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December 5, 2024 Issue 25
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Registration will open this coming
Monday, December 9th for
the Annapolis Striders Championship Series and Shorter Races Bundle.
The Championship Series offers eight races from one mile all the way up to our 16.28 miles Metric Marathon. Annapolis Striders members get scored in each Champ Series race and if they finish six races, they’re eligible for awards. The Championship Series is just $50 for all six races. You must be an Annapolis Striders member to get this deal!
Registration will also open on December 9th for the NEW Annapolis Striders Shorter Races Bundle (SRB), a series of four races: two 5K races, a one mile race, and working up to a five mile race in November. The SRB is just $35 and Annapolis Striders membership is also required.
As of Monday the 9th you’ll be able to sign up for the Championship Series at Champ Series RunSignup Link or for the SRB at SRB RunSignup Link.
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In November, the Annapolis Striders Board of Directors approved a total of $9,050.00 of charitable donations to 16 organizations that supported the club’s Annapolis Ten-Mile race in 2024. Those organizations included various local athletic groups, local communities, first responders, and other nonprofit organizations.
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Registration is open!
Eternal Winter 6-Hour Run
Sunday, January 19, 2025
Twin race to the Annapolis Striders Endless Summer 6-Hour Run, this is a “fat-ass” style race held in January to benefit the Annapolis Light House Shelter of Maryland.
For more information and registration instructions
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2024 Anniversary Run 15K
Sunday, December 8, 2024
Quiet Waters Park
600 Quiet Waters Park Road
Annapolis, MD US 21043
The Anniversary Run 15k is the last race of the Championship Series to commemorate the founding of the Annapolis Striders. Originally run at the end of December at the Naval Academy, it is now held the second weekend of December on the trails of Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis. The race is free for Annapolis Striders members who register before Friday, December 6, 2024.
If you are already registered for the Championship Series, then you do not have to register separately for this race.
The Blue Heron Center will be in the process of being renovated in December so please park at the Sassafras or Red Maple Pavilion. The start, finish and awards will take place at the outdoor Sassafras Pavilion.
Map of Quiet Waters Park
VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED! PLEASE CONTACT Race Director
For more information and registration
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Strider Annual Awards Nominations
It’s time to start thinking about nominees for our end of year awards. The Awards committee is seeking input earlier this year in hopes of having a full complement of award winners. Here is the link for nominations.
Nominations Form and Awards Criteria.
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The lights will be on at the Annapolis High School 1/4 mile track at 2700 Riva Rd, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-7 PM from now until February 6, 2025. Excluded dates are Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.
The Winter Warriors 5k class will be doing their training there but all Annapolis Striders members are invited to use the facilities for their own workout.
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Registration is now open for the 2025 edition of the B&A Trail Marathon and Half Marathon
Sunday, March 30, 2025.
For more information and registration
Although I know we are more than four months away from race day, I don’t think it’s too early to start asking my fellow Annapolis Striders to consider volunteering for the 2025 event. Several people have already signed up, and I thank them for their support. I have a particular need, however, for three, four would be better, Annapolis Striders to volunteer to work on the truck crew. This is a two-day volunteer opportunity. It involves moving items from the West Street shed to Severna Park Hight School on the Saturday before the race, delivering supplies to the Aid Stations on the day of the race, and then picking up all the supplies and returning them to the West Street shed. Ask anyone who has done it before, they will tell you it’s a lot of work.
So, who do I want to volunteer for this prestigious truck crew assignment? Certainly not the guys (including you, Robin) who worked on the truck last year. They paid their dues, and I want each one of them to run the marathon or the half this year. No, my ideal candidate is an Annapolis Strider who has run either the marathon or the half one or more times in the past and enjoyed the benefit of the effort the past volunteers have made to the success of the races. The Annapolis Striders is a volunteer organization based, at least in part, on the concept of mutuality: I volunteer so you can run races, you volunteer so I can run races. It’s that simple. So, if you have run this event several times, maybe this is your chance to volunteer so other Annapolis Striders can take a shot at the B&A course.
Tom Lyden
Sign up here to volunteer! or directly email Race Director, Tom Lyden
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ANNAPOLIS STRIDERS RUNNER EDUCATION AND
TRAINING
Annapolis Striders membership is required to participate in these training programs. There is no fee for the training programs but you must register.
Keep an eye on this section for announcements about training programs!
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Annapolis Striders Training/Education
Update from Bob Moseley,
VP of Training and Education
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Coaching Opportunities: The B&A Trail ½ Marathon program will get started right after the New Year, with registration opening on December 6. I am looking for coaches/mentors to help with that group as well. If you are interested in either opportunity, send an email to me. vp_training@annapolisstriders.org.
B&A Trail Half Marathon Training: Registration for the training program will open on Friday, 12/6. The actual training will begin on 1/4/25 at 0730; we’ll meet at Jones Station. In addition to the standard weekly update, a full (recommended) training plan will be available for those interested.
Something to Think About: I don’t know about you but as an older runner, I often get questions from folks who wonder why I’m continuing to poke along despite my increasing age; shouldn’t I start thinking about “real retirement” and taking up my spot on the couch? Well, actually, no; I may be slowing down but I still enjoy getting out there; if truth be told, I may be 70, but can still “take” any family member at any distance longer than a mile. For those with similar inclinations (or those who accept that someday, they will also be an older runner), here’s an article from Amby Burfoots’s weekly newsletter that may be of interest:
Older Runners Can Help Change Social Norms
A recent paper presented at the Georgia Sociological Association will strike a chord with many runners past 50. And, I suspect, younger runners as well.
It’s titled “Running past Fifty: The Habit and Joy of Movement.” It asks the basic question: Why do some runners keep running into older age and slower performances?
