Worsley Woods Park Run 27 October

Andy O’Connor finished eleventh in the above event recording 19.47. Andy continues to speak highly of the Park Run series which provides a competitive race but still has room slower runners too.

Lisbon Marathon

Steve Tipping completed his debut marathon in 3.54.57 running the entire course in the rain. His comment about his ‘fantastic experience’ was, ‘ I survived the marathon and, as many others before me I would think, discovered that the practice is nothing like you image it in theory’. He was able to walk normally within 72 hours of the finish!!! Unfortunately, that hasn’t improved his chances  of turning out in the Northern League for the pole vault or hurdles races. Cue Phil Robinson.

Manchester League Cross Country, Match one : Heaton Park, 20th October

On Saturday 11 young cross country runners and 11 seniors travelled the short distance along the East Lancs Rd for the first Cross Country League meeting at Heaton Park, Manchester.  The solo boy runner, Joe Ford, had an excellent run finishing in 3rd in the u13 race. He covered the 3km course in 12mins 42sec. The under 13 Girls, running 2.4km, had a  team finishing in 10th. Susan Shirling led the team home in 11^th place 12.02, Abbie Roberts 43rd 13.32, Caitlin Young 52^nd 14.29, and Freya Roberts 55th 15.10.

There were two teams in the U15 Girls 3k race who came 7th and 10th .The club was led home by fast improving Lucy Griffiths in 18th 14.39 closely followed by Maddie Willams 22^nd and 14.51 Olivia Hardwood-Moss 33rd 16.12 putting the team in 7^th place. Alex Glynn led the B team home in 37^th position in 17.28, Emily Roberts 38^th 17.52 and Lauren Wilcock 39th 19.37 claiming 10th team.

The seniors managed to field a team in the Ladies and Mens races. Gemma Connolly led the ladies home in 6^th place in a time of 33.06 supported by youngster Katie Bowers-Folan 66^th 39.21 (and who was placed 5^th in the U20 age group), Louise Hogg 80^th 40.30, Julia Eccleston 82^nd 40.34, Pam Appleton 145^th 46.40 and Pauline Picton 185^th 1:01.3. The Ladies were placed 14^th team overall, a very good start to the season and 15^th team in the Veterans category.  In a race starting with more than 350 runners the Men were led home by Greg Williams 47^th 38.30, John Greenall (returning to competition after several years absence) 98^th 41.15, Ian White 138^th 43.07, Andy O’Connor 189^th 45.29, Alan McNally 212^th 46.39 and Peter Johnson 229^th 47.33. The men were pleased to complete the tough course and reached 24^th team overall and 18^th team in the Veterans category.

Results    The next League meeting is on home turf in Sherdley Park on 10^th November.   

Sportshall, Match one : Widnes, 14th October

On Sunday 14th October 33 athletes represented the club at the first Sportshall competition of the season at Widnes. We had some outstanding results with many athletes being placed. Full results will be linked when available. Many thanks to Jude, Ann and Jane for helping with the registrations and Stu, Chris and Damian for officiating on the club's behalf. Thanks to Joe Ehlan for taking photos too.

EA fees debate

The debate is widespread over the recent increase in fees by England Athletics, read about it in relevant forums (such as here and here) or in the letter Phil Thomas has sent to Athletics Weekly.

Special General Meeting : Tuesday 30^th October 2012 8.15pm Clubhouse

The Committee regrets having to call a meeting so soon after the AGM but they have just received notification of an increase in affiliation fees charged by England Athletics ranging between 100% and 400% depending on age group.  The Club does not have adequate finances to absorb the increase so this must inevitably lead to an increase in annual membership fees.  The Committee are preparing an analysis of the extra cost and will be attempting to minimise the impact of such a large hike in fees. 

Raising of the membership fee requires approval by our members in accordance with our constitution. A minimum of 10 members are required to vote.
This is your Club and your opportunity to understand and have a say in how fees are set.

The increase in membership fees is the only business that will be dealt with at this SGM. 

Northern Cross Country Relays, Sheffield : Saturday 6 October.

On Saturday 6th October 2012, 12 young athletes travelled to Sheffield for the Northern Cross Country Relays.
The first off were the Under 17 Women (2.3k) with Rachel McGoldrick leading the team off finsihing in 14th position in 9:34. Megan Cunliffe running her first cross country for the club,  managed to get the team into 11th position in 10:52, then Maria McGoldrick got the team into 8th position in 10:11. Overall the team finished 8th, Well done girls!
 
