BRR Blog – 30 September 2024
Tom and Belinda in Berlin for the 2024 Marathon
Alloha Road Runners!
There seem to have been some tough challenges going on over the last few days, from Trevor and Cristina Cooper who completed the Saxons, Vikings and Normans Thank You Challenge Half Marathon, to James Lowndes who ran the Peak Divide from Sheffield to Manchester, and Belinda and Tom B who ran the Berlin Marathon. Fantastic work guys! However, with the change in the weather, if I had to pick someone to run with, it would probably be Gary H in the Costa Adeje, Tenerife!
For those of you who want a slightly more manageable challenge, don’t miss the details of the first Chingford League race of the 2024/25 season below. Remember, Chingford League races are free for BRR members (the Club pays to be part of the League instead), so do mak eteh most of your membership and take part!
Also, some info about the Berlin and Boston marathons, the second half of our stretching article, and the usual bits and pieces. For those of you expecting the next instalment of Dottie’s almanac, she is playing hard to get but will hopefully have spoken to Dee Spencer-Perkins in time for next week’s blog.
Chingford League
It’s been fantastic to see the enthusiasm for this year’s Chingford League competition. Here are further details for the first race, a 5k at Hog Hill on Tuesday 8 October:
Venue: Redbridge Cycle Centre, Forest Road, IG6 3HP
Start time: 7.30pm U15/17s and senior women, 8.00pm men.
The course is one short lap, then two long laps with the "S bend" at the start of laps two and three. Start and finish: outside the pavilion.
There is some parking at the Centre. When the car park is full, stewards will suggest parking spots in the industrial estate opposite the cycling centre.
Public transport: Central line to Fairlop Station, then c1.5-mile jog to the venue. You can also get the central line to Hainault Station then the 247 bus towards Romford, alighting at the Fowler Road stop.
There are showers, lockers, toilets and a cafe at the Cycle Centre.
Bib numbers will be issued on the night. MAKE SURE TO KEEP YOUR BIB NUMBER FOR THE WHOLE COMPETITION!!! I’m happy to collect numbers in and keep them for the next race if you think you might lose yours.
The second race in the series will be the race that we host at Eastbrookend Country Park on 2 November. Our race licence application has just been approved by the trail Running Association so it is all systems go! As well as a running team, we will need volunteers to marshal the course, so please help if you can.
Ich Bin Ein Berliner!
Berlin, recognised as the fastest marathon course in the world*, celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. Over 50,000 participants from more than 120 countries line signed up to take part in the race, starting at the famous Brandenburg Gate.
The race was founded in 1974 by Horst Milde, a runner whose family had owned a bakery just west of the Brandenburg Gate for 300 years. The first marathon had just 244 finishers of whom only 10 were women. The winning male and female crossed the finish line in 2:44:53 and 3:22:01 respectively. Milde is still involved in the race to this day, but his son Mark is now the race director.
Following the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany in October 1990, the Berlin Marathon went through the previous Eastern Zone for the first time and became a symbol of freedom and democracy.
Since 2006, the Berlin Marathon has been an Abbott World Marathon Major, the association of the six biggest marathons in the world. Since 2011, there has been a lottery to meet the growing demand. Alternatively, you can secure an entry via one of the marathon's charity partners or tour operators, such as Marathon Tours and Travel (has anyone ever used one of these race travel companies? If so, any good?)
*being the fastest doesn’t mean it is easy. The marathon distance is formidable even for the fittest athlete, and there are a lot of variables that can impact on performance on the day.
Boston Qualifying Times Get Tougher
The Boston Athletic Association (BAA) has revealed the cut-off time for the 129th Boston Marathon, to be held on Monday, 21 April 2025. Only those who exceed their qualifying standard by six minutes and 51 seconds (6:51) or will be accepted.
There was a record 36,393 of applicants for the 2025 race. Of these 24,069 runners have been accepted or are in the final stages of verification. The most popular qualifying races were the 2023 Bank of America Chicago Marathon (2,584 entrants), the 2024 Boston Marathon (1,822 entrants), the 2024 TCS London Marathon (1,101 entrants), the 2023 BMW Berlin Marathon (809 entrants) and the 2023 California International Marathon (749 entrants).
12,324 athletes missed out on a place as they failed to meet the cut-off time. The overall field size is capped at 30,000 official entrants so the remaining places will be given to charity runners, invited professionals, and para-athletes, plus 709 athletes who were given places based on completing 10 or more consecutive Boston Marathons.
Registration for the 2026 race will open after the conclusion of the 2025 race, but the BAA has already announced that the qualifying times will be even tougher. And, even if you run under the qualifying time that still doesn’t guarantee a place; just the opportunity to submit an entry. The 2026 qualifying window began on 1 September, and the qualifying standards can be found here. I may not raise my hopes too high…
Static Stretching
Last week we looked at the importance of dynamic stretching before a run to get our synovial fluid flowing to lubricate our joints, and warm our muscles up ready for action. But, after exercise, the emphasis switches to static stretching.
Static stretching involves extending a muscle towards the end range of motion and then holding the position for a short period of time, usually for 15-30 seconds. There is no benefit from holding a stretch for longer, but each static stretch may be repeated several times, each time extending the muscle a little further. They are intended to increase the muscle’s range of motion or flexibility by releasing muscle tension. This helps to improve mobility and reduce the risk of muscle pulls or strains during future exercise.
