Fredericksburg, VA is a quaint Civil War town halfway between Richmond, VA and Washington, DC. Growing every year, some consider it to be the newest suburb of DC. The majority of the charm is located in it's downtown section, east of I-95. There is fairly big running population and the town has recently made it's way to the runner's map thanks to playing host to the Marine Corps Half Marathon.
Located just off the intersection of Rt. 3 and Rt. 17 Bus (see map) this road runs through the Fredericksburg Battlefield. Shady with some hills, it stretches 4.5 miles in one direction and is a popular spot for runners, walkers, and bikers. Be careful as there are no sidewalks, but the car traffic is minimal and usually made up of tourists adhering to the 25-35 mph speed limit. There are parking lots along the way and at either end of the drive and one major street intersection that make it easy to divide up a run anywhere between a short 4 miler or long 9 miler. I always feel safe as it's usually just populated enough and there is the occasional patrolling park ranger. If you're out for just an easy run, indulge in some of the historical placards along the way! 
Congratulations to Anne Mahlum of Back on My Feet for becoming one CNN's 2008 Heroes. Philosophy: Back on My Feet does not provide food nor does it provide shelter, but instead provides a community that embraces equality, respect, discipline, teamwork and leadership. There are no labels, no stigmas and no stereotypes. At Back on My Feet, all members - regardless of race, education or socioeconomic status - join together to move their own lives forward as well as the lives of their teammates. Back on My Feet is much more than just running - it is a comprehensive program that offers connections to job training, educational scholarships and housing assistance. The benefits of Back on My Feet are earned through the currency of attitude, commitment, teamwork, respect, dedication and leadership.Our Vision - Back on My Feet envisions a community where all members have the support and motivation required to move towards self –sufficiency. Every major city has a homeless problem and while providing food and shelter are very important basic needs, something is missing. We work to rebuild, revive and re-energize individuals. It is only when we have the self-respect, self-confidence that we are truly able to move forward. Back on My Feet focuses on helping our members find a road of happiness, hope and opportunity, which includes a stable job and a place to live. This is our goal and we will get there one step at a time
I had the privilege of meeting volunteers from BOMF last year at the Philadelphia Marathon (I must admit I don't remember if I spoke with Anne, or other volunteers at the BOMF booth). My friend J bought a headband from the group. We were both really impressed by the program and enjoyed speaking with the volunteers who spoke very passionately about the program.
It made me so happy to hear that Anne won a CNN Hero award this year. It's heart-warming to know that small efforts like Anne's don't go unnoticed. And with this publicity, hopefully support will increase for the program and more people can be helped.
Read the whole thing.PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- At 5 a.m. on any given day, Anne Mahlum could be found running the dark streets of Philadelphia -- with homeless men cheering her on as she passed their shelter. But one morning last spring, she stopped in her tracks.
"Why am I running past these guys?" recalls Mahlum, 27. "I'm moving my life forward every day -- and these guys are standing in the same spot."
Instead of continuing to pass them by, the veteran marathoner sprang into action so they could join her.
She contacted the shelter, got donations of running gear, and in July 2007 the "Back On My Feet" running club hit the streets.
The first day, Mahlum led nine shelter residents in a mile-long run. Today, Back on My Feet has teams in three Philadelphia shelters, including 54 homeless members and more than 250 volunteers. The group has logged more than 5,000 miles.
Requirements for shelter residents to join are simple -- they must live in an affiliated facility and be clean and sober for 30 days. Members receive new shoes and running clothes, and teams run together three times a week between 5:30 and 6 a.m.
The runners are diverse -- doctors, janitors, students and shelter residents -- but such distinctions aren't apparent.
"All you can tell is who's the fastest," says Mahlum. "You can't tell who's homeless and who's not."
For Mahlum and others, Back On My Feet is more than a running club.
"We're a community of support, love, respect," she says.
Pasadena's first marathon has been canceled due to heavy smoke and ash from a destructive wildfire burning in Los Angeles County.
Race organizers said Sunday that they decided at the last minute to scrap the event out of concern for the health and safety of the 8,000 people who registered to participate.
The announcement at 4 a.m. came two hours before the marathon and bike tour was set to begin.
John Parks, a member of the race management team, says organizers will meet over the next several days to reschedule the event.
Races in Places would like to give a shout out to a new running community that is picking up a lot of activity on Facebook. Simply called "Running," this page as of posting today has almost 300 members and an active discussion board with threads relating to gear, places to run, shoe recommendations, and many other relevant topics.
J and I trudged our way through the crowds to the start passing a stage (was there live music that we missed?) along the way. We prematurely shed our throw-away sweatshirts, which we regretted as soon as we stepped foot on the Verrazano Bridge. The bridge was another unexpected disappointment; while the blue and orange starts ran on top of the bridge, the green starters were forced onto the lower part of the bridge, which was drafty, cold, and completely non picturesque. However, I was so grateful to finally be running that I didn't care. A mile and some change later we descended the bridge into Bay Bridge, Brooklyn, warmed-up and excited to finally be running the marathon.
The NYC Marathon would be more appropriately titled the Brooklyn and Other Boroughs Marathon; literally half of the course cuts through Brooklyn, and the fans seemed to know it. The first 13 miles by far had the most spectators and cheering spots out of the entire race. The course also passed through vastly different neighborhoods giving out-of-towners a pretty good cross section of the city, including the more suburban Bay Ridge, the grittier Sunset Park, trendy Park Slope and hipster Williamsburg. My favorite part was the mile or so on Lafayette Avenue between beautiful Boerum Hill and Clinton Hill.
We entered Queens in mile 13 and I was starting to feel the dreaded marathon fatigue. There were many spirited spectators in Long Island before we crossed the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan.
Once on 1st Avenue, the energy increased by the sheer number of people that could crowd the sidewalks. Police had to guard the taped off street and the road widened allowing more breathing room. Personally, I was a bit defeated noticing that we were arriving on 59th Street, but had to travel above 125th Street before we could cross into the Bronx. But with the loud, supportive cheering and unending water stops, the blocks flew by and we were soon crossing into the Bronx.
Just like Queens, we were only in the Bronx for about a mile before we we curved back around and headed back into Manhattan, passing through Harlem to get to the park.
Again my lack of research snuck up on me. Throughout my training I had it in my mind that we would run south through Harlem and into Central Park from 110th Street in order to run up the big hill that sits at the top of the park next to Lasker Rink. I then assumed the rest of the race would follow the big loop through the park before ending at Tavern on the Green.
The course twisted and turned back out of the park where we returned to 59th Street and approached Columbus Circle before finally heading back into the park and up a slight hill to the finish line.
We gratefully crossed the finish line with the clock over 45 minutes off our chip time, tears in our eyes, muscles praying that this was not just another 1 minute walk break. The entire course was well marked, and the last few miles heavily guarded against non-runners intruding upon the finishers, so I was quite surprised when upon crossing the finish line I had to dodge men with cameras and other random people who cut across the way of the finishers. Any runner knows that when you cross the finish line it is important not to stop right away, but with all the people in the way, I was jerked side to side as if in Times Square on a weekend. Finally I made my way to the volunteers passing out heat blankets and medals, where I had to interrupt a conversation in order to ask for my medal. Tired, hungry and delirious, I was then unsure of where to go next. The road was no longer taped off and in many of NYRR's races the finisher's food is further down in the park.
I am happy to have finally run my current home town's marathon and while I have never repeated a marathon, I have already entertained thoughts of doing this one again now that I have an insider's knowledge of the ING NYC Marathon.
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