Swinton Running Club D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

Chester Santa Dash 1

Halloween Hellraiser 3

Ulverston 10K 4

Stockport 10 6

Tatton Yule Yomp 8

Hurst Green Turkey Trail 10

Telford 10K 13

Ribble 10K 15

Calf Strains 17

Children’s Christmas Party 20

Beginners Group 25

Up and Coming Races 26

CLGP 2012 27

Central Lancashire 5K 28

Cross Country Series 29

Cross Country Champs 30

Club Championships 31

Committee Meeting 33

Notice of AGM 34

Social Events 35

Starlight Express 36

Race Results 37

Contacts 38

Having been banned from running for so long and watching how everybody else in the whole

world was racing I was starting to get very itchy feet. Working in Chester I was inundated

with fliers for the Santa Dash that participants could run, jog or in my case saunter around the

4k course.

I soon coerced my work colleagues into doing the dash with me so we all paid our entrance

fee, collected our Santa outfits and eagerly awaited the big day.

The Dash was to start at 9.30am so it was another early rise for me to head over to Chester.

Driving to the start was comical and everybody was dressed in the usual red suit and seem-

ingly in very festive spirits. My crew consisted of Wendy, Carol, Kirsten, Alan and me. The

ladies all had to have red nails and keep up the glamour so we spent 5 minutes after we

parked painting the nails of those that weren’t done.

The dash had around 1500 entrants so there was a massive sea of red at the start, seems eve-

rybody wanted to be part of the Swinton group.

We were soon off on our nice steady walk which took us through the centre of Chester with

lots of locals cheering us on. There were plenty of marshals all with bags or boxes of sweets

for the Dashers. There was music playing and live bands en route which added to the fab

atmosphere. The end took us back along the river to where we started and the 5 of us did a

little run through the finish.

All participants were to be given a medal but unfortunately somebody from the organisation

team forgot to bring them so we headed off home forsaking our complimentary cup of tea and

mince pie to get out of the rain and get me home in time to transform into a reindeer for the

children’s party later that same day.

The Santa dash was a lot of fun, even as a walker and is suitable for all members of the fami-

ly. The money raised goes to a good cause and everybody involved in organising it and par-

ticipating in it looked to be having a great time. I would definitely do a Santa Dash again but

hopefully running it next time.

Sharen

Race Reviews

Chester Santa Dash - Sunday 11th December 2011

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Race Reviews

Halloween Hellraiser 9 Mile Race - Sunday 30th October 2011

The race started bright and early from the rugby club in Nantwich. A bit too early for those

of us who had been out at Halloween parties the night before. Brian, who had talked me into

the race, was looking far more sprightly than me and making me feel duty bound not to em-

barrass myself as he only started running a few months ago.

There seems to be a bit of a tradition of dressing up in Halloween costume for this race and at

the starting line there was a good crew of witches and several pumpkins. The evil, blood-

stained nurse at the back looked a bit dodgy so we thought wed better avoid spraining any-

thing. I’m not at my most imaginative at nine in the morning so I decided just to scare the

good folks of Cheshire by putting on my Swinton vest and going as ‘someone from Salford’.

The race started out along a country lane but we quite quickly turned off into fields and at

first it got a bit congested with queues to get over stiles before the runners gradually spread

out. The first part of the run was mainly over ploughed or grassy fields so it was quite tough

going underfoot. After a few miles the only real hill of the race took us up to run through a

churchyard over a path made of gravestones for extra Halloween atmosphere. Shortly after

this there was a water station and the route took a loop out along a long lane and back round

through the adjacent field. The rest of the route mainly alternated between rough fields and

country lanes, with one particularly nice stretch along the side of a small lake.

In the world of running the word ‘hell’ seems to generally be a code word for lots of mud.

This race has true potential to be a total mud fest but as there hadn’t been much rain it wasn’t

too mucky. They did manage to provide a fair bit of special cow mud in several of the fields

to make up for that. At one point we actually ran through a field that was still full of cows so

if you find cows scary this might be a race to avoid. There was no danger in this case though.

The cows just lay down chewing and giving me the same kind of appalled look that Dave

does when I get up at 7 to go for a run. Chasing any of us was clearly the last thing on their

minds.

Thanks to the rough terrain this was a tougher race than I had expected from the flat Nant-

wich countryside but we did get a lovely bottle of commemorative beer at the end- (and a

fantastic dinner from Brian’s wife but I'm not sure she’d want to advertise that to all competi-

tors.)

Grace

Full results available here

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S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Race Reviews

Ulverston Christmas Pudding 10K - Sunday 4th December 2011

At my time of life and advanced stage of physical decrepitude, I like to choose my races part-

ly on the basis of non athletic factors. For example, the Gin Pit 5 = Pasties and the Birchwood

10K = Fluffy Towels (of which I now have the full colour set, sad person that I am).

So when I saw a flyer in the club for the Ulverston Christmas Pudding 10K, it ticked all the

right boxes. Firstly it promised a prize different from the usual ill-fitting tee shirt. Secondly it

was in a town in which me and my wife, Christine, have spent many happy times since dis-

covering it when our eldest daughter got her first journalist’s job on the North West Evening

Mail in Barrow.

