Bedford Runners Club Begins Spring Series

Running can be a lonely sport—just you, the pavement and your mp3 player.

But if it's the company of other runners you prefer, the Bedford Road Runners Club offers that, and a spring schedule of runs over the unique terrain and scenic beauty of Bedford that makes running here a joy, say members.

“I love the trails, the dirt roads and exploring the incredible surroundings in this area,” says Lucia Chapman, a resident of Bedford and member of the club since it was founded in 2003.

The spring season is underway for the local club that makes it possible for runners to gather—non-competitively—with a group of like-minded enthusiasts on weekend mornings or afternoons, for a three-to-five-mile run.

On Sunday, April 10, at 8:30 a.m., the “Mianus River Gorge Run” will be held on a dirt road loop near the gorge. It will be about 4.7 miles in length and although individual runners vary, club founder Jamie Coleman says the pace range is usually a nine-to-ten minute mile.

This chapter of the Road Runners Club of America was established by Coleman, a Bedford resident and runner, who thought the running experience that this area provides was worth sharing.

“As members, we rotate who host runs—basically they share their favorite routes and broaden the horizons of all the runners,” Coleman says.  “I thought it would be a great idea to have an area club that could take advantage of the beauty of Bedford and Pound Ridge.”

He says that the BRRC is open to everyone and besides the benefit of getting fit, it also provides camaraderie and support. Chapman, a triathlete and mother of three who has also completed the Boston and New York City marathons, agrees.

“The club has such a great variety of runs and you go out on these great trails and dirt roads with people you might not normally get to know,” she said. Her favorite route? "It's the 'Summer Solstice' run at the Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, on June 23. We run about three to five miles and then friends and family come to hang out in the shelter area. It's a lot of fun.”

The “Captain Lawrence Run,” a five-miler that will take place on May 21, goes through the stunning Rockefeller State Preserve in Pocantico Hills.  Organizers call it the Captain Lawrence Run, however, because it will likely include a post-run stop at the popular microbrewery in Pleasantville.

The current president of the Bedford Road Runners Club, Susie Danziger, encourages anyone who loves running and wants to have a more social experience to join the group, which currently has about twenty members.

“There are people of different ages and levels—it is relaxed and fun, you just get hooked,” she says.

To join the Bedford Road Runners Club, send an e-mail to: Bedfordroadrunners@gmail.com . Annual fees are $30.00 and you can click here for the full schedule.