Author: Splinter

  • Authentic Turkey Trot Routes

    Tuesday 11/22 at Spider Run we will be running a 10k. The link to the route is below and I’ll also describe it for individuals that have not run this route previously. The trails are slightly modified from the official route but everything else is the same. Headlamps strongly recommended.

    It’s 6.2 miles with plenty of elevation. Ideally, we will all be finishing at the same time, right around 615. If you think you need an hour and 15 to finish a 10k, play your departure for around 5am. I’ll be there just before 5am to assist with any questions.

    Feel free to ping me for any questions.

    https://onthegomap.com/s/fmrolial

    spider run route

    Section 1 – Looping Around Towana

    This section starts by heading back towards the lake, taking a right, and then up behind the football stadium before exiting campus by taking a right on Campus. Continue up Campus until you hit Roselawn and then make a U-Turn to head back down Towana. When you get to the bottom, take a left and head up Roselawn. First right onto Ridgeway then back to the Commons.

    Section 2 – Trails Through Campus

    Once you pass the start, take a left at the commons and head across the lake, veering right onto the path around the lake. After you pass the cafeteria, take your first left up the path. At the top, take an immediate right on the path and head behind the Greek Theatre. Once you pass behind the Greek Theatre you will see tennis courts ahead of you. Take a hard right down the well lit path back to the lake. Don’t cross the bridge. Take a left, watching your step on the gravel and take the path over to College. Right on College.

    Section 3 – Westham

    This part is pretty easy (directions wise). Once on College take a left on Lakewood. Lakewood all the way to Westham. Left on Westham. Left on Club Vista (last road before River). Left on College and an immediate right on Westhampton Way.

    Section 4 – The Westhampton Campus

    Continue on Westhampton, straight across the first intersection onto Keller. Right on Westhampton Way then right on UR drive. First right onto Crenshaw. This next part is in my mind arbitrary but nevertheless part of the route. Go up Crenshaw until you get to the Modlin Center parking lot. It’s essentially at the top of the hill. Then turn around and come back to a left on UR drive.

    Section 5 – The Big Finish

    Continue on UR drive like you are heading back to the starting point. Except, you have to finish with the big loop. Up Gateway to the top, left to head back behind the football field and back down to the lake. Long downhill finish back to the parking lot.

    The END

    I’ll come up with some turn by turn directions that can be printed for those that may be completely confused at this point.

    UPDATE: Turn by Turn Directions available here!

    Turkey-Trot-Turn-by-Turn DirectionsDownload

    If 6.2 is too much there are two options for you. One is to eliminated the Roselawn/Ridgeway loop and just return back to the start via the path at the bottom of Towana. The second is to eliminate the Crenshaw out and back and just head back to the finish. The final is to cut off the hill loop at the end but I wouldn’t recommend that as it is a fantastic finish.

    This should be fun. See everyone on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving!

  • The Mount Was Sweaty

    Fifteen engaged citizens, most of them concerned about the safety of our headgear, came out to sweat off all the simple sugars consumed last night. Two words were spoken and off we went.

    The Route

    • Mount Henrico

    Announcements

    • Loops on Black Friday
    • Turkey Trot on Tuesday 11/22
    • Reminders on where the Q signup sheet is located

    Moleskin

    Everyone was concerned for the health and safety of our fellow PAX members. The wilderness is scary.

  • OFW

    Ten box hunters gathered, in shorts only of course, for today’s super creative First Watch Q. After Handshake and Marv rolled into their positions, we took a short lap around the lot before COP.

    COP

    • DQ x10
    • Arm Circles x15
    • SSH x20
    • Hillbillies x15
    • Mountain Climbers x10
    • Scorpions x10
    • Inverted Scorpions x10
    • LBCs x20

    The Thang

    Short mosey to the near corner for some fresh air and instructions. 4 corners with 5x burpees, 10x dips, 15x jump squats, 20x WWIIs. Bear crawl the shorts and bernie the lengths. Repeato.

    Medium mosey through the carpool lane and settle on the back side of the church for medium sized 4 corners. 10x burpees, 20x merkins, 30x Lt Dans, 40x 2 count flutters. Run length 1, karaoke 2, bernie 3, karaoke 4. Repeato with squats instead of Lt Dans.

