Weekend Runs

UPDATED

SATURDAY

I am meeting Karl and Sam for a run Saturday @ 9am @ Difficult Run.

We'll meet in the parking lot pictured above, which is located off Georgetown Pike. Check the "Where We Run" link if you need directions.

We will hit some trails that I discovered...that no one else in the world knows about...except me.

Come one, come all.

#trailking

SUNDAY:

From Coach Jerry:  I hope everyone has dried off after our misadventure with the rain on Wednesday.  For those of you who want to get on the track this weekend, we'll get after it on Sunday at BCC for a 9:30 start, so meet for the warmup at 8:45.  I'm on a very tight time schedule on Sunday, so please be ready to roll right at 9:30. 
Best of luck to Sean and Meghan at USATF xc in St Louis.  Make us proud!

Wednesday workout, January 30

After a quiet weekend, we'll have some action on the racing front on Saturday, with Sean and Meghan running the USATF xc champs in St Louis, and several of you running the all-comers indoor meet at the PG County track.  If you're running the indoor meet Saturday, please confirm that with me so we can plan the logistics.  We'll have a workout on Sunday for those of you who are not racing Saturday, and want to get in some quality this weekend.

We'll be at BCC tomorrow for the normal 7:15 start, so meet for the warmup at 6:30.  The men will do 8 x 800 w/ a 2:30 recovery.  There may be a separate marathon-focused workout.  As always, we can modify the workout as necessary.

I'll send the women's workout separately.

Jerry

Chilly weekend runs

A track workout
Track workout starting at 9:30 at B-CC Sunday

A Saturday long run in Fairfax
I'mheading to George Mason to watch some track Saturday, and I'm going a littleearly to run 16 miles before the races starting from the fieldhouse there, starting a little after 10 am, onUniversity Drive near the intersection with Ox Road. Karl's in so far. Ifanyone wants to join us, comment.

Sunday long run
We'reopen to suggestions... comment at will

Dress appropriately for the weather

Wednesday workout, January 23

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RESULTS

We had some excellent performances this weekend, led by Drea's huge PR of 1:19:20 in Phoenix.  A search of my emails in the last year would show the phrase "huge PR" and Drea in the same sentence many times, and this race is right up there on the list of her outstanding runs.  As often as we've seen Drea have a major breakthough in the last year, I haven't gotten tired of writing about them, and I'm expecting more this spring, and beyond.  Also in Phoenix, Sam ran a solid sub 1:09, and Dickson fought through illness to run 1:13:38.  In the full marathon, Chris placed third in 2:36:50, and Breezy ran what had to be the best race of his life, running a PR and placing 14th.  Jake was on pace to run a big PR, but had to abandon his effort around the 20 mile mark.  As disappointed as Jake was by not being able to finish, he deserves great credit for being in the best marathon shape of his life, and his inability to meet his goal certainly was not due to lack of effort or toughness.

On the track at Maryland, Witty started off his season with an easy victory at 5k in 15:06.  That effort, run solo from the 1k mark on, bodes extremely well for the rest of the season.  Hilary made a successful track 5k debut, and while she struggled the last 2k due to illness, she proved to me, and more importantly to herself, that she will be a force to be reckoned with at the longer distances on the track.  Meghan ran a solid 10:28 3k, and Big City broke 2:00 for the 800.  Finally, Tom Kelly made his GRC debut.  Tom ran 4:00.7 for 1500 during his career at Fordham, and he will be an excellent addition to our middle distance crew.

ADMINISTRATIVE

If you intend to run Cherry Blossom, you should have received instructions from me about requesting a seeded entry.  If you need that information and did not receive it, let me know right away.

If you plan to run National Half and have not confirmed that intention with me, please do so right away.

I have discussed the All-Comers indoor meet at the PG County track on February 2 with several of you.  There is no advance registration for the meet, but we should coordinate who's doing what, so please let me know if you plan to run.

We will have practice on Saturday morning at BCC for the track group.  Anyone else who wants to come out is more than welcome.

