Entries are now open for the Eagles / ESM track night on Wednesday 28th June via this link.
This is just for the senior events, junior entries will be taken on the night.
The timetable will be as follows:
Junior Events
5pm - Long Jump (Under 11)
5:45pm - 600m (Under 11)
6:15pm - 75m (Under 11)
Senior Track
6:45pm - 100m - r1
7:15pm - Mile
7:50pm - 100m - r2
8:10pm - 5000m
Senior Field
7:00pm - Hammer
7:00pm - Long Jump
8:00pm - Shot
The wait is finally over for those speedsters who were looking to get onto the teams for this year's prestigious Welsh Castles Relay!
The Welsh Castles Relay is an annual 2 day event held in June, organised by Les Croupiers Running Club. Running the length of Wales, the route covers over 200 miles and 20 stages starting at Caernarfon Castle on Saturday morning and finishing on Sunday afternoon in Cardiff. The route passes within 2 miles of 22 castles, 16 forts (dating from Roman times onwards), 2 motte & baileys and 5 mottes. A prestigious race, 65 teams compete in the relay and have to get through a rigorous selections process.
Last year the ladies team took 2nd place in their category and were labelled as a team to watch. They will be looking to keep that momentum going this year! The ladies team will be made up of:
Melissah Gibson
Sarah Bailey
Rebecca Jackson
Francesca Cooper
Ellen Easten
Harriet Betteridge
Yvonne Linney
Jennifer Watt
Jenny Bushell
Claire Morris
Kira Norrington
Kelly Scanlon
Michelle Tanner
Emily Schmidt
Lucy Rigg
Michelle Verbossche
Olivia Parker-Scott
Sophie Foxall
Malgorzata Kucharska
Sarah Mack
On paper this year's men's team is the fastest Eagles team to go to the Welsh Castles Relay. 9 men will be making their WCR debuts. Let's see if they can get that pesky 4 minutes off and finish in the top 10 this year!
Tom Easten
Dave Chryssides
Tom Rowles
Colin Overton
John Foxall
Ewan Fryatt
Matt Kaufman
Jose Manuel Pabon
Kieran Morrisroe
Andrew Guy
Kieran Santry
Bernard Sexton
Harry Claxton
Stephen Ralston
Rob Willin
Raf Machnik
Mike Lawrence
Chris Lambert
Phill Turner
Cam Easton
Stages will be allocated shortly.
I had deferred my London Marathon place and written my last blog. So I thought I was finished with my ballot winner’s commitments for this year. How wrong I was…
It was two fellow Eagles who pointed out my schoolboy error. It seems that as a ballot winner I had agreed to write a race day blog. The fact I hadn’t actually run the marathon was, apparently, an unacceptable reason to renege on this commitment.
Now these two rather stringent Eagles will remain nameless. Let’s just say they looked suspiciously like Lisa Emerson and Allie Collins and leave it at that. They pointed out my obligation in the Wellington pub, whilst we celebrated the achievements of those who had not only made it to the start line, but the finish line too.
Now, a more sober man may have checked the ballot winners’ T&Cs but by this time I had imbibed three pints of some disturbing real ale – Runner’s Old Gusset, or something – and so I readily agreed to write a final blog. My brain was clearly more malleable than my hip.
However, the following day I thought that a final blog may not be such a bad idea after all. It could be a way of drawing a line under this year, putting things in perceptive and pondering a few lessons learnt.
The truth is that after reluctantly deciding not to run I wasn’t really sure what to do or where to turn. What should I do between deferral day and race day? And how would I feel when race day finally arrived? I had found myself in a sort of deferral limbo. This doesn’t mean I spent a month in Trinidad dancing under a stick, though perhaps I should have as it may have done wonders for my wonky hip.
Instead I moved towards my ‘non- race day’ reading other ballot winners’ blogs and completing the occasional Parkrun if and when my hip felt up to it. I occasionally went to work too.
When my non-race day finally arrived, it arrived very early. About 4:30am in my case because Rachel was volunteering at the start. This meant a certain Mr Walker and a Mr Thomas would be rocking up in a taxi at some unearthly hour before heading off to Blackheath.
Fortunately I soon fell back into a deep slumber and awoke, feeling oddly apprehensive, several hours later. It was straight into the kitchen to make a cuppa before stumbling bleary-eyed into the front room and whacking on Aunty Beeb (which you’ll be relieved to hear is not a euphemism).
It must be said that the BBC’s coverage of the marathon is pretty good. But for Deferral Boy here those first few images of the runners, volunteers and spectators were a slight kick in the ribs. I sat in my chair leaning forward at the screen; elbow on knee, chin in one hand, tea in the other – Rodin’s the drinker.
I don’t mind admitting I was feeling sorry for myself. I had my bottom lip pushed forward like a sad toddler who had missed out on the sweets. I’m not sure how long I sat there motionless, watching the screen, but the tea eventually went cold and remained unfinished.
Eventually I snapped out of this self-absorbed nonsense and gave myself a stern talking to. Enough of this feeling sorry for myself; it was time to throw away my limbo stick, get washed and head out to mile 23. I might even put some clothes on first too. Yes, there were Eagles and other runners who needed and deserved some jolly good support.
So it was that a little over an hour later I found myself ambling up the steps of Monument Station and out into the teaming London crowds. I could hear the thunderous roar of the spectators straightaway. As I headed towards Lower Thames Street the cheers grew louder and for reasons I cannot quite explain it was all music to my ears. As I ducked under the tape into the Eagles’ zone all deferral blues vanished and I instantly became another spectator and supporter greatly enjoying the atmosphere.
Coincidentally the first two people I met had also deferred and we cautiously asked each other how we were. It turns out we were all fine and enjoying the day. Throughout the afternoon several other people kindly, but tentatively, asked me how I was feeling and what my injury prognosis was. I really appreciated people asking, though I suspect my answers were edited to shorter and shorter versions as the day went on.
I heard that some people felt it best not to ask on the basis that I was probably fed-up with answering the same questions over and over again. You people are great too because without your forethought it probably would have become a bit wearisome. As it turns out the balance was perfect.
However, far more important was the convocation of Eagles (apparently that’s the collective noun) who flew past mile 23 throughout the day. One or two stopped for a sweaty hug, most opted for a high-five and at least one danced with Mr Eagle. All looked absolutely awesome.
Later on in the Wellington pub I heard tales of the highs and lows from our ballot winners. However, I won’t repeat them here in case I spoil someone’s blog. I think you’re in for a few good reads.
