<<First Name>>, Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 31 January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
31 January 2021
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NEWS
With the grim reckoning of more than 100,000 deaths with Covid 19 across the country, we at Kent AC can take a tiny drop of cheer from the fact that Lewisham’s Covid cases have plummeted by half over the past week. Judging from the numbers of people I see wearing masks while out and about, it feels as if this corner of the city, at least, is obeying lockdown advice and focusing on a possible March respite. Meanwhile, keep on with the off-track training regimes, keep your distance from other park users and enjoy running in our splashy, waterlogged parks. I am also pleased to report that the club’s most stalwart supporter, Ron Hale, who ran for the club from 1947 to the present day, is on the mend following his brush from Covid. He is, perhaps, a fine example of how a life of running can keep you fighting fit. I spoke to him on the telephone a couple of days ago and he’s feeling fine, but very bored with his restricted walking regime.
Committee Posts Available Today is the last day you can register your interest in the two posts we have up for grabs. Any volunteers will be considered tomorrow evening (Monday 1 February) at the online committee meeting. Please take a look at the club rules if you’re thinking about throwing your hat into the ring.
Youth Athlete Representative/Manager The Committee is currently looking to update/develop the job description for this post so the requirements may develop over time; however, generally this role covers overseeing all aspects of youth athletics (training, coordinating with parents, organising travel to races etc). Ken Pike has offered to take on this role; the Committee welcomes his offer.
Aside from the role itself (which is a large undertaking and will require a high level of commitment), the Committee would welcome offers from members who would like to assist in the running of youth athletics at the Club going forward.
Women – Road This role is open due to an administrative error – Sarah Hanley was accidentally nominated and appointed at the AGM. Katie Rowland has offered to take this role back on/continue in this role; the Committee welcomes her offer. Please respond to
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FIXTURES
Club 5 Mile Handicap Challenge & EA National Relays Kent AC qualified from the regional round in 5th place overall to the National England Athletics Virtual Relays which take place 10th-15th February. I would encourage you to enter this here – Kent AC can get a National Medal in the competition if we get our best runners out!
To complement the EA relays, we are running a club 5 mile handicap competition with a number of competitions within a competition, all you have to do is enter and then run 5 miles whilst adhering to the rules set out by England Athletics. There is a keen emphasis on team competition, so this is a good chance to work together with runners you don’t know so well within the club.
Team Handicap Performance Team Overall Performance Individual Handicap Individual Age Graded Performance
Notes: EA Rules/Guidance will be used, summarised here. Open to 2nd claim runners.
If you ran the regional EA Relays your time rounded to the nearest 15 seconds will be used as your handicap
If you didn’t run the regional EA Relays then your time submitted on entry will be considered, but the organisers will adjust accordingly for those who are looking for a soft handicap!
You have until February 5th to enter (Dan’s birthday)
Once entered and allocated into a team from 5th Feb, a DNS/DNF will give you a time of handicap + 2.5 minutes
A team captain will be appointed to help with data entry etc
You don’t need to enter the EA relays, however it would be great to have as many as possible enter this to show just how strong a club Kent AC is
The Big Half 2021 Thank you to everyone who has expressed their interest in The Big Half 2021. 107 applications have been received for 100 places. Ted will be contacting those successful in the next day or so with further details, with the remaining applicants placed on a reserve list. Ted is working hard to get some additional places for the club therefore if you haven’t applied yet and are interested in a place, please register your interest here.
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KENTversation
No new podcasts this weekend, but if you missed our chat with female cross country captain, Sarah Hanley, we would urge you to listen in. Catch Sarah’s episode and previous episodes on Spotify here.
<<First Name>>, Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 24 January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
24 January 2021
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NEWS
Cross Country Survey – Closing 29th January British Athletics have circulated a survey for cross country athletes to give their views on gender equality in race distances. We encourage all members to participate and give their views. You have until 29th January to complete the survey. Individual emails to are also welcomed if you would like to provide additional feedback.