WORKOUT

We'll be at BCC on Wednesday for a 7:15 start.  It's going to be a cold one, and it's important that everyone get a full warmup before we get started.

The men will do a 6-5-4-3-2-1 (laps) ladder, all with a 3:00 rest.  Anyone who wants to do a portion of the workout, or who has any questions about what is apporpriate, should give me a holler.

I'll send the women's workout separately.

See you Wednesday at BCC.

Jerry

Drea runs 1:19:20, Breezy PRs

She finishes sixth at the Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Half Marathon for a 48-second PR.

Sam runs 1:08:57 for eighth, Dickson 1:13:38

Breezy ran 2:48:50 for a 12-second PR over his 2011 Marine Corps time

Bain ran 2:36:50 for third overall in the marathon

Klim DNF, dropping before 20

Meanwhile, Outlaw won the Frostbite 15k in Richmond in 51:07 for a 47-second victory

Yesterday in Maryland, Witty ran 15:06 to win the 5k, Sean dropped after 1k, JR ran his first race since Run Geek Run to hit 16:25. Hilary struggled through a cold to run 18:25, Tom Kelly hit 4:32, Big City ran 1:59 and Meghan ran 10:28, beating scores of collegiate runners.


It's also worth noting that GRC alumnus Neal Hannan is engaged.

Sunday - Burke Lake @ 9

A few of us are getting together at Burke Lake for a long run (14-16).  If you're interested, post and we'll wait for you.

Here is where we usually meet. https://maps.google.com/maps?daddr=Unknown+road&hl=en&ll=38.758802,-77.304482&spn=0.017201,0.034504&sll=38.760107,-77.302637&sspn=0.034401,0.069008&geocode=FYJlTwIdq25k-w&mra=mr&t=m&z=15

Kicking off the new year

We have a few runners huddling indoors at the PG Sports Complex Saturday morning to start out the track season, and several "airing it out" in Phoenix at the Rock 'n Roll Arizona Marathon and Half.

Hilary May is making her 5k track debut, and hopes to repeat Drea Garvue's event-winning performance from last year.

Ryan Witters is looking to rebound from an unpleasant race here last year, and JR Roberts, finally back from an injury layoff in the fall, is sharpening his spikes like a pair of steak knives he won for finishing second in a real estate office' sales contest. Sean Barrett is getting a little break from cross country running as he prepares for the Armed Forces cross country championship and will give the 5000 a go.

Newcomer Tom Kelly will go after it in the mile and Big City will race. I'd let you guess what distance, but everyone would get it right-- the 800.

Meghan Lockett will go shoulder-to-shoulder with some women who are old enough to be her...older sister....

Check out the schedule here.

The main event will go off at 10 am eastern on Sunday, when our gang takes to the streets of Phoenix. Sam Luff, Drea Garvue and Dickson Mercer will chase their fortunes in the half marathon, and Jake Klim, Chris Bain and Brian Young will tackle the marathon. Though all of the competitors have demonstrated success in their respective races, Jake's race is going to be one to watch. It's been a few years since his last full, well before his 2010 breakthrough and his gritty "return to racing" in 2012. It's worth noting that Jake's been "on" as of late, with top-leading performances at the USATF Half Marathon Championships in June and the Club Cross Country Championships in December.

If you want to spend money to track runners, by all means...

Also, Outlaw is running the Frostbite 15k in Richmond.

DEVELOPING... 2012 with the GRC

We made some huge strides in 2012, grew as a team following good and bad experiences. We welcomed a lot of new members- Luke Albertson, Hilary May, Sean Barrett, Teal Connor, Alex Benway, Matt Hassett, Kyra, Stefan Kolata, welcomed Dave O'Hara back after a few years in the wilderness, Colin Raunig, J.R. Roberts, Nina Brekelmans, Catherine Campbell, Lindsay O'Brien,  and Lauren Woodall Roady.

Most tragically, we also lost Lauren. Luke moved away shortly after he arrived, LJ peaced out, Ryan Hanson and Matt Logan departed for grad school, and Frank Fung, Robert Jarrin and Anna-Holt Gosselin found teams elsewhere.