If you ever find yourself having to defer London, or any other race, my advice is to go along anyway and get supporting; maybe even volunteer if you can. Either way you’re likely to have a great time. What’s more the achievements and jubilations of fellow Eagles will only serve as a motivator for you to fix, if possible, whatever caused you to defer in the first place.
My only regret is that I didn’t head out earlier to support at a few points along the route before heading over to mile 23. Nonetheless, my marathon day was a fun-filled afternoon surrounded by a terrific bunch of people. And what’s more the next day there wasn’t an aching muscle on sore joint to be had.
Quite frankly I don’t know what all the fuss is about…
So I did it. All 26.2 miles of it ( or in my case 27.... Does that make me an Ultra runner?!)
The day started off well. My lovely coach came to pick me up and take me to the coach. Full of good advice and bad jokes Mark was on form! I got on the coach and wasn't too bad. No full on panics and the journey was quite smooth. Before I knew it we were off to the starts. I had been worried about this bit as my training buddies were all in red start but I went off with Chris Lambert which really helped.
I also went and met some lovely Run Mummy Runners....as prearranged, by the Lucozade stand. It was lovely to sit with them for a bit and check how everyone was.
Before we knew it, it was time to get in our pens and then we were off. As I went through the start on the left I looked over and there were Kate, Harry and William waving at me...I gave them a cheeky wave back and smiling I was off.
My plan if I felt good always had been to go off behind the 4:30 Pacers and assess how I felt. Off I went, my legs felt very heavy but I hoped that would go. Through mile 1 with an amazing atmosphere and suddenly I noticed they had run it in a 10 min mile...now that was a lot, lot quicker than the 10:18 pace that it should have been. I stuck to them for one more lap but having clocked a 10:04 I realised it was nuts so slowed down. My legs strangely hadn't settled.. They felt like lead and completely different to any other training run. I knew something wasn't quite right but kept thinking it had got to go soon. I'd managed every single long run without pain on pace so couldn't see why this would be any different (at least for the first twenty miles!).
Mile 5 and I saw Simon Hardy up in the sky ( or at least on top of a huge building) it made me smile and I appreciated the cheers. Went past my wonderful coach and support crew at mile 7.5 and still felt not great but ok.
Mile 8 however was a turning point and not in a good way. My ankle suddenly felt awful. Every step was hurting. Again I thought I could probably run it out but it wasn't going away. I had already spoken to my physio about it earlier in the week and had been given some exercises to help. I am not a physio and probably won't explain it very well but basically my ankle wasn't rotating very well...and this had suddenly become very intense. At one point I wondered if I had somehow caused a stress fracture ( not that I know what that feels like but the pain was ouchy) however I was too scared to go to medical incase they told me I couldn't continue.
At mile 11.5 I saw my wonderful sister and mum and dad...they were urging me on but I stopped for a cuddle, it felt hard and I needed some love! Very soon after I saw my hubby and children. I am ashamed to say I burst into tears. It was hurting so much and I just wanted to stop on one hand but on the other hand there was no way I was not getting that medal.
I left them cross with myself, my family have been so supportive throughout this training. It has affected them and our weekends yet they have adapted and been amazing throughout, Ed even being my training partner on a few occasions. What had I done but looked miserable when I saw them. They were giving up their day to run around and be my support crew. That was the kick up the butt I needed.
I began to dedicate each mile to a different person. Turning onto Tower Bridge was as awesome as expected. I was doing this, I was lucky enough to be running one of the best races in the world.
I trudged on getting slower all the time and a few times when the pain got too much I walked. However I was still determined to enjoy it. I soaked up the atmosphere and the encouragement was amazing. I saw more Eagles which really helped and other friends. At one point I waited ten minutes for the toilet. I had obviously drunk too much and as a time was out the window by that point I thought I might as well wait. Little known to me I caused my family to worry as the toilets were right by a medical tent....whoops!
Mile 18 I saw a friend from my children's school who helped me out a lot when I first started running. It was so great to see him and so well needed. I knew the Run Mummy Run girls and my family were coming up at mile 19 so I carried on in a run and hobble fashion. It was so good to see the cheer squad but they weren't letting me stay for too long! I was pushed on quite quickly, bless them.
At mile 20 I was in bits and my cousin got the tears next but she was amazing and on I went. Now the focus was mile 23.
Having been on the other side of mile 23 I wanted to get there smiling the ankle felt a tiny bit better so I picked up the pace relatively speaking. After all I had my place in one of the most iconic races in the world because of you,guys. The Eagles have been training buddies, advice givers and fantastic support throughout....I wasn't going to let anyone see I was in pain and I was determined to rock the flyby!
Flyby rocked and I was on my way home. I did make sure I appreciated the sights and the atmosphere.
I have never been so glad to see the London eye. I knew I was going to do this, I was going to be be of the one percent of the population who have run a marathon. The crowd were electric. I knew I could not stop despite my ankle hurting again as I knew I wouldn't start again. I carried on....and did get carried by the crowd.
I turned onto the mall and the smile went on. I knew most my photos wouldn't be good as I don't have a poker face (just an in pain race face!) so wanted one or two decent ones. I finished!
I got my photo, got my bag ( with potentially an exclusive t shirt as it has no adidas stripes on!) and headed to go and see Mark and my family. It was emotional! I had finished the marathon. After all the doubting I was a marathon runner!
I have been celebrating the last two days and taking advantage of the free food with your medal. Also catching up on drinking!
I have also been trying to process how I feel about it all.
I guess the answer is mixed. I always said I wanted to finish the marathon smiling and enjoy it. Well I did that. I made sure I did. I had to slow right down to do it but I stuck to my guns, adjusted and blasted that goal out of the water!
However ( this is the really honest bit I wondered whether to put in, but I have prided myself in being very honest about everything in my blog and I'm not going to change now) I had expected to be sub 5 ...all my training had pointed to this being a goal I could definitely achieve and I do feel ( rightly or wrongly) I failed in that respect. This makes me feel sad, I trained so hard and was so out from where I had expected to be. I am so frustrated with my ankle and how hard I found run in on it. Somehow I feel like it's my fault....not quite sure how or why but I do!
On the upside I am so proud to be a marathon runner. I am so proud to have raised so much money, thanks to all my sponsors, for such a brilliant cause...the charity Mencap. I am over the moon to have the support and love of the Eagles, Run Mummy Run and my friends and family.
