Route #3

This is our only out-and-back route.  You can turn around at any point, but one common way to cut this run short is to cross the pedestrian bridge and go back.   That makes the run almost exactly 4 miles.

Make sure that you have signed up for the Tomato Festival 5k.   This is our "home" race, and we need to show up en masse.  (We will also have a booth at the Tomato Festival where Duane will unveil the 2014 East Nasty summer t-shirts…more details later.)

Remember, every Wednesday there are three options: 6 a.m., 6 p.m. or you can join the Lasty Nasties.  The Lasty Nasties are mostly walk/runners and start running at either 5:30 or 5:45 p.m. (depending on the route)   Check out their Facebook page for more details.

Run #2

6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.

Pint Night

Once a month, our friends at NRC invite us over for a post-run Yazoo.   Everyone is invited and it is a great way to meet your fellow East Nasties.

Women's Half Marathon

Our training for the women's half marathon has begun, and it is not too late to join in the fun.   Email Alyce Scrivner if you are interested.  a-scrivner@comcast.net.

Starting over with Run #1

6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.   We run rain or shine, but if there is a storm, we'll wait it out.

I Dream of Weenie Night

Tomorrow night, the first 100 hot dogs are free.   Yes, you heard it right.  Drinks and sides are your responsibility, but courtesy of State Farm the first 100 people will not have to pay for their dog. (Remember you can BYOB if you want.)     Yet another reason to stick around after the run...

ENFL

Mark

Ordering is now open for our 2014 Potato-to-Tomato 5K Training Program shirts! Try on sizes at one of the P2T workouts and then be sure to order before the July 1st deadline! Order online here: eastnasty.storenvy.com

More info about our Potato-to-Tomato 5K Training Program here: eastnastyforlife.com/p2t - it's not too late to join!

The Nasty

Our signature run: 6 miles, 7 hills (or more) and it looks to be hot.  A perfect combination for the nasty!

(There is a 3.7 mile short-cut which yields no glory, but is significantly easier)

You can join us at 6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.

Women's Half Training

The Nashville women's half marathon is in September, and starting at the end of June we'll have Sunday long runs focused on that race.   If you are interested in being a part of these runs (they are free like everything else we do…), or helping out, please  email Alyce Scrivner at a-scrivner@comcast.net.

ENFL

Mark

The Route

Wednesday at 6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly.   Remember we meet rain or shine, but if there is a thunderstorm, we'll wait it out before starting.

The Church Run. This is a great run because it is a figure 8, which gives less experienced runners a chance to run just 2 miles.  If you complete the whole route, you will end by running up Shelby Ave from 5th all the way to 11th.  For you cyclists out there, this is a category 5 climb.

Potato To Tomato

Change of Location for our June 14th meeting!

Our couch to 5k program, we call it Potato to Tomato, is starting this Saturday.  Note:   We are going to change our meeting location because the "Run or Dye 5k" is being held at LP field.   This Saturday we will meet at Shelby Park, outside the nature center.   The run will start at 7 a.m.  Coaches need to be there by 6:45 and we are encouraging participants to come at 6:30 to go through a health screening.

Parking

Just another friendly reminder.  Do not park illegally.

Parking revisited...

Last week I had at least 2 cars that I could have used as examples of illegally parked cars.   (Luckily, I don't think they were ours…)  Read last week's post and pay attention to where you are parking!

Potato 2 Tomato

Our couch to 5k training is about to start.   Information is here.   If you (or anyone you know is interested) you need to:

1) Sign up on line.

2) Attend the information meeting this Thursday night at 6:30 p.m at the Margaret Maddox YMCA.

3) Show up to the first training session.  7 a.m. Saturday, June 14th at the Pedestrian Bridge (LP field side..)

Route #10

6 .m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.   Afterwards, head to NRC for our monthly pint night.

Parking

Just a friendly heads-up…there will be parking patrols out and about five points issuing citations.  Not necessarily tomorrow or on Wednesdays at all, but some folks are parking illegally, and parking enforcement is going to be stepped up.   Here is a link to the parking codes, but the ones that I want to highlight are about intersections.  There are two rules about intersections you may not be familiar with:

you cannot park...

c.Within thirty feet of a crosswalk at an intersection,

d.Within thirty feet upon the approach to any flashing signal, stop sign, yield sign or traffic-control signal located at the side of a roadway,

There is no doubt that I have parked within 30 feet of a stop sign before.   So be aware of this regulation!  30-feet may seem like a lot, but it will make intersections around the 5 points area much, much safer - for both vehicle and pedestrian alike.

Note: This increase in parking enforcement is not because of us, and it was nice of the neighborhood association to give us a heads up before tickets just started appearing on our cars...

East Nashville Tomato 5k

Our home race is coming up on August 9.  This is not just a race for our potato to tomato graduates, but a race which we all need to support!   This Wednesday the YMCA will be out with information about how to sign up.

Wednesday's Run

6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly.   If you are a run/walker, meet up with the Lasty Nasties at 5:45.  Check out the construction as we run around LP field…our riverfront is going to be amazing.

Shoes

Don't forget to bring your shoes into NRC.  Our goal is to collect 100 pairs of shoes before next week (May 28th).  Read this blog if you need more details.

I Dream of Weenie

Once again this summer, I Dream of Weenie is going to have East Nasty night.  The third Wednesday of every month, I Dream of Weenie will stay open late and offer $0.50 off everything on the menu.   Also, as a bonus, they will provide a cooler of ice and you can BYOB.  (Disclaimer: you can't walk up and down the street, but you can drink beer if you stay on the lawn.)

