Harriers Herald - January 2013

THE HARRIERS HERALD No. 239, January 2013 Editor: Sue Francis

Contents, features, reports, results • Thursday night schedules for January and February • Annual General Meeting – final reminder • Christmas meal – a successful and enjoyable conclusion to 2012 • Race results and short reports for: Oxford Mail x-country – seven Harriers boost Team Kennet performance; Andy Reading 10K – three Harriers race well in Bicester; Portsmouth Coastal marathon – Christmas food powers Martin, Lucy and Nicola to good performances in mud and wind • Handicap Race – Aaron wins the final 2012 race, and the Championship winner is announced • Webmaster’s article – Mo features the pros & cons of barefoot running, and lists forthcoming races • Thanks to Mo for this month’s contribution • Copy date for next Harriers Herald – 4th February

Thursday night schedule for January Thurs Thurs Thurs Thurs Thurs

3rd 10th 17th 24th 31st

Colin to lead Handicap Race, followed by AGM Lucy to lead Tom to lead Philomena to lead

Thursday night schedule for February Thurs Thurs Thurs Thurs

7th 14th 21st 28th

Terry to lead Handicap Race Martin to lead Pete O to lead

Sender Amateur Athletic Association England Athletics England Athletics

Correspondence received Subject matter

Action

Preliminary notice of AGM (17-03-13)

File

Consultation on 2013 affiliation & registration fees

e-mail circulated to Club members Anyone interested?

I thought not!

Asking for nominations for England Athletics regional councils

Compton Harriers Annual General Meeting – Thursday 10th January The AGM will be held in The Pickled Pig on Thursday 10th January 2013 (after the Handicap Race) starting 8:00pm.

All members are encouraged to attend.

Current Committee members are reminded to please prepare a short summary of the previous year's activities.

If any current Committee member wishes to step down from their post, please contact Martin.

If any member would like to be considered for a position on the 2013 committee (Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer(s), Membership Secretary) please contact Martin.

If anyone has any issues they wish to be raised at the AGM please contact Martin.

Eating arrangements to be confirmed.

1

Harriers Christmas Meal Sue ‘The Bull’ at Streatley proved a good choice for our end of year celebration. A total of 25 Harriers and partners attended and, although we were distributed over four tables, we were all in the same large area, so able to circulate and socialise. The food came out very promptly, was very tasty and there was plenty of it. The meal was followed by the traditional festive fun and quizzes, and the annual presentations.

Tom’s ‘name the British Olympic gold medallists’ photo quiz was won by Nicola and Michael. Just to prove there was no family cheating, Aaron got the lowest score! The ‘guess the weight of the jar of Rowstock honey’ challenge set by Martin and Lucy, was won by Mo, whose educated guess was out by just 3 grams.

Sue announced the results of the annual handicap championship (for full results, see page 5). Third prize went to Dick, second to Colin, while the 2013 Champion was Ricky who was presented with the annual trophy, and a medal (many thanks to Nick Bull for the engraving). On behalf of all the Club members, Pete H presented Jan K with a gift to thanks her for her continued support of the Club, in particular for dedication to time-keeping for our Handicap Races, Boundary Run and Relay.

Martin and Lucy handed round the indoor fireworks, and we finished the evening with Dick’s music picture quiz – all the bands and artists having an animal connection. Terry and Emma won on the tiebreak question, while the team of Neil, Jonathan, Ricky and Charlotte were runners up. Ricky, on an even bigger high than usual, ate his entire prize with minimal assistance!

Below is a selection of Mo’s and Sue’s photos of the evening; more can be viewed online.

2

Race Reports & Results Oxford Mail x-country race 2, Culham, 2nd December Sue Some last-minute course changes enabled this event to go ahead despite the Thames floodplain, used in previous years, being well under water. The organising club, Headington RR, made use of the higher level car-parking field, a clump of trees and a steep down-up dip on the edge of the floodplain to create a multi-lap course which remained challenging and interesting. The morning was bright and sunny, despite being very cold.

The ladies 2-alp race was won by Cirencester’s Jo Emery (21:26). In a field of 156 finishers, I was 11th (23:49) and Lucy 31st (25:33). Unfortunately, once again, there was no third runner to complete our team.

The men raced over 3½ laps. David Bruce (Oxford) won his second successive race in 23:57. Team Kennet men complete a team (7 runners) thanks to the presence of five Compton Harriers. Neil was the first Harrier to finish, 140th in 32:39, with the others finishing in quite close succession: Ricky (149th, 33:01), 159 Jonathan (159th, 33:19), Dave (164th, 33:34), and Colin (184th, 34:54). A total of 238 runners finished, and the TK team was 7th in Division 3.

