Lauryn Forster, Club Leader and senior

Why did you join/start Carmel Mini Marathoners Club?

Normally every year after cross country ends, we participate in the Monumental mini marathon, but because of COVID it is all virtual so Olivia and I decided to make our own club to have people to run together with.

What would you say to someone considering joining Carmel Mini Marathoners Club?

I would definitely recommend this club if you like to run, even if you aren’t interested in running a mini, training together is still fun and we are doing a 5k the same day for those who want to run less.

How often does Carmel Mini Marathoners meet?

We have four runs a week, which are pretty much all on your own but everyone can run together if they want. We meet about once a month to discuss race plans and events like that.

Is there anything else I haven’t asked you that you would like readers to know?

If you have ever considered running a mini marathon or marathon, I definitely would recommend it. It is so much fun to train with friends, and even if you can’t this year I would still recommend it as something to do in future.

Katie Kelly, Carmel Mini Marathoners sponsor and social studies teacher

What is the purpose of the Carmel Mini Marathoners Club?

We have a group of girls who for the last couple of years have trained to do the Monumental half marathon after the cross country season, and this year with Monumental being virtual, they weren’t able to sign up for that and with COVID we had to change our post-season plans for the cross country team. They were still really excited about doing a half marathon, so they put together a club to do a half marathon club together, so their idea is to just run the distance but they also want to raise money for Gleaners Food Bank in the process.

How are you raising money?

What they’re doing this year is they’re just requiring that anyone in the club pays a $7 donation to Gleaners Food Bank that they’ll collect and we’ll be making a final donation as a club.

What should someone know before deciding to run a half marathon?

 It takes some time, and I would say that for anyone who has not been a runner before to definitely seek out a good training plan or seek out a coach that can help them get started, because it takes a little bit of effort at a time and you know you’re looking at between 10 and 20 weeks of preparation, depending on which fitness you already have. So I would say the biggest suggestion would be to seek out guidance, and not just try to do it without any assistance.