The 2024 Aldridge 10k is now open for early bird entries here
Current Tuesday Schedule can be found here.
Details of winter routes here.
Tuesday runs - we meet at the Stick & Wicket at 7pm. Please make sure you sign in on arrival. In case of an emergency during a run scroll down for information.
Details of all our current sessions will shortly be transferred to the club app. This will be where club members will find details of Tuesday club night schedules and upcoming races - don't forget to make sure that any races you have entered are logged on the app so that others can see what is available.
As well as regular steady runs we offer two additional training options, which focus more on interval-based training. The Improvement Group, led by Lucy Baker, Henry Simpson and Tim Farmer, originally focussed on improving 5k times and is suitable for all runners who want to improve, especially those who have never done any focussed training before. The Race Training Group sessions, led mainly by Daniel Day, tend to be rather longer and more suited to more experienced runners. To gain the full benefit of these groups it is advisable to have a running watch and to know how to programme workouts, but there are plenty of members who will help you with this if needed. If you want to know more just speak to one of the leaders identified above. Both groups are open to all club members who want to improve their running, regardless of current performance - one benefit of running intervals around a short(ish) loop is that the whole group stays together regardless of speed.
Thursday 4-mile social runs are also available, starting at 6.30pm from the gate and a faster group usually goes out from the Whitehouse pub corner - see Michael Morley.
Details of all our current sessions will shortly be transferred to the club app. This will be where club members will find details of Tuesday club night schedules and upcoming races - don't forget to make sure that any races you have entered are logged on the app so that others can see what is available.
As well as regular steady runs we offer two additional training options, which focus more on interval-based training. The Improvement Group, led by Lucy Baker, Henry Simpson and Tim Farmer, originally focussed on improving 5k times and is suitable for all runners who want to improve, especially those who have never done any focussed training before. The Race Training Group sessions, led mainly by Daniel Day, tend to be rather longer and more suited to more experienced runners. To gain the full benefit of these groups it is advisable to have a running watch and to know how to programme workouts, but there are plenty of members who will help you with this if needed. If you want to know more just speak to one of the leaders identified above. Both groups are open to all club members who want to improve their running, regardless of current performance - one benefit of running intervals around a short(ish) loop is that the whole group stays together regardless of speed.
Thursday 4-mile social runs are also available, starting at 6.30pm from the gate and a faster group usually goes out from the Whitehouse pub corner - see Michael Morley.
This week's Club News:
ARC had 54 parkrunners and walkers on Saturday 25th November, with 19 at Walsall Arboretum, 6 at Sutton Park, 10 at Chasewater and 2 at Beacon..
Well done to our top-10 finishers: George Brizell (4th), Joanna Stephens (5th lady), Lorraine Beesley (6th lady, 6th Age Grade), Sue Baker (6th lady) and Harshad Patel (10th).
Special congratulations to Tom Neal, who took a whole second off his own V50 5k record at the Arboretum this week, with a time of 18:49.
Well done and thank you also, to all those other members who volunteered at a parkrun this weekend.
Our runners:
Congratulations also to those who completed other races over the weekend, which included an international race and two club GP races:
Well done to our top-10 finishers: George Brizell (4th), Joanna Stephens (5th lady), Lorraine Beesley (6th lady, 6th Age Grade), Sue Baker (6th lady) and Harshad Patel (10th).
Special congratulations to Tom Neal, who took a whole second off his own V50 5k record at the Arboretum this week, with a time of 18:49.
Well done and thank you also, to all those other members who volunteered at a parkrun this weekend.
Our runners:
- Walsall Arboretum: Alex Dicken, Tom Neal (new club V50 5k record), Lee Harris, Adam Benjamin, Trevor Harris, Andrew Fisher, Claire Crook, Pete Kelsall, Roxy Babla, Katrina Wyke, Shelley Nicholls, Abigail Wright, Lawrence Hewitt, Sally Gordon, Anne Kelsall, Mark Chapman, Mark Johnson, Michelle Morgan, Wendy Sargeant.
- Sutton Park: George Brizell (PB), Michael Mason, Rachel Antoine (PB), Melissa Crowley, Gemma Archer and Tony Baker.
- Chasewater: Martin Wall, Joanna Stephens, Catherine Birkbeck, Andrew Birkbeck (PB), Kat Stevenson, Rebecca Steele, Sarah-Anne Fitzsimmons, Liam Bradley, Tim Farmer and Rebecca Beale.
- Beacon: Terry Hastings and Gill Hastings.
- Sandwell Valley: Chris Sprules, Leigh Sprules, Tracey Sprules.
- Cannock Chase: Karl Hill, Nicky Jones (PB) and Richard Moore.
- East Park: Harshad Patel and Claire Pugh-Patel.
- Tamworth Castle Grounds: Tammy Johnson, Rob Foster and Lynda Elmore.
