Trent Park Running Club Quarterly Review

Trent Park Running Club Quarterly Review
Park Life
11th Edition - April 2013 January to March 2013
Email: chas@nowshowme.co.uk
www.trentparkrc.org
Guest Editor: Dawn Limbert
Publisher – Chas Taylor
Sunday League & Relay Wins Cheer Trent Park
The culmination of the cross
country season brought great
success with an unexpected
retaining of the Sunday League title
and this time it was a clean sweep
with not only the men’s title but
also the overall team challenge.
As well as this the men’s first team went
on to win the Chingford League Relays.
The win in the Sunday League was
achieved not only because of the star
runners at the top of the rankings but
also by the great turn out all the way
down the ability range. We only just
got ahead of St Albans Striders in the
final Sunday League race at Watford.
One major factor was the performance
of Nick Sturge who was a new recruit
and ended up being our first finisher at
Watford, and also played a significant
part in the relay win. We also had a
couple of age group winners in the
Sunday League with Scott Aiken running
away with the vet 40 category and Chas
Taylor winning the vet 60 age group.
Well done everyone who took part in this
cross country season.
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
This quarter has been plagued by more
bad weather with lots of cancelled
races and plenty of layers for training
sessions. This has been a particular
problem for those training for the Spring
marathons. The marathon trainers have
soldiered on and are now into the period
of actually delivering on all the hard
work. There will be plenty of coverage
of these marathon exploits in the next
issue of Park Life.
We have had a good number of races
in this period with Half Marathons a
feature of those with many great results.
I think the best thing to come from these
races is the performances of the first
timers. So many of our members, many
of them fairly new to running, took on
the Half Marathon for the first time. It
is hard to pick out any of these runners
for special mention but you all know
who you are and you all did really well.
At the faster end there were some great
performances with some personal bests
and age group wins.
The Handicap has had a difficult period.
The January Handicap had to be
cancelled because of some sheet ice on
the course. Apparently this is only the
Page 1
continued from front page
Cross-country runners
your feedback is required...
My First Marathon: 0 to 26 in 3 at 60
The recent inclement weather has raised a number of health and safety
concerns that affect cross-country running, and as a result the Council for
Running and Athletics Participation has drafted a set of proposed rules
which will govern all officially administered cross-country races in England
and Wales. These proposed guidelines would affect our League races from
autumn 2013 so we would welcome your feedback on the proposals:
I like numbers and music and poetry which seems to be a random thing at
this point, but hold that thought for now.
Course terrain
The Council is concerned that there’s too
much ‘country’ in many of the courses,
with not enough hard-metalled surfaces
on which runners can recover during their
race.
second time it has been cancelled.
The February Handicap broke the
record for the lowest entry and
March, although having a slightly
higher entry, was still fairly low. We
must do what we can to build up
the number of runners. April will see
the new beginners group join so
we will have a welcome boost. In
spite of the low entries we did have
some outstanding performances
particularly from the improvers, as it
should be.
Finally I would like to honour
the juniors who have had an
outstanding season on the country.
They won numerous trophies, too
many to mention individually, but
they have all had a great season.
They are currently planning changes
to the League(s) they enter next
season but I am sure they will
do equally well. The success
of the Juniors is a real credit to
Jan Bowman and her coaching
team. They do an amazing job in
developing these young athletes.
New Members
January to March
Seniors
James Durbin, Martin Kilbane,
Nick Butcher, Phillip Ansell,
Sophie Wilford (rejoined),
Colum Sharkey, Nick Sturge,
Michael Nicholson.
Juniors
Marco Kempster, Joey Malyon,
Lydia Marsh.
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Proposed solution: The Council proposes
that at least 15% of the length of every
race course is run on a hard metalled
surface with a pavement at least 2 metres
wide. This pavement should also be lit
(with street lights complying with EU
Directive 34/HJ765 standard).
Unsurprisingly the recent wet weather has
also caused concern about the amount of
mud on some courses and measures are
proposed to manage this issue:
Proposed solution: No race can be run
if more than 5% of the course contains
a surface with a specific consistency
of less than 0.78 Nions. Each Race
Manager will need to check the course
with a Nionometer (note – this proposal
is expensive as a new Nionometer costs
over £100,000. Perhaps we can share with
Barnet?).
Moreover there will be an outright ban on
any races where frozen or semi-frozen
precipitation has fallen within one week of
the race date and within 30 Km of the race
start point.
courses. At some races marshals were
only stationed where the Race Manager
thought necessary.
Proposed solution: In future marshals
will be required every 100 metres along
the length of the course and additionally
at any place on the course where there is
standing water deeper than 10 mm.
Clothing
The Council’s research showed an
appalling lack of appropriate clothing worn
by runners, including running shoes with
dangerous spikes, shorts and shirts of
inappropriate colour and an inconsistency
of warm-down clothing.
Proposed solutions: Shoes with spikes
over 1mm to be banned (every runner will
need to be inspected before racing).
Club vests to show club name clearly in
an agreed typeface. Wind-proof jackets
to be worn by all runners when the race
ambient temperature is below 5 degrees.
By Charles Dadey
It has been a couple of years since my
previous piece in Park Life despite all
the subtle nudges from our editor. Chas
Taylor, wondering how Jane Studd got an
article out of me, even tried winking and
fluttering his eyelashes at me and there I
was thinking something had got in his eye!
The problem is that I write in the same
way I run; it takes quite a while to get
motivated and into my stride but the time
has come now, to talk of many things; of
running shoes and compression socks,
of gps watches and isotonic drinks, of
negative splits and even pacing, and
preparing for my first marathon.
