Author Archives: Caroline

Autumn 2021 running courses

New running courses: Monday 6 September – Friday 17 December 2021

The new term starts on Monday 6 September and finishes on Friday 17 December. It’s a 14 week term excluding half term and costs £182 (daytime & evening class only) OR £196 (including a weekly social run).

Here’s a reminder of the classes on offer:
* Monday @9.30am (improvers 3)
* Monday @10.30am (beginners)
* Tuesday @8.30am (improvers 1)
* Tuesday @7pm (improvers mixed ability)
* Thursday @10.30am (improvers 2)
* Fridays @9.30am (mixed ability social run)

If you would like to renew/join, please complete a health form. You can pay by Bacs to the usual account – please reference your name. For more information please email info@commonrunners.co.uk

Upcoming social runs

Towpath 10k run: On Friday 17 September @9.30/10am, starting at Putney Bridge and finishing in Vauxhall where we will head for coffee and cakes. £10 for the run. Please register your interest.

*London trail run: On Friday 8 October @10am. More information to follow

* London 10k run: In November (tbc).

Xmas scavenger hunt run: On Thursday 2 December @7pm

Captain Tom 100 challenge

We are taking part in the Captain Tom 100 challenge and raising funds for the Foundation.

At our social run on FRIDAY 30 APRIL 2021 @9.30am we will be running 10k (100m x100)! Everyone is invited to take part – running 10k or sharing the distance with a friend. We will use the Parkrun route for our challenge where one lap equals 2.5k.

We will split into groups in order to comply with current restrictions. Donations to The Foundation can be made direct – please click here.

Easter scavenger hunt run (or walk)

Although restrictions are easing on 29 March (fingers crossed), we are still expected to ‘stay local’ so how about going on an Easter themed scavenger hunt run (or walk) around Wimbledon with family and friends? The hunt is all about Easter symbols and places of worship in Wimbledon. You can download a copy here.

Start and finish the scavenger hunt run/walk in the centre of Wimbledon Village and see how many Easter symbols and places of worship you can find in one hour. If you do the hunt with family members, you can split into teams and have a reward for the winning team who has photo proofs of their finds. Enjoy!

March run challenge

March run challenge to celebrate women and to get fit!

Running can be a challenge and I know that many of you have found it especially hard over the past year. To mark International Women’s Day on the 8 March and to get fit for our Easter classes starting on 29 March, I would like you to enter our MARCH RUN CHALLENGE via Running Woman.

Why not challenge yourself to run 25k, 50k and beyond during March? If you think that you can run 25k then go for 50k and if you can run 50k then go for 75k! International Women’s Day is all about challenging yourself for change so let’s go for the unthinkable!

I HAVE JUST ENTERED THE 150K RUN CHALLENGE!!

How to enter: go to the Running Woman website, choose your distance, record your runs on your watch/through Strava/running app, submit your final total at the end of the month and receive a medal! The cost of entering is £10.

While completing your challenge, it would be great if you could share your efforts along the way via Common Runners’ private group page on Facebook. Alternatively, just send me an update and I will share to all. To encourage each other, you may want to share distances, routes, who you ran with etc.

Summer 2021 running courses

New running courses: Monday 19 April – Friday 30 July 2021

The new term starts on Monday 19 April and finishes on Friday 30 July. It’s a 14 week term excluding half term and costs £182 for day runners and £168 for evening runners as there is no social run on offer.

Here’s a reminder of the classes on offer:
* Monday @9.30am (improvers 2)
* Monday @10.30am (beginners)
* Tuesday @8.30am (improvers 1)
* Tuesday @9.30am (improvers 3)
* Tuesday @7pm (improvers mixed ability)
* Thursday @10.30am (improvers 1)
* Fridays @9.30am (mixed ability social run)

If you would like to renew/join, please complete a health form. You can pay by Bacs to the usual account – please reference your name. For more information please email info@commonrunners.co.uk

Run classes start on 29/3/21!

As per the Government’s briefing on Monday (22/2/21), organised outdoor sport can resume on the 29 March! This means that we will be able to start running in groups in 5 weeks time.

