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behind-the-scenes
This weekend Oiselle was honored to be the apparel sponsor for the inaugural women's ReTREAT put on by Beth Brewster owner of Kingston Adventures in Kingston, WA. I went to represent Oiselle and Beth me up for the weekend (in the cozy laundry room) even though the retreat was sold out. That means I got to participate in the ReTREAT as well as get really great feedback on what women love and hate about running shorts in a focus group on Saturday afternoon.
I have never been to a retreat like this and was anxious to see what it was all about. The purpose of the weekend was to share our goals, dreams and also problem solve the obstacles we face in accomplishing them. Amidst the goal sharing and thoughtful discussions was a lot of fun, including standup paddle boarding, trail running, yoga, and belly dancing. Yes. Belly dancing.
My favorite moments from the weekend were really hard to narrow down, but here we go in no particular order.
- Swag. My friends know I'm a swag nut. From lotion samples at a marathon expo to ... real swag like this. Of course each gal got a Oiselle 50/50 running tee and a pair of running shorts. Sweet. Plus trailshoes from GoLite, compression calf sleeves from RecoFIT (I wore them on two runs - great!), Bonk Breaker bars, Run Like A Mother book, Amphipod water bottles and more!
- Food! Molly Ward Farms catered lunch and dinner. The Cup & Muffin did coffee and breakfast. I was so spoiled this weekend it was a harsh reality to not have steal cut oats and coffee waiting for me this morning...
- Meeting one half of Run Like A Mother: Sarah Bowen Shae.
- Getting feedback on running shorts in general and Oiselle's in specific. Got to keep the fast ladies happy.
- Stand Up Paddle Boarding (SUP). So fun! We even did pushups and plank on the boards.
- Belly dancing lessons. My face was sore from laughing and smiling that whole hour!!
- Running, of course. The trails were beautiful on Saturday with all the ladies. And on Sunday morning at 6:30am Beth (our host) drove me out 13 miles and dropped me off. Holy hills, headwind and rain - but it was great to get my 15 (I added on) done on a new and very challenging route.
- Goal Setting. The first night's ceremony was beautiful. These women are so inspiring. The obstacles they have overcome and the ones I know they will... wow! Strong, beautiful women are my heroes. There was a lot I could learn from everyone there.
- Yoga - ahhh best way to end a 15 mile run.
- Getting to know all these gals. What a ridiculously fun group!
There are more photos in our Flickr album. Also stay tuned, Beth will be putting on more retreats this year and we'll let you know about them.
