The following are extracts from the Club's quarterly magazine, which was published in December 2000:
NB: The club's race results are covered by weekly updates on the NEWS page
Sat 8 Dec Fraternity Cup (+NWLL), Trent Park - Our home fixture, which includes the third North West London League fixture for young athletes. Details from team managers.
Sat 22 Dec Club X/C Champs - Cross Country Champs for all age groups male and female (inc U11s). First race 2pm. Meet at the Clubhouse 1pm - 10 min walk to the course.
Boxing Day Boxing Day Handicaps, Clubhouse - 3.4 miles Seniors, 1.7 miles YAs. Meet at Clubhouse at 10am. First race 10-30am. Remember this is a fun event when the racing is not to be taken too seriously. This year we are reverting to fancy dress (not compulsory) & there will be prizes. Please bring any unwanted Christmas presents for the now legendary raffle, also cakes, sausage rolls, biscuits etc for the after race feast. There will be the usual free lucky dip for the young children. Bring family & friends to enjoy the festive atmosphere & help is always welcome with marshalling & the teas.
Sat 29 Dec Chingford League, Highams Park - Another important league fixture for both the mens and womens teams. Details from Kirsty Johnstone (0208 447 0457) and Steve Chilton (0208 482 381).
Sat 5 Jan Middx County Champs, Cranford - Details from team managers.
Sat 5 Jan Herts County Champs, Watford - Details from team managers.
Sat 26 Jan Southern Counties Champs, Parliament Hill - Details from team managers.
Sat 9 Feb Club 7m X/C Country Champs, Clubhouse - The traditional long cross country champs race - Senior and Vet Men and Women only. 2pm start. Numbers from Clubhouse. Includes sealed handicap.
Tue Mar 5 Chingford League, Eastway - Can we finish the season with a bang, and win all four trophies in this league. Details from team managers - Kirsty Johnstone and Steve Chilton.
Sun 7 Apr Southern 12 stage (men) and 6 stage (Women) Road Relays, Milton Keynes - We ought to be able to field our two best teams ever this year. Contact team managers if you are available.
This list of forthcoming events is not exhaustive, and just includes the MAJOR club events. There are many more, whose details are on the winter fixture card.
This year’s Awards Evening and Social was held at the Barnet Conservative
Club. The youngsters trophy winners were:
BEST MINOR (U11) - Emily Prati
GIRLS WINTER POINTS TROPHY - Kath Henderson
BOYS WINTER POINTS TROPHY - Ben Nagy
GIRLS SUMMER POINTS TROPHY - Gemma Smith
BOYS SUMMER POINTS TROPHY - Jason Mbyuamba
U13 GIRLS BEST PERFORMANCE - Laura Cioffi
MOST IMPROVED COLT (BU13) - Stephen Rayner
U15 GIRLS BEST PERFORMANCE - Sacha,Gemma,Keli,Alex
U15 BOYS 400m - Leor Harel
ERNIE THOMPSON TROPHY (impr BU15) - Alex Horton
BEST U17 GIRL - Denise Blair
DODESHEIDE TROPHY (best club BU17) - Shaun Reid
ROAD HANDICAP TROPHY - Niall Fleming
The Senior trophy winners were:
LADIES WINTER POINTS TROPHY - Helen Hoyle
MENS WINTER POINTS TROPHY - Francis Robinson
LADIES SUMMER POINTS TROPHY - Denise Gayle
MENS SUMMER POINTS TROPHY - Chi Kin-Tsang
MILE TROPHY - James Taylor
SENIOR 400m TROPHY - Colin Goulding
RON BAILEY TROPHY (800m) - Sean Dixon
SENIOR 5000m - Keith Turner
SENIOR LADIES BEST PERFORMANCE - Denise Gayle
ORIENTEERING TROPHY - Steve Chilton
PARLAUF TROPHY - Team Rice (Peter & Sacha)
BIATHLON TROPHY - Dave Candy
THREE-LEGGED TROPHY - Sean Mitchell
PENTATHLON TROPHY - No competitors
LADIES TEAM MANAGER’S TROPHY - Philippa Horton
Forgotten to pay your subs?? Outstanding subs should be sent or given
to: Maureen Shirley, 33 Percy Road, North Finchley, N12 8BT (Tel 020 8446 3336)
Membership Subscriptions From October 2001
All cheques should be made payable to ‘Barnet & District A.C.’
