Westbury Harriers Weekly News
It’s been another busy week for Westbury Harriers, including the Gwent League finale at Brecon today. Well done to everyone who ran, so glad the weather was better than the legendary storm we had at Brecon a few years ago!
RACE REPORTS
Ironwood Challenge 23rd February 2025
by Paul Stuart
“Get ready to take six(ish) miles of stunning off-road trails through ancient woodland, fields and forests above Long Ashton. Expect rugged terrain and natural beauty – off road shoes are highly recommended.”
I don’t think the word ‘rugged’ tells the full story!
There was a good turn-out from Westbury Harriers given it was the day after the English National Cross-Country Championships and the weather forecast was a yellow warning – high winds and rain. The course started with a steep climb up an ever muddier and narrower track, ending with a sharp slope (cliff?) only possible with the help of the ropes provided! The route really was stunning; up and over fields with great views, along tracks, through woodland, and some very steep and slippery ‘rugged’ downhills. Shortly before reaching the end, one more steep up, and then a decent to the finish helped along the way by a blast of ‘The Final Countdown’.
Thoroughly enjoyable, especially once we got back to base and were welcomed with a hot drink and an astonishingly amazing array of delicious homemade cakes. Worth taking part for these alone!
Full results: 3 Iain Large (SM), 12 Alex Smith (SM), 17 Ian Gawinsowski (MV40), 28 Robyn Ellis (2nd female, 1st FV40), 35 Sophie Voller (FV40), 37 Hannah Large (SF), 42 Paul Stuart (3rd MV50), 60 Olivia Zeltner (SF), 61 Yvette Casallas (FV40), 70 Rebecca Williams (SF), 77 Rosanna Daly (SF), 88 Kate Hoffen (2nd FV50), 107 Heidi Andrews (FV50), 108 Mark Munday (MV50), 126 Sue Marshall-Smith (FV40), 127 Alison White (FV50), 170 Tim Carr (MV50), 171 Heather Griffin (FV40). Please post if I missed anyone or got your time etc wrong.
Congratulations to everyone on a tough run through the mud in wet and blustery conditions!
Please see here for some great pictures!
Greenman Ultra 45 miles (but it’s always 46!) By Heather Griffin
As a runner who’s never been fast I do enjoy the longer runs, and GMU is a firm Bristol favourite. This year I was the 12 hour timelord, which means rallying in the rest of the pack at the back, anyone coming in behind me doesn’t get a medal, so my rule was very much no one gets left behind!
This year I ran the bulk of the day with club mate Carol Fee, who after several attempts made it under the cut off (super proud of her) but this does mean she’ll need to return to do the reverse loop in the summer to achieve a buckle!
It was a glorious day, and everyone’s spirits stayed high throughout, the views were stunning and the company was great. Who could ask for more, of course I might not manage another run until next parkrun day!
CLUB NEWS
Severn Bridge Twilight Race, Thursday 10 April, 7.30pm
Entries are full for this cool looking event, but Wendy Tippett has a place to give away. A measured 5 mile route on the Severn Bridge timed to get a sunset view over the estuary, with the usual ‘underpass’ atmosphere and free cakes and drinks as usual. This is the 3rd Severn Bridge Night race of the season. If you’re interested, send Wendy a message, and she will pass on the details.
NEW CLUB TREASURER NEEDED.
The club urgently needs a club treasurer, its a role we cannot do without. The role involves looking after the Westbury Harriers bank account , paying expenses and invoices and reporting on the clubs finances.
If this is something you could do then please get in touch.
Treasurer@westburyharriers.co.uk
THE MIDLAND 6 (ladies) AND 12 (men) STAGE ROAD RELAYS, SATURDAY 29th MARCH 2025, SUTTON PARK, COLDFIELD
Men’s race – midday 12 legs
Book on via RunTogether: https://groups.runtogether.co.uk/WestburyHarriersRunningClub/BookClass/93703bcf-a928-4079-a6df-afa15667e54c
Ladies race 12.10pm 6 legs
Book on via RunTogether: https://groups.runtogether.co.uk/WestburyHarriersRunningClub/BookClass/db3623cb-80ae-4075-b7ba-eda12f0abd67
Each leg is 3.16 miles. No long legs this year! 🙂 Which should make for a very exciting race.
The road relays is always a great day and it is fun being part of a relay team. All welcome to compete. The club pays the entry fees and contributes towards travel costs. Please get signed up as soon as you know you are available. Sorting teams is always a challenge, especially 12 in a team! If anyone is happy to be a reserve this is always useful to know.
ANNUAL BRISTOL RUNNING SHOW, SUNDAY 23 MARCH 2025, 9-3pm (VOLUNTEERS NEEDED)
This year’s show will again be at the BAWA club on Southmead Road. This is a great event where you’ll get to meet a range of running clubs, race organisers, sports specialists and other local businesses. If you haven’t been before, it’s worth the visit!
I will be there at the Up & Running stand, and looking to team up with a few brands to join us and host footwear try-ons.
Westbury Harriers will have a stand and we are looking for volunteers to help us cover it throughout the day.
In previous years we have have a lovely mix of helpers from those who have been involved with the club for many years to those who have more recently joined. This really is something everyone can help with. It would also be great to have some people from the Junior section of the club this year too.
The show is open from 9:00am until 3:00pm. Mark will be drafting a rota dividing the day into 3 or 4 sessions.
Please email Mark if you would like to help.
