We knew this time last week that our Red Hares' time of 13 hours 25 minutes was a good one but now we know it was a WINNER, beating team Bath by a cool 3 minutes – congratulations to all involved in the Cotswold Way Relay this year. As a mixed team White Hares came 3rd and were 10th overall although of the 29 teams that took part only 11 completed all 10 legs of the relay.
Meanwhile James Thomas and team are continuing to develop another team relay event having been forced to reject the Gloucestershire Way. To find out more check the Events section of the web site and watch out for invitations to join club teams on Whatsapp - Ciren AC Chat.
But if you fancy a more individual “race” read on below for details of an opportunity to pin on your race number and start with everyone else for the CRO 10km and Half Marathon in two week’s time.
Cirencester Run On - (CRO)- Week 20
Missing the buzz of the race? The CRO 10k and Half Marathon during the week commencing 24th August will be a chance for people to pin on number and race once again –(socially distant and following all of the governments guidelines of course!!)
When Covid-19 first took control of our lives back in early March, none of us thought we would still be facing such limitations on the things we enjoy and love to do during the month of August. Worse, unfortunately, it is increasingly unclear as to when things might ever return to what we remember. But, to provide a small ray of light and something for us all to aim for, we have decided that the CRO 10k / Half Marathon will be another super inclusive event for individuals and teams to complete their chosen distance (run, cycle, swim or walk over one week) AND a chance to grab a number and race once again. Pinning a number onto our chest turns an everyday run into something different - a shot of adrenaline as we run down the road and pass people.
See FAQ’s for the special 10km or Half Marathon event below
But let’s not forget the weekly CRO runs continued this week with a 1 mile challenge, never a popular distance so congratulations to the 15 who produced a time. And some great times there were with Ian Barrett, Sophie Chudley, Martin Croucher and Liza Darroch all running their fastest CRO mile and Ruth Fulford and Kate Sackett snipping off a few seconds too. Nothing and no one it seems can push Ian off the fastest spot nor Kate off the highest age grading so really great to see Martin topping the Handicap list – even if that is because he is only just returning to “proper” running after his Comrades 46 km a few weeks ago!
Finally, some thoughts from some of our regular CRO runners – this week the turn of the men and thanks to Brian Harris, Andy Kilby and Paul Barrow:
· 2020 was going to be my first year running in most of the club’s league road races. In the event of one cancellation after another, I’ve found the weekly CRO really useful to help keep some motivation going, even though some weeks go better than others.
· CRO has helped to give me an aim when other races have all gone under. As a second claim member I have been able to participate without having to don a club vest!
· When locked down started I was in a state of panic as it looked likely that my age group and health group might find our outdoor activities, as a social runner, restricted. Strava has helped massively but CRO has been the cherry on the cake. My friends on Strava are mostly outside of our club and we enjoy a bit of banter. However CRO has provided something quite different - focus, discipline and support. Each week we’re presented with a new running challenge. Quite often it’s a distance we wouldn’t normally run out of choice. For example the 1 mile challenge would never be in my top 10 list of distances to run. But over time I’ve grown to accept it has benefit for all my running distances. So I grit my teeth and run it.
· My preferred distance is 5k as I am missing regular park runs.
· Fairly early on I had some great encouragement and useful training (and running book) tips from Martin and Dorian, which has given me confidence to increase my training considerably since April and plan forwards.
· What has become important is the feedback and coaching support Martin has given me each week. Equal measures of encouragement and advice.
· It is good to look and see who is taking part and check whether I have improved or not.
- its about just taking part and seeing how other people are getting on.
· Having the weekly CRO times to look back on for various distances has given me evidence of positive training effect - by week 18 I could run for 10k at my week 1 5k PB pace.
· Whilst I'm disappointed to miss a lot of races this year, I’m fortunate in that I will still be in the same age-group next season - I do feel sorry for the competitive runners who have lost out on their last year, especially if they were in great form.
CRO run plans for the next few weeks are: Week beginning August 10th 5 kms August 17th 5 kms August 24th Super inclusive Half Marathon (13.1 mile/21 km) OR 10 kms.
Don’t forget all you have to do is run the distance and email your time to cirenacresults@gmail.com .
FAQ’s for the 10km/Half Marathon event:
So how do I get one of these number things and take part? Simple. Contact Martin at cirenacresults@gmail.com and he will email you back with your own personalised number to be used during your run. If you don’t have access to a printer – please let Martin know and he will print you a number and post it or arrange for you to collect it from a drop point in Cirencester. Then once you have completed your run, email your time and you will be added to the results at the end of the week.
Is there a set time to start? Yes and No. The challenge takes part over the entire week of the 24th August since we appreciate everyone has busy lives and can only fit in their running during certain times. But, to add to the buzz start at 10am Sunday 30th August. That way, you will be safe in the knowledge that at least some other members will be running at exactly the same time as yourself.
Do I have to run all of it in one go? NO - Here is the best part. Particularly for our junior members where 10k or 13.1 miles in one go is probably too far to run, take your time and run it over the course of the week. Add your total time together at the end, email your result to Martin and then you too can be added to the results.
To make it more inclusive – you can walk, run or cycle either 10k or 13.1 miles on your own or as part of a physical or virtual team. Just add up the bits and tell Martin who did what. Simply cover the distance during the week and you will be welcomed as part of the CRO community.
So what are you waiting for? Come grab a number, pin it to your club vest and join us. A selfie or two wouldn't go a miss either, to make us all feel part of that race vibe once again.
Week Ending August 9th, Cirencester Runs On (CRO), 1 mile any surface
GUN TIME
1 Ian Barrett 5.41
2 Sophie Chudley 6.13
3 Isobel Watt 6.28
4 Kate Sackett 6.32
5 Dorian Matts 6.55
6 Nick Wall 7.21
7 Andy Kilby 7.25
8 Rupert Chesmore 7.54
9 Martin Croucher 7.58
10 Liza Darroch 8.01
11 Rachel Barrow 8.08
12 Ruth Fulford 8.30
13 Paul Barrow 9.08
14 Louise Abbott 9.21
15 Pam Wheeler 10.21
AGE GRADED
1 Kate Sackett 87.37%
2 Liza Darroch 86.29%
3 Ruth Fulford 81.38%
4 Ian Barrett 74.04%
5 Sophie Chudley 73.60%
6 Isobel Watt 69.98%
7 Dorian Matts 67.28%
8 Nick Wall 64.45%
9 Andy Kilby 63.87%
10 Louise Abbott 63.84%
11 Rachel Barrow 62.86%
12 Pam Wheeler 59.49%
13 Rupert Chesmore 59.43%
14 Paul Barrow 56.94%
15 Martin Croucher 51.18%
HANDICAP RACE
To work out the handicap score, your last 1 mile run has been used. Your original time divided by your new time has produced a percentage. Any percentage higher than 100, means you have run quicker this week. For people whom this run is their first 1 mile performance, I have simply given them 100.
1 Martin Croucher 106.28
2 Ian Barrett 105.28
3 Liza Darroch 101.88
4 Sophie Chudley 101.35
5 Kate Sackett 100.77
6 Ruth Fulford 100.20
7 Pam Wheeler 98.72
8 Louise Abbott 98.04
9 Paul Barrow 97.63
10 Andy Kilby 97.53
11 Rachel Barrow 97.14
12 Nick Wall 96.83
13 Isobel Watt 96.40
14 Dorian Matts 90.85
15 Rupert Chesmore 86.71
Stay safe and enjoy CRO'ing
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