Great news! Over the last couple of weeks a number of people in our club (club chairperson Suzanne Price, members of the committee particularly Helen Carlisle, Bex Chatterton and I and the club’s run leaders) have been working hard on a plan to get Plums back running together again. I’m delighted to announce that we have a plan but it needs a bit of explanation so please grab a cuppa, settle into a comfy chair and I’ll do my best to explain …
Plodding will be different to normal. We are going to start week commencing 29th June. Next week, as we find our feet, we will be organising running groups with each group limited to a maximum of 5 people (a run leader plus 4 others). In week 1, there will be 8 groups with 2 groups per day across 4 days, Monday to Thursday. At this stage, all 8 groups will start at Abbey Park (our usual home base) with 2 start times per day, 6pm and 6.30pm. A group will include runners of similar pace but across the 8 groups we will offer the usual spread of speeds from the slower to the faster.
RUNNERS WILL NEED TO BOOK INTO A GROUP IN ADVANCE. A separate post on Facebook will cover the (simple) booking process and allow you to book a slot. A 2nd post as soon as possible (by midday Saturday, sooner if possible) so please be a bit more patient for now because there are a few important things to get across first :
Our primary concern is the safety of our runners and, crucially, the safety of the wider Pershore community. This, for example, explains why the groups are limited to 5 and why there are runs starting at different times and spread across 4 days. No, we can’t all just rock up on a Monday and divide into small groups!
It goes without saying (but I’ll say it!) but please do not think about running with others if you are feeling unwell yourself or have had contact with anyone who has been unwell.
Week 1 is a bit of a leap into the unknown so please be tolerant and forgiving whilst we take that leap. We are amongst the first running clubs to do this. We will use week 1 as a trial and can then adjust things quickly in subsequent weeks. For example, in week 1, you will only be able to book one slot (so that as many Plums as possible can have a run) and, if demand exceeds the number of slots, some of you might be disappointed in the first week. Who knows so bear with us.
Only paid up members can book.
Normal Plods still feel like they are some way off so we are determined with your help and cooperation to make this new way of running together work.
I would like once again to thank all those fellow Plums who have collectively put in many hours to get us to this point.
Ian Pollitt