It seems to be the longest, coldest,
darkest winter in recent years. It certainly
was the worst of times to be training for
your first marathon. My initial enthusiasm
was gradually eroded down to a tepid
acceptance of my rash decision. If
Elizabeth had changed her mind, I
suspect I would gladly have packed it all
in, but she was resolute! You know, as
someone said, training is PAINFUL, it’s
all PAIN! I clearly remember slogging my
way round Oakwood Park in relentless
snow because it was unsafe on the
roads; 8 times round! Then there were
The Council is keen for your input on
these proposals including alternative
solutions to the problems identifies.
Please send your feedback to:
chas@nowshowme.co.uk
Infrastructure
The Council has uncovered a worrying
lack of infrastructure at the majority of
races. Key problems included a lack of
catering facilities, finish funnel ropes at the
wrong height, dangerous Club banners,
‘Start’ and ‘Finish’ banners not translated
into other languages, an absence of hot
showers and start guns that contravene
Noise Abatement Regulations.
Proposal solutions: A range of hot and
cold food to be available at all races over
2 km in length. Vegan and vegetarian
options to be provided.
Covered and heated spectator seating to
be provided for minimum of 30 people.
Finish funnel ropes to be one metre high
and mauve in colour.
‘Start’ and ‘Finish’ banners to be
translated into the languages most widely
spoken within a 10 km radius of the race
start.
the numerous road runs on Sundays with
Christerbel and Ekua to keep me going,
for which I am very grateful. There was the
time I lost an argument with a concrete
bollard and ended up with a microscopic
view of the pavement!
I suppose everything has, or should
have a beginning, middle and end but
I am not sure when it began for me, as
in a moment of momentary madness
indicating the early onset of senility, I
found that I had registered for the Brighton
marathon. It may have been a “me too”
reaction when Elizabeth decided to run
a marathon. Or maybe I should chalk it
up to Penny Cording and Trevor Jex for
taking us through the first Beginner’s
course. Later on however, I thought it
would be a good thing to raise money for
Cancer Research, as a tumour led to the
removal of my right kidney in 2006. Now
you know why I walk in that funny way.
Oh, it’s kind of you to say you have not
noticed anything strange about me.
So, on to the middle bit: training, training
and training and then more training, plus a
bit more training! Quickly realising that our
usual runs were inadequate, we followed
Pat Moran, Martin Cullen, Foulla Green
and others up to the top hill one Saturday
morning to find Vin Patel holding court.
Rubbing his hands with glee, he made us
run in a figure of eight loop for 30 minutes
followed 10 minutes of pendulum hills,
then topped it with 3 sprints, and a squat!
With some variations, this was more or
less the Saturday routine, interspersed
with press-ups, lunges and burpees (I like
the name, not the exercise). Let’s say it
again: burpee! On Mondays it was more
of the same, with high-intensity core
training on Tuesdays. Thursday evenings
were easier in my opinion as we went
running for about 1 hour at an even pace.
Long Steady Runs, also known as Long
Sunday Runs were introduced as well,
with gradual increments. Once a week,
each person would get a personalised text
message from Vin with the schedule for
that week. In my case, I started my buildup from 10 miles, increasing by 2 miles
each week until 18 miles. Each additional
mile was a personal triumph for me so
at 16 miles I celebrated in music with my
own version of Sixteen Tons by Tennessee
Ernie Ford:
Some people say a man is made outta mud
A runner’s made outta muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that’s a-strong and legs that are weak
You run sixteen miles, what do you get?
Another day older and aching bones
Saint Peter don’t you call me ‘cause I can’t go
I owe my soul to the marathon bug!
Marshalling
The Council found a severe and potentially
dangerous lack of marshals at nearly all
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
The best experience for me was when,
as part of the training and not knowing
what to expect, I entered the Roding
Valley half-marathon on the day (3 March)
and managed to get round in 2 hours
13 minutes. Now, that felt good! The
nightmare bit was when I developed an
excruciating pain in my right foot which
brought me to a standstill. After a week
I went to see the GP who diagnosed
gout. To make it worse, he dispelled my
misconception that it was an affliction
of the rich; just about anyone can get
gout. What an inglorious name! Some
people have Morton’s Neuroma or Plantar
Fasciitis. I mean, just look at that double
‘i’ in fasciitis! That rolls off the tongue with
some verbal panache!
And now, not quite the end until the fat
lady sings.
I must say that there has been boundless
encouragement from TPRC members;
comparing notes, swapping advice and
meeting on the River Lea on Sundays. It
is a great friendly club so let’s keep it that
way.
The poetic end?
I must go down to Brighton anon,
for the call of the marathon
is a wild call and a clear call that may not be
denied; And all I ask is a sunny day with the
white clouds flying, and the cheering crowds
and the sea-gulls crying.
(John Masefield)
At 60, it has taken me almost 3 years to
get to the 26-mile run along the Brighton
seafront, starting from 0 in Trent Park.
I wonder what Carol Vorderman would
make of those numbers!
Good heavens! I have just received a
challenging sponsorship offer from a work
colleague: 10p a minute for every minute
under 7 hours, 20p a minute for every
minute under 6 hours and 40p a minute
for every minute under 5 hours. !!!!!
Page 3
Monsieur
Sanger’s
Holiday
Get Out
On The Trails
By Dawn Limbert,
Registered Osteopath
By Steve Harrison
The month of January proved
difficult for me as the snow landed
making running on the roads difficult
so I had to do more trail running. For
me this is what running is all about.
