Heraldnov17

THE HARRIERS HERALD No. 297, November 2017 Editor: Sue Francis

Contents, features, reports, results        

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Thursday night schedules for November and December Compton Harriers AGM – Preliminary information Christmas Meal – Richard D is organising our Christmas Meal at The Crown & Horns England Athletics affiliation and registration fees for 2018/2019 – Information London Marathon Club Entry 2018 – Preliminary information Race results and reports – York Marathon; RARE 5K; Autumn 100; Ridgeway Run 15K; Abingdon Marathon; Endurance Life Suffolk Coastal Half Marathon; Beachy Head Marathon Handicap Race – A close finish, several PBs, and George extends his Championship lead Webmaster’s article – Mo features: new additions to Harriers Social Media; a very useful new website ‘Authority Running’; a simple way to increase running speed; and a list of forthcoming races showing which Harriers have already entered Thanks to Mo, Darren, Simon, Philomena, Richard D and Martin for this month’s articles and photos

Thursday night schedule for November Thurs Thurs Thurs Thurs Thurs

2nd 9th 16th 23rd 30th

Sue to lead Lucy to lead Vince to lead Darren to lead Handicap Race followed by AGM (see further details below)

Thursday night schedule for December Thurs Thurs Thurs Thurs

7th 14th 21st 28th

Mark to lead Jess to lead Mo to lead No run leader scheduled, but likely to be a few keen to run

Compton Harriers AGM 2017 The AGM is scheduled for the evening of Thursday 30th November at 20:00 (after the Handicap Race) at The Four Points pub (there’ll be time for a pub meal too). All members are encouraged to attend.

The current Officers are asked to confirm to Martin (Chairman) whether they wish to continue in their post for 2018.

If anyone else is interested or willing to take on a position on the Committee, please let Martin know.

Further details and an agenda will be circulated nearer the time.

Compton Harriers Christmas Meal 2017 Richard D I thought it was about my turn to organise the Christmas dinner so here goes!

The date is Friday 15th December and the venue The Crown & Horns in East Ilsley (arrive at 7pm for the meal at 7:30pm).

The price is £24.95 for 3 courses. At this time, I have spoken with the management at The Crown & Horns and made a provisional booking. Please let me know as soon as possible if you will be attending and, if so, whether you will be coming on your own or will be bringing a Spouse / Partner / Friend, so I can get the numbers finalised. Once you have confirmed I will need a £10 per head deposit, so that I can pay The Crown & Horns and confirm the booking. Although I do not initially need to know what you want to eat, it would be helpful if you could let me know as soon as possible once you have confirmed if you are attending.

I hope the choice of venue and date suits all who would like to attend.

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London Marathon Club Entry 2018 Sue Each year every England Athletics-affiliated running club can apply for 'guaranteed' Club Entries to the London Marathon, the number of entries being dependent on the number of first claim club members (our club gets one). Once the applications for Club Entries are open (mid-November) I will apply on behalf of the Club for the 2018 Marathon. Although a guaranteed entry, it is not free - the recipient still must pay the race entry fee As in previous years, we will have a draw to decide who receives this guaranteed place in the Marathon.

Those eligible to be in the draw are any first claim members of Compton Harriers who had posted an entry for the 2018 Marathon but had that entry rejected. If this applies to you, and you would like your name to go in to the draw, let me know and we will hold the draw once our Club Entry has been confirmed.

Information about England Athletics Affiliation and Registration fees The following is a summary of a recent e-mail from England Athletics: The affiliation and registration fees for 2018-19 will be: • Athlete registration fee: £15 (a £1 increase for the 2018/19 Affiliation Year, which starts 1 April 2018).

• Club affiliation fee: £100 per club. This fee remains unchanged since 2015/16.

