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BA Athletics Club News Digest 2nd May 2016

Events:

  • Wednesday 4th May - Speedbirds Ladies, Harmondsworth Moor, 19:00* THIS WEDNESDAY
  • Thursday 5th May - May Dream Mile, Bath Road from 12:45*.
  • Sunday 15th May - BAAC Track&Field Championships and Fun Day at Thames Valley Athletics Track at Eton from 12:00*

New members and potential members of all fitness levels and abilities are welcome at all of these events.  The full diary of club featured events is on the club website at: http://www.barunner.org.uk/Event Diary.shtml.

*Club Event Map: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z31P-sSECWno.kIIgdFzUuZAo&usp=sharing

Not for you, no longer interested?  remove me please.

Difficulty viewing this email?  Read it off the website instead - http://www.barunner.org.uk/News Latest.shtml. Running related gossip and chat: Facebook "BA Runner" (link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/636199849751546/).


First, the other news

Track and Field Rosenheim League Fixtures

Yes, the Track and Field season is now upon us.  We compete in two leagues and here are details of this year's Rosenheim fixtures:

  • The 1st Rosenheim will be at Walton on Wednesday 11th May and NOT at Kingsmeadow as previously advised,
  • 2nd Rosenheim at Walton, again, Wednesday  1st June,
  • 3rd Rosenheim at Ewell Court Wednesday 22nd June,
  • 4th Rosenheim at Twickenham Wednesday 6th July,
  • 5th Rosenheim at Kingsmeadow Wednesday 20th July (NOT Walton).

Please contact me for more details - we are keen for new members to join in these great evenings.

Regards:-

Eddie Giles (mail EddieGiles@et-enterprises.com)


WARR World Airline Road Race - entries now open

The registration for WARR Chicago - Running with the Wind is now open. Race day is Saturday 24th September.

Click here to get to the registration site:  Registration [Ed: you will need to register with the site and then enter the event...but it will be worth it!]

You can also register through the World Airline Road Race website http://www.worldairlineroadrace.org.  From the home page hold your mouse over The Event and then click Registration.

  • Race Fee for the 5K, 10K or both is $50 USD

  • Awards Banquet is $60 USD - location TBA {Ed: recommended - wherever it is!}

  • [plus registration fee which for me came to $5.07}

Anyone whose salary is funded by BA/IAG and anyone who is drawing a BA pension should register as "BA".  Others are welcome but should compete in the non-airline category (with the exception of those in the BA club who actually work for another airline).

As an add-on to this year's WARR, entries are also open for the O'Hare 5k Runway Race on Sunday 25th September.

"Don't miss out on a once-in-a-lifetime chance to run on O'Hare's newest runway built as part of the O'Hare Modernization Program before it opens to air traffic in mid-October. The 5K course will take participants onto Runway 10R at the center of one of the busiest airfields in the world, with the thrilling sights and sounds of planes taking off and landing nearby. This family friendly event will also include a Kids' Run and Community Day! Enjoy food, music and United Airlines airplane photos ops.  Click raceroster.com/events/2016/8958/2016-ohare-5k for more information and to register.  This event is expected to sell out."

 For the Runway Race please register yourself as members of the team "British Airways" (even if not employees).


Marshals requested - Ride London places

I'd like to echo Simon's thank you to everyone who helped with this year's marathon.  It was a terrific effort by over one hundred of you, and the event would not have been such a success if you had not been there.

We are asking for your marshalling help once again, for four events planned this summer:

  • May 30th     Vitality 10,000  Central London       Contact: Clara Halket
  • June 5th       Concorde 5 miles  Cranford             Contact: Roderick Hoffman
  • July 14th      Great City Race  Bank of London     Contact: Simon Turton
  • July 30th/31st  Ride London (Cycle ride)              Contact: Steve Hillier

Please let us know if you can assist.

A very limited number of places are available to take part in the Ride London event, for anyone who has helped us in the past with marshalling.  If you are interested, please contact Steve as soon as possible.

