Hello everyone,
Thank you so much for continuing to welcome our new runners. We are still getting to know each other and sorting out pace “packs” within our larger group but it will happen! Everyone hang in there, keep coming out, keep running and things will settle into a routine soon.
Calling all mid-paced runners….
In an effort to help our mid-paced ladies identify other similarly-paced runners, we’ll be heading down to Hummingbird Bakery in South Kensington on Wednesday (12 Sept). We’ll run between an 11:15-12:15 min/mile pace and have lots of opportunities to rest as it’s mostly street running (hopefully lots of red lights!!!). You’ll have the option of running 4, 5 or 6 miles or running less than that by starting with us then taking some sort of transport to meet us at the bakery. If you run around that pace or are new to long distances and want to slow down your pace a bit to extend your mileage, come join us!
Beginner Runner Overload…..
A note about this year’s beginner running group, it’s time to stop recruiting! We have 33 women in the group. There are a few who will be trying out the MWF groups this week and we always lose a few over the first couple of months. Handling more than about 25 is tricky. I will never say no to anyone wanting to join – I can’t make myself do it, but we definitely can stop recruiting beginner runners. Thanks a million!!
Functional Movement Assessments….
I’ll give one more nudge here for you to set up an appointment with Christian for a functional movement assessment. I promise I’m not getting any kickbacks! It’s a great time of year at the beginning of our season to have a “tune-up”. Christian can help you get everything in balance so as we start increasing mileage you’ll be ready for it. His contact information is under the “Our Experts” tab on the website.
Physio….
I’ve heard from several of you that Victor’s schedule is booking up and the next available appointments are weeks away. If you need to see a physio, consider going to APPI. Victor is fabulous (and that’s why he gets booked up), but it can be difficult to get an appointment. APPI is a team of physios led by Glenn Withers. It’s easy to get in and they are very good. They also offer sports massage, pilates classes and other services. Their contact info is on the website.
Bike Path Etiquette….
To avoid falling in the canal or having a head-on collision with a biker, we’ve always said to put the bikers closest to the water. Legally we should go to the left, but most of the information on canal/footpath/towpath usage suggests that people use their common sense and just be considerate of other path users. It should not be necessary that someone in the group scream “bike”. That can be helpful, but we need to all be alert and watching for bikers. If we all agree to always jump into a single file queue away from the water, then the bikers can easily get around us. By all moving in the same direction, we send them a signal that says “We’re going towards the wall, you go towards the water”. Pedestrians do have the right of way on paths but that doesn’t really matter when a cyclist runs into us. We have had a runner “fall in the drink”. It can happen and that water is nasty!!! So everyone, pay attention, just stay in a single file line if the bike traffic is heavy. Your conversation can wait until the end of the run.
Our Routes this Week
Monday, 10 September
Teddington near Hampton Court (22 miles) – see the route description below. We’ll do the run to Kew but then keep on going to Kingston-on-Thames and then Hampton Court and Bushy Park. Just like last week, we’ll be setting the pace based on Patricia’s HR once we past Kew so I don’t really know what pace that will be. Sometimes we’ll speed up, sometimes we’ll slow down. Join us if you want if you are prepared to be very flexible with the pace!
Kew (10 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park, do the northern boundary heading west then head down towards Kensington Palace. In front of the palace, we’ll head out Kensington High Street to Hammersmith then on over the river and out west. For those new to this route, you take a train home from Kew Gardens. I don’t make you run home as well…. I’m not that mean!!!
Hyde Park loop (8 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park (we’ll be taking Lisson Grove then Seymour to enter at the NE corner of the park), then turn right or west to run along the northern boundary, turn left or south to reach Kensington Palace, then continue to follow the full perimeter of Hyde Park and return to St. John’s Wood via Baker Street or Gloucester Road.
Serpentine loop (6 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park (we’ll be taking Lisson Grove then Seymour to enter at the NE corner of the park), then turn right or west to run along the northern boundary, turn left or south at Carriage Rd then run alongside the road over the bridge. Immediately after the bridge, turn left to follow the water edge back towards Wellington Arch. To shorten this loop, cross back over the Serpentine near the café and head on a diagonal back to Speaker’s Corner. To lengthen this run, either go past Carriage Road and cut south by the Albert Memorial or do not cross over the Serpentine at the café – instead carry on down to the far SE corner of the park, then run up to Speaker’s Corner and home via Baker Street or Gloucester Road.
Speaker’s Corner loop (4-5 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park, once we’ve entered the park do a small loop keeping to the north side of the Serpentine. Head back to SJW either up Seymour/Lisson Grove or by the US Embassy then up Baker Street.
Wednesday, 12 September
Hummingbird Bakery in South Kensington (4, 5 or 6 miles – your choice) – Let the fun begin… I’ll be leading a group down to the best cupcake bakery in London (we can debate that on our way there). We’ll be running at a gentle pace somewhere between 11:15 – 12:15 min/mile pace. There are tons of streetlights/road-crossings so we’ll have plenty of opportunities to catch our breath on the way there. Come join us – I promise it will be fun. There are quite a few ladies who have said they are not sure where they belong in our group (in terms of pace). Let’s figure it out together on this run. There will be no pressure to run fast – it’s more about meeting other runners who are in your general pace-range. Bring your Oyster card and some cash. We’ll go home from the South Kensington tube station or jump in cabs if you prefer.
Notting Hill (6.5 miles) – For our quicker paced runners, we’ll repeat this route again so our new runners can learn it. If you are wanting a tempo run, once you hit the canal…. Go for it. It’s a perfect place to stretch your legs. You also have the option of not turning off the canal and running Notting Hill. You could tempo run out the canal and turn around and tempo back. Use the bit between Starbucks and the canal to warm-up and/or cool-down.
The canal (any distance) – join the group and head down to the canal. Run half the distance you want and turn around and head home.
Friday, 14 September
Everyone heads up the hill! Yeah! It’s hard but you’ll feel great at the finish. You have lots of choices in terms of distance – see below:
The Heath – old route (8 miles) – we’ll take a quick vote on Friday morning to see what people prefer – the old route or the western route. They are both 8 miles.
The Heath – western route (8 miles) – this route is even prettier than the old route but to me it seems a bit harder. If we decide to do it, you can tell me what you think – maybe it’s not really harder, it’s just less familiar.
The Darcy route (6-7 miles) – some of you are on to me!!! I have no idea about the specifics of this route. Darcy (Fautz who it’s named after) explained it to me this past week but you’ll have to ask her exactly how it goes. While we’re talking about Darcys, here’s a shout out to the new Darcy. Wow girl! You can run! No more talk about “can I or can’t I keep up”! I’ll ignore that talk in the future. You did very well!
The Betsy route (5 miles) – join Betsy if you would like a drill sergeant insisting you not walk one step!!! (just kidding). Betsy usually does this route so join her if you’re interested in a lovely 5 mile route. It’s actually perfect because you get a lot of hill running, you get to see some of the heath, then you head back to SJW.
Hampstead tube station (4 miles) – this is a great route to do if you’re short on time or are new to running “the hill”. Head up to the Hampstead tube station with the group then turn around and head back home. That’s it!
I hope to see you running this week,
Paula