“These small increases partly reflect increased costs, including inflation, but also reflect a desire for investment in the sport to be maintained and, in some cases, increased. Affiliation and registration fees in England continue to be the lowest among the home countries in the UK and are among the lowest of comparable National Governing Bodies for other sports, but England Athletics will continue to listen to views expressed by those involved in the sport to ensure fair and effective provision across athletics and running. We will consult on this topic again in 2018. While any decision to increase fees is difficult and one that we take seriously, we are doing so as we are committed to delivering programmes and engaging in activities that are valued by our member clubs and registered athletes”.

Race Results and Reports York Marathon, 8th October Meena Mike, Ryan, Sus, Jonathan, Ricky, Terry, Mark (accompanied by significant others - Gerry, Rosie, Charlotte and Emma) and I all made our way to Yorkshire to do either the 10-mile (in the case of Mark) or the marathon. Having travelled to Yorkshire from different directions we all met up for a final carbo-loading session in the evening which was good fun and helped to calm the pre-race nerves. I mistakenly ordered a starter thinking it was a main meal but fortunately I was too nervous to eat much anyway so it was just about enough!

Mike had a few nervous moments when we got back to the B&B and he realized he had locked himself out of his room and the hosts didn’t have a spare key! They ended up having to force the door open, fortunately without too much damage, and were very apologetic at not having a spare key!

Race day dawned at a perfect temperature and with hardly any wind and we soon got to race headquarters, at York University, using the well-organized Park and Run system, with plenty of time to join the never-ending queue for the loos!

Terry had a bit of an incident with his new running shorts, bought at the Running village having forgotten to pack a pair, but I’ll leave that for him to tell you about! Safe to say it caused a lot of laughter before and after the race  HH November 2017

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The race is reasonably well organized with the baggage drop-off and pick-up running smoothly, but I think they could have done with more loos (not that there are ever enough loos at any race). The race start was a good 10 minutes (or so it felt) walk from the race village and I think they could have done with announcements to urge the runners to get a move on because some people, me included, just about made it to the start in time (although I ended up starting in the wrong pen).

The route went through the city for the first couple of miles or so, going past York Minster Cathedral and then out of the city onto quiet country roads making for a nice route. It is mostly flat but with one or two gently undulating sections. There was opportunity for blessing by the Archbishop of York who was out on the route cheering us on.

We all met up at the end and exchanged our tales of woe and then limped off back home in our various directions as unfortunately there was nowhere close enough for us all to go for a celebratory meal together and head back home before it got too late.

I think it is a fast course and a nice route with PB potential, and I would recommend it to anyone looking to do a different autumn marathon.

Name Mike Ryan Philomena Terry Susanne Rich Jonathan

Marathon results Gun time 3:22:44 3:41:35 3:41:35 3:51:39 3:54:38 4:11:46 4:27:54

Chip time 3:21:24 3:41:12 3:38:32 3:551:16 3:51:35 4:04:45 4:25:45

10-mile results Name Mark

Gun time 1:35:03

York Marathon and 10-mile photos

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Chip time 1:33:36

RARE 5K, 8th October Sue I completed this local race (at Rutherton Appleton campus, Harwell) in a time of 20:17, which was over 30 seconds faster than last year (due to better pacing, rather than better fitness!) and placed me 9th out of 106 finishers (1st lady).

Autumn 100, 21st / 22nd October Giles finished this tough local 100-miler in 24:36:47, 99th out of 178 finishers (and over 200 starters).

Report and photos next month.

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Ridgeway Run 15K, Tring, 8th October Simon Even though I still manage to rack up around 25 miles a week I don’t enter many events nowadays, partly because of my CBA Syndrome but mainly because there aren’t that many local events – and even then, they’re neither advertised particularly well nor reported on in the waste of tree which calls itself the local paper. So, having seen the Ridgeway Run listed in the HH Calendar – an event which I last ran in 2010 – I thought it was about time I had another crack at it.

