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***************************************************
 RANELAGH HARRIERS E-NEWS # 570           19th May 2020
 Editor: Steve Rowland
 mailto: sandsrowland@btinternet.com  
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 FROM THE PRESIDENT
 Dear Ranelagh Friends and Family,
 First off I hope you are all continuing to keep fit and well. Recent
 announcements have changed the shape of the current situation for many of
 us, with unlimited exercise now possible and the ability to meet with one
 person from another household (but only outside and only you and them at one
 time and keeping two metres apart). England Athletics have published new
 guidance for runners and coaches on Friday, which you can read here:
 The easing of restrictions has brought to mind when training may resume, and
 I don’t think that will be just yet. Because of the situation, the committee
 have taken a stance to not chase subscriptions, which were due as usual on
 1st April. We want to be sensitive to those of you who may be in financial
 distress and not add to your problems while mandating membership.
 However, with the increase in virtual races, I would ask all members who are
 choosing to represent Ranelagh in this way to, if they can, pay their subs
 for 2020. We are dependent on your subscriptions to keep the club in good
 financial shape and fit for the future.
 The subscription rates are as follows:.
 Seniors £50
 Under 20 or Student £20
 Family Membership £90
 Retired and Over 60 £25
 Second Claim £20
 Non-Running Member £10
 Payment may be made by Standing Order or Bank Transfer to:
 HSBC
 Sort code: 40-23-29
 Account number: 81109847
 Reference: your initial and name and SUBS – e.g. J SMITH SUBS

 On the subject of virtual races, it’s great to see all of the posts from the
 virtual Green Belt Relay this weekend. It’s one of my favourite weekends of
 the year and your posts have bought smiles to many faces. There are a
 selection on various social media channels, e.g.  facebook and instagram:
 https://www.facebook.com/ranelaghharriers
 https://www.instagram.com/ranelaghharriers/
 Finally, the club is making arrangements for the AGM and planned races in
 July. We will communicate these soon, but a lot will depend on the next few
 weeks and what happens with Covid-19 infection rates and whether lockdown is
 eased further before then.
 On the subject of the AGM, I have decided to not seek re-election this year
 and I am delighted to say, Ted Mockett is standing for President, with my
 and the Hon Secretary’s support. I do hope you will support him at the AGM
 and beyond. I have enjoyed my seven or so years on the committee, but now
 wish to pursue some other projects, outside of Ranelagh. 
 Cheers,
 Becky Curtis-Hall

 KEEP IN TOUCH
 1. Join the Strava group:
 2. Log your run and give it a catchy title.
 3. Give our segments a shot!
 4. Check back here every week for highlights
 5. Note that Activity and Profile Privacy settings will need to be set to
 Everyone if you want the rundown team to be able to see your individual runs
 Follow us elsewhere on social:
 Twitter: @ranelaghharrier
 FB
 Insta: @ranelaghharriers

