TODDS ROAD


STUMBLERS


May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back.

 

We're on facebook too!

The Todds Road Stumblers are an informal group of runners who meet each Saturday morning to run and enjoy each others company. This non-profit group has no dues and owes its existence to the generosity of the late Alex Campbell, the original "Stumbler", who founded the club in 1975. Club members meet in an old farmhouse that serves as the club's headquarters in the beautiful Bluegrass countryside of central Kentucky. The clubhouse is located at Pine Grove, about 6 miles east of Lexington, just east of the Clark County line. The address is 100 Combs Ferry road, Winchester, Ky 40391.

Starting time for the weekly runs is 7 AM sharp. Runners can choose to run any distance with which they are comfortable.  Typical distances being run each Saturday range from 7 to 15 but there's often a few that are marathon training and run even longer over the rolling hills of Clark County. There are young runners and older runners, fast runners and slower runners, and a few walkers too. You will find someone running the distance and pace that fits you.  Runners of all levels of ability are welcome with the emphasis on enjoying running with good friends (old and new) while surrounded by some of the most gorgeous rural scenery in the country. Come join us for a run and some good conversation and then top it off with a cup of coffee and a donut. All runners completing 6 miles for the first time receive a Todds Road Stumblers t-shirt. Just show up on Saturday morning or, for more information on our Saturday runs, email Judy.

If you are new running with the Stumblers, please review the Rules Of The Road.  They are for your safety.  All runners are expected to follow them so don't get upset if someone reminds you of one of them, they're just trying to keep you and others safe.

We share the roads around the Clubhouse with cars and we all know who the loser would be in a collision.  As pedestrians we have a right to be on the roads, but we also have a responsibility to run safely.  Every runner is responsible for their own safety.  Please be careful and follow the:

RULES OF THE ROAD

  • Stay on the left side of the road, facing traffic, this puts you in a better position to anticipate and react to vehicles, and it's the law.

  • Get into single file, as far to the left as practical, whenever there is any traffic and on curves and hills.

  • Wear reflective clothing and a reflective vest at dawn or dusk and in the dark or fog. Blinking red lights help too.

  • Be especially careful in adverse weather like rain or snow.

  • Try to run or walk with a partner.

  • Get off the road if cars are approaching from both directions.

  • Use your ears as well as your eyes, listen for approaching traffic, don't wear headphones.

  • Anticipate potentially dangerous situations and be prepared to act to protect yourself.

  • Stay alert, be careful of fatigue, "runner's high", or any lapse of concentration.

  • Be courteous to drivers, a friendly wave is appreciated.

  • Do not be confrontational, if there is an incident with a reckless driver try to get the license number but do not engage in an altercation.

  • Help other runners/walkers be safe, remind them of the rules.

 

Click ARCHIVES for previous News and Photos.

DONUT DUTY

Have YOU signed up for Donut Duty lately?  If you've picked up donuts recently - then you're off the hook.  If you haven't, please consider signing up for donut duty before you grab that well-earned donut on Saturday morning.

If you're fairly new you might not have any idea of how the donuts get there, or how the coffee gets made, or how the clubhouse gets cleaned up each week.  It's really quite simple and painless.  You're coming out to run anyway, right?  Committing to picking up donuts is just an added incentive to come out to run.

Here's how it works:

1.  Commit to a date and write your name on the calendar provided (on the counter next to the coffee pot)

2.  Pick up the donuts before coming to run on your scheduled date from Donut Days, 185 Southland Drive, Lexington anytime after 6:00 a.m.  (if you need directions ask).  You don't even have to pay for them.  Through the generosity of Alex Campbell they are already paid for.

3.  Deliver the donuts to the club house (don't forget this part, it will be tempting to eat them before you get to the clubhouse).

4.  Plug in the coffee pot, Barry Collins will already have the coffee ready to go!

5.  Between 9:30 and 10:00 start cleaning up - empty and rinse the coffee filter and pot, put away all condiments and cups.

 

See - easy as eating a donut.  There are only 52 Saturdays in a year, so if every active Stumbler signed up for just one Saturday we would probably only have to do Donut Duty once per year.  A very small price to pay for that delicious donut at the end of your run - and we know you like the donuts! 

  • Thank you to Vernon Childers who is hosting our web site, and to Judy Duncan and Wes Moody for publishing content.  If you have any suggestions of how this site can be more useful to the Stumblers, please email Judy or Wes.

PARKING REMINDER

Please do NOT park along the road across from the clubhouse, this blocks access to the farm storehouse.  Parking is permitted in the clubhouse yard (but don't block anyone in) and in the rear of the parking lot of the restaurant on the corner.

The Song of the Ungirt Runners

by Charles Hamilton Sorley

 

We swing ungirded hips,
And lightened are our eyes,
The rain is on our lips,
We do not run for prize.

We know not whom we trust
Nor whitherward we fare,
But we run because we must
       Through the great wide air.


The waters of the seas
Are troubled as by storm.
The tempest strips the trees
And does not leave them warm.
Does the tearing tempest pause?
Do the tree-tops ask it why?
So we run without a cause
       'Neath the big bare sky.

The rain is on our lips,
We do not run for prize.
But the storm the water whips
And the wave howls to the skies.
The winds arise and strike it
And scatter it like sand,
And we run because we like it
       Through the broad bright land.

Items of Interest