Inspiration

Week five and I know some of you might be wondering: Why am I here? And maybe some other, not-so-inspiring thoughts!

So I thought I'd share this video, a collage of some running greats, to spur you on to your own greatness. It will have you on the edge of your seat!



Just think: You could be the next Bekele!

Approaching Week Six Sat. 3/31 at Fletchers Boathouse 9 am

APPROACHING WEEK 6, week 5 in review

Remaining 2007 SCHEDULE–9 am Every Saturday:
6. 3/31–Fletchers Boathouse (Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Race is the next day.)

7. 4/7–Fletcher’s Boathouse
8. 4/14–Bluemont Park, Arlington
9. 4/21–Bluemont Park, Arlington
10. 4/28–East Falls Church Metro Parking Lot
11. 5/5–Stanton Square in DC (sometimes called Stanton Park, near Union Station, the start and finish point for the CHC10K)
12. 5/12–Stanton Square (sometimes called Stanton Park) in DC (near Union Station at Mass & Maryland Aves., C & 4th St.)

13. CHC 10K RACE is Sunday 5/20/07 at 8:30 am at Stanton Square.

NEXT WEEK (Week 6):
Next Saturday, 3/31/07 at 9 am, we’ll meet at Fletcher’s Boathouse next to the Capital Crescent Trail and the C&O Canal. If you Metro, take the blue or orange line to Rosslyn and run over the Key Bridge, turn left and gain the C&O Towpath by going towards the river and then run westbound a mile and a half on the Towpath to Fletchers Boathouse.

Race of the Week--The Cherry Blossom 10-Mile Race is Sunday April 1st at 8 am in DC and Virginia, starting in West Potomac Park. This is a world-class race.

LAST WEEK:
(Remember those cold winter days? They're behind us!) In WEEK 5, while most of the coaches were at the National Marathon or Half, about 10 athletes showed up for the dcrrc 10K Training Group on a misty morning. Coach Kristin reported that since it was a little drizzly at 9, there wasn’t an overwhelming turnout. The run was southbound on the Mount Vernon Trail to Gravelly Point and back, about 5 miles in about 50 minutes.

Meanwhile: Coaches Bob, Peter and Gary ran the National Marathon and Coach Rhea ran the National Half-Marathon. At least three of them PRed. 2nd in Charge Jeanne came out to cheer the marathoners on at milepost 24.

(Coach Peter running with a pace group at MP 24 in the 2007 National Marathon. Photo credit Jeanne.

RUN ON YOUR OWN:
This week you should run three or four times on your own, 30 to 35 minutes each time. On Saturday, each coach will take you out on a route they choose that is a little further than we went last week. Our goal race is the Capitol Hill Classic 10K (CHC) on 5/20/07 which has a serious hill in the last mile. We’re almost halfway there now so it’s time to step up your training a little bit. If you want to run the race in the spring at the conclusion of the program, you must sign up at the CHC website for the race and pay the entry fee on your own. http://www.capitolhillclassic.com

CLUB TRACK WORKOUT & HILL WORKOUT:
In the meantime, go to the club’s website and look at the Wednesday evening track workout schedule at 7:15 pm every Wednesday at the Washington & Lee High School Track in Arlington. Speed workouts will make you better. If anyone is interested in going to a track workout and wants me to be there to give them guidance contact me by email in that instance. Plamberton@ftc.gov or plamberton@yahoo.com. Also consider a club Hill Workout, also posted on the club’s website. I will be hosting the Hill Workout on Sunday, April 29th at 9 am and I hope to see some of you there getting ready for the hill at the CHC.

MORE INFORMATION:
Visit the program’s Forum Commentary on the DCRRC website. There’s lots of interesting and pertinent information there. Why, you could even leave a comment there, or here, http://dcrr.blogspot.com/, about whether you like the program!

TRAINING HELP:
Here is a link to the first stop to check out all things related to marathons. It has pace charts and training tips. http://www.marathonguide.com/
See you Saturday!

