April 2005

Chairman’s Report

With the arrival of the light nights more of you will no doubt be heading for the hills and fields around Richmond. Cross country running is a great joy but with it comes the mud! It is important that the mud does not find its way into the club house. Please make sure you clean up after yourselves if mud accidentally finds it way up stairs.

Next month sees the start of the mid-week league. The first race is on Tuesday May 3^rd in Ilkley. Race numbers can be obtained from Stuart Smith. If you know you will run at least one of the races it is worth your while to have a number before the league events start. This year the club has decided to cover the cost of the race fees so all you have to do is sign the disclaimer.

As well as the league races there are many local races during the weekends. Travel time to these events is usually less than an hour and they are great fun and wonderful social events. Kirkby Malzeard 10k and Burn Valley half marathon provide excellent teas.

By the time you read this the March 31^st deadline will have come and gone and last year’s trophy winners will have rushed to deliver their trophies to myself or ‘Roots and Shoots’ so that we can have them engraved for this year’s presentation!

The AGM will be held on Sunday May 8^th in the club house at 7pm. Nominations for the committee should be handed to the secretary by Thursday April 28^th.

Enjoy your running and if possible try the odd race now and then.

John Hunter

Cheadle Spring 5

Considering the interest generated from my last report (Great South Run) I thought I’d let all you Northerners know how my recent racing is going on south of the fine city of York! Cheadle is a small town just outside of Stoke and is relatively undulating although not quite Richmond undulating! This was my second race of the year following an average just sub-40 min 10k in January. Training has not been going as well as I would have liked with most of it on a hotel treadmill in exciting Swindon. Exciting that is if you like roundabouts as a locally produced calendar proved testament to!  Anyway back to the Cheadle 5. It’s quite a small race with only 170 entrants but the weather was absolutely perfect so a good time was a possibility. The race consisted of a single loop with the 1^st mile uphill, 2 miles downhill and last 2 on the flat. I’m sure all Swaledalians will be happy to know I was the first in the famous green vest home, (mainly due to the fact that I was the only one in the famous green vest participating! But enough of such mere trivialities!) Just for the record I finished 30^th in a time of 31.29 which I will be using as a rather late base to improve upon for this years racing. Bring on the Midweek League!

Rob Dawkins

The Ridge Run 6 March 2005

Club La Santa, Lanzarote

As I write this I am sitting on a sun bed by the pool in not so sunny Lanzarote. It is windy, cloudy and chilly and I have all my running gear on to keep me warm, including my long sleeved Helly Hansen top, Great North run jacket and jogging bottoms and as the sun could still burst out from the black clouds, I have my bikini underneath! But Hey Ho, it’s my holiday and all the sport you could want is free including the famous annual Ridge Run, which I have just completed. This is a 13k run up the first part of a volcano, which I have watched for 4 years never dreaming that I would be on any standard to attempt it.  It is renowned for being a small but great event, which starts at the stadium in Club La Santa. It passes down the road and along towards the town of La Santa turning on to dirt roads and up the volcanic ridge where there are amazing views of the resort and ocean.  After defeating the volcano the remainder of the course goes along dirt tracks (volcanic dirt being a lot larger than Yorkshire dirt!) down the other side and back up the road to Club La Santa.

For the 5 years that I have been coming here I have supported a massive running club called the Serpentine Runners from London who also have a large Triathlon team. They usually have about 200 in their group at the resort and I was honoured this year to be running along side them.  As we gathered at the start amongst the 100 or so red Serpentine vests was a very solitary Swaledale 1! in green. As I am marathon training just now I decided early on to keep my pace slow thorough this gruelling race and to run at the back of the pack. There’s never much danger of me being in front of it anyway! I teamed up with a Serpie called Caroline and we ran together, Neither of us was out to break any records as we just wanted to get round so we plodded along chatting up the never ending climb onwards and upwards. The weather can change rapidly here. One minute scorching hot and the next overcast and chilly but always windy.  The higher we climbed the windier it became but the views of the sea and volcanic landscape were amazing.

My room mate Jenny Dring was a volunteer for the race and with all the other marshals and drinks attendants bravely stood at points up the ridge for 3 hours freezing. It was very encouraging to see these friendly faces cheering us as we rattled upwards and then back down again.

At the top of the ridge we levelled out and ran along the edge for about 1km. All those times I have struggled up Sleegill, and that long drag up to the trading estate every Tuesday for speed work certainly paid off, so thank you Pete for that! The first downward slope was fairly sheer and there was no track to follow so as I bounced down the rocky terrain I yelled out ‘Thank you North Yorkshire for your hills – and Norman’s fun run’.  Such good grounding for this unusual race. I wore my green vest with pride and there were even people cheering the Swaledale . I found out that one lady had taken part in our Castle run a few years ago.

Caroline and I had our strategy, which was to stay close to the other 2 people in front of us and try to pass them as we entered the stadium so that we were not last. We managed our sprint finish and I did 1hr 23 minutes (thank you again Pete for speed work). Caroline was a few seconds behind passing both ladies with ease. In my age category I came 2^nd, which made me even more elated.

We were 2 first time Ridge Runners from opposite ends of the country, novices in our clubs running together and you cant beat the camaraderie of that!

The icing on the cake was having a lovely chat with Bruce Tulloch who did it in 58.5. He’s a lovely gentleman, very encouraging and I already have his book ‘Running for the over 40s’. He signed a piece of paper for me to stick inside and told me that if I did what he said in the book he was in effect my coach!

For those of you who are coming out with me next year, it will be great to have our team photo in the photo centre, maybe not 200 like the Serpentines but never the less a good team of green vests.