Membership Fees are due at the AGM in October each year. Please remember to
inform us of any change of details (address, phone number, email etc.)
Membership Secretaries:- Maureen Shirley: Email: john.Shirley@virgin.net
Penny Wylie: Email: sandpwylie@hemscott.net
Baggage Team - As usual we have been asked to man two baggage lorries at the Marathon. I will be putting up lists for helpers to sign at the clubhouse after Christmas. If you want more information please speak to John or myself. Maureen Shirley
The following new members have been elected at Committee since the last magazine:
Julian Bradley, Rebecca Bradley, Liam Chilton, Cedric Evina, Richard Gamble,
James Goddard, Oyinkan Johnson-Sherlock, Megan Jones, Andrew Kelleher, Catherine
Perry, Kate Rea, Amy Rice, Catherine Scott, Ketan Shah, Ben Smith, Jordan Smith,
Stuart Smith, Maggie Wilcock, Katherine Woods
May you all have a good time with the Club, both athletically and socially.
The British Veterans’ Indoor Championships will now take place on 16th/17th March at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall and not at Birmingham as originally planned.
World Road Championships (10k & Half Marathon) takes place in Riccione, located on the Adriatic Coast of Italy, a few miles from Rimini from 24th/26th May 2002.
The final Brugge Veterans 10K and 25K Road Races take place 23rd June 2002. Contact Jim Neville urgently if you have not already done so, as Brugge will be the European City of Culture next year and hotel accommodation has to be booked early.
13th European Track & Field Champs to be held in Potsdam, near Berlin, from 15th/25th August 2002. More details can be obtained from John Atkinson.
For over a year now a group of women have been meeting at 9am on a Saturday morning at Trent Park for training, followed by a social get together - tea, chocolate, cappuccino and toast - for those that do not have to rush back to children and household chores. The session comprises a good warm-up, followed by a thorough stretching session, and usually drills for style and strength. Thus suitable training is provided for sprinters, middle distance runners, and for those who just want to stay or get fit. Aerobic and anaerobic work is included, and the sessions vary from week to week. It could be a sprint pyramid, tempo runs over 800m or a mile, hill work, both short and long, or sometimes a ‘loop’ whilst having a chat if a race is imminent. Because of the busy sporting and social calendar, and dependent on who turns up, the sessions often have to be altered on the day - so there has to be some quick and imaginative thinking to cater for all the members - including Luka and Phoebe in their pushchairs. A good number of new ladies of all ages and abilities are now coming along, so don’t be shy - come along and try. Some of the group who have achieved success over the last year include:
Simone, Pauline and Ian all completed the four races of the Lanzarote challenge - which comprises a 10k, a 13k beach run and a 25km race on consecutive days - to win a commemorative medal. Pauline came 3rd in the challenge. Simone and Pauline also came 2nd in their age groups in Brugge.
Sue Gibbs had a brilliant run in Brugge, winning a gold medal in the W55s category.
Sue Hamblin, after starting from scratch, was delighted to complete the Borehamwood half marathon with Sally Ann in 2 hours on one of the hottest days of the year. Sally Ann also competed in several cross country races for the first time in her running career.
Lilli started coming after seeing an advert in the Sweatshop in Finchley, and completed the London marathon for her charity - raising over £3,000. She won the mothers race at her son’s school, and also won a race in Italy while on holiday with her family.
Karen Faloon won the Vets 800m at Hemel after being off with injury for a long time. She also ran really well in the midweek race at Welwyn Garden City.
