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BA Athletics Club News Digest 2nd August 2021

For future weeks: inclusions, with photos, please to Roderick Hoffman at news@barunner.org.uk.

Events Calendar - online here

 

Club Event Map: [Clickable link to Google Maps]

This Week's and Future Solo Events

Please help me by sending in your results, for instance by filling in the tables below and forwarding to News@barunner.org.uk. Some events will have "Prompts" set up in Facebook. These allow the posting of a single image and some text and make it easy to flip through everyone's entries.

Solo Mile (submit before Monday 16th August):

Run one mile and send me your time or add the details to the Facebook prompt. I'll then produce a fancy graph showing your time this month compared to those of other people and previous runs over the last year. Alternately join us at the in-person event on Wednesday 11th August at Feltham Track with a planned start time for the mile of 18:30. Parking is straightforward, facilities are few. Or depart from the Bedfont Club at 18:10 for the 2km warm-up. This will be followed by the AGM/Awards evening with food provided.

Mile Participant Location Date Start Time Duration/Time Comment
 

Weekly Athletic Achievement (by midnight on Sunday) or use the Facebook group prompt:

Participant Event Distance Location Day/Start Time or Duration Details or comment, and other achievements
e.g. Running

There is only One Tom Rowley - 1927 to 2021

It is very sad to report that our dear friend and supporter Tom Rowley passed away last week. The pictures here are from the last few years - including Tom's legendary support of our ladies' cross-country team, his performance at WARR in Chicago in 2016 and his first (and only) parkrun on his 90th birthday.

We've shared Tom with Woking Athletics Club, whom he joined back in 1969 and for whom he wrote a regular newsletter (the Cockcrow) right up to January 2020. As a former BA staff member Tom has probably been a member of this club since its foundation and has had very good value from the life membership the club gave him back in 1991! Chicago wasn't Tom's first WARR - he ran the 10k in London in 1985 in 40:41. He ran in the first London Marathon and got an unofficial time of 3:02:20. The main reason that Tom doesn't feature in club records is because in 2002 he effectively challenged John Coffey to break all of his V60 performances. Tom does hold V70 records at Woking AC for all distances from 100m to the mile.

There is only one Tom Rowley, he is truly unique. He will be sadly missed, but it is very true to say that we are all better for having known him.

One Tom Rowley montage

Let me know and I will pass on details of any service to be held for Tom and any messages from his family.
Roderick Hoffman

NOW Event at Denham Country Park Wednesday 28th July report

NOW runners In total there were 21 of us at Denham. Most of us enjoyed a pleasant five-mile jog around the golf courses and countryside around the Country park. Others went for a walk or just stayed in the cafe. The run was very well times with respect to the weather. It was totally dry during the run but as we ate, drank and chatted in the covered cafe there was an horrendous rainstorm - though it finished before our parking tickets expired. Thanks to Simon for organising, and for bringing the family.

The next event is likely to be on Hounslow Heath towards the end of August.

Roderick / Simon

July Track-on-Field Results

I have results for me and Stephen Taylor but since this issue is busy I'll hold these over until next week - so feel free to do a late one.

Roderick Hoffman

Rosenheim Track and Field League

Our second match at Carshalton clashed with several other evening events, COVID pings and niggling injuries, so a small BA team produced these results:

Steve Hillier   

  • Shot (5kg)     7.47m    3rd
  • Discus (1kg) 21.35m  5th
  • 200m              40.8      6th

Our next match will be at Kingston on August 18th.  Please let me know if you can attend.

Steve Hillier

The Big Half 2021, Sunday 22nd August.

Thank you to those of you who have volunteered to help marshal a crossing in Greenwich.  The team is almost complete, but we could do with one or two further volunteers.  Transport to be provided from the Bedfont/Feltham area.  Please let me know if you can help.

Steve Hillier

Activity Achievements for the week 26th July to 1st August 2021

17 activities recorded - including some parkrun reporting.

