Week eight was at Bluemont...

Saturday August 30th, week eight, was a nice cool morning for running at Bluemont Park in Arlington. Attendance was affected due to it being the long Labor Day weekend, but still about 16 runners and four coaches showed up and ran about 9 miles (10M Program) or 6 miles (10K Program) eastbound on the W&OD Trail to Shirlington and back again. On Tuesday evening the Alternative Track Workout had half a dozen runners toiling away at Yorktown on their 9X400s with four coaches present. Wednesday evening, of course, was the club's regularly scheduled track workout at W&L of 16-20X400 if anybody didn't get enough speed work in on the prior evening.

Coach Emily ran in the New Mexico Marathon over the weekend and finished twelfth in 3:52 This was a finish for her in the top ten percent of this hilly marathon. Congratulations.

For week nine, Saturday September 6, we are scheduled to meet at Roosevelt Island for a nine or six mile run. However, Hurricane Hanna is currently projected to bring six inches of rain to the region on Friday evening to Saturday morning and possibly cause flash flooding. This is a fluid situation as of Thursday evening, September 4th, but if there are torrential downpours on Saturday morning the Program will CANCEL week nine's run (Saturday, 9/6). Check for a last minute update on the weekly announcement space at the 10K Training Program Log.

This blogger is sorry to report that the gentleman to the right was suspected at the Program gathering last week at Sette Bello to be smoking a cigarette. He kept running outside to check on something, and he would return will a suspicious odor of tobacco around his personage, Apparently some paparazzi were about and they snapped this picture. Perhaps you all will recognize him from his picture, the smoking gun in effect as to his habits when he is not directing the running club or its track workout program. Perhaps we could encourage him to enter rehab. (Photo credit Emily.)

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 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!