Running & Walking Group

Join Us for Exercise or Goal-setting!

See "Calendaring" below for all of the logistics. Contact Maggie or use the What'sApp thread to schedule and lead our next EARLY MORNING or potentially a 7 pm run. Let's beat the heat!

(Maggie's collaborating to schedule a run that supports a Back on My Feet team. See the video.)

Some of the gatherings require that you register ahead under "Events" at the CCW Web site.

The Cornell Club of Washington has a new group to share their love of running (and power walking.) Walkers and runners attend our sessions when they feel like a workout and being social!

Are you...

a beginner who just needs some motivation to make a habit of exercise?
a parent wanting to introduce your kid to running, maybe by pairing up for a running event?
training for your first marathon? We have a team forming to support a charity.
loaded with running expertise to share?
curious about how signing up for organized charity runs could help you nake and achieve new goals?
interested in how the running community creatively contributes to charitable causes like our Alzheimers Research effort here or building a team to fundraise through the Marine Corps Marathon?

Join us-- once or many times during the year. We enjoy both running and walking together-- see the map because we sub-divide the group each gathering according to how much of a workout attendees choose for that day! See "Journal" below to see how the group is gelling.

Interested in shaping the activities of our new group or calling the group together for a meet-n-run? To get it posted here, just send Maggie an e-mail at
Librarian M S @ gmail.com
(no spaces)

You're never too young or old to get the sneakers on; our group's organizer advanced from walking, to walk-running and did her first marathon at 59 and she's passing on the passion to a new set of future marathoners. Ask Jessica!

Check the map to see where we often run!

Routes we use on the National Mall (select one of these 4 or invent your own):

"The Libe Slope Climb" is so named because the Library of Congress is at the peak. This run is especially for cross country runner wannabe tweens. Jog East up Independence Ave past the Botanical Gardens up-up-up Capitol Hill (counter-clockwise around the Capitol Building) to wave at the Supreme Court and salute Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Cornellian), then around the North side of the Capitol building. Find your way tightly against the fountains to your left to Madison Avenue, NW. Tip: keep tight to the grassy Mall or you can easily get off course. Use the gravel pathway of the mall if you can, passing the huge Art Gallery buildings to your right and eventually the National Museum of Natural History (big dome.) That's where you have to tap your toe on the bottom of the central steps. Meet back up at our morning gathering spot at 7th street and Independence, SW. Although this trail is for all ages, the winning kid (aged 9-18) gets a medal and bragging rights! Estimated distance: 2.5 miles / 4K with a hill at the beginning.
Bebe Babies! (Great choice fo baby strollers and other walkers): This route is inspired by the views we enjoyed of Bebe Lake. Stick with me... Long route: use the sidewalks to head west toward the Washington Monument but basically along the Mall to that point. Then, begin to make your way to the south, passing over Independence Ave to the west of the Holocaust museum. Walk to circle the tidal pool of the Jefferson Memorial, FDR Memorial, and Martin Luther King Memorial. Cross back over the 4-lanes of thoroughfare to take in the WWII Memorial. There's plenty along the way to fuel chat with new friends. (Option: if that's all a little much, stick to the mall, strolling west up to the flags to circle the Washington Monument, take in the gorgeous Smithsonian National African Amercan Museum History and Culture which evokes a 'crown' for your achievement. Your sidewalks are fairly wide the whole way so that you can maximize the chat time with other strollers or power walkers.) Estimated distance: 2.5 miles / 4K with some good shade part of the way.
The Whole Darn Mall (around 5 miles): Start by heading west toward the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial well beyond that. Keeping on the white gravel or wide walkways, pass the Jefferson, WWII and eventually the Korean Memorials, cross at the base of the Lincoln Memorial with the reflecting pool on your right. Bonus: run up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, count them, and pump the air "Rocky Style" at the top. Yes, you may pause for a fantastic selfie of triumph, and try to report back the number of steps you climbed --or descended.) Proceed past the Vietnam Memorial and east across the mall's northern side. Pass the White House (yell, "Free Melania" depending on your politics) and proceed around the Eastern end of the Capitol to wave honors at RBG at the Supreme Court, nod thankfully toward the Jefferson building of the Library of Congress, then swing back down hill past the Botanical Gardens, Native American Museum, Air and Space Museum, stopping just across from the Hirshhorn. This is where to convene back where we started our day to see if anyone's still around: the silvery spinney structure at west end of Air and Space Museum. Treat your fabulous self to an ice cream is nearby in food trucks.
Run the Dog - "race" or just walk any of the trails above with your pup, depending on the length of its legs and power in its paws. Enjoy the chance to engage with another dog lover. "What would your dog have loved doing or visiting in Ithaca? Was your dog the one with a red bandana on the Arts Quad?"

