Some very varied racing occurred this weekend! British Fell running relays yesterday and York 10 mile or the Marathon today! Amazing performances by absolutely everyone. Special thanks to Fell Running Phil for organising the relays. It takes quite a lot of work to make sure 18 Nidders get to a remote location in Tebay to run up and down some very very steep hills. No, we weren’t at the service station.

Thanks to everyone who turned up for the Guy Fawkes recce too. There is another one next weekend. 10 am from Ripley Car park again.

If you’ve not had enough of racing, it’s the York Even Splits 5km this Friday evening and it’s another one in the road champs. I’m pretty sure it’s not too late to enter via the even splits website. Someone please correct me if I’m wrong. Then there is another fell race on Sunday called Lockton Limping. It’s full though, so too late to enter if you weren’t quick enough. Anyone got a spare place? I wasn’t quick enough!!!!

On to Tuesday and Thursday club runs. By popular request I’m suggesting different routes this week….sorry about that! So how about these:

Tuesday: https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3451303/NVRR-Route-8-Mallinson

Thursday: https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3451602/NVRR-Route-10-Pannal

Suggested pace groups as follows:
8-9mins per mile
9-10mins per mile
10-11mins per mile
11-12 mins per mile
Run walk

That’s all for now folks, until next week,

Emma

Hey ho everyone,

Another big well done this week to anyone who has been racing at Manchester Marathon, Richmond 10km or anywhere else. Coming up next weekend we have two very exciting and contrasting events in the Club champs. Saturday is the Fell Relays. I think it could be hilly. Then Sunday is the York 10 miler which is the second goal race in the road champs. Good luck to everyone racing in these events and good luck as well to anyone doing the York Marathon!

If you’re not racing next weekend, please do join in with the Guy Fawkes 10 recce on Sunday, 10 am kick off from Ripley car park. Steady away social pace. All welcome as ever.

During the week we have Tuesday and Thursday club runs as usual. Meet at the club 6:45 ish ready to run at 7 pm, use the car park on the right as you drive into the school, and remember your hi viz! Oh, and have fun!

Tuesdays route will be Cold Bath Road:

Over iron bridge, turn left, Woodfield Road, Skipton Road, Kings Road, Cold Bath Road, Pannal Ash Road, Green Lane, M&S, St Aidans, Slingsby Walk, Claro Road. To cut short, after Cold Bath Road, go left on Otley Road, York Place, Claro Road.

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3450928/NVRR-Route-5-Cold-Bath-Road

and Thursday’s will be Duchy:

Claro Road, Skipton Road, Kings Road, Coppice Drive or Springfield Road to Ripon Road, Duchy Road, Cornwall Road, Harlow Moor Road, Otley Road, York Place, Claro Road.

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3450996/NVRR-Route-6-Duchy-Road

With suggested paced groups as follows:

Here are the pacing groups:
8-9mins per mile
9-10mins per mile
10-11mins per mile
11-12 mins per mile
Run walk

I think that is all there is to tell you about the week ahead so take care and see you all soon,

Emma

So much has been going on AGAIN this weekend! Parkrun and Grewelthorpe in the Champs and of course people doing virtual and actual London Marathon, and even an ultra marathon! Epic achievements all round.

The week ahead is looking good too:

On Tuesday and Thursday we have club run at 6:45 for a 7 pm start as usual. Don’t forget your Hi Viz. The route on Tuesday will be Cold Bath Road 6.84 miles ish https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3450928/NVRR-Route-5-Cold-Bath-Road Over iron bridge, turn left, Woodfield Road, Skipton Road, Kings Road, Cold Bath Road, Pannal Ash Road, Green Lane, M&S, St Aidans, Slingsby Walk, Claro Road. To cut short, after Cold Bath Road, go left on Otley Road, York Place, Claro Road.

The first Thursday in the month is the evening when we welcome any new members wishing to try us out. So if there are any runners you know looking for a club to join, do bring them along! There will be paced groups as always and no one will be left behind, but please make sure you look after anyone you bring along. The route will be the Duchy route which is less than 6 miles. So a good one for a try out with the club. https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3450996/NVRR-Route-6-Duchy-Road Claro Road, Skipton Road, Kings Road, Coppice Drive or Springfield Road to Ripon Road, Duchy Road, Cornwall Road, Harlow Moor Road, Otley Road, York Place, Claro Road.

It would be amazing to see some new faces leading groups on club nights. No qualifications needed. Shout up or volunteer on the night if you’re interested.

At the weekend is Richmond 10km which is another in the road championships. Good luck if you’re doing that! It’s not flat but it’s a great race.

Captains Corner

Well done to everyone who raced this weekend. Fountains and Grewelthorpe gave the opportunity for some fantastic last minute championship points. As we come to the final races in the road season and look forward to our winter champs- please remember and take a look at the calendar of races and enter as many as possible for your coveted badge!

The London marathon 2022 ballot is now open until 08/10/21 21:00. Please note if you enter the ballot and are unsuccessful you will have a 2nd opportunity with the club ballot. Please keep hold of your rejection notification.

Also, a quick reminder to please make sure you read the rules and regulations of parkrun or indeed any races you take part in before you enter and attend to ensure you run and race safely and wear your black and gold with pride.

New Kit anyone?

Thank you to all members who have placed an order for a club t-shirt. We have sufficient orders to be able to place an order (there is a minimum number for each order). Before we place the order are there anymore people who wish have a new club tshirt? If you do want one, have a look at the club merch page http://niddvalleyroadrunners.co.uk/merchandise/ and any last minute orders can be placed using this form Order Club Merch . It’s also now time to pay up. So please send your payment to the normal club account with your name in the reference. Short sleeve t-shirts are £27.00 and long sleeve ones are £30.60 Our Bank Details: Account Name: Nidd Valley Road Runners Sort Code: 40-23-12 Account Number: 12074796

Ok then, I think that is all for now.

See you all soon

Emma

Good Day Nidder’s

Hoping you are all ticketyboo !