Would I recommend doing a marathon? Absolutely. If I can do it I honestly believe anyone can.
Would I do another one? HELL, YEAH!
Thank you to everyone who has supported me on my journey, my training buddies, people who have sent messages of support, my friends and family, the RMR crew and my wonderful coach Mark who I can't thank enough for investing so much time and faith in me.
Thank you too Eagles, from the bottom of my heart. You gave me the opportunity of a lifetime.
So, I finally I was to arrive at one of those events that defines your life into two halves – before and after running a marathon. I had those pre-exam nerves and couldn’t relax. As I arranged everything I would need for the next day a nagging feeling that I was missing something struck me, and as I searched again through the instructions I finally found a sentence that confirmed my fears; I didn’t have the clear plastic kit bag that you had to use to get your things transported from the start to the finish. Perhaps it fell out of my bag at the Expo, perhaps they never gave it to me at registration. I’ll never know. I did see two people with the kit bags as I left the Expo and wondered where they had got them. The helpline couldn’t say for sure they would have spares, so I packed light in case I needed to take up kind offers from other Eagles with spare space in their kit bags, and took my spare clothes in a similar bag from another half, just in case that was acceptable.
Given all this I was even more grateful to only have to make to Ealing Green for 6:45am to catch the Eagles coach to the start. It was cold, but fortunately not windy on the exposed Blackheath starting area, and after a photo we split into our separate start areas; I was in Blue. It was on a scale I hadn’t seen before; rows of baggage trucks along one side, port-a-loos along another and the starting pen along the third, with urinal areas and large changing tents in the middle, and an EHM team handing out bottled water. I went straight to the info tent where to my delight they had a box of spare kit bags. It had felt like unboxing a new toy only to find it dented, and suddenly I felt like a genuine full participant like everyone else. However, as I packed light, I was feeling the cold and on the edge of shivering in a long sleeve T-shirt and bin bag, and was hoping that I wouldn’t use up too much energy keeping warm in the long wait until the start. After a second nervous visit to the urinals, we dropped off our kit bags with 30 minutes to go. The queues were just beginning to stretch out across the start area as we entered the start pen. The warmth of the surrounding runners made it a bit warmer as the minutes ticked down and we finally shuffled forwards. I’d put in an very optimistic finish time when I applied so was fortunately in pen 2 with some other fast Eagles runners, and when the hooter finally went it took less than 40 seconds to cross the start line.
The main aim of the first few miles was to settle into an efficient rhythm at the right pace, which seems bizarrely slow given the excitement. After about a mile, just when it looks to be thinning out a bit, the Green start suddenly merges in. Shortly after I saw someone in my peripheral vision lose balance, perhaps clipped by someone else. It looked like he would be righted by the runner between us, but he somehow missed him, and in what seemed like slow motion he tumbled to the ground. Fortunately, perhaps because he had plenty of time to think as slowly fell, he didn’t land hard, but did a sort of stuntman roll towards me so I ended up hurdling his head, his hand clipping my foot on the way over. I could hear the sounds of runners trying to avoid a pile up behind me, and made a split second decision that I wasn’t in the best position to help, and I would more likely add to the carnage if I stopped.
After 2.5 miles the course drops down off the heath down into Woolwich, where the huge mass of the red start flowed in like a giant tributary. It must have had a later or slower start as I saw the red 3 hr pacer go past, and I’m sure I glimpsed Jose up ahead, which worried me. I was checking my kilometre splits and freewheeling down the hill had got me ahead of schedule of my target time and I consciously tried to scale it back as we headed to Greenwich. The crowds that lined the route were getting deeper and noisier, and charity cheer squads would erupt into deafening cheers if one of their runners were spotted. I ran along the side of the stream to take in the atmosphere. I had ironed my name onto my Eagles vest a couple of years ago for the EHM, and I was getting plenty of plenty of personal encouragement. I vividly remember catching the eye of a man about my age, who with the SE London accent I remember from my childhood told me ‘Come, you can do this Harry’ like a friend I had known all my life. It was around this time I spotted the first of the mobile Eagles cheer squads, standing on something to rise above the throng.
I was checking my km splits on my watch, and checking the clock times on the mile markers against my Xempo pace pocket. The water stations were every mile or so, and even if you missed them, you could find a runner who had finished with a bottle. Each time I soaked my head and took a swig rather than a gulp. I carried four gels to take every 45 minutes, alternating caffeine ones, though the first one I took resulted in mild stomach cramps which had me worried for a while.
After the landmark of the Cutty Sark there were a lot of miles to tick off to Tower Bridge and the psychologically important milestone of half way, when the miles left are less than the miles run. I was beginning to spot the same runners again, and would exchange the odd words with runners from local clubs I recognised. The pace wasn’t feeling as easy as at the start, and I knew the halfway in terms of effort was still some miles away. As I passed the London Pride stand they were blazing out Dizzee Rascal’s ‘Bonkers’, and I was emotional transported to watching the GB hockey team score in the 2012 Olympics down the road. I loved the music at various places around the course, whether live bands or blaring out of loud speakers.
It was shortly after halfway that the elite men came flying down the other side of the road on the way to the finish – a reminder that we were in the same race, though I was some way behind. I’d purposefully not run the route in training as I wanted to experience it all fresh. This did mean I was a bit disorientated in the Docklands, not quite sure where I was headed and the effort was steadily building. When I finally ran past the towers at Canary wharf I didn’t have the energy to look up, and was thankful of the roving Eagles cheering me on. By 20 miles I was beginning to feel drained and focused on ticking off the 3 miles to the cheer squad. The stream of runners had thinned out a bit, and more of them were struggling. I had steadily banked another couple of minutes ahead of my target, but I still feared hitting a wall in the last few miles and fought to keep the pace up.
I was worried about not getting up on the pavement early enough for mile 23 and ran on the right hand side to make sure I didn’t miss it. When it arrived it seemed very narrow with a marshal on it who wasn’t looking in my direction. It may have been the emotional lift of seeing my wife and kids but it suddenly felt like running down a steep hill. I hadn’t planned what I should do, and I just let out a roar as I ran past a blur of familiar faces, high fiving as I went, and it seemed over in a second.