We officially organized and had incredible performances in races, but most importantly built a team that makes us want to keep coming back, week after week. That's something that a sponsorship or a deep-pocketed patron could never create on its own. And we had a lot of laughs along the way!!!

January

Sam's victory in the 5k at the Maryland indoor meet was all well and good, but Drea upstaged him by lapping everyone else, some twice. Luke Albertson debuts in the 5k for what would no doubt be a long and distinguished GRC career.

Lyndzay Jerdonek skips town for a professional triathlon career, later comes skulking back from time to time.

Feburary
A seven-woman gang of GRC runners made Kirby’s fundraiser for her school’s Girls on the Run chapter one of the most competitive 5ks in the area. Good luck, everybody else!

Karl Dusen attempts a hostile takeover of the GRC management to appropriate money to purchase sweatpants. He musters little to no support.

Carlos Hunt competed in the Barcelona Half Marathon

While competing unattached at the George Mason Last Chance indoor meet, Aubrey almost misses the start for the 3k, leading Charlie to jump on the track and create a distraction so she can put on her spikes and get to the line. I forgot what happened next.

March
Witty breaks the team indoor mile record at the Columbia Last Chance meet, running 4:15.

Various runners score almost $300 in gift certificates to the Glory Days Grill at the Van Metre Five Mile.

It’s not quite the By George 10k, but the Gate River Run 15k in Jacksonville ends up a windy mess.

Bain crusades through the mud to win the Seneca Greenway Marathon+.

Karl Dusen wins the MCRRC Athlete of the Year award over CTR. Complaints that he made it purely on reputation are dismissed, however accurate.

Team Marren wins the 4x8 relay

Murph scores two huge PRs- almost one minute at the Rock ‘n Roll USA half marathon, then staying out at a single bar for 12 hours afterward.

April
The women’s team wins the Cherry Blossom team competition, powered by Drea’s 58:50, Beth’s 90-second PR and solid races from LTO and Susan.  Jake Klim makes his return to racing.

The even harder fought coed intrasquad race saw the Dylan Keith team prevail over Dirk de Heer’s squad, which was perhaps slowed down by the runner’s insistence on wearing wooden racing flats for cultural accuracy’s sake.

Dirk, incidentally enough, would later run 29:59 at the Mt. SAC relays.

Witty’s latest blog post


Maura runs a big PR in the 5k at the Johns Hopkins/Loyola meet. She ran the gamut of emotions throughout the race:


Sam acts like a man and takes the lead for two miles at the George Mason invitational 5k while the American record holder in the mile sits on him before kicking the last 1800 meters to finish about a minute slower than his PR. What is there to be proud of there, Al? Watch the race here.


Despite oppressive heat that fells many serious competitors, Chris Bain extends his Boston Marathon streak to 15, whiel Patrick Reaves runs a gutsy, some say stupidly tenacious race. Lavar and JARRIN also survive.

Michelle Miller makes her return to racing at the Crystal City 5k.

With Joe Hanson observing from the dryness of his storm chasing getup, the GRC splatters the blood of its opponents all over Franklin Field at the Penn Relays.






 First, Witty runs 14:40 in the 5k. Then Drea guts out a 35:46 10K, beating an Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier. 

Then, in deluge of rain and blood, Sam destroys his archnemesis in the 10k, running 29:37 for a new team record, a PR and demolishing his jobless brother.

 Karl and Laura run big-time races at the Pike's Peek 10k.
Dusen run 30:05, with Wertz and Bain PRing behind him and LTO PRs in 35:51, with Bitz Young also PRing.

Mike Cotterell ran 2:40 at the Eugene Marathon, trying to salvage his training for the aborted Boston Marathon. 

May
Breezy Young gave it a go in Toldeo, and Dickson would try to capitalize in Cleveland, but the heat and surrealism of the whole experience will get the better of him. Halfmarathoners Charlie, Drea and Bits will also give it a go but be overwhelmed by the faslehoods of the song "Cleveland Rocks." 

Caroline Wertz gets to celebrate Mother's Day with the arrival of her and Dave's daughter, Zella.