Last week after chatting to Alan Harby in the bar I suddenly thought, “ I want to spend a bit more quality time with this man” So I called him and asked if he would meet me for a coffee to share his past.   Whilst with Alan I asked if he minded I share his history and that of the club’s with the members, as I knew there must be many like me that would be interested.

For those that have not yet met Alan, he was Nidd Vally Road Runners Chair in the early 90’s for 3 years.  Has been with the club  for over 30 years, and has been granted a Lifetime Membership

A saying I  came across as a young man is, “We stand on the shoulders of Giants before us”.  Alan is one of those Giants,  in my opinion.

Please if you haven’t yet done so introduce yourself and shake him by the hand.

Here Goes ———

Rob –  Do you mind telling me your age Alan ?

Alan – Not at all, I was born on the 9th of April 1937, and 84 right now.

Rob-  And Family ?

Alan– Married to Barbara.  We had 2 boys, Glynn and Mark.  We lost Glynn just before lockdown to a heart problem at the age of 60.  Mark has 3 children Jess ( Jessica) who is now at the the club carrying on the Harby name. Bethany and India (who trains with Harrogate Harriers).  We don’t discuss that in our house Lol.

Rob – Where were you born

Alan – I was born in Southgate, North London, and joined the Royal Air Force on the 20th May 1952 at the age of 15. My father wasn’t too pleased as my 2 brothers had proper jobs and went on to do very well.  However although opposed,  he needed to sign  the papers, which he duly did and there I stayed boy and man for 40 years travelling all over the World from 1952 until 1992 when I left.

Rob-  Tell me about your career Alan

Alan–  I flew with the 49th Squadron at the age of 17 which was unheard of. Was based in Nicosia during the Suez invasion in 1956.  In 1961 I was posted to Singapore.

For 4 years I was seconded to The Malaysian Air Force, even wearing their uniform. This was followed by a posting in Hong Kong for 3 more years. The latter part of my career was based in Germany, where I ran the Hamburg Marathon, The  Berlin Marathon, and then the Brussells Marathon.  There were many more postings, too many to talk about.

Rob –  When did you join Nidd Valley Road Runners

Alan–  I was posted in Germany with the RAF and came back to England based at Leeming in 1990.  Having done some running abroad I saw one day a group of runners that had began the race from the old Rugby ground,  and later discovered it was that year’s Guy Fawkes 10.  So I looked up where they were based and joined Nidd Valley in the same year.

Jean Blakey,  that some may remember,  was a Founder Member, and Bill Humphrey’s the Chair.  In those days we were part of and known as Harrogate Athletics Club.  We wanted to be known as a running club and suggested Nidd Valley Road Runners.  Well there was uproar and so we decided to break away and call ourselves Nidd Valley Road Runners.

The football teams colours were Black and Gold, and we decided that our colours should reflect the colours of the football team, and do to this day.

Rob – Were you a good runner

Alan–  I have never liked talking about times as I always did  it for health reasons.

Rob – I know that Alan, however tell me about some of your times and performances.

Alan– Before I came back to England in 1990 based in Germany I ran the Hamburg Marathon in 3 hours 40’.  The Berlin Marathon in  3hours 23′ and the Brussells Marathon in 3hours 30’

After joining Nidd Valley I ran the Dublin Marathon in 3 hours 17’ and there is a picture of me and the time crossing the line. I was 56 years old.

My fastest 10k was just under 35 minutes, and half marathons regularly under 1hour 30’.  In fact I ran the Falklands Half in 1 hour 28’ with Skull & Crossbones signs around the route warning us of live mines that the Argentinians planted a few years earlier.  So I suppose without the hazards we could have all run a little faster.

Rob- What about Barbara, did she join in ?

Alan–  Haha, yeah Barbara came along and was known as The Bag Lady.  When all the runners arrived they used to say “ Barbara can you look after my bag please” Therefore she decided to stop being the Bag Lady and started running with us.

Barbara ended up running 6 Marathons, her 1st being the New York Marathon. I was booked in and she said “ Can I come with you “ which was great,  so we did the New York Marathon together. I tell the story she was arrested, which I am not sure she is keen on however we have photographic evidence.

Rob – Did you travel anywhere else with Nidd Valley Alan?

Alan –  Oh yeah we would regularly get coaches to events.  They became so popular we often needed 2 coaches.  Certainly The Great North Run was popular and The London Marathon.  However we once went to Benidorm to do The Benidorm Marathon

Rob –  How did you communicate to the Membership Alan

Alan – Well we never had social media or the internet so we had what we called “The Nidd Valley Flyer” A printed booklet which began with a A letter From The Chairman.  It would go out 6 monthly or sometimes sooner.  It took some thinking about, quite a bit of work before it went to print.  The front had a picture of the cartoon Road Runner.

Rob – How  did you come to be in Harrogate

Alan – Now there’s a story.  When i had one of my visits back to the UK I based myself in London.  An old RAF pal Arthur came to stay with me and suggested a weekend away in Manchester.  He had a girlfriend up there. When we arrived I discovered he had paired me up with his girlfriend’s friend.  This was in 1957.  This girl turned out to be Barbara my wife of 63 years as we got married in 1958.

At one point with no money we had to rent a Caravan in Wittingley.  In 1964  when I was posted at Linton on Ouse we jumped into the deep end and bought a brand new Wimpey house on Forest lane which stands to this very day.

We stand on the shoulders of Giants before us.  Alan is one of those Giant’s.  The pleasure was all mine, and taking the time to meet him, listen to him and truly understand some of the history of the club was wonderful.

As a result of my short piece on Facebook about Alan I had a Member ask if I would do the same with Sue Threadgold in November.   Sue was approached and like most Giants was apprehensive.   If you do not know who Sue is, please take the time to ask before I meet with her in November.

We look forward to meeting Sue

In the meantime, let us all keep that wonderful Nidd Valley Road Runners camaraderie that has been  for over 30 years now, going strong.

Onwards and Upwards

Rob

Good afternoon everyone!

I Hope you’ve all been having a great weekend. Well done as ever to those who have been racing this week at Great Whernside and / or the Crag Rat run.

