Pilgrims Way 7+ Race
review
Six Gravesend
Road Runners turned up for the inaugural running of this
tough off-road race. Starting at Vigo Rugby Club the first 3
miles were all downhill through woods and then along the
Pilgrims Way on very wet and slippery paths so you had to
watch your footing. Rocks and tree roots were par for the
course.
Just before
the half way point the uphill climb that everybody knew was
coming appeared and it was definitely a big uphill, many
people I saw were reduced to walking as this was just as
quick as running so I joined them and caught my breath.
We were now
on top of the North Downs and had a pleasant run through
fields before entering the woods again. After negotiating a
few motorbikes who seemed to be moving even slower than us
runners due to the muddy conditions there was another
slippery downhill which led us to blessed tarmac close to
Dode Church. Following this road to the end and a tough off
road climb up Wrangling Lane for a mile we appeared
on White
Horse Lane which led back to Vigo Rugby Club. It was along
this road that a marshall pleasantly informed me that there
was half a mile to go, and a mile later I was still running!
(One lap of the field and I was crossing the line exhausted,
wet and tired but with the famous runners high (or was it
just relief that it was all over!).
I would
recommend this race to anybody who likes cross country
running. It is very scenic and the time seemed to fly by.
The general consensus was that the race was 8.5 miles but
nobody had any complaints about that. There were good before
and after race facilities including tea and food stalls,
licensed bar, showers and even live music.
Mick Spur
The Boundary Run
A curious David
Wright, looking rather bemused, enquired at the end of his
relay leg at Shoreham station ‘What is this run the Boundary
of ?’ I had to tell him it was really the ‘Boundary of
Imagination’
It all came about
since I volunteered to be a North Downs Way Warden and
accepted as my ‘Patch’ a 5ml circular walk from Otford and
Shoreham. By linking the much used route of Mark Mellon from
Southfleet to Beacon Wood Country Park at Bean, and the
lovely Darenth Valley Path I was now able to provide a link
from Shoreham to Stansted and thus back to Nurstead by any
contrived route possible.
In order to share
all this with club members I had to work out the relay and
changeover places. I for one certainly enjoyed the complete
circuit and from what I hear there weren’t too many
complaints from everyone else.
Thank you for making
this a great success
Eric.
There were
wonderful views like this one!
THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY
BOUNDARY RUN
I’ve been on
a few off-road runs recently and the Boundary Run ranks up
there with the most enjoyable; everyone seemed to have a
great day.
For me a good
event needs to have plenty of variety and we certainly had
that: fast flat sections with well defined paths, very
steep hills – even Annabelle had to walk up a couple of
them, wooded shaded footpaths, plenty of overgrown sections
which made navigation challenging, beautiful scenery, good
company, a choice of distances for all runners, and on this
occasion head high nettles which I’m sure Eric was proud of
(he even somehow managed to organise a field full of angry
looking bulls to block the exit).
The run was
really well attended and brought together a few members we
haven’t seen for a while. It was also nice to see the two
guest runners enjoying themselves.
Dawn and
Peter generously gave up their time to man the checkpoints
as well as run, and in true form used their initiative to
move one of the checkpoints to a pub! I’m sure their
intention was to motivate us further by waving lager under
our noses to encourage us to finish quicker. It worked for
me and that first pint went down lovely.
Even though
most of us managed to get briefly lost at one stage or
another, map reading didn’t appear to be a problem thanks to
our Tuesday night orienteering runs, although Robin had some
difficulty reading his map when it was bobbing about in the
stream he managed to drop it in.
Eric, Mark M
and Suzanne are all now proud (I hope) ultra runners.
Suzanne did particularly well as she seemed to be the only
person unaware she was going to run the full distance, and
we now have at least nine ultra runners in the club!
A well
stocked barbeque rounded the day off nicely and surprisingly
everyone was still able to walk unaided, some even showing
off by kicking a football around.
I’m looking
forward to hopefully doing the same again next year, even
though my legs are still throbbing from all the nettle
stings.
Glyn Morris
There were
so many pictures to choose from, like the one above of
Suzanne, that it really hard to pick. Hopefully we can get
some of them onto the new website.
The boundary
run was a success this year and a good time was had by all.
Lets hope we can do it all again next year.
Dear members
Firstly I
would like to thank and congratulate all those who took part
in the Boundary Run and hope that you enjoyed the scenery
and challenges of the various sections of the route.
My reputation
in the club for “ misleading” members on route distances is
borne out by those who are usually unfit and the difference
between a 5 and 6 mile run means a whole lot. Alan Mc Bean
and Peter Russell were the first to moan about this in the
mid nineties and have generally succeeded in corrupting most
of our members to think this way. Personally I care but tend
to ignore it because when you are training you are very
rarely going ‘eye balls out’ as if you were racing a BARR
accurately measured time trial event.