Steve Hillier 


Virgin Money London Marathon 2016 - Stories and News

Next year's event? Enter NOW!

Next year's race will be staged on 23 April 2027 . The London Marathon received 247,000 applicants for the 2016 race in just five days. The public ballot for the 2017 race will open to all applicants TODAY Monday 2nd May and close at 17:00 THIS Friday 6th May.
 
Regards, Simon Turton

Ed: The club does get a number of guaranteed entries each year but demand exceeds supply and note that we prioritise these entries to those who have applied for normal entries and been rejected.


Thanks...

We've received thanks from Keith Haylock, Ian Cockram, Joe Nolan, Janine Mullett & Darryl Meek (and also those listed last week and probably others as well but either I've missed them or they've gone through other channels)...


And some have had more to say...

Hi all,

That was tough, although the weather conditions were ideal for marathon running. I struggled this year with one injury after another, so my priority was to get to the start line injury free and sobeit if I had to neglect the long runs. I had managed to get to 15 miles in training, so yes at 15 miles on Sunday the wheels started to come off. I decided to take the rest of the race as mile races, this mentally made the rest of the race bearable. It was made more difficult by a man dressed as Snow White who keep stopping to walk, but would then overtake me when he started running again. But I persisted and kept telling myself "DO NOT WALK". Two miles to go and Jagjit came pass me and gave me the encouragement to spur me on to the finish. With so many friends and family in the last mile, I put every last bit of energy into the glory mile.

I crossed the line and though never again, but that was Sunday and today's another day, so come next week I'll be entering again for another day of punishment.

Bring on London marathon No 26.

Regards Graham Taylor


A guy who works for the BBC in Ealing Eagles put together another video of the Ealing Eagles Cheer Squad day....

https://vimeo.com/164157779

It has a great Bowie sound track!

Piers Keenleyside


Hi,

What a great day, firstly thanks again for my place.  I had run 20m in training so knew would be ok until then !!  At around 22m started to hurt and walked for about 1/2 m and then slow running thinking what am I doing !!!  Had thought would be happy with 4.20 and finished 4.20, a friend of my beat me by 20 secs!

This was marathon no. 13 so unlucky to stop now,

see you all at a parkrun soon,

 Scott Davison


Dear all,

The weather was cold in the morning and then later on it was fine. This was my 201st marathon. I met some BA club runners and the atmosphere was really amazing and the race was well organised. I did enjoy the race even though I am a slow runner but I couldn't believe that I had beat my Pb and I finished  in 03:58:10.

Thanks to all the all BA club runners and to the club as they give me chance to run the London marathon.

Kind Regards,

Jagjit Singh


Dear all,

First of all a massive thank you to BAAC for the amazing opportunity to run the London marathon again, then a jolly good well done to everybody for being so brave (or crazy) to do it, whether it was your first, last or umpteen times, whether it took you three, four or six hours.....it doesn't matter...it is still the greatest achievement. 

As for me as I have said over and over and over again, this time round the training was hard, though physically fitter, mentally I just wasn't there....I have hated the soul killing, mind draining long runs on my own, I have not enjoyed the cold half marathon in Paris - Rina the red wine at the Moroccan restaurant was another thing ! I enjoyed that!! - and I really suffered with a cold for the Kingston 20 miler.....but the day of the marathon...oh the day of the marathon was another thing !! It was like, my brain stopped overthinking and gave me a break. 

I loved every step.....the first 10 miles were a breeze, I chatted to Paddington Bear, I laughed with a three meter high McMillan ? Nurse hoping to steal a TV shot (which I didn't), I run alongside the firemen in the fire engine - now ladies out there if that's not enough incentive to run a marathon, tell me what is! - I gave high fives to all the little kids on the streets and I never stopped smiling.

