Newsletter No 77 (aka 2017-03) – 17 Jan 2016

Last weekend:
Outside of a Hounds Xmas party, I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many Hounds in one place as there were at Swindon parkrun on Saturday. Of the 529 finishers, 77 were Hounds. There were at least another half-dozen in attendance, either marshalling or supporting. I think we made an impact, so well done to everyone!
Congratulations to Marc Bennett for showing real effort and dedication to our sport by taking part in the January Chocathon Challenge' in Deal, a 350 mile round trip which sounds a lot (but not if you love chocolate!), posting a time of 3:35:44. How much time was spent eating chocolate is not recorded, but it does sound like a lot of fun – maybe a club outing next year?
Emma Dickson 53.08
Karen Ferris 55.42
Jon Weedon 59.37
Craig Gould 1.05.39
This weekend…
As ever, who knows…
Annual General Meeting 2017
Thanks to all who turned out at the AGM, and congratulations to our new committee members:
Male Captain – Chris Bunce
Secretary – Mel Hopkins
Social – Julia Haskell
Members without portfolio – Gill Peacock, Michelle Leighton
Our thanks to outgoing members Jason Parr, Hazel Anderson and Sue Corrigan.
Future Club Events
25 Jan - Wednesday Chilli Night
05 Feb – Lungbuster – club members are welcome to run, but we WILL require support on the day to marshal the event!
19 Feb – CC: Bramley 20/10 - 10 or 20 miles, you can do either event to score points (just to mix it up a bit) / 22 Feb - Wednesday Chilli Night
19 Mar – CC: Highworth 5, link to follow
29 Mar - Wednesday Chilli Night
17 Jun – Broad Town 5; this is a Hounds-organised event and, whilst (new) club members will be welcome to run, volunteers are sought to help marshal this popular race.
parkrun
If you want your efforts at parkrun, in Swindon or elsewhere, to be recorded as a Hound, please ensure that your profile is updated.
Gloucester Marathon
This event takes place on Feb 5th, and our own Mr Marathon, Marc Bennett, will be on the start line. Entries are still open, at time of writing, should anyone wish to join him.
Forthcoming off road events
#7 -Lungbuster 8 - Royal Wootton Bassett, Sunday 5th February 2017 (see below!)
#8 - SMaRTT Smasher - Calne, Sunday 19th February 2017
And the Gloucestershire Cross Country League:
Feb 18 2017 - Cheltenham &Co Harriers, Pittville Park
For more info, please contact Paul Appleby.
Lungbuster 2017 - Sunday 5th Feb
As mentioned last week, Sue C will be acting as Race Director for the Lungbuster. She will be looking for set-up support the day before (Feb 4th), marshals on the day itself and loads of the ever-popular cakes for which this club is becoming famous.
If you are able to help out, please let her know ASAP. Thanks in advance.
Swindon Half Marathon
In case you’ve missed the news on Facebook and in the Adver, the Swindon Half will take place on Sunday September 3rd. There’s a new route, its more town focussed, and is sure to be a major success. Entries open on Feb 1st, keep an eye on their website for more information.
Chedworth Roman Trail
This popular 10 miler takes place on 9th April at 10:30. According to Runners World “It is a challenging multi-terrain race that uses a variety ofundulating tracks, footpaths, fields, and features a river crossing.Having being voted one of the best trail races in Gloucestershire, 97% of entrants would dothe race again”.
It sells quickly so, if you’re interested, click here ASAP.
Calling all Ultra Runners
The ULTRA running festival is taking place in June in Edington, Wiltshire. It’s a weekend of workshops, talks, Q&As, and 'how-to' sessions.
Current details can be seen online and Facebook with the speakers and programme being finalised in the next few weeks.
Castle Combe Chilly Duathlon (advert)
The season opening Castle Combe Chilly Duathlon Sunday 19th February.Set at the super-smooth Castle Combe Race Circuit, it is the ideal event to test that winter training!
The event is entirely traffic-free and so is perfect for the first timer and experienced athlete alike!
