When I first heard that running pros鈥攖he likes of Meb Keflezighi and Magdalena Lewy Boulet鈥攚ere supplementing their training with elliptical-style bikes, I was skeptical. Why ellipti-cycle when you could run? Why drop 3Gs on such a funny contraption when you could buy a carbon fiber bike for less? When I heard that , the leader of this low-impact revolution,听, I rolled my eyes. “Who are these weirdos?” I wondered. What鈥檚 the deal?

But despite my skepticism, when an听听arrived at 国产吃瓜黑料 HQ, I was eager to try the product that so many professional and/or injured runners have raved about. I walked the gargantuan, 44-pound machine onto the Santa Fe Rail Trail and hopped on.听

Getting started is the hardest part. ElliptiGOs are about 11 inches off the ground, so you have to simultaneously jump on with one foot and push off with the other. I got off to a wobbly start: I’d erroneously听assumed riding the ElliptiGO would be like riding a bicycle, that my feet would move in big, looping circles beneath me. But, like an elliptical machine (and like running, for that matter), your feet stay on a relatively flat plain. It鈥檚 a very forward motion, as opposed to a more centralized pedaling motion. After a minute or two, I fell into a comfortably rhythm. The wind whipped through my hair, and I felt alive for once on a Monday morning.*

Apparently, that鈥檚 the whole point of the ElliptiGO: feeling alive. Or, more specifically, helping runners (who are injured or have bad knees or are otherwise unable to run) to achieve a runner鈥檚 high. 鈥淚t鈥檚 for people like me, who miss that experience of running,鈥� says ElliptiGO founder Bryan Pate, a former Ironman triathlete who suffered knee and hip injuries. 鈥淭he bike just doesn鈥檛 fulfill the runner鈥檚 high.”

Pate dreamed up ElliptiGO in 2005 and sold his first contraption in 2010. The Solana Beach-based company has now sold more than 10,000 bikes and works with more than 100 elite athletes. Of that group, Keflezighi is the most well-known. 鈥淢eb got really excited about the ElliptiGO,鈥� Pate says. 鈥淎s he鈥檚 aging, he feels that fear of injury more and more.鈥� The ElliptiGO allows him to have a cardio workout with minimal impact, which is particularly useful for recovery. 鈥淚nstead of doing a 5-mile recovery run, he鈥檒l go out and ride the ElliptiGO for an hour and a half,鈥� Pate says. 鈥淪o he gets a way better cardiovascular experience because he gets the blood moving, but he puts zero pounding on his body. When he goes to work out the next day, he鈥檚 way fresher.鈥澨�

Okay, that makes sense. But what if you want more than a recovery workout? 鈥淚 just went for a run in Central Park on an ElliptiGO and my heart rate was probably 180,鈥� Pate says. 鈥淚t was the real deal.鈥� ElliptiGOs鈥攚hich have many of the same components as bicycles, just arranged a little differently鈥攃an reach speeds of more than 23 miles per hour and climb hills with a 30 percent grade. They have gears that allow you to tackle inclines, and hand brakes to slow you down. They also come sans-shocks, and aren’t intended for technical off-roading (mellow trails are OK).听

The handlebars are reminiscent of those on a听鈥攆lat and supported by a long stem. Balancing with one arm is tricky at first鈥攔emoving a hand to signal to traffic might result in you falling off the ElliptiGO鈥攂ut as with riding a bicycle, practice makes perfect.

Practice also makes you faster, which is why the company has teamed up with , who’s agreed to write training plans for runners who’ll use the ElliptiGO to help them PR (in running, not ElliptiGOing). Pate uses Keflezighi as an example: 鈥淚 mean, if you think about how unlikely it was that Meb would have fun faster than he ever has in his career at age 38 without doing something different training-wise, that鈥檚 not gonna happen. The fact that he changed his training is what led him to be able to do that.鈥澨�

Maybe when I am 38 years old, I will agree. Although I enjoyed my ElliptiGO experience, I am not a complete believer鈥攜et. But I will say, with the glide factor, riding an ElliptiGO is way easier than going out for a run. And, the ElliptiGO fills a void that long distance running often lacks: pure speed. You can go听谤别补濒濒测听fast on an ElliptiGO, and there is a sense of weightlessness while riding it. You are guaranteed to have fun on board.

You鈥檙e also guaranteed to get some really weird looks from strangers.听

*Helmets are recommended for ElliptiGO riding.

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Rock Creek Park, a 2,000-acre park that bisects Washington, DC, has seen a recent boom in its deer population. According to the听, an estimated 320 deer live in the park, and this large population is threatening much of the area’s vegetation.听

The National Park Service wants to diminish the population from 听and has been soliciting a team of sharpshooters to stealthily kill the deer during the night.

However, all that deer meat does not go to waste. The venison is inspected and given to , an organization that distributes the meat to shelters and centers in need across the city. In the past year, the park has donated almost 4,000 pounds of venison to the kitchen. Although many people are shocked because of where the meat comes from, April Hanson, the case manager at a substance abuse program simply says, ““

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Think twice before you bounce.听

Three children went for a wild ride on Monday as a bounce house flew 50 feet into the air in upstate New York. reported that the three kids, ages five, six, and 10, flew out of the structure when it reached a height of 15 to 20 feet.