The next races in the club champs coming up are Fountains Abbey Park run next Saturday, and the Grewelthorpe Multi terrain race on Sunday. Good luck to all those doing the London Marathon next weekend too, virtual or otherwise!

Club nights are Tuesday and Thursday as ever, arriving at about 6:45 for a 7 pm run. Parking will still be on the right as you drive in towards the school. The changing facilities and toilets are open at the hockey club, as is the bar afterwards. Don’t forget to wear your Hi Viz for evening running.

On Tuesday the route is as follows:

Kingsley Drive, Morrisons, Freeman’s Corner, Sainsbury’s, Showground, Hookstone Drive, Leeds Road, Stray, York Place, Claro Road. To cut short, from Hookstone Drive return along Oatlands Drive, Slingsby Walk, Hospital and Claro Road. For a longer option, continue along Leeds Road and back through town, possibly reverse Supermarkets.

See here for map and gpx:

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3413393/NVRR-Route-3-Showground

Then on Thursday it’s this one:

Over railway bridge, Woodfield Road, Tennyson Avenue, Bachelor Gardens, Knox Avenue, Skipton Road, Ripon Road, West Park, York Place, Claro Road, Ainsty Road. Shorter option, from Knox Avenue back via Skipton Road or Coppice Estate.

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3450859/NVRR-Route-4-Knox

Here are the pacing groups:
8-9mins per mile
9-10mins per mile
10-11mins per mile
11-12 mins per mile
Run walk

If you fancy some intervals this week the suggestion is 4 x 12 minutes with three minutes slow jog or walk recovery. The first 12 minutes should be run at half marathon pace (quite a bit slower than tempo) and each subsequent interval should be slightly quicker than the one before. Aim to be doing the fourth one at 5km pace. Obviously you’ll do the usual warm up, drills, cool down and stretches. Enjoy!

I think that’s everything you need to know,

See you all soon

Emma

PECOs are open and the first one is Harrogate.  £15 for 5 races.

I’d encourage everyone to give this a go.  Let’s go for a really strong club turnout.

https://racebest.com/races/x8c66

Thanks

Kevin and Sarah

Monday
Jeremy is organising a Guy Fawkes 10 mile run starting at 6 pm from Ripley Car park. He says that everyone is welcome and that it will be slow and steady. I’d definitely suggest head torches for this one, as it will get dark and a lot of the route is on quiet country roads with no pavements.

Tuesday
Club run as normal from the Hockey Club. Don’t forget high Viz and please use the car park on the right as you go in instead of by the club house until further notice. There will be committee members and run leaders around with signs to show you where to go, and to help with getting into groups according to your approximate pace.

The route will be to Knaresborough as follows:
Route Description: Rear of School to Kingsley Drive, turn right, Knaresborough Road, Boroughbridge Road, Stockwell Road, Briggate, Forest Moor Road, Morrisons, Prospect Road, Knaresborough Road, Kingsley Drive, Rear of School. Option to cut short along Forest Lane, Waterside or High Street. Longer option to miss Stockwell Lane and go down Halfpenny Lane, Chain Lane, York Road and Briggate.
https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3368747/NVRR-Route-2-Knaresborough

Pacing groups will be something like this:
8-9mins per mile
9-10mins per mile
10-11mins per mile
11-12 mins per mile
Run walk

Tuesday Intervals Option
Usual 10 – 15 mins steady warm up following by dynamic stretching and activation drills (Lunges, squats, Legs swings, calf bounces, High knee walk, high knees, straight leg running, 4 x 30 metre strides)

Then do the following twice:
12 mins at 10 mile race pace or tempo pace
4 mins easy jog or walk recovery
8 mins at 10 mile race pace or tempo pace
4 mins easy jog or walk recovery
4 mins at 5km race pace or quicker than tempo
4 mins easy jog or walk recovery

Good luck if you choose to do this interval set and as ever, please feel free to ask if you need anything clarifying.

Thursday
It’s EA#walkandtalk week this week, arranged in association with MIND, and coinciding with world gratitude day on Tuesday. Captain Sarah has planned the following route for us to run/jog/walk in our groups. Chat to each other on the way round, come on down to the club if you’ve not been for a while, and why not carry on talking over a drink at the bar afterwards?
Walk And Talk Route 5.4 Miles – 9km Running Route near Harrogate (ID: 1696050) (plotaroute.com)

Here and above is the route for Thursday. The route is 5.4miles.
Description:
From the club up Claro road, turn left past Granby. Over Knaresborough road, past the hospital, over Wetherby Road, up Slingsby Walk, over Oatlands Drive, over the the railway bridge – past the Well and then take the path over to POW roundabout. (For a shorter run or walk- cross over the road to Prince of wales mansions then turn right here and run back to club past Cedar Court hotel.

Everyone else, Cross over to Otley Road past Trinity Church on the left – Run up Otley Road to Cold Bath Road. Re group at top. Run down Cold Bath Road to Valley Gardens entrance- Re group here. Run up the Valley gardens footpath to the planted roundabout and back down the path back to the bottom Gates where you came in.
Once out of the gardens, pass the Pump Rooms, then Run to the Parliament street cross roads and cross to run up Kings Road. Turn right onto Grove Road and past Grove road church on your right. At the end of Grove Road turn right and then head back to club via Devonshire Place, Claro Road and Ainsty Road.

The weekend
It’s Great Whernside fell race in the fell champs on Saturday. A noon-ish start and you can still enter in advance or enter in the day. It’s about 4.5 miles and goes up a hill and back down again. Oh, and it’s fun!

On Sunday is the Crag Rat run which is in the road champs. This one is about 5 miles (ish) and is also fun!!! Why not do both?

Or if racing isn’t your thing then do get together with some friends and go for a social run!

Race results
If you’re wondering how you are getting on in the club chamionships, take a look at the results on the website which have been updated by Mark. Well done once again if you’ve been racing this week.

Club Survey
We have already had a great response to our club survey which closes on 3rd October. Please do take the time to tell the club what you think here https://forms.office.com/r/uX27pz2tVx

The aim of this survey is to understand what the members think of the club, what’s good, what can be improved. This survey will take about 6 minutes to complete and is completely anonymous however if you have any specific comments you wish to make please get in touch separately.

