WFC Runners

Sunday, 12 May 2019

WFC Runners - Adventure racing, park run, Southampton and Houghton write-ups

News

This week saw the Hastie's taking on the latest in the Questars adventure racing series. This time the race was based in the Chilterns. The format consists of trail running (self navigated), mountain biking and kayaking. After 6 hours they came home in 4th (out of 18) in their category. This all comes less than a week after Anna completed the Southampton marathon!! An astonishing achievement.

If you are interested in this then check out the website at: https://www.questars.co.uk/adventure-races/

The next race is in Berkshire on June 29th.

parkrun update 11th May

This week we had 15 Fit Clubbers running at 4 different parkrun venues. There were 11 at Winchester, Isabel at Greenwich, Lucy and Stefan at Eden Project, and Alice at Colby!

There were more superb runs and yet again more PBs:

Simon H - (26:49) - Winchester
Isabel - (28:32) - Greenwich
Olivia - (29:22) - Winchester (course PB)

Here is a link to the consolidated club report:

http://www.parkrun.com/results/consolidatedclub/?clubNum=26888&eventdate=2019-05-11

Thursday 9th May training session - St Catherines and Viaduct intervals

This week the runners met at Garnier Road car park. There were 24 eager runners joining me for more intervals, this time on the flat alongside the river. After a warm up the gang headed down the river side path to the old railway bridge about three quarters of a mile down. This is where we were to stay for the first 8 reps.

The session was fairly simple:

4 reps of 30 second with jog recovery back to the start
4 reps of 1 minute with jog recovery back to the start

After this we headed up onto the viaduct for 2 more reps out and back along the entire length of the viaduct.

Following this we jogged back to Garnier Road where we stretched and cooled down. It was here that I realised I had left my jacket up on the viaduct, so I ended the session with a panic jog the two miles there and back again!

Next week we will meet at Abbey Gardens at 7pm.

Race Reports

Southampton 10km by Alice

I’ve gone along to the Southampton runs for the last few years with work, but never had the opportunity to take part. I was so excited to get to run this year, and was determined to break 55 minutes – something I knew was possible from gradually improving over recent months. I was planning on running with my husband Chris, who did the Winchester 10k in around 52 minutes, so I was in good company!

We arrived just in time to see the marathon and half marathon begin, and managed a quick shout out of good luck to Anna!

We spent the next half hour playing with the Macmillan banger sticks outside the Guildhall with my daughter, before joining a very long queue to the start line. Annoyingly we had left it too late and found ourselves quite far back with the 70 minute pacers, so we had a bit of making up to do in the first km.

The first 3km are relatively flat, through the high street and into the park, before you reach the Itchen bridge. Every Southampton run I’ve attended, I’ve heard runners complain about how awful this bridge is, so I was expecting the worse. Despite it being like an optical illusion (the peak of it seemed to keep moving away the further you ran), there was very little wind, so we got lucky!

I felt good over the next few km, but the 7-9km became quite tough. I was trying so hard to stay on pace at this point, and was just about managing it. I was grateful to have Chris there as a distraction!

It was slightly gutting to run towards the football stadium at that point and then be directed away, as running through it wasn’t included on the 10km route, but at least it meant the end was near!

The last km was really enjoyable as there were so many spectators. It was great to finish with so much noise, and the support along the whole route had been amazing. I will definitely be taking part again!

I finished in a time of 51.21, which I’m over the moon about. Next stop, sub 50…?

Southampton Half by Karen Parker

It was just over a year ago that I joined Win Fit runners and this really helped me with the Southampton 1/2.

Last year I did the Southampton 10K and I found it hard work and very boring, so I was a bit worried about doing the 1/2.

Matthew dropped me off at the race village whilst he went to park the car. On my way to join the inevitable loo queue feeling nervous, I met the wonderful Hasties. It cheered me up, and reminded me how great it was to belong to Win Fit.