There are a huge number of static stretches that you can do, each targeting one or more different muscle groups. Some possible stretches are:
Butterfly stretch (this is the cross-legged seated stretch where you push your knees down)
Standing or seated hamstring stretch (reaching for the toes)
Figure-4 stretch (lying on your back and crossing one ankle over the opposite knee, then gently pulling that leg toward your chest until you feel a good stretch in your hips and glutes)
Frog stretch (like it sounds, kneeling on the floor with legs out like a frog! Opens the hips and groin)
Calf stretch (various versions available, but all involve flexing the toes back to get a stretch in the back of the calf)
Quad Stretch (such as bending the leg up so the foot touches the backside)
Sometimes static stretching is called passive stretching. This is usually when something external is used to intensify the stretch, like an exercise band, a towel around the toes to flex them back, or even a partner to help you extend and hold a stretch.
Greg’s Race Report
Cristina and Trevor Cooper competed in the Saxons, Vikings and Normans Thank You Half Marathon in Gravesham finishing in times of 2:08:01 and 2:02:40 respectively.
Cristina and Trevor at the Thank You Challenge HM
Barking Road Runners Belinda Riches and Tom Brennan travelled to Germany for the Berlin Marathon with Belinda finishing in a terrific time of 3:38:14. Despite being somewhat under the weather Tom finished in a creditable 4:20:56.
James Lowndes ran the Peak Divide 76k ultra trail run between Manchester and Sheffield. With a course including approximately 2,000 metres of elevation James did extremely well finishing in a time of 11:48:20.
James L doing some post-race refuelling (ahem)
BRR parkrunners
Barking - Mark New 23:17, Mark Odeku 23:46, Joshua Ezissi 25:36, Jason Li 27:26, George Hiller 29:37, Andrew Hiller 29:43, Emma Paisley 30:19, Martin Mason 31:21, Dennis Spencer Perkins 31:43, Clodagh O’Callaghan 33:22, Nikki Cranmer 35:58, Dawn Curtis 36:55 and Alan Murphy 49:28.
Basildon - Ron Vialls 25:18 and Steve Colloff 29:07.
Ron and Steve at Basildon parkrun
Dover Waterfront - Adrian Davison 22:58.
Gunpowder - Paul Ward 26:11.
Pymmes - Stuart Mackay 19:57 and Jess Collett 22:07.
Valentines - Kevin Wotton 62:20.
Woodley - Rob Courtier 38:38.
Highest BRR age gradings this week were Jess Collett 69.56% for the women and Adrian Davison 71.7% for the men.
Oscar, Vicky and rob at Woodley parkrun
BRR Diary – October
7.00pm, Tuesday 1 October – Speed Development Session. Jim Peter’s Stadium, Mayesbrook Park. This week Rob will be taking the session:
After a warm-up, a timed mile followed by 300m reps with 100m recovery.
7.00pm, Thursday 3 October – Club run. Jo Richardson School/Castle Green Centre. Usually around 4-5 miles, all abilities welcome.
10.00am, Sunday 6 October – Southend 10k. Southchurch Park East, Lifstan Way, Southend on Sea, Essex SS1 2XD. A nice jaunt, up the seafront to Shoeburyness and back, starting and finishing at the park. John Whan is taking part – anyone else? https://www.southend10k.com/
9.30am, Sunday 6 October – Eastbrookend Country Park. Meet in the car park by the Discovery Centre. Preparation/course checking for our Chingford League race.
7.30pm, Tuesday 8 October – Chingford League 01 (CL01). Redbridge Cycling Centre, Forest Road, Hainault. Free for BRR members to participate. More details above. Please let us know if you will be running, if you haven’t done so already. NOTE: TRACK IS CANCELLED.
10.00am, Sunday 13 October - Tiptree 10 (GP08). Sold out, but you can add your name to the waiting list. https://www.tiptreeroadrunners.com/tiptree-10/
10.00am, Sunday 20 October - South Essex Cross Country League 01. Hadleigh Country Park, Chapel Lane, Hadleigh. Entry is £5 but the Club subsidises the cost by £2, so you pay £3, either on the day or into the BRR account. More details to follow.
10.30-11.30, Sunday 20 October - Great South Run (10 miles). Clarence Esplanade, Southsea, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO5 3NT.Some of us entered the Great South Run before the cross-country dates were announced (sob). https://www.greatrun.org/events/great-south-run/
7.15pm, Thursday 24 October – BRR Annual General Meeting 2024. Jo Richardson School/Castle Green Centre, Gale Street, Dagenham. You chance to vote for committee members for the coming year, discuss issues affecting the Club and vote on any proposals.
7.00pm, Friday 25 October – ELVIS Presentation Night/BRR 40th Anniversary Party. Dagenham and Redbridge Football Club, Victoria Road, Dagenham.
Cracker Corner
The invention of the shovel was ground-breaking, but it was the invention of the broom that really swept the country.
I went to the cinema last week. I asked the usher to tell me about the film but he left me in the dark.
Did you hear about the Tibetan monk who saw the face of Jesus in a tub of margarine? He said “I can’t believe it’s not Budha.”
Boom! Boom!
Quote of the Week
"Runner's logic: I'm tired. Let me go for a run."
Unknown
And finally…
Sorry folks, but age-related slowing is a fact. Unless you are just starting out as a runner, as you get older, you can expect to get slower. But the research suggests that club membership helps delay this decline. For women in particular, being a club member in their 50s can make them just as fast as a non-club runner in their 30s. The benefits of group training, structured programmes and peer support seem to counteract the natural age-related performance drop, giving runners a real advantage as they grow older. Thank goodness I joined BRR…
