Want to look good, make friends and enjoy the great outdoors with the sun on your back, the wind in your face, and Bermuda's beauty all around you?

Then joining one of the local running clubs should be high on your 'To Do' list. Twice a week from September to June, from 4.30 p.m. to 6 p.m., young people of all ages can be found training for success at either the National Stadium or the Arboretum in Devonshire.

The young Bermuda Pacers train on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This week The Royal Gazette caught up with some members of the Pacers and their coaches on a blustery Tuesday afternoon at the Arboretum.

We wanted to find out just want drove these 25 to 30 young people to spend one and a half hours twice a week training in all weathers.

"I like to run, and I like the feeling of coming first," stated 14-year-old Juma Mouchette. "It's great to have everyone cheering for you."

The first year Berkeleyite began running at Whitney Institute, where he was introduced to cross country running during PE class and found he enjoyed it — and was good at it.

Encouraged by his parents, he has been with Pacers for three or four years now, and is one of the fastest boys in his age group.

Tzadik Donville, a student at T. N. Tatem Middle School, has been training with Pacers for three years because he likes running.

Though he was champion boy at Paget Primary, he realised he could do even better.

"I wanted to come (to training) because I wanted to learn how to get faster," stated the 12-year-old.

In addition to learning how to run faster, he has made good friends and had the opportunity to travel to meets overseas.

Though following a cross-country course that afternoon, he stated a preference for sprinting, and running with spikes on a smooth track.

Gabriella Arnold felt just the opposite, preferring cross-country "because it's more interesting than running around a track. It gives you a challenge, and each race follows a different course."

Twelve-year-old Molly Pilgrim, who has been running "a long time — about four years," shares her friend's preference, because she also does triathlons, "and cross-country courses are longer".

While a competitive spirit motivates the older children, the younger ones, some as young as seven or eight, come for the sheer joy of it. Twice a week Mikaela Outerbridge takes the bus from St. David's Primary to Dock Hill where she meets her Dad who brings her to practice.

Following in the footsteps of her father, Robbie Outerbridge, a former sprinter and current track enthusiast, the seven-year-old could find no other reason than "it's fun" when asked why she comes.

Though running was the primary focus of the afternoon's activity, the coaches also emphasise eating healthily and getting adequate rest as part of the training regime.

And while developing a competitive spirit is important, the camaraderie is equally valuable.

"It's a lot of fun. Just try it," advised Juma Mouchette as he ran off to warm up. "You may find you like it. I liked it the first time I tried it."