Off to meet my colleagues who were also running the 1/2. One was running with her husband, and aiming for sub two hours, and the others thought they would be about two and a half hours. I decide to run on my own, so went off feeling small and alone! Whilst I was trying to warm up I got a text from our fab coach giving me advice and encouragement. I felt so much better.

It took me 5 mins to cross the start line, and I thought of you wonderful VLM runners taking almost an hour to get to the start. As I started I remembered James’s advice to start steady, so I didn’t rush off too fast like I did last year. It didn’t seem long before I was at the Itchen bridge. Last year it seemed so hard, and I was very tempted to walk, but this time , thanks to all the hill sessions , the Itchen bridge wasn’t a problem, rather I enjoyed the view! Thank you Win Fit!

The route then went along the Itchen, and was totally beautiful, then through the football stadium. As we came out of the stadium I saw a footbridge. My heart sank a bit as I initially thought that we had to run up it, however we went to one side of it. It occurred to me though, that our St Catherine’s hill run would’ve helped.

The route took us back up the Itchen bridge, where I saw people taking selfies whilst running.That is well out of my skill set! My next highlight was running along a river in Bitterne Park. More people taking selfies. At this point I was within sight of the 2 hr 5 min marker, so it wasn’t tail Enders taking photos. I could see people running on the bridge over the river. Being reasonably intelligent I realised that I would have to make the height up quite quickly implying a steep slope. It wasn’t too bad, ( thanks to Win Fit training!) and soon I was on the bridge looking back on all the runners behind me. It was a lovely sight and I wished I could run and take photos, but I was aiming for sub 2 hours 10 and I needed to keep going.

As I ran through Portswood I realised I was catching the 2.05 pacers up. I decided to keep just behind them with a plan to overtake them near to the finish. I felt that I was going strong and I was enjoying the run. All was good. The crowds were entertaining and encouraging. Then I realised my lace was undone. I ran to one side and quickly did it up. As I started off again I felt so light headed I staggered like a drunkard and almost fell over. I was worried that any medic around would stop me running so I slowed right down to almost a walk until I felt better. It took what seemed like ages to get my pace back. I decided to forget about being a vegetarian and take any jelly babies offered. Five jelly babies later I felt able to resume a reasonable pace, but by then I had lost the 2.05 pacers. I hadn’t seen the 2.10 ones pass me so I assumed they were still behind me.

I was still on track. I was able to enjoy the last bit, particularly the park and I still gave young children high fives.

As I saw the finish line I still had energy for a final push. I was really pleased to see I was around the 2.09 mark. Comfortably inside the 2.10 I had set as my target. As I waited for my medal and t shirt I reflected how much I appreciated Win Fit , for the training and encouragement. Thank you for all your congratulations on WhatsApp. You are all fab and make a difference one year on.

Houghton 11km by Caroline Tyree and Sarah Geddis

Glenna, Trish, Fran, Sarah G and I were flying the Fit Club flag last Sunday at the Houghton 11k; a low-key, friendly trail run that Sarah and I had run a few years previously. You know you’re in for a good run when you arrive and you’re asked to park in field of knee-high grass, there are dogs everywhere and there’s a promise of homemade cake at the finish. Houghton 11k is my kind of run and I enjoy it all the more because people seem to take part, not to beat a PB, but for the simple pleasure of running through beautiful countryside with other runners. The views are stunning and at times it’s tempting to stop for a moment, just to -take it all in - lemon-yellow fields of rape, woodland streams, new-born calves; nature at it’s best.

I think we all loved the race, though in retrospect I wish I hadn’t felt the need to push myself to keep up with a group of faster runners! They urged me on though, especially towards the finish, and the post-run tea and cake well earned. Even better, in April I signed up to ‘Running Down Dementia’ to raise money for Alzheimer’s Research UK and Houghton took me to the 110km mark. 90km to go!

Sarah G here! It is a lovely run as it is so varied. It has a very old fashioned ‘village fete’ feel to it and everyone very friendly. It was great to bump into the other Fit Club runners. Caroline and I walked an extra few km as we wondered off in the wrong direction looking for the car park. I will definitely try to do it every year. We also met a couple in the queue for cake who were starting up the Winterslow 10k on September 15 to raise money for their local primary school. That should be another beautiful run if anyone is interested.