I therefore promptly entered and booked a cottage for the weekend. At this point my younger

daughter, Laura, who has started running at the club in the Marsh-Sutcliffe Nursery Group,

decided to do the race as well, fresh from her scintillating performance in the Women’s 5

mile run the previous week (I think that was what she told me to put in!). So Christine and I

departed on the Friday night and Laura and two year old Katie left husband and Dad working

and joined us on the Saturday.

Ulverston is a quirky little town as befitting the birthplace of Stan Laurel of Laurel and Hardy

fame, with strong links to Quakerism and Buddhism and a giant monument that looks like a

lighthouse on Hoad Hill, rising above the town. It has two cracking gastro pubs , the Farmers

and the Rose and Crown, both under the same ownership, and it was in these that we did our

race preparation and recuperation. In between we let Katie run riot in the cottage where she

discovered an old Tom and Gerry video and one cartoon in particular which we must have

watched 10 times whenever she got fed up and uttered the order, ‘Watch cat and baby now’.

The other odd thing about Ulverston is that it decided to let Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) build a

whacking great chemical plant in what must be one of the most beautiful parts of Morecambe

Bay. It stands there all silver pipes and plumes of smoke like something out of a James Bond

film in the middle of fantastic coastal scenery. Of course, GSK put a lot back into the local

economy and were the sponsors of the race we had come to do.

Ah yes the race! I suppose I had better get onto that. Sunday morning dawned bright and ear-

ly with Katie jumping on the bed at 7am and shouting ‘Grandad/Grandma out of bed’ fol-

lowed by the inevitable ‘Watch cat and baby now’. Neither Christine nor Katie thought much

of the idea of standing in the freezing rain and cold cheering us on so we dropped them off at

an indoor play centre while we drove to the start of the race at the GSK Social Club virtually

on the shore of Morecambe Bay. There were plenty of runners and we all lined up in the

chemical plant car park for the start where GSK representatives dished out the free perfor-

mance enhancing drugs (only joking, I had already taken mine).

The first mile involved running back towards Ulverston with a biting wind from Morecambe

Bay whipping round your legs and other parts of your anatomy and followed a very aptly

named, Watery Lane, which lived up to its name with lots of puddles and squally showers

making for not very pleasant running conditions. I maintained a reasonable pace, at least I

managed to burn off a man wearing a silly green top hat and running gear, which made me

feel better. The wind then eased off as we turned onto the coast road towards Bardsea and

went through an area strangely named on the race map as Outcast. Apparently this was where

Lepers were sent in bygone times to live away from the town and not be a burden on the state

(perhaps our increasingly privatised NHS might find some lessons here!)

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We continued along the coast road to the 3 mile mark then did a loop into the grounds of

Conishead Priory, a beautiful old building and now a Buddhist retreat. I don’t know whether

it was the transcendental vibes from the Buddhists that did it or the fact that my brain was

now numbed by the cold and wind but I now felt good and for the last 2miles I floated past

lots of runners( well about 3 to be honest ) and finished strongly in 50.54 by my watch.

Laura came in shortly after with a good time of 59.40 in her first 10k for many years and we

were both well pleased, especially as we got the promised Christmas puddings at the finish.

We re-joined Christine and Katie who by now were feeding ducks and in Christine’s hard-

ened view had expended more energy than us whizzing down slides, through tunnels and in

and out of ball pools, so we needn’t expect any sympathy for our tiredness.

Then it was back to the cottage for a nice hot shower then into the Rose and Crown for some

food, beer, wine and in Laura’s case a well deserved whisky. We then completed the day by a

visit to Wax Lyrical Candle Factory Shop where Laura and Christine bought up the shop

(what is it about women and candles?) and Katie and I snoozed in the car. We stayed over-

night and came back the next day via a trip to the Lakes Aquarium.

All in all a great trip and the race wasn’t bad either! Would I do it again? Certainly. After all

I am one of GSK’s best customers (statins, reflux tablets, other medication etc.) So I ought to

support them. But I still think they are missing a trick in not including some of their perfor-

mance enhancing products in the race goody bags! That would really bring in the entrants.

Pete Marsh

Full results available here

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S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Race Reviews

Stockport 10 - Sunday 11th December 2011

The Stockport 10 marked the last race in this year's club championship and saw a good turn

out of Swinton runners (even if several of them did hide in their cars/ the refreshment tent/

the loos until literally seconds before the gun went - apparently they melt in the rain). The

weather was miserable, cold, blustery and pouring down by the start - conditions I actually

quite like for running in! Lauren and I had a quick warm up jog round the track listening to

fascinating facts about Stockport (there's a hat museum) from the compere who literally never

stopped talking and being amazed by the guy whose warm up pace seemed to be a flat out

sprint. After several attempts by the organisers to get the start gantry up only for it to threat-

en to blow away, they gave up and called us all to the line.