I didn’t have the best of times in the three weeks leading up to the run; a more-than-slightly-worrying medical event (I’ll spare you the details) saw me on a course of antibiotics for a week, following which Hannah very kindly gave me a stonking head cold the week before. Still, I’d paid my entry fee so thought I may as well get the t-shirt, and duly headed over to Tring Cricket Club with Henry on the morning of the 8th…

Other than the marshals I think I was first in the car-park. Fine by me – I don’t really like crowds – and I wandered over to the main building to collect my number and grabbed a cup of coffee and a flapjack. By the time I returned to Henry the car-park had filled up – the race entries had closed at 650 a few weeks before the event – and the pre-race atmosphere was starting to build.

The start is around a 10-minute walk from the car-park, so I headed off at 9:45 and joined the stream of runners heading for Marshcroft Lane. Just after 10am everyone started moving forward, though no-one had heard the start gun, and it was only when we reached the timing mat that we realised the race had begun.

Now that’s what I call a low-key start…

The route, although slightly revised in 2015, was predominantly the same as I remember: a flat first mile before heading off-road on some gently-climbing but narrow footpaths and then a couple of steeper climbs up to Bridgewater Monument and the first drinks station just after the 3-mile marker. The route then flattens out a bit along some wide woodland tracks before descending via Inchcombe Hole to the second drinks station, just after 6 miles. We then headed over Pitstone Hill and picked up Grim’s Ditch/the Ridgeway to descend through some woods before returning via the outward route to Marshcroft Lane and back to the finish at the Cricket Club. And, almost inevitably, despite the many warning signs of tree-roots and rabbit holes on the run along Grim’s Ditch, a couple of runners – including one right in front of me – managed to go base over apex.

Having started near the back, with the intention of doing a run/walk, I actually found that I ran more than walked and consequently overtook a number of other entrants, mainly while walking uphill. All-in-all it was a very enjoyable event and, having not done it for seven years, I left thinking I would definitely return to this one in future. At least I thought that until…

As a result of chip-timing, preliminary results were available that afternoon, though I have to say that as they listed Start Time, Gun Time and Chip Time (none of which added up) they were not only a little confusing but also highly inaccurate; according to the initial results my average pace was 11:13 per mile, which made the course distance 8.96 miles rather than the official revised route distance 9.6 miles. Then again, dividing either the Chip Time or the Gun Time by the Pace per mile (given in minutes and seconds) on the Results Base website resulted in every finisher apparently covering one of two different distances (neither of which were anywhere close to the official distance) despite being on the same course. Figure that one out...

The official results, posted on Sunday evening, didn’t look much better as finishers were listed by Gun Time rather than Chip Time, which rendered the whole reason for chip-timing rather pointless. Not only that, but all the times had been randomly increased or decreased by one second. So, I emailed Tring Running Club to point out the anomalies in the results and ask why they weren’t in chip-time order, as the whole point of having chips is to record the actual time taken between the start and finish lines regardless of when the gun goes off (isn’t it?). The response, which I have included below (next page), was, I thought, slightly sarcastic and just a little dismissive:

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“The results on both Results Base and the pdf are in position order, i.e. the order in which the runners crossed the line, which means that they are effectively in gun time order. This is done in most races, as prizes are normally awarded based on position and gun times. I believe that this is to avoid the situation where the first runner across the line is not the winner!

As races have got larger and chip timing has become available, chip times are often also published, as these are of interest to the individual runners.

I believe that you are a Compton Harrier, so I will use as an example the recent Compton Downland Challenge (won by Tom Sawyer, who happens to come from Tring Running Club). These are published in gun time order, and you will see that position 39 has a slower chip time than position 40. http://www.sportsystems.co.uk/ss/results/Compton%2020%20mile%20Downland%20Challenge/2740 So, the moral of the story is, I think, if you have a chance of winning something, start near the front!

I hope that is useful, and that you enjoyed the race yesterday.

