BA Athletics Club News Digest 16th January 2017Events:
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. Updated 9th January. *Club Event Map: [Clickable link to Google Maps] 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 Page "BARunner" https://www.facebook.com/BARunnerUK/ CIE Event 18th January "All Ways Folly" - Street-O Orienteering - Heston Venue from 18:00The Club In-house Event on Wednesday 18th January will be a Street-O Orienteering event. Start times can be anytime from 18:00 to 18:20 (or advise me if you may be later). At the start you will be given a map of the area and on the map will be indicated a number of "Controls". Whatever your start time you will have exactly sixty minutes to visit controls to accumulate points and get back to the clubhouse before picking up time penalties. The winner will be the runner with the largest net score. No prior experience is necessary and Orienteering can give you a good running workout with alternative sprints, jogs (whilst reading the map) and pauses (whilst recording answers). Equipment needed / not needed:
Most of the controls will be items of street furniture and you will "prove" that you have visited each by writing down a number, letter or word from the control onto your answer sheet. Different controls are worth different numbers of points, and you will not be able to visit them all, so the skill isn't just to navigate to controls it is also constructing a course that allows you to visit the higher value controls (which tend to be further out) but still get back to the finish without incurring time penalties. And your thinking time is also your running time! For more instructions please see this attachment. After the event we will be visiting the Queen's Head - so remember your BA Clubs card, if you are a member, since a generous discount is available. Please let me know to expect you so that I can have the right number of maps printed. Roderick Hoffman (roderick@rhoff.org.uk) BA Hosted Men's Cross Country on Saturday, 14th Jan 2017 - Results and ReportHosting a match always adds an extra level of complexity to a cross country week-end. There are marshals to find, course marking to do, signposting to set up, time recording roles to fill and understand, not to mention our own team to organise. Myself and Gary shared the organisational roles with me focusing on the IT and communications side and Gary with organising marshals, signage and running. Thanks to our ever reliable team of volunteers Tom Rowley, Paul Brandon, Harry Wild, Ann Coffey, Chris Stockwell, Denis Foxley, Joe Nolan, Alan Anderson, John Williams, Steve Newell and Sarah Kelly, sorry if I have forgotten anyone, all was set up and fully staffed. West 4 Harriers provided assistance in the form of a funnel team which was reassuring due to my lack of experience at the business end of a race. Their role was to produce a list of finishers and a list of times and they also took photos of finishers in case they were needed to confirm finishing order and times. Anyway, after some less than promising weather, Harry was able to start the race of 260+ runners with a whistle in lovely sunshine. A couple of runners arrived a few minutes late and dutifully headed the wrong way to start at the correct place but the guy who arrived as leaders completed lap 1 just joined in near the first corner. Anyway it looks like the course was in fairly good nick and well-marked by Tom so there weren't any disasters. We had eleven runners who turned out for BA and ten finishers due to Mark Taylor sustaining an injury (probably by running too fast). Jeremy Short and Simon Turton came a cropper due to low sunlight and invisible tree roots but luckily recovered to finish. This is the 3rd time out of three that we have had a full team this season with one more race to come, thank you everyone for turning out though it would be good to see some new faces next time.
During the race I was recording finishers on my phone using an app which had been created for the league. Steve Newell called the numbers as I typed them in. Names of pre-registered runners and their times were instantly available. Ideally we would have three people recording using the app, one for numbers, one for times and one for both and then it is just a case of merging spreadsheets and adding the unregistered athletes who were declared by the old paper method. Results could ideally be out within the hour but I missed some of the runners due to them finishing in bunches so had to do some manual editing. The excellent manually recorded lists from West4 ensured that this was a simple process. The Division 3 and 4 results were available by 8pm having only spent about an hour or so working on them after beer, coffee and my dinner. That is real progress for results processing and Surrey League were very happy with our efforts. Division 4 Results
