As the new academic year begins, this is a great opportunity to look back at the brilliant achievements of the BRT Juniors over the summer months. We have had a lot of fun together! Our group of boys and girls aged between 8 and 14 years has met right through the summer, twice a week, using a variety of local community spaces and enjoying the long, warm, sunny evenings.
Most often, we have been found dashing around the woods of Bexhill Downs, dodging tree roots and fallen branches, pushing hard uphill and enjoying the fun of the downhills. We have also taken to Galley Hill for our hill training and at times have used the steep, challenging, pebbly sloping beach. All this strengthens our leg muscles and teaches us to drive our arms for better forward propulsion. We have seen runners' posture improve and their determination has paid off with sustained efforts being maintained over longer distances.
We have run together on the beach at low tide, getting rather wet and sandy, but having lots of fun and working on our speed. The group particularly enjoys doing relays and racing one another for fun.
We have played a range of fun group games, our favourite being Bulldog, as a reward at the end of a session. We have seen some remarkable dodges and tackles!
The kids have been consistently awesome, session after session. They have a great attitude, are totally engaged in the activities, are kind and supportive to one another, give their best efforts and are really fun to coach.
Our runners are learning the importance of pacing and have been thinking a lot about their effort over different distances. They are building their resilience and endurance. They have learned the names of their muscles and are familiar with stretches for each part of their bodies. This will be a great help with sports studies at school and injury prevention in their own sporting activities.
Efforts during training sessions have really paid off when BRT Juniors have taken part in running events both in and outside of school. We have seen excellent recent results for school sports day and cross country races from many including Alex, Sofia, Zach and Jack in particular. The kids have chosen to take part in the Bexhill and Eastbourne Mini Mile events with impressive times. In June, Zach was 2nd boy, in July, Leo was 3rd overall and his sister Sofia was 2nd girl.
We had a great turn out at the Ashburnham Out of the Blue race in June, with eight of our members taking part. Ksenia did the 5km race alongside adult runners and achieved an incredible 3rd place overall, first female beating all the adult women. She also completed a 14km trail race with her mum Catherine (also a BRT member) in July.
The rescheduled Hastings seafront race is coming up soon (5th October) and we hope to see a strong BRT presence running there. We are also fast approaching cross country season, where we will be supporting our juniors to enjoy and perform well at the monthly races across the county.
As well as the impressive exploits of the juniors, the coaching team has not been slacking during recent months and has enjoyed some international running adventures. Antonio did an arduous five day solo trek across volcanic Iceland in June and took part in local triathlons. In August, Andrea ran six days in the Alps, staying in mountain refuges.
In September, Mike headed to the USA and achieved first place in his age category in the Chicago Mag Mile 5km.
As we continue our training efforts into the autumn, we will need to adapt to the changing conditions to ensure that we are safe and comfortable during sessions. Kids will need a head torch for Thursday evening sessions as the nights draw in. Reflective clothing is helpful for visibility. When the evenings get colder, gloves and a hat are advised. For training in the woods, trail shoes with grippy lugs will prevent slips and falls in the mud.
We are proud to lead this wonderful group of committed children and young people and welcome any new young runners who wish to join the group.
Looking forward to lots of autumnal running fun!
Most often, we have been found dashing around the woods of Bexhill Downs, dodging tree roots and fallen branches, pushing hard uphill and enjoying the fun of the downhills. We have also taken to Galley Hill for our hill training and at times have used the steep, challenging, pebbly sloping beach. All this strengthens our leg muscles and teaches us to drive our arms for better forward propulsion. We have seen runners' posture improve and their determination has paid off with sustained efforts being maintained over longer distances.
We have run together on the beach at low tide, getting rather wet and sandy, but having lots of fun and working on our speed. The group particularly enjoys doing relays and racing one another for fun.
We have played a range of fun group games, our favourite being Bulldog, as a reward at the end of a session. We have seen some remarkable dodges and tackles!
The kids have been consistently awesome, session after session. They have a great attitude, are totally engaged in the activities, are kind and supportive to one another, give their best efforts and are really fun to coach.
Our runners are learning the importance of pacing and have been thinking a lot about their effort over different distances. They are building their resilience and endurance. They have learned the names of their muscles and are familiar with stretches for each part of their bodies. This will be a great help with sports studies at school and injury prevention in their own sporting activities.
Efforts during training sessions have really paid off when BRT Juniors have taken part in running events both in and outside of school. We have seen excellent recent results for school sports day and cross country races from many including Alex, Sofia, Zach and Jack in particular. The kids have chosen to take part in the Bexhill and Eastbourne Mini Mile events with impressive times. In June, Zach was 2nd boy, in July, Leo was 3rd overall and his sister Sofia was 2nd girl.
We had a great turn out at the Ashburnham Out of the Blue race in June, with eight of our members taking part. Ksenia did the 5km race alongside adult runners and achieved an incredible 3rd place overall, first female beating all the adult women. She also completed a 14km trail race with her mum Catherine (also a BRT member) in July.
The rescheduled Hastings seafront race is coming up soon (5th October) and we hope to see a strong BRT presence running there. We are also fast approaching cross country season, where we will be supporting our juniors to enjoy and perform well at the monthly races across the county.
As well as the impressive exploits of the juniors, the coaching team has not been slacking during recent months and has enjoyed some international running adventures. Antonio did an arduous five day solo trek across volcanic Iceland in June and took part in local triathlons. In August, Andrea ran six days in the Alps, staying in mountain refuges.
In September, Mike headed to the USA and achieved first place in his age category in the Chicago Mag Mile 5km.
As we continue our training efforts into the autumn, we will need to adapt to the changing conditions to ensure that we are safe and comfortable during sessions. Kids will need a head torch for Thursday evening sessions as the nights draw in. Reflective clothing is helpful for visibility. When the evenings get colder, gloves and a hat are advised. For training in the woods, trail shoes with grippy lugs will prevent slips and falls in the mud.
We are proud to lead this wonderful group of committed children and young people and welcome any new young runners who wish to join the group.
Looking forward to lots of autumnal running fun!