Regards, Judi Hopcroft, Ridgeway Run Entries Secretary, Tring Running Club”

Now maybe it’s just me, and you can call me a pedant if you like (I’ve been called worse…), but I really can’t see the point of using chip timing if the times are then going to be ignored in the results. The chip timing was obviously used for logging finishers’ numbers because there was no-one recording them as runners crossed the line, but to use chip timing just for that just makes it a very expensive way of not having someone at the finish with a clipboard. Either use gun-to-finish times or start-to-finish-chip-times, but not both. Otherwise they may as well have just had someone on the finish line telling finishers “oh, that was about [insert finish time]”…

According to the gun times, first home this year in a time of 55:32 was Stephen Buckle of St Albans Striders, followed by Thomas Grimes (East London Runners) in 56:04 and Tim Harris (Unattached) in 56:16, whilst Claire Hallissey of Dacorum and Tring AC led the ladies home in a time of 1:04:36, followed by Julie Humphries (Alton Runners) in 1:06:52 and Wendy Walsh of St Albans Striders in 1:09:41. And having (accurately) recorded 1:40:38 on my watch, I was shown as finishing with a gun time of 1:42:05 (in 425th place) and a chip time of 1:40:34 (which would have been 421st place). And yes, it does matter.

In all there were 539 finishers, the last of which was timed at 2:13:49 and who, apparently – depending on whether you use the gun time or the (allegedly) accurate start-to-finish chip time – covered either 9.1 miles or 9.0 miles.

So the question is: would I do it again? As of this moment that’s a very tricky one to answer: the Ridgeway Run is, I have to say, a very well organised event – but then again it should be, it’s been going for 36 years now – and the facilities and marshalling are excellent. On the other hand, however, the results are kaka – in fact quite possibly the worst set of ‘results’ I’ve seen in 35 years of running – and I was very much less than impressed with the response to my email. I might do it again but, then again, I’ve got enough t-shirts and I can save myself a tenner and do an approximately-timed 15K off-road run anytime I want.

I know several members of the Harriers have made the trip up to Tring in previous years, and admittedly it’s a bit of a trek from Compton (mind you, I did meet a team of ladies who’d driven up from Harwell to run), but if you’ve not been to this one before then overall it’s probably – though I stress ‘probably’ – worth putting on the to do list.

I’d recommend you time yourself though, ‘cos the results really don’t make any sense at all.

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Abingdon Marathon, 22nd October Darren And so to my first Marathon attempt. Having been a busy time, I had done very little actual Marathon training. In fact, in reality, I had only twice ever run 20 miles, and never beyond. The immediate run up didn't go well, with a back issue, an ankle issue, usual knee issues, and really struggling with my right hamstrings; so all set.

The day itself was good weather, dry, sunny, but a touch windy from the remnants of storm Brian. Parking at Abingdon & Witney College was well signposted and well marshalled. I shall have my usual moan however about lack of toilets, only one line of portaloos at Tilsley Park. OK you could argue that Tilsley Park has its own toilets, which it does, but not enough for 1000 + people. Before I move off this subject, the literature stated toilets at the Park Club, they appeared not to have materialised. Anyway, enough of bogs. Tilsley Park is a great athletics venue, and the whole event was really well marshalled, all encouraging and friendly.

I found Vince sheltering from the chilly start, so we warmed up together around the athletics track. Vince was aiming for 3:20 so positioned himself a bit nearer the front. I opted to loiter around nearer the back of the pack, as I was only aiming to get to the finish and hopefully under 4 hours. So off we went, right hamstring playing up from the word go, but didn't seem to be getting any worse. I knew I needed to be hitting around 9-minute miles, so that's what I did, right the way through. For the first 7-ish miles I was generally being overtaken, then without me speeding up it just turned on its head and I found myself doing the vast bulk of the overtaking. I felt really quite good through the mid-period, and before I knew it I was at 20 miles. Things from there got a little less pleasant, it just seemed to be the longest 10k ever. Around mile 23 - 24 the right hamstring was cramping up, I was pretty much shouting at it! As the mini bus kept passing me collecting those collapsed along the roadside, I was desperate not to get in it. Anyway, I worked my way through it and, would you believe, back on Tilsley Park track my left hamstring cramped up, but finish I did, 3:56. Job done. I have a Marathon finish and PB on the board.

