PGRC Reopening

June 14, 2021February 15, 2022Ndegwa Kamau

I hope you and your families are doing well. Thank you so much for completing the survey we sent out a few weeks ago. The information you provided is extremely beneficial for us to move forward together. Your health and wellness are always my first priority, with that in mind, I have presented an idea to the board to create a reopening committee. This committee’s mission/purpose is to help us get back to running in a safe manner.

As you have seen in the news, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the Maryland Governor have loosened COVID restrictions. While we are nearing the end of this trying period, the pandemic will not end suddenly, and we must continue to proceed thoughtfully.

Based on the latest CDC, state, and local guidance as well as the significantly reduced COVID infections and high vaccination rates, the following policy changes for the club will go into effect starting after our holiday run on July 4th. Please be on the lookout for more details in the coming weeks.
Fully vaccinated individuals are no longer required to wear a mask, nor observe social distancing, but may choose to do so if they prefer.

If you are not fully vaccinated you are still required to wear masks, and maintain social distancing at all times to help protect yourselves and others. In the spirit of our core value of unquestionable integrity, we will operate on the honor system, and I need to remind everyone to refrain from asking about vaccination status or making assumptions about the reasons why an individual may or may not be wearing a mask. This is Protected Health Information (PHI) and it falls under medical privacy. No one is obligated to report when or if they have received the vaccine. Nor, is anyone obligated to reply to questions pertaining to it. Some may choose to share and some may not. Different people have different levels of comfort on this subject.

Looking ahead, the PGRC Board along with the reopening committee is nearing the completion of a planning effort to determine our post-pandemic posture. Given the recent changes in CDC, state, and local guidance, as well as the requests by many of you to be able to get back to running more frequently, we are looking at ways we can start transitioning from the running pods back to our normal club runs and in person meetups. The plan right now is to start club runs Thursday July 8th, following Independence Day holiday run on July 5. We will move back to our normal meet up days and times prior to COVID (as listed below). We are also looking at ways to bring back training programs, and even having the Wright Stuff race in the fall.

Throughout this crisis, you all have demonstrated your care, compassion, and dedication to each other and to PGRC. We will need your empathy and dedication over the summer and possibly the rest of the year too, as the unique constraints imposed by COVID-19 will linger for a while longer. Not all individuals or families are vaccinated or can be vaccinated. Keeping these sorts of personal constraints in mind, let us continue to be respectful towards each other, whether in masks or not.

I really appreciate everyone for being so flexible with our scheduling and hybrid ways of staying connected and running. I hope that everyone continues to stay safe, and mindfully practice safe habits.

We look forward to seeing you on the trails again soon!

Respectfully yours,

Ndegwa R. Kamau
PGRC Board President

Long Run Sunday at 7:00 am – Mission BBQ https://goo.gl/maps/x6s83ktWxbn

Easy Tuesday at 6:45 pm – Herbert Wells https://goo.gl/maps/co8oVKLg7wn

Easy Thursday at 6:30 pm – Herbert Wells https://goo.gl/maps/co8oVKLg7wn

Easy/Hills Saturday at 7:00 am Herbert Wells https://goo.gl/maps/co8oVKLg7wn

Important PGRC Update Regarding COVID-19

March 24, 2020June 15, 2021admin

Dear PGRC Community,

Thank you all for what you are doing in the midst of this pandemic. All our efforts to help stop the spread of the virus – from staying at home, to maintaining social distancing while running during club runs and training programs – are having an important impact for our club and the broader running community. In particular, I would like to thank you for adapting to this new way of running and for doing so with a positive outlook. It is very important that we remain calm during this turbulent time, with so much uncertainty swirling around us.

The PGRC Board continues to prioritize your health and wellness in all our decisions. We are also working diligently to ensure that PGRC continues in its important missions to our club members and to our local community. With this in mind, I wanted to share some news and guidance:

As I mentioned last week, we have been carefully monitoring information from our public officials, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Road Runners Club of America (RRCA), and various news outlets regarding the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. This information is constantly changing, and we have been doing our best to keep everyone informed.

As of yesterday, with the new guidelines from our Governor, and also from the RRCA, it is with my deepest regret that, effective immediately, our club meetups, weekly runs, and training programs are cancelled until further notice.

Our PGRC community is strong and tight-knit. Some people from the club will continue to meet up for personal runs, but, unfortunately, these cannot be under the PGRC umbrella. There are also many virtual options. We encourage you to remain active, as best you can, while also taking the necessary precautions to maintain your mental and physical well-being. During your personal runs please be sure to follow the guidelines of the CDC by keeping them at a max of 10 people, and staying 6ft apart. Also, be sure to share your spirit by continuing to post your running photos on our various social media sites! #PGRCSelfieLoveNotWar

I truly believe that we still need to take time for our own physical and mental health as we continue to adjust to this current situation. Parks and trails are still open; so, if you have some extra time during the day, try to get outside and go for a walk or run. Visit a park, or simply take a walk through your neighborhood. Exercising, eating well, and getting plenty of sleep, are all-necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Please stay in communication with the club so that you are aware of any developments.

Thank you so much for your continuous support of our club.

I hope that everyone stays healthy and continues to practice safe habits. We are all in this together, and it is an honor for me to be in this with the best running club in the county!

If there is anything that we can do to continue to make running an enjoyable and beneficial experience please let us know. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, concerns, or issues. I am here for you!!

Respectfully yours,

Ndegwa R. Kamau

PGRC Board President