Colleague Activity Distance Course Start Time Duration Comments
Ben Cooper Gym Triathlon 7.7km BAMC Gym Midweek Consisting of 5min row, 10min cycle and 5min run. I managed 7.703km, within 1% of my PB (with 8 previous attempts over 3 years!), thanks to a strong run to finish.
David Duggan parkrun 5km Bedfont Lakes Sat am 00:34:03 parkrun number 361, no. 220 at Bedfont and no.400th event of volunteering.
Denis Foxley Running 5km Pinner Sun am 00:32:00 Checking out my injured knee.  It feels better now, as it was hurting after the NOW run.
Emma Moreton Running 24.5km VLM training Sun am 02:21:00
Jacqui Musselwhite Walking Woking Sat am My best achievement this week was to step outside after Covid recovery to get to see the parkrun in Woking (for Tom). Wonderful to be back! Hopefully I’ll run next week.
Jain Reid Walking 5.77km Home from Richmond Sat am 00:59:25 I managed a short walk home after volunteering at Richmond Park parkrun
Janet Smith Sitting   Tokyo Athletics Stadium Mon am   Ed: Well, she's also been working and had a swim with Alastair Brownlee, but this was closer to hammer throwing
Joe Nolan parkrun 5km Woking Sat am In respect for Tom Rowley - there was a 1 minute silence, a lovely talk about him in the briefing and much thinking of him as we all ran the course.
Kay Trinder parkrun 5km Woking Sat am A slow, happy, sad, giggly parkrun to remember our Tom - with a minute's silence - the only one we ever gave him!
Kelly Davis Running 20km To, round and from Bedfont Lakes parkrun Sat am 02:31:00
Melanie Miller  Race 21.1km London Landmarks Half Sun am 03:18:36 Tough race in the humid hothouse conditions. A few people collapsed but I only did at the end…all well & recovered now but virtually everyone I know ran slower than normal.
Michael Ball parkrun 5km Woking Sat am 00:28:38 Nice to finally be back at Woking
Neil Frediani Running 12miles Up north somewhere Sun Slow - after a much faster than expected Blyth Links parkrun on Saturday.
Piers Keenleyside parkrun 5lm Chipping Norton School Sat am 00:28:20 See report below
Roderick Hoffman Running 11km Canal loop via Bulls Bridge Fri pm 01:20:00 Dragged myself away from the Olympics, despite the weather forecast. I got soaked 400m in but after that it was dry throughout. Pictured - the family of swans at Bulls Bridge.
Simon Turton Walking 5.7km Henley towards Remanham Sat eve 01:10:00 Circular walk from Henley along the Thames towards Remanham on Saturday evening with Lotte. They’re gearing up for the start of the regatta on 11 Aug.
Stephen Taylor Running 20miles Richmond Park and back Weekend 03:29:00 My long marathon training run this weekend was a run to Richmond Park, one lap of the park and then back home again. Very achy legs now.
Steve Newell Walking 1mile Hammersmith Thur 00:15:34

Weekend Achievements

Roderick Hoffman

parkrun results for Saturday 31st July 2021

44 runners and volunteers below - get in touch if your result is missing.