I'm not sure if I would have got there without such amazing support I had, from friends, family, a couple of Police colleagues, and that's before I mention my amazing Compton Harriers friends. So here we go, Mark, Sue, Mo, Ryan, Terry, Gerry, Charlotte, Ricky, and not to mention the living legend Philomena. Also wishes of support from those not able to be present. I hope I haven't forgotten anyone. Just amazing support, what a team.

So, would I do another? Yes, I think I would.

Editor’s note: This was also Vince’s first Marathon, and he clocked 3:21.

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Endurance Life Suffolk Coastal Half Marathon (13.8M), Dunwich, 21st October Richard D Storms can have a major impact in this part of Suffolk. Dunwich was the capital of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of the East Angles with eight churches and a population of around 3,000 and a similar size to London in the 13th century, but the harbour and most of the town have since disappeared under the sea. At its height it was an international port but its decline began in 1286 when a storm surge hit the East Anglian coast, followed by another two great storms in 1287, and the thriving port was eventually reduced in size to the village of around 100 inhabitants it is today.

With the arrival of hurricane Brian forecast to hit during the race, it therefore felt a bit ominous to be preparing to run an over-distance off-road half marathon at Dunwich. With the race also coinciding with spring high tides just as the runners hit the beach 3 ½ miles into the race, there was a lot to think about prior to the start. In the event, beautiful blue skies, which persisted throughout the race, and an initially gentle breeze, made it difficult to think about what conditions might develop.

The race is one of the Endurance Life trail runs, a group of races held monthly at various locations around the coast of England and Wales. (There is a 2-page feature on the Dorset event in the December 2017 edition of Runners World). Each event consists of four races run over the approximate distances of 10k, half marathon, marathon and ultra, the latter consisting of the marathon course and 10k course combined. At Dunwich the actual distances raced were 6.2 miles, 13.8 miles, 26.8 miles and 33 miles.

I chose to race the Suffolk event as my first half marathon in over 10 years as I know the area and the terrain is the least intimidating of the series!

All the races were sold out but, due to the narrow paths and sensitive nature of the National Trust and RSPB Minsmere sites over which most of the races are run, none of the fields seemed much larger than a league crosscountry race. It also had the friendly feel of those crosscountry races and I had several friendly conversations with other runners before and after the race.

With the ultra-race starting at 08:30 and the marathon at 09:00, it was the turn of the half marathon runners to start their race at 10:30. (The 10k began at 11:30). The first 4 miles travelled north along the Suffolk Coastal path at the edge of coastal marshes, and with the wind at our backs. I had planned to edge myself slowly into the race and was surprised to find myself after two miles running at a pace almost half a minute per mile faster than I had planned – a bit worrying! I subsequently slowed down a bit just as we hit a tricky bit of beach running, before turning due south into the storm winds after the first checkpoint at 4 ½ miles in Walberswick. The next 4 miles wound westward through the reed beds of Walberswick National Nature Reserve, with several stretches on board walks, and some patches which were very boggy. At this point a few runners overtook me as I slowed a bit and my fast early pace caught up with me.

After leaving the reed beds the remaining 5 ½ miles ran mainly south through sheltered Dunwich Forest and the more open Dunwich Heath. Although I began to tire a bit I did begin to overtake a few runners, some who were obviously struggling. However, after the second checkpoint just after the 9-mile point, I managed HH November 2017

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to get a second wind having taken a mid-race feed. With the routes of the four races merging with just over a mile to go I was helped along to the finish by running through some slower 10k runners and finished the race in 68th place just outside 2 hours (my pre-race goal) in 2:01:10 (the winner’s time was 1:29:22). Very impressively, I was given a print-out with my position, time and splits as I handed in my wrist chip. Later I found out that I had won the V60 prize, finishing 2 minutes ahead of the second V60 runner.

