Welcome everyone to this second contact with you. Hopefully these notes will give you all some information you may not have been aware of and perhaps some prior notice regarding events coming up etc. I aim to cover track and field leagues and championships this summer, training sessions, Parent meetings and coaches meeting next week, membership and congratulations as well as events coming up.
Parents – please take note of the meetings on Thursday 28 February in Manx Harriers Clubhouse and try to get to the one at 6pm or the one at 7pm. They will be short but they will have some useful information for you and will discuss how we can help our young athletes (your children) be even more successful.
This summer will see two leagues taking place on the track and field that our athletes can take part in.
I apologise this is quite a long set of messages but there is plenty to share with you that will hopefully be helpful. Please do have a look through and do contact me if you have any questions.
All the best,
Andy
Manx Harriers Track & Field League for U11, U9 and U7’s sponsored by Up and Running
This new league will run on Thursdays from the 25 April with 6 meetings taking place with the last one being in mid-July. The competition will start at 6pm and end by 7.30pm to ensure all younger athletes are not up late on a school night. All dates will be distributed later via the website and Facebook as well as at the parent meetings taking place next week.
Signing on for the track league will take place on the evening of Thursday 28 March and then you can pay on the night at each event. We would encourage entry to be made in advance to save on queueing and possibly missing races on the night if entry is left to the last minute!
The costs for entry are £20 in advance ie. If paid on the 28 March or £25 if paid later in the series. If you pay for each evening separately then it will cost £5 per night so it makes financial sense to pay in advance also!!! Please note – look after your number as you will need it for all 6 competition nights.
Jenny Dowling will be forwarding soon (if not already) the information pack about the Manx Harriers League sponsored by Up and Running (details above) as well as club membership. This means you could pay in advance of the 28th. When the pack arrives with you and so save even more time.
Isle of Man Track and Field League for U13s and above sponsored by Newfield.
The first of these is on 3 April. Again there will be 6 meetings over the year with the last in late July run on Wednesdays. Costs are similar to the MH league so £20 paid if paid in advance and £25 if you enter later in the series or £5 per night. The signing on for this league is on Thursday 14 March and the Wednesday 20 March.
Jenny Dowling will be forwarding soon an information pack about the Isle of Man League for under 13s upwards sponsored by Newfield (details above) as well as club membership. This means you could pay in advance of the 14 and 20 March when the pack arrives with you and so save even more time.
Note – Club Membership is due soon so please check out the Website, Facebook and the packs Jenny sends out and get your membership paid ASAP.
Championships
Manx Harriers Championships take place on the 25/26 May
Isle of Man Championships take place on the 3/4 August.
More details will be circulated regarding entry to these events nearer to the time.
Training
Continue in the summer season as usual however older athletes on a Thursday need to realise that training needs to take place before or after the League on race nights. When the league does not take place training will continue as usual on the Thursday nights. We hope to publish more details regarding training in early March.
Parents Meetings – Thursday 28 February, Manx Harrier’s Clubhouse.
The meeting will be repeated once at 6pm and then again at 7pm, they will take approx. 30 mins. The reason for them is to enable parents to attend who were unable to make the meeting held earlier on Friday 1 February.
Here we will be able to distribute all Track and Field meeting dates, give an overview of plans for coaching and training this summer as well as discuss how you and we can help our athletes, your children, get the most out of their sport and ability. Please come along – we have aimed it at the main training night so most of you will be calling down at some point that evening and rather than sit in the stand why not come along to find out more in the clubhouse, and also enjoy a cuppa, biscuit and a chat as well.
Coaches Meeting – Friday 1 March, Manx Harrier’s Clubhouse.
More details to follow via email for our coaches. However, if you are interested in coaching and would like to attend or maybe you have a coaching background and are thinking of transferring your interest into athletics then please do contact me on andycfox@outlook.com and I will ensure you have all the information you need regarding coaching etc.
Congratulations
These are due to former Harrier Joe Reid for his fantastic performances indoors winning the UK Championships over 800m and also qualifying for the European Championships. Look out for him on the TV when the champs take place in Glasgow on the Friday 1 March through to Sunday 3 March. I am sure we all wish him well.
Apologies if I have missed others out but I felt I should mention the IOM Sports Awards for 2018 which take place at a ceremony in the Villa Marina on 4 April.
Manx Harriers have the following who have been shortlisted for an award:
- Rachael Franklin (Sports Woman of the Year)
- Manx Harriers Ladies Distance Running Team (Team of the Year)
- IOM Northern Athletics Senior Team (Team of the Year and made up of many Manx Harrier athletes)
- Petra Atchison and Robbie Watterson ( Both as Administrator of the Year)
- Steve Partington and John Whitlow (Both as Coach of the Year)
- Karen Chiarello, Gianni Epifani, Gail Griffiths and Hannah Riley (all as Veteran Athlete of the Year)
We wish them all well and whether they win their overall award, or not, the fact that they have made the short list is a fantastic achievement and recognition of much hard work and dedication.
Events coming up in the next few weeks, with signing on nights highlighted include the following:
| Thursday 14 March | IOM T&F League Signing on Night 1 under 13 and older athletes MH Clubhouse |
| Saturday 16 March | English Schools Cross Country Championships, Temple Newsam, Leeds |
| Sunday 17 March | 10km walking and younger age walking champs, MH |
| Wednesday 20 March | IOM T&F League Signing on Night 2 under 13 and older athletes MH Clubhouse |
| Friday 22 March | Law Trust IOM XC Lge Presentation, Claremont Hotel |
| Thursday 28 March | Up and Running Track League Signing on night MH under 7, 9 and 11 athletes |
| Monday 1 April | MH 10km Track run and walk, NSC |
| Wednesday 3 April | IOM Track and Field League 1 |
| Saturday 6 April | 5km Prom Run, Douglas promenade |
| Sunday 14 April | 50km Walks Champs |
| Friday 19 April | Good Friday 10km, The Bay Hotel, Port Erin |
| Saturday 20 April | Peel Hill Race, The Creek Inn, Peel |
| Sunday 21 April | Easter Sunday 5km, Douglas promenade |
| Wednesday 25 April | Up and Running Track and Field League, MH U7, U9 and U11 |
The above is not a full list of IOM Fixtures in this period up to Easter but only those run by Manx Harriers or very much involving Manx Harriers athletes. For a full list, visit the IOM Athletics Website and this link – http://www.iomathletics.com/competitions/fixtures/