This is the week that was….Halloween!

What a spooktaular week it has been.  With a Halloween themed cake night on Tuesday, the usual terror of Fartlek Wednesday, Zombie Catterpillars and a Frightening Friday Morning Social Run! Phil was out running midweek at the Cattle Creepy 10K.  A fun run in the dark with sweets, treats and a cool medal. And LFR hosted it's Halloween Invite Run on Friday night!  A cold, cold night for our runners in the woods coming across scary clowns, zombies, spiders, monsters and other frights!  A huge well done to everyone who ran and a big thank you to our scarers for spending the night sitting the pitch black woods! A very fun night hearing lots of screams and spooks.  Our next invite night will be in the summer when it's PJ time! The weekend saw KGL running marathon #42 at the Enigma Fireworks Marathon - a 3:37 in howling wind and rain.  Super work Katy! And finally...Cross Country Season has arrived with a bang and the first race of the 3CXC League at Wellingborough.  We had a MASSIVE team of LFRs up for the challenge at Race 1 and are currenty 5th overall in the league!   Amazing effort from all of you! We also found out that our superstar athlete Chris not only runs for England (she's been asked to run again - Well done Chris!), she can also walk on water. See if you can spot her below... Don't forget it's the LFR Cross Country Race on Sunday 24th November!  As we are hosting, we need your help to marshal the event to ensure everyone is safe and has a great time. In total, we need approx. 40 marshals on the day (we’ve already had an amazing response, but still need more) to help with everything from catering to handing out race tokens at the finish line.  Those that have already offered to help, we have you logged.  Those who have not, please message Tracy Cardno or email her on tracy@limestone.co.uk to let her know. If you have signed up for XC this year, it's appreciated if you can sign up to help at our event. We will of course have a team running from LFR, however marshalling is the first priority and a core team of LFR runners will represent the club in the race.  You will be told if this is you. That's all for this week.  Have a great week, LFR!

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This is the week that was…

Our Tuesday pace groups this week was another step up night where the groups ran 15-30s a mile faster than usual.  Everyone did it and everyone haf fun.  Super well done to all runners!  Big thanks to our run leaders for pushing the runners.  We had the usual Fartlek and some Golden Riddy loops for Improvers and an almost sunny Friday morning social. parkrun Day saw LFRs at Milton Keynes, Wolverhampton, Houghton Hall, Tring, Belton House, Rushmere and Ellenbrook Fields. And it was a busy, busy weekend full of events... Saturday was the return of the brutal Snowdonia Marathon.  838m of climbing on the roads in the mountains.  Paul Little, just two weeks after completing his 100 mile ultra, ran a great course PB of 3.49.  Snowdonia newbie, Paul Doyle, ran a fantastic 3.54 just six days after running Abingdon Marathon!  And Jen ran herself a marathon PB!  Great running, guys!  Big thanks to James, Dawn and Will acting as a wonderful support crew to all. Also in Wales, Lee made his way to the Porth Elrias 10K AND ran a PB! A few of the team (C25K graduates from earlier this year) made their way to the Luton 10K! After swearing never to run a half marathon again following the Victoria Half Marathon two weeks ago, Nolan was back at it at the hilly Luton half on Sunday....and swore never to run a a hilly half again when he finished.  Rumour has it he has entered the Dirt Half...so we'll just see what he says then!  Also running the Luton half were Anne, finishing whilst tripping over a barrier and Phil, smashing his sub-2 goal, coming in at 1.51.  Great running! Team Delderfield ran athe British Legion Poppy Run. Jo ran the Venice Marathon in a smashing time of 3.44! A horde of LFR made their way to Bedford Autodrome for the half marathon and 10K.  Mark K ran a 1.32, with Mrs K running the 10K in 58.33! Julie, running her second 10K in as many weeks came in 2nd in her age category.  Sally came 1st in her age category.  And the other CK running...Clare Kelly...after running a half marathon PB just a few weeks ago, smashed her 10K PB with a 57:07! NOW...turning back two weeks, I somehow missed an incredible marathon PB run by the brilliant Peter Jones at Chicago Marathon!  He had a brilliant race and stormed round in 3.22.  Absoutely brilliant.  Well done, Peter! That's all for this week. Happy running, LFR!