Approaching Week 5, week 4 in review

Week 4 Review: About 20 runners met on Saturday March 17th at the Roosevelt Island parking lot at 9 am in 35 degree temperature with a gusting wind and ran southbound on the Mount Vernon Trail. Coaches Gary and Arnetta took the Run/Walkers out for 45 minutes or so.(As these athletes warm up, does it look cold or what?)

Coaches Bob and Peter ran to the 14th Street Bridge and back with the Intermediate runners, about 4 miles in about 44 minutes (a pace between 9:45 minute miles and 10:30 minute miles). (Mary Alice and Erin wait patiently in the biting wind for the run to start.)

Coach Rhea took the advanced group, augmented by some of last year's alumni (I think that's Mindi, who loves to flip, and Sasha),
almost to Ronald Reagan Airport and back again, a distance of a little over 5 miles in a little over 50 minutes. The wind blew strongly in our faces as we returned.


(The Intermediate Group returning in Week 1. Note the heavy running garments and the dry Reflecting Pool.)

Next: Week 5 March 24th we'll meet at 9 am in the Roosevelt Island parking lot again. The closest Metro is Rosslyn, about half a mile or a 4 minute run away. Coach Kristin is in charge next week. Coach Arnetta will be there too, but all other coaches will be at the National Marathon race that day unless a fill-in coach shows up. If you're at a loss as to what to do, run south on the Mount Vernon Trail for 28 minutes and then return.

(Coaches Gary and Kristin, and Trooper.)

Here's a helpful website for training, the McMillanRunning Site. Coach Rhea loves this site. It has training programs and also the McMillan Calculator which tells you how fast you should run various distances based upon how fast you have run other distances. Go to the site and look around.

For the remaining schedule, look at a prior posting for Week 2. Let's all wish Jeanne a speedy return to running post-surgery.

Approaching Week 4, week 3 in review.

Here's a picture from Week 3, our last appearance for the season at the Lincoln Memorial, of Coach Bob pointing out the route to the advanced group and some alumni from the last program who stopped by to run with us.

Busted! Then here's a picture of the advanced group, having been stopped by the bicycle patrol on the Mall, about to get a warning ticket for speeding.

Last week was very nice running weather and Coach Bob took the advanced runners out from Lincoln up Capitol Hill and back, about 5 miles in about 45 minutes. Coach Kristin and Trooper took the Intermediate group out along the Mall to the Capitol and back, about 3 1/2 miles in about 35 minutes. Coaches Gary and Arnetta took the run/walkers out from the Lincoln Memorial for 30 minutes or so. This week (Saturday March 17 at 9 am) we're meeting in the parking lot for Roosevelt Island.

Last Sunday Coach Rhea and I ran the Lower Potomac River Marathon Two-Person Coed Relay and came in first. Yay! Here's Rhea motoring around the course in the seventh mile of her 11.6 mile finishing leg. Wave hello to everyone!

Starting Over

Have you ever had to start over in life? Whether it's your career, a relationship, school, just moving to a new apartment or even a new city, starting over is never easy.

Luckily, running is one of the few areas of life where you can pretty much count on having to start over—at some point or another.

Maybe you took the winter off from running. Maybe you were injured. Maybe you decided to do something else for a while.

Running is one of those areas in life where you can always start again. This is my second year of running. My first year I used the run/walk method, and that worked great for me. But I decided to challenge myself a bit more during my second year. You see, I never thought I could ever run. Ever.

But I persisted, and eventually could run one mile with no walk breaks, then two, then five, then twenty!

That was just a few months ago. A few niggling injuries and a reduced training schedule left me where I am today: starting over. So start over I did, with this great 10K program of which you are a part. (Note to DCRR: put check in mail for shameless plug.)

And after Saturday, March 17 (happy St. Patrick's day!), I'll be taking some time off from running—again. Enforced time off. I'm having some minor surgery and my surgeon has restricted me from any and all cardio for six weeks.