It’s a chance to escape from running
on the roads, and it provides the
opportunity to run in an environment
closer to that in which humans
evolved to run. Whilst running in the
natural environment can be great for
the mind and soul, it is also good for
the body!
Seven Trent Park members recently
went on a fantastic cycling holiday
to Jordan, visiting Petra and Wadi
Rum. John Sanger was one of the
people, and here are several “John
Sanger” stories that amused the
holiday group, and I’m sure people
who know him at TP will also find
very amusing.
The “Police” Incident
Because of the current troubles in the
Middle East, all tourist parties in Jordan
over 10 people have a police escort when
on the road. When we were cycling down
to the Dead Sea, John, in his haste to
be at the front of the pack, had his head
down pedaling as fast as he could, and
completely missed the large signpost and
the guide shouting and pointing to him
to turn left. So the guide sent the police
escort after him, with sirens and blue lights
flashing, and they eventually stopped him
a few miles down the road and brought a
very sheepish John back to the rest of the
group, who were in fits of laughter.
The “Beatles” Incident
The group had stopped in the desert for
some lunch. One of the guides put the bike
truck stereo on. Hotel California by the
Eagles was playing…..a great song known
by everyone (except John), and several of
the girls next to John were singing along.
John turned to one and said “So you like
the Beatles then……….?” The girls just fell
about laughing.
The “Angela” Incident
John called one of the ladies “Angela”
for the first three days of the holiday. Her
name was actually Claire!
The “Room Safe” Incident
John’s roommate set the code into the
safe. John goes to use the safe, and
punched in the code, and stood there
waiting for the safe door to open like
magic. He waited a long time before he
realized he had to open the door himself.
The “Bedouin Camp” incident
John took a shine to one of the girls on
the trip. When we stayed overnight in the
Bedouin Camp in Wadi Rum, where there
was no light, John turned to the girl and
said “you look very nice in the dark.....”
Needless to say, this didn’t get him very
far.
The “Makeover” incident
One of the other girls had been talking with
Page 4
John about spa weekends in luxurious
hotels. As John said goodbye to her at the
airport, he said “Don’t forget to get yourself
a makeover…….” Needless to say, this
didn’t go down well with the lady.
The “Blackberry” incident
As we are about to board the plane,
John turns in a panic and says he’s lost
his blackberry phone. He rushes back
with one of the others to Security where
he thinks he last saw it, but no sign of it.
He returns dejected and miserable, and
boarded the plane. Later he opens his duty
free bag of sweets and chocolate, to find
the missing Blackberry.
The “Snorkeling” incident
When the group went in the Red Sea
snorkeling, John stood dejected on the
back of the boat, as he cannot swim. John
decides he’s not going to miss out, and
dons a wet suit and a life jacket, and gets
the assistance of one of the ladies to help
him into the water. He managed to not
swallow too much sea water in his bid to
snorkel.
The “Presentation” incident
At the end of the holiday, John was asked
to present the tips to the cycling guides.
John says to the main man, who is a
champion tri-athlete, ‘I’m upset because
you beat me to Aquaba, but I bet I can
beat you at running’. John then runs for
100m as fast as he can, thinking the guide
was behind him. The guide didn’t move, he
just stood there laughing at John.
The “Bedouin Shampoo” incident
In Wadi Rum, the locals showed us how
they make soap by crushing one of the
desert plants. John asked if it made hair
grow back, so the Bedouins held him
down and rubbed the crushed plants in to
his bald head.
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
deal with the impact of road running come
the day of your marathon. Also running
on hard surfaces tends to be faster than
running on softer surfaces. As with many
aspects of training, it’s ultimately about
getting the balance right.
Taking precautions
Whilst off road training can be interesting
and may decrease the risk of developing
overuse injuries, there is a greater risk of
traumatic type injuries from falls or from
twisting an ankle. If a runner has a history
of spraining their ankle in the past, there
is an even higher risk of injuring it again.
This is because spraining your ankle
affects the proprioception in your ankle
joint. Proprioception is the brain’s ability
to tell where the body’s joints are located
in space. There are special nerve-endings
in muscles, joints and ligaments which
detect movement. These often become
damaged in the ankle when it is sprained.
This affects the ability to maintain stability
of the ankle when running or walking,
particularly on uneven surfaces.
The good news is that it is often possible
to improve proprioception by performing
balancing exercises. If you are not
experienced at running off-road, or
you have a history of ankle sprains, it
is strongly advisable that you do some
proprioception training before running
on more challenging surfaces. Look out
for my next article in which I will provide
advice on how to train the proprioception
of your ankles and lower limbs.
Leaping into Trail
If you haven’t done any trail running
before and you would like to give it a go, I
suggest that you start with less technically
challenging terrains in good light
conditions. As you build your experience
and grow more comfortable with uneven
surfaces, you can progressively try more
challenging routes and even night time
trail running.
Happy running!
Trail running provides the body with
a very different experience from road
running and should therefore form part
of every runner’s training programme.
Every time your foot strikes the ground
during running, the impact causes forces
to be absorbed by the body’s joints. The
harder the running surface, the greater the
forces absorbed by your body. Over time,
these forces can cause wear and tear
to the body’s tissues resulting in injury.
Trail surfaces tend to be softer than most
man-made surfaces and running on them
tends to have less impact on a runner’s
body, which can lessen the risk of overuse
injuries.
Running is a very repetitive action so we
inevitably place the same forces on the
same areas of the body over and over
again. This tends to happen more so
with road running which usually involves
running predominantly in a straight line.
Trail running tends to be much more
varied, given that trails often have a
mixture of gentle and sharp bends.
