join The Fools for a loop, or two, or three....or 16. Great training for the Vancouver New Year's Day 50km. Find out more here.
Seymour Super Fun Run: 28 November - North Vancouver, BC. A late fall challenge not to be missed. Check it out here.
Photo left: Some of The Fools running in circles during last year's Foolish Gerbil series.
Photo right: It doesn't happen often, but sometimes the sun shines on the Pure Satisfaction trails
 Pure Satisfaction: 13 December - North Vancouver, BC. 12km or 24km on slippery, wet, rooty, dark trails...the perfect way to start the busy Christmas season. Bring your jingle bells and wear your Santa hat. Details here.
Galbraith Mountain Tour. 19 December - Bellingham, WA. A 5.8 or 20-mile trail run on the Lake Padden & Galbraith Mountain trail systems. Prepare for the lack of stairs, boulders, roots and bears but with all the fun of the true single track. If we have clear weather there will be amazing views of Mt. Baker, San Juan Islands & the Northshore mountains of Vancouver. More details here.
Photo left: The Coquitlam Fat Asses out in full force on New Year's Day
 Vancouver New Year's FA 50 Run. 1 January 2010 - Vancouver, BC, Canada. A 50 km resolution run to kick off the New Year on the right foot. Those who are more hung-over and those with resolutions they are not likely to keep can opt for a custom course of 1 to 49 km. More details here!
NEWS
2010 Membership Registration. Registration and Renewal for Club Fat Ass for 2010 is open! As an incentive to register early all members who sign up/renew before 1 December will be entered into a draw for a membership refund. While you can join CFA all year round, now is the best time as you will get in on the order for the special, no-stink, long-sleeve, member designed 2010 collectors Club shirt.
New members can participate in all remaining events in 2009 as well as all of the 50+ free events the Club offers during 2010.
2010 Club Garment. As always, your membership dues include a special Club garment. Our very own Club Fat Ass Wear shirt is designed by CFA member Vanessa Fors and cut, sewn and screened in Vancouver, Canada. As in previous years, we expect to have the new shirts ready for mail-out toward the end of February. To make sure you get the limited edition 2010 Club colours, you must sign up before December 31st, as that's when the order goes in. Don't miss out, sign up now!
CFA Steering Committee. Our Steering Committee Open House a few weeks ago saw an enthusiastic crowd with great ideas. Craig proposed to be the liaison for Club Fat Ass' training runs with 5 Peaks, Evelyn is figuring out fun ways to engage old and new members via Social Media and Reagan is going to look at our events from the perspective of a new member.
We still have room for your creativity and ideas. Actually, let me reword this, we NEED your creativity and ideas. Scared of meetings? Not to worry. We meet to discuss a certain topic every other month and meetings last only 90min. Drop me a line if you'd like to get involved.
TECH TIPS
New Navigation. Have you noticed our revamped website navigation? We believe this is a more logical way to organize information on our online clubhouse and that it will be easier for you to find the stuff you want. This was one of several steps we have been busily planning and prepping behind the scenes.
The next phase will involve a different look for the main content area, also with the goal of making it a breeze to quickly find the important stuff like upcoming events, reports and your favorite member stories.
We'll wrap things up with a new coat of paint sometime in the New Year. Thanks for all of you who have contributed to the planning with ideas, suggesting features or pointing out short falls. Of course, you can still give us feedback and contribute anytime!
GPS Maps. Wouldn't it be nice if all our events could provide GPS course coordinates? We rely on you to make this happen. If you used a GPS device to record a CFA event, please send us the GPX file, a map image and/or a link to the map you created. We'll add this to the course page to supplement our course descriptions.
CFA ON THE WEB
    
PAST EVENT RESULTS AND REPORTS
Bagger Challenge 2009: Event Host - David Crerar. Congratulations to Ken Legg, winner of the Munro Quaich for the inaugural 2009 Baggers' Challenge
If dogs run free, then why not we
Across the swooping plain?
My ears hear a symphony
Of two mules, trains and rain.
The best is always yet to come,
That's what they explain to me.
Just do your thing, you'll be king,
If dogs run free.
Read more about the 2009 Bagger Challenge here.
Photo right: Bagger Ken hoist the champagne bottle to celebrate victory
Photo left: A wet start to the 2009 Get Your FA Off the Couch
 Ann's Get your FA Off the Couch: Event Host - Ann Taylor. Thanks to all who endured another balmy monsoon at Ann's Get Your Fat Ass off the Couch.
Seventeen hardass runners... and Benny the ultradog.... "gleefully" started the run soon to be renamed Pineapple Express! Gottfried greeted our runners at the top of Homestead with some tasty snacks...Thank you Gottfried!! Full results, photos and report here.  Photo right: Sunrise at Dundarave Beach during the Seawall 100
Seawall 100: Event Host - Lucinda Iglesias. It was a beautiful fall day in Vancouver, the kind of day that you just want to hit the road and put the pedal to the metal…and get a speeding ticket. But that was nothing compared to the frustration of not being able to run, thanks to H1N1. Lucinda and I organized that run so that I could do a 100 miler among the so pleasant territory of my daily runs but ironically I haven’t able to run any of it so far. More here.