In the team competition the British Airways AC team were placed 7th of ten teams. As well as the 107 finishers in the Division 4 match there were 157 in the Division 3 match run simultaneously so a total of 264 finishers. Neil Frediani Tom Rowley - 90th Birthday celebration at Woking parkrun on Saturday 28th JanuaryTom Rowley helped us set up the course for the Cross Country on Saturday, as he usually does for events like this. Now aged 89 Tom has been helping the club throughout its existence. Tom's 90th birthday will be on 28th January and fifteen months ago he decided that to mark the occasion he would complete the Woking parkrun. It is likely that many people will take the opportunity to join Tom on the day at Woking and hopefully the BA club will have a large presence. Tom did a 5k last year, joining us in Chicago for WARR, his time as an M89 was 54:25 so it will be interesting to see if he runs faster in his 90s! John Coffey writes: " I have known Tom for many years. His life revolves around running whether it be XC, Track, Road Running, Walking, and of course Coaching. Tom goes to bed early so he can start his next day full of activities. He can be found swimming at Woking Leisure Centre at 6 o'clock in the morning. Every Wednesday morning we have a walking/Running event for mainly retired athletes. At it sometimes Tom will disappear and can be found doing repetitions on the grass to keep fit. Does he have any spare time? I don’t think so. I really don’t know where he gets his energy from. Tom can also be found at many races encouraging all age groups and abilities and his enthusiasm is certainly infectious, also a dab hand at taking photos and marking out XC courses. You could go on and on, Tom is certainly a goldmine. Just some of Tom’s records at Woking AC:
I managed to take some of Tom's Road Running records but was never able to match his marathon time - 3hrs 15mins is not bad for a 60 year old!!! He also loves telling jokes and stories that you have to wonder about. His military service, you're never quite sure whether its World War 1 or World War 2. Was he in the Navy or the Army? let me know if you find out. As for his WAR wounds, that’s another story. " John Coffey And Julie Barclay adds: " I'll tell you what I know of Tom but my involvement with him only started about 4/5 years ago. It was quite a while later that I became aware of the link to BAAC. I used to go to the track at Woking in 2012, along with a few other ladies, and Tom would put a little coaching session together. I decided that I would enter the Brighton Marathon in 2013 and Tom volunteered to put a training schedule together for me based around my shift work.....and that is how we started! The marathon didn't go very well for me unfortunately, I pulled up after 10 miles with a calf injury! What is so special about Tom is that he not only sets the training schedule based on the race I have entered but he is part of it! I'm never left to 'get on with it', he marks trees, lampposts, bins and pavements to measure distances for reps, he logs and records every training session. He travels to different areas, Aldershot, Guildford, Woking Park. Horsell Common and many more to find hills, steps, grass banks, muddy runs tarmac runs. We train most mornings at 07.30 and he is always there first to mark out the session. When I do circuit training on Friday morning he has 7/8 pieces of apparatus to put out and then put away! He has this huge enthusiasm for running....he will help anyone and over the last 4/5 years several people have joined us during our morning sessions but people's lives change and they stop coming, this doesn't bother Tom at all...he is there to help whoever and whenever he can....he loves to see runners enjoying their sport...it isn't about being the best. It's about being the best you can be and that is what Tom has done for me. His biggest accomplishment must be running the 5k at WARR...what an amazing sight to see him running with John, with his friends and family cheering him on....89 years young....is there no stopping him?......let's hope not! " Julie Barclay ASCA Cross Country - Saturday 18th February, DublinDear All, Please find below the details and costs relating to the ASCA XC from host Aer Lingus. If you are interested in going to the event, please can you let me (clarapn@aol.com), Neil (neil.frediani@ba.com) and Gary (gary.rushmer@btinternet.com) know so that we can get organised and send the team list to the host. You need to make your own hotel booking - may also want to do this ASAP. Many thanks, Clara Ed: The event is aimed at Airline Employees who are members of BA Clubs (who fund ASCA) but usually anyone who fancies a day/weekend out including a competitive run is welcome to enter and join in, though will not score in the main competition. Discount "Hotline" tickets can also be acquired. Contact Clara for details.
BA Athletics Club Survey - Last CallWe've now had 68 responses to the survey and I'll close it on Thursday and start analysing the results on Friday. Expect to see some nice graphs in next week's digest. Jumping the gun; the early feedback on the digest content asked for greater variety of authors and more pictures, whilst keeping the digest the same frequency and size so I'm attempting to do this - but I will be dependent on you to submit articles and photographs for inclusion. Roderick Hoffman (roderick@rhoff.org.uk) Coach and Officials Training Opportunities + Marathon WorkshopWe've received another batch of details for training for Coaches and Event Officials for courses for January through to June. The club is keen to encourage members to get undertake such courses and will be prepared to subsidise some of the costs. So if your New Year's Resolution includes developing such skills then please contact Steve Hillier: Steve Hillier (stevehillier@msn.com) . Our marathon runners may be interested in the "Preparing for a Spring Marathon with International Athlete Mara Yamauchi" workshop on 1st February in Southwark from 18:30 for just £10. Mara holds the second fastest Marathon time behind Paula Radcliffe. More information and to book see: https://www.ulearnathletics.com/cpdEvent/84092 BA Clubs - NOTICE TO ALL MEMBERS - New Membership Cards
Thorpe Park Half Marathon - Sunday 26th February 2017 - Two free places available
Any paid up club member who would like to take advantage of this free offer please contact Neil Frediani (who has already entered this event). Also contact Neil if you could be in that area that day and would like to help out with some marshalling. Different Datchet Dashers Events on 11th March and 25th June
