Why join a running club?

LaHaine

I'm thinking about joining a club in southside dublin, possibly Crusaders in Irishtown.

The thing is, im not sure what to expect from it? When you start in a club do they assess what your best distance would be? Does it start off with general fitness training or will they suggest a certain distance?

I'm a bit clueless and would just like some advice or to hear some peoples experiences on joining a club. I couldnt find any other threads on this through a seach.

Cheers!

misty floyd

There are loads of these threads, try doing an advanced search for 'join club' and select 'title only'. Here is one that has a few replies: LINK

RayCun

I joined Bros Pearse AC a few months back (and have been telling everyone to join a club since )

The main advantage is just training with other people. Doing a session with other runners means you won't call it a day after nine intervals, you'll do the tenth one. You won't slack off halfway through a lap, because you have people in front and behind to measure your pace against - you want to take some scalps, and you know there's a target on your back too. You'll get out of the house to do that session in the first place, because it's Tuesday, 7pm, and that's what you do. And running with other people is just more fun. Boring runs are less boring, hard runs are less hard.

There's more variety in the sessions I do, because someone else is thinking them up, and you do get tips and advice along the way, but the main thing is just running in a group.

(and of course there's hearing about events, having people to cheer or cheer you on at races, the same kind of thing you can get from boards)

smmoore79

At Crusaders, there are about 4/5 groups and youre put into one of these groups depending on your ability. The main training session is Tuesday at 6.30 in Irishtown stadium. Then theres Thursday 6.30 in Sean Moore park(meet at front of Irishtown stadium) and Saturday at 10, carpark at bottom of Magazine hill Phoenix park. All levels are welcome, ask for Mike, Susan or Don!

LaHaine

Cheers for all the advice guys.

Still taking a break at the minute after the marathon but ill definitely go down for a look at least in next few weeks

RoyMcC

I see Cru's annual sub has gone up to €100* for the new year. One of the big additional benefits though is full access to the gym.

*Happily only €25 for country members

scaryfairy

smmoore79 wrote: »

At Crusaders, there are about 4/5 groups and youre put into one of these groups depending on your ability. The main training session is Tuesday at 6.30 in Irishtown stadium. Then theres Thursday 6.30 in Sean Moore park(meet at front of Irishtown stadium) and Saturday at 10, carpark at bottom of Magazine hill Phoenix park. All levels are welcome, ask for Mike, Susan or Don!

hi,

You sound like an insider at Crusaders . I am currently member of a club in Dublin but thinking of changing (location, time etc). I don't know how these things work - can I still come over to one of your sessions or shall I wait until my membership expires?

many thanks.

scaryfairy

LaHaine wrote: »

I'm thinking about joining a club in southside dublin, possibly Crusaders in Irishtown.

The thing is, im not sure what to expect from it? When you start in a club do they assess what your best distance would be? Does it start off with general fitness training or will they suggest a certain distance?

I'm a bit clueless and would just like some advice or to hear some peoples experiences on joining a club. I couldnt find any other threads on this through a seach.

Cheers!

hi, if you find a club that suits you, go for it, I always run about 20% better when I run with others. It's so motivating - especially now when it's dark, to have a set time and day + of course you try to catch the person ahead of you.
good luck!!

cormacjones

smmoore79 wrote: »

All levels are welcome,

When you say all levels, does that include somone who hasn't done any running in about a year and also carrying a bit of (temporary) extra weight? But this person is looking to get back into running again.

I'm asking for a friend........

siooo88

couldn't find a thread on this myself either so thanks for posting...

I was thinking about heading out to Irishtown myself to join crusaders. I ran my first marathon last week and from talking to a number of people since it seems joining a club is the way to go to improve your training - due to many of the reasons listed above. I found the sessions very difficult to do myself while training for Dublin out on the road so the track sessions seem ideal.