There are often roots or other obstacles
which require the runner to side-step
or change the stride length in order to
avoid them. The changes in direction and
stride length vary the forces placed on
the joints and muscles and prevent the
runner from continuously over-loading any
one specific area of the musculoskeletal
system. Challenging terrain can also be
good for the mind. As you are running a
trail, you have to constantly assess the
terrain ahead of you, keeping the mind
occupied and engaged.
If you are a runner putting in a high
number of miles for a longer event such
as a marathon, you should perform at
least some of your training miles offroad. This will lessen the cumulative
impact forces experienced by your body.
However, there are some advantages to
doing some road running if training for
a marathon, given that most marathons
take place on roads. If you perform all
your training miles off-road, you may find
that your body is not strong enough to
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
Page 5
Here Comes the Marathon
By Christine Hawker
one of them. A lot people have decided
to run for the challenge.
days and one person who sometimes
runs twice a day.
“An off the cuff comment! I had just done
one of those off road knee deep in mud
10 mile “Fun” races. Flicking through
my goody bag there was a leaflet for the
Dublin Marathon which happened to be
on my birthday. I said that would be an
interesting way to spend a birthday, and
the next think I knew we were booking
flights and accommodation.”
“I typically run 5 or 6 days a week, and
maybe run twice on 2 of those days.
Although I count football / squash as
running (I’ll do around a mile warm up
and cool down for these as well as the
amount done during the game).”
“I was initially inspired by the late Jane
Tomlinson. She ran a full marathon
whilst battling cancer, that morning I was
sitting eating my breakfast having done
nothing and it made me realise if she’s
doing that, what the hell was I doing
sitting on my bum doing nothing!?”
Which marathon did you choose?
There are mostly London and Edinburgh
entered but Brighton, Manchester,
Berlin, Paris, Belfast and Milton Keynes
as well. I have entered Halstead this time
round.
“Edinburgh as I didn’t get into London
then I won entry into London so I’m
doing both! “
“I started with London in 1998. A painful
experience and it was a month before I
could run again.
This year I ran the Braintree Boggle in
February, a brutal experience sliding
around the muddy edges of fields,
in bitterly cold winds. In March the
Steyning Stinger, big hills over the South
Downs. Then a week later a PB running
105.5 laps of Telford athletics track.
I don’t have anything else lined up
yet, but I fully expect to run another
marathon in April.”
How did you choose on what training
plan to use and where did you get it
from?
Vin Patel has quite a following of
marathon runners in training and
Runner’s World is a popular place to get
a schedule from.
I first decided to run a marathon in late 2011, a friend persuaded me to join
him on a marathon (his second, my first). We chose the Brathay Windermere
marathon in May 2012 as I thought the scenery would take my mind off the pain.
I used a three day a week plan I got from
a Runner’s World forum but developed
trouble with my knee nine weeks before
the event, after a longest run of eighteen
miles. I went into the race not knowing
if I would be able to complete it or not. I
did and really enjoyed it.
This was all before I joined any running
club and my runs were all done on
my own. I wondered what other
peoples marathon experiences were
like. Because of this I put a series of
questions together and shown below are
some of the responses.
What made you decide to run
a marathon?
I was surprised by the number of people
who have a list of things they want to
do in their life and running a marathon is
Page 6
“I’m using Vin’s programme. He texts
me every week to tell me what to do and
we report all our times back to him and
let him know if we are feeling unwell /
injured etc. It was an easy decision as he
has helped loads of runners at the club
and they have achieved great results.
I’ve also improved a lot since following
his programme.”
“Looked at a few and chose one
designed by James Joy, which I’m
following avidly and quite “enjoying” so
far!”
“I used a beginner program from the
internet for someone wanting to run sub
4 hours. At the time I wasn’t a regular
runner and the 4 hour goal was the
obvious benchmark. Now I have to work
out my own plan as my training needs
are more unique.”
How many runs do you do in a week
on average?
This varies from about three to seven
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
“Approx. four, maybe five. Depends what
other training I have to fit in.”
What is the longest training run you
are scheduled to do and how long
before the main event is it?
The ultra-runners have varying lengths of
runs depending on what race is coming
next but of the marathon runners most
seem to favour 20 or 22 miles between 5
and 3 weeks before the race.
“If I am training for myself I would do
a couple of 26 milers but the Runner’s
World one is 22 miles, 4 weeks before”
“One hour. I rarely run for more than an
hour, except in races. Before I marathon
I find a short, fast run (30-45 minutes)
three days before, feels right. Other than
that I’ll try and avoid too much running in
the week leading up to a marathon.”
Do you train mainly with other people,
on your own or with music?
There is a mixture of with others and
alone but most people prefer no music.
“I predominantly train on my own as my
run to and from work makes up the bulk
of my training. Despite being a big music
fan I prefer to run without it.”
“Mixture. Listen to radio 4 instead of
music as I am a boring old F???. I have
adapted my head phones so they only
have 1 ear piece so I can still hear what
is going on around me.”
What do you find the hardest about
the training?
There is a common theme of cold dark
mornings with many people for this one.
few races to ensure that I carry on!!! And
maybe to complete a marathon every
decade…so the next one will be when
I’m 40!?! Who knows?”
“The long runs towards the end of
training when your body can get tired
(particularly if it is raining).”
“This will be my last marathon? (oh no it
won’t!!)”
“A Forty Hall 12-miler in deep fresh
snow.”
“The beginning or the first few miles
before I get into my stride”
“May be tears of joy!”
“I like running along footpaths and in
the woods away from traffic and people.
There is a great route from Trent Park to
Northaw along footpaths.”