Lauren Woodall PRed while winning the Police Week 5k.

Witty broke the team's 1500 record, running 3:53.66 at Swarthmore.

The O'Haras  won their respective races at the miserably hot Alexandria Running Festival 5k. A few days later, Susan ran 5:07 on the Winchester roads.

June
Seamus Bain was born faster than Chris could run a marathon in Korea. Or maybe not, I don't actually know how long it took.

Brian McCabe, Matt Logan and Lindsay Donaldson led the GRC team to victory in the Press Club 5k.

Jake's return to racing continues with a PR 69:19, edging Sam at the USATF Half Marathon Championships in Minnesota. 

After nine months of carrying him in his calves, Matias gives birth to Leo.

A Herculean effort by the team leads to a massive success for the Father's Day 8k. Things aren't too bad for the runners, either, with Witty scoring a victory and LTO finishing second to a friggin' Olympian.

Linked from the beginning, Outlaw and Hanson propose to their prospective fiancees days apart. Hanson then skips town for medical school.

July
Nothing happens at all. Wiggy ran a couple of track races, but most people dismissed that.

August 
The Georgetown Running Club incorporates and joins the Road Racing Association of America as a nonprofit affiliate.

Michelle Miller makes her return to racing, winning the Annapolis 10 Miler.

Charlie Ban takes over RunWashington magazine and immediately starts employing his cronies, lackeys and sycophants.

September

Jake Klim makes his return to racing at the Kentlands 5k.
his return to racing at the Parks Half Marathon, along with Sam Luff, Jerry Greenlaw and Michelle Miller, who makes her return to racing.

We finally get our new uniforms.

Emily and Karl welcome Juliet to their family.




NERDS!
The GRC team dominates the Run, Geek, Run! 8k, with Witty taking the individual crown and Michelle Miller making her return to racing in second for the women. Jake Klim makes his return to racing.

With all respect to LDO and Sean's great races at the Rock 'n Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon, Lauren Woodall has the race of the month, taking Shannon Miller to the last few yards of the Navy-Air Force Half Marathon, still netting an almost-eight-minute PR, witnessed by her husband, parents and in-laws. Her intensity over the last two miles was something to behold. Miller had no idea what she was messing with...
Burnham wins, with Fridge making a huge impression in his first GRC race. Huge.


A scoring error leads Sam, Charlie, Maura and their shared teammate Ross to believe their co-ed team won the Great Race 10k in Pittsburgh. That error is later revealed, and it was simply the blorst feeling. Despite that, Sam finishes, second, Charlie and Maura PR for fifth and sixth place. Lauren wins the Perfect 10k in Reston. Sam gets to second base with himself.

October
Jake Klim made his return to racing at some 5.1 mile mountain race in New Hampshire. Charlie wins a once-great 15k in Cumberland, and GRC runners serve as guides for visually impaired runners at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half Marathon. Michelle Miller makes her return to racing there as the first local finisher.

Wouldn't it be cooooool????
Peter Silverman is announced as the winner of the Glory Days cross country 5k at Bull Run Park, but is later revealed to simply be Witty. Hilary throws some 'bows when confronted by some guy who runs 18:00.

The rapid response to Charlie's request for an elite entry to the Charlottesville Fall Classic Half is no longer a mystery after he clocks an 11-plus minute victory. The next day, Sam leads the men and Drea and Beth's 13th and 15th place finishes pace the women at the Army Ten Miler. Jake Klim makes his return to racing.

Woodshed, Chatty Cathy, Susan, Skittles and Meghan route the competition at the Downtown Towson 5k.
Meanwhile, the Cross Country on the Farm 5k race demonstrates to everyone who ran why no pet wants to be taken "to the farm,"

Sean Barrett and Stefan Kolata finish 13th and 15th at the Marine Corps Marathon.

November
Adira Burnham arrives and simply melts Dave's heart.

RunWashington’s November/December issue features Kate Dart on the cover

Dolla Billz just owns the HCA 8k in Richmond. Owns it. 25:17. Shannon O'Neil makes a legitimate return to racing in the half soon after.

