Dear Runners
How quick has the summer gone? For me it seems to have flown by and the rugby world cup and Worcester 10k and the XC are back on the agenda. But before I talk about the future I would like to jump back into my DeLorean car and return to a meeting on a Wednesday night, back in July. This planning meeting should have been a quick, short chat and also an opportunity to fill up goody bags, ready for the event to take place on Sunday. The travellers had other ideas for us! So once again I would like to single out Claire and Gay for there hard work in relocating this event. The WILD ONE would not have happened if the BPJ army had not turned up in force to clear pathways and to sort out the course on the Friday night. Thanks to all once again. The big question is where should we run it next year ????
Moving forward I am pleased to announce that the BPJ will now also be running on Tuesday nights from 7pm at the River Side Building next to the new University Arena. The idea behind this is to give the club an extra evening which may fit into your weekly routines a bit better. We will also be offering a 9 week 5k-10k training course on Tuesday nights from the 22nd September. Through these activities the club is also hoping to build a stronger relationship with Worcester Uni.
All of this development is now possible due to our ever increasing numbers. This also gives us an exciting chance to change the way we work within our club (slightly). The committee are working towards Clubmark. Clubmark is the universally acknowledged cross sport accreditation scheme for community sports clubs. It is based on criteria which must be supported by specific evidence. Based on four key areas of club development it centres around:
Activity/playing programmes – this includes, for example, coaching qualifications required, insurance and coach to participant ratios
Duty of care and welfare – appropriate risk assessments, health and safety policies, training, compliance and child protection policies
Knowing your club and its community – this ensures that your club is committed to fairness and equity in respect of the way in seeks to attract and retain members from your local community
Club management – which covers issues to do with club and committee structures and the general running of the organisation
Becoming a member gives us all more opportunities and I would like to invite all of our group leaders the opportunity to take part in a level one course which would qualify you as a leader in running fitness. This course would be free and is open to all group leaders in the first instance.
The course will help those who participate to better understand running and fitness technique and also help in the giving of advice to fellow runners.
The club is already doing very well thanks to you the members. The committee and I don’t want to lose the club spirit which a new structure could bring. So I would like to ask you all to please help us on this journey. The gaining of the Clubmark logo will not threaten the current day to day running of the club; it will just make the club stronger going forward into the future.
I look forward to seeing a large amount off you running the Worcester 10k in a few weeks time. Please be proud of wearing the clubs colours and if you need a new kit please see Jo Evans on a Monday night. I would also recommend that you book your early bird ticket for the Christmas Party as soon as you can as last year’s do was great crossing training on that dance floor.
Enjoy your running and the rugby over the next 8 weeks.
Mike
