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Newsdesk 2003
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RANELAGH HARRIERS E-NEWS # 112 17 SEPTEMBER 2003
Web site: www.ranelagh-harriers.com
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SURREY ROAD RELAY HEROINES! See below...
THAMES HARE & HOUNDS BRASHER RELAY Saturday September 20th and Sunday
September 21st
There's still time to join in with this, which is a non-competitive relay
along the Thames from source to Petersham. It's Thames Hare and Hounds'
commemorative event for Chris Brasher, who was a member of both Thames and
Ranelagh. A schedule of the stages was sent out a couple of weeks ago, but
if you'd like another copy please let me or Mike Peace know. All speeds are
catered for and distances range from 3 to 10 miles.
Saturday covers from near Lechlade to Henley, Sunday from Henley to
Petersham. We won't be covering all the stages, so feel free to run any
section you fancy. Please contact Mike Peace at
mailto:head@frimley.surrey.sch.uk, or just turn up at one of the stages.
The final stage is the three miles from Teddington to Petersham and the
event is scheduled to finish at Petersham Meadows adjacent to our clubhouse
at about 3.45pm on Sunday afternoon. *Planned Timetable*
Anyone who is free that afternoon, please come along.
SURREY VETERANS CHAMPIONSHIPS Saturday October 11th in Richmond Park
A reminder that entries for this have to be submitted by the end of
September. Entries are usually taken on the day but are ineligible for the
team events, where we usually fare pretty well - so don't miss out! Entry
fee is £3. Women's names please to Margaret Auerback
(mailto:margaret.auerback@virgin.net), men's to Andy Bickerstaff
(mailto:andy@norris-hobs.co.uk).
SURREY ROAD RELAYS Saturday September 13th at Wimbledon Park
Between 1984 and 2002 Ranelagh's women finished 2nd eight times and 3rd four
times in the Surrey Road Relays - but they never won it. If ever there was a
case of "always the bridesmaid" this was it. We've won other county road
team titles of course, but that's somehow not as satisfying as actually
crossing the line first. So now at long last, please step forward the
blushing brides - Sarah, Alice, Liz and Sara, gold medallists.
In the end they had the best part of a minute to spare over SLH who were
thus deprived of a seventh consecutive title, but it was a topsy-turvy sort
of a race. Belgrave's Walker raced to a new course record of 16.44 on stage
1, but chasing hard in 2nd place was Sarah Seal who recorded one second
inside the 17-minute barrier. This was a great run, the 5th fastest-ever
time since the race moved to this venue in 1998. Alice Beverly was entrusted
with stage 2 and quickly passed the Bels who had sent out their slowest
runner on this leg. But Hercules Wimbledon and SLH were on a charge and both
passed Alice, though all three teams were on the track together at the end
with only 16 seconds covering them. It was a surprising Hercules who held
onto the lead on stage 3 but Liz Kipling dug in with determination to run
only some half a minute slower than Sarah and keep the deficit to just nine
seconds. So the pressure fell onto Sara Grosvenor's shoulders for the anchor
leg. Fortunately for us, Hercules's effort fizzled out at this point as
their final runner laboured around the course in 26 minutes to slip right
back to 7th. SLH were a distant threat but Sara did her job well and brought
the team home to much jubilation. A photo of the happy foursome can be found
on our web site, courtesy of Robin Drummond.
We had a more than useful 'B' team out too, who finished 5th overall with
sub-19 minute performances from the two Clares, Gutch and Nicholson, plus a
very respectable 'C' team led off by debutante Alice Gilks. There were also
two teams taking part in the veterans event, the first of which missed the
medals by just 8 seconds as Sonia Rowland ran out of track to catch the
Dorking runner ahead. Fastest was Jo Ronaldson with another sub-19 minute
run.
Focus on the men's side was to field three teams of non-veterans in the
senior race, plus vets teams in their categories. In the event, one no-show
and one doctor's note caused some late team re-jigging and a couple of spare
vets obligingly made up the numbers, but it was a good effort and helped
swell the Ranelagh gang to no less than 47 men and women competing. I think
I can safely say that that was more than any other club!
Paul Graham and Adam Tapley kicked things off well for the 'A' team and then
Julian Smith weighed in with a swift 14.50, the 5th fastest time of the day.
Gareth Davies and Steve Bird - more than a little dismayed to find himself
elevated to the 'A' team! - followed on before Paul Doyle ran an isolated
15.00 (6th fastest of the day) to bring the team home 7th.
Revelation of the 'B' team was junior Jordan Mungovan who ran an excellent
16.54 on stage 2 and there was a good club debut from Mick Clarke in the 'C'
team. Biggest receptions of the day were reserved for Christian Vaughan and
John Herries who brought the 'B' and 'C' teams home in splendid isolation
for a lap of honour round the track.
For the Over 40s, Marcus Gohar ran an outstanding 14.55 on the opening
stage, the 2nd fastest vets time of the day. Andy Bickerstaff, David Powell
and Mick Lane all put in some sterling work too, and the team was rewarded
with silver medals.
The Over 50s couldn't match that but got faster with each stage and came
home in 6th place.
When the prize presentation came around, time-honoured tradition was upheld
by the women's golds first being offered to Belgrave, but we soon put them
right! Then it was back to Julian's for tea and Sarah's cakes.
OVERTON 6 MILES Saturday September 6th
Mick Lane finished 5th vet in 28.38.
VICE-CAPTAIN
Congratulations to Anna McLaughlin who has been appointed Vice-Captain of
the women's section.
TUESDAY NIGHT SESSIONS
Look on our web site for full details of the sessions, which all start at
7pm from the clubhouse.