Club parkrunner parkrun Pos Time Age Grade PB? Comment
Alan ANDERSON Osterley 226 00:46:27 54.22%
Alan FRIAR Reading 293 00:35:46 53.91%
Alastair Heslop Guildford Barcode scanning at Guildford
Alice BANKS Higginson, Marlow 64 00:27:02 74.97%
Andrew William Jordan Bushy Park 211 00:23:20 65.86%
Anne ANDERSON Osterley 225 00:46:27 62.04% [not currently marked as assisted]
Anne Bannister Bedfont Lakes 66 00:28:38 70.78%
Barry WALTERS Upton Court 94 00:29:58 55.95%
Ben Chaytow Crane Park 82 00:29:37 47.50%
Benita Scaife Maidenhead 190 00:32:18 64.71%
Bob Bannister Bedfont Lakes 35 00:25:05 66.84%
Christopher T KELLY Reading 313 00:38:35 40.17% Pacing Sarah to new PB
David DUGGAN Bedfont Lakes 116 00:34:03 47.53% Also course set-up at Bedfont Lakes [400th volunteer stint, 220th run at Bedfont]
Denis Foxley Harrow Timekeeper at Harrow
Eddie GILES Salisbury 182 00:27:54 64.81%
Emma Moreton Bedfont Lakes 25 00:23:18 65.67% Run Report Writer at Bedfont Lakes
Frankie HOGGE Reading 23 00:20:41 71.56% PB   1 minute and 3 second improvement on 46th Reading run, going back to 2011!
Ian CUNNINGHAM Bushy Park 170 00:22:44 69.94%
Jain Reid Richmond Park Barcode Scanning at Richmond
Janice Jones Leamington 199 00:29:53 59.79%
Joan FOXLEY Harrow 159 00:38:45 59.40%
Joe NOLAN Woking 178 00:30:46 55.04%
John Lennon Crane Park 135 00:44:07 36.34%
John Scaife Maidenhead Marshal at Maidenhead
Julie BARCLAY Leamington 71 00:23:58 77.61%
Kay Trinder Woking 261 00:46:32 38.40%
Keith Johnson Dunstable Downs 35 00:24:42 60.19%
Kelly Davis Bedfont Lakes 136 00:38:08 39.69%
Maria Jovani Mole Valley 66 00:24:22 65.18% New club record (from Trish)
Micheal BALL Woking 128 00:28:38 55.53%
Mike Dennison Mole Valley 23 00:21:05 78.10% New club record (from Tim) & best age grade (from Barry)
Murray HOGGE Reading 24 00:20:41 77.52% Pacing (or chasing) Frankie
Neil FREDIANI Blyth Links 108 00:26:02 63.83%  
Oliver MATHAI Gunnersbury 174 00:27:13 62.77%
Paul PRESCOTT Bedfont Lakes 14 00:21:59 58.98%
Paul TIMMS Cirencester 27 00:25:06 62.82%
Paul WATT Leamington 31 00:21:37 71.70%
Petra OTTO March 143 00:38:14 56.36%
Piers KEENLEYSIDE Chipping Norton School 48 00:28:20 58.65% New parkrun added (see below)
Sarah GORDON Braunstone Marshal at Braunstone
Scott DAVISON Bushy Park 277 00:24:31 60.16%
Steve NEWELL Victoria Dock 110 00:47:27 41.45%
Trish MCCABE Crane Park 69 00:28:25 55.37%
Vera Simms Leamington 194 00:29:43 64.39%

The second week of post lockdown parkruns saw attendances across England and Northern Ireland grow by 20% over week one but we are still a long way behind the kind of numbers witnessed early in 2020 – for example Bushy Park (7th March 2020 – 1504, 31stJuly 2021 -1042), Bedfont Lakes (7th March 2020 – 205, 31st July 2021 – 158), Gunnersbury (7th March 2020 – 651, 31st July 2021 -  366).  We had already heard that the Yeovil Montacute parkrun will not be resuming and now we’ve learned that the Fire Service College parkrun has been wound-up for “security” reasons.  Tring parkrun has not been given permission to restart by the Woodland Trust and the future there is not promising.  A start date for the new Church Mead parkrun, Amersham (8 miles away) has yet to be announced.

Neil Frediani (26:02) is enjoying exploring his new playground in Northumbria and made his first visit to Blyth Links where you can enjoy views of the North Sea as you run along parallel to the beach.  Barry Walters still holds the club record with the 22:03 he ran there two summers ago.  Piers Keenleyside (28:20) broke new ground for himself and the club by running at Chipping Norton School where parkrun only got started nine weeks before lockdown. Keith Johnson (24:42) visited Dunstable Downs for the first time, Barry Walters still holds the club record there too with 23:24 (two summers ago).

The gong for club run-of-the-week probably goes to Frankie Hogge (20:41) who achieved a pb at Reading after 46 runs stretching back over ten years.  A new female club course record.  Barry Walters (19:50 in 2014) is only in second place there to Chris Kelly who ran 18:40 in 2012.  Chris Kelly (476 parkruns) would have earned by “500” vest by now had we lived through more normal times.

