Run Club Featured Runners - Junior Olmpics Racers! | Past Featured Runners

17 runners went to the Pacific Junior Olympics Championships and 14 have advanced to the Regional Nationals Qualifier (Central/Northern CA & Nevada) where 11 qualified to race Junior Olympics Nationals in Louisville KY! Nationals Qualifiers: Cassia (7), Seori (8), Katherine (8), Mikkel (7), Gael (7), Sol (8), Adam (8), Emmi (9), Sami (9), Kai (9), Max (10).

Run Club Menlo Park (RCMP)

Run Club Menlo Park is a running program for girls (and now boys too!) in 2nd*-8th grades. While our program is non-competitive and we have runners of all levels from first-time beginners to advanced level runners, we are a serious running program for all girls and boys.

*Please see our About RCMP page for more info on 2nd graders and even younger runners: Click Here.

The First Rule of Run Club: Have Fun! The way to keep kids running is to keep running fun. While we are having fun running, we also teach serious running techniques such as pace, form, endurance, and speed. We weave running games into our workouts (Clue Relay, Sharks & Minnows, Chaos Tag, and more) and include a social-emotional lesson/theme at every practice. This past season, we covered topics such as Teamwork, Respect, Compromise, Empathy, Cooperation, Introspection, Gratitude, Positive Competition, Burden vs. Opportunity, and many more. Is it really that fun? On average over the past three seasons, 89% of runners have returned to run the next season.

We train for 10 weeks (twice a week) and complete a practice 5K and a final 5K. Run Club Menlo Park is also an official USA Track & Field youth running club and there are opportunities through the club to participate in local, regional, and even national competitions. In Fall and Spring seasons, we raced in Hayward (XC), Santa Cruz (XC), Berkeley (Track), Brisbane (5K), and Menlo Park (XC & 5K).

Season and Program Details

RCMP has two seasons, one in the Fall and one in the Spring. Fall Season starts at the end of August and Spring Season starts in mid-March. Practices are held at the Encinal Elementary school track & field.

Practices are held on weekdays (3:15-4:45) immediately after the Encinal school day ends (Girls Tue/Fri, Boys Mon/Wed). Hillview, Laurel, Oak Knoll, and other schools students may arrive by 3:30. Due to spring schedule conflicts, we experimented with flexible practice day schedules having boys and girls at the same practices and it worked out great since there is no difference in training between the boys and girls teams. See the About RCMP page for more info about practice days.

Program Details:
• 16 Practices (8 weeks) Including Lesson Materials
• Occasional Practice Goodies (e.g. lap counters/bracelets/stickers)
• Practice 5K & Season End Final 5K (including race fees)
• Snack & Drink at end of Each Practice
• End of Season T-Shirt
• Coaching Hours at Races
• New First-Time Runners Receive a Run Club Water Bottle
• May Include USATF Cross-Country/Track Racing Opportunities
• May Also Include USATF Competition Entry Fees
• Thanks to Fleet Feet Menlo Park - Running shoe discounts and running goodies.
• Does not include USATF Youth Membership (~$35) - may not be needed.

Cost: $575 (RCMP is the least expensive MPCSD after-school program - see our About RCMP page for details: Click Here)

Head Coach: Scott Paterson - Assistant Coach: Kristi Berg

Coach Scott is the Founder and Head Coach of RCMP, is a parent of a 15 year old girl at Menlo-Atherton high school (freshman girls volleyball team), and has been a Menlo Park resident since 1996.

Coach Scott was a New York State High School Cross-Country Champion (1984) and has set numerous cross-country high school course records across New England including the famed Boston Franklin Park Course record (1985). He was recruited by Vin Lananna (2016 US Olympic Track & Field Head Coach & current President of USA Track & Field) to run for Dartmouth College (NCAA Division I) and ran varsity cross-country and track with a 4:14 best time for the mile and 52:19 for 10 miles (1986-90). Coach Scott is a United States Track & Field certified Cross-Country Specialist running coach and is also Safe-Sport certified by the US Center for SafeSport.

Scott is also the Founder & CEO of Poverty2Prosperity.org, a non-profit that has funded over 45,000 zero-percent interest loans to the working poor around the world since 2008 with a 99% repayment rate.

