Welcome Pack
An introduction to
and Athletic Club
(a)
Prepared by Reg Chapman
November 2007.
Welcome to the
Club
A message from the Chair -
Dave Waywell
It is my pleasure to welcome you to Wesham Road Runners and Athletics Club. As a new member we understand that a lot of what we
do at this time will not mean a great deal to you so this pack is designed to
let you know as much as possible about the activities available for club
members.
Nothing in here is compulsory but we have found that
members find what is right for them. Our aim in life is to help you enjoy
yourself and be happy and healthy.
Read on and I hope you enjoy your time with ‘The Friendly Club’ as we have become known and I would like to think we
are.
1. Our story so far.
Our club is a product of the
running boom of the 1980’s sparked off by the
Initially the club met at St. Joseph’s Primary
School in Wesham as the Headteacher, Mike Carter, was the first club chairman.
Later the club moved to Wesham Community Centre then, for a short while in 1999, to Ribby Hall Leisure Centre before moving in 2001 to our current base at Carr Hill School, Kirkham.
In our early days during the first
running boom of the 80’s there were over 200 members but this dropped to around 70 by the Millennium. Now we are back to over 150 and rising including many more women runners. Some new members have joined from other clubs
but most are new to running – part of what is our second running boom. For a
fuller history of the club by John Whiteman, one of the founder members, see our website www.weshamroadrunners.com
2. Your club and its benefits …all this for £20 a
year!
.
·
Club night runs from
·
Summer and
Winter Handicaps – to
spice up club nights a monthly handicap is held on the first Monday of every month over two
courses. The Winter Handicap starts from Carr Hill High School and is over a distance of 4.0miles
through the streets of Kirkham. The Summer Handicap starts at the Windmill at the top of Dowbridge and the distance is 4.9 miles. The
route is out in the countryside around Treales.
The first race in each series is a
‘mass start’. All the runners start off
together and their times are recorded when they finish. The following five
races in each series are ‘staggered starts’. Start times are determined from
previous handicap results.
The last race of the Summer Handicap is the Trophy Race. The first Man and Lady, who have completed at least two
handicaps, to cross the line will be declared the winners and will be presented
with a trophy and prize. The races are organised by Marian and Keith Rhead and if everything goes to plan in
the final race all the runners should finish together!!!!!
·
Club Predictor – A predictor race is held
annually where the winner is the person closest to the time they predict over a
set course. You won’t know the course but will know the distance and can
predict your time. The first home may not be the winner – the last home could
win if closest to their predicted time. To make things more unpredictable
watches are not allowed so it’s all about race pacing and knowing what you can
achieve.
·
Race entries – As a club member you are also
registered with England
Athletics, the national body for
the sport. This means lower race entry fees. You should usually save £2 a race
so if you are a prolific racer you soon recoup your club subs quickly.
·
Team events – the club enters men and women
teams for all sorts of events including county and national road, cross country
and track and field competitions. If you are keen and competitive you can join
in. It’s a great way to improve, meet new members and pick up tips on training
and racing.
·
Club magazine – Our quarterly magazine is a gem.
Edited and produced by Brenda and Peter Earnshaw it’s free to club members and contains race reports,
pictures, results, sections on different parts of the club and plenty of fun
articles. As a high quality magazine it is costly to produce so we try to cover
costs by sponsorship and adverts in each issue. If you have any articles give
them to Peter Earnshaw on club nights or Brenda Earnshaw by email on brenda.earnshaw@talk21.com . If you can find someone to
advertise then contact Kirsty Waywell on jayneykay@aol.com as she coordinates advertising and has a simple form
to make things easy for possible sponsors.
·
Club membership
– There are four types
of membership.
Ø
Full members paying
full subs, currently £20 p.a., and
eligible to take part in all club activities. You are also registered through
the club with England Athletics, the national body for the sport who will send you a
membership card which they call a Race Permit.
Ø
Social members, usually partners of runners or ex runners, who pay reduced subs and
don’t take part in running.
Ø
Second Claim members whose main membership is with another club but who use our facilities
take part in our club championships and pay for the privilege.
Ø
And a few Honorary
members who have given great
service to the club over the years.
·
Website – This is one of the glories of the
club and the envy of other clubs. Brenda Earnshaw designs, maintains and updates the website on an
almost daily basis. It has everything
you need to know about the club plus lots of links to other websites. It has
had over 90,000 hits since January 2005 and is a must for members to check regularly. One
section includes a picture gallery of club members so you can put a name to
those faces you see on Monday night and people can
also find out about you based on what you choose to supply to the website. It
also includes member contact details.
