Newsletter No.593

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RANELAGH HARRIERS E-NEWS # 593 12th October 2021
Editor: Steve Rowland
mailto: sandsrowland@btinternet.com
website: www.ranelagh-harriers.com
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RANELAGH HARRIERS WEB SITE
Work has been progressing steadily on our new website and now it is ready to be
unleashed on an unsuspecting public. It's here: https://ranelagh-harriers.co.uk.
Thanks and congratulations go to all those involved. It will be subject to further
development and enrichment of content over the coming months, but in the meantime
please take a look and let us know what you think. Note that Ken Powley's results
archive and stats are still available from the new site.

SURREY LEAGUE RACES Saturday 16th October
Timetable and Marshals
Ranelagh is hosting the first Surrey Cross Country League fixture for Divisions 1 and 2
Women and Division 1 Men on Saturday 16 October 2021. This will require a big effort
from the club.
The first race which is for Division 1 Senior Women starts at 11.00, and is followed at
12.00 by U15/17 girls and at 12.30 U13 girls and then the Division 2 Senior Women's
race at 13.00. These will then be followed by U13 and U15/17 boy's races and finally
the Senior Men Division 1 Race at 15.00. The start and finish area will be located close
to Sheen Cross in Richmond Park. The course covers an area between the top of Queen's
Ride, Pen Ponds and the Ballet School.

Marshals are needed to provide cover either in the morning from a 10.30 briefing until
after the final Women's race at around 13:30; or from 13.00 (briefing) until almost 16.00
when the final men's race finishes. Any marshal wanting to cover both the women's and
men's races may of course do so. Marshalling is an excellent way to support the club,
cheer on Ranelagh's runners and contribute to a successful Surrey X Country League fixture.
We really need as many as possible so please sign up if you are able to come along. We also
need members to assist at the start area and particularly at the finish of the men's races
in the afternoon.
Anyone who wishes to run should do so. It may be possible for some to double-up racing
and marshalling. If you want to act as a Marshal and/or to help out at the start and finish
area you should contact Gordon Whitson at ranelagh.hon.secretary@gmail.com.

Runners
In addition we mustn't forget that we also need good representation from the club in
the races. We have the unenviable task of trying to stay in Division 1 of what is sure
to be a very strong League competition for both men and women. All are welcome to run,
we need a total of at least twenty runners to fill our A and B teams. If you intend to
run any league races this season please register with your Captain before the first race.
On the day collect your number at the start close to Sheen Cross and return the number
after the race. Contact: women's captain Suzy Whatmough ranelagh-women@gmail.com or men's
captain Rich Kimber ranelagh-men@gmail.com.

After
Social Secretaries Hadi and Rebecca add ...
To celebrate the return of the Surrey League and racing in Richmond Park, we have booked
the upstairs function room at The Plough in East Sheen from 16:30 Saturday 16 October.
The room accommodates ~30 people and depending on numbers and weather can always move to
the heated beer garden. All runners, volunteers and supporters most welcome.
The Plough
42 Christ Church Road,
London SW14 7AF

REGISTER TO RUN THE RANELAGH RICHMOND 10k 28th November 2021 at 9am.
After two cancelations the Ranelagh 10k is back, and shifted for one year only from its
traditional summer date it will be held this year on November 28th. Along with the Half
Marathon in May it's one of the key events that the club puts on for the general public
each year - and it's a fabulous opportunity to run a local race round Ham and the towpath.
We'd love everyone possible from the club to be involved in some way - either running,
volunteering, or both! It's a great way to show our club at its finest, both in the race
and in the way we welcome and look after the runners!

Please save the date and book on now - registrations are now open, full details on the
shiny new website, and please start booking on and sharing with your friends! Book now
https://ranelagh-harriers.co.uk/events .