London Regional Council Update – Wednesday 27th January The London Regional Council will be hosting an open forum for London based athletics and running clubs on Wednesday 27 January starting at 7pm. The session will be held over Zoom and lasts for around 90 minutes. Pre-registration is essential. You can register by clicking this link.
The evening will be hosted by the London Regional Council and briefly update on some key topics including the upcoming council elections before splitting the forum into two breakout rooms covering the themes below: Theme 1: Facilities, funding and maintenance. The England Athletics facilities manager Ed Hunt will join us for this session to help facilitate the discussion and answer any questions.
Theme 2: Cross Country Equal Opportunities Consultation. The recently published consultation by British Athletics has generated significant feedback so far and we know club members are keen to discuss this further and have their views put forward as part of the overall process. Dave Clarke from the London Council and Chair of Hercules Wimbledon will facilitate this breakout room and ensure feedback is submitted as part of the overall process. The council asks everyone who is interested in this session to read this statement.
Committee Posts Available We currently have two open committee posts which the Committee would like to notify you about in case you wish to apply (per the club rules). Appointments will be made at Committee.
Youth Athlete Representative/Manager The Committee is currently looking to update/develop the job description for this post so the requirements may develop over time; however, generally this role covers overseeing all aspects of youth athletics (training, coordinating with parents, organising travel to races etc). Ken Pike has offered to take on this role; the Committee welcomes his offer.
Aside from the role itself (which is a large undertaking and will require a high level of commitment), the Committee would welcome offers from members who would like to assist in the running of youth athletics at the Club going forward.
Women – Road This role is open due to an administrative error – Sarah Hanley was accidentally nominated and appointed at the AGM. Katie Rowland has offered to take this role back on/continue in this role; the Committee welcomes her offer. Please respond to , ideally by next Sunday (31st).
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FIXTURES
Club 5 Mile Handicap Challenge & EA National Relays Kent AC qualified from the regional round in 5th place overall to the National England Athletics Virtual Relays which take place 10th-15th February. I would encourage you to enter this here – Kent AC can get a National Medal in the competition if we get our best runners out!
To complement the EA relays, we are running a club 5 mile handicap competition with a number of competitions within a competition, all you have to do is enter and then run 5 miles whilst adhering to the rules set out by England Athletics. There is a keen emphasis on team competition, so this is a good chance to work together with runners you don’t know so well within the club.
Team Handicap Performance Team Overall Performance Individual Handicap Individual Age Graded Performance
Notes: EA Rules/Guidance will be used, summarised here. Open to 2nd claim runners.
If you ran the regional EA Relays your time rounded to the nearest 15 seconds will be used as your handicap
If you didn’t run the regional EA Relays then your time submitted on entry will be considered, but the organisers will adjust accordingly for those who are looking for a soft handicap!
You have until February 5th to enter (Dan’s birthday)
Once entered and allocated into a team from 5th Feb, a DNS/DNF will give you a time of handicap + 2.5 minutes
A team captain will be appointed to help with data entry etc
You don’t need to enter the EA relays, however it would be great to have as many as possible enter this to show just how strong a club Kent AC is
The Big Half 2021 Thank you to everyone who has expressed their interest in The Big Half 2021. 107 applications have been received for 100 places. Ted will contact those successful next weekend with further details, with the remaining applicants placed on a reserve list. Ted is working hard to get some additional places for the club therefore if you haven’t applied yet and are interested in a place, please register your interest here.
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KENTversation
A podcast to make you smile this weekend, we caught up with female cross country captain, Sarah Hanley to hear about her adventures during lockdown and views on the cross country debate. Catch this episode and previous episodes on Spotify here.
Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 17 January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
17 January 2021
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NEWS
Lloyd Cowan Once again the newsletter begins with sad news as this week Team GB coach Lloyd Cowan passed away. Throughout the week some of GB’s most successful athletes, as well as Jamaican greats Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, have spoken about what a loss his passing is and the impact he had on their careers. Our own Conrad Williams said: “Lloyd was like no other. One of the kindest people you will come across. He was always willing to and he would help any athlete that needed, he was the first one there and last one to leave. His warmth was welcoming all over the race circuit and the world. As a coach, he was recognised for his contributions over the years and was given an MBE. The community will pull together and celebrate the time that we had with him and remember what great person he was. Truly a sad loss to us all.”