3 Safety matters
·
Insurance - The club takes out insurance
provided by UK Athletics to protect the club, club officers
and members from claims against them. This provides Third Party and Public Liability Insurance to protect you from claims made against you relating
to club activities. It does not cover
accidents or injuries you sustain or loss of property. For these you need
personal insurance or take potluck like most of us do. If in doubt check the
website where insurance details are available
·
Injuries – We all get injuries from time to
time so our website has a Health Clinic section with advice on common injuries and how to avoid them.
·
Be Responsible – Ultimately each runner is
responsible for their own safety. Ensure you follow instructions on club nights
or at events and always wear something light or reflective when running in the
dark.
4 Running disciplines and sections.
The club competes in a number of disciplines
and has several active groups for members to sample and join.
·
The Races – lots of club members like to take
part in races. It’s a good way to test yourself. If you want to race regularly
then speak to Russell Mabbett who is the Mens Captain or Kath Hoyer, the Ladies Captain. We also keep track of the
total miles members clock
up in races which makes fascinating reading on the website
·
Cross Country
(XC) – The club competes in
the Mid Lancs XC
League. There are six league
meetings a year from October to March. We also send teams to the English National
Championships. Entry to all the above
events is paid for by the club and all members are welcome and encouraged to
take part free of charge. Cross country is very much a team event and we pride
ourselves on the level of support and encouragement we give to each individual
who takes part. It’s a great way to build up your stamina. If you wish to take
part in Cross Country and have any questions about it
please see Julie Cruse or Alan Glasgow, our Cross Country Captains, who will be only too pleased to help.
·
Fell Runners – this is new from 2007. There are seven Fell Races designated throughout the year and
you must run four to qualify for our club championship. Points are awarded for
finishing positions and at the end of the year winners and runners up are
announced for men and women. If you have not sampled Fell Running it is truly mad and fun at the same time. Races are
usually run from villages as part of an afternoon fete. So as well as trying
your prowess over the Fells you can try the Bouncy
castle, ride a donkey or admire the best home grown onions. If you would
like more information or to be
converted see Russell Mabbett on club night
·
Ladies Section – This is our fastest growing
section led by our two captains, Kath Hoyer and Julie Cruse. As well as getting teams out at
competitions the members organise social events. Members of the section are
great at supporting and encouraging one another at events. There is a section
on the website including photographs and information on activities. Kath and Julie are always on the lookout for new recruits on club nights.
·
Wrinklys – Consisting of mainly retired
club members. ‘Team Wrinkly’ is somewhat of a misnomer because
few are actually wrinkly - most look quite young for their age! Their main aim
is to enjoy life, whether through running, going as a group on holiday or just
enjoying each others company. Although they consist of mainly older members of Wesham Road Runners, everyone is welcome to join on
the Thursday Runs/Walks and Holidays etc. In
fact, runners and non-runners, young and old, and members of other local clubs
join them on a regular basis. If you would like more information on Wrinkly activities check the club website
or magazines or get in touch with John Whiteman, ‘Boss Wrinkly’.
5. Club highlights
There is a lot to do at our club -
something for everyone. Here are some of the highlights of our year:
·
Monthly
Handicap -Club nights are spiced
up on the first Monday of the month with a Handicap race. In winter it is a 4 miler
from the school and in summer a 5 miler on country roads from the windmill on Dowbridge. The races are friendly but
competitive and a chance to really push yourself to improve each month.
·
Club 10k – Our annual race is the main
event in our running calendar. It’s on an undulating course from BNFL’s Salwick plant on the last Saturday in November. Even with a limit of 450 entrants it is always full and is a must for all club
members – though offering to marshal is accepted as a good excuse for not
running. In the evening is the Club Annual Dinner Dance and Prize Presentation with a chance to let your hair down or boast/moan
about your performance in the race.
·
Birthday race – The club celebrates its birthday
in September with a short friendly race from Carr Hill High School followed by supper in a local
restaurant.
·
Club Predictor –see Section 2 above for details of this fun event.
·
Inter Club
Grand Prix Race Series – This is the serious part of the race season when we compete against
five other local clubs: Blackpool, Wyre and Fylde; Red Rose
in Chorley; Leyland; Lytham St Annes; and
·
Club Age
Related Championships – This provides the best test of performance over a full year from November to October. The club selects ten races, most of them fairly
local, covering distances from 5miles to half marathon. To enter you must run
in five of the events and a formula is used to adjust times to show them as if
you were between 19 and 35/6 which are statistically a runner’s peak. It is
really a bit of fun but the formula ensures everyone is on a level.