Mile 13 was the sight of my friends and my parents with a huge Italian flag, mile 15 I run with a daffodil from Marie Curie which was the charity I had also chosen to donate.. Miles 18 to 20 was the monkey in my head trying to convince me my quads were on fire, my left foot was starting to blister and that I didn't have much left in the tank. ......

That's when the thought of my friends tracking me on the app kept me going, the money I was raising, words of encouragement kept resonating in my head.....the thought of me and my friend Tom being #oneinamillion, his name pinned on the back of my t-shirt "in memory of" ...I couldn't stop!! Not even for a Kit Kat!!!! 

Then at mile 23, not sure what happened....I felt fine!!! My pace started to pick up again, I felt fine, like I couldn't feel any more pain! At all !! I was convinced I had no more pain: Embankment saw me sprinting, Big Ben saw me giving high five the BA marshals (well apart from Mike Thorn, but that's for another story) and Buckingham Palace was my moment of glory where I had the crowds shouting my name and British Airways..... (I'm sure that for future bookings that was more effective than the 90 seconds advert during Downton Abbey!!!!)..... The finish line didn't see me crying this time but with a huge grin on my face.......in three words, it was magic!

I had proven that I can do it, I can run a marathon, I can master my mind, I can silence the pain, I can bring my body to its limit.......

"Runners exalt the marathon as a public test of private will, when months or years of solitary training, early mornings, lost week ends, rain, pain mature into triumph or surrender. That's one reason the race-day crowds matter, the friends who come to cheer and stomp and flap their signs and push the runners on." Nancy Gibbs

I want to finish with something I read somewhere saying that finishing a marathon changes your life forever......I'm not sure of that, I'm not sure it changed mine ...but it definitely changed the lives of one of my friends Darryl Meek and Janine Mullet as Darryl decided to pop the question right in the middle of it and I hear that Janine said yes..........well done guys  and many many congratulations xxx

Until next time, cheers to everybody ...and keeeeep running! Be safe. xx,

Marzia Coltelli


Hi all,

Firstly a huge thank you to BA for the amazing opportunity of running VLM again...after a  rocky training with calf and Achilles problems and not a great deal of running over the past 6 weeks I  was actually considering deferring my place 2 weeks ago. I'm so happy that I didn't as I had a great day particularly as I had no expectations of a time and just enjoyed the experience and atmosphere of the event! I love the camaraderie of the London Marathon and several times along the way I was close to tears for lots of reasons...a couple running the whole way hand in hand, someone running pushing a friend in a wheelchair and for some at the end who had to be helped across the finish line. I am convinced that there is no other marathon quite like London...

Thanks so much again and well done everyone!

Caroline Cockram


Hello Runners and all, 

Firstly and most importantly, a huge thank you to the BAAC committee for the opportunity to be part of a terrific event and that I'll always remember.  The day was perfect, from transportation to the organisation, crowds and the taste of a beer post race. Leading up to the race, I had spent around 3 hours looking at my records and recent races analysing pace. This paid off as I managed to get it within a 2 second average per mile. I had decided to set 3 objectives; priority - aim for a PB, get into the teens (so 3:19 or below) and lastly finish "good for age". Well, managed 2 out of the 3 and delighted with that, also have a target for the next marathon.    

Getting the pace right determines whether I'll hit the wall.  Always keen to get the first 13 miles out the way and hope to feel pretty good at this stage before getting down to some hard work.

Managed to take 6 minutes off my previous PB which was Amsterdam in October having taken advice from Graham Taylor of running a 90% effort 10 mile mid week run on top of my other training which included 9 * 20 mile or more runs. Albeit a cold day, I continually poured water over my head during the race to stay as cool as possible and started sipping water just after the first half mile. For me, the first 20 miles is about preparation for the second half, the last six!

I received a call from the director of the Toronto Waterfront Marathon on Tuesday explaining that I had won the prize to run the Toronto marathon in October. Having nearly hung up thinking it was one of my pals having a joke, I gratefully accepted the prize and will hopefully get that sub .15.

