BRR Blog – 8 April 2024
Most of the BRR crew after the St. Clare 10k, plus two Alans!
Eid Mubarak, Road Runners!
It was a busy weekend, with members taking part in a number of races, including the St. Clare 10k, the second race in this year’s Grand Prix competition, the London Landmarks Half, and – last but not least – the Brighton Marathon. Congratulations to everyone who completed their challenges, and commiserations to those who could not run for whatever reason. Greg has all the details in his race report. We also have details of some other races you can enter, some essential toenail advice for marathon runners, and an inspirational poem for all of us. Enjoy!
ELVIS has entered the building
East London fiVes Interclub Series or ELVIS is an annual competition between nine running clubs in the East London area. In case you missed them a few weeks ago, here are the dates of this year’s series:
The 2024 ELVIS fixtures
As well as prizes for the competition between the ELVIS clubs, BRR also has its own, internal competition. The Club’s ELVIS competition consists of all ELVIS races occurring in the year, except our own race on August Bank Holiday Monday, so that’s seven races.
Points are awarded for finishing positions on the basis of 100 for first place, 99 for second and so on, with separate points awarded for male and female finishing positions. Points are only allocated to second-claim members if they are representing BRR.
The final score for each member is calculated using their best results across five of the seven eligible races. Trophies will be awarded to male and female, for first, second, and third place.
Hips don’t lie
When we’re sitting down, our hip flexors and hamstrings tighten. Try and get into the habit of getting up and walking around every hour, to loosen up your muscles and reduce the risk of injury when you exercise. Of course, this advice only applies when you are sitting a lot at work or watching the TV for hours at home; getting up every hour if you are at the cinema or theatre will make you very unpopular with the other customers.
Best foot forward
I know I’m not the only person who has suffered from the dreaded black toenail after a race.
It can be caused by our foot slipping forward in and hitting the front of a slightly too-large shoe if the race involves a lot of downhills. Or it can just
So, how can you prevent the dreaded black toenail? For a start, try and get a well-fitting pair of shoes. A shoe that feels slightly snug over a shorter distance may suddenly be too tight after a long race, once your feet swell.
Experiment with different types of socks. If a shoe feels a little snug, a thinner sock might help. Using a lubricant like Body Glide can also prevent shoes and socks from rubbing.
Keep your toenails trimmed short – but not too short – to reduce any extra pressure that could occur from the shoes with each step. Make sure you regularly trim the nails to keep them square and compact. But DON’T cut your nails short just before race day – if you are running London, now is the perfect time for a final trim.
Last but not least, apparently a lot of pro runners – male and female – swear by a couple of layers of nail varnish to make the toenails stronger. By making your toenails tougher, they’re less likely to sustain damage and fall off. Guys, it’s It is your choice if you want to stick with clear or go for a nice, bright colour!
Greg’s Race Report
Most of the BRR Team at St. Clare before the race.
Round 2 of Barking Road Runners’ Grand Prix series this year was the St. Clare Hospice 10k, run through the countryside near Harlow. With no parking at the Hospice this year due to the popularity of the race, courtesy buses were laid on from a parking area at a local football club.
John George, ready to race at St. Clare.
The Coopers after the St. Clare 10k
This has been a popular event for BRR recently and this year was no exception with 16 members taking part this year, despite the undulating course. This year the runners also had to contend with strong headwinds for a lot of the course. First finisher for BRR was Nehal Patel 46:29. He was followed by John George 49:53, Cristina Cooper 50:16, Trevor Cooper 52:09, Rosie Fforde 52:27, Tom Shorey 56:15, Stephen Colloff 57:48, Louise Chappell 58:48, Dennis Spencer Perkins 1:01:40, Alison Fryatt 1:01:42, Mick Davidson 1:02:46, Rob Courtier 1:03:35, Nikki Cranmer 1:03:26, Ron Vialls 1:06:13, Martin Mason 1:08:52 and Les Jay 1:13:08.
Joyce Golder took part in the London Landmarks Half Marathon, taking in all the main landmarks in Westminster and the City of London, finishing in a time of 2:19:07 at Trafalgar Square.
Joyce in Trafalgar Square after the London Landmarks Half.
BRR were represented at the Brighton Marathon Weekend with two members, Debra Jean-Baptiste 5:44:15 and John Whan 5:16:34, competing in the Marathon. Sunny Bulchandani ran in the 10k finishing in a time of 50:24.
John Whan after the Brighton Marathon
Sunny after the Brighton 10k
BRR parkrunners
Barking - Mark Odeku 21:04, Joshua Ezissi 23:12, Belinda Riches 23:15, Adrian Davison 24:49, Doug King 25:03, Ricky Narwal 25:32, Martin Brooks 26:45, Stephen Colloff 27:20, Jason Li 27:23, John Lang 27:27, Paul Molina 30:36, Emma Paisley 30:39, Clodagh O’Callaghan 33:32, Les Jay 34:39 and Alan Murphy 54:38.
Beckenham Palace - Mark New 27:02.
Chalkwell Beach - Antony Leckerman 25:08.
Highbury Fields - Joe Stacey 54:27.
Richmond Park - Rob Courtier 33:40.