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This is the week that was…

It was 5caKe night on Tuesday. A night full of PBs!  Well done to everyone who ran a PB....I think it was the temptaion of David's sponge at the clubhouse that got everyone going!  Not wanting to miss out on cake night, Stephanie did her own cake run on holiday. Brendan apparently led the Fartlek Fun Gang on Wednesday....no picture though.  Did it even happen?  Captain Dan took the Improvers for some speed and agility fun in the park.  And Martin led another glorious Friday morning run. We had some LFR midweek racing on Wednesday at the Silverstone 10K with PBs from Emily, David, Ian and David.  Well done to all the gang! parkrun day saw team LFR at Westmill, Princes parkrun, Linford Wood, Houghton Hall, Upton Court, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Whinlatter Forest, Bakewell, Witney, Jersey Farm, Churchfields Farm, Dunstable Downs and Rushmere.  At home in Rushmere, Julie came in first lady...again!  Colin, Joe and Mike all ran PBs!  And Vicki and Will both ran their 50th parkun! David was back racing at the weekend at the Lakeland Trails Keswick 15K. There were LFRs on their training runs all weekend, some running their longest distance so far.  Well done all! And finally...the biggest event of the weekend was the Great North Run where we had Jeremy and Duncan both lining up to race against Sir Mo.  I'm not sure of the result.... Well done guys on a great run! And that's all for this week.  Happy running, LFR!

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This is the week that was…

We started the week with pace groups in the heat on Tuesday - big thanks to our run leaders for leading.  JK led the Fartlek super group on Wednesday; Jen took the Improvers to Bragenham Berg on Thursday for some long hill repeats - Coach Matt, not wanting to miss out, did his own hills reps on the Costa del Sol; and Coach Annis led the Friday gang on a social morning run in the sun. parkrun Day had LFRs at Rugby, Milton Keynes, Minehead, Northampton, Killerton, Stevenage, Linford Wood, Sewerby, Houghton Hall, Porthcawl. Canons Park, Barry Island, Strathclyde, Bakewell, Dunstable Downs and Rushnmere.  At home in Rushmere it was a busy Haiwaiin themed affair with PBs from Jamie, Joe, Richard (again!) and Pauline. For a post parkrun treat, Len and Dave came up with a great meal.  From Dave, eggy bread.  From Len, baked beans with onion and Worcester Sauce.  I thought I'd try it out.  Unfortunately I didn't any Worcester Sauce so I threw in some curry powder. Worked a treat.  Would definitely recommend.  I'll ask Len and Dave for more post run food ideas again....                         It was a massive weekend of racing and events.... Nolan and Dave took on the Spitfire 10K at Hendon and Heidi, Stephen and Jeremy were at the Spitfire 10K at Cosford. Pam was on tour in Stockholm for the Tjejmilen 10K.  David was at the Homecoming 10K. It was the Bedford Running Festival with Team LFR running 5Ks, 10Ks and the half marathon AND getting in lots of alcohol free beer at the end (and maybe some actual beer too).  Great running from everyone!  Shout out to those completing the 5K and 10K double on Saturday; and to Chris who ran a 3 minute half marathon PB; and Jane who ran a 17 minute half marathon PB!  Superb efforts! It was also the weekend of the Dunstable Challenge where runners could take on a half marathon, 20 Miles, Marathon and new for this year....a Hilly Billy 50K!  We had LFRs running in all distances, some forgetting gels and falling into others.  Katy ran her 40th marathon!  JK was back doing what he does best completing hi 244th marathon....wow!  Will ran his furtherst ever distance.  And Paul...on his return from the ultra he ran in Canada last week completed the 50K run on Sunday..and he came 4th!  There's just no stopping this man! The multisporters were out in force this weekend.... LFRs were at the St Neots Triathlon with Jen completing the sprint distance triathlon and Michelle completing the 10K run leg for the standard distance triathlon!  Well done, ladies! The LFR Cycling Division made an appearance at the ABF Soldiers Charity Ride on Sunday completing 35, 50 or 65 miles.  Amazing riding! That's all for this week.  Happy running, LFR!

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This is the week of….heat and epic challenges!

