Newsletter January 2002

 
NEWSLETTER 
JANUARY 2002 ISSUE 294
 EVENTS DIARY:
 

PLEASE CHECK NOTICE BOARD OR RUNNING MAGAZINES FOR FURTHER INFO.
FRANNYS BITS.
 
January has been a busy month for running with events being held on almost every weekend. The home cross country fixture at Ashe was, once again, a huge success with many club members and friends helping out on the day. Many thanks to all those who helped with marshalling, refreshments, car parking and setting up or clearing the course. I’m sure all the other runners appreciate your efforts.
Thanks to those club members who gave me their thoughts on the structure of the Consistency league. It has been suggested that the next league should run from April 1^st through to March 2003 so that it is resolved before next years’ presentation dinner. I am currently working on a list of events for this competition so, if you have a favourite event that you feel could be included, let me know. The main criterion for Sunday races is that it doesn’t clash with a Saturday fixture whether track & field or cross country.
It looks as if the club will have it’s biggest ever entry for the London marathon. Dave Bright and Mike Bowering were given the two club places and they join myself, Jill, Jamie, Mark Simcox, Karen Burton, Adam Gold and Nick who have guaranteed entries. Also running is Nick’s wife Laura who is reported to be training well……unlike some of us.
Committee Meeting. 14/1/02
Present: G. Cloke, M. Dennison, P. Wheeler, C. Wheeler, R. Francis, G. Mclaughlin.
Matters Arising.

1. Consistency: Trying new system possibly starting from April 1^st to March 31^st, this will include summer races. This to be completed before the annual dinner. List from Franny.
2. London Marathon: Club entries given to D. Bright & M. Bowering.Both paided up members.
3. Christmas dinner went well, thank you given to Cathy for organising this.
4. Down Grange lighting . Basingstoke would like a donation from us towards costs. Have spoken to their secretary and our thoughts will be discussed at their next committee meeting.
5. New trophy has been donated from Barker Son & Isherwood. Feel we need to invite their representative to the dinner in April to be presented by them.
6. Cross country went well..Thank’s to all who helped.
7. Still need new gas cylinder for starting hooter. Paul to follow up on this.
8. Overton 5. Telephone call from Paul Green, Police will support the race this year. Franny keen to hand out entry forms at track meeting’s this year.

 
Treasurer’s Report.
Income £791.71
Expenditure £931.68
Current £311.05
Reserve £4172.92
A.O.B

1. Rundown events book 2002 Will order two copies.
2. Lottery returns need two signatures, Gwyneth & Cathy to continue doing these.
3. New member Helene Kerr.
4. Football supporters club, need to pay for using facilities £3 per person. Club will pay on block £60.
5. Rec. centre AGM Jan 16^th Need nominee’s for young athlete of year.
6. Cross country made £174 on teas and cakes.
7. Flood light facilities are being bid for at the top of Overton. Did the Harriers want to be included? Further info was needed.

Meeting closed at 9.25p.m. Date of next meeting 18/2/02
COUNTY X-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS at DIBDEN INCLOSURE. JANUARY 5th from Franny
There was a larger turnout than last year and the men even managed to finish a team for the first time in several years. The course had been frozen until the day before and because of the dangerous nature of the footing the course was modified from last years mudbath version to miss out the worst of the ruts. However an overnight thaw put the course in good condition and with the worst of the muddy stretches now missing the day was set for some fast racing. First home was Ian who had a better run than at Basingstoke and finished 5^th Veteran. Mark continued where he left off last year and had a good run to make the top 30. Voss is putting in some good showings over the country and did well to get the better of Martin. Gavin ran well to close the Vets. team which finished in 4^th place out of 22 teams. Dave Henery impersonated Blissy and finished the senior team that finished 8^th out of 23 teams. Dave Bright had a fine run and was well clear of Steve who appeared to be quite happy with his run. I surprised myself considering I was suffering from a virus but managed to overhaul Geoff on the last lap. Eric completed the squad with a run that was well below his usual efforts.

199 Finished.

Cath had a great run to take the vets title but only lost 3^rd overall in the dying stages. The turnout from the ladies was a bit thin following the Christmas/new year festivities with Jill and Liz being our other runners. Jill had asthma problems and did well to finish the race while Liz had a good run to finish third in her age group. Sadly we were unable to finish a team. 

67 Finished.
Juniors
 
In the under 13 Boys race, Alex Bright, made a good start in his first ever championship, finishing in 45th place out of 51. Older brother Matt, running in the under 15 Boys race also did well to finish 33rd in a field of 39. In the same race, Aaron Harris, determined to be up there with the leaders, found himself in 10th place at the top of the first hill, and then gradually worked his way up to 4th place before dropping back to finish 9th, his best ever at this level.
HANTS. X-COUNTRY LGE at ASHE MEADOWS. 12th JANUARY. From Franny
A good afternoon for cross country even if it did turn a tad chilly as the day wore on. The course was a lot drier than last year and this made for some fast running. The juniors started the day off and their were some superb performances as we finished teams in both the under 13 and 15 boys age groups. Richard Knape had a stunning run to lead the under 13’s team home in 7^th place. He was well supported by two of his Newbury team mates with Thomas Purcell narrowly getting the better of Thomas Ridley. Completing the team was Alex Bright who is at relatively new to the sport and has several more seasons in this age group. The team finished in 7^th place which lifted them 2 places to 6^th overall.
In the under 15’s race Aaron continued his super run of form with his best league result of the season which was a big confidence boost for the forthcoming County schools’ championship. Only the judges could split Robert Ridley and Mark Vardy as they clocked identical times, Scott Graham put in another solid run with the squad possibly recording the best junior team result the club has seen for many years as they finished in 5^th place to currently lie 6^th overall.