Surrey League XC cancelled As you all will have expected, Surrey League Cross Country 2020/21 season has been officially cancelled.
London Regional Council Update The London Regional Council will be hosting an open forum for London based athletics and running clubs on Wednesday 27 January starting at 7pm. The session will be held over Zoom and lasts for around 90 minutes. Pre-registration is essential. You can register by clicking this link.
The evening will be hosted by the London Regional Council and briefly update on some key topics including the upcoming council elections before splitting the forum into two breakout rooms covering the themes below: Theme 1: Facilities, funding and maintenance. The England Athletics facilities manager Ed Hunt will join us for this session to help facilitate the discussion and answer any questions.
Theme 2: Cross Country Equal Opportunities Consultation. The recently published consultation by British Athletics has generated significant feedback so far and we know club members are keen to discuss this further and have their views put forward as part of the overall process. Dave Clarke from the London Council and Chair of Hercules Wimbledon will facilitate this breakout room and ensure feedback is submitted as part of the overall process. The council asks everyone who is interested in this session to read this statement.
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FIXTURES
England Athletics Virtual Road Relays The Virtual Road Relay Competition Qualifying Round has now closed. Thank you to all Kent AC members who submitted their five mile times to this virtual competition. According to the organisers over 2,400 runners competed and 128 club teams crossed the virtual finish line. The race organisers are currently ratifying the club team results and will announce the confirmed top 50 teams to progress to the National Round early in the week commencing 18 January. Kent AC were in 5th place on the ladder when the round closed so it looks like we will be heading into Round 2 (the National Round) which is due to be held Wednesday 10 February to Monday 15 February 2021. Please keep an eye out for more information from Katie Rowland and James Bowler. For more information follow this link.
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KENTversation
No podcast this week, but you can catch up with previous episodes on Spotify here.
<<First Name>> Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 10 January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
10 January 2021
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LOCKDOWN #3
And this time it’s even more serious. With Covid-19 hospital admissions at an all time high, we must run independently. No group activities, no group training. Track’s shut. Take care when running in popular walking places. You can run with one other, two metres apart, but be mindful of the impact you’re having on fellow pavement and park users. This will not last forever, but protecting the NHS is far more important that athletics training. Run without your watch for a bit and chill out. Given that we’re all feeling a little deflated in the gloom of a January lockdown, it’s essential that we support each other virtually. Take part in virtual events, such as the EA Virtual Relays (see below for changes to deadline – you can still enter!) and reach out via social media. Take pictures while you’re out on your run and tag @kentversation then hashtag #KENTACrunslockdown Motivation is all! Let’s all share the love. Talking of KENTversation, you can listen to the latest offering and all previous episodes on Spotify now.
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IDRIS OJURIYE
Some of you may have seen the sad news regarding the sudden death of Idris Ojuriye at Herne Hill Harriers this week. Our thoughts are with his friends and family. Here are links to gofundme and everlovedpages set up in his memory for members who wish to leave messages of condolence or make a donation in memory of Idris.
Idris Ojuriye – Herne Hill Harriers Statement: We are saddened and shocked to advise that Idris Ojuriye, a very popular and talented sprinter in our Herne Hill Harriers teams sadly passed away suddenly on Monday 4th January after suffering a blood clot which led to a heart attack a week after his 36th birthday.. Idris was an invaluable member of our men’s British Athletics League national league team for over fifteen years competing … www.hernehillharriers.org
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FIXTURES
England Athletics Virtual Road Relays Many thanks to all the Kent AC athletes who have currently entered the event, hopefully we can get more runners entered and raced, given that the deadline for virtual submissions has been moved to midnight on 13 January, so please enter here.
