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No TMBC - ALexandria Turkey Trot or Race Elsewhere

Fellow Endorphin Junkies

There will be NO Thursday Morning DCRRC Track Practice in Arlington at the Yorktown High School track tomorrow. Instead, those of you who can, should try to run a Turkey Trot somewhere – and if you are in town, you can run the Club's biggest fund raiser – the Alexandria Turkey Trot 5 Miler – which Coach Big Guy may be doing.

The Club has always supported and run the Alexandria Turkey Trot, and you can sign up for the Five Miler here: https://www.alexandriaturkeytrot.com/ - the proceeds from this run support Alive, an Alexandria charity helping the poor, and the Club. They also ask that we bring canned goods with us to help the needy.

As for Thanksgiving itself, Mrs. Big Guy and I want to tell you all that we give thanks every day for the wonderful people we met through the DCRRC and TMBC – you all light up our lives!

The weather in Arlington tomorrow will be clear in the morning and a bit chilly at 38 degrees, lower humidity, and just a little bit of wind (6 mph) so pretty nice weather for a race.

November 24, 2022 – No TMBC, so Alexandria Turkey Trot 5 Miler, or whatever race – Real or Virtual - you can find where you are tomorrow!

In Club news from Coach Rich -

Hi Thursday morning track fans. Only 1 race result to report on from last weekend. Tatyana Steis ran what she called a "chill" 5k at the Herndon Turkey Trot 5K. Her time of 20:10 was good for 2nd OAF. Congrats to Tatyana

The next club race is the Thanksgiving Day Alexandria Turkey Trot 5M tomorrow. There are already over 5000 runners registered and there is still time for you to join the party. It is a super fun race whether you are trying to run a fast 5M or just enjoy a pre-turkey jog with the family. The course is pancake flat and really fast. To register go to alexandriaturkeytrot.com.

The Snowball Series of races is now posted on the club website. The first race is the Gar Williams Half Marathon on Dec 4 followed by the Bread Run 10K on Dec 11. As a reminder, all series races are free to club members. We always need volunteers. Go to http://dcroadrunners.org to register for the race or to volunteer.

The Annual Holiday Relays are Wednesday night Dec 14 at the W-L track at 7PM. This is a 2-person relay where we pair faster and slower runners together to run 10 x 400 as a tag team relay. You each run 10 x 400. This is a hugely fun event followed by happy hour at First Down just up the street from the track. Fun holiday prizes are awarded for the podium places and best costumes. We hope to see everyone there. There will be no Thursday morning track practice on the 15th.

New Year's Day is the club's annual Predictions & Resolutions 5K. It starts at a New Year's Eve friendly 12:00PM. I am the race director and I am still in need of 12 volunteers. To sign up to run or volunteer go to http://dcroadrunners.org.

I hope to see some of you out at the Alexandria Turkey trot tomorrow.

Happy running!

Coach Big Guy and Coach Rich hope to see some of you at the Turkey Trot tomorrow in Alexandria!

3 x 1600m in 10k, 400m jogs

Fellow Endorphin Junkies

TMBC practice tomorrow is at Yorktown track, in Greenbriar Park around the corner from the school entrance. Tomorrow's weather will be cold, with temps in the lower 30s, lower humidity at 68%, somewhat windy at 14 mph, and no chance of rain. With these good conditions – if you dress warmly - you should still bring water for hydration after every interval before you start the 400m jog rest interval.

November 17th, 2022 – TMBC: 3 x 1600m in 10k Pace, with 400m jogs in between

Stallions: 5:45 to 6:30 Pace

Wolf Pack: 6:30 to 7:15 Pace

Gazelles: 7:15 to 8:00 Pace

Coyotes/MTP Trainees: 8:00 to 10:00 Pace

When your track intervals lengthen to a mile, it is sometimes difficult to remember that you really want to change your form, style, cadence, etc. from your standard runs, but you really should. It makes a big difference if you switch your form from long distance form to speed work form – focus on lifting your knees, getting up on your toes, and using your arms in sync to lift the opposite leg. Don't fall into the trap of lengthening your stride (aka "Overstride") – cadence should increase measurably on the track as opposed to the road and trail. On these longer intervals, mentally break them down – for example, on Lap 1 focus on form – "Am I up on my toes and lifting knees?" Lap 2 – "Am I relaxed – am I pushing while not getting too tense?" Lap 3 – "How is my breathing – through my nose and mouth - deeply?" Lap 4 – "Let's Finish strong" – but remember to pace yourselves no your final interval is quicker than your first interval – remember to work towards negative splits!

... and the Coach Rich Report –

Greetings Thursday track fans. Several crew members were racing last weekend. Unfortunately, all but 1 of them were running in Richmond in very tough weather conditions. Super warm and humid is just not what you want or need for a marathon. That said, big shout out to Rodrigo and Melinda as they turned in fantastic performances in the marathon. Not their PRs but pretty close for both of them. In the half, Yared Addisu continued to pile on PRs. This one by 4 minutes! Congrats to them and all of you Richmond Marathon and Half Marathoners (sorry if I missed anyone):

2:44:50 - Rodrigo Vellon, 2nd 30-34
3:04:03 - Adam Mann
3:09:13 - Christie Wetzel
3:20:15 - Melinda Metz, 3rd AG
3:29:21 - Brian Young

Half
1:23:35 - Yared Addisu, 3rd 40-45
1:38:35 - Nate Rathjen
1:49:53 - Kate Scott
2:17:44 - Miguel Cuya

Not in Richmond, but marathoning was Carrie Dunn who traveled to Nashville for cold conditions and the Nashville Half Marathon. Carrie ran a fine 1:30:33 for 1st place AG and 5th OAF. Congrats Carrie!

DCRRC Happy Hour is tomorrow night November 17 at the First Down Sports Pub near Ballston. It will start at 6PM. Bunion Derby Awards will be given out.

The next club race is the Thanksgiving Day Alexandria Turkey Trot 5M. This typically attracts some 5000 runners. It is a super fun race whether you are trying to run a fast 5M or just enjoy a pre-turkey jog with the family. The course is pancake flat and really fast. To register or volunteer go to alexandriaturkeytrot.com. We need lots of volunteers.

The Snowball Series of races is now posted on the club website. The first race is the Gar Williams Half Marathon on Dec 4 followed by the Bread Run 10K on Dec 11. As a reminder, all series races are free to club members. We always need volunteers. Go to http://dcroadrunners.org to register for the race or to volunteer.

New Year's Day is the club's annual Predictions & Resolutions 5K. It starts at a New Year's Eve friendly 12:00PM. I am the race director andI am still in need of 16 volunteers. To sign up to run or volunteer go to http://dcroadrunners.org.

Happy running!

Coach Big Guy and Coach Rich will see you at the Yorktown Track tomorrow!