Those of you
that know me well and have run many miles with my guidance
and care will also know that I wouldn’t leave you stranded
or that if I had to abort a run I would. True, that country
miles are not easily measured and for that I make no excuse,
likewise a summer run in the country is likely to encounter
a few areas of overgrowth, It ain’t no back garden after
all. I for one prefer the country in winter mainly because I
don’t have to worry about woodland overgrowth and I can run
flat out over the terrain that would make others pussyfoot
around ( you know who I mean) Its all a matter of confidence
and ultimately choice. My runs can be your runs but, like
Peter Russell once said, “if I tell you about all the good
runs I would have to push through the crowds to enjoy the
views”. It’ll soon be cross country time again and speed
training begins now if you want to be ready, there is no
point getting good at the end of the XC season!!!
Good Luck for
the rest of the summer
Eric Pestell
President
A TOAST TO GRAVESEND ROADRUNNERS
25TH ANNIVERSARY
On the anniversary
of our Clubs 25years since registering with Amateur
Athletics Association I would like to thank and acknowledge
our longest serving members for the roles they have played
in the Club over the years. They have stayed with the Club
through good times and bad and have witnessed many changes.
Those changes since the heydays of the Club in the late
eighties and early nineties have been quite dramatic both in
membership and in competition.
I have had the
privilege of seeing memorabilia and documents dating back to
the mid eighties and anyone wishing to view them can contact
me, it certainly makes interesting reading and for many will
bring back memories.
What does hold good
today as it did apparently in the formative years is that
the Club continues to mix a social element with a serious
running element. Running clubs today are not always about
the competitive spirit although there are many Athletics
Clubs that put great emphasis on competition and
representing the club en-mass. With the membership we have
today we are still capable of putting on a good race,
witness the Mob Bash, Cock Inn 10, Nurstead Kent Fitness
League X Country and duly acknowledged by Kent County AA in
staging their X Country Presentation event in 2008. KCAA
also asked if we could stage the Mens Vet Championships at
Nurstead in December 08. Although this will not be possible
it is a measure of GRR competence to Marshal and organise
such events.
Events that have
been lost over time from the Club are the Gravesend 10K,
Midsummer Relays and more recently the Cock Inn 10 but all
for different reasons.
Success of an event
is often measured in attendance figures but small events can
still be deemed a success if all runs smoothly. A profit at
the end would be nice for the Club and successive years of
an event was sure to produce more profit from the COCK INN
10, however a race cannot be staged without the permission
of Landowners and the authorities. The complications and
compliances that come with that have resulted in an
unacceptable workload to negative gain ratio. Future races
can still take place with the help of our members but more
shared ownership for the organisation of events will have to
take place.
Many of our members
have served on the Club committee over the last 20 years and
in a variety of roles at different times be it President,
Secretary, Treasurer, Mens and Ladies Captain, Social
Secretary and other posts. A seven or eight person committee
results in a more evenly spread workload but operating as we
currently do invariably means that the few have to accept
the bulk of the tasks. Like you, we run for leisure and
enjoyment not for the added stress and grief. We do what
needs to be done, some more than others but ultimately it is
all for the benefit of the Club.
My tasks as
President for 5 years have been many, some quite enjoyable,
some arguably, less so and I share sentiments with those
Presidents and Secretaries that have gone before me, some
are still at the Club but others like Peter Bagshaw and
Charlie Morgan are no longer with us. They did great things
in their time with GRRAC.
Mick Sheppard some
of you will know is a life member of the Club and goes back
to the very early days. Also Derek Mcfarlane, Alan Lamb,
Judith Hillier Sue and Dave Preston and family, Peter
Margerum, Peter Russell, Rob Haigh, and Ron Dymott.
Alan McBean was
probably the saviour of the Club in 1992/93 and a new
committee, formed from the aforementioned, gradually rebuilt
the Club. Both Alan and Sue Preston, have served the Club
for many years and are Honorary Vice Presidents.
I came to the club
in 1994 to improve my ageing level of fitness for squash,
and ended up dropping the squash and sticking with the
running. It was Alan who brought me into GRR and it was also
he who introduced me to the North Downs Run and eventually
persuaded me to organise the first Wealdway Relay in 1997.
So you can blame him or credit me for all that followed.
Our celebration
relay run was born out of previous runs I have planned and
is the first time the complete circuit has been attempted. I
hope those that participated in it are all satisfied by your
achievements and a special thanks to Dawn for the Service
vehicle and to Pete for doing the BBQ and to Annabelle who
allowed us to use Nurstead as a start point and for her
house for the BBQ afterwards.
With the help and
support of our members Gravesend RoadRunners should look
forward to a rewarding future but we should never forget how
much was contributed in the past and dare to take for
granted. New members should always be encouraged to bring
new ideas and challenges that this Club could embrace as
these are changing times that Running clubs are going
through. We try to stay in contact with all the membership
throughout the years but please come to the AEI from time to
time so that some new members can meet you and learn from
your experiences. I look forward to seeing you all soon,
perhaps at the next social event? As most of you missed the
BBQ.
Eric Pestell
President GRRAC
July 2008