SAVE THE DATE
Club AGM, Thursday 24th April, 6:30pm (Buffet provided. No club training)
SAVE THE DATE – Westbury Harriers Awards Night, Sunday 23rd March. Details to follows soon.
HAVE YOU SIGNED UP – BLAISE BLAZER ENTRIES OPEN
Entries are now open for this year’s Blaise Blazer on Monday 2nd June! Entry only £8/£10. Scenic/hilly 4 mile course through Blaise Estate. Friendly event, all abilities are welcome. Plenty of individual, team & spot prizes and lots of free cake after. https://race-nation.co.uk/…/westbury…/blaise-blazer-2025
CLUB ULTRA LIGHT PERFORMANCE VESTS
A few members of the club are looking at getting a high quality running vest made in Westbury Harriers colours. These are very lightweight and seamless vests. You may have seen some other running clubs at the Gwent League with these sort of vests (Pontypool – black and white) for example. They come in men’s and women’s fit and are made by Ronhill (our existing vest supplier). Dan Summers has obtained a couple of samples and will try to get down to club nights to show anyone that is interested. If you are interested and want to see the vests send Dan a message on 07776130707. They will costs between £50 and £75 depending on the size of the order we make. Please note, the club is not planning to hold any stock of these, each time we want to order some we will need to order them directly from Ronhill and will be subject to the same price structure based on the order size. Any questions please contact Dan by text message. We are aiming to put the order in with Ronhill by 31 March 2025 so if you are interested please make sure you contact Dan before then.
THIS WEEK’S TRAINING
MONDAY Tempo Run
Group runs from Coombe Dingle at 6.30pm. These are perfect sessions for a Tempo pace run. Equally there are plenty of groups available if you want a recovery or social run. Book via RunTogether. There is also a Wellbeing run at 7:15pm. Bring running lights and reflective clothing if you have them.
TUESDAY – TRACK:
Track session at Yate 7pm – Seniors book on via RunTogether.
WEDNESDAY – HILL SESSION:
Adults, all abilities. Meet every Wednesday at 12pm at the traffic lights by Saville Road on the Downs. Book on via RunTogether. Coffee in the Downs Café at 1pm for anyone that wants to come along.
THURSDAY – Interval Session
4x 3 mins (1 min recovery) @ 5-10k effort
4x 90 secs (1 min recovery) @ 5k effort
4 x 45 secs (1 min recovery) @ quicker than 5k effort
Bring running lights and reflective clothing if you have them.
Ask The Coach : Why Should Runners Vary Pacing for Different Types of Workouts?
Distribution of Impact Forces
Rightly so, the concept of varying impact force distribution has been getting more attention lately. For example, this appears to be a major factor behind the benefits we can get from rotating shoes of different types/designs from day to day. Similarly, when you vary your pace from one workout to the next you vary how forces are applied to the body and may thus reduce the likelihood of suffering a repetitive overuse injury. The keys here are the subtle differences in stride length and stride rate that naturally occur at different paces (both rate and length of stride tend to increase with faster pace). These little differences create different impact angles, and therefore different shock absorption profiles in your body. Over a lot of strides through a lot of runs, this can mean the difference between being healthy or dealing with one of the classic running injuries like IT Band Syndrome, Achilles Tendinitis, or Runner’s Knee. So, pace variation can be an important part of injury prevention.
Energy System Training
We have multiple pathways to deliver energy to our muscles, and they are largely regulated by effort. Most easily measured in terms of heart rate, we’re relying on very different sources of energy when running a very easy effort (aerobic) versus running a very hard effort (anaerobic). And, this isn’t just a “one or the other” scenario, as we’re always using a blend of both aerobic and anaerobic energy when we run. The more we train a particular energy system, the more efficient it becomes. When we train across the entire spectrum of effort, we build a much better engine for future running and racing. This allows us to be able to change gears in races, finish them strong, and run for longer distances. So, pace variation is also a part of speed and endurance development.
Adaptation
For people who have become serious about running, taking each day too hard is a more common problem than taking each day too easy. This is an easy trap to fall into; at first, pushing it on a daily basis leads to a lot of improvement. The problem arises when, inevitably, all of the hard training catches up with the runner and they find they are either unable to run as fast as they recently had been, or they succumb to an injury. Seasoned runners have learned (maybe the hard way) that adaptation must always be considered and respected. It’s really true: You don’t actually get faster when running faster, you get faster when your body has a chance to adapt and compensate for the training you’ve completed. This is why recovery runs are important – mixing in slower runs after hard workouts allows the body to recover and adapt to hard training without breaking down. So, in summary, pace variation from workout to workout plays an important role in allowing the body to adapt over time.
(Taken from:Ask Coach Caleb: Why Should Runners Vary Pacing for Different Types of Workouts?)
UPCOMING RACES / EVENTS
A reminder that we have an events calendar on our website where you can keep track of dates for training, events and races. (Thanks, Vicky, for keeping this updated). https://westburyharriers.co.uk/events/events-calendar/
Club Championship info and rules on this link: https://westburyharriers.co.uk/events/club-championship/
Sunday 6th April: The Big Cheese race. 15-mile fell race in Cheddar. https://www.cheddarrunningclub.co.uk/big-cheese
Sunday 13th April: The Frenchay 10km. https://race-nation.co.uk/register/frenchay-10k/frenchay-10k-2025
Sunday 26th April: Butcombe Ultra (50km and 50mile option). https://butcombetrailultra.com/
Sunday 11th May: The Bristol 10km and half marathon.
If there are any races or interesting events that you think should be added, please email: communication@westburyharriers.co.uk
Editor: Sophie Voller