Lastly, if it didn't go to plan, don't worry as I've really been there, just learn from any mistakes and get back out there!

http://www.torontowaterfrontmarathon.com/en/news.htm

Colin Haylock  


It has been a perfectly brilliant few months for me capped off by one of my best runs. It hasn't been a normal training year , I have been motivated by running with lots of different people - Sweatshop running group, Shepperton Running Group, Bedfontos, Runnymede Runners, Marzia, Rina, Laura (who did Paris) and of course BAAC and lunchtime runners amongst others; and in lots of locations (Teddington, Richmond, Shepperton, Portugal, San Antonio and the Heathrow area etc.) . Another huge motivation was seeing other people’s experiences using online tools particularly Strava and Facebook. I also used a training plan for the first time for any distance.  A new world of intervals, fartlek and tempo runs beckoned.

Anyway fast forward to 23rd April after an expensive trip to the Expo (new socks, headband and a watch which plays music and has a heart rate monitor and most important a battery which was certain to last 4.5 hours and I had my name printed on my vest). I was fairly confident that I had trained to the required standard to achieve 4:15 if everything else went right.

Up early for the coach to the park, I had stomach cramps which started Saturday afternoon. Bottle belt loaded with 4 bottles of Tailwind solution and banana in a bag on my back. Then we were off, I took a firm elbow to the chest in the first mile, avoided umpteen attempts to trip me up by people veering this way and that, kept telling myself to throttle back but still kept ahead of schedule. This was going too well but there was so far to go. I said to myself that I mustn’t make last year's mistake of running through halfway in 2:03, I must take it easy.

I was listening to music from my new watch but quiet enough to interact with the crowd too. I kept hearing people call my name and thinking who was that but then realised they were all strangers, I had my name on my vest, doh!  3 weeks before the event I decided to run for Alzheimers Research UK so an early target was to see their fanzone in Jamaica road, that was fun.  Next it was to halfway in 1:58!! and a wave to Shepperton Running group followed by a collision with someone who stopped dead in front of me. Isle of Dogs was a slog and I felt like I was slowing but I was looking out for Bedfont parkrun friends for about 6 miles to keep my mind off running. Anyway I was still running, last year I had already walked by this stage. I approached mile 20 and hadn't had my banana yet so made a decision to stop and walk a few hundred yards while eating it and to take stock of my condition. Having started up again I saw the Bedfont people, continued and saw the Shepperton people again, this was hard, at last we were at the Tower, I just had to keep going. I passed the screen which I now know was probably hiding the  medics who were at work on the poor guy who died. I knew it was serious and thought at the time that I mustn't push too hard at my age. Then before I knew it we were into that wonderful last mile or so full of BA marshals including a good contingent from the Bedfont parkrun. Then it was just a case of island hopping from one group to the next making sure that I saw people I knew this time (last year I spotted no one).

Over the line after a failed attempt at a long sprint finish I stopped my watch at 4:02ish (pb by 40mins) and the stomach cramps suddenly disappeared (it must have been nerves).  That is the most even paced running that I have done all year. 1:58 and 2:04 for the two halves.

Lessons learned this year:

  • 1) Use a training plan
  • 2) Use Tailwind in your drinks (its better than gels)
  • 3) Sainsbury’s Chicken korma must have a good balance of electrolytes in it or something performance enhancing!! as it has become my meal of choice for the night before.
  • 4) Get stomach cramps! it takes your mind off all the other pain.
  • 5) I can eat proper food shortly before an event and during it if need be. That full English breakfast just before Eastbourne parkrun was not planned but gave me the confidence to eat my porridge and bread pudding 1 hour before the start.

One last note my age grading was only 62.5%. I thought it would be much better than that. My percentages on shorter runs are better.  That means I didn't set my goals high enough. So, I must try again but maybe not London next year. My place this year was from the ballot. I will probably marshal next year and may apply for a place the year after if I am still marathon running.  

Sorry for rambling on but this is the short version unlike the run!