Karen Murphy starting running after having her first baby. She ran the London Marathon and was 8th lady in the midweek race at Welwyn in under 37 mins. She also had the fastest ladies time in the Club Handicap Champs. Brigitte got so fit for her karate sessions that she successfully won her black belt.
Tiffany completed the gruelling Scottish 70 Wild Miles, involving biking, canoeing and running, to raise over £1,000 for charity. She then went off to Helsinki to do a marathon.
Leigh had a tough time getting back from injury, but had a good run in last year’s Flora London ladies run, starting off with the Kenyans, and finishing 48th. This year she took off with Paula Radcliffe and finished 50th.
Carmel started from scratch and has persevered with the longer sessions with the result that her sprint times have improved throughout the season in both the Southern Womens and the Vets meetings.
Penny does Vets meetings and came 2nd W55 in the midweek league and is also a pretty mean cyclist.
Karen Bradley started with the group but moved up to join the men’s group with Helen Hoyle.
Kirsty is coming back from injury, and is beginning to get very fit again. She competed in the Vets track meetings and has been doing cross country this winter.
Maureen has been fighting various injuries and is getting fit again. She competed in the World Vets Champs cross country in Australia.
Linda Elmore although she is really the enemey, has gradually improved and is now able to keep up with Joyce Smith on Tuesday’s training sessions.
Brenda is still suffering with her back, but tries to do the sessions where possible. She is always enthusiastic about running. Did the 10km in Brugge. Got from St Albans in 15mins, after a hair ‘do’.
Kath Perry has joined recently, having been a club member about 10 years ago, and is a very keen trainer. She went to the last Womens track meeting of the season and competed in two distance events.
Kath Woods has move to the area from Havant and will be a great asset to the club. She has already competed over the cross country, and will be a great asset to the Southern Womens team with her superb middle distance abilities.
Megan Jones shows the value of perseverence. She approached the club a year ago, received information, and finally responded to a follow-up call, and is now training regularly when her work allows.
Catherine Scott ran the NSPCC fun run a couple of times with her children and gradually started coming to training sessions. She did her first ever cross country at Loughton and queried why she was there and her children wern’t [they were running at the same time at a completely different venue].
Finally, I would like to thank Steve Harris for covering the sessions whilst I was in South Africa and Australia. It is a pleasure to have a Senior Coach like yourself train with the group. Maggie Govender
We spend our family holidays in North Wales (Dolgellau), and love the Tal y Llyn Railway, a narrow-gauge line that starts from Tywyn on the coast and goes inland past the lovely waterfalls at Dolgoch and Abergynolwyn to end at Nant Gwernol, near the lake at Tal y Llyn. (It was built to take slate from the Nant Gwernol quarry to the coast, closed when the quarry did, and was resurrected in the 1950s running steam trains as a tourist attraction - the first of the ‘Great Little Trains of Wales’.) When Tywyn Rotary Club started Race the Train in 1984 - a 14.2m cross-country race over mountains, always run on Saturday afternoon in mid/late August - we soon got to hear of it. It remained one of those things I always intended to do - like joining a running club. In 1990 I tackled Race the Train as part of my training for the Abingdon Marathon (where I first broke 3hrs, aged 45). For those who don’t know the race - it starts in Tywyn next to the Tal y Llyn Railway terminus. The starting gun for the race coincides with the start of the train’s journey inland. The round trip takes an hour and three-quarters by train, and this is the time to beat. We start by running through the streets of Tywyn, then head inland towards Bryncrug, turning off the road to the right and over the railway near the 1m mark. The next six miles or so are straightforward: along farm tracks and footpaths, keeping between the road to the left and the railway to the right; some gradients and some rough going, but basically an easy run on grass. We turn just short of Abergynolwyn station, and here the fun (?) starts. Almost at once, the way narrows, so one is in single file and risk being impeded by runners ahead. We cross the railway under a tunnel, and head back towards the coast, following a twisting sheep-track with the railway below to the right. The track itself is level enough, but only six inches wide; the hillside above and below is so steep as to be almost unrunnable, so if you’re stuck behind someone walking on one of the frequent steep inclines, you’re in trouble. By nine miles you’re high above Dolgoch, and have to lose all the height gained belting down a steep path - agony on the knees. Near eleven miles, you suddenly turn left, and confront a viciously steep hill you vaguely remember having had trouble running down on the way out. By thirteen miles, you’re back on tarmac, with Tywyn ahead, checking your watch and doing furious mental arithmetic about your chances of beating the train.