The event starts with a 2-mile lap of the perimeter track before heading out onto the super-fast tarmac of the circuit itself. The 5-lap, 10 mile cycle is followed by a final 2 mile perimeter lap run.
The course culminates with our DB Max finish straight and of course the all-important bespoke DB Max finishers'medal..!
As always the awesome DB Max Sports Timing team will be on hand providing live results including all those splits and bike laps.
For those who prefer a shorter day, there is also have the Castle Combe Chilly 10k on the same day (click on link for full details).
2017 Membership Fees
From our Membership Secretary, Vickie Reay:
Following the AGM, 2017 fees are now due please. I will be at club on Weds, you can post through my door or leave in an envelope addressed to me behind the bar at WBSA. Forms available from our website or from the Hounds noticeboard in the club house.
Please aim to have your fees paid by the end of January. The 2017 fees are as follows:
Full Membership £30
Senior (over 65) £21
Second Claim £17
Student (full time) £17
Social Family Member £10
For those who were not at the AGM, the additional family membership no longer exists and the Social Family Member is for those who want to come along as support on the club outing, attend club social events and be affiliated to WBSA so they get the benefit of the reduced price drinks in the club house. Social members cannot join in with any club running, cycling or swim sessions and will not be EA affiliated.
Unfortunately the increased EA fees (individual & club), WBSA social affiliation fees, WAA fees, TRI affiliation fee means this category was making the club a loss; EA fees alone are £13 per individual and due to increase to £15 over the next two years so the proposal that was passed at the AGM was to have a minimal increase to full membership but no longer have the additional family membership.
Any questions at all, please let me know and thanks to those who have already posted me their forms and payment .
Paul Appleby
As many of you will have noticed, either at the time or on Facebook afterwards, Paul Appleby had a bit of a ‘turn’ after parkrun on Saturday, the suggestion being that he was either disappointed not to get a PB orwanted to jump the rather lengthy queue for a coffee. Or, maybe, he was trying to avoid collating the results for the club champs with so many of us in attendance?
Now I know we Hounds are a resourceful bunch and there cannot be many of us who, when growing up, longed to have a ride in a police car, fire engine or ambulance – each with lights blazing and racing along the roads. Whatever the excuse, lying down in the middle of the café might be deemed as being a tad excessive. Still, full marks for effort!
All joking aside it was fortunate that, thanks to Tim Owens who was there at the time andto the NHS’ finest whoduly attended the emergency call, Paul was subsequently allowed home and is recovering nicely. Big thanks also to those club members who helped Paul and his wife during what was a traumatic experience. He is doing well and, needless to say, we wish him a speedy recovery.
ICE
This sad event does highlight the importance of carrying ICE with you – not just when running, but at all times. I can hear some of you saying ‘ICE’? It’s short for In Case of Emergency and, whilst we hope you will never need to use it, it should carry the following information:
Your name
Any medical conditions that first responders should be aware of
A contact telephone number
You can pick a RWBH ICE card from the club box, held behind the bar. Once you’ve added your details, it’s recommended that you fasten one to your running shoe – that way you’ll never leave the house without it!
Safety
Continuing with that theme, you will all – hopefully – have seen the e-mail from Lorraine about a complaint she received from a local motorist following the club run on Monday evening.
It seems that a local driver very nearly ran over a runner, possibly female, who was dressed all in black, and whose clothing carried no reflective markings or other warning lights.
We are reasonably certain that said runner was NOT a member of the Hounds, but the incident does serve to highlight the risks that running late at night (especially at this time of year) bring.
As you know, Lorraine sends out emails concerning each run and they all carry the following advice –“Reminder wear reflective clothing or lights, no MP3, Ipods etc. (head torches recommended)” – so please take note. We have had enough incidents of late whereby fellow runners have had accidents and we do not need any more.
Please be careful out there. As a club, we can only do so much by way of advice, but the ultimate responsibility rests with you!
Finally…
Any finish is a good finish - just make sure you live to tell the tale!
So, on that sombre note, I’ll bid you farewell and see you all next time.
Den
RWBHRC Webmaster