Stopsley Striders Newsletter – December 2022

What a busy month this has been, with both social events and various races. Our Christmas party was a huge success judging by the feedback we have received, so a big thank you to the organisers and everyone who attended the event. Well done to Kate for raising an amazing amount towards the club charity and to Gill for making the cake. This was followed by a well-attended social at the Barrels, it was nice to see a few familiar faces we hadn’t seen for a while and hope to see you again soon. 

A wet and windy Monday night saw over 40 Striders attend our annual Christmas Lights run visiting the houses in Old Bedford Road and Fallowfield, where we were treated to mulled wine and mince pies at the Disney house. Many thanks to Carol and her parents John and Judy who made us feel welcome and to Nicola and Sara who arranged it for us. Make sure you check out all the photos on Facebook. 

After the cross country events at a muddy Wootton and snowy Baldock our team currently sits in sixth position after three races, a fantastic achievement, well done to all our amazing runners and supporters. 

We also had the final club champs of the year at Hatfield 5, which saw some great results and lots of PBs. Well done to all Striders who have participated in races this month. We have had to cancel a few club nights recently due to the snow, your safety always come first, so we urge everyone to take extra care running in wintery conditions. 

Finally the committee would like to wish all Striders a very merry festive period and hope to see as many of you as possible on our planned runs.

Running London

The draw for the Club’s 2023 London Marathon place was conducted at the Baldock cross country by Bill Barrett, who braved the weather to support our team. The lucky winner, seeing off 19 other hopefuls, was Claire Bracey – well
done Claire!
The Club is currently awarded one place. This is dependent on the number of England Athletics affiliated members we have, so the more we have affiliated, the more chance we have of getting more places.

Club Championships 2023

These races have age category 1st, 2nd and 3rd Certificates for all age categories.

5K – Marston 9 June 2023 or Hitchin 24 September 2023
5 mile – Hatfield November 2023 (Date TBC)
10K – Flitwick 16 April 2023 or Love Luton 29 October 2023
10 mile – Sandy 2 April 2023 or Leighton 24 September 2023
Half Marathon – St Albans – 11 June 2023 or Love Luton 29 October
20 Mile – Any race 2023 (not virtual)
Marathon – Any race 2023 (not virtual)
Cross Country – Ampthill Trophy 15 October 2023

We have added a couple of extras this year to give more opportunities to do as many as possible.

Note:
– ATW Race 10% Striders Discount. Contact a strider or committee member for the code
– £2 discount entry for all EA affiliated members)

Other Race Suggestions: January-March 2023

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November Run Report

By Charley Snowdon & Ryan Parsons

November was a fabulous month of running and begun with Charles Nelis initiating additional Sunday long runs starting and finishing at Elevenses Cafe at Inspire. This is quickly becoming a Sunday staple on non race days and the Elevenses homemade cinnamon swirl buns are providing the motivation! Look out on Spond and Facebook for details of the next one.

At the beginning of November, the phenomenal Christine Lathwell, travelled to Ireland for the British & Irish Masters Cross Country International in Dublin. “I almost wasn’t allow to fly as I don’t have a passport!” laughed Christine. “I had a good race and came 4th with the V45 ladies team coming overall 2nd, we were all so pleased to get a medal.” This in undeniably a fantastic achievement and so many congratulations and well wishes go to you Christine, you really are a valued inspiration.

Sticking with the cross country theme, Kallum Wright, Tom Rankin and Charley Snowdon headed to Milton Keynes on 12th November for the Chiltern Cross Country League. This is a highly contested league with lots of pro runners including Olympians, where the woman run separately to the men. It was fast, it was furious but we didn’t finish last! Tom beat Kallum to the line, but not by much, watch this space as the competitive rivalry between these two continues to simmer! Another Strider that doesn’t mind the mud is Peter Breslin. Peter took part in the Dirt Half Challenge on the 19th November in 1:40 “including getting lost in the forest!” Very well done Peter, your love of trails and enthusiasm for being out in the countryside is infectious and most certainly is paying off!

Martin Pretoria was on his merry travels once more, this time landing in Greece for the Athens Marathon. “I can honestly say it’s the toughest run I’ve ever done and it’s going to take me a couple of days to get over it, but it was well worth it!” said a proud Martin. Martin finished in a time of 06:45:07.

The ladies team gave it their all with Charley Snowdon, Ruth Doyle, Karen Ashby and Judy Reid all contributing to the teams overall current position of 10th. Admittedly, it was the mens scores that held us at 10th and moving forward, Charley is extremely keen to encourage and build the ladies team.

A couple that needs a mention are Leigh and Nick Betts who have been representing Striders at a plethora or races up and down the country. I think everyone who knows Nick and Leigh will agree that they are just the loveliest couple and how they support each other in their running is just beautiful.

Do remember to upload your race results on the website and do share what you’re up to on social media so we can all support and follow each other. Look out for next months run reports including Shaun Mutters Hurtwood 50, Rob Barnes Cheviot Goat Ultra, Cross Country Report from event number 3 hosted by North Herts Road Runners and of course as many Santa Canter’s, Elf Encounters and Rudolph Runs as possible!

We wish you all a very merry and peaceful Christmas.