Six weeks!!

See, when all of a sudden you are told you can't run, well, all of a sudden you are dying to.

The good news is I'm not, in fact, dying. (Well, we're all dying. But that's another essay.) I don't have some fatal disease. I should be able to run again at the end of six short (long! endless!) weeks. And when I do start running again, I know that I will be starting over.

But that's OK. It beats the alternative.

So if you find yourself in a similar position, starting over, and annoyed that you can't pick up where you left off, cut yourself some slack. You'll get there.

All it takes is time and persistence.

Oh, and more than a little desire:

Tuesday Night Running Seminars

Here are some helpful, free seminars on running you may be interested in:

The Arlington Cooperation Foundation (ACF) welcomes all runners to its Spring 2007 Tuesday Night Seminar Series at Pacers, 3100 Clarendon Blvd. Arlington, VA, across the street from Clarendon (Orange Line) Metro.

Seminars are free of charge, start at about 7:30 PM (following the Pacer's group run), and run 30-60 minutes, with audience Q&A. All are welcome, regardless of experience or ability.

Tues. 3/20/07 [Last Tuesday before National Marathon and Half]: Jay Jacob Wind, Coach, 111 Marathons, and Age Group Ace, "Mental and Physical Preparation for your Distance Race"

Tues. 4/3/07 [First Tuesday after Cherry Blossom 10 Miler]: Dr. Bernard Etherly, Chiropractor and Triathlete, "Turning Ouch! into Ahhhh ... Prevention of, and Recovery from, Running Injuries"

Tues. 4/10/07: Chris Farley, Owner - Pacers Running Store, Veteran Marathon Elite, "The Top Ten Things You Didn't Know about Running Shoes"

Tues. 4/24/07: John Steitz, Coach and Foe of the 14th Street Bridge, "Hydration Myths and Strategies for the Distance Athlete"

The Series will conclude with ACF's "College of Running" on Saturday, May 5, 2007, 2:00 to 6:00 PM, at the Courtyard by Marriott, 2700 Eisenhower Ave, Alexandria, VA 22314, which is part of the Expo for the Potomac River Run Marathon and Half Marathon. All are welcome.

A Win for DCRR!

Peter and I ran the Lower Potomac River Marathon Relay yesterday. We placed first in the co-ed division!

Our time: 3:34:35. Full results are here. Our team name is "Tortoise and Hare."

Peter did the first leg, which is a flat and scenic 14.6 miles. I ran the hilly 11.6 mile second leg. He ran quite strongly, meeting his half-marathon PR, and averaging 7:59.5/mile. I ran the race as a fast training run, averaging 8:22/mile.

The second-place winner in our division came in more than 10 minutes behind us. We also beat all 10 women's teams, and beat five of the nine men's teams. So besides placing first division-wide, we came in5th out of 27 teams overall.

Peter and I recap the race in our blogs, so check 'm out.

10KG Week 2 & Schedule

2007 DCRRC 10K Training Group Program

APPROACHING WEEK 3

Come 10 minutes early on Saturday to sign up if you'd like to join us. $30 for the program, and $20 for club dues if you're not already a member.

Here is the 2007 SCHEDULE, meeting at 9 am every Saturday at the following locations:
Week 1. Feb. 24–Steps of the Lincoln Memorial
Week 2. March 3–Steps of the Lincoln Memorial
Week 3. March 10–Steps of the Lincoln Memorial
Week 4. March 17–Parking Lot for Roosevelt Island
Week 5. March 24–Roosevelt Island (National Marathon is on this day)
Week 6. March 31–Fletcher’s Boathouse (Cherry Blossom Race is next day)
Week 7. April 7–Fletcher’s Boathouse
Week 8. April 14–Bluemont Park, Arlington
Week 9. April 21–Bluemont Park, Arlington
Week 10. April 28–East Falls Church Metro Parking Lot
Week 11. May 5–Stanton Square in DC (near Union Station at Mass & MD Aves.)
Week 12. May 12–Stanton Square in DC (near Union Station)
Week 13. Sunday May 20, 2007 at 8 :30 am at Stanton Square CHC 10K RACE

WEEK 2 with the dcrrc 10K Training Group:

About 10 new participants showed up on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial by 9 a.m., and then three groups of runners went out along the Mall, a beginner's group with Arnetta and Gary, an intermediate group with Kristin, and an advanced group with Bob and Rhea.