23 Sep 2 x 6min efforts, 2 x 5min efforts
30 Sep 2 x 3 x Holly Lodge Hill, 1 x Nightingale Lane hill
7 Oct 1 x 10min effort, 3 x 4min efforts
14 Oct 3 x 3 x Ham Gate hill
Wednesday night (6.30pm) training continues from the clubhouse too, plus
Sunday morning runs at 10am.
LONDON MARATHON Sunday April 18th 2004
Entry forms are now available, so it's a good time to make plans. There are
four possible ways to get into the marathon, outlined below. Ballot entries
must be in by October 24th, but don't rush to enter this way if you think
you might go for one of the guaranteed entry options. Multiple entries
should definitely be avoided. For all options, the best first step is to get
a copy of the free Marathon News magazine (August 2003), available now from
sport shops. If you pick up a copy, why not pick up two, and bring the spare
one to the club to tempt someone else? The magazine includes the ordinary
ballot entry form, some information on option (2) (both championship and
good for age entries), and plenty of adverts from charities looking for
runners. If you're interested in option (3), please contact Peter Trainor
. After rejection of a ballot entry (in December),
it may still be possible to get in (eg by picking up a spare charity place),
but, if you want to be sure of getting an entry, it's worth investigating
the "guaranteed" options sooner rather than later.
(1) Ordinary ballot entries.
(2) Guaranteed entries, based on qualifying times (depending on age & sex).
(3) Guaranteed entries through the club (eg by working at registration).
(4) Guaranteed entries through charities (by raising sponsorship).
However you enter, please fill in and sign your entry form and cheque very
carefully!
General information about the race and how to enter (but not entry forms)
can be found on the web site www.london-marathon.co.uk
Deborah Young writes: "I've just come across the following article on the
web. The site it comes from www.airhealth.org seems to be acting reasonably
responsibly, i.e. publishing info from respected sources, not just being
sensationalist". ATHLETES AT RISK OF DISABLING, SOMETIMES FATAL INJURY
Tim Hentzel, 26, a competitive triathlete, was recently diagnosed with DVT,
deep vein thrombosis, a blood clot in the leg, after a flight from
Minneapolis to San Francisco. His life has been difficult since then,
revolving around pain, swelling, warfarin (rat poison) tablets, and blood
tests.
Medical journals report that, during air travel, blood flow slows down,
especially in the lower legs, and coagulability rises hour by hour. Blood
clots form in the calves of about 5% of air travelers. Clots can cause pain
and swelling. If a blood clot reaches the lungs, it can cause pain,
fainting, and death. Athletic people are at greater risk because, with lower
resting blood flow to the large muscles, they are more prone to stasis,
stagnant blood subject to clotting. A large majority of air travel
thrombosis victims contacting Airhealth.org are athletic, usually
endurance-type athletes like marathoners. No other risk factor comes close.
Age is supposed to be a risk factor for DVT, but 83% of these victims are
under age 60.
Experts recommend wearing compression stockings and flexing the legs at
thirty minute intervals. For people at higher risk, such as athletes,
flexing more frequently is advisable. Don't confuse compression stockings
with support stockings. Support stockings may actually be harmful.
Compression stockings are graduated, with much greater pressure at the
ankle.
The injury often feels like a muscle cramp and is usually misdiagnosed,
aggravating the injury and increasing the risk of death. Tips on recognizing
symptoms and avoiding misdiagnosis are available in a freeleaflet at
www.airhealth.org/leaflet.html
There are no strings, no advertising and no plea for contributions.
NEXT...
A fixture list for the 2003/04 winter season is now up on our web site.
More details of the following from Andy Bickerstaff (07966 552302 /
mailto:andy@norris-hobs.co.uk ) or Paul Graham (mailto:paulgraham28@hotmail.com)
or Clare Nicholson (07710 348030 / mailto:clarenicholson@hotmail.com)
Saturday / Sunday September 20th / 21st Thames Hare & Hounds Brasher
relay - see above.
Saturday September 27th Men's Southern 6-stage relay at Aldershot
(including M40, M50 and M60 categories) from 12.30pm.
Sunday September 28th Women's Southern 4-stage relay at Aldershot at
3.30pm
Saturday October 4th Page Cup 5 miles handicap in Richmond Park at
3pm
Saturday October 11th Surrey Veterans Cross-Country championships
in Richmond Park. Women 6km at 2.30pm, men 10km at 3pm.
Saturday October 18th Surrey Cross-Country League Div 1 in Richmond
Park (Kingston Gate). Women from 12.30pm, men from 2.30pm.
Sunday October 19th Cabbage Patch 10 miles road race at
Twickenham. Likely to be popular so get your entries in early to avoid
disappointment. See www.cabbagepatch10.com
Also today, the Founders' Challenge 26 miles
"go as you please" from Peaslake. Details from www.ldwa.org.uk
or from Peter Saw.
FINALLY
From the Belgrave Harriers web site's report of the Surrey Road Relays:
"Which Belgrave relay runner took over in 2nd place - and then in the same
race took over again from the man who had set out ahead of him?
Answer: Martin Dent. Our SEAA and Belgrave 10km track champion Martin was
looking for a tough training session, ideally two 3 mile legs with 6-7
minutes recovery between. He got his wish by running 4th leg for the A team,
taking over just a pace or two behind Harry Corbett who was setting out for
the B team which at that stage was still leading the field. After taking
Belgrave into an unassailable lead Martin then got just under five minutes
respite before he did his second stint as a B team runner, taking over from
Harry".
Steve Rowland
e-mail: srowland@calor.co.uk
Tel: 01926 318734
Fax: 0870 4006901