Valentines - Kevin Wotton 25:19 and Andrew Gwilliam 37:09.
Highest BRR age gradings this week were Belinda Riches 73.91% for the women and Adrian Davison 65.75% for the men.
BRR Diary – April/May
7.00pm, Tuesday 9 April - Speed development. Jim Peters Stadium, Mayesbrook Park. Jess will be leading this week’s session is called ones and two (it could also be called threes, fours, and sixes!):
· 3x 2 mins fast, 2 min recovery
· 4 x 2 mins fast, 1 min recovery
· 6 x 1 min fast, 1 min recovery
Efforts to be at 5k pace or quicker. Walk/jog the recoveries.
7.00pm, Thursday 11 April – Road Run. From the Castle Green Centre/Jo Richardson School, Gale Street, Dagenham. The run might be shorter than usual this week, as some of us have the Brentwood Half on Sunday. All abilities welcome.
10.30am, Sunday 14 April – Hadleigh Legacy 10k. Not an official club race, but if you enjoy cross country at Hadleigh Country Park you may enjoy this. Details at: https://www.eventrac.co.uk/e/hadleigh-legacy-10k-9886
Sunday 21 April – TCL London Marathon. Whether you are running the marathon or volunteering on the Mile 14(ish) water station, it will be a full-on day for the Club. We will be arranging some drinks for the evening, to wind down and to hear all those marathon stories.
7.00pm, Sunday 21 April - post-marathon drinks. Prince of Wales pub, Green Lane, Ilford. A chance for runners, water station volunteers, and supporters to have a drink and reminisce on the day. Everyone welcome. There will be a small buffet.
7.00pm, Thursday 2 May – Summer 5k Handicap 01. Barking Park, Longbridge Road. £1 entry (or £5 in advance for all seven races in the competition), with a tenner prize to the first person across the finish line. Also trophies for first second and third place in the series, based on the best five results across the seven races. NOTE: there will be no road run from Castle Green.
10.30am, Monday 8 May – Witham May Day 5. Witham Rugby Club, Spa Road, Witham, Essex, CM8 1UN. Not a Club competition, but a nice run through the Essex countryside. https://www.withamrc.org.uk/races/may-day-10/
7.00pm, Thursday 16 May – Summer 5k Handicap 02. Barking Park, Longbridge Road. As above!
10.00am, Sunday 19 May – Great Baddow 10 (GP03). The Recreation Ground, Great Baddow, Chelmsford, Essex CM2 9RL. Not nicknamed ‘Great Baddy’ for nothing, the course includes a few hills, but if you welcome a challenge this is the race for you, and there is a community fair at the start/finish area to keep supporters occupied while the rest of us run our socks off. Enter at: https://baddowraces.co.uk/
7.30pm, Wednesday 22 May – Dagenham 88 5ish (EL01). Discovery Centre, Eastbrookend Country Park. The first race in this year’s ELVIS series. If the course is the same as last year, it’s a six-lap off-road jaunt around the Country Park. Not open for entries yet (D88 are still awaiting Council permission to use the course). Watch out for further details.
11.00am, Monday 27 May - Hatfield Broad Oak 10k. Village Green, High Street, Hatfield Broad Oak. Otherwise known as “the Big O” because Roy Orbison ran it once while he was in the UK*. This is not a Club competition race, but it’s a nice way to spend a Bank Holiday Monday. There is a kids’ race too, and village fair, which is quite fun. More info and entries at https://broadoak10k.co.uk/
*Part of this sentence may not be true…
7.00pm, Thursday 30 May – Summer 5k Handicap 01. Barking Park, Longbridge Road. As above!
Cracker Corner
Yesterday I bumped into a man who sold me an antique globe a few years ago. It’s a small world…
I am not a nostalgic person, but every time I reverse my car it takes me back.
I got addicted to the whack-a-mole game, but I managed to knock it on the head.
Boom! Boom!
Poem of the week
We have a poem this week, from the book ‘The Total Runner’ by Dr Jerry Lynch. Big thanks to John Whan for bringing it to my attention.
If you THINK you are beaten, you are,
If you THINK you dare not, you don’t,
If you like to win, but THINK you can’t,
It is almost certain you won’t!
If you THINK you’ll lose, you’ve lost,
For out in the World we find,
Success begins with a person’s will -
It’s all in the state of MIND.
If you THINK you’re outclassed, you are,
You’ve got to THINK high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster one.
But sooner or later the one who wins
Is the one who THINKS they can!
And finally…
As reported in the Evening Standard last week, research by London Sport found that 52% of Londoners had adjusted their exercise habits as a result of extreme weather caused by global warming. 19% have stopped exercising entirely due to extreme heat, while a hardier 26% are exercising earlier in the morning or later in the evening due to hot weather.
The conclusion reached is that more needs to be done to enable parks and outdoor spaces to be used during periods of hot weather, with 20% of respondents saying that a covered space would encourage them to remain active.
There seems to be a problem with this solution. If you cover an open space, it is no longer an open space, and it might be a bit pricey to cover every park in London. My solution? More drinking water fountains, so people can cool down when they need to. They seemed to manage it in Victorian times, so why not now…