 Ranelagh Harriers Virtual Green Belt Relay 16-17th May 2020

 The Race
 Since the Green Belt Relay was cancelled this year, we decided to put on our
 own inter-club virtual version of the event. Each runner completed their
 stage distances solo, and with 9 full teams we covered around 2,000 miles
 between us!
 We were absolutely delighted to have so many people taking part. We had 100+
 runners from the club, an age range of about 60 years and people taking part
 from further afield (Laura Blazey in France, Peter and Karen Weir in the
 Peak District, and John Pratt and Neil Walford in Brighton).
 Saturday kicked off early with the first run starting at 5:38am, courtesy of
 Sergio Stillacci. Andy Starr was already enjoying his post run beer before
 9am. Though to be fair, the Rockstars had to spend a bit of time getting
 their hair and make-up ready, and the Royals had to polish their crowns. As
 Sergio discovered, it’s a bit trickier to dress up as a Rascal! There were
 some fantastic pre and post races photos from everyone – you can see them
 here:
 By the end of day 1, Rascals had already taken the lead, followed by
 Rockstars. Saturday finished off with a superb virtual quiz by Ted and Ellen
 Mockett, including five Green Belt themed rounds and real drinks enjoyed
 together (virtually). Well done to Michael Morris and co. (aka The Royals)
 who were the quiz winners. 
 Despite having raced Saturday, many of our runners managed to smash out some
 even stronger performances on the Sunday. It’s not easy doing this on tired
 legs and solo. Simon Martin even managed to get a half marathon PB (1:28:35)
 – well done Simon!
 Sunday also saw Natalie Haarer and Peter Haarer go head to head in stage 17,
 with the younger Haarer narrowly taking the win with just 7 seconds to
 spare. Camilla Mignot had an eventful run, helping another park user who had
 fallen, then waiting with them for an ambulance. She still finished her run
 afterwards and earned herself the stage win for her good citizenship,
 generously suggested by Michelle Beaumont who had recorded a faster time
 earlier. This reflects what this weekend was about – coming together despite
 the restrictions, running hard, but primarily supporting each other. It was
 great to see so many of us getting to know other people in the club, making
 new friends and cheering each other on, albeit virtually.  It showed our
 great club at its very best.
 Unlike the usual Green Belt Relay, most of us managed to navigate our routes
 without getting lost (ahem, Kev Kearey)! Whilst not getting lost as such,
 Ross MacDonald did manage to finish his stage 5km from home on Sunday
 evening. Unfortunately no virtual minibus was on hand to escort him back
 home. 
 There wasn’t the usual grand finale GBR finish line for our stage 22
 runners, but we hope some of you crossed your own finish lines in style, and
 that all of you enjoyed some well earned drinks and cakes afterwards.
 Luckily for Phil Roberts someone had left a walking stick in his garden on
 the Saturday morning, which I’m sure became increasingly tempting towards
 the end of the weekend!
 The Rascals maintained their lead on day 2, finishing in 24:55:31. 
 What a fantastic weekend! We hope everyone enjoyed it as much as we did!

 The Results

 VGBR Overall Winners: Ranelagh Rascals 
 (Clare Fowler, Jackson Creegan, Paul Sinton-Hewitt, Sam Dalgleish, Sergio
 Stillacci, Camilla Mignot, Dave Lawley, Sam Davidson, James Russell, Eirin
 McDaid and Susan Ritchie)
 VGBR Runners Up: Ranelagh Rockstars 
 (James Ritchie, James Riley, Kathy Henry, Cordy Parker, Paul Doyle, Nick
 Twomey, Carol Aikin, Rick Jenner, Marcus Atkins, Mike White and Alison
 Targett)
 VGBR Toilet Seat: Ranelagh Cake Walking Radicals 
 (Lloyd Camp, Gavin Hillhouse, Steve Aikin, Sue Camp, Perry Rendell,
 Marie-Ann Duncan, Amrut Sharma, Carmen Rendell, Robert Hillhouse, Alberto
 Esgueivillas and Fiona Jones)
 Queens of the Mountains: Fanny Vein, Laura Blazey and Karen Weir
 Kings of the Mountains: Simon Hedger and Peter Weir
 Best pre-race photo:
Best post-race photo:

 1  Ranelagh Rascals    24:55.31
 2  Ranelagh Rockstars  25:37.35
 3  Ranelagh Raptors    26:18.18
 4  Ranelagh Royals     26:25.42
 5  Ranelagh Rebels     26:26.25
 6  Ranelagh Rockets    26:45.35
 7  Ranelagh Rapids     26:57.09
 8  Ranelagh Raiders    27:50.27
 9  Ranelagh Radicals   34:37.18                

 Stage Winners 
 Stage
 Female Winner
 Male Winner
 1
 Michelle Beaumont
 Marc Leyshon
 2
 Fanny Vein
 Nick Impey
 3
 Cordy Parker
 Pat Wright
 4
 Colette Doran
 Sam Dalgleish
 5

 Ross MacDonald
 6
 Camilla Mignot
 Gareth Williams
 7
 Becky Northmore
 Rick Jenner
 8
 Sarah Palmer
 Ted Mockett
 9
 Rebecca Bissell
 Ross Clayton
 10
 Marie Synott-Wells
 Eirin McDaid
 11
 Izzy Atkins
 Jonny Smith
 12
 Ann Kearey
 Pat Wright
 13
 Camilla Mignot
 Kev Kearey 
 14
 Karen Weir
 James Russell
 15
 Fanny Vein
 David Ready
 16