Well I think that is all for now folks,

Until next time
Have a fantastic week
Emma

Good Day to all members of NVRR

As we have gradually got back to normal, it has been wonderful seeing old friends and new meeting at various events and club nights. Seeing the smiles, the banter, and the hard work we all put in at whatever pace we run. After the club run on Thursday evening I thought to myself, “isn’t this great “ as I jogged around speaking to one of our newcomers Vicki. And I am sure most feel exactly the same as I do.
Ask yourself the question, How many newcomers have I personally welcomed to our club ? I am doing my best to meet everyone in the club, and certainly personally welcome all of the newcomers. They really appreciate it as I am sure everyone of us when first joining would have done.
The bar may be the best place therefore ……………………….

The Bar is Open !
The Bar in the Hockey club is now open, so please pop in, even if it’s for a quick drink, and have a catch up with Friends old and new. On Thursday there were around 25 in the bar doing just that, and it was great ! We understand how busy we can all be, however please try to find the time to have a drink from time to time. It is so good to see people.

Club Nights
If you were in attendance on Thursday evening you would have noticed we are making some small changes to organisation. We agreed at a recent committee meeting that as the club has grown it has become more difficult to organise everyone, together with welcoming newcomers, ensuring people are comfortable with pace groups making announcements and getting everyone away. Also recently you may have noticed all the car parks are a lot more full.
Therefore we have decided, certainly in the short term to park and meet in the car park immediately to the right as we enter the gates. Recently you would have received an e.mail from Captain Sarah regarding encouraging newcomers on the 1st Thursday of each month, and pace parameters. Please take time to read Sarah’s communication
Also we would encourage members to arrive at 6.45 to ensure there is time to gather our thoughts, make all announcements, get into pace groups ready to run at 7. We accept that with our busy lives this may not always be possible.

Inclusivity and Survey
It is every organisations responsibility under whatever banner, club, society, group, team etc, to ensure it is doing it’s very best to be inclusive. The committee agree that we needed to look at this through the eyes of the members. It was recently pointed out to me and the committee that inclusivity goes both ways upwards and downwards and I do not think anyone is going to disagree with that.
We have had a great response to the survey to date, however we do want to have as many responses as possible. Please take 5 minutes of your time to give your feedback. It will be very much appreciated. The link can be found below. https://forms.office.com/r/uX27pz2tVx

Banging On
One of the things I have always banged on about, long before this role with NVRR is appreciating volunteers. Most will not do it for any other reason than that they wish to help the wheels go around and enable the majority to enjoy the benefits. Having said the above appreciation and recognition is important. Volunteers will make mistakes and nearly 100 % of the time when a mistake is made we will still be attempting to do our very best. Mistakes happen ! Please be considerate of those mistakes. By all means bring it to someones attention, however take a minute to realise it will never be on purpose and approach it accordingly.

SuperStar Awards
There is so much good done by members, we should always take time to look for and reward those efforts. Over the next 2 weeks before our next committee meeting please take the time to put forward a name that in your opinion should be recognised with a Super Star Award.

Finally have a great week, and I look forward to seeing everyone at some point soon.

Onwards and Upwards

Rob

Hey everyone! I hope you’ve all had a great weekend and well done if you’re been racing, Tholthorpe 10km and Yorkshireman off road marathon and half marathon have been going on. Great stuff!

This week’s championship race is the York 5km series race on Friday evening I believe, so good luck if you’re doing that.

In non-racing news, we have the usual club runs starting 7 pm at the club on Tuesday and Thursday, with the option to do the intervals below if you wish. Don’t forget your Hi Viz now that it’s getting darker.

Suggested pacing groups as always are as follows:

8 – 8:30 min miles
8:30 – 9 min miles
9 – 9:30 min miles
9:30 – 10 min miles
10 – 10:30 min miles
10:30 – 11:30 min miles

and here is the link to the run routes if you need one: http://niddvalleyroadrunners.co.uk/club-training-routes/

Intervals:

Actually, this week’s suggestion from EA coach Darren is a 25 minute tempo run with a warm up and cool down. So that’s definitely all about the pacing! Don’t forget your drills (including a few strides) before the run and stretches after. If you’d like a suggestion for some shorter intervals however, please don’t hesitate to ask me and I will oblige!

I think that is all for this week, so have a good one,

Emma

Good Morning to all members of Nidd Valley Road Runners,

At 68 years young,   I have experienced being a part of many companies, clubs, institutions, groups etc, etc.  Through my lifetime I have enjoyed some more than others as I am sure would have  been the same for you. And when I look back,  the most enjoyable  were  always down to the positivity, involvement, and  forward thinking of the people.  People always made the difference !

I can safely say that being a part of Nidd Valley Road Runners since March 2019 has enhanced my quality of life, not just in improved fitness levels, but more importantly meeting people like Alan Harby who has been a wonderful foundation for so many years,  right through to the young newbie that has just joined their first running club.

My thanks go to everyone that has continued to make this club a place to enjoy whether it be club nights, race days, or social gatherings.

We look forward to continuing supporting each other and working hard to  enhance every persons life who chooses to join Nidd Valley Road Runners. It is all of our responsibility to achieve that.

Super Star Awards🌟🌟🌟

We’ve another bumper crop of Club Superstars this month.

Firstly we would like to thank Yvonne Skelton and Martin Weeks 🏅 who kindly used their camper van to make available additional water for those members running Fountains 10k on what was a very hot day in July and especially for taking good care of one of our members who did indeed overheat.

Next up we have Nigel Scaife 🏅 who ran 190 very hilly miles in 7 days across  Coast to Coast,  whilst raising money for charity. Our true thanks go to Nigel for his inspiration to fell runners generally and the team he supported on this adventure specifically, well done Nigel.

Next is a big thank you to Janet Jarvis 🏅 who week in week out supports one of our fellow members to achieve his running objectives, thank you Janet. ( see below under Welfare )

Our thanks are also extended to Jeremy Scott 🏅for his well thought out routes, preparation and care taken with his popular Track and Trail runs, well done Jeremy.