Coach Kristi has been the assistant coach since 2022 and has run 55 marathons (including 5 Boston Marathons) and over 100 half-marathons. Kristi has coached runners for over 10 years with Road Runners Club of America, Siena Youth Center for Boys & Girls, and now with USA Track & Field. Coach Kristi is also a certified Cross-Country Specialist running coach and Safe-Sport certified.

What Parents Say About Run Club

My daughters (7th Graders) have run with Coach Scott for the past 8 seasons and went from non-runners to experienced runners who learned about pacing, stretching, training, form, breathing, and teamwork. Best of all, this is a low-key, non-competitive environment where participants improve together, make new friends, and learn how to be better friends through the season, or seasons! This is such a fun activity that supports health, independence, and community.
-Sarah W.

Coach Scott has an unbelievable gift for getting girls excited about running. My daughter had never run before and now loves running and especially competing and can't wait to do Run Club again in the Spring. He seems to know just how much to push them to make it challenging but also so much fun. He also has an amazing ability to make every girl feel important and valued. His dedication and just love for the sport is so obvious to everyone. I am so grateful to have found this club and experience for my daughter; I only wish we had known about it sooner. Scott is a truly special human being and coach and I am so grateful my daughter had a chance to learn from him.
-5th Grader Parent

I love the "Be a Good Friend" practice theme. We initially joined Run Club due to the social emotional component and health benefits of running. We stayed for the amazing coaching. I am so glad you have kept to your roots of training the whole athlete, including the spirit and mind!
-Rebecca M.

Coach Scott makes running fun for the girls, incorporating social-emotional learning while challenging them, making each girl feel they're an important part of the club. I recommend Run Club to all parents I talk with - even (and maybe especially for) the girls that think they don’t like running!
-Danita G.

This parent let me know that their third grade daughter had said they would not do any races at all at the beginning of her first season. She was running so well at practice, she was one of 11 girls out of 62 that I took to an early race. She is one of only three Run Club girls to place in the top 10 of a USATF Cross-Country race in their very first race. She drew this at home (found by her mom) later that day.

Additional Fun Feedback from Parents!

Social-Emotional Theme at Every Practice

Practice #14 Fall 2021: Gratitude | Practice #3 Spring 2022: Friendship

[Click Photos To Enlarge]

After each set of intervals/laps, the girls would also write down something for which they are grateful or ask a teammate a question to learn more about them.

Get a Glimpse of Our Season and Accomplishments

The Run Club Menlo Park girls have had a lot of fun while training for 10 weeks and have an accomplished Cross-Country, Track, and Road Racing results record over 10 seasons. 58 girls from 8 different schools (Encinal, Oak Knoll, Laurel, Hillview, Peninsula School, Nativity School, Phillips Brooks School, and Addison) just finished the Fall 2023 season. To get a glimpse of our running program and accomplishments, check out this short 4.5 minute video - Joyful "Girl Power" at its best!

Nate Lipscomb Memorial Scholarships (Financial Aid)

Thanks to the Nate Lipscomb Memorial Scholarship fund, Run Club is able to provide financial aid to those runners who otherwise could not afford to participate in this program. Runners with financial needs can still run and race to their full potential as the scholarship funds extend to cover their travel costs should they qualify for regional and even national competitions.

Thanks to this fund, we are also able to express our deep gratitude for our MPCSD teachers and administration by providing an automatic 50% scholarship for their children who participate in the program. Run Club Menlo Park supports our teachers and administration!

Nate Lipscomb, who passed away in 2022 of a sudden heart attack, was a Menlo Park resident since 2007, father of two MPCSD students (Jackson & Mateo), and husband (Rosie). Nate was also an accomplished lawyer at YouTube who was widely respected. Nate took care of his family and those around him with dedication, love, humor, and respect - many of the same themes and values we teach at Run Club practices. Nate leaves a legacy of deep caring for everyone around him and through this scholarship fund for many future runners including his son, Mateo, who currently runs for Run Club's very first boys team.

We Are A 501(c)(3) Non-Profit

We are a federally recognized tax-exempt 501(c)(3) non-profit California corporation. We also accept donations which help us fund our running program. Donations are tax-deductible.