Health & FItness
I specialize in discovering, pitching & writing magazine feature & web-based articles. My interests include: travel, food (gluten-free & vegan specialty), chocolate, wine, tea & nutrition; health & wellness + sports (running, track & field, cross country & bicycling, golf, general fitness)
I have written about: Olympians, doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, baby boomers, millennials & charities, to name a few. No topic intimidates me. No subject is so banal that I cannot find a unique angle and/or previously unexplored story twist.
I love doing in-depth interviews with people to ask not only the obvious, but also oblique questions. Through interviews, and simply asking the right questions, I've discovered: an elite female distance runner who doesn't like to run, a cab driver who is a professional photographer and an Olympic shot putter who became an NFL Team Chaplain.
Throughout my writing career I have especially enjoyed doing historical research on many different topics. I once spent WEEKS deep in the bowels of the archives of a University newspaper and a state historical society simply to research details about a long-time local cross country running race.
I do my best work when I delve deeply into topics I find interesting. Luckily for me, I find most people are truly interesting, when you ask the right questions.
Health & FItness
Kirk Hoaglund calls himself a genetic problem child...
Scott Tenner says he gets his "butt busted" four days a week at work...
Road warriors are easy to spot in airports. They look more calm, almost as if resigned to their fate.
Tim Zbikowski of Maple Grove, Minnesota, received an awful present for his 51st birthday and year and a half ago – a heart attack.
The International Hearing Foundation brings equipment, expertise and education to Senegal, Africa
Exercise can go a long way toward leading a healthy, fulfilling life.
Running - Profiles
Along her path to the Olympic Marathon, Janis Klecker collected many honors, accolades and prizes.
On Sunday, March 11, 1973 the St. Patrick's Committee in St. Paul organized the first-ever St. Patrick's Day Mini Marathon (4.8 miles) This race was destined to evolve into the present-day Human Race run and walk. There were 45 runners that first year, only four of the participants were women.
The roots of women's running in Minnesota go back much further than two decades.
Many people spend years, decades, even their entire lives searching for that special something that will make them complete. Leslie Seymour's trip so far has been filled with adventure, intrigue and a bit of misfortune. But she hasn't yet allowed life to get in her way.
...The Native Thunder Distance runners [is a] group of American Indian athletes who run races and train together...
Al Neil rebounds from heart trouble to take another shot at Boston
We all make choices in our life: choices about how to spend out time, who to spend it with, and what activities and events are worthwhile to us. But what about those times when something chooses us, rather than the other way around?
When people are asked to describe Cindy Brochman there are invariably a number of responses: a laugh, a quizzical 'Hmm.... how do you describe Cindy?' Then, inevitably, people will begin to share their memories of Brochman.Often the stories are about the experience of knowing Brochman - laughing with her at a road race start line or seeing her cheering somewhere along the course - rather than stories of Brochman's many athletic achievements.
Black knee pads. Really big, black knee pads.
Stacey Millett's first steps into organized running were a father-daughter bonding experience.
Running - Races & Events
The story of Rocky Racette is that of someone who made a huge impact in a very short span of time.
This year's Hennepin-Lake Classic re-wrote the record books.
Golf
...Mary Ann Dobesh and Andrea Dornin Kellar say they've found the "perfect recipe" for improving your golf game
"I believe you are your most important golf equipment," Lisa Masters says.
Technological advances have been coming fast & furious to the golf industry in recent years.
Food - Chocolate, Wine
Kassie Kuehl doesn't cook. Ever.
Eden Prairie residents don't have to travel far for their chocolate fix.
Vintage Ventures4U offers tours of Minnesota's growing wine country.
Instead of scrambling to make dinner reservations, couples can learn to prepare interesting meals together for Valentine's Day.
Theater
Good versus Evil is a a storyline played out countless times throughout the history of performing arts.
While many urban and suburban movie theaters have come and gone, the Edina Cinema... has held its own for over 70 years
Bicycling
Ask 32-year-old Rachel McGrady what the adventure of her life has been, and she will answer that it was the time she bicycled across the United States.
...Once they had their jerseys, described as "screaming yellow & black" the group quickly became known around the Twin Cities bicycling community.
Jim Owens does not back down from a challenge.
Dennis Thompson knew he needed to make a lifestyle change... The change? He bought a bicycle.
Lifestyle
Debbie Turner's grandmother taught here there isn't a wrong way to do things in life, there are just different ways.
Downtown Minneapolis has a reputation for moving fast...
Even the name of the Restful Comfort package at the Graves 601 Hotel is discrete...
A world-class shot-putter, a financial consultant, a high school teacher and a Big Ten coach walk into a building in Eden Prairie...
The average person may never get the thrill of playing to a sold-out Target Center...
During the first game of the season for the Saint Croix Base Ball Club, left fielder Dan "Basher" Cagley, was fined a half-day's wages for destruction of property.
Anybody who's ever met Woodbury resident Pete Wareham knows that competition has been a big part of his life.
John Straiton always wanted to be an FBI agent. He held onto that dream from childhood almost all the way through college.
Her first novel, "Piece of Cake," was published by Penguin Books India...
The passion they share for riding and their business stems from the freedom motorcycles offer and the camaraderie of Harley ownership.
Many people only see their doctor when they need to – because of illness or injury – and can't imagine them in another setting.
Arts & Crafts
Imagine finding a hidden treasure chest filled with priceless items from your childhood...
An illuminating review of St Paul's art scene by four gallery directors and artists.
Dance
If Kirill Bak has anything to say about it, the landscape of the performing arts community in Eden Prairie will be changing in the near future.
"...We could always use some more good men..."
Svetlana & Kirill Bak seek out new adventures on the lake and stage
What if you took up dancing for the first time, right now?