Calendar and Registration:

Saturday, July 26 7 or 8 am at the National Mall- stop back for confirmation of time

This event is for runners AND walkers (and puppy dogs) starting early to beat the heat!

Where: National Mall near Air and Space Museum

7 or 8 am: See who's wearing Big Red gear to show up at the 7th Street and Independence Ave, SW spinny sculpture between the Hirshhorn Museum and Air and Space Museum (see map above.) Then head out by choosing the trail you most like from our map above. The heat might make the 4K (the Libe Slope Climb) most popular, but the the Bebe Baby trail will suit walkers. These folks will co-host: ____________ and _____________ .

If weather threatens to cancel the event, an announcement will be made on the WhatsApp thread for this group. Lightening cancels, but a light drizzle does not. Use your judgment and run safely! https://tinyurl.com/ccw-whatsapp

Registration link coming soon.

Saturday, Aug. 19 - Hike and Winery

(counts as marathon training , ahem, and carbo loading!) See events page at CCW and register before it fills up. Cornell Club members and their guests only, please. Led by Yiming/Josef who was a 5-miler winner at our Charity Run! Newest members of CCW are eligible for car-pooling-- contact Yiming on the WhatsApp thread for those details. https://tinyurl.com/ccw-whatsapp

FYI Sept. 27 FYI: DC Walk to end Alzheimers on DC Mall

Register at 8, Ceremony at 9:30, Walk at 10 am. Register and get details directly at their web site and let Maggie know if you have a donation link to share here. If someone wants to captain a team, let Maggie know. (because she cannot this round.)

Tentative-- OMG!

8 am Oct. 11 or 12 at the National Mall:
Pep talk, training, and a good run before you taper.

Media about Coach General.

E-mail Maggie at Librarian MS @gmail.com if you plan to join the gang for an hour getting marathon "visioning" advice and a pep talk with Celebrity Coach Darrell General. He is a winner of the Marine Corps Marathon, Olympics qualifier, professional athlete and coach of high school cross country, winning the Virginia State championships multiple years, sending individual runners to Nationals. He was also FloTrack's Hometown Hero award winner, 2018 (a national award) and is an all around gifted guide.

For our Q and A with him, send your questions to Maggie ahead of the session: Librarian MS @gmail.com

$20 registration.

Sign-up link coming soon. After the pep talk and photo session, choose any of the trails on our map for your exercise.

E-mail Coach G at runbrotherman@gmail.com

Other Dates this Summer?

Lead out and I'll list your meeting here! E-mail Maggie at Librarian MS @gmail.com to propose the time and meeting place for your run / walk with Cornellians.

FYI: Sept. 14, 2025 - Pacer's

...is organizing a half-marathon and a 5 K: details and registration. Who's doing it?

Tentative: Oct 11 or 12, 8 am

Coach General hourlong session followed by exercise around the mall.

Oct. 26, 2025 Marine Corps Marathon:

Cornellians in our running group are forming a charity fundraising team that does the Marine Corps Marathon together (but not running lock-step). Contact Maggie if interested! Use email: Librarian MS @ gmail .com (no spaces). Use Subject Line: "Cornell Club Runs Marathon"

Stop Soldier Suicide is the charity around which we will form our Cornell team. But additionally, Maggie has contact information for people wishing to support the Alzheimers' Association team, instead. (For them, just do the best you can at fundraising, no punishment if your fundraising falls slightly short of goal $1000 per participant.