    Short mosey to the northeast corner and settle for large 4 corners. 20x burpees, 40x CDDs, 60x humpers, 80x LBCs. Run to the corner of river & ridge, carpool entrance, northwest corner, northeast corner.

    One burpee then mosey to the traditional COP area for Mary which included HTH, Freddie Mercuries, Reverse Crunches, Dying Cockroaches, APD, right leg high APD, left leg high APD. BTTVSF where Marv improved to take us out.

    Announcements

    • 10/29 beer mile @ Faceplant’s
    • Clydesdale shirts for sale only for the mega chungus in the group. Handshake was first to order.
    • Call your parents for no reason

    Moleskin

    No overshare this week but the overflatulence award goes to the entire PAX whose GI apparently doesn’t adjust well to the cold weather. Multiple stains ensued.

    Marv was the second to last to leave the parking lot and head east. YHC believes that Marv almost went left of the median on ridge, quickly adjusted, barely missed the sign, then scurried home. Only Marv, who likely won’t read this backblast, can confirm or deny.

    I enjoyed it fellas. Splinter’s 195159th Q out, but who’s counting.

  • Dogs are Smarter than People

    Fourteen able-bodied athletes, plus one four-legged friend with boundless energy, gathered in the cool bowl for this week’s Spider Run. Only one noticeable ‘sigh’ from the PAX when instructions began at 0529. They were…

    Route

    • Head west and do a lap around the lake
    • 5s go east first and touch UR drive before doubling back and doing the loop
    • 6s go up and touch the parking lot by the baseball field before doubling back and finishing the loop
    • Most of us (sorry Hitch and Thugs) meandered back to the base of Towana & Roselawn for some nestling and hugging
    • 4 intervals up Roselawn (Singer’s choice)
    • 4 intervals up Towana (Singer’s demise)
    • 1 interval up Roselawn (Singer’s showcase)
    • 1 interval up Towana (TYA’s triumph)

    BTTVSF where YHC took us out.

    Announcements

    • Forest Hill Loops on Black Friday. 7am start. Beat TYA and get a used pair of short running shorts.
    • Turkey Trot on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. 6.2 miles around UR. Plan your start time accordingly.
    • Lots of individuals celebrating F3 anniversaries. Be on the lookout for someone with a 4 year coming up, and a potential week of Qs.
    • Prayers for Shawn Hogan family.

    Moleskin

    In YHCs mind, there were far fewer sighs and far greater enthusiasm for intervals than there have ever been. Considering we only do them 3-4 times a year, everyone should love them. Sippy’s proclamation that Roselawn was ‘shallower’ only offered modest reprieve.

    Fourteen dudes and un perro must have been enough to keep the hat thief at bay this AM. No sign of the flighted kleptomaniac but there was one very considerate 545am Uber driver.

    Enjoy the day fellas.

    Splinter.

  • The In Law Suite

    Twelve animals on 2 legs and one animal on 4 legs hit the gridded streets around Mary this AM for today’s iteration of RAMM. 5:00 runners launched at, well, 5:00, while the rest launched at 5:30. Only 6s and 4s today so here we go:

    The Route

    • North on Westmoreland then left on Patterson
    • Right on Willow Lawn
    • Right on Monument
    • Left on Staples Mill
    • Right on Fitz Hugh
    • Right on Antrim
    • Right on Grove
    • 6s take two detours off Antrim. First was a right on Augusta, left on Chantilly, left on Cutshaw. Second was a right on Grace, left on Blacker, left on Monument
    • BTTVSF

    Announcements

    • Beer mile recruiting in full effect. 10/29, see Faceplant
    • Prayers for the (S)MILs and FILs in our lives
    • Shakedown is painting with balls tomorrow at 10am. See him for details.

    Moleskin

    YHC couldn’t help but inquire into in-law status after Faceplant put at teaser on Slack. Great mumblechatter ensued for what seemed like more than half the route. Good luck!

    Welcome Mall Cop from Charlotte. Recently moved to Church Hill and can run anywhere from a 630 pace to a 1000 pace. Hope to see more of you in RVA.

    See y’all soon.