General Announcements

WFC parkrun Club

Winchester Fit Club Runners is set-up as a club with parkrun. If you go into your profile (there is a link to it on the parkrun results email and newsletter email) you can select your club. Change yours to Winchester Fit Club Runners and you will appear in the consolidated club report that we get each week.

WFC Runners WhatsApp Group

There is a WFC Runners WhatsApp chat group where we generally just wang on about running, races and cake. If you are not already part of this then please get in contact with Coach James or Coach Mike who will add you.

WFC Runners Strava Club

If you are a Strava user there is a Winchester Fit Club Runners club page. This can be accessed here: https://www.strava.com/clubs/WFC-Runners. Request to join and we will approve!

Booking onto sessions

Booking onto our training sessions enables the coaches to plan the session accordingly. You can book on in the following location: https://winchesterfitclub.simplybook.it/v2/

Race Calendar

The race calendar is now stored here: https://wfcrunners.blogspot.com/2019/01/race-calendar-2019-and-beyond.html

Race Kit

The full range of kit available to purchase and instructions on how to order can be found in the following link: https://wfcrunners.blogspot.com/2019/01/kit-details-and-prices.html

Monday, 6 May 2019

WFC Runners - Southampton Marathon, Houghton Trail 11km, London Marathon write-ups

News

Following on from the successes at London this week we were closer to home at the Southampton Marathon festival. This series of races included a full marathon, half marathon and 10km and we had representatives in each.

Anna and Charlotte W were running the full marathon. Lynn and Karen ran the half and Alice ran the 10km.

Alice and Charlotte were both running their first marathons and both had been running really consistently in training so good times were hoped for and they didn’t disappoint. Despite struggling with a hamstring injury Charlotte ran a stunning 3:40 and Anna wasn’t far behind with a 3:45 which included a faster second half than first. Amazing running from both. Here are the official results:

Charlotte W - 3:40:42

Anna H - 3:45:58

In the half Lynn ran a huge course PB en route to a cracking 1:46 and Karen ran a lifetime PB of 2:09. Again, superb running! Here are the official results:

Lynn - 1:46:19

Karen - 2:09:01

Lastly we had Alice in the 10km. Alice has been putting in some cracking times at parkrun recently and these translated well into a superb PB of 51:20. Alice has never broken 55mins before so this was a huge step up. Fantastic once again.

Also racing today we had Trish, Caroline, Fran, Sarah and Glenna doing the Houghton Trail 11km race. This race took in parts of the Clarendon way and was open pets and buggies.

Last bit of race news from the weekend...Adam ran the Polish leg of the wings for life race series this weekend. This is the race where you run until you are caught by the pace car. Adam ran an amazing 24.32 miles in 2h55m before being caught. The most amazing thing?!? He was pushing the running buggy with his son in. What a legend!!

parkrun update 4th May

This week we had 21 Fit Clubbers running at 4 different parkrun venues. There were 17 at Winchester, Mike at Basingstoke, Jenny and Sarah at Moors Valley, and Glenna at Mountbatten School!

There were more superb runs and yet again more PBs:

Simon M - (25:09) - Winchester

Shelley - (25:13) - Winchester (course PB)
Isabel - (28:55) - Winchester

Here is a link to the consolidated club report:

https://www.parkrun.com/results/consolidatedclub/?clubNum=26888&eventdate=2019-05-04

Thursday 2nd May training session - Barton Meadow hills

This Thursday saw the return of Coach James after a couple of weeks well earned break. He was greeted by 25 Fit Clubbers, including new recruit Ali. Meeting at the River Park leisure centre the group set off towards the rugby club and actively warming up as they went.

The main session was to be at Barton Meadows so on the way we did a mini hill sprint up Abbotts Road, had a short break and then a single interval along Courtenay Rd. We then headed down to the hill on the western side of the meadow (by the railway line).