Club parkrun results for Saturday 14th JanuaryNo space for the results table this week - see the club parkrun stats file for the results for this and recent weeks and a wealth of other information including tables of performances by runner and by parkrun: Updated club parkrun stats [this link should work now - it has been broken for the last few weeks]. CommentaryA combination of cross country league races and widespread freezing conditions reduced the total number of parkrunners this week to below 100,000 as dozens of events were cancelled due to dangerously icy conditions on Saturday morning (78 in total). Bedfont Lakes was one of the runs cancelled. It is always worth checking websites/facebook to make sure the parkrun you are heading for is operating as usual. Some of the runs which did go ahead attracted record numbers, including Guildford where Alastair Heslop was on barcode scanning duty serving the 487 finishers. Benita (30:01) and John Scaife (30:02) were part of a record turnout of 455 at Wycombe Rye. Conditions at Gunnersbury were cool and calm and Alan Anderson (30:31) achieved his best time since last September and was our only runner with a WAVA score of over 70%. Steve Newell was the volunteer tail runner and his son and grandson both reached the finish line several minutes ahead of him. Another little milestone. The tailrunner task was made more difficult because of the large number of people who missed the start by as much as five minutes and gave chase. On the tourist scene Sarah Gordon (38:13) became our first runner at Cannock Chase where the parkrun has been going for just a couple of months. That makes 77 different parkruns for her and 316 for the club. Roderick Hoffman (27:05) was at Fareham for the first time and moved his total on to 182. Others trying a course for the first time were Daniela Mayerova (27:52) at Gunnersbury, Trish McCabe (30:19) and John Lennon(30:20) as refugees from Bedfont were at Richmond Park. Steve Newell is going to be away in Vietnam and Thailand for the next two Saturdays so any noteworthy parkrun news items should be sent direct to the editor. I hope that weather conditions at Woking on 28th January are kind for Tom Rowley's first parkrun. Why on earth has he waited 90 years? Everyone who is able should join in. Free parking for three hours. Steve Newell Cliveden Cross Country Race 8th January 2017This year’s race was on January 8th and it takes place at the National Trust Cliveden House in Taplow, organised by Burnham Joggers. I don’t know how many of you have run this annual race, but the attraction of it (!!!) is the 180 odd steps from the river up to the house. Very few people manage to run the whole flight, even the elite runners walk a little. There is also the ‘Hill of Doom’. It is a popular race despite these obstacles and it was sold out by the end of November. There are two laps, both include the steps. It was a misty morning last Sunday and at 9am we were off. The rain got heavier throughout the race but it didn’t really matter. Trail shoes are a must really as the downhill sections were pretty slippery. It is approx. six miles in length and the winning man ran it is just over 35 mins! I managed to finish, near the back of the field in 80:47. Three seconds slower than last year. I will just have to come back again next year and try to be a bit faster! Janet Smith Ed: I did this race last year and can confirm that it is a great event. The photo of Janet on the steps does sum up how all competitors feel at this point...but it is worth it! Also see: http://burnhamjoggers.co.uk/clivedenxc/ Request for help on research study into the effects of injuryI was previously a member of Redhill & Reigate AC, Redhill & Surrey Beagles and Herne Hill Harriers. I am writing to you to ask for your assistance with a research study that I am conducting as part of my Masters at the University of Roehampton. I am researching the psychology impact that a career ending injury has on amateur athletes. The majority of previous research has been with elite performers, who, through their status, receive support. However, research with the competitive amateur athlete may indicate separate types of impact. I am hoping that you may be able to pass on this correspondence with the attached letter and circulate to your club members who may be suitable as potential participants or who may know someone. I very much appreciate your attention and look forward to hearing from yourself or club members. Kind regards Roger Gibbens .BSc(Hons)Psych(Open), MBPsP Know your Hash from your Elbow...Whilst running over the weekend I spotted this chalk sign. It is a circle with a rough drawn line extending towards me and to the right. Does it most likely indicate... A] A Hash trail has been set for later on in the day - this is a checkpoint and the line indicates the direction you should have approached the checkpoint from, B] It is what is called an Elbow on an Orienteering course - indicating the direction that the next Control is from where you currently are, C] It is the turnaround point on an out-and-back parkrun, D] It is a mark left by workmen - expect to find a hole here next time you visit, E] None of the above. Answers please - though if you say "None of the above" then you need to tell me what the sign does indicate. Roderick Hoffman (roderick@rhoff.org.uk) Next Digest?Is it your turn to send something in this week? Results, news, pictures, feedback, jokes, stories - send it to us at news@barunner.org.uk. Club website:
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