Our club runs began back at the clubhouse this week, with the out and back route to Wing on Tuesday.  A bit drier than last time, but just as tough.  Captain Dan took out the Wednesday Fartlekkers for some sprints and Pigeon racing.  Coach Matt and the Improvers were putting in one mile reps round Astral Park Lake on Thursday.  And Jenny led the sunny social run on Friday.  Always a joy! parkrun day saw LFRs at Rushmere, Bushy, Bedford, Crystal Palace, Lowestoft, Lymington Woodside, Eden Project, Houghton Hall, Workington, Osterley, Lowestoft, Watermeadows, Marston Vale and parkrun de Rouen....it's not a PB in French.  It's MP.  Meilleure Perf.  I like this. At home in Rushmere, Andrew came in 8th (sneaking closer to his MP) with Jamie and Kevin sneaking into the top 20.  No MPs this week...the heat was too much! Some LFRs took on a few epic challanges over the bank holiday weekend in the horrendous heat..... Claire Giblin and Gordon Hill were at the Ridgeway Challenge - 86 miles of trails! Claire said this was the toughest race she has ever completed...26 hours on her feet.  "The Ridgeway was beautiful and the best part of it was getting to see the sun set and rise again. Magical."  Just wonderful.  Well done! JK took on the White Cliffs Ultra - 32 Miles of heat and hills.  Great work, JK! Paul Little was over in Canada for his ultra - the Black Spur Ultra.  54K.  Bears.  Coyotes.  6800 feet of rocky elevation.  And a personalised can of beer.  Awesome! And the bank holiday ended in it's usual fashion with Karen leading a glorious social run around the Ashridge trails.  Lovely stuff! We also had lots of LFRs out on their training runs and rides.  Superb efforts in this heat.  I decided against going out on my long run as it was far too hot for me! Talking of heat..... Tips for Running in the Heat Dress appropriately - Make sure you are wearing lightly coloured and loose-fitting running gear. Pale colours reflect the sun’s rays better and baggy clothes help take advantage of any breeze, including the one you make yourself by running. Technical t-shirts can allow sweat to pass through them and evaporate, which keeps your core temperature lower. Sunglasses and waterproof sunscreen are a necessity, while a hat or visor to protect your face is also a good idea. Don’t go for a tight-fitting hat or one made from thick material though, as it is important to lose heat through your head. Get your timing right - When training in the heat, you should avoid running between midday and 15:00 when the sun is at its strongest. Ideally you should run early in the morning. The air quality is also at its best in the morning. Sticking to routes that provide a lot of shade can make a difference too. Keep hydrated - If you’re running for 45 minutes or less, drinking water alone is fine. But if you’re going for longer,  you should ideally consume around 235ml of sports drink every 20 minutes to help maintain electrolyte levels and refuel your muscles. Even if you don't feel thirsty, drink at least 225ml of fluid each hour. You should be hydrated ahead of your run too – drinking 450ml of water two hours before you start will ensure you’re well set. Work out the easiest way for you to carry bottles while you’re out and about, whether that be in a bag, a holster, or simply in your hand. Different people prefer different methods but there is always a way. Avoid drinks with caffeine and alcohol before runs as they increase urine output which can make you even more dehydrated. Start slowly and know when to stop - When the sun is beating down, it’s particularly beneficial to start your run a bit slower than usual. If you normally run at eight-minute mile pace, try to run 10-minute miles – it will take you longer to overheat. If you feel you’re becoming too hot, know when to stop as heat-induced illness can be serious. Headaches, confusion, loss of muscular control, hot and cold flushes, over-sweating, clammy skin and an upset stomach are all signs of impending heat illness. If you feel any of these, seek shade, drink and try and get yourself a ride home. Make use of water - It is usually cooler and breezier near water so running alongside it can help keep your core temperature down. Whether you run next to a river, stream, lake or even the canal, the lower temperature should make you feel a lot less tired. (Source: VLM website) Please be sensible in the heat.....if you're heading out without being properly fuelled and hydrated and not carrying any liquids, you are just asking for trouble.   Please don't do it.  Run safe. That's all for this week.  Have a great week, LFR!

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This is the week that was…

We had the last of the summer trail series this week with our second round at Woburn.  There will be more trail runs over the autumn and winter months (headtorch mandatory).  Keep an eye on the newsletter and the Facebook group for details of these! Shout to both Tom and Will on Tuesday who both ran to Woburn for the run from LB and MK respectively, Will running his furthest ever distance to date!  Well done guys. Anne took out the Fantastic Fartlek Five on Wednesday; Captain Dan and friends played Bulldog in the park on Thursday getting some speed and agility in whilst at it; and Alice led a wonderful Friday morning run. parkrun day saw LFRs at Dunstable Downs, Buckingham, Reigate Priory, Brandon Country Park, Rushcliffe, Houghton Hall, Linford Wood, Stevenage, Crystal Palace, Amager Fælled and Rushmere.  At home in Rushmere, Katy GL came in first lady;  our Tom came in 3rd overall; and we had PBs from Ian, Chair Steve and Richard (again!). We had members on holiday getting their runs in with the Sugars in Montenegro. And you'll remember Celia on holiday in France had set herself a challenge last week of getting her time down on a hilly run to under 35 minutes.  Well she plugged away at her challenge and whilst she didn't get the time to under 35, she did go from 43:43 to her best time if 37:53.  This is an amazing achievement!  In doing this she ran 91km in 14 days with a elevation of 117m on each run.  Such hard work and dedication.  Excellent work, Celia! Kevin, Alison Steve and David went out on a Social Sunday run and there were plenty of training runs with members training for 10Ks, half marathons and marathons and some heading out for the joy of running. Shout out to Christine who was at the the World Masters Swimming Champs this week posting some excellent times for various swims.  Very well done! The biggest event of this weekend was Ironman Copenhagen where we had James Bassil giving it his all on his second ever Ironman.  For those who don't know, an Ironman is a full distance triathlon where you swim 3.8km, then ride 180km, and then run a marathon.  Who would do that?! Who would even attempt that?  Well....James Bassil did.  And James Bassil is a double Ironman! He had an amazing experience, smiling all the way...and did a storming time too...11 hours and 46 minutes of exercise. Well done, James Bassil! That's all for this week.  Have a great week, LFR!

