I Want America's Best Summer Job in Vail!

Hanging creekside at the 2013 GoPro Mountain Games

It might be one of the most overused phrases about Vail: "You come for the winters but stay for the summers." I've heard it, I've had it repeated to me at media events, I've read it, I've even experienced a weekend of it at last summer's GoPro Mountain Games. But what's so appealing about a place that was built specifically for skiing during the one season that's not for skiing?

There must be something special about that mountain flora and fauna that makes those snow seekers stay. And Vail wants one person to find out this summer and share those experiences--and get paid for it--in 10 weeks at America's Best Summer Job.

Win a Summer Running Kit!

Just one of the items in the Ultimate Running Kit.

Now I know why I avoid gear-focused websites like Gear Junkie and The Gear Institute. One visit to Gear Patrol this morning (how have I not stumbled upon it before?) and I'm lusting over sunglasses, shoes and compression socks. What's worse is that Gear Patrol's ultimate summer running kit, complete with a head-to-toe look and all the running accessories one could need, isn't even designed for me, a female runner. It features the best performance gear of the season for guys--it's the gear the guys behind the site are wearing.

But even so, this gear-obsessed gal wants it anyway. Like the 110% compression socks, the Oakley sunglasses, the Timex Ironman trainer, the Ultimate Direction hydration vest, the Strava app--and I'd take the New Balance clothing and K-Swiss shoes if I could get the female version. Good news for me and other gear-obsessed runners out there: We have a chance to win it!

110%, the company that makes the Overdrive Compression Sox featured in the kit, is giving away the items curated by Gear Patrol to one lucky winner. All you have to do is enter here. And even if you don't win the grand prize, 10 entrants can score 110%'s Overdrive Sox, a recovery tool that's great for when you "want to boost circulation and muscle repair," according to Gear Patrol. I'm sold on the Overdrive alone--compression socks are paired with sleeves that can hold ice inserts in all the key spots, arch, toes, ankle, calf and shin.

OK, so our odds can't be great for winning the grand prize (I swear I never win anything involving chance), but the chance of winning is still too good to pass up. Right? Enter to win by clicking here.  

Photo grabbed from 110%.

Bump, Set, Spike for The Journey

It might be an Olympics year--my favorite kind of year--but I'm about to sound really stupid about a sport primarily highlighted during the Games. I'd like to think that I watch a lot of Olympic sports except volleyball's not one of them. Beach volleyball, a little, but only because Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor and the gripping men's competition in Beijing were too exciting not to watch, and they often played between the swimming coverage. But indoor volleyball, no. It's no one's fault but my own--I think I'm still scarred from the weeks of volleyball we had to play in high school gym class where I whacked someone on the head two courts away and knocked his hat off (an embarrassingly true story).

I might be less into volleyball than I am into swimming, skiing and running, as far as Olympic sports go, but a contest that Mizuno launched has me wishing I could pull a 13 Going on 30 number and wake up tomorrow as a teenager, and a volleyball-playing one at that. And if we're going all-out with the fantasies, I'd want to defy my family's genetics that err on the side of shortness. But dreamland aside, it's the contest that has me excited even without being a volleyballer.

Mizuno created The Journey, an online contest for young volleyball players, as a way to celebrate its partnership with the USA Men's and Women's National Indoor Volleyball team. The Journey encourages volleyball players to submit video diaries, photos and essays about how they've been shaped by the competitive sport. From this collection of inspiring stories, Mizuno will award a volleyball clinic to the grand prize winner's team in his or her hometown, conducted by a USA Volleyball team member. Entrants also have the opportunity to win Mizuno Volleyball footwear, apparel and accessories. All for sharing their stories of competitive drive and passion. If that's not inspiring for someone who has aspirations to earn a spot on the national team then I don't know what is.

Freebie Friday: Score a Clif Gift

I can't decide if I'm more excited about the arrival of Memorial Day weekend--because around here it's really easy to stay active outdoors the entire weekend--or the announcement of Fit-Ink's first-ever giveaway. Judging from the weather report I saw earlier this morning (rain and cold--again--followed by temps nearing 90), I'm going with the latter. Once you read more about this giveaway, I think you'll agree that I made the right choice.