Here we split into two groups (to avoid congestion on the hill). We were aiming for 5 times 1 minute sprints up the hill for each group. The first group setting off for their effort, jog recovering back down and the second group setting off immediately to do the same. We got through 4 reps before we realised we were running out of time and so we did the last rep as a single group.

We headed back to River Park (stopping for pics on the way) and cooling down by the tennis courts.

Next week's session will start at Garnier Road car park at 7pm.

Race Reports

The London Marathon by Alf Rodway

Sunday 28^th April 2019, Greenwich Park, the Virgin London Marathon awaited! It was perfect running conditions, a little wind and no rain with highs of 15 degrees. The climax of collecting your running number from the exhibitions had provided that emotional buzz the London Marathon gives and here I was standing in Greenwich park with my family, getting ready to run my 3^rd London Marathon. As we walked up towards the blue zone enclosure, official photographer snapped away, friends, family and love ones snapped away on their phones and the adrenalin starts to pumps harder. I said my goodbyes to Phily, Alfie, my sister and brother in law, and walked into the runners zone. You’re supplied with a kit bag that has your running number on and you simply, give this to the guys on to the lorry that has your number range. At this point, I took stock of everything around me, the atmosphere, the chats, the laughter, the queues for the toilets and most importantly my starting pen.

After a warming up, stretching, giving myself a pep talk and going through my race strategy again in my head, I walked towards my pen. I waited for about 20minutes before we started to move towards the start line. On the big screens around us, we saw the elites go and then pen by pen, off went the mass!. As I approached the start line, I re-checked Garmin and then away I went. Within 400 metres, I high fived my family and then concentrated on the task ahead. The first 3 miles are nice with good crowds and wide spaces so I didn’t have to adjust my stride. Very quickly into mille 1, the green start runners started to merge and then at mile 3 the red start runners merged too. The first real iconic landmark (for me) is Cutty Sark and I was surprised to see it had viewing areas because 19 years ago, it didn’t (last time I ran London). I’ve always had fond memories on this part of the course and it didn’t disappoint with crowds 8/9 deep where possible, huge cheering and amazing scenery. I felt good as did my split times so with my first 10k going to plan, I was chuffed, therefore it was onto the next 10k, where I wanted to be strong and consistent with my pace. I kept within close eyesight of one of the pacers to help me focus with my strides but at the sometime, soaking up the atmospheres and using the encouragement to drive on.

During mile 8 I started to feel a niggle in my right hip and thought it would free itself, therefore, chose to ignore. As I ran the next two miles, my attention had diverted more to the pain and I had lost sight of the pacer without noticing. Tower bridge was approaching and this is a magical moment, the crowds here are big and the noise spurs you on without realising. It’s a sight to see someone many runners on the bridge with the support all around. For me, whilst soaking it up, I checked my pace and I was getting slower. I then checked my last lap time and it wasn’t good, so I needed to get checked and hoped that a physio could free the pain or ease my movement. Just after the half way point, I stopped and saw a Dr, who performed a couple of checks but could not confirm what I had done (typical Dr, joking One R!!) except I had a hip rotation issue. I had lost around 15 minutes and my time buffer had gone so after taking some paracetamol and a few more stretches, I headed back out, to see what potentially pace I could do. The next mile was tough and I was oblivious to everything around me as I tried to get some decent pace back in hope of a PB, but I couldn’t get the desired movement and found myself in despair.

Just after mile 14, I heard shouts of my name from recognised voices and there was my family. With them also was PD and One R. I went across to them, nearly taking out some runners and hugged Phily and my son, the tears flowed and I was a wreck. I explained what had occurred and that I don’t know what time I will now finish. After some comforting hugs and words, I headed back out and found a rhythm that worked. I checked my time and still dreamed of a PB as this was still possible but at mile 18, I had to stop and get checked again because I was struggling. A physio asked a few questions and got me to complete a stretch that was painful, amazingly, she shoved her hand into my buttock and said, how’s that (I won’t repeat what I said, but I am sure you can guess, followed by the word of Sorry!). She advised that she thinks I’ve damaged my Piriformis, a small muscle deep in your buttock. She provided some good advice and I was back on route trying to find a rhythm. As I entered Canary Wharf, the crowds again were encouraging and I start to have a fight with mind over matter, even more so when the 4hour pacer had just passed me, that was heartbreaking!