For some reason I decided that I'd start the race next to Lauren, the fact that she is considera-

bly quicker than me having apparently escaped me. It probably worked quite well in the end

as we started by running two and a bit laps of the track and space was at a premium. Being a

little further forward than I really ought to have been meant that I ended up running at quite a

comfortable pace. We were soon headed off into the park (encouraged by a marshal telling

us that we were looking good, as I said to the guy next to me, we'd be in trouble if we were

looking anything otherwise after less than half a mile!) and then onto the streets of Stockport.

The course is not the most inspiring, mainly housing estates with a short section on what was

essentially a muddy farm track through some fields. There are a couple of notable hills - one

first is about 5 miles in and probably constitutes two hills, firstly a reasonably gentle but fair-

ly long climb then, just as you think it's all over, you round a bend and spot the second part of

the hill which is short but notably much more steep (it reminded me of Agecroft). To give

you some idea, when I looked at my mile splits at the end (thanks to the wonders of the Gar-

min) I dropped from consistent 8.10 minute miles to a 9.48 minute mile between miles 5 and

6! The second hill comes right at the end. It's not particularly steep but does seem to go on

forever (or maybe I was just tired by then!) Much to my amusement Steve Doxey popped up

on the other side of the road as I was on my way up the final hill clearly on his cool down. It

was nice to have some encouragement but faintly embarrassing when he reappeared at the

entrance to the park having run all the way down and back up the hill in the time it had taken

me (running at race pace) to get half way up!

The course may have been a little dull but the marshals were fantastic remaining cheerful de-

spite the filthy weather. There were several classic marshal comments being used ("downhill

from here", "nearly there now", "you can catch him") which are never true. My favourite was

the marshal at about mile 7 who told us we were nearly there and when challenged on this

point changed this to half way there. The poor lady running next to me clearly believed this

second comment and looked quite worried (as I would have been faced with another 7 miles

at that point) so I kindly informed her of our actual distance.

There were some fantastic Swinton performances on the day. Lauren was not only 9th lady

but also won her age category in a fantastic new 10 mile PB and Steve Doxey also won his

age category in an amazing 29th place overall (I should have guessed he'd done well given

that he'd nearly finished his cool down before I could finish the race!) Mike "I don't do hills

or mud" Horton proclaimed to have actually enjoyed himself and there were lots of spot priz-

es won and lots of happy (if slightly damp) runners at the end. I was personally delighted to

make it in just under 1 hour 24 minutes for a hard earned 5 second PB and very pleased to get

home for a hot bath before I underwent my transformation to a reindeer for the children's

Christmas do.

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This was the first time I've run the Stockport 10 but I think it may feature in my race diary

again - it's long, it has hills in and it takes place in December when you're pretty much guar-

anteed rubbish weather. What more could you want of a race?

Rebecca

Full results available here

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Race Reviews

Tatton Yule Yomp 10k - Sunday 11th December 2011

Whilst most Swintoners were completing the final race of the club calendar at Stockport,

some of us less hardy souls opted for the more gentile surroundings of Tatton Park, and the

opportunity to amble around a gentle undulating 10k rural course as opposed to 10 mile road

race with hills!

Preparations for the race was based on the misguided information that the course wasn’t actu-

ally in the park itself but set around the roads and paths circling around Tatton and Knutsford

Village. The first rule of running of making yourself aware of the course itself was failed

miserably.

Anyway setting off from Didsbury, courtesy of Nicky driving and Fiona map reading, we

ominously viewed the dark rain leaden clouds drifting in from the west and apparently look-

ing to set over the Cheshire countryside. Parking in Knutsford village it appeared quite empty

and wondered whether the predicted storm and biting cold had deterred the Cheshire set from

turning out. Soon meeting up with Paulette, Andy having dropped her off and decided it was

too cold to watch, and not normally renowned for warming up before hand, the just above

freezing temperature encouraged all of us to break into a brisk jog to the start at the gate to

Tatton Park. The realisation then dawned that this was not a road race but a trail on a very

muddy course with road shoes. (thank you to Wilmslow running club for that misinformation,

if you are reading this Simon Fenton!)

A narrow lane enabled somewhere approaching 1000 runners to congregate and set off at a

brisk pace into the Park and towards the lake. A couple of deer looked up to see what the

commotion was about but soon resumed their grazing. The course turned sharply back around

the lake at which point the rain started and with the wind blowing against us it soon impacted

in a sudden drop of pace. The course zig zagged through the Park, up gentle slopes and down

muddy trails, intermittently broken by gravel path, and was so cold that it wasn’t until about

8k that I began to feel warm. Eventually coming out of the park onto Tatton Road and with a

little over a mile to the finish, I felt comfortable putting in a shift without fear of losing my

footing.

The finish at Egerton Youth Club was accompanied by musicians from the Royal Northern

College of Music, and was well supported by a throng of local villagers and friends of run-

ners alike. A goodie bag from the sponsors, ‘Warburtons’ the bakers included a loaf as well

as a ceremonial medal. The weather was now pretty horrible and the thought did cross the

mind that I was glad I wasn’t running Stockport and still had another 4 miles to go.

We all agreed that it was a great event, very scenic, and well organised. Definitely one to en-

joy if you like 10ks and certainly one to do in trail shoes or spikes. The Sunday afternoon pint

of Erdinger was well deserved!

