The first outing for the season of Frontrunner Colombo’s Run Club sets off from the store at The Colombo on 5 September.
Right from when he bought the store, Frontrunner Colombo’s owner, Oska Baynes, had a dream to educate and encourage runners and walkers of all abilities, and to increase the number and level of participation in local events.
Run Club is the result. Everyone is welcome and catered for, with runners assigned a suitable pace group. No runner is left behind – once you start in a pace group, you do not speed up and leave a fellow runner behind. These are social runs, not a race.
From next week’s start, Run Club will happen every Tuesday night until the end of November. Every week, the planned workout and a link to register will be placed on the club’s private Facebook group. You can also just rock up but you will need to register to run.
Weeks 1, 4, 7, 10 and 13 start from Frontrunner Colombo. These are easy social runs from 30 – 50 minutes in pace groups using loops around the Heathcote River. Groups are paced from 4:30min to 7:30 – 8min per kilometre.
Weeks 2, 5, 8 and 11 start at Hagley Park for an interval session on a 1500m loop in North Hagley. Intervals are based on time, not distance, and everyone does the same. These sessions include a coach-led warm-up.
New this season – on weeks 3, 6, 9 and 12 – are some hill sessions. Hills are a great way to get strength and create better technique. Hackthorne is the hill and Pioneer Recreation and Sport Centre is the meeting place for these.
So check your gear – if anything isn’t up to the task anymore and you need a replacement, Oska and the team are ready to advise.