Then came the dreaded underpass out of the reach of the crowds. I was really having to work hard now but I was determined not to drop the pace. The Embankment seemed to go on forever. I was catching three men in an inflatable boat. I’d run with Darth Vader for bit, been overtaken by a monk and passed someone dressed as a peanut, but up until now I hadn’t seen too much fancy dress, and I was determined not to beaten by the boat. Turning round past the Houses of Parliament, the photos show I’ve got full race face on with half empty half haunted expression. I remember seeing people stopped with less than a kilometre to go trying to stretch out cramp and hoping that my legs would hold for a few more metres. When I turned into the Mall and could see the finish I knew I could make it, though no sprint finish; my body was in too delicate a state to try anything that rash. I managed an Eagle pose for the cameras and then a wave of relief as I made the finish line over 3 minutes inside my target time and gratefully received a medal. But as I picked up the goody bag and walked down to the baggage trucks chatting to a Fulham runner the pain in my legs seemed to get worse as they stiffened up. The sun, which had come out in patches during the last few miles suddenly seemed intense and hot and I was glad not to still be out on the course. I went to meet Plan International who I raised some money for, as it seemed rude not to say hello, and they were very charming and grateful, and gave me another little bag of goodies.
I walked over to the pub in Waterloo and was struck by the number of people who stopped to congratulate me. One family even asked if they could take a picture of me with their little girl. Getting on the bus in the morning with all the other Eagles, and then starting the race in a crowd of tens of thousands, it was easy to forget what an achievement running a marathon is, and this was an unexpected but welcome reminder. They didn’t ask what time I got – just the finishers medal was enough. Everyone has had their own journey to the finish line, and I have been more fortunate than most. A group enjoying some beers on the Southbank in the sunshine called over to say that the café was giving out free brownies to marathon runners, which turned out to be true.
The Eagles were gradually arriving at the pub and following a welcome shower in the gym round the corner I finally met up with the family for a welcome beer. The rest of the Eagles, runners and supporters filled up the corner of the pub, the beer eased the pain, and we relived the day’s achievements. It was people chatting about marathons they had run which had finally hooked me into trying to enter the London marathon – I wanted to feel part of that world, to share the experience. It was also a challenge to motivate me to improve as a runner. Apart from the slight hiccup with the kit bag I had been incredibly lucky, from winning the last ballot place to staying injury free and fit during the training, to having perfect running conditions in what is arguably the best marathon in the world, with the best cheer squad of any running club. People asked at today’s victory brunch when I will be running my next marathon. But I can’t see how I could possibly top this experience.
I don’t feel qualified to give any training advice, my training had fit around family life and was influenced by what I felt comfortable with from my experience as a rugby player in my youth. Be wary of people who are more excited about success, than doing the thing that they want to be successful at. I enjoyed the whole journey; training runs along new routes or with fellow Eagles, club champs races. Run your own race and enjoy your running.
In April 2017 Eagle Piers Keenleyside completed this gruelling event which takes place in the Sahara desert. You can read all about his adventure by following this link:
In April 2017 Eagle Piers Keenleyside completed this gruelling event which takes place in the Sahara desert. You can read all about his adventure by following this link:
With just 4 days to go, it is all becoming very real, with marathon being mentioned everywhere, though fortunately in the weather forecast it was to say it was good conditions for the runners. Even prince Harry had been to the Expo.
I managed a decent crack at the Thames Towpath 10 miler; I couldn’t quite keep up the early pace in that tricky third quarter. I doubt we will see such a dusty towpath in April again, and given the sunshine, and my daughter’s birthday paintballing later that morning, I was grateful of the early start. There followed some shorter runs, scoping out Harrow on the Hill in the dark, a possible WCR training run. Over Easter a different canal (pictured), with more locks than I’m used to, and finally some unavoidable hills when visiting my mother over Easter. Even the facial hair is coming along nicely. With 740 miles in the bank since the start of the year at an averaging 45 miles a week, I have run over a marathon for each mile of the marathon on Sunday.
Today, nervous about making sure everything is in place for race day I went to pick up my number from the wrong side of town. I’d never been to a running Expo before and didn’t know quite what to expect. Opposite the entrance were rows of booths to pick up race numbers – presumably getting it out of the way first to make sure people don’t forget what they came for, and then oddly you pick up a the timing chip separately. Then there was a challenge to run on a rolling road 400m at elite marathon pace. I jogged down from Canning town to save some time, so I was all set in my running kit and up for a challenge. It was hard work, and tricky staying in the middle of the slightly spongy rolling road, but 70 seconds later an Abbot World Marathon Majors cap was mine. Slightly sweaty, next was the large Adidas merchandise area, reminiscent of the 2012 Olympic shop. I was confident enough of finishing the race to treat myself to shirt and running top. Then it was into the Expo proper with hundreds of stands for running products, charity stands and race promotions. My Eagles WCR top was noticed by a Runners World pacer from Les Croupiers, and I found another Eagles member who was very complimentary about how friendly the club was. On the main stage there were experts preaching race day tactics to the faithful. There was a goody bag similar to what you would normally receive at the end of a race to pick up if you flashed a race number. Then, finally there were the photo opportunities to support all the fundraisers. Apparently over £16 million had already been raised. It was all very different to picking up a number from a gazebo in a field.
I’ve managed to squeeze training runs in around family life, from early morning runs into work to running round Greenford in the dark while my daughter swims. I have even found late night pounding the pavements after carbo loading a stash of spuds uncomfortable, but tolerable. The long runs have generally been early on weekend mornings. But still there has been an impact, and this is probably the right time to thank everyone, in particular the mother-in-law who has been looking after the children when I head out for an evening run, for patiently indulging my slightly selfish personal challenge. It will all be over soon. Just one final long run left on Sunday.
My foot is getting better day by day, but not quite as quickly as I would like it to. I would be happy if this marathon was another month or two away, rather than next week. I have got so out of the habit of running that I am actually starting to get used to not doing it. Being lazier isn’t much fun, however, and it all reminds me of why I went running in the first place. Now it is hard to motivate myself to do just a few miles, and I don’t know how I am ever going to run 26 of them. I guess it is a normal part of maranoia to feel a bit unhealthy, but I really haven’t been very good with regards to that since the training regime fell apart. It is too late to train now and I might benefit from having a decent rest. The one thing that has cheered me up is that, the way things are going, I am hopeful that I will at least be able to get round.