Stephen Whitehead is once again coordinating all the volunteers for the event, and it is
possible to volunteer and run - If you're able to volunteer please let him know by email:
stephen.whitehead@me.com.
Thanks,
Ed Perry

CHRISTMAS PARTY on Saturday 11 December at the Anglers in Teddington.
It is now time to pre-order your set menu choices. You can choose from either
2 courses or 3 courses - to book your seat, make your menu selections and pay, please
click on this link.
Please note the booking tool defaults to adding a discretionary 12.5% service
charge to your order which you can remove (or change value) before you add your name and
email address.
Deadline for booking online is Saturday 20 November
Drinks will be available to order individually via table service

Any questions, please let us know,

Hadi and Rebecca rebeccapbissell@hotmail.com.

CLUB HANDICAPPER - VACANCY
Simon Martin writes:
The role of Ranelagh's Handicapper will soon become vacant as I have decided to step down
after 3 years in the role to focus on my other club duties. As well as my coaching role for
Advanced 2, I have recently agreed to take over from Sandra Forrest as Race Director for
the Ranelagh Half Marathon. I am extremely excited, but at the same time somewhat daunted,
about taking on this role as Sandra has done such amazing work over the past 6 years so I
have big shoes to fill!

The role of Handicapper is extremely important to the Club with some of the handicaps
dating back over one hundred years (Clutton 1883, Page 1884, Thomas 1891 and Baker 1911).
It is a Committee-appointed, voluntary role that is enormously prestigious and not one for
the faint hearted! The role can be time consuming but it is very rewarding too.

There are numerous handicaps (including sealed handicaps) every year and occasionally some
ad hoc, informal ones too. Details about the various annual handicaps can be found in the
Club Constitution here:

As part of the handover I will share and explain the spreadsheets, in which I have worked
my mysterious magic, to the new Handicapper. Overseen by me in a transitionary role, it is
envisaged that the incoming Handicapper will handicap the next handicap race before assuming
the role independently going forward starting with the following handicap race.

The role of Handicapper requires someone numerate and analytical who is relatively
proficient in Excel; specifically, familiarity with formulae including lookup and if
functions for example. The new Handicapper should not feel constrained by the mechanics of
my spreadsheets and my approach to determining handicaps, and would be welcome to finesse
the processes and decision making as he or she feels appropriate. Certain qualitative
qualities are also invaluable; someone who is discerning, diligent and a subjective
decision-maker. It is helpful, but not imperative, to be familiar with many of the regular
handicap participants and their running form. Additional qualities, although again not
prerequisites, are a relatively thick skin and a good sense of humour!

The Committee would like to invite members who would be interested in becoming the new
Club Handicapper to email Gordon Whitson ranelagh.hon.secretary@gmail.com in the first
instance expressing their interest. Subsequent to the new Handicapper being appointed,
the Committee will make the exciting announcement in the Ranelagh e-news.

Many thanks in advance for your interest in this role,
Simon Martin

RESULTS
PAGE CUP 5 MILES HANDICAP Saturday 2nd October in Richmond Park
There was a fairly small turnout for the Page - 32 entered but only 23 finished, the rest
presumably staying indoors and watching the torrential rain lash down. Many thanks go to
marshals and officials for braving the horrendous conditions. The race itself turned out
to be a vintage one thanks to another well-framed handicap. At the finish there was no
more than three seconds covering the first three home. After a tough battle up the final
hill Dave Kew finally crossed the line just a couple of seconds ahead of Carol Aikin with
James Ritchie another second back in third place. Fifty metres back and closing fast was
Suzy Whatmough and her actual time of 33.26 was the overall second fastest of the day,
behind Ed Forbesâ€™s 32.11. Vaughan Ramsay was next on 34.26. Suzy was of course the
fastest woman. Second and third were Wiebke Kortum on 37.48 and Carol Aikin on 42.23.

