Category: Uncategorized

Ashford Striders Race Report week ending 21st November.

Ashford Parkrun
A gloomy and breezy morning didn’t put off the following from coming to Parkrun. First Strider this week was Justin Burden 23:25, followed by Stephen Rumsey 24:13, Vicky Bean with a personal best time of 24:39, Jason Brice 27:56, Andy Found 29:46, Rachel Oliver 31:28, Sara Dewar 31:55, Brian Forrester 32:25, Tamsin Ritchie 32:41 and Hazel Forrester 33:00

Lulllingstone Parkrun Two Striders took on the challenging off-road course in West Kent. Lee Standen finished in 33:58 and Jason Sanders in 34:16

Ashford Tri Club 666 Trail Run
This tough 6.66 mile race in King’s Wood is popular with local trail runners. It was a lovely sunny morning and recent dry weather meant that the course was not as muddy as it usually is. Kevin Rose was the fastest Strider, finishing in 1:02:32, followed by Tamsin Ritchie 1:05:25, Greg Johnson 1:08:26, David Helme 1:14:36, Lauren Aldred 1:19:42 and Nadine Golding 1:19:42

Ashford Striders are a friendly running club based in Ashford, Kent. We offer free taster runs for potential members wishing to see if they want to join. Club membership is charged annually at £25 per person. The club is a not for profit organisation so all monies will be invested back in to the club.

We strive to be an all-inclusive club catering for runners of all abilities, from 5K to ultra runners.

Club running nights are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. On a Monday and Tuesday we offer Technique sessions and runs from various locations according to the planned session and on a Thursday we offer runs at various paces and these, at present, are at 6.45pm from the Ashford Railway Club in Beaver Road.

Please complete a Free Taster Session Form, or contact us if you are interested in running with us, so we can let you know our upcoming meeting times and places. Please allow at least 24 hours for your request to be processed.

335 people took part in Saturday’s Ashford parkrun and as usual there was a good Strider representation. Club Chair Toyah Bicker celebrated her 50th parkrun and Jason Brice and Claire Poile celebrated personal bests.The first Strider to finish was Chris Sardo 21.43, followed by Rob Wood 22.35. Kath Atkinson was the quickest lady finishing in 22.35, followed by Josh Whiten 24.18, Jason Sanders 24.37, Steve Rumsey 25.01, birthday boy Greg Johnson 25.05, Shane Snowwolf 25.10., Gwen Protheroe 25.45, Jamie Bartlett 26.34, Vicky Stevenson 26.58, Jason Brice 27.46, Peter Broom 28.43, Maria Chapman 29.01, Rachel Forrester 29.14, Mark Archer 29.42, Brian Forrester 29.44, Rachel Oliver 30.17, Martin Whittingham 30.22, Rachel Theobald 30.34, Kevin York 30.35, Cris Francis 31.03, Leigh Freeman 31.07, Hazel Forrester 31.16, Julia Woollaston 32.05, Claire Poile 32.06, Kirsty Theobald 36.51, Toyah Bicker 36.58, Shelly Blake 40.27, Simon Howard-Smith 42.04 and Michelle Rowles 42.11. Big thank you to Lisa Fulcher, Justin Burden, Tamsin Ritchie, Alison Waters and Justine Wearn for volunteering.

Becca Hurley was on the road again traveling to the undulating Ally Pally parkrun completing in 36.19. Accompanying her were Adrian Hurley and Lee Standen who completed in 31.22 and 29.50 respectively. John Mitchell was in Halifax completing in 30.46. Anna Harvey completed the Portrush parkrun in Northern Ireland in 36.48. Alice Cook took part in the Rickmansworth parkrun, completing in 23.48 and Jacob Henwood took part in the Mile End parkrun in 20.12.

Brian Marsh completed Sunday’s Great Run Local 5K in 25.13 along with Tamsin Ritchie 28.23. Becca Hurley completed the 2K in 12.21.

It will be an emotional day when members of Ashford Striders Running Club take to the streets of the capital to take part in this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon.

For some it will be the latest in a number of marathons they have taken part in but for others this will be their first ever run at this distance. A daunting prospect for even the most experienced runner, so why endure the pain? Well for these Striders it isn’t just about the mental or physical challenge, it’s about something far more than that.