Phil

Full results available here

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Race Reviews

Hurst Green Turkey Trail Race - Sunday 18th December 2011

I C E R O A D T R U C K I N G W I T H D A V E & P A U L It was a difficult decision and very sad day, but after so many let-downs over the years, I had

finally decided to sack my long term running buddy Phil Summers. Sorry Phil, but I now

have a new man in my life, (not like that) some of you may know him as the Badgercat.

Swinton’s elite had gone on a secret running mission to Telford so my new bestest running

partner and I had decided that the Hurst Green Turkey trail 5 miler looked interesting.

Phil take note; the day before the race, Paul sent me text to check that we were still going and

on race day morning itself, another to say be careful as the road outside his house was icy. It

was just so fantastic to have some-one as keen and committed as me for a change.

The journey up to the hills near Clitheroe was interesting, firstly Pauls witty banter was much

more enjoyable than my ex running partners and as we approached the hills, the snow and ice

started to get worse. We passed a Porsche that had slid into another car at the bottom of an

icy dip and then it occurred to me that before I left, I hadn’t even checked if the race was still

on.

Paul’s navigational skills were much better than Phil’s so we found the Bayley Arms without

too much trouble and with the outside temperature at just above freezing; we bolted into the

warmth of the pub. As it turned out, this was the fastest either of us would move all day. A

bonus was it was warm and had United v QPR on the TV, a great excuse to stay inside for as

long as possible.

The first sign of trouble was when the lady at the registration desk said that the start had been

moved to the other side of the hill due the icy conditions. Clitheroe county council obviously

doesn’t bother gritting any of its roads so we slowly slid down the icy hill to the start.

I wasn’t worried about the race itself as it was only a 5 miler! Around 150 runners gathered

as the guy started to give the race instructions; “The first mile or so is very icy so be care-

ful” mmm not great. “When you are on the fell part, there are some really bad areas, if

you want to drop out just tell a marshal” slightly concerned… “There used to be a

bridge……” now very concerned.

Undeterred, Paul and I discussed tactics. Firstly if either of us broke the course record and

finished under 27 mins, we agreed to share the £100 bonus. We wouldn’t however share any

of other prizes just to maintain that competitive edge.

A guy from Salford called Andi Jones looked quite useful so the race plan was to tuck in just

behind and then use Paul’s legendary finishing burst to take him on the line.

Great tactics, but they didn’t quite go to plan as Andi had built a 20 minute lead, finished,

warmed down and had a cup of tea before Paul even kicked into second gear on the home

straight, perhaps next time eh!

The race started on an upward road that was covered in ice and snow, it was a little difficult

to get any traction especially for those “larger gents” in the field. The fancy dress Elf and

Smurf had sped off and after about a mile or so we moved onto the fell, a mixture of snow,

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ice, slush and mud where the sun had been. Sharen, this really should be the first race in

your 2012 diary as you would love it.

I was so glad that I had my trail shoes on, unfortunately Paul didn’t and was to pay the price

later…..

The initial climb was approx. 2.5 miles and the hardest work, once we started the descent

we entered a wooded section, the course here was quite hard to follow as it was really dark

and we had to jump the same brook about 4 or 5 times, one trip or missed jump could have

been very nasty.

Out of the woods, I then passed two girls who were sat on the side, one was crying. I

thought about asking if they were OK but didn’t bother. In my defence, there were plenty of

marshals on the course so I figured they would be OK. More importantly, I was ahead of

Paul so cracked on.

The pace increased on the descent at the same time as the dodgy muddy track got worse.

You just had to plough through and hope for the best and after a couple of near disasters,

the path narrowed and the finish arrived pretty much without warning.

Thanks purely to my trail shoes, I had managed to finish ahead of Paul and as I waited at the

finish line a couple of first aid marshals set off with blankets to help an injured runner. Was

it for the girls or had perhaps the Badgercat come to grief?

Just when I started to get concerned, that famous finishing sprint came into view although

he looked like he’d just emerged from the bog of doom. Apparently, he had fallen right in

front of a lady with a camcorder so of course, every possible effort is currently been made

to track down a copy. Rest assured Mr Hart is on the case.

The race had been shortened to 4.6 miles and we really didn’t care about the time as we

both said that it was really enjoyable in a strange hellrunner sort of way and deffo one for

the diary next year.

How about a team Swinton outing? There is even a fancy dress theme so can you imagine

Rudolf Squirrel chops and the children’s Xmas party girls running in those outfits!!

We didn’t hang around for the presentation as I had a date with a couple of beers and Paul

had a date with a couple of meals, all well-earned of course!

Dave W

Full results available here

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I like to race in Shropshire as it gives me a chance to catch up with friends there. The Tel-

ford 10k is a special race for me as I got my PB (41:57) there back in 2007. For various

reasons, I haven’t been able to take part in it for the last few years, but this year there was

no reason not to so I signed up.

I have been running pretty well for the last few months, enjoying a PB at Stockport 10 mile

race only last week. This week however, I suffered a little with my usual sore throat – or

‘end-of-term-itis’ as it has come to be known. Adam, Patrick and I were going down to

Telford to meet with friends on the Saturday before the race and had a hotel booked for the

night, so dropping out was never really an option. Sadly, Rebecca and Steve did have to

pull out due to illness.