Overall my impressions of the race were very positive. The organisation was excellent with a comprehensive pre-race briefing for each race, a fully marked course – it was really difficult to take a wrong turn – and free race snacks on registration and finishing, with plenty of opportunities to stock up with more. Loo facilities were great, and as a result queues were almost non-existent! It was also the first time I had raced where the electronic timing system used was by SPORTident, developed for orienteering and mountain marathons events with multiple checkpoints. (No mats are used at the start or finish - the wireless device is attached to your wrist and you just tap it into a marshal’s hand-held device at each checkpoint). I definitely plan to return to the event next year and have already entered the Northumbrian Coastal event, which finishes at Bamburgh Castle, in February! (See next page for photos).

Beachy Head Marathon, Eastbourne, 28th October Martin This is a regular Autumn run for Lucy and me. We book a room in a Travelodge for the Friday night, so we can make a weekend of it. Gone are the days when we would get up at 4:00 in the morning, run the course and drive back in the same day.

Now the attraction is a trip to the seaside and a day out running through some superb scenery, which includes the Seven Sisters Country Park. We also meet up with a few folks we know and exchange war stories. The event has evolved over time but follows the same format and route. The only real change recently has been the introduction of a 10K fun run that starts shortly after the marathon (9:20am). Regardless of which race folks enter, they are all treated to a steep hill start and finish in front of St Bede's school where the marathon runners can get a hot meal, shower and swim in the school pool. Not sure what the 10kers are treated to.

The race is well marked and marshalled so there is no chance of getting lost and there is no end of cake, tea, biscuits, soup, sausage rolls, buns etc that you can munch as you run round. This year Lucy and I also took a dip in the sea, just so we could compare our Isle of Wight and Beachy Head experiences. I think, on balance, the bathing experience was better on the IoW. Lucy has already booked our accommodation and entry for next year. Perhaps we will see a few more Harriers on the start line in 2018 http://www.beachyheadmarathon.co.uk/course-information.aspx

Results: Todd Leckie: Alexis Williams: Martin Fray: Lucy Gettins:

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2:56:45 (first home) 3:27:09 (first lady) 4:31:18 5:20:17 (sore hip)

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Handicap Race Sue Our return to the winter handicap route saw 13 runners taking part. Defending champion Jess was not able to run this time, so she gave the trophy to George to bring along. This proved a good omen for George as he set a PB to win the race by 1 second ahead of a fast-finishing Ben. This was Ben’s first race since becoming a Dad. Fatherhood is obviously suiting him well as he also set a PB, recording the evening’s fastest time.

Darren, Vince and Martin ran at relaxed pace to save themselves for their forthcoming marathons. Darren accompanied Mark, who was running this route for the first time, to guide him round the route. With Darren’s pacing and encouragement, Mark ran well to take third spot.

Thanks to Jan, Dick and injured Colin for timing and recording the finishing order. The next Handicap Race (last of the 2017 series) is scheduled for 30th November, and will again be around the Village Lap route.

Finish Position 1 2 3= 3= 5 6 7 8 9 10= 10= 12= 12=

Position on handicap 1 2 3 13 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11= 11=

Name

Start time

George Ben Mark Darren Aaron Sue Lucy Philomena Jonathan Mo Kristie Vince Martin

Finish time

Actual time

19:51 19:52 19:59 19:59 20:01 20:02 20:07 20:18 20:23 21:37 21:37 22:29 22:29

12:34 11:55 15:42 15:42 12:34 12:31 14:51 14:08 13:29 20:59 20:59 14:32 14:46

7:17 7:57 4:17 4:17 7:27 7:31 5:16 6:10 6:54 0:38 0:38 7:57 7:43

See next page for latest Championship scores

Handicap Race runners HH November 2017

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Handicap Beaten?