What do your friends and family think
about you running a marathon?
Most family and friends are proud of the
runners but think they are mad.
“I target the hills so anywhere hilly I
would say is my favourite not necessarily
the easiest”
“Bit of annoyance from family that I am
doing this AGAIN, but also some pride
in my achievements. Some friends just
don’t understand how I can run this sort
of distance and think that I am “superfit”! (I wish!).”
What has been your favourite training
route so far?
There are quite a variety of routes
though the river Lea sounds quite
popular partly because it is flat.
What do you like best about the
training?
“Running with friend. Have some
interesting discussions beats sitting in
the pub getting unfit having the same
sort of chats.”
“So many great people at the club to
train with or get good advice from, and a
great source of inspiration.”
“They’ve always been supportive, my
mum is super cool, she knew I had a
favourite meal the night before my long
run and without fail she’d always make it
for me! Much to my father’s annoyance!”
“The long runs. I enjoy the solitude and
time to think and the satisfaction at
having covered so many miles. I did a 20
miler before I became ill.”
Have you promised yourself anything
when you cross the finish line and if
so what?
There are an interesting list of things
here and a few people who just can’t
quite kick the marathon habit.
“Eating afterwards!!!”
“To continue running! I have booked a
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
“Yes but not telling!”
I hope Julie and Shannanigans get back
up to full speed soon and good luck
to everyone else taking part in their
marathons (at the time I am writing this
none of them have been run yet) I look
forward to hearing all about them.
Many thanks to Fez Huseyin, Martin
Morgan, John Rose, Rosemary Bains,
Charles Dadey, Christine Prescott,
Luke Bowie, James Joy, Foulla Green,
Elizabeth Dadey, Ian Ellis, Christerbel
Mate, George Georgiou, Shannanigans
Pearce, Nick Butcher, Chas Taylor,
Adrian Pugh, Leeanne Waller, Kerry
Anyim, Lucy Owen and Julie Norton for
taking part.
A full set of the survey results and
names attributable can be found on the
Club website (www.trentparkrc.org).
There will be a follow up article in the
next Park Life covering the actual
experiences.
Page 7
Sunday
League
Champions
In Pictures
In the final Sunday League race of
the season, held at Watford on 17th
February Trent Park had a great turn
out of runners and had a surprise
win and with that cleaned up for the
season.
I say surprise, which I think it was, but it
was the result of detailed planning and
effort in getting the biggest number of
runners taking part. It is important to
have runners at every level doing their
stuff and contributing right down the list
of finishers. See on this couple of pages
some images from across the whole
Sunday League season.
Page 8
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
Page 9
Foulla’s Young Athlete
Competition
9
13
15
14
You see here pictures of many of our finest athletes in earlier times. Don’t
they look like a wonderful bunch, but how did they all turn out.
The competition is to match the names
of the members shown below to the
pictures of our members as babies/
young children. We did consider
publishing pictures of them as they are
now, but apart from that being even
more work to put together, it might be
good for you to put names to faces as
they are now before trying to match the
1
baby picture. Please don’t go round
asking people which baby picture
is them. A competition entry form is
available to be downloaded from the
Club website at www.trentparkrc.org.
You never know there might be a prize
for the best entry, but then again there
may not, and the qualification for ‘best’
might be open to interpretation.
17
16
2
10
19
20
22
23
18
3
11
21
25
24
4
7
5
Page 10
12
26
27
8
Pictures are of: Alice Campbell, Alison Ball, Catherine Turbett, Chas Taylor, Christine Hawker, Christine Prescott, David Arnold, Fez Huseyin, Foulla
Green, Ian Ellis, Ian Johnson, Jill Atkins, Jill Jex, John Rose, Laurey Rankin, Len Edmonds, Malcolm Allen, Martin Cullen, Mick Green, Nick Butcher,
Penny Cording, Rod Lanigan, Shannon Pearce, Stuart Manktelow, Sylvia Goodman, Tim Ryan. Trevor Jex.
6
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
Page 11
e
p
i
c
e
R
s
Captain
Cycling and
back pain!!!
by Dawn Alison Limbert
Do you ever suffer from back pain
during or after a bike ride? What do
you do to prevent or cure it?
Almond and Raspberry Madeira Cake
Ingredients:
Directions:
175g/6oz softened butter,
1. Preheat oven to 160c/gas mark 3/ fan
175g/6oz caster sugar
together the butter and sugar in a bowl,
140c Line a deep 20cm cake tin. Cream
then gradually beat in the eggs.
1 tsp vanilla extract,
2. Stir in the orange zest and the
3 eggs, lightly beaten,
crumbled almonds. Sift the flours and
Grated zest of 1 orange
fold them in with the milk, then fold all
50g/2oz flaked almonds, crumbled,
but 8 of the raspberries in.
3. Transfer to the cake tin and level.
except a few for decoration
Arrange the remaining raspberries and
100g/4oz plain flour,
almonds on top. Bake for 1hr ¼ hours.
100g/4oz self-raising flour,
Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then cool
on a wire tray. Serve dusted with icing
sugar. It will cut into 8 slices.
2 tbsp milk
200g/8oz raspberries
Thanks to:
Icing sugar for dusting.
Good Food Modern British Cookery
Bread Pudding Club
We have made a donation of £50.00, to both to the Noah’s Ark Children’s
Hospice of Barnet and the Nightingale Community Hospice of Enfield. Both
these worthy causes not only help those who unfortunately suffer but also give
a lot of support to their families.
