Almonds are a popular snack not just because they are nutrient-rich, but primarily because they are crunchy and taste yummy. In this day and age when snacks are replacing meals, you want to reach for good tasting, health-promoting snacks. Almonds can fit that bill!

My name is Michael Reynolds and I run races, fun runs, and workouts with you in Central Ohio. These are my observations and impressions of running as well as inputs from all the interactions with my fellow runners.

For my first 21 years of covering high school sports, I came to understand an unspoken language with varsity coaches when they uttered one word:

It is often said that running is an individual sport and to a great extent running is a very personal and individual sport. However, even though an individual trains and races, there are usually many others behind the scenes that lend a helping hand. Without others to help support, running performance would certainly be compromised and even enjoyment of the sport of running would be compromised as well. As an old African proverb says, "to go fast, go alone; to go far, go together". Yes, it's true, even though running is individual, there is really a team behind the individual.

Let Your Mind Run, A Memoir of Thinking My Way to Victory, a book written by Deena Kastor and Michelle Hamilton, will entertain, inspire, and educate its readers. The story of Deena’s career, from an age group and high school phenom, through her collegiate experience and her post-graduate years, will provide readers with a story of the successes and failures that led her to the top of her sport; however, I found the best part of the book to be the description of physical tenacity and mental toughness that she possessed and how these attributes continued to develop and reach new heights under the guidance of Joe Vigil, one of America’s greatest distance coaches.

Rod O’Donnell - If you are reading RUNOHIO, you are most likely someone who is interested in running, but you may not understand that cross-country is a great sport. It doesn’t always get the attention that it truly deserves, and, at times, those who are passionate about it don’t communicate how special this sport really is.

Mark your race calendar to run or volunteer for the 31st Circleville Classic 5 Miler - Saturday October 20th (held on the Saturday of the Circleville Pumpkin Show).  Race starts and finishes at the Circleville High School.  Proceeds benefit the Jeff McGowan and Jean McGowan Memorial Scholarship.

Matt McGowan, a 31 year old full time business teacher/department chairman and coach at Bishop Watterson High School in Columbus has had a lifelong interest in running. Matt first got involved with running in grade school in Wheeling, Illinois. In junior high, Matt ran the dashes. However, after his oldest brother, Bill, broke the Circleville High School 880 yard run record, Matt was moved up to that event.

Mission Statement: To encourage health and wellness among African American men by promoting a culture of running/jogging to stay fit resulting in “A Healthy Brotherhood”