Week 13 – 13 miles
I didn’t want to wait anymore to be able to run again so I put every effort into getting well enough to do so. I rolled a frozen water bottle under the foot and stretched the calf as much as I could. I stuck with the weekly routine of physio and needling. The podiatrist raised the question of there being something different to plantar fasciitis when I told her about all my cracking and popping sensations and the location of the pain. She said it could be bursitis instead. I wondered if it was plantar but there was something else as well that I had done by continuing to run on it. That would be more of a worry if that was the case. All the physio could do was massage the calf, which was always a painful experience, and move the foot and ankle around. He was pleased with how much better I was at lifting myself up on the foot and said I could go for a short run in another couple of days if it felt OK. I didn’t really care if it felt OK; I was set on running no matter what, because I needed to know if I could attempt ten miles on Sunday. Wednesday's dry needling left me a bit sore so I couldn't attempt the run until Friday. I did three miles round the canal with my colleague Will at an easy pace. A few minutes in I felt a twinge and, though that eased off, it didn't turn out to be as painless as I thought it would be. I really enjoyed it though and I felt like I could have gone for longer. After nearly three weeks of no running, the buzz was amazing.
I was a bit sore soon after I finished the run. The reaction is rather delayed, which means I'm allowed to start thinking things might not be so not be so bad for a while before my foot starts playing up. Saturday, however, I felt so much better that I could almost forget about my issues. It helped having the lovely weather to take my mind off things. I turned up for the start of the Towpath Ten a little more confident that it wasn't a terrible idea. It was already warm and pleasant at eight in the morning. It was nice to be doing a race once more and to see some Eagle faces. I hoped that my hangover would keep me from doing anything too ambitious: eight minute miles was the plan. When we set off I found it difficult to go that slowly. A bit of shin stiffness and some pain in the foot made the first few miles rather uncomfortable, but then my legs warmed up a bit. I felt better when I hit the paved inland section coming back from Richmond. My resolve to hold back had been steadily eroded by the many people overtaking me and I finally gave in when I encountered one of my pet hates of fellow runners: the guy that loudly and overenthusiastically thanks every marshal that he goes past. The fact that he was suddenly less cheery when I sped away from him led weight to my long held suspicion that this is a deliberate tactic. Now a good 40 seconds a mile faster than the runners around me, I overtook a lot of people and was having a lot more fun. I finished in 1:13, rather quicker than my original intention and maybe faster than I should have gone. The only immediate disappointment was the realisation that it was still too early in the day to go to the pub to celebrate.
The pain kicked in half an hour after I stopped and my elation at finishing the race turned to gloom when I couldn't walk properly anymore. I still was unsure what this meant for me running a marathon in just two weeks time. Yes I finished, but it felt difficult to do despite being way off my usual standard and I felt very uncomfortable afterwards. My success depended on continued improvement in the next 14 days.
Week 14 - 8 miles
Monday I felt a lot better again. If I hadn't, then it would have meant there was a serious problem. This week, a sense of laziness really kicked in. My determination to get the last minute training done at any cost had evaporated and I didn't feel remotely like a runner anymore. Maybe it was nerves because the big day was looming ever closer, but I found myself thinking that I really had lost it after having to stop. I hadn't exactly swapped the training for a healthy lifestyle and I am starting to regret that now. But I guess that doesn't really matter because I only want to finish it now, and I won't listen to those that say I might surprise myself because, if I try to go too fast and it all falls apart, it won't surprise me at all.
Nothing new happened at the physio except that he advised me to have two days of rest after even the gentlest run. Following this advice would severely reduce my opportunity to run even if I had the motivation for it. This week's needling session was all of the fun of getting stabbed in the foot. Slowly. Previously, the pain had been bearable but this was genuinely unpleasant, especially when I knew that this was a larger bore needle going right down into the attachment point of the plantar fascii. All this was seemingly not in vain, however, as I definitely felt better after it settled down.
I had all of two runs of four miles each. I could have done longer for each if I had the time. After stopping I had a long time to wait before I could go again and that severely limited my mileage, which was probably a good thing. One thing that bothered me is how much even a walk of a few miles made my foot hurt to a comparable degree. Saturday's run was more fun because I was at my dad's and I could go along the cliff top at Reculver and have the sea air around me. I still had to get through an initial few minutes of discomfort before things got easier and that worried me slightly now that there was just a week more to go.
There isn't much left that I can do. The couple of short runs that I will do this week won't tell me whether or not I am going to manage 26 miles next Sunday. I can only go to the start line and hope that I have done enough, and also that I haven't ruined what all the hard work gave me. It is difficult for me to stop wondering how the hell I am going to run a whole marathon when my foot still isn't happy about doing simple things. I have to just try. Quitting now just isn't an option. I'll see you all on the other side.
The Eagles are hosting the first Summer League fixture for 2017 and we need your help to make it a success!
If you are able to volunteer on the day we will need marshals and people to man a drinks station, as well as assistance with setting up at the beginning, packing up at the end, helping with the tenderfoot race and the relays. Also we need to provide all the runners with food so if people can bake or bring food too that would be great!
If you are able to help out on the day and/or bring some food please put your name on the spreadsheet so we can keep track of everyone!
If you have any questions please contact race@ealingeagles.com
Summer League is just around the corner and in order to help things run smoothly we need some volunteers please!
We need two captains - one for the women and one for the men. The captains will be responsible for the following:
Captains are still able to run - they generally just need to help with a bit of organising before each fixture!
If you're interested or have any questions then please email race@ealingeagles.com
Summer League fixtures are:
Do you know someone who would like to start running but doesn’t know where to start?
Are you interested in volunteering with beginners or even learning to lead runs or to coach for the club but don’t have any experience of what this might involve?
The Ealing Eagles Beginners Programme has proved very popular (invitations to the May 2017 programme have been sent out to over 80 people who went onto the waiting list since the last programme in February 2017). The programme starts with run/walking with all the running at a comfortable pace at which people can talk and gradually builds up to the short club run.
Beginners don’t need to have any special equipment to start or to have any particular level of fitness or to be able to run a certain distance to qualify – they just need to turn up on the day with enthusiasm and a commitment to follow the programme! Our experience is that most people will take six to eight weeks, going out twice a week, to progress from not running at all to running 5k.
Fixed length beginners’ courses will be starting in May as follows:
The meeting point for the sessions will be the gazebo-like structure by the café / play area in Walpole Park. (There is no clubhouse so please arrive dressed ready to run. If you have any bags with you, you can leave them in Crispin's Wine bar on Wednesday evenings or in FarmW5 on Thursday mornings. Both of these businesses are located opposite Ealing Green.)
In addition to the run / walking element of the programme present in all Eagles beginners’ programmes, some of the sessions in the next programme will include units focusing on running technique.