Lin Gossage

Club La Santa

Mick, Norman, Jo and I flew out to Lanzarote to join Lin for a weeks warm weather training at Club La Santa. What a place, just about every sports facility is available and its easy to see why many elite athletes train there.

On our first full day Norman and I went out on an organised 8 km Hill Run which was advertised at 5min/km pace. It should have read 5min/mile pace and we watched most of the group disappear over the horizon. This proved a real blessing as we then formed our own running group for the rest of the week and made some good friends.

We ran twice a day, running up volcanoes, along the ridge that Lin reported on, and on that superb track!

Norman, Lin and Jo took part in a 2 lap 10k race,  (which Norman got lost on and ended up doing 2 1/2 laps, but he did enjoy meeting up and running the 2nd lap with Anne!). Norman and I also completed a very scenic half marathon.

We attended a Sports Massage training session which was especially enjoyable for Norman and his Danish friend. Norman received additional tuition in massaging the Gluteus Maximus!

This was a fantastic week that allowed us to train like full time athletes, in brilliant weather (weather had improved by the time we arrived!), and with excellent company. An autumn return is planned.

Pete Richardson

The Predictor

Thursday March 31^st saw the last predictor of the winter. 11 members set off and with the added advantage of day light not too many managed to get lost. As usual Richard Johnson was the first to finish the long course in a time of 23:53. Erika Johnson was closest to her predicted time, only 4 seconds under, closely followed by Eric Nutter who ran 32:07 only 7 seconds over his predicted time. That makes him only 13 seconds slower than February 2004! Helen Smith (25:07) is steadily lowering her time for the short course. The time Way Out bar went to Pete Richardson who was 142 seconds under his prediction.

Afterwards the large number of cakes available to celebrate both Norman Bell’s and Linda Turnbull’s birthday provided an excellent way to conclude this winter’s events.

The next predictor will be on Thursday September 29^th.

John Hunter

Yorkshire Veterans Athletic Association (Y.V.A.A.)

Please don’t forget we are members of Y.V.A.A.

When you enter a race that includes a Championship of Y.V.A.A. and you are a veteran please tick the box that shows you are a member or you will not get included in the championship and you may miss out on a prize! Details and entry forms of Y.V.A.A. are in the race folders at Richmond and Northallerton, and can also be found at www.yvaa.org. There is also the 10 monthly Grand Prix events that you can enter (on the day, usually the cost is a mere £2 per race) details as above and the monthly results of the Grand Prix are kept in the race folders. Races that I list in the newsletter that are Championship races I will put Y.V.A.A. next to them.

Jo Richardson

Race Diary

Time to get those spring races entered and test the winter training out before the Mid Week League starts in May. The race folder is full of entry forms at the moment, so there’s no excuse!

Apr 23rd  St Georges Day 10k - Langdale

Apr 24th     Rothwell 10k  Y.V.A.A.

May 1st      Kirkbymoorside 10k

May 4th     John Carr Series 5k  Esholt  Y.V.A.A.

May 8th     Fountains 10k

May 15th   Ripon 10m

May 22nd  Yorkshire 10k Newby Hall Estate

May 29th   Wigginton 10k

May 29th   Melmerby 10k

June 4th     Kirkby Malzeard 10k

Jun 5th      Thirsk 10m

Jun 12th    Harewood House Chase 10k

June 26th  Rainton 10k

Harrogate Mid Week League

Dates of Races:

Tues 3^rd May      Ilkley      7.45pm

Tues 17^th May    Dragons  7.45pm

Tues 7^th June      RZH       7.45pm

Tues 21^st June    Skipton   7.45pm

Tues 5^th July      Harrogate  7.45pm

Wed 20^th July    Ripon  - Handicap  7.30pm

See Stu Smith for your number by 17th April. The club is covering the cost of entry this year. Club vests must be worn.

New members

A warm welcome to new members Kate Staines, Noel Sharp, Helen Ovens and a warm welcome back to Angie Went.

A.G.M.

The Club A.G.M. will be held on Sunday 8th May at 7pm at the club house. It is important that all members attend the meeting and use their vote. The annual presentation of trophies will follow the main business.

Paintball

Noman has organised another Paintball session for Sunday 17th April. Cost is £4.99 p/p, plus you pay for paint £5 per 100 balls. 10am til 12noon,  lunch break, then 1pm till finish. Names to Norman A.S.A.P. or by Saturday 16th April.

In Brief

·         Congratulations to Erika for being first lady in the Mermaid 10k in a time of 40.04. Richard was 16th in 35.43.

·         Five club members took part in the Hartlepool Marina 5m, Richard Johnson finished in 28.01, Erika Johnson 31.32, Pete Devlin 35.52, Eric Nutter 37.33 and Glenys Nutter 48.22.

·         Five members also managed the long trip down to Lincoln for The City of Lincoln 10k. John Hunter was first home for the club in 45.47, Pete Richardson 46.20, Karen Saward made her debut in 51.53, Marian Hunter 54.23 and Jo Richardson 63.37.

·         Swaledale were out in force for the Grizedale Forest 10m. Richard was 5th overall, Erika set a new course record in winning the ladies race and Tony Ward won the prize for first over 50.

·         Don’t forget, training in Northallerton on Wednesdays, meet at Mencap Centre at 6pm, all welcome.

·         Good Luck to all those taking part in the London Marathon, we will look out for those green vests on television.

Thought for the Month

Many think they know it all, but I’ve yet to find anyone who can prove it!

Cyril Fell

DATE OF NEXT CLUB MEETING :

A.G.M.  8th May 2005  7pm at the club house