Hello Beginner-runners,

Congratulations on another fabulous week of training!  We are incredible (let’s keep that between ourselves or everyone will think we’re bragging).  There are a few things you might want to make note of:

Running group t-shirts:
One of the runners (Chris Roberts) from the Mon/Wed/Fri group has designed a t-shirt for the entire running group.  The shirt is a black, short sleeved, dri-fit, Nike running shirt.  It has the “Women Running the World” logo on the front.  Chris will be at Starbucks after our run on Thursday, 11 October, with a sample of the shirt.  On that day, we will have more information about the cost and ordering process.  I think she negotiated a very good price.  We have no uniforms or anything so you’re definitely not required to buy a shirt.  They are just for fun.  Order one if you’re interested!

Beginner group coffee morning:
On Thursday, 15 November, we will finish our run at Bonnie Bandeen’s house for coffee in her garden.  I will talk for a few minutes about our training program, the race in Bratislava and be available to answer any questions you have.  We are such a large group that we rarely have room to sit at Starbucks after our run.  So, thank you Bonnie for inviting us to your home!

Pilates for Runners class:
APPI will be offering a pilates class designed specifically for runners.  Ladies, I cannot over-emphasize the importance of stretching, or doing yoga or pilates to offset some of the pounding we endure as runners.  If you are interested, call Anna at APPI (0207 624 5314) and tell her which day/time would be convenient for you.  They will attempt to group up people to create a few classes throughout the week.

Upcoming Training:
We are right on track with our training.  Next week, we have some 5 minute running intervals.  Is that crazy or what????  Who would have thought we could run 5 minutes????  The following week, Thursday, 18 October, we’ll be doing our first destination run to Big Ben and taking the tube home from Westminster.  Some of you have mentioned that you’re worried about that first destination run.  I promise we’ll be fine.  Running through the city is great – there are dozens of street crossings and we get to take little mini-breaks at each light.  I try to time the lights to our walking breaks, but it’s impossible – so you get a lot more rest periods.  There is also something fun about running to a destination.  The Costa shop there is tiny so we’ll probably take the tube back to St. John’s Wood for post-run coffee.

Bratislava Update:
The British Airways flights to Vienna continue to increase in price.  Several of the MWF runners have booked the Ryan Air flight that arrives directly into Bratislava late Friday evening.  They fly home on Monday on Ryan Air at 9:50am.  Also several women have booked the two earlier BA flights on Friday, 22 March.  I understand there may still be frequent flyer seats available for the early morning (7:25am) BA flight.

That’s it for this week.  Have a good weekend everyone and I’ll look forward to seeing you next Thursday,

Happy Running,

Paula