The sessions are led by our experienced coaches who are qualified UKA Leaders in Running Fitness. Some beginners’ leaders specialise in working with beginners; others started with beginners and have moved on to leading sessions for the club as whole; while others work with both groups. The qualified leaders are supported by a team of volunteers – some simply enjoy encouraging new people to start running while others are inspired to take on other volunteering opportunities. It is not essential for volunteers to be available for the whole programme though obviously volunteers who attend more sessions will find it easier to get to know the beginners. Eagles interested in volunteering with either beginners or the club as whole can gain experience with beginners in a variety of training roles including: run leading; leading warm-ups or cool-downs; or working with a small group of beginners.
If you are on facebook, there is a dedicated facebook group for beginners’ volunteers.
There will be a meeting for anyone interested in volunteering with beginners on Wednesday 26 April after the club mile (so probably about 8pm) at the Plough on Northfields Ave. If you can’t make that time, we will also be in FarmW5 on Thursday 27 April from about 11.45am for lunch. Please email beginners@ealingeagles.com if you would like more information.
It was the 30th November and 4 days earlier I had run the San Sebastian marathon. After becoming accustomed to the carb lifestyle I decided I needed to enter another marathon ASAP. After a chat with Surrey traitor Harriet Betteridge who was also looking for a new challenge following her triumph in the Lisbon marathon the previous September we both decided to sign up for Paris. I was looking to better my GFA time from San Sebastian (previously just scraping in at 3:44:35) and Harriet wanted to dip further under 3:30 having done 3:29:54 in Lisbon. The challenge was set.
Coach Walker very kindly agreed to help me once more with a new plan which involved 5 days a week of running, it was a definitely going to be a challenge but seemed very achievable with some good time management. The basic rules were Tuesday track, Wednesday easy mid-week long run, Thursday Tempo, Saturday Parkrun and Sunday long run. Classic.
Training started really well and I quickly started entering other races and training runs to fit into the plan. Brighton was the target half (minus 146 metres apparently) with a few others booked as part of training runs. These included the Bramley 20, Cranleigh 15 and the wonderful Leith Hill Half.
Everything was going great with a new PB (I'm still claiming it) for the half distance and I was generally feeling pretty strong with the taper on the horizon after completing my longest training run of 22 miles, that's when my achilles decided it was time to cause some mischief...
I'll never know what would have happened on race day if I decided to completely rest instead of just cutting back on the mileage, which I did do quite substantially, but spoiler alert, it didn't quite go to plan. During the taper every time I ran all I could think about was my achilles and whether it was going to magically not hurt this time, a few times it didn't at all but this was outweighed by all the times it definitely did. I desperately rolled, stretched and rested as much as my maranoid body could handle until a few days before all I could do was rest and hope for the best.
Friday arrived and an early Eurostar to Paris awaited with Hattom (Harriet and Tom for those not in the know) and Sophie and Kieran (reporting for cheer duty) due to join later that evening. But disaster struck and after a week of ignoring esteemed health care professional Sophie Foxall, Kieran admitted defeat and finally visited A&E where he was told he'd need his foot amputated... oh sorry no it was just a bad case of cellulitis. Either way our personal cheer squad could no longer make it, lesson learnt, never ignore a nurse when she tells you your foot looks like it needs seeing to. Get well soon Santry!
On Saturday morning we headed for the Expo to collect our numbers, I'd been told it was bigger than London and it wasn't a lie. After collecting our bibs and race rucksacks we quickly made our way through the copious amount of stalls, stopping only to buy 'XC pink' marathon branded tops. I thought it would be a good incentive to finish the race no matter what the next day otherwise I wouldn't be able to wear it without feeling like a fraud. A quick stop at the Marathon du Medoc stall for a thimble of wine (important to keep hydrating the day before kids) and then my favourite part of any training plan was put into full action, carb loading was a go.
The morning of the race arrived and Harriet and I set off from our Parisian apartment near Place de Clichy at 6:45am, which was very conveniently situated on a metro line heading directly to the race start on the Champ-Elysee.
We headed straight for our pen but upon arrival thought it probably wasn't a good idea to run with all our stuff so decided to try and find the baggage drop instead, definitely should have read those race instructions.
One thing I'd been repeatedly warned about with this race was the toilet queues but I really didn't think this was an issue. This may have been because there was a one portaloo no-one seemed to want to go in and Harriet and I thought it was fine (usual level of disgusting but fine) so no queue for us.
8:35 and we were off! The way the start staggers for Paris works really well, they let everyone from one pen go at a time before waiting a while to release the next, this meant it never felt too crowded on the route, I still felt like I did a fair amount of weaving due to people trying to stick to the green line but I think that will always be the way.
Phill and Tom had agreed to be at 3 or potentially 4 places over the course and the first was just after 5km so we knew we didn't have to wait long before we got some cheer squad action. After 2 miles together I let Hattie go ahead as I knew she wanted a slightly faster time than me and I wasn't sure how my achilles was going to behave. I passed 5km around the time I wanted to with the achilles not complaining and cheer squad in the agreed position up ahead, I was feeling positive. Unfortunately this was only to last another 2 miles...
Just after mile 5 on the approach to the first woods, of which there are 2 along the route, I felt my lower calf start to pull. This was a feeling I knew all too well from the past few weeks and I knew what was to come. By the time we left the woods at around mile 12 I was in quite a bit of pain but was just trying to focus on getting to half way and then to the next agreed cheer point just before the 15 mile mark.
When I saw the boys I really wanted to stop but knew as soon as I did it would be so hard to start again and I was already feeling a bit emotional about the prospect of potentially not finishing.
I was wearing two pace bands and at this point I was still just about on target for the one which read 3:30 but I knew it wasn't going to last and tried to cling onto the one that read 3:35 instead.
However about a mile later the pain was too much and I had to stop to try and stretch my calf, at this point I was about ready to quit and was feeling quite teary. Then I thought what a bloody idiot I must have looked and told myself to snap out of it, I was in Paris on a beautiful sunny day, running an amazing race with some pretty awesome people. And more importantly there was a lovely pink t-shirt I'd bought the day before and damn I really wanted to be able to wear it. And beer, there was beer at the finish line.
