CVR Birthdays November 18 – December 1
Happy Birthday to: Darrel Lasell, Mary Nealon, Sarah Richardson, Jill Sudhoff-Guerin, Megan Valentine, Will Robens, Nicholas Kidder, Phoene Sherriff, Jill Weeks, and George Hamm!
Hello from Montpelier,
I hope everyone is gearing up for Thanksgiving, and all that comes with it – chaos, travel, family visits, maybe a turkey trot (there’s one happening in Northfield – see details below)? I also want to thank everyone for coming out to Adamant last Sunday for our final meeting of the year (minutes here), including those who planned to attend online but found their way was barred – due to an error on my part, for which I apologize. I didn’t realize when I set up the Google Meet link that the default was to require individually admitting every person, and the layout of the meeting room was such that I didn’t have the iPad in front of me to monitor. And since I couldn’t run the meeting and monitor, I missed several folks requesting admission! I promise to make sure this is fixed for the next meeting so you can trust an online meeting invite is real. (I work remotely so I get the particular annoyance and feeling of being left out this kind of error can create!).
Lots going on as we head into the tail end of the year – read on for updates on the Fallen Leaves 5K series, Winter Group Runs, kicking off in early December with new coordinator Katie Hulbert at the helm! Plus, getting ready for the New Years Eve 5K, items for sale among the membership, and more! Happy Thanksgiving all!
Gobble Gobble,
Heather Tomlins
Upcoming Races and Club Volunteer Needs
And then there was one:
- December 31: Mark your calendar for our annual New Year’s Eve 5K in downtown Montpelier! Details to come.
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The season may be winding down, but CVR cannot put on races without volunteer support, and your help is always needed. Please volunteer now to help the race directors fill necessary jobs and plan for full race day support. Volunteer now online using the Volunteer link on the CVR website homepage at https://cvrunners.org OR by email to the race directors above.
Fallen Leaves 5K Series a Success!
The Fallen Leaves 5K series attracted a solid field of runners for each of the three weekends this year, averaging 56 runners per race! Check out the results below and check out some great photos courtesy of Sandy Ferno and Stephen Brown.
Fallen Leaves #1 (November 2)
Fallen Leaves #2 (November 9)
Fallen Leaves #3 (November 16)
Club Meeting Minutes and Updates
The minutes from the meeting are saved on the website here. A few noteworthy updates – the club voted to accept the 2025 race schedule and the CVR/ORO Race Series schedule, which can be found here. The Logo Committee is cooking up some updates which will be forthcoming separately, but I think folks will be happy with what we’ve come up with.
Additionally – the annual dinner committee is working on a venue, so we’ll release a date and place for this (tentatively scheduled for mid/late January, TBD) when we have more to share. And, get ready for more to come regarding celebrating our 45th birthday in 2025! Mark your calendars too – the club’s annual meeting will be Sunday, March 16, 2025. Location TBD but if you want to host, reach out!
New Feature – A CVR Running Book Club!
Anne hosts the Bill Mares Memorial Running Book Library, loaning books to club members and other interested readers. Email her (ac98@cornell.edu) for the list. Readers are welcome to submit brief running book reviews for occasional inclusion in this newsletter.
Mini Book Review
The Frontrunner by Brad Fawley (Green Writers Press, 2024)
This new Vermont-published novel (author Brad Fawley splits his time between Vermont and California) delivers an enthralling story and evokes visceral muscle memory with vividly described running scenes. Anyone who’s competed in cross-country or track—and indeed anyone who’s ever wondered how fast they can run—will be engrossed in and inspired by this book. Perfect for reading by the fire this winter while dreaming of clear roads to run on.
—Anne Treadwell
Winter Group Runs starting December 7!
Winter Group Runs – First WGR Dec 7 in Barre!
Winter Group Runs (WGRs) are just around the corner! Our first WGR will meet at Espresso Bueno in Barre at 9 AM on December 7th. If you’d like to join, please sign up in this Google sheet which also has more details about this first meet up.
About WGRs
These social group runs rotate locations throughout central Vermont on Saturdays from December through early April. A few distance options are offered for each WGR, and walkers are always welcome. We most frequently meet near coffee shops to enjoy a treat and each other’s company after the run. To make these events diverse and interesting, we call on the knowledge of our club to pick locations and routes, and any CVR member is welcome to volunteer to host a WGR. “Hosting” doesn’t have to mean inviting everyone to your home, though that is an option and always a lovely time for those who are open to doing that. If you’re interested in hosting or simply want to share an idea for a WGR, please reach out directly to Katie Hulbert at kagirmus@gmail.com.
Receive more information about WGRs
Additional communications about the WGR schedule and a weekly email for each Saturday’s plan will be sent out to those on the WGR distribution list. If you would like to opt in or out of these emails, please send a note to Donna Smyers at dosmyers@gmail.com.
Unofficial Fun Runs
Official Fun Runs are over….but unofficially, a crew keeps showing up to run anyway. If you want to know where and when these runs are happening, reach out to Darrel and he will keep you in the know!
Reminder about Committee Openings
As a note, there is a general call for committee members for a few issues, please reach out to me (by replying directly to this email) if you’re interested in joining any of the below!
Club Logo Refresh Committee – if anyone is interested in supporting in the next phase of the logo (helping with rollout, getting inputs on designs, and helping identify new vendors to do printing) let me know! We’ll have big updates for the club soon!