And finally we have Nadene Wilkinson, 🏅who anyone who was at the recent fish and chip run will have noticed she did as much running to Drakes and back with everyone’s orders as she did on the actual run! Nadene is also hard at work researching venues etc. for our Awards Night in January, thank you Nadene for services to catering!

Sylvia will be organising your £20 Up and Running vouchers shortly.

Our final thanks go to Jeff  Walker who has exempted himself, along with the Committee, from Superstar awards but nevertheless deserves our thanks for providing much of the equipment used at our recent highly successful sports afternoon social event, thanks Jeff.

Unofficial Club Runs

You may have noticed  that for quite a while individuals have taken it  upon themselves to organise club runs on routes they have personally enjoyed and wish to share with others.  We would encourage members to search them out and participate as they create great camaraderie, and are run at a pace most can enjoy. They are more of a very even stop start pace,  and no one would ever get left behind.

However, these runs can normally be found on Facebook, however we would also ask organisers to let the club know by e.mail.  However as they are unofficial club runs this is not something we can enforce.

Therefore please be proactive if you wish to know about these runs, as we have been informed that some people miss them.  Ask people in the club to keep you informed.

Welfare

New for Thursday nights!

From September 23rd

We are delighted to announce that as part of Thursday club nights we will be offering a walking/recovery group. This ‘Walk and Talk’ group will be headed up by Janet Jarvis, she is regularly joined by Arron Simpson and Alan Harby so look out for them on a Thursday for a 5km loop from and to club. As always the bar is open on a Thursday night for the opportunity to sit and talk afterwards!

For those wanting a buddy to walk and talk with on Tuesdays, please send a club wide email, post on Facebook to see who else will be walking or ask around when you get to club.

Any questions email beccarman3@gmail.com

Guy Fawkes 10

This is a timely reminder as we approach our wonderful event The Guy Fawkes 10 on the 7th of November.  A reminder that Sam Fugill,  Race Director and his team have once again put this together after many struggles following the pandemic rules and regulations.  A BIG THANK YOU to Sam and everyone who has been involved to date.

Sam has asked me to mention to keep the morning of the 6th free for goody bag packing.  And the 7th free for race day.

Marshals are being organised by Debbie Dilasser and will be sending out next week the Marshal Plan. Thanks Debbie !

Also put in the diary that there will be a free Pizza Sunday evening after the race.  A great opportunity to congratulate ourselves on another great Community effort !

Soon Emma David and our Captains  Sarah Staiano and Kevin Dalton will be communicating recce dates of which there should be two.

#RunAndTalk week

We are planning an inclusive social run on the 23rd September to support England Athletics  #RunAndTalk week.

We will set a route for all abilities and all paced groups.  If you feel like you have lost a little confidence , have struggled with mental health or simply haven’t been able to get to the club for a while, please do use this as a great opportunity to reconnect and come and join your friends  at Nidd Valley Road Runners for a run and talk.

We will also be supporting an additional social element after the run so you have more chance to chat – everyone is welcome to join us for a drink in the hockey club bar.

( Remember you can do this every Thursday evening)

Also following Debbie Jarvis’s success last week, any cake bakers who might be raising funds for MIND or other charities close to their hearts would be welcome on the night as well to  sell in the car park.

Please let Sarah Staiano know beforehand though so we do not have too many   sarahstaiano@outlook.com

Everyone taking part will be encouraged to share their activity on social media if they want to, using the hashtag   #RunAnd Talk

Further information from EA on #RunAndTalk week is below.

This year’s #RunAndTalk Week will take place from Monday 20 to Sunday 26 September – to coincide with World Gratitude Day on Tuesday 21 September.  After the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, it only seems right that we take a moment to consider and talk about the positives in our lives and the things we’re all grateful for.

Statistics show that one in five adults have recently experienced depressive symptoms compared to one in ten before the Covid-19 pandemic began.  Mind’s latest research suggests two thirds of adults (65%) and more than two thirds of young people (68%) with mental health problems say that mental health has got worse since the first national lockdown.

Nidd Valley Road Runners Juniors

After an 18 month break due to the pandemic, our wonderful Nidd Junior section are due to resume training from the 13th of September.

Liam Marwood is our head coach, having recently completed his coaching qualification. Many congratulations Liam !  Each Monday from 6.30pm to 7.30pm we will have up to 50 young athletes, split between over and under 11 age groups.  They meet at King James school Knaresborough.

The Juniors are always looking for more people to get involved, either in committee roles or to join the rota of helpers for training nights. If you are interested in giving something back to the club, and want to know more you can attend a meeting in the main hall at King Jame’s this coming Monday 6th September 6.30pm. Alternatively if you wish to know more you can speak to junior committee member :Lynsey Barraclough, Michelle Beaumont or Martin Lofthouse.

In the meantime let us thank every person that is currently involved in the Juniors for their time and making this happen.

Inclusivity 

You may remember in my communication of the 20th July that I said “inclusivity is a subject close to my heart”  As Chair  I regard it as important we keep raising our awareness to ensure we do our best to help all members feel included.  We will achieve that with every member ?  Well that would be nice eh,  however we do not live in a perfect world and would be a very difficult task.  However that should not stop us trying.

As the club grows,  and we have had many new members this year,  we need to work to understand what is in peoples minds,  and model the future on what the majority of members want for the club and not individuals, small groups,  committee or me.

To that end it was decided at a committee meeting we should design a club survey that gave everyone the opportunity to give us their opinions anonymously.

A working party was set up to design the survey who were Graham Hyde, Bec Carman, and Chris Morris.  May I add here that I believe they have done a wonderful job!

The survey was discussed at this weeks committee meeting,  agreed,  and the link in order for you to complete can be found below.

Please take the time to complete this survey as we feel every persons opinion is important.  It will help us to understand how we can best spend our time in the future to ensure we can get as many members as possible feeling included.

https://forms.office.com/r/uX27pz2tVx

We ask you to complete this by the 3rd of October, giving nearly 4 weeks.