So I struggled on, walking if I needed and running when I could. I looked at all the sights and made sure to take in the Eiffel Tower which Tom had told me his Uncle had missed when he ran it because he was having such an awful race, there was no way I was going to miss that. After that I knew I just needed to do a Parkrun (a mantra I always find useful) before I saw the boys again at the start of the next woods. Here I stopped and had a little (big) moan about my time and wanting to quit but Phill made me keep running for which I'm very grateful and was the push I needed to finish. I'd read horrible things about these wood being a 'death march' but considering how much I was suffering psychically I found them quite enjoyable. A couple more miles and the two man cheer squad had darted across the park so they could see us again, a welcome sight as I wasn't sure I'd see them again until the end. At this point Phill told me to run faster and this time I didn't appreciate his encouragement quite so much but I tried to do as I was told none the less.
The final mile seemed to drag on forever and the sign for 200m to go couldn't come soon enough. I summoned all the strength I could do a 'sprint finish' but it was nothing more than a hobble. And with that I was done.
We were quickly handed a very nice finishers t-shirt and given the 24 degree midday heat, an unnecessary poncho but good to know that the organisers we prepared for all eventualities on race day. I found Hattie with no trouble in our pre-agreed meeting place and quickly felt most of the disappointment of my race disappear knowing we could celebrate and have a post race beer in a beautiful city on a sunny spring day.
No I didn't get the time I wanted or trained for but if you'd have asked me this time last year if I could run two sub 4 marathons in 4 months one being a good for age qualifier for London I would have said it wasn't possible. I'm grateful that I'm at a point where I can be disappointed with a finish time of 3:50:25 and I'll get that illusive sub 3:30 one day. C'est La Vie, the sun is shining and life is good. Now to rest this gammy ankle...
TWO WEEKS TO GO!!
Wow as I wrote the title I had to stop and think....is it really that close. In less than two weeks will I really be a marathon runner?! I really blinking hope so!
These two weeks have flown. At this point I want to give a huge shout out to my coach Mark Yabsley. He is amazing. As you might have realised by now I am a real self doubter so he's had to put up with a lot! Yet he's talked me through every step of the way and helped me to believe that I can do this....that I will do this. He really is the most special person and I am so, so grateful he agreed to coach me.
At Dorney last week he had to cope with my first full on race anxiety attack. I've mentioned before I get anxious, can't sleep, worry etc....so my grand plan was to book myself into a fair few races to overcome this. I think I have become more anxious on every one. I went to pieces pre race. I took myself away from the group and texted Mark to say I was stupid to think I could ever run a marathon, I was so freaked out about what lay ahead. Immediately he called me and talked me through everything. Although I wasn't actually sure that the twenty miler was easier than labour!
I totally agree that the whole thing is illogical. This was my third twenty miler so why now? I can't explain it. It just terrified me. Thankfully a few of the Eagle flock were around to hold my hand until the start when I was pretty sure I knew I would be fine. Apologies in advance if I look super scared pre VLM. As soon as I start I will love it I promise...and I'm working on the pre race game!
Dorney actually was great. I loved it despite being told by a few it was awful in the few days before the race! It was hot but there were water stations and continual visual goals. I even had a little competition with myself to see how far I could get before James Linney lapped me ( I won!)
I was pleased with my time ( although I did go faster than I was supposed to) and dare I say it even felt I had another mile or so in me. I have included one of my favourite marathon training pictures which shows how happy we all were at finishing Dorney!
This week has been a little stressful for me as I have been poorly and missed a few sessions. I have been so frustrated and trying not to stress out as I know I need to rest. Touch wood today I feel a little better so will attempt a five miler tomorrow. The Thames Towpath shall remain my nemesis race for one more year!
Time to sign off my penultimate blog by wishing everyone training for London the most perfect taper. Not long now!!
The cold symptoms have thankfully gradually disappeared over the last couple of weeks. I hadn’t managed any intervals or hills for a while, so I went for 20 reps of West Walk hard up with recovery on the way down. At least I have finally worked out how to use the lap button to keep track of the number of reps, a simple mental task that is completely beyond me when I am pushing hard.
I’ve been using the marathon training to run some new and interesting long routes, so the next dayI ran the scenic route home from work for the first time. This took me from Paddington down through the Royal parks to the houses of parliament, where there were poignant reminders of the attack the week before, and then along the river to Kew Bridge and home. There was quite a head wind, and my legs felt heavy, but it is an interesting route. Unlike the bridges further upstream, those in the centre don’t have pedestrian underpasses, so it was a bit more stop start, and there is the odd tricky bit where the path leaves the riverside, but fortunately there were enough other runners to follow that I didn’t get lost. I cut across through Barnes after passing some outdoor broadcasting equipment setting up for the boat race. I fortunately made it back in time to lead a club run for the first time, but I was too tired and stiff to actually run it.
I had a couple of days rest before one final long run, as I struggled a bit on the last one. I wanted to incorporate a more distant parkrun, but miscalculating how early I needed to get up for Bushy parkrun I did a late switch to Kingston parkrun, but still left too late. I thought I had missed it completely when the runners streamed past, and I continued on to find the start to tag along at the back. It would have been my slowest parkrun, even if I hadn’t started some 5 minutes late. Still, another ticked off the list, and a nice route along the riverside. I continued on to loop back through Bushy Park anyway (pictured), and by the time I was home it was over 39k at 8 minute mile pace. It was good to have that distance under my belt without hitting a wall or injury.
The following week was resolved to do some shorter runs to aid recovery and start the taper. Towards the end of the run on Monday I felt some pain behind the back of my left knee. When I stopped I found my knee strap had rubbed my skin raw. I’m not sure if the knee straps are still necessary, but I’m not going to experiment ditching them so close to the marathon. I was worried it wasn’t going to heal as it was painful on the next couple of runs, particularly the more I bent my knee. Fortunately by the end of the week it seemed to be healing up.
Compared to the other bloggers I have been lucky, and have been able to keep running through cold and niggles. I still have the odd aches, particularly in my left ankle before it is warmed up, but now that I have made it to the taper and have the miles in the bank, my worries are more about the weather and logistics on the day, and whether I will do those miles justice. I keep having doubts about the pace to run on the day despite the examples of the half marathon times last month. I’ll be running the Thames Towpath 10 miler tomorrow, which will give me a final data point, before I have to dash off to my daughter’s birthday party. She was suddenly ill last night – I hope she recovers quickly, and not just for her sake.
The Ealing Eagles AGM will be taking place on Tuesday 25th April at 7:30pm in The New Inn, 62 St Mary's Road. Ealing W5 5EX.
There will be a review of the 2016-17 year by the committee and an update on a potential Eagles base from the sub-committee.