Neil Frediani


Like everyone else, I’d like to start by thanking the BAAC committee for giving me the opportunity to run VMLM. At the time of being offered the place, I had run one marathon which had approximately 4,000 participants – the experience of running last Sunday with over 37,000 runners on roads which seemed to be continually lined 3 or 4 deep will stay with me for ever! The atmosphere from start to finish was unbelievable, and the whole day included a number of memorable moments, all of which still make me smile when I think of them.

As for the run…..I got round in a slightly faster time than my previous marathon. Everything felt relatively comfortable as far as mile 18, thanks mainly to the mental and physical knowledge that I’d completed training runs up to 20 miles. Once I’d got passed the 20 mile marker my legs were shouting stronger and stronger for me to have walking breaks and increase the frequency of gels! From Blackfriars Bridge onwards I knew I’d be seeing friends in the crowd and marshalling at Waterloo Bridge – that became a massive incentive to keep running and as well as knowing being presented with a London Marathon medal was only minutes away. All the marshalling points within the last mile gave me great encouragement when they saw my BA shirt, although I will admit to not enjoying the splendid view of Buckingham Palace – at the end of Birdcage Walk I only wanted to see how far down The Mall the finish line was!

Congratulations to all the BA finishers for achieving a remarkable feat, a huge thank you to Simon Turton and the team of volunteers and as well as to BAAC for presenting me with such a wonderful experience!

David Duggan


Hello all,

This was my 4th London Marathon and my best and most enjoyable one yet, even though I moaned all through the training!!

I'd put so much pressure on myself this year to try and beat my previous personal best and run the whole race without stopping that I trained to my utmost limit. The training took its toll on me and after completing a tough 20.5 mile training run I began to doubt my reasons for even going through with it all again. Anyway I carried on narrowly avoiding the terrible cough and cold that was going around and made it through to race day.

When we got the mini bus at Knowle Green the weather was so awful I thought we would freeze out there. I'd hardly slept all night and was so anxious I thought my heart would beat out of my chest at one point. Really can't understand why I felt so stressed about it all having done it 3 times before and had also decided to just enjoy the run and concentrate on finishing and nothing else. 

Once the race had started I'd settled down nicely and got into a nice easy pace, as the miles dropped off I was at Tower Bridge before I knew it. This year I had my family and friends strategically placed around the course and at 13 miles I saw my family.  Usually between 16/17 miles I have a little wobble but this year I managed to run through it and kept going knowing that at around mile 18 I would be seeing more of my family. This was a tremendous boost and kept me going to the 20 miles that I'd done during my training. Once I'd passed that marker I knew that I'd have to dig deep and find the last 6 miles. As each mile passed by I felt more and more determined not to stop. I always enjoy the last 2 miles of the race as the crowds down the Embankment through to Bird Cage walk are absolutely fantastic and basically carry you to the end. On the way down the home straight I saw a couple of friends who were marshalling at Waterloo Bridge and more of my friends at Westminster Bridge. Once in Bird Cage Walk I knew I would be seeing my children and family again and then my Dad and friends that were marshalling at Spur Road. My Dad almost missed me as he was busy opening up the crossing but managed to just look round as I was going by hollering at him!! 

The finish line is always a very welcoming sight and once crossed the happiness and warmth from fellow runners is great. It is such a wonderful feeling and I feel very lucky and privileged to be given the opportunity to run such a prestigious race. So I'd like to say a big thank you to you Steve and rest of the BAAC committee for giving me this opportunity once again. 

Can't wait to sign up for next year!! 

Oh yes, I did manage to complete the whole race without stopping (a first for me) and I beat my previous personal best by 10 minutes, was absolutely over the moon with this result.

Once again thank you all so much,

Tracey Mills


Photo below - several of our marathon runners showing off their medals, with others who also ran on the day...

parkrun and Marathon runners

Photo above - Paul Sinton-Hewett (parkrun founder) with the Bedfont Lakes parkrun team including several BAAC members.