Taylor Seymour, the sister of one of the kids in the bounce house, gave a of the accident: “It dropped off the first little kid in the middle of the road, then it came the other way. It passed over my apartment. It dropped the second one. He hit his head on the back of my car, and then he fell to the ground.鈥� Two of the kids are currently being treated for broken bones and head injuries; one child walked away with minor bruises and scrapes.

A by CNN in 2012 shows that bounce house accidents are certainly on the rise, citing that in 2010 alone, an average of one child every 45 minutes was treated in an emergency room for bouncing-related injuries.

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Looks like听James Nielsen鈥攖he听34-year-old Canadian who recently downed four cans of beer and ran four laps around a track (alternating drinking with running) in a record time of four minutes and 57 seconds鈥攎ight have some competition.

Flocasts, an online media network, has announced it will host the this fall in Austin, Texas.听

Although rules for beer miles, which occur throughout the year all over the world, are stipulated by听, the idea behind the world championships is to level the playing鈥攁nd drinking鈥攆ield.

“The first annual competition will finally determine the best in the world,” says Flocasts co-founder Mark Floreani. “There have been many beer miles run over the last 20 years on different tracks, with different beer, and in different conditions.”

Nick Symmonds, 800-meter world champion silver medalist, has already announced his intention to compete and says he will be in听.

Cash prizes will be awarded to anyone who breaks the male or female world records, which are 4:57.1 and 6:42.0, respectively.

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This week, on a family farm in northeast Croatia, a goat was born with eight legs and both female and male reproductive organs.

“I counted his legs and I thought I was seeing things,鈥� farmer Zoran Paparis told听. 鈥淭hen I called my neighbor to make sure that I am not crazy.鈥�

A veterinarian in Arkansas attributed the eight legs and multiple reproductive organs to a 鈥減rocess called fetal reabsorption, in which one fetus absorbs another in the womb.鈥� This same vet noted that 鈥渢he process is not uncommon and is usually caused by low levels of a pregnancy hormone called progesterone鈥� and that 鈥渢he goat would most likely not live past two weeks.鈥�

鈥淜ids born with both male and female organs occur at a rate of less than 15 percent in goats,鈥� says Dr. Munashe Chigerwe, a professor and veterinarian at the University of California, Davis. Citing a study in the , Chigerwe notes that hermaphrodism in goats is genetic, and that hermaphrodism occurs more frequently in goats than in any other farm animal. The study finds that mortality rates among hermaphrodite kids are actually lower than mortality rates among normal kids. No mention of hermaphrodite kids with eight legs, though. (But, according to Chigerwe, multiple legs are positively associated with hermaphrodism, as are other factors, such as being polled鈥攏ot having horns.)

Multi-headed and multi-limbed creatures date back to Greek mythology’s , a snake-like creature with nine heads that was finally killed by Hercules as the second of his Twelve Labors. However, abnormal animals are not reserved for mythology. Rare birth defects have created pigs with three snouts, and even a cow with extra hooves growing out of its back. a kid born with two heads at a neighboring farm several years ago.

The farmer听hopes his Octogoat鈥攐ne of three triplets born to dam Sarka鈥攚ill survive and gain enough strength to be back on its feet鈥攁ll eight of them鈥攊n no time.

听

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On Saturday, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, dozens of cyclists gathered for the 16th听annual ahead of the Five Boro Bike Tour. The tour, which is essentially a traffic-free bike marathon around the city, took place yesterday.

Cyclists brought bikes of all shapes and sizes, and Rev. Canon Julia Whitworth led the procession with an excerpt from the Old Testament’s Book of Ezekiel that talks about wheels.听“To pray鈥攆or those of us who are people of prayer鈥攑ray for safety and joy and fun and appreciation for being in God’s creation,” she said during the service.

Riders didn’t only pray for safety during the bike tour; they also prayed for cyclists who have been killed riding NYC’s often dangerous streets.听“I don’t know if the blessings are helping, but they might,” cyclist Debbie Friedman , noting that she has attended the service multiple times and has never been hit by a car.

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Planking for one minute is hard enough, but in Boulder, Colorado, teen Gabi Ury held the grueling position for 1 hour, 20 minutes. She smashed the previous women’s record of 40 minutes set by Eva Bulzomi, all while fighting a debilitating disease known as VATER syndrome.

According to , Ury has had the condition since she was born. VATER syndrome is characterized by abnormalities in the vertebrae, anus, trachea, kidneys, esophagus, heart, and limbs. The syndrome has affected her mostly in her spinal cord, but that didn’t stop the teen from doing this dreaded exercise in record time.

Ury took on the challenge to raise money for the Colorado Children’s Hospital, which has helped her fight VATER syndrome with numerous surgeries. In total, she raised about $5,000, but her inspirational story has raised another $45,000 after the record was broken.

“I was definitely very happy when it was over with. It was very stressful,” .

So the next time you complain about that 30-second plank at the gym, think of Gabi.听

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