Thanks to our friends at CLIF Bar and their Meet the Moment celebration of adventures, we're giving away our first item, two years in the making you could say, at Fit-Ink. Maybe I shouldn't be making such a big deal about it because in the grand scheme of things that probably seems pathetic to only be offering up a giveaway now. But hey, no complaints from us--we love freebies especially when we can share them with others. And we love CLIF--I can't leave for a hiking trip without a supply of Oatmeal Raisin Walnut bars--so it's a win-win.

But before everyone starts clamoring for their chance to win this prize pack--a caddy with a package of 12 CLIF bars, a marathon hat or water bottle, and a CLIF T-shirt--here are the details to make this a fun contest of sorts. Call it my race instinct--and I don't mean it as a turn-off--but the giveaway was begging to be earned like you earn a medal at the end of a running race. But unlike a marathon or triathlon or stair climb, you won't be huffing and puffing, figuratively speaking, to reach the finish line.

Remember the Meet the Moment information unveiled a week ago? Whether you created a moment on the site--uploaded your picture and added a statement--or you've been pondering what you'd add, we want to hear about your adventures. Add your Moment--the place where you like to play or your dream adventure location--in the comments section below by Friday, June 3, then we'll randomly select a winner and announce it on Saturday, June 4. It's as easy as saying you want to heliski or visit Alaska, those are two moments I'd take if I could. Simple enough, right?

If you need help on choosing a moment to enter Clif's contest, check out this one at My Life Outdoors. Even if you think you lack creativity or a good image (two items I'm questioning about an entry for myself), it's still fun to see how another person's adventures can differ from your own--or change your mind about your all-time favorite.

What's your Meet the Moment? Where do you want to adventure? Share it below for a chance to win.

Photo grabbed from wellsphere.com.

Clif Bar's Meet the Moment

Have you ever wanted to take an adventure of a lifetime but couldn't seem to find the time or resources? Clif Bar wants to help you out with the chance to win that dream adventure. And they'll be helping out five non-profit organizations that protect the outdoors in the process.

On Monday the California-based company launched Meet the Moment, a celebration of athletic adventures and the places they happen. Um, OK, but what does that mean? They want all of us to share our awe-inspiring adventurous moments, images and stories and upload them to their Meet the Moment website. The three people with the most inspirational and creative Moments, uploaded by July 31 (provided that the world doesn't end tomorrow as rumored), will be rewarded by Clif with the chance to pursue their adventure. Any dream goes as long as it doesn't exceed $12,000--chasing down the professionals at the Tour de France, riding waves at Maverick's, trekking the Amazon, cruising the Nile.

The idea behind these momentous occasions is to protect these places that we dream to explore or have been so lucky to experience already. So for each first Moment that's uploaded, Clif Bar will donate $5 to one of five non-profit organizations that are dedicated to protecting the outdoor environs. Clif will make the donation on behalf of the person who uploaded the moment and that person can choose his favorite of the five:

• Leave No Trace
• International Mountain Biking Association
• Surfrider Foundation
• Access Fund
• Winter Wildlands Alliance

These five organizations were selected as beneficiaries because they focus on protecting several Meet the Moment places both now and for generations to come. But here's where we come in: if people create 10,000 Moments by July 31, Clif will double its contributions to each non-profit.

How it works
Visit www.meethemoment.com, Clif's specially created site for the project, to get started. You'll be asked to sign in either via Facebook or with a unique log-in, and then you can start creating your electronic postcard for the site. Upload a photo and then use the sites magnetic poetry feature to add text--or if you're a wordsmith, you can craft your own caption. Once you're satisfied with your creation you can submit it to the gallery to appear in the visual community. Really, it's simple. The hardest part is tracking down a worthy contest-winning image--that was my problem.

Need some ideas for your Moment? Check out the Moment Gallery, which is already gathering tons of action shots among its postcards, or watch the video montage of Clif athletes out and about pursuing their moments.