[left to right, Iain Law, Ian Cockram, Bob Bannister, Caroline Cockram, Merilyn Davis, Neil Frediani, Emma Poole, David Duggan, Nikki Crawford and Paul Sinton-Hewitt. Photo credit: "Caroline and David"]


Club parkrun results for Saturday 30th April 2016

30th April family & friends time parkrun commentary grade
Scott Davison 22:32 Bedfont Lakes run #160, 140th at Bedfont 62%
Chris Evans 23:43 Bedfont Lakes run #143, 140th at Bedfont 62%
Paul Sinton-Hewitt 27:02 Bedfont Lakes run #286, 4th run at Bedfont 57%
John Lennon 27:02 Bedfont Lakes run #206, 188th at Bedfont 57%
Ian Cockram 28:24 Bedfont Lakes run #345 51%
Caroline Cockram 41:16 Bedfont Lakes run #224 39%
Joe Nolan 24:35 Black Park 249th run at Black Park 66%
Steve Newell 33:22 Bracknell run #219, park #71 54%
Ben Chaytow 21:55 Crane Park run #130, 108th at Crane 62%
Roderick Hoffman 27:33 Crissy Field first run at Crissy Field 56%
James Glover 23:02 Guildford run #18, parkrun pb 64%
John Coffey 26:08 Guildford 6th run at Guildford 71%
Kerstin Luksch 20:04 Gunnersbury F-3, run #182 75%
Piers Keenleyside 27:34 Gunnersbury run #132 58%
Alan Anderson 30:04 Gunnersbury run #408, best for 3 months 70%
Denis Foxley 25:39 Harrow run #36 67%
Joan Foxley 35:32 Harrow run #29 60%
Sarah Gordon 34:38 Luton Wardown first run at Luton 54%
Colin Russell 22:18 Oak Hill parkrun pb, club course record 61%
Kevin Holland 30:03 Poole run #47, 15th at Poole 57%
Chris Kelly 19:53 Reading run #288, 226th at Reading 74%
Benita Scaife 30:16 Reading first run at Reading 64%
John Scaife 30:17 Reading first run at Reading 54%
Paul Watt 21:41 Rushmoor parkrun pb, club course rec 69%
Julie Barclay 21:50 Rushmoor equals course pb 79%
Sreeram Sethuraman 29:15 Upton Court run #77, 70th at Upton Court 45%
Alan Friar 26:55 Woodley run #196, 54th at Woodley 59%
Tony Barnwell 34:20 Wycombe Rye run #104, 43rd at Wycombe 54%
Steve Dodsworth volunteer Sunderland marshal
Linda Dodsworth volunteer Sunderland finish tokens
David Duggan volunteer Bedfont Lakes run director + results
Neil Frediani volunteer Bedfont Lakes lead bike
Chris Kelly volunteer Reading post event close down

There must have been Spring in the air or something this week or maybe people who ran the London Marathon are now so fit they can zoom round a parkrun with ease.  Several of our members ran their best times for months or even ever on Saturday.

At Bedfont Lakes, the nearest parkrun to LHR Terminal 5, puddles on the course are sometimes a problem but this week parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt (27:02) paid a running visit and perhaps paced John Lennon (27:02) to his best time this year with Scott Davison (22:32) and Chris Evans (23:43) also clocking their bests.

Paul Watt (21:41) at Rushmoor and Colin Russell (22:18) at Oak Hill achieved parkrun pbs and set new club course records.  Julie Barclay(21:50) equaled her best time at Rushmoor and James Glover (23:02) ran a parkrun pb at Guildford.

Chris Kelly (19:53) at Reading and Alan Friar (26:55) at Woodley had their best time so the year so far and Alan Anderson (30:04), now within a month of his 81st birthday had his best run for three months at Gunnersbury where his former protégé Kerstin Luksch (20:04) arrived at the finish line exactly 10 minutes earlier.