For the next 8 miles, I stopped almost every 2.5 miles to get a physio to help me stretch and give my buttock a rub (in a nutshell!). I saw my family, One R and PD again at mile 21 but this time I didn’t stop, as I had some movement so a big wave and thank you. They were at one of the many MacMillan cheering points and the noise provided when I ran past was deafening but it reminded me of the other reasons why I was running VLM. The money that people had donated had been amazing and I reminded myself that it would be spent on helping others like the help my Dad got so I knew I had to finish no matter what it took. With less than 10K to go, I started to be back in the moment of the Marathon, started to soak the atmosphere again and when I stopped to stretch, I chatted to the public who offered their help with jelly beans and a shoulder to hold onto to perform a certain stretch. I looked around and reminded myself of the great iconic landmarks we have, it’s a special place, special event. I even had a cat and mouse game with Chris Evans, but he eventually beat me by 3minutes!

Approaching the Embankment, the crowds were deeper again and at Mile 25, the last know cheering point for MacMillan, I stopped and high fived the volunteers, I clapped them, I thanked them for their support and I cried again. The last mile was the toughest of all, knowing I couldn’t sprint, and that I hadn’t achieved my time. As I trotted through to the finish, I told myself, that I will back next year to put things right. The congratulations from fellow runners, marshals, volunteers, etc etc provided a moment to be proud that I didn’t think was possible and a time of 4:52:58 meant it was not my worst marathon so some positivity!. As I went through the various points, I was devastated and no matter what people could say, I was truly gutted. There are many marathons but if you want to achieve a time goal in a special one, its London. I met Phily, Alfie and family back at the MacMillan recovery centre whereby my son gave me the hug needed, I put my medal on him and said; one day, this will be you on the greatest stage. I hugged Phily so tight, I forgot about the bump (whoops) being there and thanked her for all of her support. After a hug to my sister and brother in law, we headed into the centre for some refreshments and a physio to check me.

Following the marathon, physio confirmed that I damaged my Piriformis, Tensor Facia Latte in my Glute and also movement in my right ankle. The London marathon is special and whatever your goals are, I would encourage and welcome all of you to try it. You’ve seen with two very gritty determined ladies (Anne and Rachel) what can be achieved, no matter what was thrown at them. It’s been mesmerising following their training, the ups and downs as well their phenomenal achievement on Sunday. Lastly, a huge thank you to coach James for his presence, advice, support, encouragement and understanding. And a huge thank you to WFC runners for your amazing support too, it has meant a lot.

The London Marathon by Rachel Mills

Sunday 28^th April 2019, the day I had been working towards since finding out I had a ballot place in October. I did not have the best night’s sleep due to nerves/excitement and so was awake before my alarm. My hotel was holding an early breakfast for marathon runners and so we headed down at 6:30am to fuel pre-race. I had my usual pre-run breakfast of Weetabix and toast whilst Simon and the children tucked into yummy cooked breakfasts. I struggled to eat but knew I had to as my wave was not due to start until 10:48am. After breakfast I got all my things together and we headed to Greenwich Park to meet the Crohn’s and Colitis team for photos.

Once done I headed across the park to meet my marathon training buddy Anne and her friend Kate for a pre-race hug and photos as we were in different starts - me blue, Anne and Kate in red. We then parted with a final good luck and squeeze not expecting to see each other again till after the race. Simon and the children accompanied me to the blue start. I went to join the toilet queue which was about 3 miles long and was told to head into the blue start area instead as the queues were smaller. This meant I had to leave Simon and the children and go in alone. At this point I feel very emotional and cried as Simon told me how proud he was and that he would see me during the race. After more hugs I waved goodbye and headed in.