- Aston Hall: Simon Hudson, Stephen Grice and Jo Yarnall.
- Worcester Pitchcroft: Lorraine Beesley.
- Ross-on-Wye: Christopher Boden.
- Rothay Park: Sue Baker.
Congratulations also to those who completed other races over the weekend, which included an international race and two club GP races:
- Action Heart Tuff 'un (formerly the Suicide 6) (GP): Simon Hudson (01:02:32) and Jo Yarnall (01:20:43)
- Hibbs Lupus Trust Big Bird 5k (GP), East Park Wolverhampton: Mike Morley (2nd place), Luke White, Lisa Wakeman (1st lady), Colin Nicholls (27:01), Shelley Nicholls (27:10), Tammy Johnson (29:37), Wendy Sargeant, Jane Quinn (30:57), Maria Taylor (31:01), Tony Baker (35m), Leigh Sprules, Tim Farmer (37:50), Sarah Bishop, Liam Bradley and Lynda Elmore.
- Benidorm Half Marathon: Pete Dimbleby (01:26:52) and Lisa Dimbleby (01:56:48)
- Benidorm 10k: Nick Beech (00:40:16)
- Oulton Park Running GP (16 miles): Nicky Jones (02:26:24, Longest race so far)
- Sherwood Pines Christmas 10k: Lorraine Beesley (00:47:52, 3rd lady, 1st FV55)
2023 in (some) pictures will be built up over the year below: Hover over the main photo and press 'play' to scroll through photos of events so far this year, or click on the thumbnails.
We like to think of ARC as a friendly, supportive club and we are gaining a reputation for the enthusiasm of our support. The video clip below, taken from Cannon Hill Park, on the route of the Birmingham Marathon and Half on October 15 2017 shows us at our best. Some of the supporters had entered one of the races but had to pull out due to injury but instead of moping about it they came and cheered on all those who were running, despite the logistical difficulties of getting there with all the road closures. Well done Sarah Hinkley and crew!
Information for members:
Emergency? DIAL 999
Click here to find your nearest defibrillator
Help us give credit to all who take part in races by letting us know your achievements. Email using this link by Monday lunchtime please.
See the Diary section for races that we know about, either local or that our members have enjoyed in the past. Social events now have their own page here .
We also have a regular walking group. More details are on our About ARC page. All welcome.
See the Diary section for races that we know about, either local or that our members have enjoyed in the past. Social events now have their own page here .
We also have a regular walking group. More details are on our About ARC page. All welcome.
New Members
If you are new to running or looking to improve we can help & support you all the way. To find out more, check out the About ARC page and the New Members section.
Club Training Plans
Members of the Race Training Group generally work through programmes designed by club members, targeted at specific races/distances. These are aimed at those who have already completed the target distance and want to improve their time. They are not full training plans but they outline two 'effort' sessions a week, which can be done with others.
The current Tuesday sessions can be found within the general club Tuesday routes plan here.
When reading the plans, "off" shows the recovery between efforts, so "1k, 800m, 600m, 400m off 2mins, 3 mins
between sets" means "1k effort, 2 min recovery, 800m effort, 2 min recovery, 600m effort, 2 min recover,400m effort, 2 min recovery, 3 min rest then repeat." Recovery can be jog or walk, or a mixture, depending on individual fitness and preference. The length of recovery can also be adjusted if necessary. 'Tempo is generally defined as a pace you can comfortably keep up for about an hour.
Obviously these plans can be started at any time and/or adapted to meet individual needs. In particular, slower runners can benefit from the plans but would need to reduce the number of repetitions (sets) or the individual distances in most of the sessions. If you just want to try out some efforts sessions to make your training a bit more interesting and productive there are a good number included here that you can try.
Previous training programmes from this group are still available. Two Half-Marathon plans are here and here, whilst a 10k plan is here and a 5k training plan is here.
The current Tuesday sessions can be found within the general club Tuesday routes plan here.
When reading the plans, "off" shows the recovery between efforts, so "1k, 800m, 600m, 400m off 2mins, 3 mins
between sets" means "1k effort, 2 min recovery, 800m effort, 2 min recovery, 600m effort, 2 min recover,400m effort, 2 min recovery, 3 min rest then repeat." Recovery can be jog or walk, or a mixture, depending on individual fitness and preference. The length of recovery can also be adjusted if necessary. 'Tempo is generally defined as a pace you can comfortably keep up for about an hour.
Obviously these plans can be started at any time and/or adapted to meet individual needs. In particular, slower runners can benefit from the plans but would need to reduce the number of repetitions (sets) or the individual distances in most of the sessions. If you just want to try out some efforts sessions to make your training a bit more interesting and productive there are a good number included here that you can try.
Previous training programmes from this group are still available. Two Half-Marathon plans are here and here, whilst a 10k plan is here and a 5k training plan is here.