I didn’t know all this in 1990, of course. My wife Cecilie and (then) two kids James and Ruth (then 8 and 4) loyally turned out to watch. It hadn’t crossed my mind that I might have trouble covering 14 miles plus in 1:45, so I’d told them I’d beat the train. By 10m, I realized I might be in trouble - and that the conditions were worth at least an extra mile. The vicious hill took me by surprise; everyone in sight was walking up it; my courage failed me, and I walked too - and missed beating the train (by 1:40) as a result. Both the kids cried. Cec took me on one side, tore strips off me, and threatened me with Lysistrata tactics (the ultimate deterrent!) if I put them through that again. By 1991 I was made of sterner stuff. I’d joined Barnet that April - and promptly improved a lot, as everyone does. I knew the course, and charged the vicious hill with a year’s worth of accumulated venom. I sailed up it, gaining six places - and beat the train (1:43:11). You get a nice certificate for that, which I’ve still got. I felt well set up for Abingdon that year, where I did my PB (2:46:52). Of course, I thought the sky was the limit after that, and had to learn it wasn’t by bitter experience. In 1992 the course was very muddy - but I ran in road-running shoes, predictably rolling downhill on the steep bit, and losing an argument with a gorse bush (moral: use cross-country studs - they’re ideal). Still only missed beating the train by 2mins. In 1993 I’d done my back in (playing cricket with James). In 1994 I again missed by two minutes, and realized that things stood to be downhill all the way, and I was up against the aging process like everyone else. In 1995 there was a heat wave; I was too gung-ho to drink properly, got heatstroke, and was pushed to break two hours. In 1996 I was out of action with Achilles problems. There was another heatwave in 1997; this time I drank religiously - and failed to break two hours. Then 1:53:08 in 1998 (behind Francis, ahead of Harvey and Noel), and 1:48:02 in 1999 (followed by 2:55:05 for Abingdon). In 2000 we were in London awaiting James’ A Level results.
The outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease meant that 2001 was going to be different. I expected the race to be cancelled - but the organizers distinguished themselves, and laid on an all-road course, crossing the River Dysynni past Bryncrug, then going up to Rhoslefain and round by Tonfannau. They added on a mile, and there were hills, some steep and all unknown - but I thought it was on. Graham, Francis and I went off; Graham came past me at 4m (and took 2 min. out of me - never saw him again). I ran very even-paced, didn’t go wild or bottle out (apart from letting four of the six ladies who beat me past, two at 5m and two in the last mile). I did 1:44:40, beating the train for the second time - something I thought I’d never see again. I came second in the M55-59 bracket, and won a prize - a power screwdriver. I now have my two certificates - 1991 and 2001 - as a nice matching pair, and a lot of happy memories. All I have to do now is convince Cec I’ll use the screwdriver. The countryside is ravishing. The organization is superb, and raises money for a good cause. It’s a very friendly race, and a great experience - come and try it some time! PS: As an experience, Race the Train is unique. As a straight athletic challenge, the nearest comparison I know is with the Orion 15, a 15m cross-country race in Epping Forest in March. Underfoot, the Orion 15 is more variable, depending on the weather - anything from First World War mud to rock-hard ruts. Oddly enough, my times there are less variable (low 1:50s to high 1:50s). I’d be interested in other people’s impressions of how the two compare. Nick Bingham