I remembered what coach James had said about conserving energy and so found a spot to sit and munched on an apple and a croissant as I was hungry again! I checked I had everything I needed and then took my bag to the bag drop. I then joined the toilet queue. Following approximately 32 nervous wee’s in rather revolting smelling portaloo’s I realised it was time for me to head to my wave. I was grateful to be wearing a hoody and joggers which I planned to leave at the start as it was cold and windy. It seemed to take forever for us to start edging towards the start. I decided I needed a final pre-race wee and dashed to the portaloo again. We then got moving and I could see the start line. Then we were off! It was very congested, but I managed to head off at a reasonable pace for mile one. Mile two had an uphill stretch with numerous speed humps. These were manned by ‘hump marshals’ who helpfully shouted hump as you approached! Mile three was where the different starts merged and suddenly it became even busier and meant I had to weave quite a lot as several people were run/walking and would suddenly slow. I was aware of messages on the runner’s chat which were pinging up onto my watch. I wasn’t really paying too much attention until I spotted a couple letting me know that I may well pass Anne. I started looking out but thought there was a slim chance of actually finding her. I was soon near the five-hour pacers from red and thought that I might be near to Anne. Scanning the crowds, I could not see her. I had almost given up when I realised that she was right in front of me! I squealed in excitement to have found my training buddy before whipping out my phone for a couple of selfies which I sent to the runner’s chat. Finding Anne was one of the highlights of the day for me! She told me to keep going so we parted, and I headed on.

I knew that Simon and the children planned to be past the Cutty Sark so plodded on. I was worried I would not see them, but a little way on I spotted them and rushed over for a hug. The next few miles I carried on thinking about who I might see next. I heard a familiar voice shout my name and realised a friend I had not seen for a while was there. I again stopped for a hug. In Bermondsey (around mile 12) I spotted my brother with my niece Evelyn on his shoulders. After a high five I headed for half way. Crossing Tower bridge was pretty awesome and again I got my phone out for pics and a few failed selfies of my forehead! For me half way in a run is a key point and means I can start counting down the miles! It wasn’t too long before I came across One R and PD around mile 14. I felt emotional and fought back the tears, grateful that so many had come to support.

The next few miles are a bit of a blur. I think I just tried to not think too much and just kept going. I felt good and knew I had done the training. I got to 20 miles and was pleased. It wasn’t as quick as Dorney Lakes but not far off. At 21 miles I spotted One R and PD again, there were more tears! There was even an offer of mini eggs from One R! I declined and carried on. About half a mile on I saw Simon and the children, again there were tears and hugs. It was not too long after that I suddenly felt fatigued. Up until 23 miles I felt that things were tough and perhaps I couldn’t do it! I then told myself how ridiculous I was being as there was no way I was giving up now!

The crowds were incredibly loud and at times very overwhelming, but I carried on. I got my phone out around mile 24 with the intention of being ready to take pics to be asked by a marshal if I was calling a taxi! Tempting!

I again don’t remember much of the last couple of miles, until I reached the 800m sign. I sped up a bit and it seemed to take forever to reach the 600m sign. I eventually reached the 385yds to go sign and thought I better pick up the pace. I managed to sprint the last stretch with a few thumbs up to the cameras. I had finished in 4:32:52! I didn’t really know what to do! I was directed to collect my medal and had a few photos before heading to the bag collection. I had to sit for a while before heading to Horse Guards Parade to meet Simon and the children. I felt faint when I arrived and so lay on the floor for a while whilst waiting. They arrive and there were more hugs and tears. We were joined by One R and PD.

I was overwhelmed by the support from everyone. I received lovely messages from so many friends from WFC runners, as well as the support on the day. It really made such a difference seeing people when I was tired. I am really grateful to have such lovely people around me. Thank you for the coaching advice (Super Coach James), running support (Anne, One R and others), sponsorship (£1300 raised) and moral support. Next year I shall be support crew!!