-0:09 -0:08 -0:01 +3:45 +0:01 +0:02 +0:07 +0:18 +0:23 +0:37 +0:57 +2:29 +2:29

Handicap Championship With eight of the nine races now complete, George’s October win has extended his Championship lead to 7 points over Philomena. By my calculations, only two people could possibly catch George now, and to do this they would need to win November’s race and beat George by 4 places.

However, there are several people who could possibly take second or third spot in the Championship – it will all come down to the final race, so make sure you’re there on November 30th!

Pos.

1 2 3 4 5 6= 6= 8 9 10= 10= 12 13 14 15 16 17= 17= 19 20= 20= 22 23= 23= 23= 23=

Name

George Philomena Darren Ben Sue Mo Aaron Kirsty Ryan Jonathan Richard D Tim Mark Martin John Colin Jess Lucy Richard T Susanne Vince Mike Kristie Dick Charlotte Pete O

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Race 1

Race 2

Race 3

Race 4

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

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

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

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

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

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

Race 7

Race 8

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

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

Race 9 -

Total of best 5 45 38 35 34 33 31 31 25 24 23 23 21 20 18 17 16 13 13 11 10 10 9 3 1 1 1

Website update‌ http://www.comptonharriers.org.uk Mo In view of the recent activity within the club encouraging members to share info on which races they have entered, I have made a note of the various entries, so they can be shared with all club members, especially those who aren't so active on social media. With this in mind, I have already started adding 'Club Events' in Strava (other than training sessions) when I know two or more Harriers have entered or are planning to enter an event. These are also shared on Facebook and Twitter in addition to the standard auto email sent to members in the 'Harriers Club' on Strava.

I have also added footnotes in the Events table below, so you can decide if you wish to enter the popular events and turn them into a 'Harriers' day out!

If you haven't already signed up on either Strava or WhatsApp, then keep an eye on the website calendar and I will indicate which events other members have already entered. (Click on the event and then click on 'More Details' in the pop-up window to see if any Harriers have entered). Of course, if you want to keep up with the interactive daily events, logging the various training and race performances, then just create your own Strava account and then join the Harriers club page which was set up by Darren, who had the amazing forethought to make me an Administrator!

For general chat and discussion about daily happenings, and to find out who is interested in particular events, you will need to join the Harriers 'WhatsApp' group, recently set up by Rich B ... just drop him an email after you have installed WhatsApp on your smart phone and he will add you to the group.

Links of interest this month: At this time of year, the last thing you want is a cold so, to avoid having to take time out from training, you may need to give your immune system an extra boost! Check out Running Bug's '5 immune boosting tips for runners' https://therunningbug.com/eat/nutrition/5-ways-runners-can-boost-their-immune-system .

On the subject of Running Injuries & Recovery, one of the best sites I've come across recently is 'Authority Running'. The site covers all the usual running injuries and provides recovery tips, stretching and foam rolling advice, tips on staying injury-free and advice on what gear you should be using to get you back on your feet and in full swing as soon as possible. The link is https://authorityrunning.com/injuries-recovery.

The site also provides excellent links to other organisations that give further advice on treatment and recovery. The main site at https://authorityrunning.com covers everything from a beginner's guide to running ultra-marathons, and is set to expand in the near future ... well worth a visit!

How to increase your basic speed and run faster: My article last month was about running faster for longer through 'Tempo Training', which concentrates on your current basic running speed. Continuing on the same theme, this month's article is about a simple method to increase your basic running speed by adding short sprints or bursts of speed at the end of a training run.

Not to be confused with Tempo speed work training, short sprints or bursts of speed introduced at particular moments in your training schedule will help to increase your basic speed and also build on your body’s general fitness over time.