Finally may I wish you all good speed in your running whatever you choose that to be.  Good health and spirts to you and your families, and look forward to meeting everyone at some point over the coming weeks.

Rob

Hello! It’s that time again for me to send you a load of links so you know what’s going on this week!

The first link is to Debbie Jarvis’ just giving page. She’s bringing a load of cakes and energy bar and such like to the club on Tuesday evening for people to buy on the night, or consume in return for a donation to her just giving page! She’s raising money for Bradford Hospitals as you can see.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/kirsty-north-wild1

Once you’ve purchased your cake it’s running in groups as normal in one of these suggested pacing groups,

8 – 8:30 min miles
8:30 – 9 min miles
9 – 9:30 min miles
9:30 – 10 min miles
10 – 10:30 min miles
10:30 – 11:30 min miles

On one of these routes http://niddvalleyroadrunners.co.uk/club-training-routes/

OR you can do the intervals as suggested below *

On Thursday DON’T FORGET IT’S EVENING LEAGUE TIME! Harrogate Harriers hosting. If you’ve not yet collected your number Captain Sarah will be able to give it to you on the night. Here’s another link: http://www.harrogate-league.org.uk/wp/

There will also be a run from the club starting at 7 pm.

At the weekend it’s Wetherby 10km which is in the club champs, so good luck to anyone racing in either or both of these races.

I think that’s all for now, except to ask you all to start wearing Hi Viz on an evening as the evenings are starting to draw in.

See you all around soon

Emma

* INTERVALS
This one is aiming to increase endurance at faster speeds in preparation for a longer race.

Warm up as usual at least 10 mins slow running.
Do some drills such as ankling, lunge walk, high knee march, high knees, fast feet, straight leg running.
Then have a go at 4 x 10 minutes at tempo pace with just 1 minute walk rest! Eeek!
Then just the usual slow jog cool down for 5 – 10 mins or so.

If you’re doing a long run at the weekend and you fancy a challenge, try doing the last mile and a half to 2 miles at tempo pace.

As always, email me if you’d like more details or if you have questions about your tempo pace.

Oh, and don’t forget to stretch……

Hi Team Nidd,

As we come back from the summer holidays and autumn marathon training ramps up, a reminder to keep an eye on the Road champs races coming up for the second half of the season, so you can grab a few last minute points if you need them.
The full list is here Road Championship (2021) – Nidd Valley Road Runners
We keep this up to date should races be moved or dates changed so keep a check on this page.

Tadcaster 10mile is now open for entries, please make sure you didn’t enter in 2020 before entering this year (I can’t imagine who would be that silly! 😉)
Same for Tholthorpe as they don’t allow refunds or transfers for that one either.

A few people have asked about a parkrun as one of the road champ races, we have Fountains parkrun now on the 2nd October. This is a day before Grewelthorpe multi terrain on the 3rd October, so pick your races wisely.

The second in person evening league takes place on the 2nd September and is in Harrogate, you can still enter this race at a discounted rate of £10 if you haven’t already. I have a lot of numbers not collected and will be at club on Tuesday or at the fish and chip run on Thursday this week and will bring them along so you can collect from me then or on the race evening itself. For full details of the Harrogate race click here – the link to enter is on this page too.
HDSRL – Harrogate District Summer Race League

Finally I will email separately with details of the fish and chip run so look out for that and send me your pre orders. You just need to remember to bring your cash (correct amount if possible please) on Thursday.

Keep on running,
Captain Sarah 😊

Now for the other stuff happening this week!

Tuesday is run from club 7 pm kick off as usual. Routes to choose from if you need one are here:
http://niddvalleyroadrunners.co.uk/club-training-routes/

With suggested pace groups here:
8 – 8:30 min miles
8:30 – 9 min miles
9 – 9:30 min miles
9:30 – 10 min miles
10 – 10:30 min miles
10:30 – 11:30 min miles

If you’d like an interval set to do here is this week’s suggestion:

Warm up as usual with drills and then the main set is 10 x 3 mins at tempo pace with only 45 seconds off! So the key here will be to get the pacing right and not go off at full blast on the first one! Give me a shout if you’d like more detail.

On Thursday the Fish and Chip shop run from Knaresborough returns! We will be meeting in the market place at Knaresborough near the statue on the bench. Sarah will be sending out more details about this together with a menu so watch out for her email.

I’m not sure what’s happening at the weekend, but do get together with NVRR friends for a run or to socialise in some other way!

Last but certainly not least, you have a chance to get some fab new club kit ordered! Here is a message from Graham about it:

Orders for Club Merchandise are now OPEN!!! We have short and long sleave t-shirts available in a range of sizes and fits. Order now for Christmas treats for your favourite Nidder!

Take a look on the club web site at the sizing guides http://niddvalleyroadrunners.co.uk/merchandise/ and order your items here: https://forms.gle/6rsYuXrCJBbVtYg5A

We need a minimum order so we will review where we are by the end of September with orders.

That’s all for now folks!

See you all soon

Emma

Evening gang! Here is your insight into the week ahead at Nidd Valley….

Tuesday – club run as normal 7 pm from the Hockey club OR self led intervals planned by Darren from England Athletics (see * below)
Wednesday – Sessay Swift championship race for those who have entered.
Thursday – club run as normal 7 pm from the Hockey Club.

I don’t think I need to suggest a route for Tuesday and Thursday, but if you need some inspiration have a look on our website here:

Club Training Routes

Suggested pace groups for the club runs as usual are:
8 – 8:30 min miles
8:30 – 9 min miles
9 – 9:30 min miles
9:30 – 10 min miles
10 – 10:30 min miles
10:30 – 11:30 min miles

I don’t think there is anything planned for the weekend at the moment but as always, watch this space and facebook in case anyone is organising something.

*INTERVALS

So, our next goal race is York 10 Miles on the 17th October. Darren from EA has kindly sent us some suggested interval sessions for each Tuesday leading up to the race, and also some suggestions for Sunday long runs. The intervals are also suitable for marathon or half marathon training. I will send out the intervals each week for anyone wanting to do them. There won’t be any official coaches at the moment (we’re having a break!) so why not organise yourselves into small groups and have a go? Park Run stray or Tewit well loop would be ideal places to do them.

