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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 |
SLR: New Route! 14 Miles Stadium Loop
Hello Saturday Long Runners!
Winter has once again returned (fun fact, we got more snow than Pittsburgh and Chicago this year), but SLR carries on! We've got a new route up this week thanks to Jerry! I've done similar runs in the past and will vouch it's a good one, with a lot of familiar territory, just a bit of a different way of doing things! Now let's get into it:
The Route: This week we'll be heading through southeast DC via what I've affectionately called the Stadium Loop (strava, gps, pdf). We'll head by three different stadiums (Nationals Park, Audi Field, and the soon-to-no-longer-exist RFK Stadium), which have been home to a plethora of DC Sports teams over the years (it's also fitting that the Washington Spirit, SLR's (unofficial) favorite sports team kicks off their season on Friday night down in Orlando). Anyway the route! We'll head across the Memorial Bridge and down by the Lincoln Memorial and hang right to get on Independence Ave. After this, we'll trek down to the wharf and follow our normal pattern of Maine Street - Water Street - P Street - 2nd Street - R Street to get to Audi Field/Nats Park. From here we'll head up the west side of the Anacostia Riverwalk all the way until we hit RFK, where we'll loop around the stadium (and not jump any fences, I promise you don't need to) to get to East Capitol Street. We'll head back to the Capitol and down the Mall until crossing Memorial Bridge again and ending up back where we started!
Want Something Shorter? Get off the trail before Congressional Cemetery will take you to Pennsylvania Ave where you can pick up the Southeast DC route to head back to the park in around 11 miles total. For shorter options, I'd recommend an out and back, but traversing DC streets can make a loop out of pretty much any left turn off the trail.
Need a Longer Route? Heading further up the Anacosita Riverwalk will lead you to Benning Road, where you can make a left and a loop via Oklahoma Ave to add a little under two miles. For even more, take a trip over to (in my opinion) the best side of the Anacostia Riverwalk trail and head up the East side for any number of extra miles!
Thirsty? The fountains on the Mall haven't magically flipped back on yet, so bring some water in the morning! There is a CVS along the Wharf that will certainly sell you some, though, if you happen to forget! As the weather warms back up (not this weekend, but someday...) I'll start bugging folks for post and mid run drinks once again! Help out your fellow runners and get some volunteer credit along the way!
Need a Bathroom? Unfortunately those are also a bit limited on this route outside of Union Station (a bit out of the way) and the Washington Monument. The Lincoln Memorial also has a few which are a lifesaver!
The book club meets next Sunday and we'll be discussing Lauren Fleshman's Good For a Girl: A Woman Running In A Man's World! We'll also be selecting our books for the next year, come out and give your recommendations!
Happy Running!
Anna
SLR: 16 Miles Battery Kemble Loops
Hello Saturday Long Runners!
We're looking at some gorgeous spring weather tomorrow morning and it has been dry all week so we'll finally get some trails in (note: if you're afraid of trails, these ones really aren't bad and are very skippable). Come get in a solid long run before the banquet so you can brag to all your friends there about your excellent HRV and tempo pace. Now let's get into it:Â
The Route:Â This week we'll be treated to some trails and hills as we head up to Battery Kemble Park (strava , gps, pdf). To get there, we'll cross the Key Bridge and head up the Capital Crescent Trail and over to Potomac Ave past the Washington Aqueduct and up the very steep Chain Bridge Road Hill into the park. Historically, there have been some issues with off-leash dogs along the trail here, so please be careful and watch out for dogs that are "so friendly" and "just want to play". Note the cue sheet for this route says 16 miles, which assumes two loops of the park, if you only do one expect your gps to show something a little shorter and your legs to feel a little better.
Want Something Shorter? This is one of my favorite routes because there are so many ways to change the distance for it and still get to run in some really neat places! For about 14 miles, instead of taking the small out and back to the water fountain on the CCT, go straight up to the park and back. For even less (around 12.5 miles), take a left on Potomac Ave instead of a right when coming back down from Battery Kemble. There is a small trail at the end of the street (which I refer to as "Mark B's Trail", because he's the one who first introduced me to it). This takes you down to the bridge on the CCT and is a great way to get all the sights of the route without as much of the mileage. If 12.5 is still to much, take a left on McArthur Boulevard instead of a right and run straight down MacArthur back to the Key Bridge and cross for 11 miles. Both the 12.5 and 11 mile options skip the out and back on the CCT like the 14 mile option.
