Gallagher Fitness Resources, New Balance and West Coast Bank invite you to attend“Keep Breaking Barriers!” presented by Kathrine Switzer. This special event will be Wednesday, April 9, 2008 from 5 to 8pm at the Reed Opera House – Trinity Ballroom in downtown Salem, 189 Liberty St NE, Salem, OR 97301. Get directions.

Who should attend? Anyone! This is for women and men, boys and girls. You don’t have to be a runner or a marathoner to benefit from this dynamic presentation. Kathrine Switzer’s message and Marathon Woman is “not really about running: it’s about overcoming the impossible and changing lives.”

Enjoy a Meet & Greet Cocktail Hour and Appetizers, Presentation, Questions and Answers, and Book Signing. T-shirts specially designed for this event will be available for sale. See design above. They are New Balance women’s short-sleeved, non-cotton, technical t-shirts. Proceeds will go to a scholarship fund for the Women’s Beginning Walking & Running Clinic – 10-Year Anniversary! at Gallagher Fitness Resources. Switzer’s book, Marathon Womanwill also be available for sale.

Click here for Marathon Woman Press Release. (PDF)

Ticket Sales begin in February. Please call 503-364-4198 for information or stop in at Gallagher Fitness Resources, 135 Commercial St NE, after Feb 1st. Only 250 seats available! They will go fast!

Click here for a printable flyer of “Keep Breaking Barriers!” (PDF)

Click here for a text version of the flyer (also PDF)

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Known as the first woman to officially register and complete the famous Boston Marathon in 1967, Switzer was physically attacked mid-race by the race director simply because she was a female running in what was then considered an all-male event, in an all-male domain, in an era when women were considered incapable of running 26.2 miles. The galvanizing photos of this incident were flashed around the planet and have become one of Time-Life’s 100 Photos that Changed the World.

The incident changed Switzer’s life and, consequently, the lives of millions of women – and men – everywhere because it inspired her to challenge myth and misconception about women’s physical limitation. She became a world-class athlete, running 35 marathons including winning the New York City Marathon, and then created over 400 races in 27 countries for a million women and led a movement to make the women’s marathon an official event in the Olympic Games.

The first Women’s Beginning Walking and Running Clinic at Gallagher Fitness Resources started in May of 1998. Clinic director, Susan Gallagher, is committed to women’s fitness and had a vision to help women make a difference in their lives. She wanted them to have the opportunity to experience the many benefits of walking and running, including improved self-confidence. An accomplished runner, Susan was ready for her personal training to take a “back door” and to “give back” to the sport and to the community.

Originally, there was only one 12-week clinic planned. It was in preparation for an all women’s event in Portland, Oregon called the Avon Running Global Women’s Circuit, including a 5K walk or a 10K run. The result has been a biannual 12-week clinic in which hundreds of women have experienced the countless rewards of walking and running. It has become a permanent fixture at Gallagher Fitness Resources and is a favorite exercise option for women in the Salem area community.

Kathrine Switzer, being the brain child of the Avon Running Global Women’s Circuit, was both inspirational and influential in getting the first Women’s Clinic off the ground at Gallagher Fitness Resources. In July, 1998, she was here in Salem to help us celebrate the culmination of our inaugural Women’s Clinic. She was a source of inspiration for us to continue offering the clinic to the women in the Willamette Valley. We are honored to have Kathrine back to help us celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Women’s Clinic and invite you to join us in this celebration!