Co-led by Cory Malcolm-Wharton (aka @bitbeefy on Twitter) and Ellie Wood, RDC West has inspired novices to run all sorts of races – from local comps in Peckham to cross-country 10 milers out of town (like Dorking?) – and last Saturday, they debuted RDC Mission Imposssible, their first citywide treasure hunt for “runners, walkers and joggers”.

Trafalgar Square

We started from The Water Poet in Spitalfields and the challenge was to get to 50 known landmark in 3 hours with a team of up to 4 people. Oysters weren’t allowed and all team members needed to be in the snap holding up an RDC sign while a member of the public took the photo (word of advice: never ask a pensioner to take your photo with an iPhone – it ain’t happening!)

Buckingham Palace

We were completely knackered by the end of it, having ticked off 34 out of 50 landmarks (and clocked over 13 miles, nearly the distance of a half-marathon!) – but it was such a brilliant day. We got to explore the capital, there were medals, t-shirts and goodie bags for everyone, the deserving winners won a great trophy and it was novel way to spend a Saturday with likeminded people who understand that running can be a very cool (and fun!) thing to do. Now on to the next mission!

To keep up with the Run Dem Crew, visit www.rundemcrew.com

The post What we’ve been up to… RDC Mission Impossible at The Water Poet (July 14th) appeared first on The Cultural Exposé.

I loved it.

We met at Mile End stadium and a few other newbies were in the mix meaning there was none of that “so you’re the new kids, huh?” vibe going on, and the others who’d been with RDC for some time were only happy to fill us in on how all  it worked. After a quick warm-up with founder Charlie Dark,  Runners are divided into different groups according to their level: Tortoises, Hares, Greyhounds, Cheetahs and Elite. I opted for Tortoises – slow and steady –  and roughly 10 of us started off on a 45 minute run around Victoria Park.  To be honest, running in one accord can be challenging; there’s that pressure to keep up with everyone else, but at no point did I ever feel I was out of my depth. Breathless? Yes.  Uncomfortable? A little bit.  Yet even when the faster groups zoomed past us, we’d be greeted with nothing less than cheers and encouragement.

The great thing about RDC is that it feels like a real community;  there’s nearly an equal number of guys and girls, and post-run, one of the members handed out pieces of homemade cake, while others were talking,  cracking jokes or picking up their RDC tee-shirt as a reward for being involved for at least 5 weeks. So if you’re keen to get in shape, step up your fitness,  or simply want to hang out with new people,  this is the crew you’ll definitely wanna roll with.  (Words: Matilda Egere-Cooper)

Run Dem Crew meet up every Tuesday in East London – for more info, visit the Run Dem Crew website.

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