Andy Reading 10K, 9th December The race is organised by Alcester Running Club and takes place in Bicester. Martin finished in 41:51 (114th), Richard in 44:16 (145th), and Lucy in 45:30 (159th). The race was won by Anuradha Cooray (Vale of Aylesbury AC) in 31:55, and first lady was Samantha Amend (Belgrave Harriers) in 36:24.

Porstmouth Coastal Marathon, 23rd December The day after our Christmas meal, Marti, Lucy and Nicola took part in this race. Lucy says: “Lots of mud, wind, puddles and comedy slip-ups in road shoes, but no hills”. All put in good performances.

Martin finished in 3:31, Nicola in 3:55 and Lucy in 4:02.

3

Handicap Race Sue December’s Handicap Race was held round the Village Lap on a chilly evening with some drizzle.

Aaron set off first and no one could catch him as he won with a comfortable time margin to collect the monthy handicap trophy for the second time in 3 months. Behind Aaron there was a close race as Lucy, who had tracked Colin all the way, sneaked past him down Shepherds Mount, and Sue tried to close them down as all sprinted to the finish. The final three positions were occupied by ‘The Three Richards’, with Messrs Kearn (aka Birthday Boy), Bickerton and Disney separated by just 11 seconds. Thanks to Jan for timing, and well done Aaron.

Finish Position 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Position on handicap 1 2 3 4 5 6 9

Name Aaron Lucy Colin Sue Dick Rich Richard

Start time

Finish time

Actual time

0:50 1:47 1:40 3:02 1:47 3:02 2:11

14:59 15:13 15:15 15:16 15:38 15:47 15:49

14:09 13:26 13:35 12:14 13:51 12:45 13:38

Handicap Beaten?

-0:01 +0:13 +0:15 +0:16 +0:38 +0:47 +0:49

Thanks to everyone who took part in the 2012 Handicap race series - 23 runners competed in at least one of the nine races. Only Colin and Sue ran every race, but Mo, Dick and Richard D ran most of them.

Races 4 and 5 saw 12 runners taking part. Grateful thanks to Jan who was there to time-keep for every race, come rain or shine, ice or heat-wave.

We used three different courses this year: the winter ‘Village Lap’ route for Races 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10; the Bumps route for Race 4; and the Relay route for Races 5, 6 and 7. There were two wins each for Aaron, Ricky and Mo, while Philomena, Pete O and Richard D each won one race.

Mo topped the scoreboard in January and February, with two successive wins. But, by April, Debbie’s consistent good scores had moved her into the lead, a position she maintained until October’s race.

Debbie’s move to Coventry opened the door for others to contest the lead. With his April and June wins backed up by good scores in August and October, Ricky topped the scoreboard after October’s race. In November Colin, the 2011 Champion, sneaked into the lead but, prior to December’s race, there were still a few contenders for winning the championship, so there was all to run for.

After the final race of the series, the top five (or fewer for people who ran less than five races) scores for each person were added to determine their Championship total. It was a close finish, but Ricky emerged as Champion, just one point ahead of Colin, while Dick’s good series of scores clinched third place.

The 2013 Handicap Championship will use the same format and scoring system. The next race is scheduled for 10th January (Village Lap route), and will kick off the 2013 series.

A summary of the results is given on the next page.

4

Pos.

1 2 3 4= 4= 6= 6= 6= 6= 10= 10= 12 13 14 15= 15= 17 18 19= 19= 19= 19= 19=

Name

Ricky Colin Dick Debbie Sue Pete O Mo Aaron Richard Philomena

Lucy Tapani Martin Gillian Jeremy Fernando

Pete H Mags Neil Alex Dina Dave Jonathan

Race 1 (1) 8 10 9 7 6 12 4 5 3 1 -

Race 2 (7) 5 (6) 12 (3) 4 8 10 9 -

Race 3 (7) (6) 10 8 9 12 1 -

Race 4 12 (5) 8 7 (4) 6 3 1 9 10 1 1 -

Race points Race Race Race 5 6 7 12 10 7 (7) 9 10 9 (5) 8 (5) 7 (5) 6 8 3 8 (3) 2 4 12 6 12 6 4 4 10 9 2 1 3 1 1 1 -

Race 8 10 6 9 12 8 5 7 4 -

Race 9 6 9 7 8 12 5 10 -

Total of best 5 47 46 40 39 39 38 38 38 38 25 25 20 15 12 11 11 9 8 1 1 1 1 1

Website update‌ http://www.comptonharriers.org.uk Mo Links of interest this month: Should anyone be interested, information on the Trans Britain 6 Day Ultra event can be found at http://gobeyondultra.co.uk/events/trans_britain_2013. The route covers 7 of the country’s most famous peaks over 156 miles with a total climb of 6500 metres from Scotland to Wales and takes in some of the best trails in the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales. The event takes place on Saturday 7th to Friday 13th September 2013.