Thanks to all involved in these donations
Jan & Pete
Keep Running
Page 12
Keep Eating
Keep Giving
As temperatures are hopefully going to rise
in the next couple of months, please please
please!!! And the daylight hours start to
increase the amount of time in the saddle
will start to mount up for the triathlon
members of Trent Park. And while this is
great for our cycling fitness we are going
to be putting our bodies through a lot more
strain. The chances of picking up an injury
will therefore increase.
One of the most common injuries in cycling
is back pain. It is also one of the most
prevalent injuries to all members of the UK
population. Many cyclists believe that an
aching back is part and parcel of cycling
‘no pain, no gain!!’ But there are a number
of steps you can take to prevent it. It
shouldn’t be part of the cycling experience.
1. Make sure you have the correct size
bike. This sounds straight forward but
a number of TP members have in the
past been sold bikes that are too big, me
included. When I did get the correct sized
bike the difference in my cycling was
amazing.
2. Get a bike fit done. With a saddle too
high or low or handlebars too far to reach
these will all put strain on your body
especially your low back. While bike fits
aren’t cheap they can be a very worthwhile
investment.
3. Regular stretching will help but if you
have a back injury it is important to do
the right kind of stretching techniques
as stretching badly can cause as many
problems as not doing anything at all.
Lack of flexibility in other areas, such as
hamstring tightness also contributes to
low back pain. Therefore invest in a roller
or massage stick to help improve muscle
tightness and make sure you use it on a
regular basis. It shouldn’t live under the
bed!! .
4. Core exercises. A strong set of core
muscles will ensure that you stay steady in
the saddle even when you are starting to
tire at the end of a long ride and will limit
the amount of rocking. This provides a
stable platform for your glutes and hips to
work from.
5. Get expert advice. While your GP is a
good first port of call you may find that
going to see someone who specialises
in low back pain such as an Osteopath,
Physiotherapist or Chiropractor makes
good sense as they will help you get back
to health much quicker.
6. Get one of the TP coaches to watch
you while you ride and they can give you
instruction on your cycling form and how it
can be improved if needed.
Finally, back pain isn’t part of cycling even
for those training for longer cycling events
such as Ironman. Prevention truly is the
best form of treatment and by following the
points above hopefully you will avoid it.
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
Paris Marathon Report
By Anthony Plewes
With the Paris Marathon fresh in my mind and the elusive sub-3:30 target
smashed I thought I’d share my thoughts of the marathon, training and
pacing. Hopefully it isn’t too self-indulgent.
Paris 2013 was my fourth marathon and
during the training through the long winter
I kept asking myself why I was doing this
to myself again. It was the second time I
lined up on the Champs Elysees after my
first marathon back in 2010. This time I
was determined to break 3:30 after just
missing out in monsoon-like conditions
last year in Milton Keynes. Thankfully the
weather looked perfect this year so it was
all down to me.
Pacing: Pacing is probably the most
important factor in marathon success.
Going out too fast in the heat of the
moment has been the downfall of many
a marathon runner, and I’m no exception.
Marathon pace should feel relatively
comfortable at the beginning of the race,
but you have to keep it up for 26 miles.
Of course, the converse also is true, if
you go out too slowly then you might not
be able to make up enough time in the
latter period when you are inevitably tired.
With a 1:32 half marathon PB set in Nov
2012, I should in theory be able to crack
3:30 with ease. Race pace calculators
have typically fast conversions for the
marathon, but they are based on doing
more mileage than I do in training. Each
marathon season I try to do a little more
and this year I was peaking at 55 miles
per week and averaging 42 in the 12
weeks before the marathon, including the
taper and race. I managed to squeeze in
four 20-mile runs, one of which included
10 miles at marathon pace.
I was much more conservative than the
pace calculator in my target, and with
past experience, based on my training
and 10K PB, I set my marathon pace at
7:35-7:45 min/mile. This would put me
comfortably inside 3:30 even allowing for
my Garmin measuring long and slowing
at the end.
To track the pace during the marathon, I
split the race into four 10K races, with a
target of 48 minutes each, which put me
bang in that pace range. I pressed the lap
button at the end of each 10K and had
the pace set to “average for the lap”. This
allowed me to run to my target without
having to obsess about the pace for any
particular mile, which is handy for drink
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
and toilet stops. I had a similar approach
in Milton Keynes the previous year (using
5 mile splits) and it worked well then.
The start: There is a baggage drop
on Avenue Foch, in the finish area, but I
didn’t use it. I just had some clothes that
I discarded at the start. The race actually
starts on the Champs Elysees on the
other side of the Arc de Triomphe and has
nine starting pens, including the elites.
I was in the 3:30 pen, which turned out
to be a poor choice, as I spent the entire
race passing people. On reflection the
3:30 pen was for times 3:30-3:45, which
was always going to be too slow for my
target. The registration is not entirely clear
on that point, so bear that in mind if you
do the race.
The route: The route is scenic and
takes you around Place Concord and
on to Rue Rivoli first, before taking in
the Bastille and the Bois de Vincennes.
It then loops back around, running
alongside the Seine, past the Eiffel Tower
and into the Bois de Boulogne before
finishing on Avenue Foch.
They have feed stations every 5km, with
water (in screw-cap bottles) and food
available including raisins, bananas,
sugar cubes and orange segments
(bizarrely). Some of the feed stations were
a scrum and with spectators encroaching
on the course at times, they were a little
perilous. I think it’s best to go in, grab a
bottle from a later table and move over
to the other side of the road. For some
reason there was hardly any sports drink
available, just once at 22km I believe –
and in cups.
