Annual General Greetings!
Annual General Greetings!
Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 19/11/23–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
19 November 2023
Upcoming we have the South of the Thames Junior race on Saturday 25th, which we’re hosting at Beckenham Place Park – sign up to run if you’re fit and available, or contact Len to help out marshalling if you’re unfit and available.
Of the little action we had this week, Owen Hind and Steven Mowll ran the Wolverton 5 mile race in Milton Keynes, with Owen 13th in 26:11 and Steven 57th in 32:21.
Tickets are available for the club Christmas do on 9 December. It will be held at The Watergate in Deptford, tickets are £25 each – full details and menu down below. There will be a junior party and awards ceremony earlier at the same venue.
On an administrative point, some of the races that we enter require EA memberships for all runners. Please ensure that your EA membership is paid up if you intend to run for the club, particularly in national or regional championships, as it’s an administrative hassle for our team managers to check, and it may mean you miss out on entry deadlines if you’re not fully paid up.
HONORARY MEMBERS
At the AGM on Tuesday, Kent AC recognised two longstanding members whose combined contribution to the club totals over 78 years!
Pete Boxshall joined the club in 1982 and was a mainstay of our road and cross country teams in the 80s and 90s. He is now the coach of our highly successful women’s team, travels the country to coach and support them, and also officiates as a timekeeper when required.
Bernie Hutchinson joined in 1986, and a few years later became Membership Secretary, a role which he fulfilled for a remarkable 34 years until he stepped down this week. He still runs for the club, and will be wearing the Kent vest in some of the upcoming cross country races.
.The club fully appreciates their long and deep contribution to the club, which was recognised by the awarding of honorary memberships to each of them.
Pete Boxshall (left) and Bernie Hutchinson
KENT AC AGM
Tuesday 14 November 2023 8.30PM
The club AGM was held at the Blythe Hill Tavern on Tuesday, and had a healthy attendance of 40 odd in the room, plus another 10 or so joining remotely.
The main order of business was to review and approve the officer reports, approve new appointments to the committee, and approve Honorary Memberships to Pete Boxshall and Bernie Hutchinson.
The minutes of the meeting and the new committee appointments will be posted on the website this week.
The event was conducted in good order and good humour, and the co-Presidents Len and Vic thank all the members who attended and contributed.
BECK(ENHAM) AND CALL
South of the Thames Junior XC
Saturday 25 November from 12.30
Ken and Len need two groups of volunteers to help on the day.
We need ten people to marshal. The race is at 2pm. There will be a briefing at 12.30 at race HQ in the south west corner of the park. It’ll all be done by 2.45.
We also need two people to meet Len at the track at 11.15 to help put our (huge) tent into a car and then put it up in the park. It’s being used to keep the officials cosy and dry. The same or another two to help take it down and put it back in the car and deposit at the track.
If you can help, please let Len know.
IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS
Join us on Saturday 9th December for an evening of
fizz, festive feasting and dancing at The Watergate cocktail bar.
A highlight on the Kent AC social calendar and a night not to be missed!
The following scrumptious menu will be served on sharing platters
along with a seasonal welcome cocktail at £25 per person
(non-alcoholic options available too!).
Honey glazed pigs in blankets
Stuffed marinated peppers (ve)
Falafel, rose harissa hummus (ve)
Smoked salmon mousse vol-au-vents
Buttermilk roasted turkey, roast potatoes, red wine sauce
Prawn and crab croquettes, lemon aioli
Triple cooked chips, truffle cheese (v)
Orange chocolate tart, whiskey raisins, honeycomb ice cream (v)
Dietaries will be catered for, please notify us in advance.
Make sure to book your tickets here.
https://kentac.sumupstore.com/product/kent-ac-festive-soiree-senior-members
We look forward to celebrating with you all there!