A reminder, the entry is completely free and the competition is made up of mixed teams of 8 (4 men and 4 women). The top 50 teams will qualify into the National Round. The minimum age for entry is 15 so it would be good to get some of our younger runners involved and get as many teams out as possible. We’ve had some fantastic results in from doughty Kent AC runners. Once all runs done so far are submitted, Kent is provisionally in 2nd place nationally behind Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow AC (WSEH). Therefore, we will easily qualify into the national round ,which follows on from this regional round, but it would be great to see how high up in the regional round we can finish.
Some performances of note so far: Anthony Johnson currently sits in 6th place overall with his excellent 24:22, Phil Sanders is leading M45 with 26:13 and Jonathan Tipper is 2nd M40 with 26:13. Alexa Parker is the first Kent AC athlete on the women’s side with 29:30, Katie Rowland has run 30:05, with Sarah Hanley 30.32, Jen Berg 32.41.
Key things to remember when planning your route:
Net elevation change between start and end points must be less than 10m
Start and finish points must be within 500m of each other
Laps must be longer than 1km
Elapsed time will be used, so no ‘Ross Barkley attempts can be done!’
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CROSS COUNTRY SURVEY
England Athletics is supporting the consultation with cross country clubs and their athletes, cross country competition providers and the cross country community to capture thoughts on how cross country can provide equal opportunities for all participants at all levels in the future. As members of EA, Kent AC athletes will have received an invitation to take part in the survey (about 5-10 minutes to complete), the deadline for which is 29 January.
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GOOD STUFF, JACQUELINE
One of GoodGym Lewisham’s most energetic volunteers is our own Jacqueline Francis, who recently completed her 400th good deed. She has been running across Lewisham, doing great work with GoodGym since Day 1, visiting older people, dropping off shopping, sorting out libraries and digging people’s gardens. GoodGym Lewisham singled her out for special praise on Twitter this week, but the woman herself is too modest to post it on her own feed. She’s an absolute star. To find out how you can do good while improving your fitness, contact GoodGym
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PERFORMANCE WEBINAR
On Thursday last week, several Kent AC members joined an online webinar: Performance in the Mind by sports psychologist, Dr Josephine Perry. The webinar covered 11 tools and techniques useful for athletes training through lockdown and to use when returning to sporting competition. You can view the slides from the webinar here and the recording is also available here until 14th January. Passcode: N6GZ$L?h
Some useful tips:
Control the controllable: Focus on the events and actions you can influence, don’t waste energy on those that are out of your control.
Don’t drive for perfectionism: Try to do things differently every so often to demonstrate to yourself your ability to be flexible and cope with changing conditions.
Imagery: Try to imagine a positive outcome for the event or situation enabling you to identify the components that will help you achieve whilst creating a positive mindset.
You can also find some free performance in the mind worksheets here (including a pre-race routine timesheet) and find Dr Josephine on twitter. If you want to read further about Dr Josephine’s research, you can order her book: Performance under Pressure: Psychological Strategies for Sporting Success.
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NEW MEMBERS
A warm welcome to our newest members: Caroline Evans Victoire Nora Nzouba-Ndams Richard Pledger Nick Mooney Alex Newton Matthew Henty
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DONATIONS
If you would like to raise some money for the club, Ted has suggested donations for Junior Track and Field development – Sprints, Jumps & Throws/Coaching support. Training and racing opportunities have been limited for our young athletes during 2020 and with that, fundraising opportunities have also been restricted. With that in mind, we thought we could maintain the spirit of the past 3 years of raising funds for developing track and field at our club, however, it is not a requirement to securing a place. We are asking for your continued support, if you are able, as again we understand that 2020 has been very hard on a lot of people financially, but all contributions welcome no matter how small. Just giving link.
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KENTversation
No podcast this week, but you can catch up on last week’s episode with club president Alan Curtis and other previous episodes on Spotify here.
Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 10th January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
3rd January 2021
A LOOKBACK TO 2020
Here’s a brief look at some of the highlights of 2020!
