Welcome to the Captain’s Blog

We’re delighted to introduce Marc Chalufour as our new Resident Blogger. As you’ll see from his bio, Marc has a rich history with REACH The Beach spanning over a decade so we’re thrilled to have him on board. Please set your RSS readers to follow him and feel free to ask any questions, submit your blog posts and share through your Facebook and Twitter feeds. Here are Marc’s first words…

I repeat certain stories so often it annoys even my closest friends. Stories about adventures they didn’t experience, or things I’m amused by… but they aren’t. However, the story I tell most is one they’re just as guilty of repeating: running the 2000 Reach the Beach Relay. Twelve years later, we’ve buffed and polished these tales to a bright sheen. Running RTB, especially for the first time, is just one of those experiences. You’ll want to relive it for years.

Needless to say, I’m honored and excited that the RTB organizers have asked me to write for them this winter and spring. Their race is one of my favorite topics. Since that first RTB I’ve run on 11 other teams, most of them with fellow Haverford College alums. Each year has been unique, generating a whole new set of stories. And sharing those stories has drawn new generations into the race. This past fall we had so much interest we fielded three teams (pictured below). And the moment the race ended, before our muscles had even tightened up, we started looking toward 2012. What could we do differently to run a little faster or place a little higher or field FOUR teams? It’s a weekend you think about year-round. It’s just one of those experiences.

This blog will document the process of assembling and planning a team for this spring’s Massachusetts RTB. Hopefully I’ve learned a few things worth sharing. But RTB is a complex event. There’s no one right way to do it. So I’m also excited to learn from some of the other captains. I hope this blog will become a place where veteran team captains can swap advice and ideas and rookies can ask for advice.

So, with that all said—welcome. I hope you’ll be reading, questioning, and commenting regularly. And, to all of my friends reading this: You’ll probably be hearing from me soon. I’ve got 11 roster spots to fill.

~ Marc Chalufour December 27 2011