According to various experts on the subject, sprints, or short bursts of speed lasting for 10 - 20 seconds at the end of an easy run, will improve 'neuromuscular coordination' by teaching your body a new way to activate muscles efficiently. The short bursts should not be at flat-out sprint speed, but more at a pace that you can maintain whilst still running as fast as you can in a fairly 'relaxed' way.

For example, try adding two 15-second bursts of speed at the end of your run, when your muscles are completely warmed up. Rest for a minute or so in between bursts (or as long as it takes to catch your breath), and build up to performing 4 – 6 post-run bursts over time. Start by adding your speed bursts on just one day per week, continuing until it becomes easy, and then increase your speed burst sessions to twice a week maximum.

Let me know if it works for you ... if it does, I might give it a go myself!

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Events of Interest – see Website Training & Events Calendar for full details: (http://www.comptonharriers.org.uk/WebPlus/Calendar.htm)

Nov 2017

Dec 2017

Jan 2018

Feb 2018

Mar 2018

Apr 2018

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09:30 Swinley Forest 10k & 10 mile Muddy Mo Run • 10:30 Burnham Beeches Run - 5k & 10k 9:30 Marlow ½ Mthn & 7miles • 10:00 Reading Rivermead 10k • 11:20 Oxford Mail XC League Rnd 1 (Newbury) 10:00 Shakespeare Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K and 5K • Bourne Woods Brutal 10k 10:00 Regents Park 10k • Grand Union Canal Half Mthn • 11:05 Bath Hilly Half & Ultra-10k 09:30 Milton Keynes 5k & 10k Mo Run • 10:00 Rugged Radnage 10k • Castle Combe ‘Chilly’ 10K • Gosport ½ Mthn 11:00 Herberts Hole 10k (Multi Terrain) • BBO XC Championships 10:00 Downton ½ Mthn • 10:30 Eynsham 10K i • 10:30 Avebury8 Nine 09:30 Reading Santa Run 5k • 10:00 Mapledurham Ten & 10K ii • 11:20 Oxford Mail XC League Rnd 2 (Venue tbc) 10:00 Milton Keynes Winter Half Marathon • 10:30 Andy Reading 10k • 11:00 Tadley Runners Xmas XC 5.3 10:30 Dinton Santa Dash 2k & 5k 10:00 Muddy Welly 5k, 10k & ½ mile Fun Run • Berkshire XC Champs • 11:00 Hooky Christmas Canter - 7miles MT 10:30 Goring and Streatley Fell Running Championships 2017 10:00 Gut Buster 10k or 10Miles 11:20 Oxford Mail XC League Round 3 (Adderbury) Country to Capital 45 10:15 Woodcote 10k • 11:00 Rough 'n Tumble 10 iii 11:00 Gloucester Mthn, 50k & ½ Mthn 10:00 Longleat 10K • 10:30 Harpenden 10km Thames Trot Ultra 50 11:20 Oxford Mail XC League Round 4 (Venue tbc) 10:30 Bramley 20 mile & 10 mile Road Races 10:00 Wokingham ½ Mthn 09:00 Brighton Half Marathon 11:20 Oxford Mail XC League Round 5 (Farmoor) 10:45 Deep River Trail ½ Mthn & 10k Reading ½ Mthn iv • Ridge Off Roader • 10:30am Grizzly 2018 09:00 Yeovil Half Marathon 09:30 Maidenhead Easter 10 White Horse ½ Marathon • Thames Tow Path 10 The Brighton Marathon 10:00am Virgin Money London Marathon • Southampton Mthn v, ½ Mthn, 10k & 1 mile fun run

... don't forget, if you want to search for more events, especially those further afield, just follow our page link for other sources: http://www.comptonharriers.org.uk/linkindex.htm#Event Finder: Foot Notes: Harriers Entries to date ... i

Sue, Martin, Lucy Ryan, Darren, Mike, Rich B, Meena iii Ryan, Mike, Darren iv Mike, Emma v Vince, Mike, Meena, Rich B ii

HH November 2017

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