It’s impossible to come to NPDC these days without meeting Rashel Rabinovich, a staple to the community since she first started coming in 2021. During her time at NPDC, Rashel has grown the community as a social leader and her own prowess as a distance runner, completing her first marathon this past fall.
Rashel is spearheading co-organizing Winter Fridays with a fellow Positivity Award winner Joe Snowaert. She is NPDC’s first Positivity Award recipient for 2023. Get to know her through the blog and any time you decide to #justshowup too!
How, when and where were you introduced to November Project?
I’ve known about November Project for a long time, but it took me a while to show up. Since I went to undergrad in DC, I had heard of November Project and knew of people who went but commuting from Tenleytown felt like too much that early in the morning (I have since learned it’s not too much!).
When I moved to Baltimore for grad school, my roommate actually did November Project but I was once again too timid to show up. Flash forward to Spring 2021, I was freshly vaccinated and back in DC and chomping at the bit to make new friends post pandemic. I got pretty consistent with running during the pandemic as something to do, but always alone.
One day, I was running up the Adams Mill hill (probably run walking if we’re being honest) and I literally bumped into Mel Mackenzie. Mel and I knew each other from college but we were never friends. She invited me to come run with her friends and I literally slid into her DMs and the rest is history!
What do you remember about your first workout or thinking at/after your first workout?
I biked down to Lincoln with Mel on the second Wednesday in June in 2021. I remember passing the AdMo Runpool and Mel eagerly waving to everyone and thinking “WOAH SHE KNOWS SO MANY PEOPLE”. Mel was on coat check at that workout which forced me to meet new people and get out of my comfort zone. The bounce was Carly Rae Jepsen themed which was a huge plus (I love Carly Rae Jepsen). We did an Indiana Jones run around the reflecting pool which I thought was super hard but I loved the camaraderie and the fun conversations my group had while doing laps. Spencer was the first new person I talked to at NPDC and its fun that we’re both still around!
What motivates you to keep you coming back?
For me, NPDC is all about the people and community. When I moved back to DC in 2019 after time in Baltimore and South Africa, I felt like something was missing from my life and I couldn’t figure out what it was. NP provides me the community I was looking for. I have met so many amazing people and been able to run so many miles with new and old friends which makes the early mornings worth it for me. There is something so special about having such a large group of people to rely on, hang out with and be cheered on by.
What does winning the Positivity Award mean and represent to you?
For me, winning the Positivity Award is a reminder of the power of Just Showing Up. Making friends and finding community as an adult is hard, and this is proof that if you keep showing up as yourself, everything else will follow.
What’s your favorite DC restaurant and your go-to food?
My favorite DC restaurant is Purple Patch in Mount Pleasant, especially for brunch. Get the Ube Pancakes and thank me later.
Describe for us your favorite November Project moment to date.
Now this is hard. The past year has been filled with so many fun NPDC memories. Last winter, the AdMo Runpool collectively decided to Have Fun! all winter long and motivated each other to just show up during the coldest darkest winter days.
At Summit, when I was initiated into the Exercise Dress Caucus and ran the half in a dress surrounded by so many friends. Running my first marathon in October (MCM baby) and getting to train with Mel, Emma, Caitlin, and Kevin but also running by the NPDC cheer station and having so many friends run by my side and cheer for me. And of course, dressing up as and running as Ben Franklin with Libby, Kathleen, Austin, and Phil at the Philadelphia Marathon 8k and then spending the next day losing my voice cheering for the marathoners.
Give us your running backstory. How’d you get involved with running?
I started running in middle school because I wasn’t part of any sports or clubs and my parents made me do something. Track had no cuts and a lot of my friends did it so I signed up having never really run before. I figured I would do distance because I was scared of being slow and figured that once I got lapped, it would be impossible to tell who was slowest (this is actually not true). Since then, I’ve fallen in and out of running many times but I always find myself coming back to running when I need it most. I trained for my first half marathon when I was living in a new city for grad school and fell in love with racing and training. When I moved to South Africa, I joined my first real run club, and discovered how fun it is to run with other people (once they forced me to stop running with headphones).
What’s your top fashion tip for runners?
I’ve been really into hats recently. The ones Brooks gave us at Summit make me feel fast and hot — not to mention how practical they are. I truly think everyone needs one to be fully ~weatherproof~ and they’re universally flattering, too!
