Biggleswade AC May 2006

Yet again, your editor apologises for the late arrival of this newsletter

STEVE WORRALL
It is with great sadness that we report the death of Steve Worrall on 30th April 2006.
Steve joined the club, with his wife Karen, in 2001 when they moved to Biggleswade. In less than 5 years Steve became very well known to all club members, both juniors and seniors, as a wonderful coach and friend. His coaching knowledge was incredible, and he helped many of our runners reach their true potential through constant encouragement and regular speed and endurance sessions. He always made time to speak to any club member, irrespective of their ability, offering help and advice wherever it was needed.
Steve was a very accomplished runner in his younger days, running 10 miles in under 50 minutes, which is International class now.
As well as being a senior club coach and committee member, Steve also found time to act as Coaching Development Officer for Beds AAA, and he recently won an award for the Development of Athletics Coaching in the Eastern Region.
He will be very sadly missed by us all. Our deepest sympathies go to Karen and their three young children.

Overseas Tour - Friday 9th June to Monday 12th June

So far 12 people have said they wish to go on the tour to Font Romeu in the French Pyrenees. The weekend will include training runs, walks, sightseeing and relaxing. There is no organised race. Last year we went to the same area and had a great time, enjoying the mountain scenery. Final arrangements are now being made, so if you would like to go, but have not put your name down, please let Nigel know ASAP.

Sandy Open Meeting
Easter Saturday, 15 Apr

This was the opening event of the season at the new track and field facility at Sandy Sports Centre. The promotion was a joint venture between Bedford and County AC, Biggleswade AC, and DeMontfort University.

We wish to thank everyone who helped out. There was some confusion running up to the 15th as to whom was doing what - Bedford or Biggleswade. We did ourselves very proud and looked very professional in all of our activities, we had by far the most people officiating (by a large number) and it is always these forgotten people who make the events tick. The athletes are always remembered for their performances, but the officials are the silent heroes. Without officials - athletes cannot compete! Words alone cannot convey our thanks to you for our efforts on Saturday. The people from Bedford were very impressed with the event and the facility we have, and are planning some events at Sandy and not Bedford as a result.

There is an account of the meeting on the club website at www.biggleswadeac.org.uk/Results06.html#NA18, along with detailed results at www.biggleswadeac.org.uk/Results/open15apr2006.pdf (requires Acrobat Reader).

Sandy 10 Road Race and 2 Mile Fun Run - 26 March

One big omission from last month's Newsletter, was to thank Lou Myers and the Lord Mayor of the City of Westminster for the presentation of a plaque and Letter of Greeting to Sandy Town Council, after the race. Many older members of the club will remember Lou when he competed for Biggleswade AC, and he is still running, often competing in Ultra Trail races in the USA. Thanks Lou for taking the time to organise and present the plaque and letter of greeting.

Now that the accounts for the Sandy 10 are almost finalised, we are pleased to announce that we will be presenting Ł600.00 to the Keech Children's Hospice and Ł600.00 to the British Blind Sports (in memory of Paul Pearce, a partially sighted athlete who was tragically killed earlier this year).

Annual Subscriptions - Now (Over)Due

Many thanks to those of you who have re-joined the club again this year: the total is currently 107. This still leaves about 47 people from last year who have not re-joined yet. We don't want to lose you, so get that money in to Stuart Galloway or Chris Clarke as soon as possible (Ł15 seniors and Ł7 juniors). It's easy to forget, so why not do it now!

Sandy 12-Hour Track Relay - Sat 24 June

Damien and Simon are now collecting teams for the 12hr Relay. If you would like to take part (even for just 20 minutes) please see them so they can fit you in to a team. All abilities welcome. Gavin will soon be looking for helpers for this day as well so if you are free please let him know.