So put this on your calendar and plan on sticking around after the run this Wednesday.  Grab a beer from the Kwik-E-Mart and relax with friends and a hotdog at the picnic tables.

Potato to Tomato

Information about our Potato to Tomato 5k training program is available.  If you have anyone in your life who would love to make a change, this is a great way to start.  The program is free, and open to anyone.  Information is here.

Route #8: Rick's Market - Coldest Beer in Town

6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.  This route has a couple of street crossings where the cross traffic does not stop, so approach all intersections cautiously.

If you are a run/walker you are welcome to join the Lasty Nasties.  Note: they meet at about 5:45p.m., so if you show up at 6 p.m. they'll be gone!   Check out their facebook page for more details.

Potato to Tomato

Our free couch to 5k training is just around the corner.  Information is here, and there are four things you need to do:

(1) Consider coaching.    We could use some faster coaches.  (Relatively speaking...)  The majority of our participants are brand new runners who will complete the Tomato Fest 5k in over 40 minutes.  But there are usually a few ringers who are in great shape, but just new to running.  We always need a couple experienced runners (read: can run 8 minute pace consistently) to help guide this group.   Is this you?   Consider coaching. Send Mike Clark and email, and he can give you more information.  mclark@eastnastyforlife.com

(2) Pass the information on to friends, and get them to sign up.   Everyone is welcome to join us, but it really helps us plan if the participants sign up.    There is an informational meeting at the Margaret Maddox YMCA at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday June 5th.

(3) Sign up for the Tomato Festival 5k.  This is our "home" race - and it benefits our local YMCA which does amazing work in the community.   No excuses!   Sign up, run and enjoy a fantastic festival after the run.

(4) Donate your old shoes. (read on…)

Shoes

Every year East Nasty collects used running shoes.   If the shoes are too worn out, we toss them or give them to goodwill.    If there is still some life left in them, we find them a new home.   We give away hundreds of shoes every year, and many of them go to our Potato to Tomato participants.

We rely on you guys for our shoe inventory, and that is the case this year, but we are going to do collection a little differently.   This year, between May 14 and May 28, bring your used shoes in to Nashville Running Company, and they will give you 20% off your new shoe purchase when you bring in 2 used pairs.   If you only have one pair, please swing by the store and drop them off anyway!  Our goal is to collect over 100 pairs of shoes during this two week period.

The Route

Run #7

6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.   Enjoy the architecture on this route!

ENFL

Mark

Our Mission

"East Nasty exists to make East Nashville a great place to live and to run and to make running accessible to everyone in our community."

A couple times a year, we intentionally give back to the neighborhood that makes our Wednesday night runs possible.  (Do you think a weekly run like this could happen in Green Hills???)    We do this in several different ways, but tomorrow today it's time for our yearly 5-points alley/street clean up.  After the run on Wednesday we need everyone to hang around for about 20 minutes post-run/pre-3Crow bar.   We'll split you guys up into small groups, give you gloves and garbage bags, and send you to a small section of an East Nashville street (or alley) to clean.   Walk through your area, pick up any trash, throw the garbage bag away, and then join your friends at 3 Crow.  Easy stuff.

Couch to 5k

One of our trademark programs is our couch to 5k program, which we call 'Potato to Tomato' - and it's right around the corner.   It's an 8-week program that takes participants from walking, to walk/running, to run/walking, to running in the Tomato Festival 5k on August 9.   We've had over 200 participants each of the last three summers, and we expect similar numbers this year.  We'll have more details posted next week, but here is what we need from you:

(1) Can you be a coach?   We meet Monday and Wednesday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 7 a.m.  Yes, you would miss the East Nasty Wednesday runs for 8 weeks, but you would also help change people's lives.  Interested?  Email Mike Clark at mclark@eastnastyforlife.com.

(2) Invite your friends/family/co-workers etc…  We'll have our informational session on June 5th at the Margaret Maddux YMCA at 6:30 p.m.   Then the first training session will be on Saturday, June 14th.

Wednesday's Run

Post-Marathon Recovery...

It's easy, and sometimes comical, to recognize the post-marathon shuffle.   It's that stiff-legged walk that is especially obvious when going down stairs.   So while your co-workers are laughing at you, what should you do?

First, a physiological reality: you don't become a better runner by running hard.  You become a better runner by recovering from running hard.   Racing is certainly "hard running", so you must allow yourself adequate recovery.   Here is a rule of thumb:  you should take one easy day for every 2 kilometers of running.  (A half-marathon is about 20 kilometers)   Note: "easy" does not mean "off".   In fact, recovery is (usually) sped up through light exercise.   Walking, swimming, light jogging.  All of these activities increase blood flow, which is what promotes recovery.

So should you run this week?   Yes!  Come join us for our weekly run, just keep it nice and slow.

Our Mission

East Nasty exists to make East Nashville a great place to live and to run, and to make running accessible to everyone in our community.

Of course our free half/full marathon training and free year-round Wednesday night runs are an obvious example.  But we are going to have three more ways to make this vision a reality over the next couple of months...

1) Couch to 5k program. (Starting in June)

we will need volunteers.  stay tuned for more details

2) Alley Clean Up. (Next week)

all we need is 15-20 minutes of your post-run time next week. 

3) Show donations. (May 14 - May 28)

don't throw those old shoes away!  we'll find them a new home, and you'll get a discount at NRC.

So stay tuned, and get involved where and when you can.

Route #5 (Drew's Favorite)

6 a.m. or 6 p.m. at the corner of 11th and Holly in East Nashville.

Pint Night

After the run head down to NRC for pint night.  It's been moved forward a week to celebrate the half/full marathon runners.