45th Club Newsletter July 2009 (incorporating the 55th Under 11 Newsletter)

What a fantastic day we had at the 2^nd Cheshire League meeting at Crewe. In 7 years of managing the Under 11 team I can honestly say that there has never been a day like it with the lead changing hands several times throughout the day. In the end a fantastic team effort saw Salford come home with a win by 7 points. The boys had a slightly easier task and took maximum points however the competition amongst the girls was fierce with 4 really good teams however our girls performed as well as they could and whilst this was not always good enough to win it was good enough to enable the team to come out on top. Well done to all a truly fantastic performance.

At Under 13 Level special mention should go to Megan Lowe who broke the 800m club record that had stood for 6 years.

The 3rd Cheshire League Meeting takes place at The Oval Sports Centre, The Lodge, Old Chester Road, Bebington CH63 7LH (on the Wirral) on Sunday 9th August. In some ways the August meeting is the most important as many athletes are away on holiday so this is where we rely on our strength in depth.

Under 11 scoring team members will receive the letters they need to wear from Peter before the actual day. These should be worn on the chest. Non counting numbers will be handed out on arrival on the day. The Under 11 team has been preselected as below. If any athlete cannot now compete can you please advise Peter or Tony at training or ring Peter on 07837127234 . This will enable a reserve to be advised.

PLEASE NOTE I DO NEED TO KNOW IF YOU CANNOT COMPETE AS OUR TEAM NUMBERS ARE MUCH REDUCED FOR THIS MEETING.

All scoring athletes must wear club running vests. These can be purchased from Alan Cooper at a minimal price. A fee (£2) per athlete is payable to the host track and will be collected by the team managers on the day.

You are asked to arrange your own transport to the venue, however parents may wish to consider car sharing with other team members. No doubt you have your own particular friends and hence please arrange this yourselves. Should your parents be unable to take you to a particular meeting please see one of the coaches and we will try and arrange transport, however due to Child Protection Rules this is likely to be with another family rather than one of our coaches.

The first race starts at 1pm. Can all athletes please arrive for 12-15 at the latest, as we need time to declare our team and to warm up our athletes. This is always a pressure time for me as the clock ticks down to 1pm. Hopefully you will have no problems finding the venue (see directions below) however should something happen that means you are going to arrive late please phone my mobile 07837127234

Please find me as soon as you arrive. If you want to sit out you may wish to bring chairs, blankets etc. Essentially please ensure athletes bring with them warm, waterproof clothing whatever the weather forecast as the weather can change and our athletes health and welfare is paramount. Last time we competed at this track there was an old wooden stand (in fact for those who have seen the film Chariots of Fire this is the track and stand that was used in the film as the venue for the Olympic Games).

Scott will take athletes through their warm ups prior to the first event which is the 75m. Approx times for all events are:-

1pm 75m

1-30pm Long Jump

3pm 600m

3-45pm Javelin

4-30pm Relays

Food and drink maybe available at the track however it is usually best to bring pack lunches. Whilst I do not want our athletes to starve I would advise against eating anything too heavy or sickly prior to the 600m race as this is a tough event and I would not like to see our athletes being sick. Likewise probably best to keep off fizzy drinks.

During the day our athletes times and distances will be posted by the home club so that athletes can see how they have performed. We will however collect all performance details and post these on the web site in the week following the meeting. All athletes PB’s, Achievement Awards and Club Records will also be updated.

The last event for under 11’s is the relay which takes place between 4-30pm and 5pm after which athletes are free to leave. If however you intend leaving before the relays because of injury etc please let Peter know as the relay teams will need to be reviewed.

After the 2nd round of matches we are just 2 points behind the leaders, West Cheshire. At this meeting are opposition are Macclesfield (4^th), Handforth (7^th), Dash (12^th), Wirral (13^th) & East Cheshire (5^th).

The most important thing on the day is to ensure that all our athletes enjoy themselves and over the last 6 years the only time this has not happened is when the clouds have opened and all present got drenched, so lets just hope for sun.

All athletes in older age groups should see Mike Lucas (females) or Debbie Hulme (males) if they wish to compete. Debbie in particular is keen to increase the number of athletes she has available.

Please note that the B & C & D relay teams will only run if permitted by track officials on the day. No promises here. In addition I have included numerous non counters in the field events. Acceptance of these entries are subject to the judges descretion on the day. Again there is not much I can do if the judge declares non counters are not being accepted.