Sunday morning was a bright, crisp wintery day – no complaints there; my favourite run-

ning weather. There were actually two separate races: elite (40mins and under) followed by

the masses. I watched the elite start and saw them again at the 5K mark. Wow! Some of

those guys and girls could move! Then I went back to the start to warm up and get ready for

my race. I wanted to get quite close to the start line as there were lots of runners taking part

and I remembered that the paths were fairly narrow. I got it completely wrong and ended

up bundled right in the middle of the pack, so you can imagine my frustration for the first

mile as I tried to pass people and increase my speed.

After about a mile, things calmed down a little and I was running pretty well. I enjoyed the

2-lap course of Telford Town Park. A lot of it is flat with just one slight uphill and one

slight downhill on each lap. As is to be expected, I didn’t see many familiar faces. In fact,

there was just one – Chris O’Loughlin – who told us he is returning to the club in the New

Year. It will be good to see Chris back at SRC again.

The race went reasonably well for me and I crossed the line in 42:38 by my watch. No PB

but the nearest I’ve been for a few years, so I’m happy with that. I’ve decided 10k is not

my favourite distance; I think 10 miles or half-marathons are more my cup of tea! That

said, I’ll try to return for this one next year and put myself right at the front.

Loz

Full results available here

Race Reviews

Telford 10K - Sunday 18th December 2011

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I wasn’t sure about doing a race so soon after Christmas. My preparation included the Man

United Santa Run 5k (in proper red and white Santa suit, Paul and Claire please note), the

Tatton Yule Yomp, in which I was overtaken by a Troupe (the proper collective name ac-

cording toThe Dictionary of Archaic and Provincial Words) of elves and countless other

Christmas characters and the inevitable overeating and drinking of Christmas itself.

Anyway, the day dawned – cloudy, not too cold and not too windy. We picked up Phil on

the way to Clitheroe, taking a slight detour back to Phil’s house to pick up his race number.

The drive was scenic, taking us over the moors and, disconcertingly, as we were only about

10 minutes away from the race car park, through what seemed to be cloud.

The start of the race is just by Roefield Leisure Centre and swimming pool, so there’s a

large indoor area to register/pick up timing chips/buy running gear or get refreshments.

Swinton, as usual, had a good turn out – ten runners in total. The race had been promoted as

a fast course and incorporated the 2011 Northern Athletics 10K Road Championships (won

by Altrincham (men) and Blackburn (women)). Participants were mainly club runners and

there were 898 finishers, including eight who came in under 30 minutes, one of whom was

Alistair Brownlee, triathlon hope for London 2012 (who ran a PB). The winner was Jonny

Mellor in 29 mins 10secs with the first woman - Katrina Wootton of Bedford & County -

home in 33.58.

Emma and Rebecca had been on a recce to check out the last bit of the course and had dis-

covered that there was a hill almost at the end. They had also discovered the secret women’s

toilet – thanks both.

We gathered at the start line and then spent quite a few minutes shuffling backwards, pre-

sumably to allow the elite runners (who had an area at the front cordoned off for them) to

get into place. Then, no speeches, just a peep and we were off. The course is traffic free

and wide all the way round, so there were no bottle necks, even at the beginning. I would

describe it as nicely undulating – great for downhill recovery after uphill effort – and great

expansive rural views all the way round.

Apart from the odd nauseous interlude, brought on by too much rich food I suspect, I felt

good and tried to maintain a steady pace. There’s a section of the course – probably a cou-

ple of hundred meters or so – where you double back on yourself and so can see people in

front and behind providing the opportunity of gasping out an encouraging word or wave to

the other Swinton runners (in my case, mostly ahead of me).

There are kilometre markers all the way round plus, right at the end, you cross the river and

then see a 400m to go sign which I thought was a great help – just one lap of the track to

sprint. Being a bit of a plodder, I was delighted with my time, knocking almost 2½ minutes

off my PB. So maybe there’s something to be said for another helping of Christmas pud….

Thanks to Blackburn Harriers & Athletic Club for a well-organised event, great running by

all Swinton runners and well done to Emma and Andy for their PBs.

Paulette

Full results available here

Race Reviews

Ribble 10K - Tuesday 27th December 2011

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S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Three weeks ago I decided to run the Preston 10 mile race along with Mike and Paul. It

ticked the long run box and was good preparation for the Wesham 10k a week later. It was

quite a chilly day but my warm up consisted of a small jog to the start line and then stand-

ing still until the start (not good).

I wanted to start strong and try to maintain it through the race. Mike had gone past me at the

1 mile mark and I had spent the next 4 miles watching Mike’s back getting further away. I

stuck to my own pace and was happy to go through the 5 mile mark just a little out of my

target time. So with Emma shouting encouragement, I pushed on and was then going past a

steady stream of runners which felt good. At mile 7 I felt what I thought was cramp in both

my calves. No problem I thought as I have often cramped in runs and ran through it. The

pain in my right leg just kept getting worse with every stride. My pace began to drop and

runners started to go past me. I struggled on and reached the 9 mile mark where I dug in and

picked my pace up until the finish.

I limped up to Mike and Emma to wait for Paul (who was also running in some pain). I

thought nothing of it but as the days ticked past I realised that maybe it was more than a

mild strain.

Usually after a week of no running I am back on the roads again but not this time. Mike and

Emma had both told me that they had been to see Maria Lowe who treats sports specific

injuries. So I decided to book an appointment and went to see if she could find out what the

problem was. It did not take her long to diagnose a calf tear in the centre

of my right calf. Treatment soon followed, firstly with manipulation which culminated with

Maria applying her elbow right in the middle of my damaged calf, and then putting her full

body weight behind it. “OH MY GOD!” I screamed to myself as beads of sweat tricked

down my forehead. Good job I was on my front and Maria could not see the tears of pain

welling up in my eyes as she continued to work on my leg. “I must warm up! I must warm

up!” I told myself over and over again like a mantra. Acupuncture and ultrasound followed

(much less painful), then she gave me some exercises and stretches to do plus lots of advice.

A second visit to Maria followed where she quickly pinpointed my sore overworked mus-

cles around the tear and dually applied the elbow of terror on them. But Maria knows her

stuff and things are now improving. Wesham, Wythenshawe XC and Stockport 10 all

missed along with track, hills and training runs. But with cross training, treatment and rest I

can see things are on the right track.

It’s the longest time I have been of due to injury and although warming up

doesn’t guarantee I won’t get injured again, I think I will be warming up

properly in the future.

Hope all you injured runners out there mend quickly with a special mention to

Sharen and Kate who both must be climbing the walls by now.

Now for some light reading: a few facts I have dredged up about calf strains.

Calf Strain - A Common Sports Injury

P A G E 1 8

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

W H A T H A P P E N S T O T H E M U S C L E W H E N Y O U E X P E R I E N C E A C A L F S T R A I N ?

A calf strain is an injury to the gastrocnemius muscle -- a "muscle strain." When a muscle is

strained, the muscle is stretched too far. Less severe strains pull the muscle beyond its nor-

mal excursion. More severe strains tear the muscle fibers and can even cause a complete

tear of the muscle. Most commonly, calf strains are minor tears of some muscle fibers, but

the bulk of the muscle tissue remains intact.

W H A T A R E T H E S Y M P T O M S O F A C A L F S T R A I N ?

An acute calf strain can be quite painful, depending on the severity of the injury. Calf strains are usu-

ally graded as follows:

Grade I Calf Strain:

Mild discomfort, often minimal disability. Usually minimal or no limits to activity.

Grade II Calf Strain:

Moderate discomfort with walking, and limited ability to perform activities, such as

running and jumping; may have swelling and bruising associated.

Grade III Calf Strain:

Severe injury that can cause inability to walk. Often patients complain of muscle

spasm, swelling and significant bruising.

Calf strains are most common in men between the ages of 30 and 50. Typically, individuals

who sustain a calf strain notice a sudden, sharp pain in the back of the leg. The most com-

mon muscle to injure when a calf strain occurs is the medial gastrocnemius. This muscle is

on the inner side of the back of the leg. The injury usually occurs just above the midpoint of

the leg (between the knee and ankle). This area of the calf becomes tender and swollen

when a muscle strain occurs.

W H A T I S T H E T R E A T M E N T F O R A C A L F S T R A I N ?

Treatment of a calf strain is usually guided by the severity of the injury. Resting a pulled

calf muscle is the key to successful treatment. As a general rule of thumb, if you have a calf

strain, you can do activities that don't aggravate your injury. You should rest until you are

pain free to allow the injured muscle to heal. Resting inadequately may prolong your recov-

ery.

The following are the common treatments used for calf strains:

Rest

It is important to rest following the injury to allow the injured muscle to properly

heal. Allow pain to guide your level of activity; this means that activities that cause

symptoms should be avoided.

Stretching

Gentle stretching is helpful, but it should not be painful. Stretching excessively can

be harmful and slow the healing process. There are some simple calf stretches that

can help you along your rehab.

Ice the Injury

Apply ice to the injured area in the acute phase (first 48 hours after injury) and then

after activities. Ice will help calm the inflammatory response and stimulate blood

flow to the area.

P A G E 1 9

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Heat Applications

Before activities, gentle heating can help loosen the muscle. Apply a heat pack to

the calf prior to stretching or exercising. As a general rule of thumb, remember to

heat the area before and ice after; learn to know when to ice and when to heat an

injury.

Anti-inflammatory Medications

Oral anti-inflammatory medications (such as Ibuprofen, Aleve or Motrin) can help

relieve symptoms of pain and also calm the inflammation.

Physical Therapy

Physical therapists can be helpful in guiding treatment that may speed your recov-

ery. Some people find modalities, such as ultrasound, therapeutic massage and

specific exercises, particularly helpful. You should see your physician to deter-

mine if these would be appropriate for your condition.

H O W L O N G W I L L A C A L F S T R A I N T A K E T O H E A L ?

The length of time needed for healing a calf strain depends on the severity of the injury. A

typical grade I calf strain will heal in 7 to 10 days, a grade II injury within about 4 to 6

weeks, and a grade III calf strain within about 3 months. The most common injury is a

grade II calf strain that takes about 6 weeks for complete healing.

Ads.

P A G E 2 0

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

I would like to thank everyone involved in organising and helping with this fabulous event.

Firstly, thanks to Steve, Ads and Emma for their help and support with the organisation. A

big mention for Sharen, Rebecca and Paul VC for being game enough to dress up and help.

Thanks also to the Cricket Club for use of the room and for organising the bar for us.

This event wouldn’t be the same without ‘Magic Mark’ who will be invited back for many

years to come. He was superb again. I’m sure all the children enjoyed the party; they cer-

tainly seemed to! They were very nicely behaved and got on extremely well with one anoth-

er – lots of credit to them.

Lastly, thanks to all who throughout the year have bought pies, donated to the football

cards, given donations for mugs etc. These funds meant we could afford Magic Mark and

didn’t need to ask the parents to contribute to the cost of the party.

Hope you have all had a Happy Christmas and wishing you a peaceful and healthy 2012.

Loz x

Childrens Christmas Party - Sunday 11th December 2011

P A G E 2 1 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

C H I L D R E N S C H R I S T M A S P A R T Y - S U N D A Y 1 1 T H D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

P A G E 2 2 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

C H I L D R E N S C H R I S T M A S P A R T Y - S U N D A Y 1 1 T H D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

P A G E 2 3 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

C H I L D R E N S C H R I S T M A S P A R T Y - S U N D A Y 1 1 T H D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

P A G E 2 4 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

C H I L D R E N S C H R I S T M A S P A R T Y - S U N D A Y 1 1 T H D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

P A G E 2 5 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Up and Coming Races

P A G E 2 6 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

Heaton Park - Park Run Every Saturday at 9am this 5km run is organised - free!!. All you have to do is let them know you're coming in advance.

It has been suggested that it could become a Swinton regular event on the first Saturday of each month. Web page link

Lucozade Sport have a van at the run every 4 to 5 weeks, giving away lots of freebies and advice.

Race Calendar Web Sites

Look for all those local and not so local races on

these web sites

Swinton RC Forum

Fetch

John Schofield

SoftSport

The wonderful Fetch does it all (running log, routes, race log,

leagues, logs shoe miles, blogs, fetchmail & more!!) its a great

place full of nice running types, a proper online community, its the

place to see and be seen, AND its free!! King Fetch (Ian) is very

good at responding to member requests about new site content and

there are now a total of 13 Swinton Members using the site! Fetch

(in my opinion Fetch has the Class!).

Andrew

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Training for a Marathon in April or May then try

Inskip Derby Arms Half Marathon

Sunday 22nd January at 10:30am

Sunday 5th February

Blackburn “Winter Warmer” 10K

Dewsbury 10K

The Asics Alsager 5

Saturday 11th February

ManchesterArea Clayton Vale XC

Sunday 12th February

Mad Dog Seaside 10K Southport

Saturday 18th February

Standish Hall Trail Race

Sunday 19th February

Central Lancashire 5K (CLGP)

17th Village Bakery Half Marathon

Saturday 26th February

23rd Great North West Half Marathon

Terry Nortley 10 Mile Trail Race - Radcliffe

Lostock 6

Please confirm any dates before entering, just in case of any typos

Monday 2nd January

3rd Central Lancashire New Year Half Marathon

Sunday 8th January

Belle Vue - Hit the Trail

Sunday 8th January

Garstang 10K

Sunday 15th January

ManchesterArea Woodbank Park XC

Sunday 22nd January

Inskip Derby Arms Half Marathon

Saturday 28th January

Northern Cross Country Championships - Pontefract

Sunday 29th January

Chernobyl 10K

Sunday 29th January

Meltham 10K

P A G E 2 7

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Race Series

Central Lancashire Grand Prix Series 2012

Date Race

Sunday, 19th February Central Lancashire 5K

Sunday, 5th March The Trotters 5

Sunday, 15th April Radcliffe 10km

Wednesday, 16th May Horwich 5

Wednesday, 13th June Three Sisters 5K Trail Race

Wednesday, 1th August Chorley 4.4 Trail

Sunday, 12th August NVAC 10km at Bisham

Sunday 9th September Pennington Flash 5Mile Trail Race

Sunday, 30th September 2nd Swinton 10 Mile Road Race

Sunday, 7th October Gin Pit 5

This years Central Lancashire Grand Prix races are fast approaching, with new races and

another one new club Leigh Harriers.

The website is http://centrallancsgrandprix.blogspot.com although a new catchier address

and site are coming soon. There will be a results service around the site and each club is

expected to provide race reviews of its own races at least. Other contributions will be

gratefully accepted by Gary Stevens.

The first CLGP race is hosted by Bolton Harriers. The Central Lancashire 5K is on Sun-

day, 19th February, based at Leverhulme Park, Long Lane, Bolton.

USEFUL CLGP LINKS

Central Lancashire Grand Prix Web Site

Swinton Running Club Website

UK Results ( on-line entries )

SportSoft ( on-line entries )

http://www.ukforms.net/onlineforms/php/Applicant.php?EventID=1309

P A G E 2 9

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Race Series

Manchester Area XC Series

The cross country season is almost upon us, it’s time to clean both the mud and the

rust off those spikes.

The series consists of 5 Cross Country races in and around the Greater Manchester area.

Woodbank Park

Turncroft Lane

Offerton

Stockport

SK1 4JR

Date Race

Saturday, 22nd October 2011 Heaton Park, Manchester

Sunday, 13th November 2011 Sherdley Park, St. Helens

Saturday, 3rd December 2011 Wythenshawe Park, Manchester

Sunday, 15th January 2012 Woodbank Park, Stockport

Saturday, 11th February 2012 Clayton Vale, Manchester

Next manchesterarea XC Match

15rh January 2012

Woodbank Park, Stockport

P A G E 3 0 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

C L U B C R O S S C O U N T R Y C H A M P I O N S H I P 2 0 1 1 / 2 0 1 2

C R O S S C O U N T R Y C L U B C H A M P I O N S H I P

The club also as a Club Championship for Cross Country based on the ManchesterArea Cross Country

League.

The championship will be the best of 3 race results from the 5 races in the league.

Scoring is done the same has in the Central Lancashire Grand Prix, 1 point for first, 2 points for second,

3 points for third etc.

The leading Lady and Man will received the trophy at the end of the season.

If you find any mistakes in the scoring or the results please let me know.

Cross Country Championship 2011/2012 Results to date

Lauren has already wrapped up the Ladies prize, but in the Mens it still quite open

P A G E 3 1 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

P R O V I S I O N A L M E N S C L U B C H A M P I O N S H I P 2 0 1 1 R E S U L T S

P A G E 3 2 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

P R O V I S I O N A L L A D I E S C L U B C H A M P I O N S H I P 2 0 1 1 R E S U L T S

P A G E 3 3 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Committee Meetings Regular meetings are now being held on the second Wednesday of every month at the club after pack runs. Notes

from the October meeting below. The minutes for November will be approved at the December meeting and appear

in that months Newsletter.

Remember any member may sit in the meeting.

P A G E 3 4 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Social Events

P A G E 3 5 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Pie Night - Last Wednesday of the Month

Special Discount Rate for Swinton Running Club Members

The usual price per session is £35, SRC members, on production of a current English Athletics

card, will only pay £25.

This offer is available at both the Leigh Road and Prestwich clinics. Anyone who wants to access

the service but does not yet have their card can contact Barbara who will contact the clinic on

their behalf.

Please check there website for more details

Special Offer’s to Members

Special Discount Rate for Swinton Running Club Members

To match the offer made by both Prestwich and Leigh Road Physiotherapy Clinics, our very own

Shirley Duckworth-Oates has lowered her rates.

Shirley Duckworth-Oates MBCA, MSTAT, MATI Bsc Hons(Healthcare);Bsc Hons (Chiro); Msc.(Psych) Doctor of Chiropractic and Teacher of the Alexander Technique

Telephone 0161 773 3395

Treatment rate for Swinton Running Club members: £25 (normally £35)

Last Wednesday of every month

Pie Night

Next one 25th January 2012

P A G E 3 6 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Social Events

Starlight Express is showing at the Lowry Theatre from 19th June until 30th June 2012.

Rebecca and I are definitely going to go and see it. If anyone else is interested in joining us,

please let me know by 7th January and tell me any dates you can't go on.

Loz

You can catch Lauren either at the club or email her at laurenmarsden@hotmail.com

Further detail available on the Lowry website

http://www.thelowry.com/event/starlight-express

Race Results Corner

P A G E 3 7 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 2

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B

Full race results can now be found on both the Swinton Running Club Website and the forum

If you have ran a race and cannot find the details on either site please let me know.

Secretary

Steve Doxey

Treasurer

Ian Thomas

Membership Secretary

Barbara Bayliss

Social Secretary

Jonathan Mellor

Club Captain

Steve Doxey

Ladies Captain

Rebecca Mills

Web Site & Forums

Steve Hart

Swinton Running Club is proud of its friendliness and welcomes newcomers to come down and meet us for a run, to see if we meet your expectations.

We meet at 7:30pm on Mondays and Wednesday at Swinton Moorside Cricket Club.

The club can provide you with the opportunity to train and compete at whatever level you choose. We are affiliated with England Athletics for Road, Fell and Cross Country

running. We have members from fun runners up to International level - all enjoying taking part in a sport that provides the chance for everyone to find the event that suits

them best. We regularly compete in local races at all age and ability lev-

els. Some members just come down to the club to run and don't want to enter races,

but prefer to train with like minded people and enjoy the social side of being with a club.

Website

Forums

If you have any race reports, photos, announcements or any news that would be of inter-

est to the others members please let just know.

Lauren

We hope that you enjoy this occasional newsletter. If you are sick of it clogging up your in

box, let me know and I will take you off the circulation list.

Steve

S W I N T O N R U N N I N G C L U B