Approaching the Race!

Week Twelve: The last week of the 10K Group Training Program we met at Stanton Square in the District, a few blocks east down Mass Avenue from Union Station. That's where the Capitol Hill Classic 10K/3K will start from at 8:30 am tomorrow!

The technical T-shirts for the TKG that Jeanne designed and procurred were handed out to anyone present. (Jeanne's design.)

Coaches Gary and Arnetta led the run/walkers went to the Mall past the Washington Monument to work out. Coaches Kristin and Bob led the runners 6.2 miles on the actual race course. A sub-group led by Coach Bob did more than 8 miles at a 9:30 per mile pace. Everyone went up the quarter mile hill which gives the race its name and which comes in the sixth mile. When you are at the bottom of it in the actual race, you will be three quarters of a mile from the finish line. Afterwards several athletes went out for coffee to talk race strategy. (Circling RFK.)

Strategy for the race is: Start Slow, Finish Strong.






(Capitol Hill in the background, as seen from in front of the Courthouse.) Go out slowly. Perhaps once you circle around RFK, you can assess how you feel and pick up the pace if you feel strong. Don't fight the downhill in the fourth mile and don't be intimidated by the uphill in the fifth mile. Save some energy running in front of the Capitol for the upcoming uphill. Don't keep looking all the way up the hill as you travel up it. Check the horizon, then focus on the roadway 12 feet in front of you and concentrate on keeping moving. Lean slightly forward and use plenty of arm action. Glance up at the horizon only occasionally and only for a moment, to check your progress. Once you achieve the top of the hill, it is a level one-half mile to the finish line. The roadway will bear off to the left in a fork as you approach the final leg of the race.

Water will be handed out during the race.

Go to the website for packet pickup information (don't forget to wear your timing chip!). Arrive early. Parking is difficult. Consider Metro, Union Station on the Red Line (8 minute walk) or Capitol South on the Blue/Orange Lines or Archives/Navy Memorial on the Yellow/Green Lines (20 minute walk). Study the course map beforehand.

Odds and Ends:
Mary Alice broke 56 minutes at the hilly YMCA Mother's Day 10K in finishing 22d, second in her age group. Congratulations!

Colby ran a 26:13 at the ACLI Capital Challenge 3-Miler to help her team finish 23rd in the Media Competition. (Colby running in Anacostia Park, SE.)

Ashley ran a 48:17 (7:47) at the hilly Inaugural Battle of the Boulevard (Wilson Boulevard) in Arlington.

TMG grad Sasha led fellow alums Hallie and Mindi by running a 23:58 (7:44) at the hilly Inaugural National Police Week 5K in the District.

I saw Arnetta running 5 miles on the Mall at noon last Wednesday, the same day I ran the 400th running of the monthly Tidal Basin 3K race in 12:58.

Bob ran a swift three races at the DCRRC Triple Crown races in Fort Hunt, VA this morning.

Thanks to coaches Arnetta, Ashley, Bob, Gary, Kristin and Rhea.

Thanks to the administrator, Jeanne. (Jeanne and Ashley.)

Thanks to everyone who showed up and expended effort each week.

Don't forget to consider signing up the the twelve week 10-Mile Group ("TMG") Training Program starting on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at 8 am on Saturday, July 14, 2007. The cost is $35. You must be a member of DCRRC or join up (cost-$20). The Army 10-Miler is sold out but there are plenty of other races to consider, from 5Ks to half-marathons. Please come prepared to run 3 or more miles the first day. All condition levels are welcome, however, including walkers.

Good luck to everyone, especially tomorrow!

Game On!

After today, May 12, you will be graduates of the D.C. Road Runners 10k Program. More padding for the résumé!

Many many thanks to Peter for his leadership and spiffy organizational skills, as well as thanks to all the sub-coaches and others who came out to lead groups at one time or another, including, Kristin, Gary, Arnetta, Bob, Mindy, Ashley, Rhea, and I'm sure others I've forgotten. I personally find it very inspiring and rewarding to have such experienced runners to run with (even when I'm only watching, which I can assure you, is a much easier way to complete this program!) I have a new appreciation for just how much work it takes to run a program, and a whole list of lessons learned for next time around. (Drop us a line if you have any suggestions for how to improve things. Really.)

And of course, thanks to all of you who came out in weather that ranged from sub-freezing to high humidity. Fun times!

Without further ado, here are some images from May 5, Stanton Park, Capitol Hill, the scene of last week's crime:
While the park is named after Edwin Stanton the statue featured at the center of the park depicts revolutionary war hero General Nathanael Greene. Greene is honored for his command of the Army of the South and credited with driving the British out of the Carolinas and Georgia in 1782. Greene's statue is surrounded by formal walkways and flower beds introduced during the 1933 redesign of the park. (From Capitol Hill Parks.)

Kara, fresh as a daisy after flyin' up that Hill.

