Hello Saturday Long Runners!
Good luck to everyone racing at either Rock and Roll or Virginia Beach this weekend! Rock and Roll is this Saturday at 8 AM starting downtown and closing the Memorial Bridge, so plan ahead when getting to SLR! As such, we'll also be changing the route up in order to avoid the area (which unfortunately means we'll miss the Magnolia trees in the Haupt Garden, highly recommend going if you get the chance). The weather looks lovely for tomorrow, with temperatures in the upper 40s, with sun and no wind!
The Route: This week we'll be avoiding downtown and any bridges with a classic Bluemont L Loop (strava, gps, pdf). We'll start by heading up to Ballston via Wilson Boulevard then heading down the Bluemont Trail to the W&OD. From here we'll head west until making a right onto the Custis trail, which we'll follow down to the Mount Vernon Trail, under the Memorial Bridge, and back to the park via the 110 Trail. There are some lovely trees blooming along the way that are sure to be a treat!
Want Something Shorter? Instead of heading onto the Bluemont Trail, take a right and go down Custis for about 9 miles instead of 12. Another way to cut off some distance and miss some of the hills is to turn at Lynn Street back into Rosslyn instead of going on the Mount Vernon Trail. This will also net you a little over 9 miles.
Need a Longer Route? An out and back along the W&OD or Mount Vernon Trail makes it easy to get some more mileage. My personal favorite is to head down near the 14th Street Bridge for some views of the not-quite-blooming-yet cherry trees across the river.
Thirsty? The water fountains along the W&OD and Custis have been on all winter and it's a safe bet they'll stay that way. Check them out at the corner of the W&OD and Custis and along Custis right after Ballston!
Need a Bathroom? The ones along the W&OD should be opening momentarily (if anyone knows the date off the top of their head let me know! Usually it's mid-November to mid-March). Otherwise there are plenty of Starbucks along Wilson that I've used many times in a pinch.
The next club race is the Finally-Back-At-Fort-Hunt 10K this Sunday! Register or better yet, volunteer and get those Snowball Series credits out of the way!
Happy Running!
Anna
