Hello all,
Welcome back! A special welcome to the new folks joining the group. I hope you had a fantastic summer. I’m excited about a new year at WRW and I can’t wait to see you at our first run of the season on Wednesday. We meet at 8:15 in front of Barclays Bank at the corner of Wellington and Circus Roads in St. John’s Wood. I’m going to wear my bright yellow hat so you can recognise me, please come say HI if you are new.
As we approach the start of a new running season, here are two important things to keep in mind.
1.Take care of yourself: This one is easy! Read the emails and learn the routes. Eat, drink (and be merry!). Don’t go too fast, or too far, too early. Stretch when you can. Make sure you sleep. Have the right gear (for those of you who like to shop, this is fun). If you have an injury, see a specialist for help. If you have a question, just ask. We have lots of knowledge in the group and we can steer you in the right direction.
2.Take care of each other: This one is fun! Welcome the new runners and the ex-beginners. (Remember how nice it was when someone welcomed you!) Say Hi! Encourage the new runners to persevere, and congratulate all on success, big and small. Notice if someone is suffering and offer to help. Sometimes an encouraging word or a distracting conversation can work wonders!
Easing back to running: If you haven’t run in awhile, no worries! I’ve already heard from a bunch of the group who plan to start out with slower/shorter runs. At the start of the year, we’ve designed the routes to have plenty of options for distance. Most likely there will be someone running at your pace and your distance. We do have a group of women who are planning to run a fall half marathon. Don’t be tempted to join them on a long run or be discouraged that you can’t keep up. Remember, they have been seriously training all summer to get ready for a fall race.
Pace Groups: We tend to be flexible about the pace groups at the start of the year but I imagine that we’ll naturally fall into our groups pretty quickly. Please remember to look out for new runners who may need some help finding the right group.
That’s all for now – see you at Barclays at 8:15!
Keep running,
Jane
ROUTES THIS WEEK
Wednesday 27 August – Regents Park loop (4 miles)
We’re starting with a familiar, local loop. Head down Grove End Road as though going to Hyde Park BUT at Marylebone Road, turn left and follow Marylebone Road, past Madame Tussauds, then turn left at York Bridge and right at the Outer Circle. Follow the Outer Circle counter clockwise, all the way to the crosswalk by the US Ambassador’s House. Cross out of the Park and head to Starbucks.
If you are training for a fall race and want a longer run, you can add some mileage in the park. If you add another loop on the outer circle the total will be 6.8 miles.
If you are not up for 4 miles, that is fine. Come with the group for awhile and you can always turn around and head back at any point. We’ll meet you at Starbucks when we’re finished!
Friday 29 August – We’re offering two options today – a shorter, flat loop in Kensal Rise and also the traditional Friday Hampstead hill run.
Option 1 – Kensal Rise loop (5.25 miles)
This is a shorter version of the traditional Kensal Rise run.
The beginning of this run takes us along the canal to the west. Please be aware of bikes along the canal and move into single file whenever you hear a ‘bike!’ shout.
Start out heading west on Circus Road, turn left on Grove End to St John’s Wood Road and go west, working your way to the canal entrance on Blomfield. Enter the canal heading west and run to the Ladbroke Grove exit. Here we turn right and run over the bridge until your first right on Harrow Road. Turn left on Elgin and follow to Maida Vale. Turn right and then left on to Hall Road and run back to Starbucks. If you want to shorten this route, run west on the canal and turn back at your desired half-way point. (The two mile mark is at the point on the canal when the Westway highway is over our heads.)
Option 2 – The Heath!
It’s Friday [again!], so everyone up Fitzjohn’s. You can pick your distance and whatever you choose, there will certainly be someone else interested in running that distance. All of these routes are on the website.
4 miles: A great way to ease into running the hill. Run up to the Hampstead tube station and back.
5 miles: The Betsy Route
6-7 miles: The partial Heath route
8 miles: The full Heath route
Click here for maps of all of the Heath routes
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