Kirsty Theobald describes her journey as a ‘couch to marathon’ story. She only began running in May 2018 when she was successful in gaining a charity place at London. She will be running for Phabkids which supports children and adults with disabilities to make more of life together. It is a cause she is already involved with due to her work with the Danny Hall Foundation set up in memory of her brother. Kirsty says “My motivation for running for Phabkids is to spread awareness of the charity and to raise as much as I can to help give these brave children memories they simply wouldn’t otherwise be able to achieve”. She hoped to raise £1,750 but has already topped that and is heading towards the £2,500 mark, through raffles, a comedy and magic night, stalls at local events and in local schools.

Kirsty’s longest run to date was in March where she endured strong winds and storms to complete a 20 mile course at Lydd. As well as supporting Phabkids, Kirsty’s motivation has been to get fit and to show that anything is possible if you believe in yourself. “I have always lacked self confidence and self belief and my running journey has really taught myself that I can and I will”.

Daniel Forbes has suffered from Asthma since childhood and took up running in October 2017 after deciding to try Ashford Parkrun. He has been running ever since and decided to sign up for the London Marathon after getting close to his 50^th Parkrun. London will be his first marathon. “Training has been very hard, with injuries to my ankle from the first day”. He added “my brother and sister have made sure I keep up running, coming with me on runs when they can and joining Ashford Striders with me to keep us all motivated”. Daniel needs to raise £1,800 for his charity and has held a race night fundraiser as well as receiving support from local businesses.

Linda-Jean Delport is also running her very first marathon at London having only been running for one year; she is raising money for Whizz-Kidz – a charity which provides children and young people with vital mobility equipment, opportunities to meet and have fun, and training to help them gain skills for their futures. She needs to raise £2,000.

“I did my first run on 8^th April 2018. It was 4.5km and at the end I thought I would collapse on the floor. I never imagined that just over a year later I would be running a marathon. Sometimes I still can’t believe it”. Linda’s longest training run has been 19 miles and she is looking forward to crossing the finish line in London. “I want that feeling of accomplishment and to know that all these months of hard work have not been in vain. It will be one of the proudest moments as I have never set myself a goal like this before and stuck to it”. Linda is offering local businesses the opportunity of having their logo printed on her marathon running vest in return for sponsorship towards Whizz-Kidz.

Scott Williams and Rachel Misson took part in the Paris Marathon on 14^th April, with the challenge of running in London 2 weeks later. They are raising money for the MS Trust. This will be Rachel’s 41^st marathon, but only Scott’s 3^rd. Scott said “my sister was diagnosed with having this terrible, crippling disease in 2001. The MS Trust ensures that people with MS have the specialist care and information they need to get on with their lives”. So far they have raised nearly £2,500 of their £3,000 target. “Training has been tough” explained Scott, “the winter months, cold dark mornings and evenings and illness has meant we feel like we’ve not done enough but it’s too late to worry now”. They are looking forward to crossing the finish line and collecting their medal at the end, in front of the thousands lining the streets.

Jason Sanders is a run leader within Ashford Striders and is running for CALM – Campaign Against Living Miserably, a charity which supports male mental health. It is a charity he chose as he feels male mental health is still not spoken about enough. “It’s not always easy to ‘Man Up’ and get on with things. Men need to be able to get help and for people not to think any less of them if they’re struggling”. Jason has been running seriously since leaving the army in 2016. He started running with Ashford Striders around a year later, which he says gave him a purpose to run, but also found that running helped his own mental health.

The London Marathon will be Jason’s second marathon, and he says it has been on his bucket list for years. “It’s taken me 8 years of entering the ballot to get a place”. As well as training with the club twice a week, he has mixed this up with cross training and gym sessions. “On the day I’m looking forward to just being there and soaking up the atmosphere” he added, “and realising that all the time, training, dedication and sacrifice was all worth it”.

Fellow Strider Kath Atkinson is amongst those with previous marathon experience, but this will be her first outing in London. She is running for Action on Hearing Loss which is a charity close to her heart, as she suffered left sided hearing loss through Menieres Disease 8 years ago. “It has always been a dream to run London as it is so iconic. And this year as I turned 40 I decided it was the year to do it! Training has gone really well and I mostly run 3 times a week with Ashford Striders and friends”. She says she is motivated by the sense of accomplishment and to see how she can push herself, as well as the social aspect of running with friends. Kath has relied mainly on donations to help towards her £2,000 target and is hoping that by running the marathon she can raise awareness for the charity.

Charlotte Butler is another member of Ashford Striders taking on London – she is running for Save the Children. She is joined by Rebecca Hurley who was fortunate to receive a ballot place but has decided to raise funds for Crohns and Colitis UK.