One of us is having waaay too much fun.


Hill? What hill? There was a hill?

Ashley saunters up Capitol Hill, about to be SMOKED. It is so ON!

This photo captures the essential running-ness of running. Either that, or the photographer sucks.

Oh, you are sooo almost there!


You DO run this town, you know it!

Bringin' it on home—and still smiling!

Run strong everyone, and good luck!

Last Week of Training (5/12/07 in DC)

2007 DCRRC 10K Training Program
APPROACHING WEEK 12 Remaining 2007 SCHEDULE–9 am on Saturday:
12. 5/12–Stanton Square in DC (near Union Station at Mass & Maryland Aves., C & 4th St.)http://mrdda.dc.gov/activities/default.asp?linkMode=walk&event_id=847&event_date=3/18/2007
13. CHC 10K RACE is Sunday 5/20/07 at 8:30 am at Stanton Square. http://www.capitolhillclassic.com/

NEXT WEEK (Week 12): Next Saturday, 5/12/07 at 9 am is the twelveth and last week of training before the race. We’ll meet in DC at the actual starting point of the race, at Stanton Square a few blocks east and south of Union Station down Mass Ave. For directions, go to a prior post to click on location or go the the Capitol Hill Classic 10K website. That is our goal race and you should study the course map anyway before you run it. http://www.capitolhillclassic.com/info.html#Map You'll just have to find parking along the street or pay for parking at Union Station and walk over (an 8 minute walk) or take the Red Line to Union Station. Give yourself some extra time. Program tee-shirts will be handed out next week, so make sure you come. I think you'll like them. Jeanne put a lot of time into selecting them, designing them and ordering them. They are technical shirts. (Below: Look out behind you! Jeanne and another athlete conquering EFC in week 10.)

LAST WEEK: In WEEK 11, about twenty athletes showed up at Stanton Square. Kristin ran there from Virginia. The runners were led by Kristin and guest coach Ashley as they ran the race course, 10K in about an hour. They ran to RFK, circled it, ran down to Pennsylvania Avenue, back to E. Capitol Street, down Capitol Hill, up Capitol Hill and back to Stanton Square. The run/walkers, led by Arnetta, went down to the Lincoln Memorial and back. Everybody looked great and Amanda blazed the pace at about 8:40 minutes per mile. (Right: Guest coach Ashley led the running group around both RFK and the Capitol.)

Afterwards we enjoyed refreshments in the park and chatted about running and things for twenty minutes. I went off to attend the first post-fire flea market at Eastern Market and Arnetta and some runners went off to Starbucks on Pennsylvania Avenue SW. (Below: Thirty million dollar blaze. Eastern Market two days after the fire.)

Don’t forget there will be a Ten-Mile Training Program offered by the club starting on Saturday, July 14 at 8 am on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial (the steps that face the Washington Monument). The cost is $35. I hope to see all of you there. The goal race will be the Army Ten-Miler on Sunday, October 7, 2007 at the Pentagon. It’s a fun, albeit jinxed, race, fast flat and full (almost). There are less than 3,400 slots still available out of 26,000 slots originally, so sign up now if you’re going to run it! (Last week there were over 8,000 slots still left.) (Below: Eastern Market was open for business on Saturday, five days after the fire.)

Notable Upcoming Run: The Arlington YMCA’s Mother’s Day 10K on Sunday, May 13, 2007 was last year’s program’s goal race and is a worthy race to run. It is challenging and it runs over the very same hills we did last Saturday. It has a fee hike on May 1st, so if you’d like to run it, sign up early.

There are many fine running products out there. The many fine area running stores, like Fleet Feet in Adams Morgan http://www.fleetfeetdc.com/ or http://www.dcneighborhoods.com/fleetfeet/, or Metro Run & Walk in Falls Church, Springfield and Rockville, or Pacers in Old Town and Arlington, or Gotta Run in Pentagon Row and Annapolis, or others, stock reputable products at fair prices. Go to a store and check out your racing needs. (Left: It wasn't a pretty sight inside Eastern Market after the fire.)

RUN ON YOUR OWN: You really better!! I can tell who is! This week you should start to taper and run three times on your own, 30 to 55 minutes each time, with one of the runs at a ten or eleven minute per mile pace or better. On Saturday, each coach will take you out on a route they choose. Our goal race is the Capitol Hill Classic 10K (CHC) on 5/20/07 starting at 8 am which has a serious hill in the last mile. We’re within two weeks of the race now so it’s time to concentrate on your training! If you want to run the goal race 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.

CLUB TRACK 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.

Visit the program’s chat room on the Forum link at the club's website for more information. There’s lots of interesting and pertinent information there. Feel free to comment on the blog or the forum link.