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This is the week that was…Cops and Robbers!

The week began with a first aid session for our run leaders on Monday.  Huge thanks to Jeremy and Alan for their time and leading the session.  Everyone who attended found it informative and gave them confidence.  Any help is better than no help. Our running started at the Cops and Robbers cake night in Tuesday where almost all the robbers got caught and lots of cake was eaten! Wednesday saw the return of Alice from her 14 month break to lead the Fartlek fun;  Lisa led a stretching session on Thursday, teaching us all how to stretch properly after a run; and Martin led a sunny morning social run for the Friday morning gang. On a windy parkrun day had LFRs at Cannon Hill, Upton House, Linford Wood, Houghton Hall, Crichton, Great Denham, Mole Valley and Rushmere.  At home in Rushmere, Captain Dan came in third, with Anthony and Jamie coming in 7th and 8th respectively and we had PBs from Clare and mini LFR James Parker! We also have below my favourite photo of the week from Gavin at Crichton parkrun.... The weekend also saw some racing.... Wes and Emma took on yet another marathon at the LDWA Birmingham Canal Canter.  There's just no stopping these ladies! The Herberts were at the Burnham Beeches 10K. Current Runner of the Month, Coach Matt, was at the Run Dorney 10K running a smashing PB!! And Jim, Amos and Jane took the trip to London for the Great British Beerathon!  Lots of running.  Lots of beer.  Lots of vom.  Good fun! There were plenty of us out on lots of training runs, rides and swims all weekend.  Big shout to Celia curently holidaying France who is setting herself some holiday goals...she runs the same hilly 6.3K run every morning starting the week with a time of 43:43, chipping it down to 41.08.  Then with a little encouragement from her stepdaughter and a challenge to get sub-40 by the end of the week...off she went.  Did she do it?  Of course she did!  38:49!  Next challenge is sub-35 by the time they leave. Can she do it? We believe in you, Celia! HUGE LFR Congratulations to Chrissy and Roger on their wedding on Saturday!  We wish you all the happiness and joy for your future together! LFR wedding dresses should be a thing.... That's all for this week.  Happy running, LFR!

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This is the week that was…

Our summer trail run this week was at Rushmere in the glorious summer rain!  This time we started our run at the fishery.  Big thanks to Peter for hosting us.  Excellent tea and cakes for Michelle's birthday too!  Captain Dan was in charge of the Fartlek whistle on Wednesday.  We returned to Rushmere on Thursday for the second instalment of Capture the Flag.  And Jenny took out the Friday gang on another sunny social run. parkrun day saw LFRs at Andover, Southsea, Linford Wood, Sewerby, Houghton Hall, Buckingham, Humber Bridge, Whinlatter Forest, Harlow, Daventry, Penrose, Marston Vale and Rushmere. At home in Rushmere, Anthony (Anthony!) came in 7th(7th!!) and we had PBs from Nic, Karen and Steve.  Len was running his 50th parkrun at Rushmere. Chrissy was running her final events this weekend as Miss Sherwood.....she's getting married!  First up she was in her tutu at Rushmere parkrun on Saturday and then she made an appearance at the Bearbrook 10K on Sunday.  Good luck for the wedding, Chrissy.  We all hope you have the most wonderful day! Also at Bearbrook were Kevin and Julie. There was more racing from Lee at the Bembridge 5 trail run on the Isle of Wight. The LFR Cycling Division were out in force on Sunday at Ride London.  Jeremy took on the 46 miles with Ali, Paul, Ian, Carrie, Verity and Jen taking on the 100 miles.  Some fantastice rides from every single one (although Jeremy did have a little bump on the way round!  Well done everyone!  Great riding! Lots of big training runs from some LFR over the weekend too.  Looks like the Autumn marathon training is in full swing! And that's all for now....have a great week, LFR!

