Achilles Running Club Sydney - helping people who would like to walk and run -

Newsletter October 2009

The Achilles Heel - Newsletter of the Achilles Running Club - Sydney

PO Box 240, Randwick,2031:
info@achilles-sydney.org.au
www.achilles-sydney.org.au

October 2009 Edition

In this Edition:

· New committee

· Database updates

· Bush walk

· City 2 Surf

· Sydney Tower Stair Climb

· Guide needed during week

· Nick goes to New York City

· End of year picnic

· Future events

· Membership

· Parking permits

· Club clothing

· Achilles website

· Guide training

· President’s Report

· Volunteer Roster

A big spring heading into summer “HI” to everyone.

Since the last newsletter, lots has been happening in Achilles. Large numbers of disabled and volunteer members continue to turn out on Sundays; we had a large and successful contingent of Achillians in the City 2 Surf and the Blackmores Sydney Running Festival; the AGM was held and some great new committee members were elected, namely Ben Phillips, Ian Cohen and Brian O’Dea. A very big and warm welcome to all of them. Below is the list of the committee for the next year. Also, the President’s Report is included at the end of the newsletter.

New committee

Ellis Janks - President

Martin Ruane - Vice President, webmaster & membership database co-ordinator

Ian Cohen - Treasurer

Ben Phillips – Events co-ordinator

Charlie McConnell – Events co-ordinator

James Howard – Minutes secretary

Nick Gleeson – Membership recruitment

Karen Parker – Minutes secretary

Brian O’Dea – Newsletter & events co-ordinator

Doug Ritchie – Training co-ordinator

A big welcome as well to the large numbers of new members and volunteers who have been coming to training on Sundays

Database update

We are presently updating all the contact details for our members. You will soon be asked (by email) to please give us relevant information. Please note that all information which we have about out members is kept confidential, is used only for Club purposes and will not be divulged to any person or organisation outside of Achilles. For example, you will note that when you receive group emails, the recipient list is suppressed so as to hide your email details.

Bushwalk

Another bushwalk is being planned and will take place in the next few weeks (probably Sunday 22 November). The details of the bushwalk have not been finalised but Bobbin Head in the Ku-ring-gai National Park is being earmarked. We are trying to hook up with people from the Parks and Wildlife Department who will accompany our group and be able to give interesting commentary on the bush and environment. Details of this bushwalk will be sent to you very soon. Please respond if you are interested to Charlie (9636 3727 charlie.mcconnell@auspost.com.au ) or Ellis (9664 4824 janks2@optusnet.com.au )

City 2 Surf

Once again, perfect weather greeted all those who made their way to Hyde Park on C2S Sunday, keeping intact the amazing record of this event never having been rained on. The following members snaked their way either walking or running, most being highly visible in their bright yellow singlets.

Phil Cook, Michael Levy, Lindy Hou, Doug Ritchie, Joe Habib, Martin Ruane, Ben Phillips, Ted Magen, Helen Simon, John Simon, Andrew Moller, James Howard,Charlie McConnell, Ian Cohen, Michael Bassil, Kathy Newby, John Domandl, Ellis Janks.

Well done to all of you. Once again, after the race, we received a large number of enquiries about Achilles. It is important that our members participate in these high profile events and that they wear the yellow singlets to make themselves extra visible

Sydney Tower Run

Getting to the highest point in Sydney is always going to be exciting, but getting there by foot makes it exciting fun! Phillip Cook (20mins13secs), Rael Cohen (13-30), John Domandl (12-48) and Doug Ritchie (13-56) got up the Sydney Tower, being ready to collapse after running up the 1504 stairs to the top. Rael did it twice! First he ran in his age category and if this wasn’t enough, he then guided Phil through the initial maze of passages and then up the stairwell. Congratulations to all 4 of you!

Guide needed – Haberfield area

One of our disabled members is keen to train during the week and is looking for a guide. This is in the Haberfield area and a slow running pace for about 5 km is envisaged. Anyone who is available, please contact the Club email info@achilles-sydney.org.au or janks2@optusnet.com.au

Nick goes to NYC

Nick Gleeson is always looking for a challenge. Once again, he has headed off to the Big Apple to take on the New York City Marathon on November 7. While in NYC, Nick will be meeting up with Achilles members from around the world both at a workshop which he will attend and during the event. Nick will be running with a guide from NY Achilles as well as a friend of his who lives in the USA. Best of luck to Nick – we are looking forward to hearing about the trip and event.

End of year picnic

The last training day will be on Sunday 13 December. The end of year picnic will take place after training on the lawns across the road from our unofficial Clubhouse (the Art Gallery of NSW). Besides giving us the opportunity for a slap-up feast, the Andrew Bristow Awards will be presented and it is always a great way to socialize and catch up with all the other members who are rostered on different Sundays and whom you don’t get to see during the year. Please mark this special day in your diary and bring your family and friends.

The first day of training in 2010 will be on 31 January, the 1^st Sunday after Australia Day.