Cath was possibly the star of the day with a stunning last half lap that saw her move up from fifth to second place and then hold off Reading road runners’ Ann Power in a battling downhill sprint finish. Next home was Audra who had a very good run and recorded her highest position of the season. Liz closed the both the “A” and Vets. team and was another to record her highest position this season. Dorothy was making her league debut and looks to be a good addition to the squad. She had a very good run on what is the toughest course in the league. At the start of the season Moira was 104^th at Farley Mount, her improvement this winter is evident as she has had a couple of races in the 80’s but she must be delighted with her position in this race. Madeline was only a minute behind whilst another useful debut came from Karen who is one of several club members aiming for London in April.

The men were missing several of our top runners and did well to finish 5^th on the day. Ian Ford had a better run than at Basingstoke and led the squad home just getting the better of Blissy who was making a welcome return from injury. Mark was possibly down a bit on recent performances but Martin was ever reliable to anchor the Vets. team to victory
and narrowly close the gap to Portsmouth at the top of the table. Dave Vosser was close behind to complete the A team and seems to be running quite well of late. Keith was next home ahead of Gavin , who was carrying a bad cold. Dave Henery grabbed more valuable consistency points ahead of Chris Treacher who made a promising debut. Dave Bright was happy with his run ahead of Andy who has missed some training of late following his latest addition to the family. Eric ran better than at Dibden but was chased by the fast finishing “Slimline” Steve. I was happy with my run as was Dave Titcomb who made a welcome debut in a club vest. JT put in a good run considering the running around he did during the event organising his marshals, rumour has it that he booked it as a 20 mile session in his training diary. John completed the club interest with and seemed fairly happy with his run.

CONSISTENCEY LEAGUE.

The full league table for the consistency league is on the notice board and includes the positions following the Stubbington 10k. Dave Henery is now 48 points clear of Eric with Gavin a further 7 points back in third. The only mover in the ladies event is Moira whose 20 point haul at Stubbington saw her close on the top places. Not much separates the top three who are Cath, Audra and Liz.
STUBBINGTON GREEN 10K Sunday 13^th January 2002 from Dave ‘Mr. ‘Consistency?’ Henery

Another disappointing turn out from the Overton Harriers, for an event which attracted a capacity 800 runner field. The weather was fine, overcast, a little windy but not too cold. The police were out in force, to keep the runners in order. Several officers were running “under cover”, attempting to break into the dark and sinister world of performance enhancing drugs. However they were all wearing the same vests and the police helmets, were a bit of a give-away. Indeed, a runner calling himself “Jack”, who looked exactly like PC David Mills, asked me if I would like to buy some “gear”. I refused preferring to imbibe my normal mild, bitter, or special medicine.
However Jamie Jones, was right up for all those substances, he did not think we saw him inject one lot, eat the other and rub something else, somewhere. All to good effect, one must say, as he finished 3^rd, an excellent performance in a time of 32.21.
At the pre race session, in the Watership down, Cath administered, a now customary cuffing to Dave Henery, this was put down to the quantity of 5% Rudolph that she was drinking. David Vosser, smarting from a 9 nil defeat at table football, vowed to get revenge, by taking the 20 consistency points on offer. This he duly did, completing the course in 37.06. Dave Henery consolidated his lead in the consistency event, by taking 19 more valuable points, but was a little disappointed with a time of 39.09. The Overton Cross country being the excuse.
Officer Mills, who was quick to point out a 9 week lay off, can run a lot better than his time of 41.55. Steve McNair, another with the X Country excuse 42.29.
For the ladies, only 2 turned up, Moira and Gwyneth. Apparently Moira wanted the 20 points ( to help overtake Cath) and on the recommendation of a scoucer, “bunged” Gwyneth a score to drop out. Not a surprise then , when at 2K Gwyneth dropped out of the race with breathing difficulties, that old chestnut!
Moira should have saved her money, as she smashed her PB by several minutes, doing 48.14, a very respectable 5^th in her age group.
3^rd Jamie Jones 32.21
56^th David Vosser 37.06 20 Points
107^th Dave Henery 39.09 19 Points
205^th PC David Mills 41.55 18 Points
230^th Steve McNair 42.29 17 points
488^th Moira West 48.14 20 Points and a PB
Hampshire Schools Cross Country Championships at Gang Warily on Saturday 19th January from Geoff