As for me, I either need to track down a good heli-skiing image that I can borrow for my adventure or peruse my photo albums for something scenic enough to exhibit my moment. And there's always Photoshop. A girl can dream, right?

What's your worthy moment? Come back here next week to share yours and you might be in for a surprise--I'm super excited about this one!


Photo provided by Clif Bar.

Tweeting for Fitness Fun

It's safe to say that Twitter is taking social networking world by storm. It's easy to learn and quick to post--it's just that I'm guilty of being terrible at sharing info (you can follow Fit-Ink with @fitink but I can guarantee that the updates are few and far between at the moment). I'd prefer to read rather than write--after thinking about posting here and other writing I do, my fingers need a break now and again.

So it's always through the reading portion of my day where I'm sifting through Twitter in hopes of valuable information. On numerous occasions this year I've found Twitter to amount to some good beyond random updates by those who find it important to share their every waking moment with the world. From articles in Women's Health to Kara Goucher's marathon schedule to Robbie Ventura's adventures in France during the Tour de France, my mind would fill with snippets of information. And admittedly I learn something I couldn't track down elsewhere.

Well, Twitter has gotten me once again. Except this time the reading has something that benefits our readers too. One of our friends in the blogosphere, Fit Bottomed Girls, is offering a contest via Twitter where one lucky winner can win a Fitness magazine prize pack and a Fit Bottomed Girl T-shirt. The catch? You have to get your thinking caps on and arm yourself with your best wordsmithing arsenal to devise the next great saying to be printed on a Fit Bottomed Girl tee. Read more about it here, but the basics to remember are clever, original and fitness-related when creating your saying, motto or phrase. Then tweet it to the FBGs by Friday at 1 p.m. eastern time and you're in the pool to see your handiwork on the mainstage.

Good luck! Photo grabbed from the Fit Bottomed Girls. Posted by Kate

Contest for Outdoor Cash

We're all a little strapped for cash these days. But if you're part of an outdoor organization looking for a little extra help, or any help for that matter, listen up. You and your organization could be the recipient of a $50,000 grant and national ad campaign courtesy of Redwood Creek wines. But you only have until March 1 to add your org to the list of worthy warriors.

Known for its wines and involvement in the outdoor community, Redwood Creek established the Greater Outdoors Project, which recognizes and supports nonprofits that share the company's commitment to preserve, protect and provide access to America's great outdoors. Now the company is partnering with Planet Green, a 24-hour eco-lifestyle network and the first of its kind, to help improve America's outdoors. All an organization has to do is apply online at www.redwoodcreek.com for a chance of receiving a $50,000 grant that can then be used to fund an outdoor project for that group. And the winning organization also will be featured in a Redwood Creek ad campaign that will appear in outdoor magazines in 2009 to help the organization drum up awareness about its mission and project.

And any project that shows dedication to outdoors improvement is eligible. Think projects like cleaning up the Great Lakes or collecting litter off the Appalachian Trail. For example, the first $50,000 grant was awarded to the Southeast Wisconsin Chapter of Trout Unlimited to fund the Camp Creek Restoration Project. Camp Creek, near Madison, Wis., needed some water quality improvements and increased fishing opportunities.

To apply for this year's Greater Outdoors Project grant, outdoor nonprofits have to submit an application online, which includes submitting a statement of purpose, budget, proposed timeline, a photographs of the project. And each proposed project needs to be complete by Dec. 2010. Then a judging panel comprised of those active in the outdoor community, including Redwood Creek winemaker Cal Dennision, will sit down to review the applications before voting opens to the public. Beginning April 1 through May 31, any outdoor enthusiast can vote for their favorite applicant online or via text message. The number of votes helps determine the eventual winner.

I'm curious as to how creative some of these organizations can get. And apparently so is Cal Dennison at Redwood Creek who says the company has benefited from snowmelt irrigation in the Sierra Nevadas. "We are proud to reward those who are taking a stand to preserve the environment and are watching over America's precious lands."

Photo grabbed from ecokate. Posted by Kate