Saturday Session: Bluebells! Ranmore, Abinger Roughs, Blatchford Down 7km or 19km (with Zoe and Brenda)

Bluebells! Loop 1 will be about 7km, taking in the best areas to see this season’s bluebells on Ranmore. Exact route will be determined when we have seen where the best bluebells are… Loop 2 will take the total distance up to 19km – the last long run for those training for our Half Marathon on the 5th May, and will be a straightforward route across the top of Ranmore, down and across to Arbinger Roughs and up the BIG hill to the top of Blatchford Down, before returning to Ranmore West Car park.

This run is ideal for those wanting to increase their distance at an easy pace. Easy running stretches followed by pauses and walking breaks as needed, with coaching for canicross cues on an as required basis.

Please note: as this run includes a longer distance for the ‘Half Marathon Club Long Runs’, the pricing structure is slightly different for this session, so pick your ticket appropriately:

1) Loop 1 (7km)
2) Both Loops (19km)

(You don’t need to be doing the Half Marathon training to do the long runs, you are welcome to join us anyway).

Please arrive 15 minutes ahead of your start, to ensure you have sufficient time for your dog to go to the toilet, get harnessed up and go for a quick 5-10 minute warm-up walk/jog before we start the run. We will set off at 6:30am.

IMPORTANT: Please remember that this is a slower-paced group, and if you are joining us for both loops, we are likely to be out for 2.5 ish hours once breaks are taken into account.

Because of this, please try to have something ‘carby’ to eat before you start (a smoothie and banana is fine if you can’t usually eat in the morning), and bring a small carby snack to grab from your car before we start the second loop – gels, Haribo, jelly babies or crisps are fine.

You will also need to carry a drink for yourself and your dog. This will be your last chance to practise your intra run fuelling for the half marathon, so try and use whatever fuel you plan to use on the day, during this last long run (remember that for the actual Half, we won’t be looping back past the cars, so you’ll need to carry all you need for the full distance).

Difficulty: There are hills on both loops, and we can hike the hills. There may be some technical bits but overall the trails are not difficult to negotiate.

Trails: the trails are varied. Some woodland/rooty buts, some muddy bits, some wider gravel paths and some slippery chalky bits.

Pace: There are no pace requirements and overall speed will be determined by attendees, however individual run intervals are unlikely to be much faster than 7 mins/km. There will be options for faster runners to run ahead in places, but expect to be pausing to regroup as needed to keep the group together.

Warnings: There may be wildlife, and some mud in the woodland sections. This route can get busy in places, so please remember your trail etiquette!

Start Location: Ranmore West Car Park:

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