‘ellooo runner! 👋 Time for another batch of running inspiration and motivation. In today’s edition: Sarah chases a sub-3:30 marathon, personalized running vests, the Rotterdam marathon, and more. Oh, and, if you’re interested in the World Majors, check out the P.S. all the way at the end.

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If you’ve ever listened to or watched The Running Channel, you probably know Sarah. She’s one of the presenters, and seems a genuinely lovely, wonderful human being to be around.

Earlier this year, she attempted to run a sub-3:30 marathon in Rotterdam. Why? To prove to 2016 Sarah that we’re capable of doing really hard things. This recap is fun and inspiring, to say the least.

I could break down the whole video for you, but what’s the fun in that! Grab something to drink and click play.

Anne is an ultrarunner bringing fun and good (ultra) running advice to your feed. She ended up on my explore page with the video underneath, but I promise there’s much more gold on her account.

She speaks from her own experience, having run a bunch of 50-milers and a couple of 100-milers, sharing thoughts we sometimes all need to hear and the occasional beautiful trail run view.

I personally really enjoy accounts like hers. No fancy editing, just raw, quick recordings and carousels. I think she’s cool, and I think you’ll like her too.

For some of us, race season is in full swing. For others, race planning season is happening right now. Because if you want to set a big goal or enter a specific race in spring or early summer next year, now’s probably the time to sign up.

One option I’d love to suggest is the Rotterdam Marathon (yes, the one Sarah is running in today’s Watchlist). One of the best marathons in the Netherlands, with incredible crowds (if reviews are to be believed). Relatively speaking, this is a small marathon with “just” 18,000 runners, but I promise you it won’t feel that way.

The marathon takes place on April 12, 2027, and you can sign up now for the interest list, meaning you’ll be notified when pre-registration is open.

This Osprey x UNNA collaboration caught my attention recently, and as a wannabe artist, I had to feature it. The idea? Personalize your vest.

The kit includes an Osprey Duro or Dyna Pro vest (Duro for men, Dyna for women, both 10L), a special UNNA scarf with instructions, 6 peel-and-stick patches with UNNA symbols, 4 Posca pens, a pole quiver, and 2× 500mL soft flasks. The kit isn’t cheap at €190/$205/£170, but… it’s honestly barely any more than the vest would cost, and 10L vests are big. This vest will work for literally any run, including longer ultras.

These are limited editions, so expect them to sell out rather soon!

If you haven’t seen this ad for Fleet Feet (featuring Eric, also known as Floberg), you have to watch it. I featured this also on my Instagram in a marketing breakdown this week.

Thank you for reading another edition of RunLetters. I’m SO GRATEFUL for all 7.5k of you! Damn, what an army. Can you imagine all of us running a race together? That’d be a lot of people. I can’t believe that at the start of this year RunLetters had barely more than 1k readers, and now we’re here.

I’d love for the newsletter to hit 10k before 2027. You can help me do that. Just share the newsletter with someone who might enjoy it: https://news.runletters.com/subscribe

Now, go and have a lovely weekend ☀️ Any runs on the schedule?

Cheers,

Caroline (@carolinerunsfree)

P.S. The Sydney Marathon Ballot Registration also opened up this week. It’s one of the World Majors. If you’re keen, you can learn more here.