 Nick Impey
 17
 Natalie Haarer
 Rick Jenner
 18
 Laura Blazey
 Sam Dalgleish
 19
 Clare Fowler
 Ed Perry
 20
 Emma Harris Lloyd
 Peter Weir
 21
 Wiebke Kortum
 Rich Kimber
 22
 Cordy Parker
 Kris Davidson

 Full results here:

 Thanks to…
 • All Team Captains for coordinating your team and their stages, and getting
 everyone’s results and photos in so efficiently. Thanks to Ann Kearey, David
 Ready, Lloyd Camp, James Ritchie, HRH Simon Martin, Vaughan Ramsay, Clare
 Fowler, James Whistler and Suzy Whatmough! Thanks also to James Ritchie for
 helping to create the scores sheet.  
 • Ed Forbes and Kathy Henry for helping to collate the photos, and for
 Kathy’s brilliant photo collages.
 • Ted and Ellen Mockett for the excellent virtual Green Belt themed quiz on
 Saturday night. 
 Finally, thanks to all the runners who took part – new friends met,
 brilliant team spirit from all and some fantastic running. We had a blast! 

 Suzy Whatmough, Clare Fowler and James Whistler

 FLYING THE RANELAGH FLAG IN OZ
 David Criniti writes:
 “I and fellow Ranelagh Sydney-Siders Tom Do Canto and Tom Middleton flew the
 Ranelagh flag here  last Sunday. We were all slated to represent the club at
 London this year, and Tom Middleton, especially was in the form of his life,
 so he decided to make the most of his training with a marathon of his own. 
 I paced him to half way in 72:35, before Tom Do Canto (a former sub 2:15
 guy) took over and brought him home slightly faster, as he finished in
 2:24:48.
 Though it didn't quite have the vibe of finishing in front of Buckingham
 Palace, it was still a great morning out, representing Ranelagh from afar!”

 RUNNING IN THE FAR EAST
 Nick Impey writes:
 As some pretext, Steve has asked me to do a write up of my experience living
 and running in Asia. Just over 18 months ago I moved with my job in media
 to Singapore.  If I had a list of places to choose to train for a marathon,
 Singapore would be towards the bottom of that list. Being right under the
 equator, tropical temperatures don't really dip under 30c, throw in
 an average of 80% humidity levels and a casual jog feels like an
 achievement!

 I was wondering how my running was going to shape up and adapting to work
 and lifestyle. I already had a place at Tokyo marathon so was determined to
 run a fast time and not to let my progress slip after three steady XC and
 road seasons with Ranelagh.

 Weirdly, before leaving and at the end of the Dorking 10 miles in 2018, I
 met a husband and wife couple from Cobham who turned out to be the country
 directors for Parkrun Singapore and also run a club called Singapore
 Shufflers. I soon discovered Singapore has a big community of enthusiastic
 and driven runners many who have become friends as in Ranelagh.

 All athletic tracks are free for public use and open all the time so track
 running is manageable after work and early mornings. Track sessions are so
 important for marathon pace and I was getting faster. Long runs and tempo
 are tricky, there are lots of free water stations along routes around the
 island which helps staying cool but you don't stay hydrated for very long.

 Training
 The closest thing to a XC course is McRitchie Reservoir, very popular for
 many runners. It is a 10k muddy undulating rainforest loop of a lake filled
 with fish, snakes, monkeys, monitor lizards, wild boar and one photo I've
 seen from a friend is of an alligator. On my first run around this loop I
 missed landing on a snake’s head by an inch. This Strava segment crown was
 mine until Covid19 inspired a fully rested pal to steal my crown, whilst I
 am back in the UK. 

 Racing
 My favourite distance is marathon so after arriving I put my name down for
 the Singapore Standard Chartered half-marathon. Races generally start at
 unsociable hours, this one at 4.30am. I won the race in 74 minutes, probably
 setting a record for the slowest winning time for a national half marathon!
 However, I was more pleased I could operate well in the heat and made a
 mental note to self, run more in the mornings!  Racing for a PB in Singapore
 makes no sense so most runners head to Australia or Japan for cooler climes.
 My two marathon PB's have been in Japan at Tokyo (2h 29mins) and in Fukuoka
 (2h 28mins) last year. If anyone is interested I really recommend
 reading:
 One thing for sure is after running in Singapore and then racing in cooler
 weather, you feel like you fly! I like to think of running in Singapore as
 'poor man's altitude training'.