Next off were the Under 13 Girls (1800m), Alex Bottomley led the team off in 20th position in 7:00. Susan Shirling moved the team up in to 14th position in 6:35, then Abbie Roberts finished in 13th position in 7:07. Overall the team finished 13th, Well done girls!
 
The Under 15 Girls ran 2k, Maddie Williams led the team off in 25th position in 9:29. Alex Glynn finished 25th in 10:51 and Lucy Griffiths completed the course in 24th position in 9:17. Overall the team finished 22nd, Well done girls!
 
Finally for the club was the Under 15 Boys (2k) Adam Woosey led the team off in 15th position in 7:40. James Lee running his first cross country for the club came in 16th position in 8:06 and Joe Hill also competing in his first cross country finished in 17th position in 9:08. Overall the team finished 17th, Well done boys! 

With these performances, it looks good for the cross country season ahead!
Team manager: Helena McGoldrick

Discounted Physiotherapy and Holistic Treatments

Our friends at Premier Physio are offering St Helens Sutton AC members 10% off all treatments if you mention the club name when booking.

To see what they offer please visit: http://www.premierphysio.com/ or call 01928 500557.

 

Weekend News:

On Friday Dave Forrester recorded 24.52 over 8km at the Notre Dame Invitational Cross Country, South Bend, Indiana.

On Sunday Greg Williams recorded 80.02 taking sixteenth place in the Macclesfield Half Marathon.

Club Clothing Still Available

If you have a birthday or other special occasion approaching, don’t forget that we have a full range of Club Clothing available. See the leaflet linked below.

New additions to the range include Embroidered Waterproof Coats (great for XC, Spectators or Coaches) £22.00 and also Florescent Vests £6.00 printed with the club logo in reflective silver. We also hope to agree a decent price for shower proof florescent running jackets in the next few days. With the exception of Club Vests all of the clothing should be ordered and collected directly from Boydell Sports in Widnes. There may be a lead time on some items so make sure that you order with plenty of time to spare.

It does look great when athletes turn up to competitions wearing the same kit and whilst we don’t enforce the rigorous rules that many other sports clubs do, it is appreciated and can give a psychological advantage.

Clothing order form

Lakeland 100 (and Ultra Running)

Back at the end of July, Mark Liptrot completed the Lakeland 100 and sent us this report to encourage everyone to try an ultra..

"The Lakeland 100. Yep, that’s 100 miles around the Lake District non-stop, without a sleep. Actually it’s 105 miles. For all you Eddy Izzards that’s 4 marathons in one day. Well, it is for the winner. For me it was four marathons in one and a half days. A giant lap of the Lake District taking in virtually every valley, climbing many passes and covering some very harsh terrain, this is possibly the hardest organised ultra distance event in the country, courtesy of local lad Marc Laithwaite who organises.

Preparing for this type of event is very absorbing, requiring detailed attention to fitness and conditioning, rigorous testing of clothing and equipment, consideration of nutrition and hydration and on the day careful pacing and route finding. 100 miles is a bit extreme I admit but there are much more amenable “ultra distance” events. One that I would highly recommend is the Haworth Hobble in March. At 32 miles this is only just over the traditional marathon distance. Though there are a few hills they are not too severe and the route is run on good paths, tracks and roads in a stunning area an hour and a half drive away. In fact: perfect physical and psychological preparation for that London thing, though there’s a few less people and I doubt many of them do it in fancy dress…"

London Marathon Places

Those members who entered the London Marathon will hopefully be receiving their acceptance magazines shortly.  If you are unlucky enough to receive a rejection, you can apply to enter the ballot for one of the club places. For the first call, as well as having a rejection from the ballot, applicants must currently be members of the club and have been so for one year.  Please let your captain or the secretary know as soon as possible (with proof of rejection) if you want to apply.  As usual if there are any places not filled from this first call a further ballot of members wishing to be considered will be held, again let the secretary/captains know if you wish to be considered in any second ballot.  In order to maximise training time the entries to the ballots will close at the end of this month.

 

Wine Tasting Social, West Park Rugby Club : Friday 16th November

We are holding a wine tasting with a difference on Friday 16th November,7.30pm at West Park RUFC on Prescot Rd.

The objective is to try 3 mystery red wines and 3 mystery white wines, match them to their tasting notes and then put them in order of price from
cheapest to most expensive.

The event is open to parents, friends and family (strictly over 18's) but numbers are limited so get your tickets soon to avoid disappointment!
Tickets are priced at £9.50 which represents great value for a minimum of 6 glasses of wine each.

The bar will be open post event for those who prefer a different tipple before heading home.