After all, as University of Georgia professor James Dowd writes: “The reality of aging is clearly evident. Older runners are slower, less vigorous, and without the striking beauty of the young.”
Across the population at large, older individuals are viewed as “nice but incompetent.” In particular, they don’t do weird things like running 5Ks, half marathons, and marathons. Most choose the rocking chair and TV.
Dowd finds two principal reasons to explain persistent, older runners: 1) Running has become a habit for them, and thus a “foundational part of their identity,” and 2) Running brings them “joy and a sense of profound well-being.”
Joy and profound well-being? Who doesn’t want that as the biological clock ticks past 50, 60, 70, and beyond?
Dowd bases his findings on long interviews with 61 runners over the age of 50. Reviewing the interview transcripts, he quickly noted that “the joy of running derives from the actual movement of one’s body, but also from the opportunity of joining with friends on practice runs or at races.” This is the social component so often mentioned in healthy-aging articles.
There is also “the pure pleasure of being in nature,” whether a forest trail or “a bosky suburban neighborhood filled with the ambient sound of birds and the rustling of leaves.” I appreciate Dowd’s observation that you don’t have to live next to a state park to appreciate the natural environment.
I’ve always believed in running out my front door rather than driving to some special location. But once out the door, I quickly steer to the greenest, most serene streets and neighborhoods.
Ultimately, Dowd wonders if older runners can change the national narrative on aging and loss of health/vigor. He acknowledges that this won’t come easily. Yet he concludes with several powerful, lyrical sentences.
“The common struggle of runners to finish the course creates the seedbed for a generative impulse that, like the flow of water in a creek, will gradually but surely change the shape of that creek. Unwittingly or not, runners are agents of positive social change.” More at Research Gate with free full text.
RELATED ARTICLE: The Older You Are, The More You Need To Strength Train
See you on the road!
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2025 Winter/Fall 5k class
Sunday, November 24 to Saturday, February 8
Registration is open!
Come join our “Get Off the Couch” Run/Walk Program for Beginning and Inexperienced Runners!
Whether you are new to running or trying to return to running, this is a program for you. This class is intended for all who are looking to “get off the couch with no running experience at all” and do a 5K (3.1 miles) distance.
For more information and registration
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ANNAPOLIS STRIDERS BOARD MEETINGS
NEXT MEETING:
Tuesday, January 7
6:30pm
Michael E. Busch Annapolis Library
1410 West Street,
Annapolis, MD 21401.
Please remember that ALL Annapolis Striders members are welcome at our monthly Board Meetings, the first Tuesday of each month.
The meetings are a hybrid format.
Use the Zoom Link if you cannot attend in person.
Meeting ID: 945 9400 7107
Passcode: 075740
Stay tuned to the E-Streak for future meeting locations.
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Meet & Greet Your Fellow Annapolis Striders
at our Monthly Socials
Bring friends or potential new members!
Check here for future gatherings!
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Saturday, December 7th
Come join us for a for a morning run and coffee social in downtown Annapolis! We will meet at Curate Annapolis Cafe and Bakery (141 West Street Annapolis, MD 21401) on Saturday, 12/7 at 8 AM for a run around downtown Annapolis and Eastport. After the run, grab coffee or a baked good and hang out with your fellow Annapolis Striders!
Curate Annapolis
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AS A SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY:
COMMUNITY RACES AND NEWS
See “For your information” above to submit a race.
Please check the provided links below for updated information about the community races, including fee structure, race details, cancellations, etc.
Once posted, community race information is
not automatically updated in the
E-Streak.
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Local Group Runs
Are you looking for a group of friendly faces to meet consistently and with which to run? Here is a consolidated list of local area group runs open to anyone interested. While most of these groups have members of the Annapolis Striders in them, this is not an endorsement by the Annapolis Striders, Inc. It’s a way to find other people to run with almost every day of the week.
If you know of a group not listed here, Please contact Tess.
Check here for the list of runs
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DECEMBER
Jingle Bell Jog
Saturday, December 7, 2024
Northern High School track
Owings, MD
Northern High School Future Business Leaders of America ( FBLA ) is hosting their 2nd annual Jingle Bell Jog to support the CCFPA, Calvert County Foster Parent Association. Come out and jingle with us by competitively racing, leisurely walking, strolling, or crawling, all while supporting this amazing cause. Wear your favorite holiday attire and wear the jingle bells provided when you cross the finish line. This is a great group motivator – join your family and friends to support local foster families. The fastest female and fastest male will receive a $200 gift card!
For more information and registration
Event Flyer
Charm City Run Partners Holiday Shopping Night
Thursday, December 12
5-8 pm
RSVP needed
See flyer for details!
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FEBRUARY
TRY -a -TRI
Sunday, February 2, 2025
Come try a triathlon with us!
If doing a Triathlon was on your “this is so big of a stretch for me I have to do it” list for 2025…
The Annapolis triathlon club is hosting a free triathlon clinic for beginners. Participants will swim 10 laps, 10 min on stationary bike, and a 10 min run. We will go over the basics: equipment, transition, etc.
Severna Park Racquetball & Fitness Club on February 2 from 2 to 4 pm.
Annapolis Triathlon Club Iron Crabs would love to welcome you to the multisport lifestyle. This event is open to everyone.
Annapolis Triathlon Club
For more information and registration
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JUNE
Baltimore 10 Miler
Saturday, June 7, 2025
An Annapolis Striders group has been formed for anyone running the Baltimore Ten Miler. Select the group during your registration using the password “Striders”. With ten or more in the group, you get a $10 refund on the registration price.
For more information and registration
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