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Welcome! This is the home of the world-famous (well, maybe locally well-known) SLR.
Our start time is at 8:00 AM until next summer! Every Saturday we meet at North Meade Street Park, a small park northwest of the USMC War Memorial (Iwo Jima Memorial) in Rosslyn. The closest address for mapping purposes is 1300 Arlington Blvd, and street parking is available in the neighborhoods adjacent to N. Meade Street. Be mindful of parking signs, since Arlington County enforces them enthusiastically, and please do not park on Marine Memorial Circle (inside Iwo Jima), because this parking area is for memorial use only. At least one porta-john is available year-round near the Iwo Jima Memorial, and the memorial's water fountain is usually on during the summer.
We run rain or shine! In cases of extreme weather (snow, ice, thunderstorms, heat waves) we do occasionally either change our meeting time or cancel the run for safety, but the run will be held as planned unless otherwise posted via email/twitter/facebook and here on the SLR web page.
All are welcome! We're an informal group, and there are no requirements for speed, racing experience, or what distance means "long" for you, other than the suggested route that most of our group will be running each week. If you don't want to run the same distance or course as the main group, you can go out for half of your own target distance and re-trace your steps back to Iwo Jima. More specific route info and mileage options will be given in the email/post preceding each Saturday's run. SLR always features a run from our extensive Route Catalog, which gives us a wide range of options to keep things fresh for you each week. We have routes that are flat, hilly, looped, out & back, roads, sidewalks, trails, and more, reaching all around the local area of DC, VA, and MD!
For more details about Saturday Long Runs please read our Frequently Asked Questions to get a sense for what it's like to run with us, or send an email to Anna if you have any other questions that are not covered.
To receive weekly SLR updates via email, please log in and check your email subscriptions.
Schedule:
| Date | Miles | Route Map | Navigation Downloads | Post/Mid-Run Beverages |
| 2/22 | 16 | Arlington Loop | Cue Sheet & GPS | |
| 3/1 | 16 | Battery Kemble Loops | Cue Sheet & GPS | |
| 3/8 | 14 | Stadium Loop | Cue Sheet & GPS | A New Route by Jerry M! |
| 3/15 | 14 | Mount Vernon Trail | Cue Sheet & GPS | |
| 3/22 | 18 | Rock Creek MBT | Cue Sheet & GPS | |
| 3/29 | 12 | Water Route | Cue Sheet & GPS | |
| 4/5 | 14 | Marymount Chain Bridge | Cue Sheet & GPS |
DCRR SLR: 14 Miles Catholic MBT
Hello Saturday Long Runners!
Winter is coming, and by coming I mean arriving tomorrow. With our first below freezing SLR on deck that also means it's getting to be the season for our holiday runs. The website is updated, but in general we'll have Festivus on 12/6, The Christmas Tree Run on 12/14, and Holiday Card Lane on 12/21. Now let's get into it:
The Route: Do you like the Metropolitan Branch Trail and Rock Creek Park and everything in between?Well Catholic MBT (strava, gps, pdf) is the route for you! We'll head east along the Mall to the Capitol where we'll take a trek up the MBT before crossing the city and heading down Rock Creek Park to make a nice big loop. Check out the largest Catholic Church in North America while you're up there and enjoy the last of the fall foliage in RCP.
Want Something Shorter? The MBT makes for an easy out and back from 10 to 12 miles depending on where you turn around. Alternatively, looping the Capitol instead of going towards Union Station will give you a nice 9 mile route.
Need a Longer Route? For some extra hills and another big church, combine this route with Cathedral Clintons for a nearly exactly 18 miler (continue straight on Calvert Street and pick up Cathedral Clintons from there). I like to call that one Catholic Cathedral Clintons which is also a fun tongue twister. If you've had enough hills for one day, going north on the Rock Creek Trail instead of south gives you an easy way to add any number of miles (though go too far and you'll hit the hills you were trying to avoid).
Thirsty? The water fountains on the Mall were somehow still turned on the last time I ran through, but I'm not holding my breath for tomorrow. The MBT also has water fountains at Eckington Dog Park at mile 5.8 and at mile 6.5 near the Rhode Island Avenue Metro Station. After the MBT there are limited water opportunities, so bring your own for the second half of the run!
Need a Bathroom? There are bathrooms at the Washington Monument and Union Station, as well as a few Starbucks and CVSs across the city that make for good options in a pinch.
The next club race is the Founders Half Marathon (formerly Gar Williams) this Sunday, December 1st (yeah it snuck up on me as well). This will kick off our Snowball Series and we still need a few volunteers for the event. Come get your credit out of the way early! DCRR Memberships expire on November 30th (that's tomorrow)! Renew yours today, tell your friends to renew theirs, and have them tell their friends to renew theirs! The Book Club meets on December 8th and we're reading one of my favorite books of all time, Bravey by Alexi Pappas! It's readable in a week, but better start soon.