My race: My main problem in the race
was congestion, which was unfortunately
exacerbated by the staggered start. I
seemed to spend the whole race weaving
through the field and apologizing in
broken French for what seemed like the
whole race. I couldn’t find a group at a
similar pace to run with, which would
have made my task easier. Further, a lot
of people were walking towards the end,
which surprised me given the time I was
targeting.
The first 20K were comfortable and
bang on target 47:58 & 47:59. The third
10K was starting to get harder as it got
warmer, I got tired and the race went
through all the tunnels by the Seine.
However I knew that my wife and son
were waiting at 29km to give me a boost,
which helped me tick off the third 10km
interval in 48:43.
The final 10K split was predictably hard,
but this is why we race marathons. If
you are aiming to do the best of your
ability in the marathon, the last six miles
are going to be tough. What you have
to ask yourself is how you deal with that
toughness. Do you let it defeat you or can
you transcend it?
Thankfully I managed to hang on,
focusing on my form and ensuring that
my average pace didn’t go over about
7:55. It’s a little like a trance at this stage;
you just keep putting one foot in front of
the other and wait for the mile markers to
come past.
Despite having to stop to stretch out my
calf once, this final 10K was ticked off
in 49:36 and I knew the job was done. It
was just a case of waiting for the 42km
marker and hitting the gas to go for the
line. Stopped the Garmin at 3:25:16 and
walked extremely slowly through the
funnel and up the road to a beer at a
Parisian café in the sun with the family.
Inevitably I am now planning my next
assault on my long-term target on a GFA
3:15. San Sebastien in November 2014,
perhaps? That way I can avoid the winter
training hell. Tempting – very tempting.
Best of luck to all of you still doing a
marathon this year – I hope you enjoy it
as much as I do!
Page 13
Chingford League Relays
By Nathaniel Sampson
Going into the last race of the season
the Highams Park relays Trent Park
Juniors were in a great position: William
McArdle was second in the under
thirteen boys, Jade Dos Santos was in
first with a four point lead on second
place in the under fifteen girls, Thomas
McArdle was joint first in the under
fifteen boys swiftly followed by Daniel
Carpenter. Katie Prior was in third in the
under seventeen women. In the under
17 men it was a Trent Park one two,
with Mac five points clear of David in
second place. All was needed was one
more successful race to push the Trent
Park juniors to a huge medal haul, (no
pressure then!)
But this high placing didn’t come easily
to these young athletes. These results
came after a hard winters training.
There were the dreaded track sessions
on a Tuesday, with those new painful
mobility exercises before the session
even started. The long “recovery run” on
Thursday if you could call it recovery as
the group ate up the tarmac under the
glow of street lights. Next, if the runners
could still put one foot in front of the
other by Saturday morning, there were
horrendous hill reps around the park
which could have been mistaken for
the Somme on most days. But nothing
could deter everyone as snow, rain, cold
and mud were all part of the normal
training regime for these determined
individuals.
Trent Park juniors were going to need
all the determination they could muster
for one last push into this last race.
The Highams Park relays were one lap
of the park and once around the lake.
The course was very muddy especially
around the lake; even twelve millimetre
spikes had a problem negotiating some
parts of the course. Trent Park’s first
race with competitors was the u15,
u17 and senior men and women all in
one race. The atmosphere on the start
line was tense with people trying to get
the best spot on the line, pushing and
shoving while trying to keep themselves
warm in the five degree cold. The juniors
had to get away quickly if they weren’t
to be boxed in by the larger frames of
the seniors on the narrow path around
the lake. Joseph Young certainly got
away quickly putting in a big effort in
the first half of the race and maintaining
his early pace to give himself a very
strong position going around the lake,
kicking hard at the line to give the under
15 boys an excellent start with a solid
time of twelve minutes. In the girls under
15 team Greta Norton put in a great
first leg race to allow the girls to shoot
up the placings. Nathaniel Sampson
started strongly for the under 17 men,
but flagged badly and slowed quickly
to a maintainable pace. The under 15
boys quartet were very strong the whole
way round with the first three runners,
running superb times averaging 12:22
minutes, then Thomas McArdle bringing
it home for the boys with a storming
last leg of 11:24 minutes. But this race
wasn’t without its drama in the under 17
mens race. Dean Gepp was caught by
a spike in the change over box but he
soldiered on bleeding profusely until the
finish. On the next leg in the same race
Arjun’s spike was pulled off by some
deep mud, but when he had already
wasted two minutes trying to put it back
on he continued the race shoe in hand,
still with a good split time of 13:35. It
was finally all down to Mac to bring it
home and he did so in an excellent time
of 11:15. A highlight from the under
15 girls race was a gutsy performance
from third leg running and novice racer
Lauren McBride who played a critical
part of the team.
The races were soon all over and we all
had to bear the nervous and anxious
wait as the results were “checked and
independently verified”. The senior
awards soon passed, with much
cheering as the senior men retained
their relay title. Then it was the juniors
turn and how the junior silver ware
started to pile up. With every trophy
collected there was the non - negotiable
photo from a coach bursting with pride.
To put it simply the Trent Park Juniors
had done exceptionally well this season
and it was all down to the excellent
coach Jan Bowman who had been
there every step of the way, supporting
and encouraging these young athletes.
I hope that this cross country success
catalyzes a summer of outdoor athletic
success for everyone in the coming
months.
ger,
Dear Mr Swin
is
rtunately th
bble but unfo
who
bu
al
ur
du
yo
vi
t
di
rs
in
bu
A certain
t!