Gary and Arnetta’s group started out at a walk until they warmed up, then did some running down Ohio Drive by the Potomac. They went by the Jefferson Memorial and underneath the highway bridges towards Haines Point, some of them, before they returned to the Lincoln Memorial.

Kristin had her charges go out on a run from Lincoln past Korea, WWI, WWII, Washington and the Carousel (in front of the Castle, the site of last year's TUMS speed workouts on the Mall) before turning and coming back, a little over 3 miles in about half an hour.

Bob and Aaron, and Rhea and Amanda, went out all the way up Capitol Hill to the Supreme Court Building before coming back, 5 miles in about three quarters of an hour. They ran up the exact hill that participants will hit in the fifth mile of the goal race, the CHC.

Everybody looked really good. There were liquid refreshments at the end of the run and many runners lingered to talk with their coaches and others.

NEXT WEEK: Next Saturday, 3/10/07 at 9 am, we’ll meet on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for the last time. Anyone who missed these two weeks and wants to sign up for the program, come a few minutes early to fill out the applications for the program ($30) and the club ($20) (if you’re not already a member). Please bring payment.

RUN ON YOUR OWN:
This week you all should run two or three times easily on your own time, 25 to 30 minutes each time. On Saturday, each coach will take you out from the Lincoln Memorial on a route they choose that is a little further than we went last week. The goal race is the Capitol Hill Classic 10K Race (CHC) on 5/20/07. If you want to run the race in the spring at the conclusion of the program, you must sign up at the CHC website. Also, look at the Wednesday evening track workout schedule at 7:15 pm every Wednesday at the Washington & Lee High School Track in Arlington. Speed workouts will make you better. If anyone is interested in going to a track workout and wants me to be there to give them guidance (the Track Workout Program Director, Club President Ed Grant, is an excellent coach and usually there), contact me and I’d be happy to attend the track workout and work with them if I am able to.

MORE INFORMATION:
Be wild and comment on this blog! Amanda did. Look at Amanda as she ran last year's Army 10-Miler. Is she having fun or what? (Photo credit Ashley.)


Feel free to comment on the forum link, also.


TRAINING HELP:
Here is a link to Marathon Guide’s pace and training charts. It is a good place to start for runners turning to the Internet for help with their training. See you Saturday!

10K Fun! And Forms!

If you've found this blog, well, congratulations! You're already ahead of the pack (get it?).

A few housekeeping items: You must be a member of DCRR to participate in this program. If you haven't already done so, you can download the form here and bring it next week. Membership is $20.

If your first day with us was Saturday, March 3 (yesterday), you'll need to fill out a 10K participant form and a membership form (if you are not already a member) because someone forgot all the forms. We'll have them with us next week.

Clear?

Also, you should be getting weekly updates from the coaches. If you're not, it's possible that we couldn't decipher your handwriting when you gave us your e-mail address. If by next Friday you haven't received any e-mails, check with us next Saturday. I should (I will! I will!) have a print-out of everyone's e-mail addresses, and you can doublecheck that we have them right.

Happy running!

Focus on Negative Splits

Bex/Rhea here. Or, as my friend Susie says, Rex. On the second Saturday of the 10K program, my training group had dwindled from three to two. Jeff decided to go with a slower-paced group, and Anne was MIA.

However, Amanda showed up, and we may have a new recruit, Aaron. Plus, Bob, who shares coaching duties with me, was there.

So it's all good.