Future events

We are planning a Club weekend away where all of our members can participate in an event. The Orange Colour City Running and Walking Festival on Sunday 7 March is being earmarked. There will be a 5 km fun run/walk, 10 km fun run and a half marathon. We plan to travel to Orange (NSW) on Saturday by bus and stay overnight. More details in the near future.

The Striders 10 km Series takes place on the first Saturday of each month from February to November. There is a 60 minute cut-off, so it is a good way for our running members to aim for fast times.

In the new year we will be letting you know about events our members can participate in. If you have an event in mind that you want to do, please let us know.

Membership

The renewal date for annual membership is 1 July each year. Annual fees are $20.Some of last years members have not renewed their membership (often they have just forgotten to) It is really important that you all renew your membership. Apart from the fact that Achilles uses membership fees for its running costs, we are also trying to secure corporate sponsorship. This is far easier to achieve with a larger membership base. Please forward your membership fees to our PO Box (240, Randwick 2031), or bring them to Sunday training and Ian or Ellis will issue a receipt. If your contact details have changed in the last year, please make sure that we have your current details.

Parking Permits

This is a reminder to everyone who brings a car to Sunday training – please make sure that you have a yellow parking permit. We have a supply of the permits so that all guides who drive in can keep one in their car – they will probably need to be kept in the boot or under the floor mat as they are A4 sized. Please don’t lose your permit – there are a limited number. These permits MUST BE DISPLAYED ON THE DASHBOARD otherwise we could be issued with a parking violation ticket that will NOT (as has been the case in the past) be cancelled. If by any chance you do not have a permit, at the least put a club brochure or a note with “Achilles – disabled” on the dashboard. This will suffice if the usual rangers are on duty, but sometimes there are new rangers who are not familiar with Achilles. You can get a permit from Ellis at Sunday training.

T-shirts, singlets and sloppy-joes

T-shirts with the yellow sleeves ($10) and club singlets ($20) are available for sale. There are still some old club t-shirts (all white) available ($5) for those who are keen on having a collectors’ item. There are also some sloppy-joes available ($30). Unfortunately there are limited numbers of small sizes in all the shirt ranges (not the singlets). Please let Ellis know (janks2@optusnet.com.au) if you want any of these items. There will be some shirts available for sale at Sunday training.

Achilles Website - www.achilles-sydney.org.au

The Achilles website is up and running and has lots of Club information eg roster, latest news, contacts. Please use it as an information resource.

Guide Training

To promote the ongoing safety and enjoyment of Achilles members, short and informal training sessions have been organised for the benefit of all volunteer guides, even those who have had years of experience at Achilles.

Sessions will take about 20 minutes and will be done before or after Sunday training. Participation is completely voluntary and don’t worry, there are no tests or evaluations after the session.

The course will concentrate on the most appropriate methods of guiding a person (Sighted Guide Techniques) who has vision impairment or a total vision loss. Recommended techniques for various situations will be shown and guidelines will be given for effective communication. If you wish to, you will be given the opportunity to walk/run (with a guide) in blindfold. The expectation is that you will gain a better understanding of the difficulties involved when moving around with a vision impairment.

Doug Ritchie will facilitate the sessions. Doug, who works for Guide Dogs, brings a wealth of experience to this course. Doug has been a long time guide/member of Achilles and has assisted in numerous events.

Doug will be delighted to hear from you if you want to arrange a session. Contact him at dritchie@guidedogs.com.au or at Sunday training.

We really do recommend that every guide makes use of this training.

President’s Report 2008/2009

The past year has been most positive and productive for Achilles thanks to the wonderful input by many individuals, groups and donors. There have been a number of significant events and activities which I will mention briefly.

1. Membership

Record numbers of people have consistently attended Sunday training and participating in organised runs and walks and social get-togethers. A large number of new members (volunteer and disabled) have joined this year, which has been very pleasing. The present membership is 60 made up of 18 disabled, 32 volunteers and 10 honorary members.

2. Finances

The financial status of the Club continues to be very sound. Funds have been received via membership fees, bank interest, the sale of clothing and donations. Sizable donations were received from The Ravine Foundation (funded the setting up of new website), The Prospect Shop (funded the hosting costs of the website for 12 months) and from Nick Dreyton and Viv Kartsoulis.

Special mention is made of Ted Magen who has been Treasurer of Achilles for the last 8 years. A big vote of thanks goes to Ted who has not only spend many hours of hard effort keeping the Club finances in check, but has tirelessly done many administrative functions like producing grant applications and communicating with Government regulatory bodies. Much of the successes of Achilles in the last 9 years is due to Ted.

I welcome Ian Cohen who will be taking over from Ted as Treasurer.

3. Events

Members participated in various events during the year, including the following: the Mothers Day Fun Run/Walk, Six Foot Track Marathon, Walk for Shirley, City2Surf, the Sydney Tower Run Up, various ultra-marathons (by Ultramarathon Man Mike Lovric), Canberra Fun Run and walk (Helen & John Simon), Cairns to Melbourne Cycle Event (Lindy Hou) . Social events included the end of year picnic and social breakfasts after Sunday training. Of particular note was the Club sponsored breakfasts held in conjunction with the plaque presentations for our supporters The Hastie Group and New Horizons Computer School.