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NEWS
Club activities suspended No change to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions means that Kent AC is continuing to suspend all club activities until further notice. This means the track is now closed, there will be no group training and members cannot run with more than one other person.
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FIXTURES
England Athletics Virtual Road Relays Many thanks to the 29 Kent AC athletes who have currently entered themselves into the event (19 men and 10 women), hopefully we can get more runners entered and raced, you have until midnight on the 10th of January to enter and run, please enter here.
A reminder, the entry is completely free and the competition is made up of mixed teams of 8 (4 men and 4 women). The top 50 teams will qualify into the National Round. The minimum age for entry is 15 so it would be good to get some of our younger runners involved and get as many teams out as possible.
Key things to remember when planning your route:
Net elevation change between start and end points must be less than 10m
Start and finish points must be within 500m of each other
Laps must be longer than 1km
Elapsed time will be used, so no ‘Ross Barkley attempts can be done!’
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CLUB HISTORY
A photo from yesteryear Derek W. G. Wells was one of Kent AC’s top runners in the later 1940s/early 1950s, specialising in track races over 880 yards and 1 mile. His grandson has shared some photographs of Derek via Facebook, including this one showing him leading the pack at Ladywell (check out additional pictures on either the club’s Facebook or Twitter page). If you want to know more about the history of the club check out Larry Garnham’s detailed history on the club’s website.
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CLUB 250
January Club 250 Congratulations to Richard Elliot who was last night’s club 250 winner.
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THE BIG HALF
Community Places for the Big Half –25th April, 2021 at 8:00am You should have received an email from Ted in December about the 100 community places the club has for the Big Half this year, at £10 each. Places have been allocated on a first come first served basis and there are now less than 10 remaining! If you would like to claim a place please register here. If you are successful you will then be sent a registration link at the end of January when you will have 48 hours to claim your place and pay. These places are not championship places and are currently only available to paid up club members.
Donations: If you would like to raise some money for the club, Ted has suggested donations for Junior Track and Field development – Sprints, Jumps & Throws/Coaching support. Training and racing opportunities have been limited for our young athletes during 2020 and with that, fundraising opportunities have also been restricted. With that in mind, we thought we could maintain the spirit of the past 3 years of raising funds for developing track and field at our club, however, it is not a requirement to securing a place. We are asking for your continued support, if you are able, as again we understand that 2020 has been very hard on a lot of people financially, but all contributions welcome no matter how small. Just giving link.
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KENTversation
Joining Dan & Amelia on the podcast this week is club chairman Alan Curtis for a review of 2020. You can listen to the latest offering and all previous episodes on Spotify now.
Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 10th January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
3rd January 2021
A LOOKBACK TO 2020
Here’s a brief look at some of the highlights of 2020!
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NEWS
Club activities suspended No change to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions means that Kent AC is continuing to suspend all club activities until further notice. This means the track is now closed, there will be no group training and members cannot run with more than one other person.
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FIXTURES
England Athletics Virtual Road Relays Many thanks to the 29 Kent AC athletes who have currently entered themselves into the event (19 men and 10 women), hopefully we can get more runners entered and raced, you have until midnight on the 10th of January to enter and run, please enter here.
A reminder, the entry is completely free and the competition is made up of mixed teams of 8 (4 men and 4 women). The top 50 teams will qualify into the National Round. The minimum age for entry is 15 so it would be good to get some of our younger runners involved and get as many teams out as possible.
Key things to remember when planning your route:
Net elevation change between start and end points must be less than 10m
Start and finish points must be within 500m of each other
Laps must be longer than 1km
Elapsed time will be used, so no ‘Ross Barkley attempts can be done!’
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CLUB HISTORY
A photo from yesteryear Derek W. G. Wells was one of Kent AC’s top runners in the later 1940s/early 1950s, specialising in track races over 880 yards and 1 mile. His grandson has shared some photographs of Derek via Facebook, including this one showing him leading the pack at Ladywell (check out additional pictures on either the club’s Facebook or Twitter page). If you want to know more about the history of the club check out Larry Garnham’s detailed history on the club’s website.