Here is the first session:

Warm up run very easy 1 mile

Drills such as:
Ankling – 3 x 10 seconds
High knee march – 3 x 10 seconds
High knees – 3 x 10 seconds
Straight knee running – 3 x 10 seconds
4 x 30 seconds starting slowly and building to very fast

Main set:
5 x 6 minutes at tempo pace with 1 minute easy running as the rest.

Tempo pace is about your 10 mile race pace, or a bit slower than 10km race pace. So, if you have recently raced a 10km in about 50 minutes, your 10 km pace is about 8 min per mile, and your tempo pace would probably be about 15 seconds per mile slower than that.

If you fancy a bit more of a challenge, you could run the odd intervals (1,3,5) at tempo pace, and the even intervals (1,2,4) at 10 km pace.

If you’d like a suggestion for a Sunday training run, why not try this progressive run:
10K Easy, 2K Tempo, 1K Easy, 2K Tempo.
Progression runs are a great way to get us used to pushing the pace a little when we are starting to feel fatigued.

I hope this all makes sense, Please shout up if you have any questions but not all at once!!!

See you all soon

Emma

Hey everyone! Another Nidd email today! This one is the details of whatever is occurring in the Nidd Valley running world this week. Well, whatever I am aware of any way!

Firstly though, well done all the bog trotters and face planters at Round hill fell race today! I know I was in up to my waist at one point…….fun fun!

On Tuesday we have a run from the club as usual. If you want a route how about this one, or a variation of, it or something completely different if you wish:

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3368747/NVRR-Route-2-Knaresborough

Suggested pacing groups are:

8 – 8:30 min miles

8:30 – 9 min miles

9 – 9:30 min miles

9:30 – 10 min miles

10 – 10:30 min miles

10:30 – 11:30 min miles

Then on Thursday we have the annual Almscliffe crag run, but this year we will not be getting the train. Graham and Sylvia have organised fantastic routes up to the crag for us from Burn Bridge or Weeton. Here are the details from G and S:

Meet in Burn Bridge. Parking is available along Malthouse Lane but car sharing is encouraged. Please NO NOT PARK IN THE PUB CAR PARK. We will set off at 7pm and follow the ringway to The Warren and continue straight ahead to Almscliff Crag via North Rigton. A well know route by many Nidders.

 We will aim to meet a group lead by Sylvia who are taking a 4.5 mile or so circular route from Weeton Station car park starting at 7pm and at a (very) sociable pace

 Obligatory photo at the Crag summit followed by a return to North Righton along the same path but then turning left along the road and then right onto the footpath towards Leyfield Farm, Blaberry Croft Farm to meet the road and a right turn toward Brackenthwaite then finding the footpath on the left to go off road again to return to Burn Bridge.

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/9567312/Burn-Bridge-to-Almscliffe-Cragg

There are no championship races this week or next weekend, so just enjoy running out with friends and have a great week,

Emma

Hi everyone

Exciting news! On Sunday 15^th August from 2pm we will have the first ever Nidd Valley Family Sports day on parkrun Stray.

It’s a chance to have a social get together, get to know a few people if you are new to the club or haven’t been for a while and have some “just for fun” races if people want to get involved.

Bring your own picnic and any outdoor family games you like along too. (Simon Staiano is keen for a game of badminton so we will bring that!)

Everyone welcome! More info on the flyer attached! Hope to see lots of you there.

Captain Sarah 😊

Nidd Valley family sports day

Good Morning to our Nidd Valley Road Runners Team,

Hoping this communication finds you all,  together with your families in good health and spirits.

Do you feel the same as me ? Recently I have been injured,  and yet still from a distance of many of the events and club meetings feel the buzz of our running community. This buzz has been around for many years I know, however as we grow and warmly welcome all levels of running ability,  we appear to be working harder to ensure we do not lose this reputation of being competitive,  however ensuring at the same time every level of ability feels comfortable and included.

Nidd Valley Family Sports Day

Captain Sarah Staiano has been instrumental in putting together  the above starting at 2pm on Sunday 15th of August on the Park Run Stray.  Bring a picnic, join in the fun and games, and build on the camaraderie  we have in our running community.  The committee has arranged for the weather to be good, so come along and have a great time.

Thanks Sarah and every one that supports you to make this day a success.

Full details can be found on our Facebook page.

Racing and Competitive Spirit

Although we welcome all levels of running ability, we never lose our competitive spirit and encouragement for those of us that want to push the barriers with the support of our club. As I have said many times,  our coaches, physio, and volunteers do a wonderful job communicating what is going on and when, and I would never want to interfere with that. As we know that amazing event Park Run restarted 2 weeks ago,  and it was great last week for me to stand because of injury,   on the 3rd corner and just watch and clap every single runner around the course 3 times.

However what I noticed when I got back and looked  at the times was that we had Nidd Valley Road Runners doing personal bests. Then I remembered,  once I did a personal best at Park Run and Martin Lofthouse our then Captain congratulated me on a forum like this and how good it made me feel.  Therefore I have listed below all the NVRR people that have achieved Pb’s over the last 3 Park Run’s.

They are –

Richard Evans
Emily Wighton 2 Pb’s achieved in 3 runs
Aidan Ranns
Lilian Scaife
Joshua Bryer
Eleanor Easton

There will be others that have achieved Pb’s in races that I would not know,  therefore please let us know in order we can congratulate you all in achieving your new personal bests.

Achievements

It would be amiss of me not to recognise 2 great achievements last week and this. Last week Jeremy (ParkRun) Scott  one of our most colourful and liked characters completed 300 Park Runs,  and yesterday  Sarah Staiano our enthusiastic also well liked Captain completed her 250th Park Run. Achievements like this are an inspiration for us all whatever pace we run. Congratulations to both of you !

