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SLR: 14 Miles Southeast DC

Hello Saturday Long Runners!

It's Nate, your faithful ersatz SLR leader...I am jealous of Anna as she is currently running around one of my favorite cities (one million internet points if you can guess where without looking at strava!) so I am here to kick off once again this week!

Where Are We Going This Time? This week we'll be treated to a nice tour of the Wharf and the southern portion of the Anacostia Riverwalk as we take on Southeast DC (strava, gps, pdf). We'll head into the city via the Memorial Bridge, head down L'Enfant Plaza and through the Wharf to get to the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, make our way up the Anacostia Riverwalk and across the John Phillip Sousa Bridge (possibly the most random person this side of Sen. Francis Case to get a DC bridge named after him?), before heading to the Capitol via Pennsylvania Avenue and back to North Meade Park via the Mall.

Want Less? This is the perfect route to bring your SmarTrip card, as we will pass four Orange/Blue Line Metro stops: Potomac Avenue (8.5 miles), Eastern Market (9 miles), Capitol South (10 miles) and Smithsonian (11 miles). Even if you are planning to run the full route, it's never a bad idea to bring one in case you need a heat-related bailout. Of course, you can also do an out-and-back of any length if you would prefer, but the river crossings make this a route that you can not easily modify otherwise.

Want More? Adding the rest of the Anacostia Riverwalk (up to Benning Road) and then coming back via Pennsylvania Avenue will get you 4 extra miles. You can also do any of the usual mall-area modifications, like adding Hains or heading back over Key.

Parched? There are water fountains at the pirate ship playground (~7.5 miles) as well as at Eastern Market metro (9 miles) -- this one is set back from the road a bit in the park area so you may not notice it at first glance. I'm told the mall fountains are largely off (thanks for nothing, park rangers) so probably a good idea to carry today!

Swimming Eyeballs? The pirate ship playground also has well-appointed restrooms, and we will also pass the "welp...they're there" restrooms by the Washington Monument. In a pinch, there are plenty of shops along Pennsylvania Avenue that will let you use theirs if you ask nicely (and don't drip on anything). Anna's personal favorite is in the foreign language section at Capitol Hill Books.

Happy Running, and have a blast!

-Nate

SLR: 18 Miles Rock Creek MBT

Hello Saturday Long Runners!

If Debby's gotten you down the past few days, fear not! We shouldn't have any rain tomorrow morning and will hopefully have some cooler temperatures (or at least ones that don't rise as fast, no guarantee on it feeling all that pleasant). That not enough reason to join? We've also got Alexander Hetherington, race director for MCM, coming out to join us on a long run (and probably answer any and all questions about the race). Now let's get into it:

The Route: I know I say very often that the route we're doing is my favorite (getting people excited to run is part of the gig), but if you really made me choose Rock Creek MBT (strava, gps, pdf) takes the cake (insert "Wow Anna of course you like the 18+ milers" here). We'll head up Rock Creek Park to Beach Drive then turn right onto Blagden Ave up a long hill (but not nearly as long as the one for the Olympic marathon, shoutout to the SLR regulars tackling that course this weekend!) before making our way to Gallatin Street. We'll cross the city via Gallatin (be mindful that although Gallatin is a relatively low-trafficked road we will cross some major throughways like Georgia and New Hampshire Ave) then head down the Metropolitan Branch Trail to the Capitol. From here we'll complete our perfect loop of DC by running across the Mall to the Memorial Bridge and back to the park via the cemetery. Why is this route the best, you may be asking yourself? You'll just have to see for yourself in the morning.

Want Something Shorter? Another favorite route of mine (and seemingly everyone else as well) is Ross Drive, which will allow you to stay with the group for the first sixish miles before continuing up Beach Drive and coming back down Ross Drive and Ridge Road for a 15 mile lollipop loop.There are also a plethora of metro stops down the MBT and along the Mall that makes bailing after 9 miles easy (just make sure to bring a shirt and a metro card)!

Need a Longer Route? If 18 isn't enough for you, returning across the 14th Street Bridge and coming up the Mount Vernon Trail to Rosslyn will add another two miles for an even 20. For even more, add on an out and back or a loop of Ross Drive in Rock Creek Park for some extra miles and some extra hills.

Thirsty? We've got mid-run drinks this week thanks to Sean Hicks! He'll be out around the corner of the MBT and Gallatin. We'll also have post run drinks thanks to Yared! Either I have been living under a rock or there are some new water fountains at Peirce Mill near the bathrooms (I mean, they definitely exist, whether or not they've been there for years is the question). Otherwise there are some options along the MBT that I believe are open year round, but with the impending weather you really never know. What is for certain is that the fountains along the Mall are off and the ones inside of Union Station are on. The safest bet, of course, is to bring water, or risk eating some snow!

Need a Bathroom? Peirce Mill around mile 5 and Union Station around mile 14 are my two go-tos along this route. There are also usually some portopotties outside of the Dew Drop Inn, which can be a gamechanger in a pinch! The Metropolitan Branch Trail has a few bathrooms along the way that are questionably available in the morning hours, but worth a shot.

The Bunion Derby race is the Paul Thurston 4.5 Miler around Burke Lake on August 13th! Jerry still needs plenty ofvolunteers to help out, get your Bunion Derby credit out of the way and enjoy the trails! The joint DCRR-PVTC Track Meet this Sunday has also been moved from Yorktown to W&L after renovation delays, signups are still open (but no volunteers needed, thanks to everyone who is helping out).

Happy Running!

Anna