I am sorry to
ye
red
..
ju
t…
in
is
is tall,
esn’t ex
‘section’ do
reasons ( he
put
l
m)
ga
T*
le
r
of
fo
me
med
s to the na
er
the
cannot be na
sw
an
of
d
p
an
la
at one
er hair
and has ging
It appears th nce why the keys
g.
ba
g
on
wr
e
he
my keys in th dizzy and disorientated
m
track made hi your bag.
in
finished up
ection
ed of this ‘s
to be notifi
first
e
on
th
rs
pe
be
nd
to
co
se
, PG wants
es
is
You will be
Man
al
ri
ng
te
hi
if it ma
than watc
of the club’
re exciting
mo
s
it
ly
nt
re
to know, appa
City play!
Dear Mr L,
on a Tuesday, which is training day.
The tough ones came despite the icy
conditions, and once the serious training
was over the fun commenced. Snow ball
fight! Snowballs were flying everywhere!
Survival of the fittest. (Pardon the pun)
None of our training would be anywhere
near as good without Jan… or fun! She
never fails to turn up to every single
training session, and puts so much
effort and time into all the juniors no
matter what.
Overall, Trent Park Juniors is the most
fun loving; hardworking, supportive
running club there is for miles!
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
I recently compe
ted in the Trim
bell
20 mile race in
Lancaster and
was wondering
if 6 ‘dumps’
before a race w
as a club record
? It
was certainly a
PB for me and
a
highlight of the
day and by the
way
the way I quite
enjoyed the race
too.
The race profile
did say a PB w
as
easily achievable!
Yours on the th
rone,
Mr SA
Dear Mr A,
Er… the PB refers
to ‘time’
and not how ofte
n you visit
the toilet prior
to the race.
Mr M.P and myself
were sick 20
minutes prior to
the race so
for us that was
a first! As for
a club record I
am not sure,
I haven’t seen an
y trophies
with this record
on it. Perhaps
we could ask the
committee
to check this re
cord and in
the meantime you
may want to
consider being th
e ‘Face for
Andrex’!!
Del
Del
I recently appeared in a full page ar
Telegraph ( 22nd March 2013 ‘Nticle in the Daily
much trouble’) and was wondering othing was too
me in contact with Max Clifford asif you could put
need a PR agent as people now rec I think I might
street and feel that I may be asked ognise me in the
to be the Page 7
‘Fella’ for Saga Magazine.
Yours Star Struck
Mr P.L
By Jane Howard,
Jade Dos Santos
Page 14
Trent Park
Dear Del,
eral sections to
v
se
e
ar
e
er
th
lon
I understand
k and the Triath
ac
Tr
g
n
di
u
cl
in
tion’
Running Club,
e is another ‘sec
er
th
if
g
n
ri
de
on
me
section. I was w
as when I got ho
of
e
ar
aw
n
u
I am
bag! I
of the club that
t of keys in my
se
a
d
n
u
fo
I
k
ction
after the trac
belong to this se
rs
be
em
m
t
ha
w
was wondering
re?
ey meet and whe
th
do
s
ht
ig
n
t
and wha
g along,
Yours swingin
Mr P.H.
Dear Del,
Being a junior
at Trent Park
Running Club
Being a junior in Trent Park Running
Club is great fun (especially because
of our amazing coach Jan). We train
three times a week, which is hard but
worth the effort, especially when it
comes to races and our improvement,
commitment and dedication shows.
Tuesday is track night (usually but
sometimes the track is closed) where we
usually do short sprints but on occasion
long reps, Thursday is for the longer
runs and Saturday is usually a variety.
Within the juniors, we’re like one
big athletic family! There’s a great
atmosphere and we never fail to cheer
each other on even though times may
be rough. Although we all take our
running very seriously, we all know
how to have fun… for example on
the snow day, which happened to fall
Dear Del,
Congratulations
on your debut in
the
National newspape
r and I’m sure yo
u will
receive a whole
host of offers,
Exchange
& Mart, Horse &
Hounds, Just for
Men to
name just a few
.However fame an
d fortune
can be a ‘poisone
d chalice’ and ha
s
ruined many a ma
n and woman’s ca
reer and
privacy. My advi
ce is the only pi
cture
you want to flau
nt is the one on
your
‘Freedom Pass’!
Del
April 2013 - Trent Park Running Club
Dear Del,
et
t it was to g
n
ta
r
o
p
im
ering how
I seem
I was wond hoe when running as pes , for
ty
fs
right type o about all the different , Fell, Trail,
s
d
e
e
very confus d, Flats, Racing, Spik clude those
oa
example, R rail and that doesn’t in ..
T
tc
Minimalist, , those that ‘pronate’ e
t’
r
that ‘suppo
bewildered,
Yours very
Ms M R
whether
efield
n
i
m
a
be
ed
oes can ery experienc
g of sh
v
n
ne very
i
a
o
y
u
r
e
b
o
v
i
the
ginner
e to g
e
k
b
i
l
a
e:
d
r
e
l
u
I wou
e fut
you ar
owever
u in th
h
o
y
,
r
p
e
l
n
e
run
y h
that ma
ame
hot tip
e the s
pair ar ail and One
e
h
t
e
Tr
sur
I don’t
s make
ng! One
* Alway u start runni ery worrying! em!!
o
v
y
probl
e is
before
ing sho ills has this
n
n
u
r
l
norma
ther M
ink Hea
even th
R,
Dear Ms
Del
Page 15
Trent Park Photoboard
Thank you everyone for your contributions. We had so much that we have left out the results this time to allow us to include everyone’s articles.
We hope you enjoyed reading this edition of Park Life. Any comments, good or bad, to Chas Taylor. Please let Chas have any input for the next
issue by end of June 2013. Next edition Guest Editor Mick Green.