Just two of our juniors, 14year old Scott Graham and 13year old Aaron Harris, from Testbourne Secondary School in Whitchurch, were selected to run. The course, is a flat playing field, with a few banks and some rough ground, to give it some semblance of traditional cross country. However torrential rain, which thankfully stopped just before the start of the first race, made the ground very muddy and consequentially very heavy going.
Both were in the Junior Boys race of 4.4Km, and Aaron Harris, determined to be up there with the leaders, found himself in 12th place after the initial mad dash at the start. He then gradually clawed back a place before sprinting in to gain another place and finish 10th, qualifying for the Southern Schools Inter-Counties Match in February. Meanwhile Scott Graham, resisted being pulled along by the fast start and settled for slogging it out in the top third of the field, finishing 34th out of 124.  
VILLAGE HANDICAP. 25^th JANUARY. From Franny

A good night for running with four PB’s being recorded. First home was debut runner Nick Roberts who benefited from an over generous handicapper to win by more than two minutes. Aaron got off to a fast start and clocked a 19 second PB to take second place ahead of Cath who ran her fastest time for more than two years. Three seconds covered the next three runners who all clocked PB’s. Karen (21seconds) just got the better of Moira, who clocked her fourth consecutive PB, this time by 20 seconds with Dave Bright clocked a 10 second improvement. Another good run came from Jamie who may have scored a PB if he hadn’t got stopped by traffic and promising debuts came from Dorothy and young Alex.
Jamie was fastest on the night but first place in the league went to Mike who is getting back to fitness with Mark in second ahead of non-scorer Keith Vallis. Keith Clark took third in the time league just ahead of Cath.
Dave Vosser ran the course for the first time in two years and was rewarded with his slowest time ever while JT equaled his PW.. The league tables are now hotting up …..Aaron’s fine run helped him to leapfrog over Dave Bright and Moira to take a one point lead in the handicap league. Dave and Moira are only separated by their fourth run so a close battle can be expected in the last two races. The time league is equally intriguing with Mark Simcox having a five point lead over Cath. However Mark has missed a race so Cath could be in with a shout of being the first woman to lift this title. Lurking in the background are Gavin, Keith and Andy who, whilst fighting for the bronze, could find themselves in the running for silver.

HANDICAP RESULTS.

SOUTHERN COUNTIES XC CHAMPS. At PARLIAMENT HILL. 26^th JANUARY. From Franny
Despite the best efforts of Dave Vosser we were, sadly, unable to persuade enough men to run this event in an attempt to win the Hampshire cup. By Thursday night we were back to a scoring team of six but unfortunately Steve then had to drop out with a very bad cold. So come the Saturday and a team of four useful runners and myself with Ian Vosser as team captain set off in heavy rain on the trip to north London. It stopped raining as we arrived but some twenty minutes before the start there was a heavy storm that saw the rain sweeping horizontally across the heath, fortunately it stopped as we were stripping off and didn’t start again until the race was over.
The starting area and long opening climb was very wet but once over the first hill the course simply disappeared in a sea of mud. Runners were falling everywhere and as the race progressed the course actually got worse, though I wouldn’t have thought it possible after slogging round the opening lap. As the earlier rain mixed in with the mud it started to be kicked up by the runners so that we all received a liberal coating from head to toe. Sorry JT but even Voss and Martin reckon that this was worse than Milton Keynes.
Blissy lead us home in a fine 76^th place, this was a great run considering how much training he has missed over the last few months. Ian also had a great run and is now looking for a medal in the last league race at Bournemouth. There was never going to be much between our next two runners and Martin took the honours this time to beat Voss by around 30 seconds and take a 3-2 lead for the season. Both of them were pleased with their efforts and were looking forward to Bournemouth. I actually had quite a good run and, despite recording my slowest time in this race by about 4 minutes, possibly recorded my highest finishing position.
This was helped by the high number of dnf’s which must have been well over a hundred. Ian spent the race running back and forth giving vocal support to everyone and seemed to pop up several times each lap which was much appreciated.
Finally thanks to Ian Ford for transporting the team up the motorway in filthy weather conditions.
Results

810 Finished
Winchester District Schools Cross Country form Geoff
On Tuesday 29 January, Alex Bright, Aaron Harris and Scott Graham competed in the Winchester District Schools Cross Country meeting at Kings School Winchester. The Boys were part of a team representing Testbourne School comprising pupils from years 8 and 9. The weather was fine and the 4Km course was a typical school playing field made heavy by recent torrential rain.
Aaron went off with the leading group of 3 boys which he gradually whittled down until he was left in the lead some 20m in front of his closest rival. Aaron maintained this position and ran home a clear winner. Scott settled in with the chasing pack and slogged it out to finish in 11th place. Alex, who is a year younger than both Scott and Aaron, got stuck in and finished 51st. About 60 Boys took part.
Bionic
Our award this month goes to someone who has certainly been the busiest during January. He was 9th in the County XC Championships, 13th in the League at Ashe, 10th in the Schools XC Championships, 8th in the Handicap with a PB by 19 seconds, and 1st in the District Schools XC Championships. Congratulations to
Aaron Harris for keeping up the training and peaking at the right time.