My article this month is about Footwear vs Barefoot running: With the ever-rising cost of running shoes, just think of the money you could save by running barefoot!

There's no single answer or prescription that's right for every runner when it comes to footwear and running style and there's no real scientific evidence that running shoes prevent (or cause) injuries, just as there's no proof that barefoot running does either, but would you swap your trusty trainers for minimalist or barefoot running? The determining factor is your running style and in particular, your foot strike.

Various scientific studies show that heavy heel-strikers can't efficiently absorb and dissipate the impact forces of running, which over time can take a toll on muscles, tendons, and joints whereas running with the proper stride length and landing on the ball of the foot will improve efficiency and lower injury risk.

Running barefoot or running with minimalist shoes relies on the latter.

5

When running with the proper stride length, your feet should land directly underneath your body. As your foot strikes the ground, your knee should be slightly flexed so that it can bend naturally on impact.

If your lower leg (below the knee) extends out in front of your body, your stride is too long.

To run efficiently, you need to push off the ground with maximum force. With each step, your foot needs to hit the ground lightly, landing on the ball of the foot, then quickly rolling forward on to your toes.. As you roll on to your toes, you should try to spring off the ground as you feel your calf muscles propelling you forward on each step. Your feet should not slap loudly as they hit the ground … good running is springy and quiet.

Running shoes have often been blamed for the increased incidence of running injuries and many runners have switched to barefoot running for relief from chronic injuries however, would-be barefoot runners should proceed with caution. Scientists studying runners' foot motions have observed striking differences between those wearing shoes and barefoot runners. Those with shoes typically land with an initial heel strike, while the barefoot runner lands with a springier step on the middle, or on the ball of the foot. The barefoot runner’s strike is also shorter in duration and the step rate is higher and by landing on the middle or front of the foot, barefoot runners also have less impact stress.

Running in shoes also appears to increase the risk of ankle sprains, plantar fasciitis and other chronic injuries of the lower limb. However, running shoes also provide several advantages, including protection of the runner from puncture wounds, bruising and thermal injuries from extreme weather conditions. Transitioning to a barefoot running style also takes time to develop, owing to the use of the different muscles and running styles involved. There is also an increased risk of such injuries as pulled calf muscles, Achilles tendonitis, and metatarsal stress fractures.

Another alternative is to use a minimalist shoe such as the ‘Vibram FiveFingers’ which has separate slots for each toe and no cushioning, or the Nike ‘Free’ line of footwear featuring a segmented sole which provides greater flexibility while still providing an amount of cushioning. Saucony have introduced the ‘Kinvara’ line of shoes which halves the thickness of the sole and removes much of the heel cushioning to encourage more of a midfoot strike.

If the above article has stirred your interest and you would like to learn more about this intriguing subject, just visit this on-line link http://zenhabits.net/barefoot-running

6

Forthcoming Events – see Website Events Calendar for full details and listing

Thu 3 Jan Sun 6 Jan Thu 10 Jan Sat 12 Jan Sun 13 Jan Thu 17 Jan Thu 24 Jan Sun 27 Jan Thu 31 Jan Sat 2 Feb Sun 3 Feb Sun 10 Feb

Sun 17 Feb Sun 24 Feb Sun 3 Mar

Sun 10 Mar Sun 17 Mar Sun 24 Mar Tue 26 Mar Sun 31 Mar Sat 6 Apr Sun 7 Apr Sun 21 Apr Sun 28 Apr

Colin to lead - Compton Cliveden Cross Country 2013 - 6 miles Oxford Mail X-C, Horspath, Oxford Handicap Race & AGM COUNTRY TO CAPITAL 45 - Wendover Rough 'n' Tumble 10 Goring, Woodcote and District 10K Lucy to lead Tom to lead Slaughterford 9 Philomena to lead THAMES TROT ULTRA 50 Oxford Mail X-C, Swindon The 4th Reading 5 Meon Valley Plod - PO8 0RE Dursley Dozen - GL11 4BX Wokingham Half Marathon - Cantley Park, Wokingham Bramley 20/10 - RG26 5AH DALWOOD 3 HILLS CHALLENGE (10 Miles) - between Axminster and Honiton Goring 10K Oxford Mail X-C, venue TBC Run Eton Dorney (20k, 10k, 5k - Road) - SL4 6QP Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon 2013 BHF- Longleat Half Marathon Reading Half Marathon - Green Park / Madejski Stadium Ringwood Rabbitrun 10k & 5k - BH24 3QT The Terminator 2013 (Approx 11 miles) - SN9 5EW Schools X-Country 2013 - RG18 9QZ NORTHAMPTON RUNNING FESTIVAL 10k, Delapre Abbey Compton Downland Challenge 40/20 Coombe Gibbett to Overton 16 White Horse Half Marathon - OX12 7LB London Marathon 2013 Highclere 10k

Mo: January 2013

7