Outlaw makes a huge comeback after months of ineffective running to lead the team at the Veterans Day 10k. Beth Young continues an incredibly consistent year.


LTO is named to the Rhode Island Interscholastic League Hall of Fame.


December

Guess who's back?

The GRC women finish 11th at the USATF Club Cross Country Championships, the men 17th. What follows, I can't say anything that Breezy hasn't in this recounting of the Navy-Air Force Half, or Towpath hadn't put together in his video. What I can say is that Lauren exhibited the best of what we could all hope to do with our running and our lives, make the most of our opportunities to perform athletically, to achieve professionally and to love in our personal relationships.

We named Sam Luff our male runner of the year, Drea Garvue our female runner of the year, Alex Benway and Lauren Woodall Roady our rookies of the year, and Jake Klim and Beth Young recipients of the coach's awards.

Saturday Runs/Workouts

There will be two workouts on Saturday morning for you to choose from:

Option A: Jerry will be hosting a track workout at BCCHS for those of you that are looking for something shorter and faster. Meet in the paring lot at 8:15 for the warmup with the workout to start at 9.

Option B: The Phoenix crew will be doing a workout from the Georgetown store starting at 8:30. You can join Patrick here too if you're just looking for a run without a workout.

GRC Board Elections

At the team meeting this Saturday at 6:30pm at Sam, Charlie, and Witters' house, we'll elect a new GRC Board for 2013.  In advance of the election, we wanted to solicit nominations for the five positions to be placed on the ballot, as well as other important jobs helping the team run smoothly.  Here are the five elected positions, as described in our club bylaws:

President:  shall preside at meetings, set the annual agenda, represent the GRC in the RRCA, USA Track and Field (USATF) and other organizations, call special meetings, appoint committees and chairpersons thereof. 


Vice President/Treasurer:  shall assume the powers of the President in his or her absence and take on special assignments as requested by the President. As Treasurer, this individual shall administer all GRC finances, maintain a current status of accounts, disburse funds as directed in accordance with requirements of bylaws, prepare annual tax filing documentation, and prepare an annual financial report and annual budget for presentation at the Annual Meeting. 


Secretary:  shall record the minutes of meetings and keep a file of such minutes and, when requested by the President, accept assignments involving correspondence and the keeping of records. 


Men's/Women's Team Director:  shall represent their respective team constituencies in all Board meetings and act as a liaison between individual team members and The Board.


In general, the responsibilities of the Board members include attending bi-monthly Board Meetings (approximately 2 hours each), frequent attendance at team practices and events, and responsiveness to board emails to make team decisions between meetings.

In addition, we're looking for people to take on the following roles (these are non-board positions that will not be voted on):

GRC Technology Czar:  This person will be responsible for maintaining the team's website, blog, Twitter feed, and new Facebook page.  Jimmy Daly has done a great job setting this all up, so the job will require more diligence than technological know-how.  The tasks include weekly maintenance of the blog (editing Jerry's emails into a PG version suitable for the blog), posting race results on the blog, maintaining/creating team member profiles on the website, and uploading/tagging race photos on Facebook.  The total amount of work is likely to be less than 30 minutes/week.

Father's Day 8K and Lauren's Memorial Run Race Committees:  We're looking for volunteers to solicit sponsors, organize race day events, maintain/build race websites, and other race-related tasks.  Most importantly, we're looking for the next generation of race directors for these events.
 

If you are interested in a board position or team leadership position, or would like to nominate someone else, send Patrick an email (patrick@grcrunning.com) before the meeting Saturday to be placed on the ballot.  So far, we have the following nominations:

President:  Patrick Murphy
Vice President/Treasurer:  Sam Luff
Secretary: Maura Carroll
Men's Team Director: Charlie Ban
Women's Team Director: Laura O'Hara

Wednesday 1/9 Workout

From Coach Jerry:

Gang, I'm fired up to get back into our normal routine, and I'm really looking foward to seeing all of you on Wednesday.  Before I get into the workout details, there are a few pressing administrative matters for your consideration.