Steve Newell

I did a new (for me & BAAC) parkrun course today at Chipping Norton School. It is 2 laps of a figure of 8 - one loop around the school playing fields and another loop through a nearby wood. Mainly on grass with a muddy farm track linking the wood and playing fields. Quite narrow along the track and through woods so difficult to overtake. Could only manage a time of 28:20 - a few seconds better than my parkrun at Selby last Saturday.

Piers Keenleyside

Triathlon Update

Richard Ruffell owns up to being the triathlon winner in last week's photograph:

A quick race report from my adventures at the Ironman Stafford 70.3 on the 18th July.  You may recall the 18th July was rather warm, with my run done when the mercury was hitting 30 degrees.

A 70.3 is a half ironman, so 1900m swim, 90k bike and 21k run, or 1.2miles, 56 miles, and 13.1 miles if you prefer, which if you add up comes to 70.3 miles hence the name. I originally entered this in 2020 but it was cancelled, of course, then this year it got moved but eventually happened last weekend on the hottest day of the year so far! The swim was okay, the water quiet nice actually, the bike was hilly but not too bad until the last 15 miles when the temperature was rising, but the run was just, well let's just say hard.  A two lap course with the added bonus of a trip up a very steep hill to the see the castle each time round. I had started the run in 4th position in my age group, by half way I was up to third, then Bridget told me with 5k to go I was now second, but only just. So thoughts of walking the last bit, or at least slowing down even more than I already had were ruled out as I had to push on. Well I could have walked as third ended up 4 minutes back, but not knowing that my last mile was my 3rd quickest when I felt I could hardly move, amazing what the body will do, although after I finished I was consumed with cramp in parts of me I did not even know could cramp, so I paid the price! So the picture the editor found was me with my 2nd in age trophy.  Overall I was 257th out of 895 finishers.

Richard Ruffell

And then this week:

2 weeks on from Stafford and another race, this time an Olympic distance (how apt) at Dorney Lake. First mass start for a while, and got kicked in the face, much prefer rolling starts! Swim distance was a bit short, good news for me. Bike is a fast course up and down the side of the rowing lake, averaged 22.5mph over the 25 miles. Run so much nicer than 2 weeks ago as probably 12 degrees cooler, and half the distance! Finished 26th out of 96 overall, first in age group [2:22:45, 1st MV60].

Good to see Ian Haylock who has taken up Tri [finished in 2:26:15, 2nd MV50].

Richard Ruffell

BA Athletics Club Records - The Ironman

Our Full Ironman records, the most recent of these was set twenty years ago. But perhaps there are some unprocessed claims?

GROUP ACTIVITY NAME TIME EVENT LOCATION DATE Status
ROAD - LADIES (OPEN) Ironman Sue Wells 13:03:?? UK Champs W'hampton Aug-96 Current
ROAD - MEN (OPEN) Ironman John Levison 10:39:22 Zurich Aug-00 Current
ROAD - MEN (MV40) Ironman Ron Feeney 10:47:30 ITU World Champs Fredericia, Denmark Aug-01 Current
ROAD - MEN (MV45) Ironman George Smith 12:07:27 Penticton Canada Aug-95 Current
ROAD - MEN (MV50) Ironman George Smith 12:07:27 Penticton Canada Aug-95 Current

To qualify as a record the event has to be competitive and accurately measured and the participant has to be a paid-up member of the club and wearing a club vest (or in an in-house organised event). Members for whom BA is a second claim club may need permission from their first claim club for them to compete in a BA vest and claim the record (so the same performance cannot be claimed by two different clubs). If you know better, please send us your claim - we want to get these in the best shape possible. New records or questions: Stats@barunner.org.uk . 

Roderick Hoffman obo Paul Brandon

Next Digest - Results, news, pictures, feedback, jokes, stories - send them to the editor, Roderick Hoffman, at news@barunner.org.uk.

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