Superstar Awards

Just a quick reminder to wing over to our Sylvia at sylviamorten1@gmail.com your SuperStar nomination.  Let us use every opportunity to recognise those amongst us that go over and above to help others,  and improve our club. Remember that you cannot vote for a committee member.

Run From Home

It was Judi and my pleasure to host an off road run last Thursday together with our new Butler Nick Smith 😉 at our home.  Even though the heavens opened we had a great evening with around 30 Nidders drying off.  We said that we should make this an annual event and Judi and I would be happy to do that.

Nick however wanted to call the evening run “The Nick Valley Road Runners  Evening” and charge £5 for parking,  however you will be pleased to know we have not agreed to that.

On a serious note, thanks Nick for helping with everything otherwise it would not have  gone as well as it did.

Committee Meeting

On Wednesday the 1st of September we have our next committee meeting.  We have missed a number of weeks due to holidays and some of us not being available.

Therefore please pass anything you wish us to consider for the agenda over to  our secretary  Chris at  nvvr@christopherjmorris.com

Finally as we now manage to try and get back to some kind of normality we would encourage everyone to join us in the bar at the Hockey Club after a run.  I am on holiday from tomorrow for 11 days, however will be in the bar on Thursday the 26th of August.  Please come along even if it is for 1 drink, or maybe  a couple !

In the meantime I hope you stay fit and healthy and continue to enjoy the benefits of good health and being a part of our great community.

Onwards and Upwards

Rob

Ps  It is always at the forefront of my mind that I may get things wrong or miss people that should be recognised.  Therefore, please, please, contact me if you feel someone should be recognised on this communication.

Well, we’ve been out there racing quite a bit and some of you have been to parkrun for the first time in a very long while! I Hope you’ve all been enjoying whatever racing / running you’ve been doing. I definitely enjoyed James Herriot trail race today.

Captain Sarah has told me that at Fountains 10km last week, both our ladies and men’s teams came third! Well done all of you!

Talking of racing, next weekend is York 10km which is our first goal race. If you’ve been following the plan aiming for a PB, don’t forget to have a bit of a rest this week, but do come along to the last interval session of the current block. This Tuesday’s intervals have been specifically designed to get you ready and primed for the race at the weekend (thanks to Coach Darren) and you’re lucky enough to have me coaching the session!!!! So I’ll see you on the field ready to kick off at 7 pm.

Thursday is another club run evening. If you’d like a route suggestion, I’d suggest one of the slightly shorter routes such as Knox if you’re racing at the weekend. Maybe even cut it a bit shorter still if you are tapering for a PB. Here is the link:

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3450859/NVRR-Route-4-Knox

I assume that there will be also an off-road option available on the day if that’s your preference 🙂

I don’t know of any other news, so I’ll just say have a fantastic week and GOOD LUCK at York 10km! I’m looking forward to seeing all those results.

Coach Emma 🙂

Fantastic efforts all round from anyone racing, getting out for a run, or even doing anything energetic in the heat this weekend! Kudos to everyone who ran at Ingleborough and/or Fountains 10km. I can’t resist giving extra kudos to Sarah Fabron and Chris Morris who chose (nothing to do with me, honest) a category A hot hot hot fell race for their first one! I don’t know if anyone else was running a first race at Fountains, but more kudos over your way if you were!

So, this week then. On Tuesday we have the penultimate intervals session of the 10km plan with Coach Darren from EA. He’s sure to have something suitably challenging for us to do on another hot day. Bring water, hats etc etc.

Also on Tuesday is Vale of York 10miles and on Wednesday it’s a REAL LIFE evening league race hosted by Wetherby! Website for info is here: http://www.harrogate-league.org.uk/wp/

On Thursday, if you’re not too tired from all the racing, we are running from the club as usual, and it could be a nice evening for a run through valley gardens? Just a suggestion but the route is here: https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3368094/NVRR-Route-1-Valley-Gardens

Here are the usual suggested pacing groups:

8 – 8:30 min miles
8:30 – 9 min miles
9 – 9:30 min miles
9:30 – 10 min miles
10 – 10:30 min miles
10:30 – 11:30 min miles

Next Sunday is James Herriot race. Wow, three races to choose from in one week. Go steady if you are doing more than one. James Herrot is stunning if you’ve not done it before and you can have it as a road champs counter or a fell champs counter! Strange but true…..and there might be a juicy thunderstorm according to my weather app! Don’t let that put you off 🙂

Then last but not least, Sylvia has asked me to pass on the following message from the Membership Secretary of Longlands Common:

“We would be absolutely thrilled if you and fellow Nidd Valley Runners would like to come to our open day/AGM on Saturday, 24 July.

Please follow this link to RSVP and ignore the part that says one member of the group must be a shareholder/member!

https://www.longlandscommon.org/openingday

More news on how to access the site on the day and other visitor information will follow shortly.”

So please feel free to pop along if you’d like to.

Bye for now. I hope I’ve not forgotten anything……

Emma

Afternoon everyone!

I hope you’ve all had a great weekend so far. Well done everyone who has been racing. So far this weekend I’ve seen results from Ilkley half marathon and Thirsk virtual evening league. Marathon training also seems to be in full swing for some members, and our 10km training plan only has a few weeks left to go. So keep up the good work whatever you are training for!

Sarah has asked me to remind you all again to enter the evening league races. A bargain at £15 for a number of virtual races and two ‘real’ ones! Here is the website: http://www.harrogate-league.org.uk/wp/

This week we have intervals on the field again on Tuesday at 7. Jon Easton will be coaching the next session as planned by Darren from England Athletics. So work hard and enjoy! If you prefer to go for a run instead there will also be that option available.

On Thursday it’s run from club as usual. See below for suggested paces, and if you’d like a route suggestion, we’ve reached route 12, but as always, please feel free to choose your own routes in your groups.

https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/route/3451766/NVRR-Route-12-Jennyfields

Have a brilliant week and try not to get stuck in the Yorkshire Show traffic!

Emma

Paced groups for Thursday run:

8 – 8:30 min miles

8:30 – 9 min miles

9 – 9:30 min miles

9:30 – 10 min miles

10 – 10:30 min miles

10:30 – 11:30 min miles