It will be a blast and all we have to do is walk/run it at a pace of about 14 min. per mile and most fit people can do it! (Run a hundred strides, walk a hundred strides, REPEAT for 5 or 6 hours and you'll become a marathoner! Even if your strides are short and you're only 5'3.")

Group photo opportunities: 7:10 at the bag drop truck for bib #10,000 with celebrity runner Coach Darrell General, AND at the beer tent lying across the finish line, approximately 2:15 pm. Good luck to participants!

Please let us know if, separately, you are running for a charity so that we can put Cornellians' efforts into the spotlight here.

FYI: Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot -

5K likely in Arlington (try to register well ahead to help organizers) to support a large number of Arington charitable organizations listed here. It's a charming, low-key event, great for families and teams that feel like dressing up. Also of note, the Alexandria Turkey Trot is more hard core and huge with elite runners competing, and it supports ALIVE! Registration.

Paris Marathon - April 12, 2026

Fundrace for Back on my Feet - pledge to raise at least $2000. Apply here.

Other races: RunGuides

For a good cause...

Got old sneakers? Ask your sneaker shop to donate them to folks in need. If you have a LOT of them, Maggie can organize for a pick-up.

Anyone want to run with the Back on my Feet group? (They have operated in Alexandria and DC.) We can investigate and join them for a run. It's a phenomenal, life-changing organization! Know how it works, and what fundracing is!

Anyone want to lead or participate in a "trail clean-up" project with Maggie to support the "Cornell Cares" efforts in summer and January? Part of the effort is not where the W+OD running trail is but at a sidewalk lined location between Falls Church and Tyson's. That's super close by Mile 7.5 of the trail. It needs some loving care and I hope to get some help from Marshall High School teenagers who want community service hours that I can sign-off on.

Seeding the future

Did you see we sponsored a young runner? He's from an underserved population and we paid his summer running camp tuition. He's going to really benefit from the role modeling and cross country training of Coach Darrell General, celebrated Marine Corps Marathon Winner, and Recipient of FloTrack's 2018 Hometown Hero (national) award.

Resources

Hal Higdon's book MARATHON, THE ULTIMATE TRAINING GUIDE was recommended to me by my brother who is a physical therapist, an XC coach, and has run a zillion marathons. There's a lot to mine in his web resources.

Ken Alegre's videos gave me the confidence to go for a marathon even if I thought I might need to walk some of it. Low key, enthusiastic. Took me from power walker to marathoner at 59.

Fun Background - Maggie will explain in person to anyone with a teenager in need of a running camp during the summer.

Race Calendars: RunGuides

Park Runs

Cornell Club of Washington - CCW Event Registrations. Fill out the survey at the home page to shape upcoming activities.

If you are a BIKERIDER and would enjoy organizing October fundraising participation with BellRinger to raise money for cancer research, get in contact with Maggie! Thanks!

Our Running Journal:

(Most recent events listed first.)

July 13, 2025 Thanks for coming out! We were still smiling at the top of the Libe Slope Climb-- lots of great conversation among an entirely new set of runners who managed a 5-K impressively and most still had energy to add mileage, walking across "Jessica's Bridge" (14th street bridge and part of the marathon J will run one day) to take the secret special route to the Columbia Island Marina where we met up with co-host Andres and had a breezy lunch and beverages with all the views of the boat launches, river and Pentagon. It was a gorgeous and HOT day. Palak, Fletcher, Dan, Brian, Jessica, MIsha, THANK YOU for the miles of inspiration and conversation! Sandra and Deb (marathoner who knows all the public rest rooms a Marine Corps Marathoner finds while training) joined us with a cocker spaniel! Jessica was there at the end to pick up late arrivals for a stroll in the marina area. Thank you ALL for motivating one another an me to make mileage in prep for future races, and to combine ideas for expanding Cornell Club of Washington events. Your ideas (bowling, axe-throwing, outdoor movies on picnic blankets, restaurant tastings, a Wines 101 Redux) have made the brainstorming pages where people can sign-up with Maggie and one another to co-host.