Katie and Ellie
RACE DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
A summary of dates for your diary:
November
25 – South of the Thames Junior XC – BPP
December
2 – Kent County Vets XC – Dartford (Age group xc champs)
9 – SEAA Masters CC Champs – Horspath, Oxford
9 – Kent AC Christmas Party – TBD
16 – South of the Thames Senior – Lloyd Park (Senior XC champs)
2024
January
6 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
13 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
27 – Southern XC champs – BPP
February
10 – Surrey League XC – TBD
24 – National XC Champs – Weston Park, Shropshire
March
16 – British Masters XC Champs – Corwen, N Wales
April
TBD – Southern Road Relays – TBD
TBD – National Road Relays – Sutton Coldfield
12 LANES OF CHRISTMAS
For those of you wanting to enjoy some reps at Ladywell Arena over the festive period, please make note of the below dates for Kent AC hire.
Thursday 21st December – As usual
Sunday 24th December – No booking
Tuesday 26th December – No booking
Thursday 28th December – As usual
Sunday 31st December – No booking
2024
Tuesday 2nd January – As usual
ADMIN ON TRACK
Would you like to take a leading role in the club? Are you organised and have an eye for detail? Or do you just want to earn a pint for some volunteering? If you answered yes to any of these questions, we have just the ticket for you.
We are looking for a new Track Admin Officer. This is a committee post, which involves technical admin of the track pass app and negotiating hours and rates for the track with GLL and the council.
If you would like to find out more about this, then please contact Amelia.
MEET YOU AT THE GATE
Gate volunteers form the unsung heroes of the club, making sure that our Tuesday and Thursday night sessions can run smoothly and safely.
It’s a great way to meet new people and have a chat with friends too, as well as give back a little bit of time to the club. You can sign up here!
LET’S MAKE IT OFFICIAL
Athletics needs more officials, and volunteering in this way is a wonderful way to give back to the club.
This is a great opportunity to help get club events’ results on Power of 10. And it’s fun.
Our SAL performances not only need athletes, but also qualified officials – so you can directly contribute to our success! Every qualification counts!
It’s a straightforward process that the club will pay for, with more detail on available courses here.
Please contact Len Reilly for more info.
It would be great to see a few more people put their names down to help out!
EASYFUNDRAISING
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
WIN A TRACK PASS
To be added to the rota simply email Jacqueline or Laurie
We only need each track attendee to volunteer a couple of times a year to spread the responsibility fairly.
T&Cs for the track pass draw:
All volunteers for the current month will be added into the hat for a draw each month.
The winner will win a free pass for the next calendar month.
Names will be automatically drawn from https://namepicker.net/ (or similar alternative)
The winner can either chose to:
use their free pass within a calendar year
allow their free pass to roll down to another volunteer
annual pass holders can nominate another club member if they cannot make use of the pass themselves
No refunds/discounts will be provided in place of the free monthly pass.
Volunteers will only be eligible to win a pass once every three months.
TRACK, TRACK, TRACK
Buy your track pass here.
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:30
Thursday 18:00 – 20:30
Sunday 09:00 – 11:30
Please note that individuals are permitted to do their own sessions during club opening times, but coached group sessions continue to take priority.
Track Pass – Juniors
Please purchase your £5 junior monthly track pass in advance here. When purchasing the track pass can parents/guardians please enter the athlete’s name when completing the transaction
Please see a helpful FAQs guide here
Ladywell Arena now has new opening hours dedicated to the public. While during these times the Kent AC track pass is not valid, members can pay for an individual session.
Session times are:
Monday: 07:00 -15:00
Tuesday – Thursday: 1300 -1700
Friday: 07:00 – 15:00
Saturday – Sunday: 09:00-15:00
Price:
Adult resident: £2.70
Adult non resident: £3.00
Junior (U16): £1.30
The Kent AC track pass continues to be required for training on Tues/Thurs evenings and Sunday mornings.
Track staff have encouraged people to double check the opening hours before their training session, as they may occasionally be closed for school sport days and football friendlies. Hours can be checked here. This will likely suit members who can’t make training sessions but would like to train in the morning/lunchtime/evening.
Pay as you go fees can either be paid via cash to the desk or using the Better app (note: staff are working to add the sessions to the app).
KEEP US UPDATED
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