Over the Easter period (29 March to 16 April) the following improver classes will run. And thereafter, I will resume our old timetable for the summer term (19 April to 30 July) which will include a new beginner’s course.

Easter timetable
Week beginning 29/3, 5/4, 12/4 – Monday @9am (improvers level 2/3); Tuesday @8.30am (improvers level 1); Tuesday @7pm (mixed ability); Thursday @8.30am (online S&C class); Friday @9am (social run).

Please note that there is no social run on Friday 2 April as it’s a bank holiday.

Easter class costs
The cost of the above classes are as follows: £39 for 3 day classes/2 social runs; £36 for 3 evening classes. Once we resume our old timetable on Monday 19 April, you can come to additional classes to make up for those that had to be cancelled due to the lockdown (or pay a reduced fee). And if you paid for the winter term, I will deduct your payment from the cost of the summer term.

Trail shoes recommendations

Trail shoes recommendations
Over the past few weeks it has been difficult to navigate the puddles, mud and snow while running. So I asked Sporting Feet for trail shoe recommendations to make our lives more comfortable whilst running on the Common:

A trail running shoe is an off road shoe with better grip and waterproofing. The most waterproof of all have a Gore-tex upper but they aren’t water-resistant. Sporting Feet have a good range of trail shoes in store, from Asics, Brooks, Adidas and Salomon. Their two best selling trail shoes are the Brooks Cascadia 15 and the Asics Sonoma 5 GTX (see images above) and these are ideal for winter running on local terrain like the Common.

The Brooks Cascadia is non Gore-tex (as some runners prefer a shoe that lets water out as some water is going to get in anyway) and is a really comfortable, well cushioned ‘road to trail’ shoe. It has great grip and can be worn in tough trail conditions but it is also a good ‘hybrid’ shoe that can be worn for some road running too – an ideal winter shoe.

The Asics Sonoma 5 GTX is an affordable, pretty lightweight Gore-tex shoe so it is more waterproof. Again, it’s tread is not so aggressive and makes a really good winter, hybrid shoe.

Just a word about the Salomon Speedcross shoes which are seen as the trail shoes to go for – they are serious fell running shoes so tougher and more aggressive for those more extreme conditions. They tend to be pretty firm and not overly comfortable so probably not the shoes to go for when running on the Common.

if you need advice on the best trail shoes to go for including sizing as some trail shoes come up small, please call Sporting Feet on 020 8780 0558. They also offer free consultations over Whatsapp if you needs additional help. And remember your 10% discount by using the code ‘CR10’. 

Scavenger hunt run (or walk) for half term

As we are still in lockdown and confined to our home area, how about taking the kids or going with a friend on a scavenger hunt run (or walk) around Wimbledon? The hunt is all about blue plaques and historical buildings in Wimbledon and can be downloaded here.

Start and finish the scavenger hunt run/walk in the centre of Wimbledon Village and see how many plaques/places you can find in one hour. If you do the hunt with family members, you can split into teams and have a reward for the winning team who has photo proofs of their finds!

Enjoy!

 

 

 

New winter running courses

New running courses: Monday 4 Jan – Wednesday 31 Mar 2021

IMPORTANT: IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RENEW/JOIN YOU NEED TO COMPLETE A HEALTH FORM TO COMPLY WITH THE NEW COVID-19 REGULATIONS.

The new term starts on Monday 4 January and finishes on Wednesday 31 March. It’s a 12 week term excluding half term and costs £156 for day runners and £144 for evening runners as there is no social run on offer.

Here’s a reminder of the classes on offer:
* Monday @9.30am (improvers 2)
* Monday @10.30am (beginners)
* Tuesday @8.30am (improvers 1)
* Tuesday @9.30am (improvers 3)
* Tuesday @7pm (improvers mixed ability)
* Thursday @10.30am (improvers 1)

* Fridays @9.30am (mixed ability social run)

If you would like to renew/join, please complete a health form. You can pay by Bacs to the usual account – please reference your name. For more information please email info@commonrunners.co.uk