Two bushwalks were held in October and April. These were both extremely successful and had very positive feedback from disabled participants and guides alike.

Special mention is made of John Simon — after completing this year’s City 2 Surf he is still part of a select group who have completed every C 2 S since its inception.

A number of members got together to train during the week and outside of Club training times. Some of our members participated in events (swimming, golf, dragon boat racing, cycling) outside of Achilles.

4. Uniforms

Part of the success in getting record numbers of enquiries about becoming involved with Achilles must be attributable to the high visibility of the club singlets and t-shirts. I suggest that the club should consider getting highly visible caps with the Achilles name and website address prominently displayed, as is the case with the singlets.

5. Training

As mentioned above, there have been record numbers of both disabled members and volunteers attending Sunday training. The majority of volunteers who turn up each Sunday are not on the roster and have been very much needed. So, everyone is encouraged to come to training as often as possible.

Thanks again to Doug Ritchie for running a training program for volunteers. Volunteers who have made use of the program have responded very enthusiastically. Thanks too to Rozanne Green for keeping the Sunday volunteer roster in order.

The parking permits issued by the Botanic Gardens Trust are being used. An effort has been made to supply those who frequently bring their car on Sundays with their own permit to be kept in their car. It is imperative that a permit (or at the least, a Club brochure or a note saying that you owner of the car is with Achilles) is displayed on the car dashboard. Parking fines will not be cancelled in the future.

Special thanks goes to Trevor Heaslip from the Botanic Gardens Trust for organising and supplying the parking permits.

6. Awards

The Andrew Bristow Memorial Awards were once again presented to a disabled member and a volunteer at the end of year picnic. This year’s recipients were Shane “Woody” Woodbridge and Chris Laing. Criteria for the award include the member’s contribution to Achilles, participation in the Club in general and the achievement of personal goals.

7. Website

The Achilles website has finally been replaced and is now fully functional. There has been a large increase in the enquiries being received through the contact email on the website (10 in the last few weeks) and we can now monitor various aspects of our website usage eg numbers of visits, average time spent viewing. I believe that the new website is one of the major factors for the large increase in numbers of people at Achilles.

Special note is made of the invaluable massive contribution that Martin Ruane has made in getting the website up and running.

8. Thanks

Thanks go to:

New Horizons Learning Centre and in particular Mark Davis, who has most generously continued to provide the venue for our meetings and to Carol Cooke for organising for a room to be available.

The Hastie Group for their efforts with the website.

The Prospect Shop for paying for the hosting costs of the website for 1 year.

Ravine Foundation for a donation which was put towards the costs of setting up the new website.

Marianne Von Lucken who resigned earlier this year from the committee after several years on the committee and as an active member.

Ted and Martin as mentioned before.

Nick and Charlie who have done enormous amounts of behind the scenes work

To the Committee for the excellent work they have put into the running of Achilles, and the time and effort they have generously given.

And of course thanks to all Achilles members for their excellent contributions and their enthusiasm. As always it has been a pleasure working with you.

9. Achilles in the future

I see exciting times ahead for Achilles. With the new website up and running and soon to be added to, there is likely to be more information readily available to the public and members and hence increased enquiries about Achilles and increased participation in Club events by the members.

More disabled members are needed. The marketing committee needs to get some of their ideas actioned.

The bushwalking events, which have been so popular, need to be pursued. At present we are in contact with the Department of Parks and Wildlife regarding further bushwalks and new venues and getting them involved as well.

Yellow head caps with the Club and website details on them would be a good way of promoting Achilles.

I know that there are a large number of people who have derived an enormous amount of benefit from their involvement with Achilles. For this reason I feel very positive about the place Achilles has in and the contribution it makes to our community.

I wish Achilles every success, and positive growth in the future.

Ellis Janks - President

ACHILLES CLUB ROSTER

Updated 2/9/2009

NOVEMBER 1- Colin Bradford, Nikki Caminer , Karen Parker, Ellis Janks, Angie Macken Volunteer Required

NOVEMBER 8– Mark Houlihan , Stephen Lenn, Ted Magen, Volunteer Required

NOVEMBER 15- Chris Laing, Diane Mcewin, Doug Ritchie, Martin Ruane, Volunteer Required

NOVEMBER 22- Marilyn Gould, Nikki Caminer , Karen Parker, Ellis Janks. Angie Macken Volunteer Required

NOVEMBER 29- Colin Bradford, Stephen Lenn, Ted Magen, Volunteer Required

DECEMBER 6 – Mark Houlihan, , Diane Mcewin, Doug Ritchie, Martin Ruane, Volunteer Required

DECEMBER 13 – END OF YEAR PICNIC

If you are not on the roster, but wish to be included, please email rozanne@bigpond.net.au

MISSION STATEMENT

"To enable people from all walks of life, including those with physical impairments, to enjoy the health giving benefits of walking and running in a supportive, social and encouraging environment."