Whipped cream and running usually don’t go hand in hand, but for an American University Running Club fundraiser, they were the perfect match. In exchange for funds towards the club, students could pie an executive board member.
Club President Jimmy Vendetti, a junior in the School of Public Affairs, has been on the running team for three years. He said the event was a lot of fun.
“Not so much for the person getting pied, but definitely for the people pieing,” Vendetti said. “I hope that we’ve made a couple of people laugh.”
The club, which welcomes runners of any experience and meets five days a week, offers runs of various lengths to increase accessibility. Members can participate in three-mile, five-mile, and seven-mile runs f, as well as sprint workouts on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday during community hours on the track.
Targeting a range of speed and distance workouts, the running club showcases a plethora of different running talents.
The club also competes periodically in a variety of events. From the DC Half and 5K in September, to regional meets in the area — including nationals at Hershey Park in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and the approaching American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Philadelphia Marathon.
Vice President Natalie Price, a junior in SPA who’s been an active member for three years, explained the importance of these events to the Running Club community.
“Meets are always a great way to be able to spend the half day or whole day with each other and really get to know one another and support one another,” Price said.
Looking to the future of the club, Price plans on expanding field events and taking on a sprint captain for the spring to foster growth as a club and as a community.
The club’s sense of community is apparent throughout the team. According to Vendetti, this can be found through team pasta dinners and the lack of cliquiness in joining the club.
Although an unofficial club event, many runners from the club participated in the DC Half on Sept. 14. Those who were not running came to show their support.
There are still two more meets to come this semester: a National Intercollegiate Running Club Association (NIRCA) regional meet on Oct. 25 at the University of Virginia and NIRCA Cross Country Nationals on Nov. 9.
Price explained that Nationals is not only great for the race itself, but for the team bonding at Hershey Park. She said they might stop by the chocolate store afterwards. Unofficially, the club is also supporting members who plan to run the AACR Philadelphia Marathon on Nov. 23. Regan O’Shaugnessy, the club’s treasurer and a sophomore in SPA, plans on making it her first marathon.
“It’s definitely like feeling real [be]cause that’s not that much time,” O’Shaugnessy said. “It’s definitely rewarding [be]cause you’re doing it with somebody else and other people and you know that the club is going to support you no matter what.”
Even when marathon preparation gets hard, O’Shaugnessy has her community behind her.
“ I think at the end of the day, I’m just reminding myself . . . whatever you’re doing you should be proud of it,” O’Shaugnessy said. ”You could miss a run or like you’re going to have to give up a social thing. But whatever we’re doing, we should both be proud of ourselves and we know that the club is proud of us as well.”
This article was edited by Samantha Skolnick, Abigail Hatting and Walker Whalen. Copy editing done by Sabine Kanter-Huchting, Emma Brown, Ariana Kavoossi, Avery Grossman, Audrey Smith and Ava Stuzin.