The committee are proposing some slight amendments to the constitution. In summary these are:
Election of the committee for 2017-18 will take place and there will also be an opportunity for questions and answers with the committee.
A copy of the proposed constitution is attached here, with additions to a constitution in blue text and items to be removed in struck through, red text, for you to review.
Can we ask that we do not have a public debate on Facebook prior to the AGM and if you do have any queries, please to e-mail chair@ealingeagles.com.
The majority of the existing committee are planning on standing for the 2017-18 year but this does not preclude people nominating themselves for positions. One committee role we will need to fill is that of social officer. If you would be interested in stand for this, or any other role on the committee, please e-mail info@ealingeagles.com.
We are also looking to have ‘deputies’ to take some of the weight off the committee members so if you be interested in filling any of these roles, again, please e-mail info@ealingeagles.com.
Ever thought what we really need is a running shop in Ealing?
We’ve been approached by a local budding entrepreneur and keen runner. They’re exploring the possibility of opening an independent running shop in Ealing.
Naturally they’re very keen to hear the thoughts and opinions of the local running community, and especially the Ealing Eagles.
They have asked us to circulate this survey which takes about 5 minutes to complete. You can complete it anonymously if you wish.
Survey: https://kwiksurveys.com/s/xMd5RyaK#/0
Your honest answers and opinions will be very helpful and greatly appreciated. Feel free to also email us at info@ealingeagles.com and we'll pass on any thoughts to the relevant people.
This running blog once again contains no running unfortunately. As such, there is not very much for me to write this time. No running for means that there is not very much going on and that has been rather difficult. I have come out of the permanent fatigue that I had when I was training but there has been no relief. I cannot adjust back to the life that I had without it because I have the marathon looming ahead of me, now scarily close. I couldn't feel less prepared for it at the moment.
Week 11 – No Miles
I don’t know what I did to myself at the Fleet Half that I hadn’t done before but my foot was not in a good way. The subsequent days showed me that it was in no hurry to get better. Tuesday I had my physio appointment at Move with Ben. He confirmed my self-diagnosis of plantar fasciitis and gave me enough to be a little more optimistic about still doing this marathon. He said, as mine was acute and came on in only a few weeks instead of the usual few months, there was hope that it would go again just as quickly. He told me no running for another week, though. I was happy enough with this for the first few days because even walking was a problem and I wasn’t daft enough to try. My foot was well taped up and it eased some of the strain on it, but it made moving around a little awkward. I felt some improvement over the next few days but then, on Friday, it suddenly started hurting enough to compromise my mobility once more. All this left me rather down because it seemed like with every passing day the glimmer of hope for a quick recovery was fading.
On Saturday I went to see a podiatrist in Northfields. Her opinion was that I should still be running slowly, but this was something I wasn’t comfortable with doing until I had at least seen the physio again. She wondered if I was downplaying the severity of it and I think she had a point. She said that my left foot was tilted slightly outwards, which is something I wasn’t aware of and didn’t think was an issue in the past. I strongly suspected that this had happened recently from my continued running on a bad foot and it reinforced my opinion that I should wait until the pain subsided a bit more.
I did what a few people suggested and gave up not drinking. There really didn't seem any point anymore if I couldn't run, and the prospect of a somewhat slower marathon than I had hoped for made getting healthier seem less important. However, trying to forget about running and do other things was tough and the first week without it was not easy at all.
Week 12 - No Miles
I was really starting to miss the running and I noticed an excess of unburned energy that made me wish I could start again. I didn't feel healed enough to try it yet, though. I rode my bike more instead and, now that the days were longer and the towpath had dried, I could cycle home the long way along the canal. The pain in my foot was easing gradually day by day, but not as quickly as I wanted. Wednesday's visit to the physio didn't give me as much optimism as the previous appointment. He said I wasn't ready to run yet, and any attempt to do so would put me back to square one. Having the left calf massaged felt really unpleasant so there were clearly still a few problems there. He said I could run again when I could do a one-footed calf raise fifteen times without pain. Right then I couldn't even do a few without it hurting a fair amount afterwards, but I was determined to keep trying. My foot continued to be taped up and I was getting used to that now.
Wednesday I was back at the podiatrist for some dry needling. It was something I hadn't been looking forward to but I hoped would help. It is hard to comprehend how sticking a sharp object into the damaged areas would make things better. It turned out that it didn't hurt as much as I had feared, even though it felt like the needles were going deep. Straight after the therapy, my foot felt worse but I was told that might happen. Then, the next day, once I had got up and moved around a bit, I noticed a significant improvement. The pain was on average less than it was before, and it came and went instead of being constant. Sometimes I could walk around and hardly notice any problem. That wasn't all the time so I knew I still needed to be careful. I took the tape off at the weekend and I felt like I no longer needed it. I abandoned any plans I had to do too much exercise and had a lazy one instead. I think I still needed to rest.
After two weeks not running, I feel like a slob. It seems like I have lost a lot of fitness and I hope people are right when they tellme it's not true. I managed to do fair bit of training before inevitably, once again, injuring myself and that is going to have to do because I won't be able to do much running before the marathon. Even if I were able, it is now taper time so I can't wear myself out before the big day. It's not going to feel quite right and it's not going to be fast, but I'm still determined to do this marathon. I can't bear the thought of doing this all again next year.
Now it's only three weeks til London it's officially TAPER! To get you all excited, please see the below Google sheet for the big day.
For runners, please go to the second tab and complete your information so that all those lovely people at Mile 23 know who they're looking for and how to spot you! Mr. Eagle has filled in the first one as an example ;). If you can try to slot yourself in according to time, please do.
For spectators, we've included the current tube times to get you to the closest stations to Mile 23, and all the start times and estimated times to 23 miles for the various race waves so you can decide if you're going first thing or later!
**MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL NOTICE**
Membership renewals are now due and payment requests are being sent out over the next week. These are being done in alphabetical order so lucky you if your surname begins with A...
Please bear with us as this process is not automatic and takes some time to work through. If you have not received a request by 14th April then please contact Olivia by emailing membership@ealingagles.com but not before checking your junk folder.
If you joined after January 1st 2017 you will NOT need to pay again and will NOT receive a renewal email. If you do please contact the above email so we can rectify.
Please remember that the way the EA system works is that if you joined AT ANY TIME between April 2017 and December 2017, you will now have to re-pay your membership fee. Following this you will need to renew every April going forward, as detailed in the FAQ's section in the Eagles Nest.
Any queries or questions please contact Olivia and she will be happy to help.