Need a Longer Route? We need more loops, Batman! Each additional loop of Battery Kemble Park will add an extra 1.3 miles to your run (and about 175 feet of climbing). If you want something flatter, an out and back on either the canal or the CCT is a great bet (though calling the CCT up in Maryland flat is a bit of a hard sell).
Thirsty? There are water fountains at mile 3.3 and 12.4 at Fletcher's Cove Boathouse near the snack shack, but I have a feeling those will be turned off in the morning. There is also a water fountain at the turnaround on the CCT at miles 5 and 10.7, which I'm also not sure are currently functional. Bring some water because it'll be almost twice (??!!) as hot as some of our SLRs earlier this month.
Need a Bathroom? The bathrooms at Fletcher's Cove at miles 3.3 and 12.4 are your best options along this route. There have also historically been some along Potomac Ave with random home improvement projects, but those aren't a guarantee.
The Club's Annual Banquet where we do awesome things like eat a lot of Italian food, figure out who the next board is going to be, and clap a lot for all of our incredible awardees is this Sunday March 2nd at Maggiano's in Friendship Heights! If racing is more your speed, we've also got our last Snowball Series race on Sunday morning at 8 AM at Belle Haven Park for the Belle Haven 8K! Sign up today or better yet, get your volunteer credit!Â
Happy Running!
Anna
SLR: 16 Miles Arlington Loop
Hello Saturday Long Runners!
Bundle up! It's frigid out there this week and the wind is only making that situation a whole lot worse. On the bright side, a large part of this route (Custis/W&OD) is blocked from the wind, but prepare for a chilly one in the morning. Now let's get into it:
The Route: This week we're romping around Arlington for a classic Arlington Loop (strava, gps, pdf). We'll head down the 110 trail to the Mount Vernon Trail, head past the airport and turn onto the Four Mile Run Trail, continue onto the W&OD, and then hang right at Custis and head back to the park. All in all this will be 16 miles with very few street crossings all on separate bike and running infrastructure. It's routes like this that always make me feel really lucky to live in an area like this, even if they lock their bathrooms half the year and their water fountains are questionably functional.
Want Something Shorter? For around 14.5 miles, instead of coming back along Custis take the Bluemont Connector trail (which is a different bike trail about a mile before the turn for Custis). This will take you to Wilson Boulevard, which you can take into Court House and hop down to the park from there! Otherwise there are some options for more complex loops, but the least mentally taxing will definitely be an out and back. Turning around at the turn onto the Four Mile run will get you 10 miles and getting to the W&OD will run you 14.
Need a Longer Route? My personal favorite way to add onto the loop is to add an extra out and back along the W&OD before turning onto Custis, which allows you to get any number of extra miles. If you're in the mood to make it "real" Arlington Loop you can continue down the Rosslyn Hill past Roosevelt Island and return by coming up the same way you go out by the cemetery for an 18 miler.
Thirsty? The green freeze-proof fountains along the W&OD and Custis are mostly working. The one at the corner was having issues with the top fountain earlier this week (when we really stress-tested the term "freeze proof"), but the bottom fountain was working. Pretty sure the fountain by the airport will be turned off, along with any of the non-freeze proof fountains around the loop.
Need a Bathroom? There aren't a ton of options for those in the winter. One set near Bluemont park may be open, but the one we use before the start of the WDF and Bluemont 5K is definitely closed. The W&L track bathrooms are also closed for the season (which is news to me), so those are also out of commission.
Good luck to everyone running the Club Challenge 10 Miler on Sunday! Rep your club with pride and remember none of the hills on that course are even close to as bad as the Rosslyn hill. The Annual Meeting and Banquet is scheduled for Sunday March 2nd! Sign up, come see everyone when we aren't all sweaty in running clothes, and listen to MCM director Alex Hetherington give our keynote!
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. |