H'cap H'cap Actual Speed
Time Allow Time Order
1 Dave Kew 29.11 15.40 44.51 18
2 Carol Aikin (L) 29.13 13.10 42.23 15
3 James Ritchie 29.14 11.40 40.54 13
4 Suzy Whatmough (L) 29.36 3.50 33.26 2
5 Stephen Hurton 29.44 7.10 36.54 6
6 Wiebke Kortum (L) 29.48 8.00 37.48 7
7 John Tovell 29.16 11.10 40.26 11
8 Edward Forbes 30.21 1.50 32.11 1
9 Lloyd Camp 30.28 10.20 40.48 12
10 Jo Marshall (L) 31.00 14.20 45.20 19
11 Perry Rendell 31.10 10.20 41.30 14
Shaun Griffith (G) 31.11 3.40 34.51 4
12 Sally Bamford (L) 31.15 12.50 44.05 17
13 Stephen Aikin 31.27 7.10 38.37 8
14 Duncan Brown 31.30 11.40 43.10 16
15 Vaughan Ramsay 32.36 1.50 34.26 3
16 Amrut Sharma 32.57 7.10 40.07 10
17 Jackie Dunkley (L) 33.11 21.00 54.11 22
18 Peter Fordham 35.23 19.00 54.23 23
19 John Shaw 35.30 0.00 35.30 5
Thomas Lahille (G) 38.37 0.10 38.47 9
Ciaran O'Donnell (G) 40.36 8.00 48.36 21
20 Chris Bundhun 47.27 0.00 47.27 20

LONDON MARATHON Sunday 2nd October
The London was returning to its familiar self this year, with a few exceptions - principally
that it was held in autumn rather than the familiar spring. Numbers were restricted to
40,000 in the mass race plus any number of virtual competitors. The start was in waves,
which seemed to work well. Counting both the "reals" and the "virtuals" there were about
30 RH taking part. First among these was James Riley whose 2:37.58 represented a PB. He was
well clear of Jonny Smith and Gareth Williams who finished in the 2:40s. Five more made
it home inside three hours - David Ready, Sergio Stllacci, James Whistler, Rich Kimber and
Paul Doyle, plus two more - Bob Tinsley and Andy Freeman - just seconds outside.
Bill Neely's 3:12.25 places him 4th in Ranelagh's over 60 all-time ranking list.
First Ranelagh woman was Clare Fowler whose 3:13 was a massive PB. Debutante Natalie Haarer
was next at 3:36, followed by Michelle Meadows on 4:06 and Kathy Henry on 4:18.

"Ever Present" Mike Peace navigated his way round the course successfully in 4:25.
Congratulations Mike! Unfortunately three of his ten London Marathon "Ever Present"
colleagues were unable to start this time and so now only seven are left to keep the
tradition going. BBC's "The One Show" on October 1st carried a short item about the
Ever Presents, including Mike of course. It should remain available to view for the next
couple of weeks.

323 James Riley 2:37.58
677 Jonathan Smith 2:44.51
829 Gareth Williams 2:47.37
1072 David Ready 2:50.33
1115 Sergio Stillacci 2:51.05
1745 James Whistler 2:57.10
1771 Rich Kimber 2:57.19
1865 Paul Doyle 2:57.55
2171 Bob Tinsley 3:00.09
2172 Andy Freeman 3:00.13
2747 Gerry O'Callaghan 3:05.44
3438 Bill Neely 3:12.25
3576 Clare Fowler 3:13.32
4331 Neil Rae 3:19.31
5202 Joe Gomes 3:25.39
5399 Rick Jenner 3:26.44
7217 Natalie Haarer 3:36.59
8044 Adam Heetun 3:41.05
14132 Michelle Meadows 4:06.49
16313 Jeremy Day 4:16.55
16774 Kathy Henry 4:18.53
17864 Gavin Hillhouse 4:23.43
18185 Mike Peace 4:25.06
18441 Fiona Pugh 4:26.20
19379 Chris Cato 4:30.22
23706 Karima Graham 4:50.11
30600 Bronwen Northmore 5:33.47
32038 Colin Brett 5:48.44
32039 Roger Wallace 5:48.44
34781 Andrew Brown 6:39.05

SURREY MASTERS CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS Saturday 9th October in Nonsuch Park
Gordon Whitson reports:
Owing to a double booking of the original venue in Morden Park, the venue for the Surrey
Masters Cross Country Championships on 9th October was changed at the very last minute to
Nonsuch Park. Much credit is due to the Surrey officials who managed to pull off a successful
event at such short notice. Conditions were firm under foot and the weather rather warm.