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This is the week that was…Conti!

We took a break from our trail series to meet again at the Clubhouse on Tuesday.  An out and back along the canal towards Slapton and only three flies eaten by the Captain.  Excellent! Wednesday saw Team LFR head over to an LFR favourite, the Waddesdon 5K, with some excellent runs on that torturous uphill and fast legs on the speedy down.  PBs also came in from Gavin and Mr Ayers (I must have kept him chatting too much last year). Back to the club runs, Janice returned to leading the Fartlek Joy and Pain; Coach Annis was putting on another core strength workout on Thursday; and Alan was leading the social Friday run - no sun this week.  Has he lost his magic sun powers?  Thankfully they missed the rain! We had some Friday night racing from Julie and Chris at the very wet, but nice and flat Bedfordshire AAA 10K Road Race. parkrun day saw LFRs at Guildford, Milton Keynes, Falkirk, Killerton, Linford Wood, Houghton Hall, Brandon Country Park, Poolsbrook, Great Denham, Dunstable Downs, Martson Vale, Hanworth and Rushmere.   At home in Rushmere we had just the one PB on a muggy morning parkrun from Ian who came in 14th.  Well done, Ian! Mountain lover Glyn was trying his luck following the Bob Graham Round.  A very tough first day he said which included 42 Wainwrights in 74 miles carrying a 65ltr pack withfull camping gear and four days worth of food. Crikey! And finally...the main event of the weekend was the annual Conti 24 Hour Thunder Run!  Three LFR teams made their way to Catton Park to take on the brutal 10K laps at all hours of the day.  For those not sure of what this event entails....team of runners band together to run a relay.  10K loops.  Over 24 hours.  Some will do four laps.  Maybe five.  There have been stories this year of double loops for some our members.  And these laps could start in the early hours of the morning whilst we are all tucked in our beds!  There was mud, torrential rain, sun, heat and coconut bras aplenty.   Incredible efforts from all our runners.  Well done!  Look out for details of next year's event and when we are puttin teams together. That's all for another week.  Happy running, LFR! PS - To Paul and Jim....Happy Monday!

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This is the week that was…Mentmore!

We had another of our wonderful trail summer runs to start the week...this time at Mentmore.  Huge thanks to our run leaders Tam, Steve, Tom, Stephen and Vicky for showing the members the way through the trails....and cows.  There are three more trail runs coming up over the next few weeks.  Keep an eye on Facebook and this very newsletter for full details. Anne took charge of the Fartlek Whistle of Joy for the very first time on a warm and muggy Wednesday evening; Captain Dan led the Improvers for hill reps at the lake; And finally Katharine led the Friday crew on a lovely, sunny, social run. Paul, Dan and Gavin took a trip to Ashridge Woods on Saturday to test out the upcoming trail routes. parkrun day saw LFRs at Milton Keynes, Nobles, Houghton Hall, Tring, Watermeadows, Woolacombe Dunes, Dunstable Downs. Marston Vale and Rushmere.  At home in Rushmere Richard ran ANOTHER PB - they just keep coming for him! At Houghton Hall, Coach Matt came first in his age catefory AND ran a 5K PB.  Superstar Tom came 2nd and also ran a PB!  Chair Steve was also there. It was a weekend full of fun events too....here we go... Mother and daughter duo, Team Turner, made their way to Reading for The Chamber of Runs Half Marathon and received from excellent bling. Clare took on the Spire Bushey 10K and ran a fantastic PB! Sally, Jason, Paul and David were at the Hell Fire Half Marathon. Gordon was doing what he does best at Race to the Stones. James, Jen, Ant and Carrie took a break from running to walk over mountains and across (and into) bogs at the weekend to find the most remote pub on mainland Britain for a pint - The Old Forge, Inverie, Scotland. The LFR Cyclists were out on Sunday taking part in L'Etape UK - 100 miles on the bike over The Chilterns.  Brutal.  Chapeau! The biggest event of the weekend was Ironman UK at Bolton where a great number of our LB Tri friends were taking part.  As was our very own LFR Martin!  A huge well done to Martin for all his efforts and training.  It has been a long few months.  It may not have been the race he wanted, but huge kudos and congratulations for getting through that training and getting so far.  You'll come back stronger next year! And of course LFRs were out all weekend on training runs, rides and swims.  Excellent efforts in the summer heat,  Well done everyone for another brilliant week! Happy running, LFR!

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