·
Illuminations
Run – A lighter note and
definitely a fun run that can’t be copied anywhere else in the world. Meeting
at Starr Gate or Bispham station on a Friday night in September where runners run or jog, (take
your pick), through the ‘lights’. Also a lot of WAGS walk through the lights too. Then runners and
non-runners pile into a local cafe for a fish supper.
6. Improving and measuring your performance
·
Running log – Keep a daily log or diary of
your running and training. This gives you discipline to ensure you train and
allows you to plot your performance and the quality of your running. You can
also use your log to plan for forthcoming races with your own programme to
prepare you for a race you have targeted. Your running log or diary is your
best friend – tell it no lies and it will help you improve.
·
Running
magazines – Most new runners are
looking for tips and several magazines are available from big newsagents like WH Smith. The most popular is ‘Runners World’ which includes races over coming
months, training schedules and features on the latest kit.
·
Club Standards – Most of us will never win a race
or even our age category but we do want to improve and measure ourselves to see
how good we are. The NEAA has set Club Standards as national benchmarks for each
age category to strive for over 5 miles, 10k, 10 miles and half marathon. If
you achieve a standard set for your age group in all of the above races then
you will be awarded a Bronze/Silver/Gold/Diamond award. We make these presentations on club nights and it
is a chance to recognise the consistent performance and improvement of any
member. Graham Vickers
(Men) and Pauline Weller (Ladies) look after the Awards Scheme and can be contacted on club
nights.
·
Most Improved
Runner – this is another way
the club recognises and applauds improvement. Club members’ times from 10k and Interclub Grand Prix races
are collated over a year and the most improved male and female runners are
announced at our Prize
Presentation Evening. These
awards are often won by new members to the club who can make dramatic
improvements in their first year in the club due to the competitive but
supportive environment. So go for it and you may be the winner next year.
7. Running kit
·
Club vest – We
are proud of our club vest and like to see members wearing it - in fact it is
compulsory at all proper races and events.
·
Club sales of clothing – John Rudd, of Sweatshop, Ribby Hall, is the club clothing officer and
sells and takes orders on club nights. He sells a range of well priced kit in
club colours and you can try things on for size. Orders can be placed with John for club kit but he can also get
other kit at discount prices.
·
Sweatshop at Ribby Hall – This local sports shop supports the clubby by sponsoring our events
and magazine and offers a discount of 10% to club members. For other suppliers
who give discounts see the website or Club Mag. At most major races you will also
find suppliers in attendance selling kit.
·
Light and reflective clothing – Most of us run in the evenings
so that means running in the dark through the winter. Be sure to wear a
reflective bib or something else reflective or wear white clothing as an
essential safety precaution.
8.
Running the
club
·
The Committee – As a democratic organisation we
elect a Committee every year at the AGM in February. Our current Chair is Dave Waywell and our
Secretary is Brian Wilkinson. Full contact details of the committee are on the
website. If you have any ideas, suggestions or concerns please raise them with
any committee member.
·
Club meetings – The committee meets monthly on
club nights and minutes are quickly posted on the website for all to see. We
have a full members meeting every three months and an annual AGM all held on club nights after the
run. Listen out for announcements of dates or check on the website.
9.
Club finances
·
Annual
subscriptions – The Subs are our main source of income and
the level of subs is always decided by members at the AGM. Peter Cooke is Treasurer and
welcomes your prompt payment. Otherwise he will send you a gentle reminder.
·
Magazine
sponsorship – The magazine is a big
production and eagerly read by members but it is quite expensive to produce. We
try to cover the cost of this by advertising in each edition. If you know
someone who wants to advertise their business then please contact Kirsty Waywell on jayneykay@aol.com as she co-ordinates sponsorship or
go directly to Brenda
Earnshaw at brenda.earnshaw@talk21.com who produces the Magazine.
·
Auditor – The club looks after its
members’ money carefully and wisely. Annual accounts are produced for all members by the Treasurer and audited by Howard Henshaw, the club’s resident international
financial expert.
10.
To know
more
Hopefully this Welcome Pack allows you to contact the right
person in the club to follow up anything and get the best out of your
club. Fuller contact details of all
members are on the website.
If you want to know more or just chat about anything in this