    Splinter

  • Overdressed and Silent Birthday Celebration

    Thirteen thrill seekers huddled near Flatline’s shovel flag (thanks Flatline!) for this week’s incarnation of Spider Run. With only a few minutes to spare, YHC described the experience the PAX would endure while offering the opportunity for someone to identify the route. Singer dreams of Spider Run routes so was quick to chime in with Westham Station aka Devil’s Pitchfork (or perineal if you are Hutton). A slight variation of the standard route was called:

    Route

    • South through the owl cave then west on Westham Station
    • Continue and bear right on S Ridge and reverse course at the light
    • 4 milers return home the same way
    • 5 milers add a left on Old Bridge followed by a right on Highland up to River and back
    • 6 milers add a right on Ross to the bottom and the Highland offshoot

    Numbers, names, YHC took us out.

    Announcements

    • Prayers for Pucker’s dad as he undergoes another surgery
    • Prayers for those under stress or battling through mental health issues
    • Happy birthday Hitch!

    Moleskin

    The PAX was lively today. Farmer Fran didn’t appear although for a moment the PAX thought Daisy Duke was emerging from the dusk. Spoiler alert, it was not Daisy Duke.

    Great running with Marv and Saab today. Topics du jour were getting ghosted by the po-po, getting stood up at UVA, having lots of friends at VCU, and living in a world with lots of data. Certainly made the 45 minutes go by very quickly.

    Seize the day fellas!

    Splinter

  • Party Crashers

    Fifteen elite athletes plus one crotch sniffer huddled for elaborate, but simple directions for today’s Spider Run. Even Flatline knew where he was going today. Routes were declared as follows:

    Routes

    • Everyone head up UR drive and take a right on Campus to Three Chopt
    • 4 milers take the access road then a left on St. Christophers, right on Patterson
    • 5/6 milers take a quick left then a right on Pepper. Left on Hanover, right on Ripley
    • 5 milers right on Patterson
    • 6 milers left on Patterson, right on Charles, right on West Marshall, right on some road, left on Patterson
    • Everyone east on Patterson to a right on Maple
    • Quick detour to the St. Chris track for one lap (opposite direction just to screw with people), waving to Gypsy and other F3 brothers getting track work in
    • Back south on Maple, right on Grove
    • Down Iris around the golf course and BTTF (courtesy Flatline)

    Announcements

    • Prayers were needed today for two acquatences of the PAX
    • PAX is always here to offer assistance

    Numbers, names, YHC took us out.

    Moleskin

    Picture perfect (albeit dark) morning for arachnid galloping. Given the declared routes were in the heart of owl territory, and YHCs group included 50% owl assault victims, Faceplant decided to run waving his arms above his head. He lasted 5 seconds before determining that would not last the entire run, accepting the risk was low as a redwood was running by his side.

    Heck of a party at St Chris track in the morning. Only Gypsy will be able to comment if our clockwise running caused chaos after our one lap and then exit.

    Great to see everyone this morning. Lend a helping hand to those around you.

    Splinter out.

  • Farmer Fran Runs on Clouds

    An unknown number of participants started at various times and arrived at various times, all of which contributed to today’s RAMM (Gears). After Hitch scurried home to change into a long sleeve shirt, there were 4 of us for the proper 0530 launch time. Routes were declared as follows:

    Routes

    • East on Grove
    • 4s left on Hamilton, 6s left on Boulevard
    • Left on Patterson
    • Right on Commonwealth
    • Right on Monument
    • Left on Hamilton
    • Left on Broad (for 1 block) then continue west on Fitz-Hugh
    • Left on Commonwealth
    • BTTVSF

    Announcements

    • Big day in F3RVA tomorrow
      • 8Y Anniversary Convergence @0730 @Gridiron
      • TYA has the bridge, perhaps solo… depends on someone’s wife
      • Sit & Sip, see slack
    • Epic scrimmage between Marv & BTs 2.0 against YHCs 2.0 Sunday. It will be a beautiful day to play 2.

    Numbers, names, and YHC took us out, just like the wind pulls us along.

    Moleskin

    The air made a few of the PAX frisky this AM. One made reference to the rhythm method while another mentioned an injury from parkour (YHC heard hard core, which is a completely different type of activity). One clam was so happy he rubbed his chest (read nipples) to warm up post run, then graced us with a shirt to erase the memory.

