John Riker

Off the Beaten Path – Powerline Trail

Published May 3, 2023 at 11:00AM | Updated May 3, 2023 at 4:15PM

The Powerline Trail as it is best enjoyed, under cloudy skies, shortly after opening in October 2018. Photo: Charlie Ban

After years of dedicated planning and construction, Montgomery Parks opened the Powerline Trail, also known as the Pepco Trail, in October 2018.

The 6.8-mile trail, which kicks off from South Germantown Recreational Park in Germantown, Md. and terminates at North Potomac’s Muddy Branch Stream Park, marked the first use of power corridors for recreational use in Montgomery County. In my final days before shipping out for my freshman year of college, I decided to hit the trail to see if it would live up to the hype.

Trials Fever

Leininger’s post-collegiate interests bloomed at Cherry Blossom

By John Riker

Published September 16, 2019 at 11:00AM | Updated September 16, 2019 at 11:40AM

Dustin Whitlow/DWhit Photography

Mark Leininger did a lot while in D.C., including breaking the American University 10,000-meter record. But running off the track, at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run, spurred him to greater heights and longer distances.

“I didn’t really think about [competing post-collegiately on the roads] too much,” Leininger said. “I wanted to still run faster on the track.”

News

After early doubt, Willy Fink runs D.C.’s first sub-4 minute track mile

By John Riker

Published July 14, 2019 at 1:00PM | Updated July 20, 2019 at 6:35PM

Willy Fink closes in on the first sub-four-minute mile run in Washington, D.C. at the 2019 DC Road Runners Track Championship at Dunbar High School. He ran 3:58.84. Photo by Dustin Whitlow/DWhit Photography

Willy Fink came into Saturday’s D.C. Road Runners Track Championship wanting to accomplish something great. He accomplished something monumental.

Competing in a heat with nine runners who had previously broken the four minute mile barrier, Fink led from wire to wire at D.C.’s Dunbar High School and ran the first sub-four minute track mile recorded on D.C. soil (3:58.84). The race had its share of drama, however. Instead of the quick pace many spectators and athletes anticipated, the field started off conservatively and kept the audience in suspense as to whether the four-minute barrier would actually be broken.

News

John Riker

By John Riker

Published July 8, 2018 at 12:39PM | Updated October 31, 2019 at 9:41AM

John Riker, who recently graduated from T.S. Wootton High School, started writing for RunWashington in 2018 and is now a student at Northwestern University. He recently wrote about the new power line trail in Montgomery County. Read more of his writing here.

Name: John Riker

DCXC

Summer training builds the foundation for cross country season

By John Riker

Published July 2, 2018 at 11:13AM

For most high school students, summer is a time to kick back, relax and finally turn off that annoying alarm clock. But for runners on the Northwest cross country team in Germantown, the summer season is when they set the alarm clock even earlier. The team holds summer practices on weekdays at 5:30 a.m., just before sunrise.

“At the beginning it’s so difficult,” senior Marissa Branham admitted. “You know that it’s supposed to be summer and here I am waking up earlier for practice than I do for school. I wake up around 5 to get ready and when I drive to school it’s literally still dark out. But by the time I warm up and stretch, I’m pretty much awake and ready to run so it’s not that bad. At the beginning it’s hard, but you get used to it after a few weeks of waking up at 5 a.m.”