 Adventure Slideshow: Speaker Event thanks to Kintec Footlabs. It was a full house for the Club Fat Ass Adventure Slideshow and Year End Social. Members, members-to-be, spouses and friends, kids and dogs came out to share stories and photos of their outdoor adventures over the past year. More here.
Photoleft: Hannover from north Slope of Hat on the HSCT
Flash - Coldstream Chilly Willy 100: Event Host - Lorie Alexander. Better late then never. I have been waiting for the results of the relay groups and list of names but they seem to be fast on running and slow on submitting. They certainly know how to have a good time so I'll make an exception for them "Kal RATS" this time. Chilly Willy was a great success and a lot of fun if I do say so myself. The course was amazing and beautiful as I promised hills and more hills with the added tumble weeds every time the wind blew.Continue here.
 Flash - The Silly Chili Triathlon: Event Hosts - Ean Jackson and Sibylle Tinsel. The Run. 13 starters. All finished. When we met at Griffin gym, it was pouring, but the rain mercifully stopped for an hour as we did intervals on Mosquito Creek trail. Keegan Freeland was the speedster of the group. The Swim. 17 starters. Nobody drowned. After a few laps, most of us played pile-on the plastic raft and Dads against the dudes. At one point there were 5 kids and 4 parents on-board. The Chili Cook Off. It was a full house this year with well over 35 people and 15 fabulous chilies. (Regrets to those who were turned away... no more room in the kitchen!) More here.
Photo right: Ean's Boy Buff Chili - no beans and no ground meat
Photo left: New member Heather enjoying the trails during the Go Deep
 Go Deep: Event Host - Cheryl Johnson. What can you say about a wonderful run with a great bunch of people on a day made for running. It was sweet! Sweet Go Deep is a great, great course. To make it even better 15 of my favorite Fat Assses came out to the start, including two new members. Welcome Heather and Scott!
The weather was cool with traces of snow in the air on the higher trails. The trails were nearly empty - maybe that's why no one claimed garbage points - and higher up a layer of crusty snow and ice made for an additional challenge. Full results here.
Please check out other past results and reports here.
CONTESTS
 2009 Travelling Colours Contest. Don't miss your chance to submit you pictures of your 2009 adventures wearing your Club shirt (any colour, any year) The winner of this popular contest will receive a full refund of his or her 2010 Club membership dues. Pictures of your 2009 adventures wearing your Club shirt (any colour) can be posted to Flickr following the instructions here. All submissions to date are posted here. Please feel free to comment on photos or add them to your Flickr faves. The image recording most views/comments and faves (as determined by Flickr) will win this years contest.
2009 Point Series. Craig has been scheming and scamming collecting photo and garbage points and officially surpassed Yours Truly and "Back in Action" Jackson. Up-to-date standings here. Read here about how to collect points and win a pair of spanking new trail shoes. Point collection will end 19th of December, all points submitted/collected after that date will count for 2010.
Refer a Friend Contest. This contest is intended to recognize those hyper-active Club members who share their love of Club events by dragging along their friends. Tell them on a run. Tell them at work. Tell them when they ask about your Club colors at the gym. Tell them in person or tell them on Facebook. However you tell them, be sure to tell them you told them... because you could win a SOLE footcare package valued at over $200! Check out the simple Refer a Friend Contest rules and meet the competition here. Currently in the lead is Kristie Congram, followed by Tim Wiens and Gary Robbins.
CAUSES YOUR CLUB SUPPORTS
If you have any causes close to your heart and want to raise awareness and/or funds let us know. A number of CFA Event Hosts use their events as fund raisers. Be sure to consider the special section on the Club website that offers ideas on how to raise money for your favorite cause while hosting a free CFA event.
North Shore Rescue. NSR is a volunteer Mountain Search and Rescue Team based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The team consists of approximately 40 volunteers skilled in search and rescue operations in mountain, canyon and urban settings. A few of our members are also NSR members. We'd like to continue our record of not using their services and rather help with their promotion of back country safety. NSR depending on your donations... consider a few bucks donated as a life insurance policy for yourself or a loved one!
Run for the Cure. The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation CIBC Run for the Cure is Canada's largest single day, volunteer-led fundraising event dedicated to raising funds for breast cancer research, education, and awareness programs. If you would like to support one of your fellow members, please click here.
Easter Seals 24 Relay. The Easter Seals 24 Hour Relay is an annual community based fundraising event that challenges groups of people to run or walk Relay-style for 24 hours. Teams of runners and/or walkers made up of Corporate and Recreational groups collect individual pledges or organize team fundraising events to raise funds towards their collective team totals.
CFA member, Glenn Pace, again ran the 24 hour relay (this time he completed 110 Miles) to raise funds for less fortunate children. Here the link to his fundraising page. Read about his 2008 adventure here.
BC Lung Association. Event Host, Craig Moore, uses his events to raise awareness and funds for the BC Lung Association.
Mary Leliveld Tri BC Fund. Mary was a friend and member of CFA. The fund was established in her memory to help deserving athletes get to competitions they otherwise might not be able to race in.
PRPAWS (Powell River Parks and Wilderness Society
The boys who ran the Sunshine Coast Trail 180 in 2003 and 2004 vowed to help raise funds for PRPAWS, a society that aims to protect old growth forest in the Powell River area. You can help, too, by participating in the Marathon Shuffle.
SPONSORS
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CFA does not sell or otherwise distribute our member list.
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