July 4, 2025 I'm so pumped! Scoring on contacts, I've negotiated terms with Coach Darrell General to offer in-person advice and photo ops to anyone interested in a unique October offering in the final "need to taper now" weeks of Marine Corps Marathon preparation. We have tentatively set the event for Oct. 11 or 12. I told him about Jessica! I told him what our little group is doing for charities! And he's on board for an 8-9 am hour before our exercise that morning at the Mall, even if I barely charge anything for participation (that we will offer other Ivy League Alumni Runners as well, so make a date and spread the word.) Just think about how neat it will be for your to have your photo with the actual WINNER of the MCM when the MCM turns "50" this year! There are only 49 of those folks alive, and his triumph led to a career of helping others and drawing people like you and me into the energizing, community building and serving world of running! The timing will be perfect for Jessica and me to attend and feel the excitement of count-down to her first marathon! Watch for a registration link soon and don't miss this special event for our running group. Bring me down to earth! I'm so happy! (I have to go out for a run!)

June 30, 2025 Josef and Maggie met up at Tatte in Chrystal City to brainstorm our next running events. We discussed finishing a run at Island Time Bar and Grill at Columbia Island Marina. It closes at 7 pm and opens at 11 am, so it's hard to plan around to keep runners out of the summer heat. But the running trails near there show off part of the Marine Corps Marathon Route (both the bridge and the route around the Pentagon) so it's a great place to show Jessica and other marathoners.

June 29, 2025 Justin and Maggie had fantastic runs! We stretched together under the big tree with the picnic table by the park's parking lot, and shared updates to this web page's announcements. We beat the heat by starting at 7:15 am. Maggie ran-walked 8 miles and earned her bagel!

June 25, 2025 Maggie attended our CW Happy Hour event in Ballston to offer a Marine Corps Marathon Organizational Meeting. The purpose was to recruit runners for a charity team run at the Marine Corps Marathon in late October (and CCW event organizers for other purposes-- thanks, Josef, for stepping forward for such!) Here's what was offered, but there were no new folks interested in joining the Marathoning Team:

Cornell Runners interested in joining our effort to build a charity fundraising team and run the MCM Marathon in late October will have a first time opportunity to meet one another and make some plans at 7 pm at a table during the CCW Happy Hour event in Ballston. <--Register for that event here. If that timing is not good for you to meet, there will be other opportunities to get aboard our team; try to come June 29. You do NOT have to be a marathoner to take this run/walk event on as a first-time marathoner. Contact Maggie at Librarian MS @ gmail . com (no spaces) to let her know when you can meet or phone call for details and watch for us to post a FAQ and training support on these pages. Yes, YOU CAN BE A MARATHONER! And do GOOD at the same time!

Important! By June 30, 2025 Kassandra and Maggie will have formed a team that supports one of these causes . Note that the fundraising teams offer the MCM bib to people who commit to raising a set amount of funds (such as $700 - $1500 donations per runner.) We are presently leaning towards Girls on the Run, or Hire Heroes, USA (Vet support) or Stop Soldier Suicide, or or HEAL Palestine (details coming), Inc. VOLO Kids Foundation (which is inexpensive at only $700 fundraising goal per runner) American Foundation for Suicide Prevention ($1000 or $250 for Virtual 10K.) Our Committed Teammates will make the final choice of which charity... and we are open to what's a meaningful to OUR CCW runners! Lobby away!

Budget FAQ: How much does it usually cost to get a bib for the MCM if not on a charity run? $240. Compare that to your "minimum requirement" for a fundraiser bib to assess if you can pay the difference if you do not reach your fundraising goal by encouraging sponsorships among your friends and our CCW running community events. Expect costs like buying sneakers across the training season to support healthy running. And expect to pay $$$ for the MCM swag you'll want to buy when you go to collect your race packet.