Ranelagh were represented in the combined 6km Women's Masters and Men's M60 and over race,
by a WM50 team and a M60 team. Neither team challenged for medals. However, John Shaw
finished an outstanding 3rd in the M60 category and David Kew took gold as the first and
only M75 finisher. Wiebke Kortum and Gordon Whitson were both 5th in the WM50 and M65
categories respectively, chased home by Rachel Revett and Jo Marshall.

In the youngsters 9km race, Ranelagh had a M50 team which finished well out of the medals
and which was led home by Neil Rae, followed by Paul Doyle and Richard Willoughby.
Thanks are due to Marianne Malam and daughter Phoebe for cake and cheers and to Narissa Vox
for vocal support and chauffeuring duties.

1st Race - all women over 35 and men over 60 6km
1 D Ogden (SLH) 22.53 1st M60
5 John Shaw 24.18 3rd M60
43 Wiebke Kortum 27.51 5th W50
61 Gordon Whitson 29.10 5th M65
81 Rachel Revett 30.28 11th W40
96 Jo Marshall 32.02 10th W35
102 Dave Kew 32.54 1st M75

2nd Race - men over 40 9km
1 D Woolmer (Walton) 31.17 1st M40
38 Neil Rae 36.42 7th M50
47 Paul Doyle 37.38 8th M55
65 Richard Willoughby 39.15 16th M40

THERME MANCHESTER MARATHON Sunday 10th October
A great run by Sarah Palmer, running negative splits and scraping inside the three hours
barrier by just two seconds. This great performance places her 9th in the Ranelagh Women's
All-time ranking list. Also entering the list thanks to her 3:13.32 run in the "London" is
Clare Fowler who goes into 17th place - Marathon PB too from Suzy Whatmough, and from
several others. Sue Lear settled for the Half, in which she recorded 2:27.36.
Sarah Palmer 2:59.58
Suzy Whatmough 3:23.47
Alun Thomas 3:28.43
John Reece 4:03.23
Gavin Hillhouse 4:14.21
Lloyd Camp 4:23.35
Jon Lear 4:25.31
Helen Shires 4:25.39

ROYAL PARKS HALF MARATHON Sunday 10th October
No clubs listed in the official results, so this list is probably incomplete.
Chris Lepine 1:20.10
Simon Martin 1:32.28
Hadi Khatamizadeh 1:37.09
Aoife Kilpatrick 2:03.06
Colette Doran 2:03.15

RANELAGH ULTRA CREW - TO INFINITY AND BEYOND
Suzy Whatmough reports in Facebook:
Jim Graham ran a phenomenal race to come first in the North Coast 110. This race takes
on 110 miles and nearly 6,000m elevation gain along the coast of the South West peninsula.
The runners set off at 7:30am on Friday morning and, having started mid-pack, Jim gradually
passed each runner ahead of him to secure a lead by Friday night. He continued to push on
through the night, finishing in 25:08:02, over an hour ahead of the next runner. An epic run,
a fantastic achievement, and another gold medal for the Ranelagh Ultra Crew!.

MORE MARATHONS and MORE
Gareth Williams won the Richmond Park Marathon on 26th September by some five minutes in
3:07.22. Jarryd Hillhouse went further afield to finish in 3:18.12 in the Loch Ness
Marathon ... In the same part of the world Amelia Churnside ran in the Salomon Steal
Skyline 17.8 miles mountain race at Kinlochleven and just made it into the top 50 women
finishing in 6:51.16 ... Amelie Hunton came close to her PB in the Brighton Half Marathon
with a 94.25 clocking and took 3rd spot in the senior category, though there were a number
of finishers ahead of her in older categories...in the Silverstone Half Marathon Shaun
Griffith ran 91.01 - Mike Morris ran 3:45.59 on the notoriously tough Isle of Wight Marathon
course ... in the Second Sunday 5 miles on Wimbledon Common Rebecca Bissell ran 40.07 and
Marie Synnott-Wells 43.52 - Mark Byatt recorded 1:44.07 in the Henley Half Marathon ... and
an extra name for the Kew 10k result in the last e-news was David Meaden who finished in
75.16.