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CLUB 250
January Club 250 Congratulations to Richard Elliot who was last night’s club 250 winner.
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THE BIG HALF
Community Places for the Big Half –25th April, 2021 at 8:00am You should have received an email from Ted in December about the 100 community places the club has for the Big Half this year, at £10 each. Places have been allocated on a first come first served basis and there are now less than 10 remaining! If you would like to claim a place please register here. If you are successful you will then be sent a registration link at the end of January when you will have 48 hours to claim your place and pay. These places are not championship places and are currently only available to paid up club members.
Donations: If you would like to raise some money for the club, Ted has suggested donations for Junior Track and Field development – Sprints, Jumps & Throws/Coaching support. Training and racing opportunities have been limited for our young athletes during 2020 and with that, fundraising opportunities have also been restricted. With that in mind, we thought we could maintain the spirit of the past 3 years of raising funds for developing track and field at our club, however, it is not a requirement to securing a place. We are asking for your continued support, if you are able, as again we understand that 2020 has been very hard on a lot of people financially, but all contributions welcome no matter how small. Just giving link.
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KENTversation
Joining Dan & Amelia on the podcast this week is club chairman Alan Curtis for a review of 2020. You can listen to the latest offering and all previous episodes on Spotify now.
Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 3rd January 2021<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
3rd January 2021
A LOOKBACK TO 2020
Here’s a brief look at some of the highlights of 2020!
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NEWS
Club activities suspended No change to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions means that Kent AC is continuing to suspend all club activities until further notice. This means the track is now closed, there will be no group training and members cannot run with more than one other person.
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FIXTURES
England Athletics Virtual Road Relays Many thanks to the 29 Kent AC athletes who have currently entered themselves into the event (19 men and 10 women), hopefully we can get more runners entered and raced, you have until midnight on the 10th of January to enter and run, please enter here.
A reminder, the entry is completely free and the competition is made up of mixed teams of 8 (4 men and 4 women). The top 50 teams will qualify into the National Round. The minimum age for entry is 15 so it would be good to get some of our younger runners involved and get as many teams out as possible.
Key things to remember when planning your route:
Net elevation change between start and end points must be less than 10m
Start and finish points must be within 500m of each other
Laps must be longer than 1km
Elapsed time will be used, so no ‘Ross Barkley attempts can be done!’
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CLUB HISTORY
A photo from yesteryear Derek W. G. Wells was one of Kent AC’s top runners in the later 1940s/early 1950s, specialising in track races over 880 yards and 1 mile. His grandson has shared some photographs of Derek via Facebook, including this one showing him leading the pack at Ladywell (check out additional pictures on either the club’s Facebook or Twitter page). If you want to know more about the history of the club check out Larry Garnham’s detailed history on the club’s website.
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CLUB 250
January Club 250 Congratulations to Richard Elliot who was last night’s club 250 winner.
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THE BIG HALF
Community Places for the Big Half –25th April, 2021 at 8:00am You should have received an email from Ted in December about the 100 community places the club has for the Big Half this year, at £10 each. Places have been allocated on a first come first served basis and there are now less than 10 remaining! If you would like to claim a place please register here. If you are successful you will then be sent a registration link at the end of January when you will have 48 hours to claim your place and pay. These places are not championship places and are currently only available to paid up club members.
Donations: If you would like to raise some money for the club, Ted has suggested donations for Junior Track and Field development – Sprints, Jumps & Throws/Coaching support. Training and racing opportunities have been limited for our young athletes during 2020 and with that, fundraising opportunities have also been restricted. With that in mind, we thought we could maintain the spirit of the past 3 years of raising funds for developing track and field at our club, however, it is not a requirement to securing a place. We are asking for your continued support, if you are able, as again we understand that 2020 has been very hard on a lot of people financially, but all contributions welcome no matter how small. Just giving link.
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KENTversation
Joining Dan & Amelia on the podcast this week is club chairman Alan Curtis for a review of 2020. You can listen to the latest offering and all previous episodes on Spotify now.