Recently I was invited to New Scotland Yard to take up a challenge from one of my customers to take part in one of the fire arm teams regular fitness assessments. For the Met Police (and not just the staff at the Yard), these take place in the Car Park underneath the Yard. There is a marked out segment between the cars for a shuttle run and ‘sprint’ course where up to 6 officers at a time have to complete a couple of athletic tests within a graded period of time. They then move to a fitness room where body strength is tested on a specially calibrated power machine, which was obtained from Loughborough University, and finally undertake a ‘grip’ test. The shuttle run is run over a stretch no more then 15 yards long and the idea is to run at a pace to a ‘beep’ which goes off at regular set intervals which start at around 8 secs per length. You are required to put your foot on the end line each time, turn and run back. After 10 lengths at this set pace, the time between each beep is shortened, by roughly half a second and another 10 lengths are run and so on. Every 10 lengths a level is met and all the time the running is speeding up. Within a couple of levels there was some rather heavy breathing going on although to be fair there was also a certain amount of ‘team work’ going on which was ensuring that each officer remained focused on meeting his target level. For most this seemed to be between levels 7.5 and 8.5 by which time a fair pace had built up, and all taking part met the levels they needed. For my sins I decided to carry on, ending up at level 13. By this time though I was literally sprinting up and down with the hardest part by this level really being the having to keep thudding to a halt, turning and trying to pick up speed to sprint back, with no more then 3 to 4 seconds to do it all in. I am told the ‘beep’ tape runs out at level 17 and whilst there was talk of 1 person having reached this level ever it was only heresay. The second run was a pure sprint over a course which ran up and down, zig zagged round some bollards and then up and down again. Again the hardest part of this was the continual quick turns, stopping and starting, which seemed to be easier for the ‘shorter legged’ rather then someone like me (who has never been able to sprint in any event) with a longer stride. The power tests were a measurement of pulling and pushing strength and have replaced a series of press ups that used to be in the test. Surprisingly I sailed through all these tests and am now the proud (?) owner of a stamped card confirming that I am fit enough to belong to one of the Mets Armed Response Units. Overall the fitness of the officers I met was actually and reassuringly quite good although it was also quite clear that if the test was failed they would be back on regular duties pretty quickly which they all wanted to avoid, and did therefore take time out on a regular basis to run and visit the fitness suite. For me it was an interesting and unusual change of venue for some exercise. Adrian Mason
Our very best wishes for Christmas and the New Year to all Club members. Betty and Laurie Forster
To everyone, a Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year. Best wishes - Rob Comley & Barbara
Greetings from Adelaide, where we are staying with the Australian Strongs, to all our friends in the Club from Brian Strong and Lucy Goodes
Maureen and John wish all a very happy Christmas and a healthy and injury-free new year.
Seasonal Greetings and a Happy New Year from Maggie and George. Well done, ladies. Hoping for more success in the new year.
“Teddy bears and Christmas just seem to go together. Perhaps it is because the holidays inspire the same feelings as teddies of warmth, love, happiness and security.” Festive wishes to all, especially Des, and well done for all the PB’s and medals. Kirsty Johnstone
Wishing all members of the Club a very Happy Christmas and many PB’s in the new year. Ian and Sue Gibbs
Ted and José wish you all a very Happy Christmas and good running, jumping and throwing in 2002.
Dennis Kent wishes you all a Happy Christmas from Northampton – might come and surprise you one day.
Merry Christmas to all Club members and a prosperous New Year. Alan and Brenda
Don’t overtrain, ‘tis all in vain. So take a rest, which is the best to do this Christmas-time. Kind regards to all our friends, both young and old. Joan and Steve Harris
Jim Neville and family would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May all your training sessions be pain and injury free.
Merry Christmas from John and Jane Owen
Christmas wishes for everyone from Brenda, John, Carolyn and Martin Atkinson.
Christmas greetungs from Steve, Moira, Martyn, Josh and Liam Chilton