Coaching tips: What are you going to wear for the race? Pink or blue? How about: Sunscreen, a hat, sunglasses, a shirt (prefereably not cotton, 100 % polyester is good), good running shoes not broken down and properly broken in, shorts or a skirt, bodyglide for any spot that might chafe and men should consider some protection for their nipples (nipguards, sold at running stores, or vaseline, works for this). Your bib will be your ID for this run. Carrying one or two packs of Gu or the equivalent for consumption during the race might be a good idea. Water will be handed out during the race.

See you Saturday!

Approaching Week Eleven 5/5/07 in DC

2007 DCRRC 10K Training Program
Remaining 2007 SCHEDULE–9 am Every Saturday:

11. 5/5–Stanton Square in DC (near Union Station at Mass & Maryland Aves., C & 4th St.)
12. 5/12–Stanton Square 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 11): Next Saturday, 5/5/07 at 9 am, (and also the twelveth and last week of training before the race) we’ll meet in DC at the actual starting point of the race, at Stanton Square a few blocks east and south of Union Station down Mass Ave. Click here for directions or go to the the Capitol Hill Classic 10K website. That is our goal race and you should study the course map anyway before you run it. You'll just have to find parking along the street or pay for parking at Union Station and walk over (an 8 minute walk) or take the Red Line to Union Station. Give yourself some extra time.

LAST WEEK: In WEEK 10, about a dozen athletes showed up at East Falls Church Metro Station and we ran six and a half miles west and back on the W&OD Trail in about an hour. (Left: Nobody, not even Mary Alice, was faster than Jake on Saturday. L-R, Hallie, Ashley, Gary and Arnetta.) The turnout included some alumni from last year's TKG program. Check out the great photos in Jeanne's post, just below this one. Everybody looked great and Mary Alice blazed the pace at about 8:40 minutes per mile. She's ready! Afterwards we chatted about running and things for twenty minutes at the top of the stairs leading down from the trail to the station's Kiss & Ride parking lot. (Right: Remember how far off the race seemed those weeks running on the Mall in February and March?)

Sunday was the Hill Workout in Falls Church. John showed up (I don't think he's in the TKG program) and in an hour of running, we ran about 5 miles up and over the hill and back again ten times on Highland Avenue, including one infamous boomerang (a dizzying descent and back again on a side hill). We practiced our downhill running and our pace (footstrike, turnover or cadence). Both are technique-driven and will make you faster. Afterwards I ran into Coach Bob riding his bike (!) on the W&OD Trail. He had come looking for the Hill Workout which conveniently was over! Incredibly, his bike had a bell on it, and he even demonstrated to me that he knew how to use it (he is a runner, after all). Your coach now is ready for the hill in Capitol Hill in the sixth mile. How about you? (Above: You will encounter this view on May 20th at around 8:50 a.m. after you have already run over five miles. Will you conquer this hill, or will it conquer you? Left: John getting ready for hills.)

Don’t forget the club will offer a Ten-Mile Group Training Program ("TMG") starting on Saturday, July 14th at 8 a.m. on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial (the steps that face the Washington Monument). The cost is $35. I hope to see all of you there. The goal race will be the Army Ten-Miler on Sunday, October 7, 2007 at the Pentagon. It’s a fun, albeit jinxed, race, fast flat and full (almost). As of today, there are only 6,015 slots left out of 26,000 originally available. Sign up soon if you know you’re going to run it!

Notable Upcoming Run: The Arlington YMCA’s Mother’s Day 10K on Sunday, May 13, 2007 was last year’s program’s goal race and is a worthy race to run. It is challenging and it runs over the very same hills we did two Saturdays ago when we hit the Custis Trail.

There are many fine running products out there. The many fine area running stores, like Fleet Feet in Adams Morgan, or Metro Run & Walk in Falls Church, Springfield and Rockville, or Pacers in Old Town and Arlington, or Gotta Run in Pentagon Row and Annapolis, or others, stock reputable products at fair prices. Go to a store and check out your running needs.

RUN ON YOUR OWN: You better!! I can tell who is! This week you should run three or four times on your own, 35 to 55 minutes each time, with some of the runs at a ten or eleven minute per mile pace or better. 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 within three weeks of the race now so it’s time to concentrate on your training! If you want to run the goal race 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.

CLUB TRACK 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.

Visit the program’s running commentary on the Forum link at the club's website for more information. There’s lots of interesting and pertinent information there. Please feel free to comment on the blog or this forum link. As a matter of fact, I double dare you to comment!

Coaching tips:
Study the course map and familiarize yourself with where the milemarkers are. Pasta load the night before the race (spaghetti is traditional) and get plenty of rest! Lay out your racing items before you go to bed. Give yourself PLENTY of time to get there. Email your coach or me if you want/need more pre-race tips.

Odds & Ends: Read Jeanne's post right below this one concerning charity running. Ashley is running Chicago in the fall and needs to raise $500 for a worthy charity benefitting both education and underdeveloped regions. I am raising money in the same race for the same cause.
See you Saturday!