1)  The team meeting is this Saturday, January 12, at 6:30 pm at the home of Charlie, Sam, and Witty.  Please make every effort to attend.  We have important team business to discuss that is of concern to all of you.  Afterwards, we can adjourn to a local establishment for refreshments.

2)  If you plan to run the UMD Track Meet, Rock and Roll HM, and/or Cherry Blossom Ten Miler, let Jerry know.

As for the workout, we'll be at BCC on Wednesday for a 7:15 start as normal, so plan to meet for the warmup at 6:30.

Because we're coming into this workout with varying levels of fitness after the break, there will be numerous options  For the men, the A group is going to do 4 x mile w/ a 3:00 rest.  We'll also have a B group workout of 6 x 800, with a 3:00 jog.  If you want to run a customized workout, that's fine too--just let me know your pleasure.

For the women, we'll also keep the options open.  Drea is doing a 2400, and then do 5 x 800 w/ a 3:00 recovery.  We can work most or all of you into that framework, so you can do the full workout, or portions thereof.  Or you can do something entirely different if you like.  Check in with me and we'll figure out what works for you.

I'll see you Wednesday at BCC.

The Line 9am tomorrow

Hi,

I'm wondering if anyone would like to run from The Line tomorrow. I'm looking for 13-15mi. I haven't been to this run in a while, but would like to get in a solid long (for me... now). Pace around 6:50-7:00/mi.

Rumor has it Klim, Bain and Dix will be there.

Hope to see you out there

CTR

A friendly reminder...

...to yield to horses when you're running.

This morning we made the mistake of running past a couple of horses coming from the opposite direction on the towpath. Typically, I try to walk, or shuffle, but today, while in the middle of a workout, I proceeded ahead. The riders didn't think much of it, but the horse evidently did and, in turn, tossed said rider. The rider was okay, but it was a scary and tense moment nonetheless.

So, the moral of the story - walk, do not run, past horses.

End of PSA.

Regional Runner Rankings for 2012 Fall

Men: http://www.racepacket.com/rrrank/rrrwrap.php?id=7
Women: http://www.racepacket.com/rrrank/rrrwrap.php?id=8

Saturday Workout/Long Run

I am meeting Sam, Dix and some others on Saturday for a long run/workout up/around Edward's Ferry.

IN SHORT
- I will be running 18 miles, starting at Sycamore Landing Road at 9:00am
- Sam, Dix (and others?) will be running 14 miles starting Edward's Ferry at the same time

THE NITTY GRITTY:
Jake will start by running four easy miles from Sycamore Landing Rd to Edwards Ferry, then running one loop of the Duel Ferry ten mile course, then cooling down four miles back to Sycamore Landing Rd...for a total of 18. The first 4 miles will be a warm-up, then I slowly ease into high 5:30s and stay there for eight miles. If I'm feeling good, I'll push two miles near the end. The first 8 miles of this run are suppose to simulate my marathon, but naturally you could simulate your own workout based on these logistics/join for part or all of mine etc etc.

After meeting me 2 miles in, Sam and Dix will be running the first 5 miles of the Duel Ferries loop at a moderate pace 5:50 to 6:00 (no faster), then once they hit River Road, they'll try to run 4 to 5 miles at "race pace," or an effort near to that, then jog a mile and call it a day.

KLIM'S PLAN
- start at Sycamore Landing Rd at 9:00am
- mile 1-4 warm-up running north towards Edwards Ferry, meet up with Sam/Dix circa 9:15am at mile 2, together run north to Eds Ferry
- miles 4-6 (5:55s)
- miles 6-12 (5:35-5:40)
- miles 12-14 (crank, if feeling good...finish workout at Edward's Ferry parking lot, then continued south along canal)
- miles 14-18 (cool down back to car at Sycamore Landing Rd)

After the run we'll celebrate at Potomac Pizza.

All interested parties should comment whether they plan to come and should plan to arrive a few minutes early.

UPDATE: For those not planning to run long on Saturday and/or looking to stay close to DC, there will be a shop run from the Gtown Store at 9am with Witters and Murphy. Comment below if you plan to join.