 Runcations
 I always run on holiday and secretly see it as a chance for extra training.
 I ran in Phnom Penh which was absolutely crazy, accidentally training with
 the Cambodian national team at their national stadium one early morning
 before sunrise and doing a 20 mile run through the streets dodging tuk-tuks,
 dogs, motorbikes and potholes along the Khmer river on Saturday evening. You
 have to keep marathon training interesting! 

 Another fun run was in Bali, running 20 miles in 35c around ancient temples,
 waterfalls and occasionally being chased by wild dogs. I ran in Borneo
 around mountains and through rainforests. The scenery at these places is
 stunning and makes an excellent excuse to keep running and avoid the boredom
 of marathon work. A very recent run was in Okinawa, a beautiful Japanese
 Island when one afternoon after lunch my girlfriend dropped me off on one
 side of the island and I ran 20 miles through mountainous roads (despite
 getting very lost - Japanese road signs are not my forte!) I managed to meet
 her on the other side. A sudden downpour meant it had rained hard the entire
 way and I had no money or phone so she was relieved to see me emerge in the
 dark and cold, strip naked in a carpark and act like everything was normal.

 Asia offers a lot of opportunities for adventurous runners. Singapore is a
 good place to work, socialise and run if you don't mind the heat and spicy
 food. There are not many better things than a curry and cold beer after a
 good run!

 ALL GREEK TO US
 This comes from “Track Stats”:
 Andy Milroy quotes two stories from Ancient Greece; a runner named Charmus
 finished 7th in a race in which there were only six starters, being
 overtaken by a friend who joined in the encourage him, and it was said of
 Charmus that “if he had five more friends he would have finished 12th.”
 Another runner named Marcus was so slow that the groundsman locked him in
 the stadium for the night, having mistaken him for a statue.  

 JOHN BRYANT
 John Bryant, our old friend from Thames Hare & Hounds, died on April 29th at
 the age of 76.
 He was born on 25th April 1944 at Haselbury Plucknett in Somerset. A
 distinguished newspaper editor and author of several outstanding athletics
 books, he died peacefully at his Surrey home on April 29 after a long
 illness aged 76. A member of Achilles (Oxford Blue) and President of Thames
 Hare and Hounds, he clocked 9:18.2 for the steeplechase in 1966, 14:18.6 for
 5000m in 1972 and a 2:21:59 marathon in 1973. He participated in 29 London
 Marathons and coached Zola Budd during her time in England. He began his
 Fleet Street journalistic career in 1971 and was editor-in-chief of the
 Daily Telegraph, deputy editor of The Times, editor of the Sunday
 Correspondent and The European, and consultant editor of the Daily Mail. He
 worked closely with Chris Brasher, John Disley and Dave Bedford during the
 early years of the London Marathon and wrote 3:59.4: The Quest To Break The
 4 Minute Mile (2004), The London Marathon: The Greatest Race on Earth
 (2005), The Marathon Makers (1908 Olympic Marathon; 2008), and Chris
 Brasher: The Authorised Biography (2012). He was a good friend to Ranelagh,
 ensuring with his songs and stories that our Ranelagh v Thames mob match
 suppers would be highly entertaining. He was also one of the guest speakers
 at our 125th anniversary dinner. 

 SPORTING FEET
 Our friends at sporting-feet.com continue to support
 runners in these challenging times. Please support this local business and
 friend of the club when you're thinking about any running / footwear
 purchases. Their Richmond and Putney shops are physically closed but you can
 order online or over the phone. You can pick up in store or they will
 deliver within two days free of charge. If you quote the code WEB10 and you
 will get 10% off whatever you purchase.

 THAMES SIDE BREWERY
 Andy Hayward writes from his Brewery and Tap Room on the Thames close to
 Staines Bridge:
 We’re open for off-sales 4-7 pm Thursday-Saturday, please try to pre-order
 if you require bag-in-box beer, see website for details:. 

 CABBAGE PATCH 10 miles  Sunday 18th October at Twickenham. 
 1500 runners have put their names on the waiting list though it’s looking
 increasingly unlikely that the event will take place. Check the website for
 further announcements. https://www.cabbagepatch10.com/ 

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