As I lean into the first turn as club president, I want to reflect on what we, as a club, did over the last year and where we are headed as we begin the new year.  In 2025 running wise, we had 15 Broad Street teams, fun runs 4 days a week throughout the year, track workouts from March through September, one bike ride along the SRT, six Travelling Fun Runs including Peace Valley Park on Memorial Day weekend and our Mondauk "Marathon" on New Years Eve.  Our social activities included the Fall picnic, many Third Thirsty Thursdays and a great Winter party at a brand new (to us) venue.

As we transition into 2026 we have much to look forward to. Coming in February, we are looking forward to our 27th annual Frostbite 5-Mile race. Already, close to 750 runners have signed up. We are still looking for volunteers.  Sign up on the website. We'll have many Traveling Fun Runs & bike rides scheduled throughout the year and in a little over 7 weeks in mid-March, track workouts will resume. Coming this summer, a “Back to the Future" Summer 5K, going back to our original locale at Shady Grove Elementary School along with retro-pricing and Phil’s as a sponsor again. Broad Street registration is coming very soon and I’m certain we will have at least 15 teams and 2 buses filled with runners and refreshments. 

Also coming in 2026: Timely upgrades to our website.  Look for more social activities including our Third Thirsty Thursdays as track workouts resume in Mid-March.  Coming this year will be the opening of the AARC online store making it easy to purchase all of the AARC gear you crave such as tech-tees, singlets, sweatshirts, hats, gloves etc.  We’ll keep you updated as to progress. 

I’m honored to have a dynamic board to work with.  While we many not always agree on everything, we all have one common goal and that is to make AARC the premier running club in the area.  I truly appreciate the friendship and camaraderie that you all bring to the table.

One of my stated goals when I became President was to increase our membership by 50% and to get more members active in the club. To date, we have recruited 46 new members to AARC and are well on our way to reaching our target of a hundred new members. Many of whom have already joined us at our fun runs, bike rides or social events.  

Tell you friends about AARC. You don’t have to be fast. You just have to have a love of running with friends.

I look forward to seeing you out there on a future fun run, at the track or just meeting up for a beer.  

Your Prez,

-Alan