NEXT JOB FOR THE MOB
MASS MOB MATCH Saturday, 30 October 2021 14:30 at Farthing Downs , Coulsdon
The following comes from the South London Harriers web site and refers to South London's
150th Anniversary, not ours just yet!

"A mob match to celebrate the club's 150th anniversary, except this time we will be racing
against all our mob match adversaries at the same time. SLH vs. Blackheath, Orion, Ranelagh
and Thames Hare & Hounds. For those unaware of how mob matches work, the race is scored
based on the lowest number of runners in a team (less 3), for example in the SLH v.
Blackheath mob match, if SLH have 150 runners and BBHAC have 130 runners, the first 127 of
each team count towards the score, and the lowest score wins (1st place is 1 point and so on).

Therefore it is vital that each club gets as many members racing as possible, as any and
all runners can make a difference by pushing the opposition down a few places and therefore
increasing their score. There are usually four mob matches per year, so each one will be
scored separately within the same race as well as mob matches being run between the other
clubs. Race starts at 2:30 p.m. and everyone returns to the clubhouse for tea and cake with
no charge, prize giving and no doubt the bar will be opened to round off the celebration."

So, Ranelagh, it's our usual plea! We need as many of you to run as possible. All affect
the final results and the bigger our mob, the better our chances. Itâ€™s 7.5 miles of pure
country. Usually a mob match is one club against another, but on this occasion SLH have
invited all the traditional mob match clubs, as listed above.
The SLH clubhouse is here:.

The start and finish are a five minute jog away on Farthing Downs, here:.

TEAMER
Teamer is the app we use to confirm attendance at races. It's pretty self-explanatory once
you sign up. Join the group and see what it's all about.
Men: Men's Teamer Group Women: Women's Teamer group.

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 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: Ranelagh Harriers
Insta: @ranelaghharriers

FINALLY
Ron Clarke, Australian 17-time world record holder: "The hardest step for a runner to take
is the first one out the door".

TO STOP RECEIVING the Ranelagh Harriers e-news, please reply with the word UNSUBSCRIBE
LONDON MARATHON Sunday 2nd October
The London was returning to its familiar self this year, with a few exceptions - principally
that it was held in autumn rather than the familiar spring. Numbers were restricted to
40,000 in the mass race plus any number of virtual competitors. The start was in waves,
which seemed to work well. Counting both the "reals" and the "virtuals" there were about
30 RH taking part. First among these was James Riley whose 2:37.58 represented a PB. He was
well clear of Jonny Smith and Gareth Williams who finished in the 2:40s. Five more made
it home inside three hours - David Ready, Sergio Stllacci, James Whistler, Rich Kimber and
Paul Doyle, plus two more - Bob Tinsley and Andy Freeman - just seconds outside.
Bill Neely's 3:12.25 places him 4th in Ranelagh's over 60 all-time ranking list.
First Ranelagh woman was Clare Fowler whose 3:13 was a massive PB. Debutante Natalie Haarer
was next at 3:36, followed by Michelle Meadows on 4:06 and Kathy Henry on 4:18.

2nd Race - men over 40 9km
1 D Woolmer (Walton) 31.17 1st M40
38 Neil Rae 36.42 7th M50
47 Paul Doyle 37.38 8th M55
65 Richard Willoughby 39.15 16th M40

So, Ranelagh, it's our usual plea! We need as many of you to run as possible. All affect
the final results and the bigger our mob, the better our chances. It’s 7.5 miles of pure
country. Usually a mob match is one club against another, but on this occasion SLH have
invited all the traditional mob match clubs, as listed above.
The SLH clubhouse is here:.

The start and finish are a five minute jog away on Farthing Downs, here:.

FINALLY
Ron Clarke, Australian 17-time world record holder: "The hardest step for a runner to take
is the first one out the door".

TO STOP RECEIVING the Ranelagh Harriers e-news, please reply with the word UNSUBSCRIBE