With the May 17 announcement that CRR Tom Apple would be “taking his talents to Waikiki Beach” after having been named Chancellor at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa (the islands’ main campus), we’ll be losing a loyal Creek Road Runner locally. The good news is that it will effectively double the Creek Road Runner population in the 50th state. CRR Chip Fletcher, who coincidentally last week was featured in a New York Times article on beach erosion, has been Creek Road Runners’ “lone wolf” on that island paradise for a couple decades now. The former triathlete, who still does those grand ocean swims, will welcome Tom, if not as an age-group competitor and new boss, as a running ally and fellow Blue Hen alumnus. Aloha.

Progress has been made since February on the Pomeroy Trail’s northern section. Split-rail fencing, pre-final surfacing, and lighting infrastructure has been added along much of this portion of the trail. The following views were from April 7.

You may also want to see the recent post from CRR Bill Rose about running the trail.

• Looking south just south of the trailhead
• A look (facing south) at where footers will be for a bridge that will cross the ravine
• Looking north at the ravine crossing
• Looking south from the ravine
• Looking south at an old bridge (to be replaced) just north of planned Laird Campus spur
• Looking north just north of the planned Laird Campus spur
• Looking south just north of the planned Laird Campus spur
• Looking north toward the planned Laird Campus spur
  
• Looking west from the trail’s intersection with Creek Road
• Looking east from the trail’s intersection with Creek Road
• Looking west from near North Street
• Looking east from near North Street
• Looking west from near Kershaw Street
• Looking east (toward Paper Mill Road/Cleveland Ave. intersection) from near Kershaw Street
• Looking at the Cleveland Ave. / Paper Mill Road–S. Chapel St. intersection

Last week, News Journal sports writer Kevin Tresolini wrote a nice article about CRR Jim Fischer.  Hopefully, you still have a few free “views” left or are a current News Journal subscriber, so that you can check it out.

Don’t forget, you can make comments about the above-referenced article or about any post on the Creek Road Runners site.

Today we officially launch the new Creek Road Runners website CreekRoadRunners.org!

CRR Jim Fischer

This site is launched on this day in honor of Coach and CRR Jim Fischer, whose nearly three decades of UD cross-country and track runners have logged many a mile on Creek Road and whose coaching career at UD has, unfortunately, been cut short.

Jim has tirelessly worked to make running fun for all ages and all abilities and will be sorely missed within the University of Delaware community. All who are associated or have been associated with Creek Road Runners wish him the best as he plans his next route, which we hope includes his remaining in this area and staying connected with the running community that has benefitted so greatly for so long from his tutelage, advocacy, and love of the sport.

CRR Matt Robinson, self-appointed CEO

CRR Matt Robinson, CRR’s self-appointed CEO, hails this new site as “a positive step forward” for the nearly 30-year-old group.  And, yes, because this site features a blogging component, you may comment on any post. You may also subscribe to email notification (see button in righthand column), beyond the occasional ticklers you’ll still get if you’re on the group mailing list. As in the past, posts will comprise notices about upcoming events, race results, news, and kudos—for giving props to our runners for off-road accomplishments.  CRR Mark Deshon (pictured in righthand column) is the site administrator and webmaster.

The group currently has “outposts” in several locales in the U.S. as well as Switzerland and Hong Kong. “We want to make Creek Road Runners a global phenomena,” Robinson adds.

We hope you bookmark this site and keep coming back for more!

Those who have been out Creek Road lately have seen the big construction equipment and the large (interstate-like) gouge out of the woods at the S-curve next to one of the railroad abutments.  All this signals that after having been planned well over a decade ago, the multi-use Pomeroy Trail is now under serious construction.  It will connect Creek Road for cyclists, runners, and other pedestrians all the way to Newark’s Hall Trail, which runs parallel to the Amtrak lines at the south end of central Newark.  Here’s how things looked today from the northern terminus of the Pomeroy Trail to the park at the corner of Paper Mill Road and Cleveland Avenue.

• Looking north (onto Creek Road) from the trailhead
• Looking south (from Creek Road) at the trailhead
• Looking south just south of the trailhead
• A look (facing south) at the ravine that requires a bridge
• Looking south from the ravine
• Looking north just north of the planned Laird Campus spur (bridge to be replaced)
• Looking south just north of the planned Laird Campus spur 
• Looking west from the trail’s intersection with Creek Road
• Looking north (onto Creek Road) at the trail’s intersection with Creek Road
• Looking east from the trail’s intersection with Creek Road
• Looking west from near North Street
• Looking east from near North Street
• Looking west from near Kershaw Street
• Looking east (toward Paper Mill Road/Cleveland Ave. intersection) from near Kershaw Street