Check out www.biggleswadeac.org.uk/12hr.html for more details

The Tuesday Night Programme

You can find these and other training events in the training section of the Club website

2nd May Everton Loop
9th May RSPB loop
16th May Blunham River loop
23rd May Grafham Away Day
30th May ???
6th Jun Everton loop
13th Jun Away Day - Navigator Way - Led by Stuart / Nigel
20th Jun Blunham Handicap loop
27th Jun Club Photo and RSPB loop (club kit if possible)
4th July ???
11th July Away Day - Old Warden - Led by Tanya
18th July Run to Danish Camp
25th July Hill Training - Sand Hills

What to look out for over the next few months: Summer Kingfisher Way, another talk by "Buffy" (Nutrition), Royston Heath Away Day, run round Rutland, RNR and lots lots more!!!

Thursday evenings will be "General Running", dictated by the race calendar, and is tailored on the night to the participants needs. Runners are usually split into ability groups to ensure everyone has a good run.

If you would like to lead an Away Day in your home town, or you have any comments about the above programme please speak to Gavin or any of the committee.

Leagues, Series, and Other Events

Eastern Young Athletes League (EYAL)
For U13, U15 and U17 age groups
All meetings are on Sundays

May	7	Milton Keynes
Jun	18	Huntingdon
Jul	2	Bedford
Jul	30	Sandy
Aug	20	Luton

Southern Mens and Womens Leagues 2006
All meetings are on Saturdays
The Team Managers are Sharron Best and David Brown

Women
20 May	Barnet Copthall
15 Jul	Cambridge
12 Aug	Peterborough (2ndary Hosts)
2 Sep	Sandy (Prime Hosts)

Men
20 May	Luton
3 Jun	Sutcliffe Park
8 Jul	Walthamstow
5 Aug	Basildon

Round Norfolk Relay - 16th-17th Sept 2006
All runners/support crew who wish to take part in this years Round Norfolk Relay should see Gavin to be given a questionnaire to be filled in and returned as soon as possible, so we can determine if we can field one or two teams this year for this excellent event. If we are to have two teams in it we need at least 34 runners and 7 support crew so don't delay. Team selection will take place in July.
There's more information on the race and its history at www.roundnorfolkrelay.com, and more about the club's plans at www.biggleswadeac.org.uk/RNR.html

New Members

Welcome to the following athletes recently elected as members of the Club:

  Oliver Godding   a junior from Sandy
  Harry Holmes   a junior from Biggleswade
  Darren Howe   a junior from Sandy
  Molly McKenzie   a junior from Lower Stondon
  Robert Tant   a junior from Sandy

Best of luck in all your athletic endeavours!

BAC WEBSITE GOES FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH

Congratulations must go to Webmaster Hucky and his helpers (Ken and Giles) as the website has now taken over 35,000 hits. Over the past years this has become a very valuable tool at informing club members of events and is also a great tool for recruiting potential athletes. Over the past year it has continually been updated regularly with superb photos and reports, plus pages are being added all the time for the benefit of our ever growing club. The forum is also used widely by the club to organise additional training days and events. If you haven't looked at it yet, check out www.biggleswadeac.org.uk. Well done Web Team.

NEWS FOR YOUNG ATHLETES

Sportshall Athletics
The Sportshall Challenge held Saturday 25th April at Sandy although disappointing from a competition point of view, was a success from a club point of view. Late phone calls from Leighton Buzzard and Riverside (apologies but they wouldn't be sending anyone) meant we had to quickly rearrange our programme to make it a club event with guests. At the end all competitors were shouting for more so more relays were quickly arranged.
Sportshall at Biggleswade has now stopped until next winter. Watch this space for more information.
All Tuesday and Thursday JUNIOR sessions now start at 6.30 pm
National Junior League
We have been approached by Bedford & County to enable the U20 age group to compete with their peers and compete in the NJAL. Dates (all on Sundays) and venues are:

7 May Ipswich
11 Jun Ipswich
16 Jul Bedford
13 Aug Cambridge (clash with club proposal for Gt Yarmouth Meeting)