Hello Saturday Long Runners!
First off, I want to give a huge congratulations to everyone who raced Marine Corps last weekend and thank you so much to everyone who came out and cheered with DCRR! No matter how last weekend ended up, the training and effort you put forward to get to the start line will stick with you forever, rest up and I look forward to seeing everyone back at SLR soon! Good luck this weekend to everyone who is running NYC (or wherever your racing is taking you)! The weather tomorrow looks excellent for a fall long run, with temps around 40* and little wind. Come out and prepare for whatever start line is in your future! Now let's get into it:
The Route: This week, we will once again be returning to Rock Creek Park to enjoy some hills along the Cathedral Clintons (strava, pdf, gps) route! We'll head up the park to the dreaded Calver Hill (which we can all be thankful we did not need to run last weekend) and continue climbing up Cleveland to the Cathedral. After this, we'll cruise down Embassy Row, where I always like to play a game of "Which country's flag is this?". From here we will head past the White House and down to the Mall to return to the park.
Want Something Shorter? Take a right on 22nd Street and then another right on M Street to cut this down from a 12 miler to a 10 miler and skip a bit of the stop-and-go of running through the city. Otherwise a shorter out and back in Rock Creek Park is the way to go!
Need a Longer Route? Unfortunately, this week also marks Megan's last SLR! She was our fearless leader through COVID and was instrumental in keeping the SLR tradition alive. Her favorite route in the area (which we would've done this week if we hadn't done it a couple weeks ago) is Ross Ridge, so if you're looking for 14 and want something a little more in the park give that one a go! To stick with a more traditional addition, running down the Mall towards Capitol Hill can add a few miles, as will coming back along the Mount Vernon Trail instead of up by the cemetery!
Thirsty? Water is few and far between on this route (other than once we get to the Mall, but those will be turned off any day now), so be sure to bring your own. Thank you so much to Chris Walsh for post-run drinks this week! Be sure to give him a good luck as he tackles Richmond next weekend!
Need a Bathroom? Those are also limited. There are usually some portopotties in people's yards for construction along Cleveland. There are also the reliable-yet-disgusting bathrooms at the Washington Monument, which are great options in a pinch!
The next club race is the Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning! This one of my favorite races in the region (and regularly has a fantastic elite field)! We also need a tremendous amount of volunteers to keep this race running smoothly, so please consider helping out either race morning or the week before with packet pickup if you're in the area for the holiday! DCRR Memberships expire on November 30th! For the low, low price of $35 a year you'll gain access to weekly workouts, easy runs, and long runs, over 20 free races, and the best and most inspiring group of runners in the DC Area!
Happy Running!
Anna
