On 28th January we held a very successful meeting for group leaders and interested joggers. Thanks everyone for coming!
This was the best turn out we have ever had and shows how keen everyone is.
Martin has kindly volunteered to take on the role of coordinating the groups on a Monday night. He will now be the one making a note of the pace groups that will be available on the night.
There were lots of ideas and we will be trying to implement them over the next few weeks.
There were some key issues that come up time and again:
Mustering
Just a reminder that you should not be running in front of the group leader unless they say it’s ok. When you get to a designated point, or when your group leader shouts, you should turn round and join the back of the group, working your way back through the group when it is safe to do so. This keeps the group together and you also get a little extra distance to help your running!
Road safety
Please remember to cross as one group, not straggling all across the road, for your safety & for sanity of other road users.
Footpath etiquette
Please remember other footpath users have a right to be there too. Don’t force them in to hedges or out in to the road!
Group size
No group should be more than 15 people. If your pace group is bigger than this then it should be split in half. The two groups can follow each other or can do the same route in reverse, or just do their own thing! It will mean that someone else in the group will need to come forward to lead the second group.
We are also going to try to get the group leaders to stand at the front so that you can identify them more easily & will be looking in to getting some bibs with ‘Group Leader’ on them to make this easier for new people too. We will also be sending the groups out fastest first to aid the dispersal of the groups from the centre, if you have ever tried to drive in to Perdiswell as we are all going out you will know what a hazard this is!
For the future
We are going to start a folder of routes that will be available on Monday nights, this will make it easier for someone to step in & take a group even if they haven’t planned a route in advance. If you have any good routes, please print them out in map format & bring them along.
We will be encouraging people to move up to the next group and are looking at ways to do this. It is very hard to lead a group when you know that a number of the runners are capable of running faster than you. This can cause the pace of the group to increase to the detriment of other group members.
We would like people who may be interested in taking a group, even on an ad-hock basis, to buddy-up with existing leaders, just let your leader know if you are interested. This would be a great way of increasing our pool of willing helpers!
We will keep you posted on any new developments.
Marie
Groups co-ordinator