Happy Running!
Anna
SLR: 12 Miles Bluemont L Loop
Hello Saturday Long Runners!
Good luck to everyone racing Philly (or any other races, it's that time of year after all) this weekend! And congrats to everyone who ran Richmond (which I somehow missed last weekend). No snow in the forecast tomorrow and the rain should end overnight. Now let's get into it:
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, making a bubble letter L if you squint your head the right way.
Want Something Shorter?Instead of heading onto the Bluemont Trail, take a right on Glebe Road and follow Custis back to the park 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. You can also make this a modified Arlington Loop, swapping Bluemont for Custis, which will get you some good mileage (though be careful along the bridges on the W&OD tomorrow morning, they get slick in the rain and slicker in the cold).
Thirsty?The water fountains along the W&OD and Custis generally stay on all winter and they're a dependable source for the morning. 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 closing momentarily (if anyone knows the date off the top of their head let me know! Usually it's mid-November to mid-March). Sometimes you can get lucky with a portopotty, but otherwise there are plenty of Starbucks along Wilson that I've used many times in a pinch.
The next club race is the Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning! This one of my favorite races in the region and could be one of yours too! We also need a tremendous amount of volunteers to keep this race running smoothly, so please consider helping out either race morning or the week before with packet pickup if you're in the area for the holiday! DCRR Memberships expire on November 30th! Renew yours today, tell your friends to renew theirs, and have them tell their friends to renew theirs! The Book Club meets on December 8th and we're reading one of my favorite books of all time, Bravey by Alexi Pappas! Start turning those pages now and come out for good conversation and better desserts.
Happy Running!
Anna
SLR: 14 Miles Southeast DC
Hello Saturday Long Runners!
We've seamlessly slipped from fall into the start of winter, but the weather tomorrow should be great! Come out to SLR before heading to watch your favorite women's soccer team (heck, we've got a route that goes right by the stadium for a pit stop at Solace). Now let's get into it:
The Route: This week we'll be treated to a nice tour of the Wharf and the southern portion of the Anacostia Riverwalk as we take on Southeast DC (strava, gps, pdf). We'll head into the city via the Memorial Bridge, head down L'Enfant Plaza and through the Wharf to get to the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge (new and improved as of a few years ago), make our way up the Anacostia Riverwalk and across the Sousa Bridge (named for the inventor of the Sousaphone), before heading to the Capitol via Pennsylvania and back to North Meade Park via the Mall. The easiest way to make sure you take the right bridge is to look for the Pirate Ship Playground. That's your cue to turn and head over the bridge immediately after it.
Want Something Shorter? Coming back across the 11th Street Bridge and heading back via M Street will get you around 12.5 miles instead of the normal 14. There's also the option to take the metro back ($2 on weekends!) from a number of stations including Potomac Ave, Eastern Market, Capitol South, and Smithsonian!
Need a Longer Route? The Anacostia Riverwalk is great for adding additional mileage (and is super flat too if you need a workout)! For 18 miles, consider doing the fullAnacostia Riverwalk Loop. Another option for around 16 miles is to take the East Capitol Street Bridge back across the river and continue down East Capitol Street all the way to the Capitol to head back.
Thirsty? Thanks to Erik Price for post-run drinks tomorrow! As far as drinks along the route go, the water fountains along the Mall are (somehow!) still turned on as of this week, but if you depend on them they will certainly be turned off. Other than that there is a fairly dependable fountain near the pirate ship playground at mile 7.7 that is a good bet.
Need a Bathroom? Along the Mall you'll find the usual selection at the Washington Monument. There are also some very well-positioned ones also at 7.7 near the playground. Otherwise along Pennsylvania Ave. there are a lot of restaurants and shops that generally will let you use their restrooms if you ask nicely. My personal favorite restrooms are the ones in Capitol Hill Books in the foreign language section.
The next club race is the Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning! This one of my favorite races in the region and could be one of yours too! We also need a tremendous amount of volunteers to keep this race running smoothly, so please consider helping out either race morning or the week before with packet pickup if you're in the area for the holiday! DCRR Memberships expire on November 30th! Renew yours today, tell your friends to renew theirs, and have them tell their friends to renew theirs! The Book Club meets on December 8th and we're reading one of my favorite books of all time, Bravey by Alexi Pappas! Start turning those pages now and come out for good conversation and better desserts.
Happy Running!
Anna
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The DC Road Runners Club is a member of the Road Runners Club of America and is also affiliated with USA Track & Field. We provide a year-round schedule of running events that offer everyone a chance to participate regardless of age, gender, or athletic ability. |