Coast

This weekend’s Beaufort Pyrate Invasion may not, at first blush, seem to be about being active. Not “The Hysterically Correct Pirate Show” Saturday at noon, not the pirate invasion at 1:30, not necessarily the trial and hanging at 3 p.m. and probably not the Party with the Pirates from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. featuring BBQ and grog. But, the events, which begin Friday at 4 p.m. when the pirates come ashore, are at different locations, which means you’ll end up doing a lot of walking, and as we all know, walking is good for you (provided you keep to a minimum the walks to and from the BBQ and grog table).

BPI is sponsored by the Beaufort Business Association. Learn more about the invasion here.

Piedmont

Have you ever thought, “I should have learned to play tennis when I was a kid. Oh, well.”

No, “Oh well,” not when MatchMaker Tennis is sponsoring a free “Taste of Tennis” clinic Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at Charlotte’s Freedom Park. At the hour-and-a-half class you’ll learn forehand, backhand, volleys, serves, leaping over the net in victory … . OK, maybe you need to sign up for an advanced class for that last one. But all you need to do is show up with a racquet and an accomplished tennis person will show you the strokes. (And if you don’t have a racquet, you can rent one at Ski Country Sports.)

Prepare to tick tennis off your lifelong shoulda-done list. More info here.

Mountains

How about a 5K — with a twist. Actually, a press. Saturday is the 23rd annual Sourwood 5K in Black Mountain (another good excuse to visit the town). But it’s not just a 5K: prior to the race is the Cheshire Pump & Run, which allows you to do bench presses against your 5K time. For each successful bench press (weight is determined based on your body weight), drop 20 seconds from your finishing time. A good equalizer for our musclebound friends.

The race starts at 8:30 a.m., the pumping beforehand. More info here.
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Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

The post Argh! ‘tis a good weekend to be in North Carolina appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

In my youth — this would cover my first half century — I rarely stretched or warmed up. I’d show up for a bike ride with a minute to spare, hop on the bike and be off. I’d stand around kibitzing before a run while others stretched, then go from 0 to an 8-minute pace. Pickup basketball, tennis, whatever: Who had time to stretch? A young body and luck helped me pull it off.

Today, at 54, I stretch a lot. I have to.

I converted to stretching when I realized two things: It could, as I’d heard over the years, reduce my chances of getting injured. And investing as little as five minutes before a workout and 10 minutes after did improve my performance. On the latter count, stretching has proved invaluable in waking/warming/loosening up joints and muscles that become increasingly slow to come to life as the years pass. Stretching, as I discovered Saturday morning, also is invaluable in the recovery process. Let’s see, back’s stiff: a little downward-facing dog and warrior pose (classic yoga stretches) should clear that up. Calf and quad stretches helped counteract all the quick starts after fly balls. Shoulder stretches allowed me to simply move my arms after a day of believing I could still throw a runner out at the plate from right field. Twenty minutes or so of stretching and I wasn’t good as new, but I was able to function for the rest of the day.

Taking time to stretch is especially important as spring approaches, Daylight Savings Time knocks (it starts this Sunday, March 13), the days warm and your urge to emerge from winter hibernation kicks in. As I found Saturday, the stretches that helped me recover from playing softball with my daughter were different from the ones that help me prepare and wind down from a run or a ride. Knowing the right stretches for your activity of choice makes them all-the-more effective.

Here’s a look at activities you may be engaging in as the days warm, and Web sites where you can find appropriate stretches:

Basic stretching A jack-of-all-pursuits? The Mayo Clinic offers 10 basic stretches to cover a range of activities.

Cycling It’s not just the pedaling, it’s the time in the saddle and the toll it takes on your neck, your shoulders, your back. Deal with it here.

Gardening Laugh if you will at the prospect of warming up to weed — then spend the first 70-degree day of spring in the yard and see if you’re still in such a jolly mood the next morning. These 12 exercises from “Stretching,” by Bob and Jean Anderson should help your chances for working in the yard Saturday AND Sunday.

Golf Talk about a sport that can mess up an unprepared body quick! The Mayo Clinic offers a variety of stretches to prepare your body for the potentially torq-turous backlash of a 300-yard drive.

Paddling A good paddle stroke may be about technique over power, but it can still take its toll. Minimize the impact while maximizing your time on the water with these stretches from The Stretching Institute.

Softball This routine includes 20 stretches and takes 11 minutes, a reasonable investment in return for making it to work the next morning.

Swimming Even if you aren’t swimming competitively, it’s good to be limber before hitting the water.

Tennis The Stretching Institute offers three  exercises to “ improve your performance and do away with tennis injuries for good.

Walking Starting a walking program? This pamphlet of appropriate stretches from the American Heart Association should help.

The post Spring into stretching appeared first on GetGoing NC!.