Monday 27 May 2013

Monday 27th May - off-road development day

After a very successful event in 2012 Spectrum Striders and the Cheshire Athletic network are hosting another event at Delamere visitor centre in 2013.

The event is free and runs from 9.30-16.30 - it is targeted at runners of all abilities. It will be a mixture of classroom sessions and outside sessions. There will be a focus on uphill and downhill running, fell running (rough terrain) and also orienteering techniques.

The event is free on a first come first served basis with a maximum of 50 places.

Details available on the Macc Harriers website or click HERE

Neil

Sunday 26 May 2013

Sunday 26th May - Manchester 10k



Run England - Macclesfield

Today 8 Run England group members took part in the 10k Manchester Great Run. The team was Sarah, Heather C, Cheryl, Heather A, Julie, Heidi, Wendy S and Wendy B.

We were fortunate to have benefited from the support, encouragement and wise words from Neil in the lead up to the event and so we were well prepared. Or so we thought!  The glorious sunshine and resulting high temperatures were not conditions that we were used to running in.

It was a flat course with some gentle inclines, barely noticeable after all those hill reps we have endured on 'Neil's Hill' , and there were clearly signed distance markers. The crowds of enthusiastic supporters and various live music events along the way encouraged us to keep running despite the heat.

There was a much needed water station between 4 & 5km and another one would have been very welcome at a point further on. The 'run through' cooling shower was very refreshing and gave us temporary respite from the sun.

Although it was not a day for PBs (Personal Bests), due to the volume of runners and the beautiful weather conditions, there were some noteworthy personal achievements amongst us.

Heather Cooper completed her first ever 10k run in 1hr 22mins,  which was even more remarkable when this included stopping to administer 1st Aid to an exhausted and dehydrated runner en route.

Sarah Quigley achieved a PB at 5km but then flagged by the 7km mark. She persevered and was helped by the support of the crowds and Wendy B's last Jelly Baby! Wendy and Sarah crossed the finish line together hand in hand and arms held aloft in shared delight.

Wendy S completed her first ever 10k race in an excellent time of 1hr 4mins and has so far raised £375 for Mesothelioma UK.

Heather A and Julie also completed their first ever 10k Race and, along with Heidi, were raising money for Cancer Research.

We all agreed that it was a great day with an amazing atmosphere and we all felt humbled and privileged to be surrounded by so many inspirational people running to raise money for so many
worthy causes. Between us we have raised over £1,200 and this figure is still rising.

The times were

Wendy Swindells          : 1:04:17 
Sarah Quigley                 : 1:06:59
Wendy Boardman         : 1:07:34
Julie Rawcliffe               : 1:12:59
Heather Auty                 : 1:12:37
Cheryl Evans                 : 1:13:13
Heidi O'Brien                 : 1:18:52 
Heather Cooper             : 1:22:10    

 Report written by 'The Team'





Saturday 25 May 2013

Saturday 25th May - Canal and hill-reps

Ali, Lisa, Terry, Mel & Jen
Today the group was down on numbers as several group members are running the Manchester 10k on Sunday 26th and a few people were away for the weekend. We had four keen runners out (Lisa (new member), Terry (back from injury) plus Mel and Jenny). We met at 9.00am and warmed up in glorious sunshine. We went through Tinker's Clough to the canal and then south for about 1 mile. We then took the farm track to Clarke Lane/Oak lane and across to the Cenotaph for a series of hill reps (tough in the heat). After the final hill rep we came through Kerridge, Hollin Hall and back via Tinker's Clough.

There was some great effort today and as we all know, the hills are our friends!

See you next week,

Neil & Ali

Jen & Mel

Lisa in the lead!

Ready for hill-reps?

The final ascent

Well run Mel...

Jen vs 'that hill'

Lisa conquers Cenotaph Hill

The hill is Terry's friend...

A bit warm ... but happy

Saturday 18 May 2013

Saturday 18th May - Bollington 3 Peaks Fell Race

The Bollington 3 Peaks Fell Race was held today and won by a Macc Harrier in just over 38 minutes. It was wet, muddy, cloudy and the chilli/beer afterwards were very good.

Simon (180) won the event
 
Neil

Saturday 18th May - CAFOD route


Today we met at the Adlington Road car park (Bollington Recreation area) at 9.00am for a run on the CAFOD route. 10 group members came along (we were down on numbers due to illness, work, diary clashes and injury). It was a bit wet underfoot but everyone did the full route with some very good loop-back by the faster group members. Somebody, not sure who, kept shouting 'LOOP-BACK' every few minutes ....

The route is about 4.5 miles but several runners managed well over 5 miles with all the loop-back. 

Afterwards we had a table reserved at the waterside for a post-run debrief.

Well run...

Neil














Tuesday 14 May 2013

Tuesday 14th May - paced 10k

This evening we ran a 'paced' 10k at 10 min/mile with the aim of completing 10k in one hour. This was done to help those group members running the Manchester 10k looking to beat an hour but anyone was welcome.

We met on a very wet and muddy evening - 9 hardy group members came along. We warmed up and then set off at 10 mins/mile. Everyone worked really hard in tricky conditions and soon we all started to get into the even pacing. We discussed breathing patterns linked to the steps and this seemed to help. The plot of my pace is shown in the image below as well as a very blurred photograph of the group.

Several group members ran slightly ahead and beat the 1 hour time (well done) and a couple were just over the hour - several PBs were broken!

Well done - some good hard work tonight. 

Many thanks to Gemma who acted as a 'sweeper' and thanks to Wendy B for post-run cookies!


Neil



Saturday 11 May 2013

Saturday 11th May - Gawsworth

Today was a new route around Gawsworth led by Gemma Moorhouse (just over 4.5 miles with a mix of road and trail). The route took in a good part of the Gawsworth 10k route which is a possible event for later in the year (mid September - see BLOG for details).

Despite poor weather there was a good turnout of 15 hardy runners. The whole session went well with lots of positive comments afterwards.

Nina very kindly booked the Rising Sun for a post run coffee - a good call as it was wet!

Pictures will be posted here as soon as Neil works out the technology....

Neil