Kevin Holland (30:03) at Poole is now just three runs short of his 50 vest.  He was one of 755 in the field this week.

After all the fuss, Little Stoke seems to be happening again - 271 runners this week [Ed: The charging is due to come in in June at which point the parkrun will cease].

At La Ramee (Toulouse), the latest parkrun in France, the inaugural run attracted 26 of whom 14 were doing their first ever parkruns [Roderick adds - first listed in the results was Alex Pellow who has the distinction of being the only person to have finished ahead of me in a Bordeaux partkrun! Also David Duggan was amongst the finishers, though a new one, Concorde was not involved between Toulouse and Heathrow] .  Over in Bordeaux there were eight runners at Mandavit and six at Les Dougnes while the run in Paris attracted 20 including a couple from Les Croupiers RC.  It could yet catch on. [Ed: and a fifth French parkrun is due to start at Château de Pierre-de-Bresse near Dijon on 28th May]

Steve Newell (steve-newell@blueyonder.co.uk)

Updated parkrun stats: www.barunner.org.uk/results/ba_parkrun_park_totals.xls

Roderick adds: And in the States there was a record field of 53 at Crissy Field. A very cosmopolitan crowd with about 50% locals and 50% tourists (me being the only uber-tourist amongst them) and most of us had a good chat over donuts after the run. The visitors had home parkruns in Sydney, Root 44 (South Africa), Guildford, Southampton and Worcester to name those I remember.

Back to Steve...

I made an observation last week about how we have run in most counties.  I should have restricted that to England and I should have been more cautious about talking about counties in any case as boundaries have shifted at times since the end of the Roman occupation and even in our own lifetimes there have been changes.

I felt the best way to look at it was to align ourselves with England Athletics which like Cricket is quite traditional and still recognises Middlesex which was once in the postal address for Bushy Park.  So recent additions to our list have been Gloucestershire (Janet Smith at Tewkesbury Vineyard on 9th April) and Derbyshire (Sarah Gordon at Roslinton near Swadlingcote on 26th April).  Over the years we have run in almost all the other counties.  Sarah Gordon has run in Lincolnshire and Rutland but before she signed up as a member.  Rutland did disappear for a few decades but seems to be restored to the list now even if paired with Leicestershire.  Huntingdon has gone but Roderick has run there anyway.

The only unclaimed prize outstanding is CORNWALL where they have their own language even if very few actually speak it (and before you get clever, Cornwall Park in Auckland doesn't count).

There are three parkruns on offer:

  • i) Penrose in Helston, normally gets about 100 runners and the course records are 16:29 and 19:40.  One undulating lap with sea views.  The furthest West of all the parkruns in England
  • ii) Lanhydrock in Bodmin, another undulating picturesque course with the mention of a hill and stunning views.  Course records 16:23 and 19:38 and recent attendances of around 150.
  • iii) Tamar Lakes, right on the border with Devon, not far from Bude (but not by the beach).  One lap of the Upper Lake and fairly flat.  Course records 15:46 and 18:10 and normally fewer than 100 runners.  Campsite nearby.

Special reader offer - a "pint" of a Fuller's beer of your choice to the first member to appear in the official results at any of these parkruns!

After this we will move on to Wales where two new runs up in the North are due to start in May. Up till now we have run more often in New South Wales than the old country.  Some members still have fond memories of the Welsh Castles Relay a few year back.

Steve Newell


Running Shorts

We both ran in the 6th Sunderland 10k today. The rain wasn't too bad and we both ran PB's for 10k; Me 50.19, Linda 56.08. Thoroughly enjoyed it and will probably book another one soon. The event was started by Sunderland's own Aly Dixon fresh from her triumph in the Mall last Saturday (though she didn't run the 10k).

Steve and Linda Doddsworth


Next Digest?

Results, news, pictures, feedback, jokes, stories - send it to us at news@barunner.org.uk.


Club website:

www.barunner.org.uk.


 

      

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