    Apologies to the 4 milers who apparently can’t follow directions. Glad you were still able to get 4 miles. Yep, that’s how we apologize in this here parts.

    A flurry of Gears crew arrived right as YHC was leaving. Ping on slack if I missed you and you want credit.

    Sayonara.

    Splinter

  • Kubotas are Better than John Deeres

    Eleven non-recovering NC runners gathered at the darkest AO for some Splinter magic. Moon was almost full and the sky was reflecting plenty of airborne water particles, 100% possibly. Regardless, we wandered over to the jacked up Ford truck to attempt to pick up GP before we decided to just depart for our mission. The goal? Make everyone jealous for not posting at Hoedown. Mosey over to the church parking lot via Lindsay and Forest for…

    COP

    • 1x Burpee
    • 2x Merkins (+ 1)
    • 3x Squats
    • 4x LBCs
    • 5x SSHs
    • 6x Burpees
    • 7x Merkins
    • 8x Squats
    • 9x LBCs
    • 10x SSHs
    • 11x Burpees
    • 12x Merkins
    • 13x Squats
    • 14x LBCs
    • 15x SSHs

    Next exercise is… the mosey. Over to Silverspring Drive, stopping at Carriage lane. Partner up for a version of love hill, uphill. One partner runs to the top of the hill while the other performs an exercise. Flip flop until both partners are at the top. Exercises were Bear Crawls, Lunges, Broad Jumps (not walk out Burpees).

    Quick right on Spotswood and continue up the hill, past the illegal court, stopping at the right turn on Spotswood for the next version of love hill. Partner up. One person runs to the bottom of the hill while the other performs an exercise. Flip flop until both partners are at the top. Exercises were Crab Walks, Monkey Walks, Walk out Merkins.

    Collect the six and then mosey up Paris. 11s to the bottom of the cul-de-sac with diamond merkins and jump squats. Collect the six and mosey back to the parking lot where we almost were run over by a teacher (who was complaining about previous attempts to help carrying supplies into school) while completing Flutter Kicks and American Hammers.

    Numbers, names, YHC took us out.

    Moleskin

    Great bunch of men this morning. Some shed clothes, some said they were new but really were not, some tried to drink breakfast beers. Regardless, these are strong men. Grateful to have an opportunity to lead today.

    Announcements

    • Shawn G Hogan beer mile on 10/29. Virtual options available
    • Prayers for those in need, especially those who were spoken today that need extra support
    • Prayers for Bodos who is already beginning to forget his age

    Always a pleasure today. Thank you for letting me lead.

  • Ask Singer What Day It Is

    Fifteen pounders and peddlers congregated before and after today’s main event. Singer interrupted the instructions to tell a story about what today means to him before allowing YHC to continue. Instructions were simple, and unless mother nature made you detour, the routes were followed.

    Routes

    • Everyone head south on Commonwealth and into Windsor Farms
    • Berkshire to Sulgrave to Caterbury before exiting to go north on Malvern
    • Right on Grove
    • 4s left on Hamilton
    • 5s left on Tildon
    • 6s left on Boulevard
    • Everyone left on Patterson
    • Left on Bunting
    • Left on Grove

    Numbers, names, and YHC took us out

    Announcements

    • The bridge needs a last minute Q for tomorrow. See TYA
    • Flannel Q tomorrow at Dogpile
    • The newly established Pronunciation Guild will meet every other Friday to discuss various southern vs northern pronunciations. Today’s examples were Buchanan, Buckingham, and Worcester

    Moleskin

    Mary is dark these days. I put the over/under at 311.5 days until the light in the parking lot gets fixed. Regardless, we know each other well enough to identify each other by our shadows.

    Route itself was flat today, exactly what YHC needed to feel good about a run. Thanks for the 6s for sticking with me, most of the time.

    Apparently post Mary has turned into somewhat of a Broga session. I’m not sure who led the charge, but 6 or 7 finished the run up with some stretching. Conversation was light and jovial until Saab started stretching Swirly out. That thinned the crowd out real quick. PSA: You can likely find some new athletic shorts on back to school sale this weekend.

    Enjoy the day fellas.

    Splinter