End of Year Celebration Dinner – this is tentatively scheduled for mid-January, but a small committee is standing up to identify a venue and help plan the event. More folks always welcome to help on this, joining Tim and Bob Murphy!
Club Anniversary Event Planning Committee – 2025 marks the 45th birthday of CVR – Merill and Donna are heading this up – won’t you join them? The idea here is to come up with some ideas for how to celebrate the club’s anniversary, whether with one event next year or possibly several. If you want to shape what this looks like, join this committee!
CVR Special Edition – Did You Miss It?
So far we’ve had quite a few great stories come our way that we’ve put out in these special editions. We hope you have been enjoying them! Do you also want to tell your story or share a profile you’d like to have featured? Please reach out and send details to Heather. You could be our next special edition! Stories could cover anything running or club related, such as:
- Club history – how races started or stories from past decades of members’ accomplishments
- Your achievements – did you tackle your first marathon? Your 15th? Your first 10k? Race stories are inspiring, whether you triumphed, set a personal record, or did not finish but learned a lesson. Tell your fellow members about it!
- Personal history – how did you get into the sport of running?
- Other ideas!
All stories welcome – pitch me or just send something along with a picture or two to go with! Deadline is rolling!
| News, Races, and Updates from around the Region **New this week** Northfield 5K Turkey Trot!    When: Thanksgiving morning, registration at 8:00, race at 9:00am. Where: Northfield High School. 37 Cross St. What: Fun 5k; walk, jog, or race! Prizes for age groups. Dogs and strollers welcome. Details: Fundraiser for XC team, $20.00 per adult, 15 and under, $10.00, whole family rate: $50.00! Course: definitely not certified mostly out and back, mixed dirt and pavement 5k. One hill. Day of registration, cash, check or Venmo only. Contact Ann Bushey with questions: Abushey@cvsu.org. **New this week** Calling all Runners – Survey inputs needed! A few Dartmouth students are working on a startup and want your inputs to contribute to their research on how runners purchase, use, and assess the condition of their shoes. The anonymous, 3-minute survey can be accessed here. FOR SALE **New this week** Treadmill for Sale Sal Acosta notes the following: A great gym quality treadmill. I bought it to use during the winter when conditions were too risky to be on the roads. It works great. Selling for $1,500 used on eBay. Asking $700 or best reasonable offer. See Craigslist Post here. 10% off Opened in October 2022 in Waitsfield Vermont The Mad Rover carries lifestyle and outdoor apparel for all seasons. We carry STIO, KUHL, PRANA, JETTY and FAIR HARBOR to name a few. We stock backpacks and bags, Sunglasses, Jewelry, Socks, Hats and Hydration vessels of all sizes. All CVR members get 10% off. Owner Steve Kenny has been an avid runner for 20 years. |
| Club Needs, Opportunities, and Reminders Quarterly Newsletter Support – Now “Special Editions” Rather than publish a newsletter, we will plan to send out the periodic “special editions” – see above for a call for stories! Membership Renewal – Reminder Stan is sending out a reminder to folks about renewing. Renew so you can continue to receive these amazing newsletters! It takes less than 5 minutes. Check your status! There’s a link to RunReg at https://cvrunners.org/join-cvr (“JOIN CVR”). This page also has a printable form for those who prefer to mail their renewal. Renewing with a multi-year membership means fewer year-end renewals for you and less administration for the club. CVR Equipment Use Anyone wanting to use equipment send Sal (and cc myself) a request that includes 1) Date equipment to be removed from the shed, 2) Itemized list of equipment being removed; including quantities, 3) Date equipment will be returned to the shed. Please send Sal (and cc the club president) and email to let us know when the equipment has been returned.Race Series – 2025Stay tuned in the coming weeks for updates on the 2025 series and a new poster in the new year! We agreed on some new rules for the next year so check out the Race Series site for more details. Link above. |
| Current Club Membership Benefits:Don’t forget that you get many benefits to being a member!Meet, run with, and socialize with other area runners of all abilities.Keep up-to-date on area running races and events.Receive a regular newsletter with race results and club news.Be eligible for the Central Vermont Runners/Onion River Outdoors Race Series.Join a club that’s part of the Road Runners Club of America organization. RRCA is invaluable for insuring CVR races.Become eligible for discounts at these area businesses:Onion River Outdoors – 15% off all running gear, including running shoes, running apparel and socks, reflective gear, run vests, etc. Special orders of Hoka and Altra running shoes included.Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel — 10% off running shoes.Ski Rack — 15% off running shoes and running apparel.Mountain Valley Lotus Massage Therapy — 15% off massages |
Club Info:
Elected Officers
President – Heather Tomlins
Vice President – Tim Noonan
Finance – John Valentine
Secretary – Cheryl Lasell
At Large Executive Committee: Anne Treadwell & Dot Helling
John Hackney: website and timing
Donna Smyers: timing
Sal Acosta: Equipment tracking/storage
Stan Brinkerhoff: club membership tracking
Jackie Jancaitis: Race director support
Katie Hulburt: Winter Group Run organization
Mark Howard: Summer Trail Runs organization
Jeff Prescott: MailChimp Administrator
Ann Bushey: Youth Running Program Grants
Joe Merrill: Race Series Tracking and Awards Dinner MC
Darrel Lasell and Jim Flint: CVR Facebook page managers
CVR Sponsored by:
