WAKEFIELD DISTANCE RUNNING LEAGUE
NEWSLETTER 26th October 2011
Ron Needham 01924 829495 email: rodillianrunners@yahoo.co.uk
Celestial Applause for Runners?
Foreboding flashes of sheet lightening lit up the sky in Carlton last night as 13 runners started the second event of our 14th league “season.” Five minutes into the run a huge flash of lightening and crash of thunder heralded a downpour that had most competitors, having come prepared for a mild evening, shivering with cold (and possibly terror since the Unicorn pub was very spookily decorated for Halloween). Further crashes celebrated former champion Steve Tibbs’ return to league activity (after more than a couple of years’ absence) with a clear win in 18-24 over the 3 miles course, some 36 seconds ahead of second place Tony White. In the ladies’ event, Denise Tibbs, also a former champion, also made a welcome return but couldn’t outpace a very much in-form Clare Peckett, who completed in 24-19.
Injuries and illness to a number of regulars, as well as our usual autumn dip kept down the numbers turning out . What was very pleasing was welcoming Steve and Denise after a fairly long absence - it’s a great feature of the league that former stalwarts are able to drop in for a run when they are able and are made to feel very welcome by everyone when they do. On the other side of the coin, we also continue to make newcomers very welcome (newcomer Yvonne Raynor made her first run last night, completing in 29-19; we hope she enjoyed the experience and will have a long and pleasant association with the league).
In the leagues, Clare’s win makes her a clear early leader, with a 7 point lead in the ladies’ table, but things are much tighter in the men’s with Tony and John now sharing the top spot, with Steven Pilling only 3 points adrift in third.
A good night was had at the Unicorn. As always, we were made very welcome and the Halloween decor and beer both were good. We’ve been back there several times over the years and will be back again in the future, always assuming it doesn’t suffer the usual curse of one of our pub venues (and we sincerely hope it doesn’t, good quiet, welcoming pubs are hard to find these days).
Vets
As reported in previous newsletters, instead of having a separate Vets’ table this year, the O35 (male or female) with the most points in their general table will take the O35 prize, and the same for the O50 prize. Note there is only ONE prize per age group, won by whichever athlete, whether a man or woman, has most points. This means Vets’ points will no longer be awarded on the basis of where you finish in relationship to other Vets in your gender group and there will be no separate Vet’s table produced. As previously, the rule will be one prize per athlete, so if the winner of the men’s prize is a Vet 35, he can’t also win the Vets’ 35 prize, and it would default to the next Vet 35, etc. Also, if the first Vet is, say, 55, he/she will take the Vet 35 prize and the Vets’ 50 prize will default to the next O50, etc.. The date for counting as a Vet is age on1st September 2011 (so if you are 40 on 2nd September, you will have to wait till next year). I’ll need to know your age on 1st September, so please don’t be put out when I ask you your age when you enter for the first time in the year. To fund the extra prizes, the entry fee will be £2.50 (which surely must still be a bargain).
Next Events
The next event will be on Tuesday 22nd November and will be a relay format, based at the College Inn, Northgate, Wakefield. We’re trying to hold a relay at least every second event. The idea being to give runners who don’t normally have a good chance of being with the leaders the opportunity of taking a prize home, and encouraging people to get to know each other a little better (relays are also good fun). Entry will be £2.50 each runner, start time is 7-30 but please arrive as early as possible (or let me know in advance that you’ll definitely be coming) so I can sort out teams.
Future events will, for the time being at least, be held on Tuesdays. Start time will remain at 7-25/7-30. Please note that the third Tuesday of the month is NOT the “norm” (it just happens that the first three events this year have fallen like that).
Results of second meeting
| Ladies | ||
| 1 | Clare Peckett | 24-19 |
| 2 | Denise Tibbs | 25-04 |
| 3 | Sharon Richman | 27-32 |
| 4 | Sue Needham | 27-59 |
| 5 | Yvonne Raynor | 29-19 |
| Men | ||
| 1 | Steve Tibbs | 18-24 |
| 2 | Tony White | 19-00 |
| 3 | John McCarthy | 19-17 |
| 4 | Steven Pilling | 20-09 |
| 5 | Dan Limb | 20-55 |
| 6 | Richard Mann | 21-56 |
| 7 | David Shaw | 25-28 |
| 8 | Darren Duckworth | 26-39 |
Tables
LADIES’ LEAGUE TABLE
| 1 | Clare Peckett (V35) | 20 |
| 2 | Sue Needham (V50) | 13 |
| 3= | Emma Hawthorne (V35) | 09 |
| 3= | Denise Tibbs (V35) | 09 |
| 5 | Charlotte Sommerville (V35) | 08 |
| 6 | Sharon Richman (V35) | 07 |
| 7 | Alice Froggett | 06 |
| 8 | Yvonne Raynor (V35) | 05 |
MEN’S LEAGUE TABLE
| 1= | John McCarthy V50) | 18 |
| 1= | Tony White (V35) | 18 |
| 3 | Steven Pilling (V35) | 15 |
| 4 | Dan Limb | 13 |
| 5 | Richard Mann (V50) | 11 |
| 6 | Steve Tibbs (V35) | 10 |
| 7 | Darren Duckworth | 06 |
| 8 | Adam Mills | 05 |
| 9= | Gerard Coyle (V35) | 04 |
| 9= | David Shaw (V50) | 04 |
Rodillian Runners and the Distance League
Rodillian Runners is a running club affiliated to NoEAA and UK Athletics. Our headquarters are Stanley Rodillian Rugby Club and we meet there on Tuesday nights for training runs. Most everyone is very welcome to run with us on a Tuesday night but we have to be aware that we are using the rugby club premises and facilities and to be fair to our hosts. For that reason, we ask that all who use the facility on Tuesday training nights either join us as first or second claim members (which in effect means joining the rugby club and gaining all the benefits of membership) or pay a £1-50 per session training fee (this is still 50p cheaper than other clubs in the area). First or second claim membership costs £32 per year. For this, members get full membership of the rugby club and are able to use the facilities free and also to book the clubhouse for private parties for free. First claim members are also able to vote at Rodillian Runners’ meetings and to compete in open events under the banner of “Rodillian Runners.” First and second claim members will also be able to have other advantages such as making use of club places in the London Marathon.
