It’s only May, and already this year we’ve run half marathons, marathons, and ultra marathons, and hiked up Cadair Idris, Snowdon, Ben Nevis and Scafell Pike!
With spring well underway, here’s a roundup of your achievements over the past few months and a look at what we’ve got planned for the year ahead.
Pics: Coventry Way, the London Marathon, and our New Forest trip.
The Story so Far....
It’s been great to see people running throughout winter, braving the dark and cold and running around the city. If you ran this winter, no matter the distance or your speed, well done.
And now, at last, the trails are drying out. We’ve already been in the woods on Kenilworth Road and the paths that wind around the University of Warwick campus. Hearing the birds singing, smelling the blossom, and seeing the bluebells, daffodils, and crocuses is so good for mental wellbeing.
Achievements:
On 5 February, a few of our runners completed the Warwick half marathon, which is 21km.
On 2 March, we led a group on the Three Peaks Challenge conquering Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike, and Snowdon in under 24 hours. You can read about it here.
On 2 April, a group of us did the Coventry Way, a 40 mile route around the city. It was tough and it took us nearly 10 hours of hard work.
On 9 April, we hiked up Cadair Idris on an early morning trip to see the sunrise.
On the weekend of 22 April, we had a break away in the New Forest in Hampshire, where we enjoyed some sea air, a run in the national park, and a 10 mile walk through the Forest.
Also on 22 April, two of our runners smashed the London marathon. Well done Jacqui Hannan and Claire Healey - we all think you are truly awesome.
Michelle Jones won the Aviva walking challenge for April, walking more than 32,000 steps A DAY! Past winners of the challenge were walking around 21,000 steps a day - more than double the 10,000 a day recommended for general fitness. But Michelle was determined. The end result was that Michelle walked over 969,000 steps to claim the crown for April.
Jacqui, Claire and Michelle have truly shown us all what having 60% left in the tank really looks like.
So what’s happening in 2023? Well, we have a fair bit going on this year.
Running in Coventry: 0 to 5km Course for Beginners
Our spring 0 to 5km course started on 25/4/23, and it’s as popular as ever as people break into the world of running for health, fitness, and wellbeing. Our couch to 5k course is on a Tuesday evening at 6.30 in the War Memorial Park in Coventry. Here’s the link to the page if you want to know more or sign up.
New Group For Improvers
At the same time as the 0 to 5k course on a Tuesday, we’re now running an Improvers’ course. This group is for people who have completed a 0 to 5k course but don’t feel ready to join our Wednesday group.
This is because our Wednesday group is for people who are running distances of at least 5k consistently. During the sessions, we run between 5 and 10k and engage in other training activities to build on strength and running technique.
If you're not quite ready for this and you’d like to join our new Improvers’ group, click here. Sign up for the O to 5k course and when you turn up at the Memorial Park at 6.30, let us know you want to run with the Improvers. We'll then allocate you to the right group. We're a friendly, welcoming running group and anyone is welcome to give us a try. We just ask that for the Improvers' Group you can already run around 3 to 5k or have recently completed our couch to 5km course.
If you can’t run 3km, that's no problem at all, just join our 0 to 5k course by clicking here. Our next course starts on 6/6/2023.
Wednesday Group
As we head into summer, our Wednesday 5 to 10km group will be venturing out onto the trails and working to improve their fitness and stamina. Trails and tracks are great for runner’s strength, cardio fitness, and ankle strength. When you’re picking your way over uneven ground, you’re working your legs and body a little harder than when you’re running on tarmac, so its the ideal training ground for the all-round runner.
If you can run a minimum of 5k without stopping and you want to join us in our training, click here.
On Sundays, we run a bit further and depending on who signs up, we can pick up the pace a bit and stretch ourselves. We can help you train for longer distances. Learn more or sign up for a Sunday run here.
The Year Ahead
Here are our plans for the year ahead.
Saturday 27 May 2023: Cadair Idris Sunrise Climb. Places are available to climb Cadair Idris with us, so let us know if you’re interested. It’s an early start as we leave Coventry around midnight on Friday, but we should be back home by lunch time on Saturday. You need to be fairly fit for this walk.
Sunday 11 June 2023: Two Castles Run. Some of us are entering the Two Castles, a 10km run from Warwick to Kenilworth Castle. Finishers get a t shirt and medal, and the cost is £31.00. You have until 1/6/2023 to sign up. You can find out more and register here.
Friday 16 June 2023: Yorkshire Three Peaks. We are organising a day trip to climb the three highest peaks in the Yorkshire Dales in less than 12 hours. Starting and finishing in Horton-in-Ribblesdale, we’ll climb Pen-y-Ghent (694 metres), Whernside (736 metres), and Ingleborough (723 metres). With little time to recover between each climb, it’s a tough challenge! If you want to join us, let us know.
16 July 2023: Devil’s Kitchen Day Climb. Places are available, but please note, you need to be fit.
17 September 2023: Ben Nevis. We’re planning an overnight stay in nearby Fort William as it takes roughly seven hours to get to Ben Nevis from Coventry.
24 September 2023: Scafell Pike - most likely a day climb.
8 October 2023:Chester Marathon. A few of us have entered the Chester marathon. If you fancy joining us, you can learn more and sign up here. Chester Marathon is a multi-award winning event and three time winner of the UK’s Best Marathon.
15 October 2023: Snowdon. This day climb is for less confident climbers. Let us know if you or someone you know is interested in a steady walk up Snowdon.
If you are at all interested in any of these events, please pencil them into your diary and let us know. You are not in any way committed, but we need to know who is interested for numbers in planning transport etc.
Finally, a huge thank you to our run leaders Nikki, Steph, Donna, and Russ who have helped people improve fitness and stay safe at the same time. We would also like to thank all those who join our groups. Watching you develop into strong runners has really made us all very proud - and its great to see the results.
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