We ran 5 miles - from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, past the WWII Memorial, the Washington Monument, up Capitol Hill, to the Supreme Court and back. The first half paralleled Constitution Ave. The skies were clear and the sun so bright, it almost seemed like spring. But the early March chill and a brisk wind put that thought to rest.

Bob and Aaron ran ahead at about an 8:20/mile pace, while Amanda and I logged an 8:22 for our first mile, and a 9:04 for our second mile. I mentioned to Amanda that we were going to pick up our pace on the last half of the route, running negative splits.

We kept the men in our sights, but the stoplights along the Mall held us back, and we soon lost them.

The way back: We started slowing when we hoofed it up Capitol Hill, around Mile 2. Next time, I'm going to hold Amanda back a little so she can finish strong. My Garmin froze at Mile 2.5 (damn technology), but I guestimate that we ran the last 2.5 miles at around 9:20-9:30 pace.

Advice for the upcoming week: On at least one of your runs, pick up the pace in the last half to one-fourth of the route. Run slower at the beginning to warm up your muscles and to preclude bonking at the end. You will use a similar tactic in your races.

First Week 10KG

The DCRRC 10K Training Group got off to a good start on Saturday, with about 40 hardy participants braving the freezing temperature to come to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial by 9 a.m to sign up for the program. Then three groups of runners went out along the Mall, a beginners group with Arnetta and Gary, an intermediate group with Kristin, and an advanced group with Rhea.

Gary and Arnetta, both long-time 10K coaches, took their group out at a walk until they warmed up, then they did some running. They were gone over half an hour. Not bad for the first day’s work! Here's a picture of Coach Arnetta waving hello at the party last fall celebrating the successful end of the DCRRC's summer-time training program for the Army 10-Miler, a race run in early October. Several of last year's 10K participants went on to undertake the 10-Miler training, and some have progressed on to running half-marathons or marathons.

Kristin, who was the 10K Training Group Program Director last year as well as the 2006 DCRRC Volunteer of the Year, took her charges out on a run along the Mall from the Lincoln Memorial alongside the drained reflecting pool, past the Korean War Memorial, the World War I Memorial, the World War II Memorial, the Washington Monument, and to the Carousel before coming back. They went about 2 1/2 miles in a little over half an hour.

Rhea, a 10K coach a year ago, went out all the way to the Capitol and back with her group which included a couple of graduates from last year’s program who are currently preparing for the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Race. This group ran 3.6 miles in 40 minutes or so.

Everybody looked really good. There were liquid refreshments at the end of the run and some runners swapped email addresses.

This week you all should have run once or twice easily on your own time, 20 to 25 minutes each time, or three times if you are in better shape. You can substitute in a DCRRC Wednesday night Track Workout at 7:15 p.m. at the Washington & Lee High School track in Arlington for a regular run. Speed workouts will really improve your running. Last night the routine at the track workout was six to ten 800M (about half a mile) repeats with a slow 400M recovery jog after each one. I was there to help any 10K Program participants but I didn't see anyone from the program. Hopefully Kristin or I will be there at the track most Wednesday nights during the program.

Next Saturday, March 3, 2007, we’ll meet on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at 9 a.m. again. Anyone who missed this week and wants to sign up for the program can come a few minutes early to fill out the applications for the program ($30) and the club ($20) (if you’re not already a member). Please bring payment. We expect that at least two more volunteer coaches will be on hand. We will meet at Lincoln on the following Saturday, March 10th, at 9 a.m. as well.

Meanwhile Jeanne created this blog of our exploits. Feel free to comment, and please comment on the forum link also. On Saturday, each coach will take you out from the Lincoln Memorial on a route they choose that is a little further than we went last week. The advanced group might do this 5-mile route up Capitol Hill which is the same infamous hill the racers tackle in the fifth mile of our goal race, the Capitol Hill Classic 10K Race (CHC) on 5/20/07. If you want to run the race in the spring at the conclusion of the program, you must sign up at the CHC website for the race and pay the entry fee on your own.

We'll see you Saturday!