June 22, 2025 - Yesterday was a triumph! Thanks to the enthusiasm and generous support of Cornellians and their families, we raised over $1090 for Alzheimers Research doing a "Longest Day" event for AA as our semi-annual "Cornell Cares" event. It was joyous, tongue-in-cheek-as-elaborate-while-small-scale "big run" on the National Mall that we kept under the radar of anyone who might have asked us for a permit.... See our FAQ which says a lot and don't miss #17 there! Can't thank our committee enough for their help: Kassandra and Andres were absolute ROCK STARS to help pull the complex event off! Doug and Yiming/Josef are emerging as leaders for our running group-- they make us run hard and keep smiling!!! K's family was VITAL support and we make them honorary Cornellians!

Let's set up a 5K in the fall because we are ready to pour coffee and eat bananas in Falls Church as we work towards involvement in the Marine Corps Marathon. (What charity will our group be formed to support?)

Missing from pic below and NEW IN OUR HEARTS-- Monica and Laura who added so much joy to the fun!

Congratulations to Andres for his Sat. March 31 Walk for Hope. In honor of a colleague lost to tragedy, his effort raised at least $150 for Suicide Prevention programming.

Sat. March 22 at 9:00 am- Cornellians Run at the National Mall.

We had a terrific turn-out, including two dogs, Harbor and Romeo! We followed these instructions: rise early, meet us at 9 am at the corner of 7th Street SW and Independence Ave, SW beneath the huge spinny silvery art installation. Closest metro is L'Enfant Station. Try to wear red for the group photo; leader will be in a red MCM 10K top. We'll stretch, make quick introductions mentioning goals for this season's running, then head out to run or run/walk/talk the perimeter of the National Mall. Go at a pace that works for your fitness; "packing up" is optional; some people like to put on earbuds and run solo, our gathering just keeping you motivated to get on your running shoes that morning. Note that if folks want to socialize after, they can meet up at the Food Trucks near L'Enfant Metro Station or head inside to L'Enfant Food Court. Parking information for L'Enfant Plaza.

"Routes on National Mall" above set our morning's goal, based on ability. We had all 3 kinds of groups!

Sat. May 17 at 9:00 am. We were a combo of new recruits and returning participants on met at the corner of 7th Street SW and Independence Ave, SW beneath the huge spinney silvery art installation. We built steam amongh both runners and walkers for our June 21 events, found out Doug's daughter and Kassandra work for the same company! Doug shared about Park Runs (he's done over 50 and is too modest about it. But the pace he set for the younger runners around the tidal basin showed the training helps him kick a---. Among the walkers who did the "Libe Slope" route, A shared about strength training as a super compliment to running/walking. Maggie and Marie found out they live a mile apart and will bump into one another on the W&OD Trail! After our exercise, three of us peeled off to have a committee meeting to prep for May 31 and June 21 events. Andres shared with some of us his good plans to participate in a fundraising walk for suicide prevention to honor the life of a co-worker. INSPIRATIONAL! THANKS FOR COMING! I hope folks will sign up for our team called "Go Big Red" for our June 21 endeavor. Join our TEAM here .

March 8, 11 am It was great! Thanks for coming or e-mailing in when you joined us! "We ended whatever morning run done around Mile 12 of the W&OD Trail to meet up at Caboose Tavern, Vienna for a coffee and ORGANIZING. This was our inaugural event to pull in anyone interested in goal-setting, information sharing, or just social connection over the topic of running. We were sweaty and "endorphin-fueled-optimistic" at Caboose. -

Share info about our Cornell Running Club using this black and white dazzling QR code or

https://tinyurl.com/ccw-group

https://sites.google.com/view/ccw-event-details/running-walking-group

Whatsapp Chat for interested runners:

https://tinyurl.com/ccw-whatsapp

For a complete list of upcoming events, see Cornell Club of Washington's web site.

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