Week 8, April 12th.

WEEK 8, Saturday April 12, 2008 at 9 am:

The dcrrc 10K Training Program will meet at the Roosevelt Island Parking Lot for up to a 10K run. (Below right: The Potomac from the meeting place in the Roosevelt Island Parking Lot before Saturday's run.)

Go Northbound on GW Parkway to just past the Roosevelt Bridge where there's a turnoff to your right. If you take Metro, take the orange or blue lines to Rosslyn, and run towards the Key Bridge. You cross the Mt. Vernon Trail after you cross over Lee Highway but before you start over the Key Bridge. Go South on the Mount Vernon Trail a quarter mile to the Roosevelt Island Parking Lot.

A suggested route is 10K on the nearby Custis Trail. We could run to Glebe Road and back. It'll be a little bit hilly as we practice for Capitol Hill in the race in the sixth mile.

This week you should run three other times, 3-5 miles each run. One run should be a fast-paced run, or have fast portions in it (interval running). Track is on Wednesday night at 7 pm in Arlington. This is a self-contained program, go the the Track Workout section on the club's website for more information.

Next week (week 9) and week 10 we'll meet at Haines Point in the Golf Course parking lot. (Left: Heading out on the Mt. Vernon Trail.)

Weeks 11 and 12 we'll meet in Stanton Square in the District near Union Station. The target race, the Capitol Hill Classic 10K, starts in Stanton Square.

LAST WEEK (week 7). We were joined by Jessica, a runner who had just completed the Reebok SunTrust National Half Marathon training program (16 weeks). Jessica broke two hours for the half marathon last week and has already plunged into training for the Capitol Hill Classic 10K which is, after all, in SIX SHORT WEEKS! Coaches Kristin and Peter took their runners south on the Mount Vernon Trail to the Gravelly Point parking lot just north of National Airport, and back, for six miles in about an hour. Coach Renee took the 14th Street Bridge into the District and then headed north through Georgetown to the Key Bridge and returned, where she completed a loop of six miles in about 55 minutes. It was beautiful spring weather, although there was some wind. (Right: This is what running in the District looked like last week.)

ANNOUNCEMENTS:I hope that you all continue with your running and don't let your conditioning slip after this Program is over. The ARMY 10-MILER registration opened last week. It is MORE THAN HALF-FULL already in one short week. It will be run on Sunday, October 5, 2008. Consider putting it on your schedule and taking the dcrrc 10-Mile Training Program this summer, which starts on July 14th. All of you who finish the 10K Program and keep up with your running are capable of finishing the 10-Mile Program Training too.

Run happy.

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!