Good to know you can just come down to a training session. Still carrying a knee injury from last week but once it is healed up I plan to head down myself so looking forward to it!!

cwgatling

Go for it lads. Facilities, social aspect, improved training, advice, support... it'll bring you on tons.

smmoore79

scaryfairy wrote: »

hi,

You sound like an insider at Crusaders . I am currently member of a club in Dublin but thinking of changing (location, time etc). I don't know how these things work - can I still come over to one of your sessions or shall I wait until my membership expires?

many thanks.

Im just a regular club runner so not sure about the rules regarding joining. Either way, you can still come along for a few weeks without immediately joining and ask one of the coaches what the craic is...

smmoore79

cormacjones wrote: »

smmoore79 wrote: »

All levels are welcome,

When you say all levels, does that include somone who hasn't done any running in about a year and also carrying a bit of (temporary) extra weight? But this person is looking to get back into running again.

I'm asking for a friend........

Ive seen all levels down on the track from elite to not so elite! So id say your friend will be fine.

scaryfairy

smmoore79 wrote: »

Im just a regular club runner so not sure about the rules regarding joining. Either way, you can still come along for a few weeks without immediately joining and ask one of the coaches what the craic is...

thanks will do!

RayCun

Most clubs, certainly Bros Pearse, will have a good mix of standards, down to people who are just starting off, or don't run much outside the club sessions.

tHE vAGGABOND

I will be joining Crusaders when I'm back into things in a few weeks. Heard a couple of good things about them and they are dead close to my new work, so easy to get to the training

I did a huge amount of the DCM training on my own, and it got annoying in the end, I also got injured in August [and again the same thing reoccurring in race itself] due to being an idiot and knowing more than Hal Higdon and doing too much

So I want to get told what training to do by someone who has a plan and purpose for what we are doing, a goal in mind, and train with people [missing the social aspect I had with Rugby!]

RandyMann

scaryfairy wrote: »

hi,

You sound like an insider at Crusaders . I am currently member of a club in Dublin but thinking of changing (location, time etc). I don't know how these things work - can I still come over to one of your sessions or shall I wait until my membership expires?

many thanks.

Hi there, I joined Crusaders late last year but I was previously a brief member of another Dublin club in 2009. You will be given a transfer form to fill out and you must get both clubs to sign it and then they(Crusaders) forward it onto the AAI for you. Just speak to Mike when you come down and he will advise you, it won't be a problem.

tHE vAGGABOND

Going to head down to Crusaders for the first time tomorrow night! [only 10 mins or so from work]

Now Im back, I have been floating around 6min km's - and need some actual hard training if Im to hit my speed related goals. I also want to run and train with some people, sick of doing it on my own!

Anyone else followed up on inspiration and joined a club from this and the many other threads on the subject!

Condo131

scaryfairy wrote: »

I am currently member of a club in Dublin but thinking of changing (location, time etc). I don't know how these things work - can I still come over to one of your sessions or shall I wait until my membership expires?

If you are changing from one AAI club to another, you need to fill out a transfer form, signed by both the old and new clubs, and submit it (sec. of new club will do this) to the County Board. [Note: Most counties only allow transfers in certain months, e.g. Cork is March & Aug]

If your membership has lapsed by more than three years, you don't need to go through the transfer rigmarole. [Note: current draft bye-laws from the AAI propose to change that - if your membership has lapsed by more than 3 years, you will have to notify the old club (personally speaking, I think this is ott.)]

Don't worry if this sounds complex - it isn't. The new club sec will get the form for you and then it's just a matter of getting the old club sec to sign it.

As regards going to a new club....just turn up and introduce yourself.

Barty

I'm also considering joining Crusaders - I have never been a member of a running club but after doing two marathons in 2009 I struggled last year with a few injuries and hence I'm hoping that joining a club will perhaps give me more structured training and help prevent future injuries.

Just looking at the Crusaders adult training schedule - Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays consist of interval and tempo training, do people arrange to meet up for longer runs if they are training for specific runs or what way does it work?

nerraw1111

Just giving this a bump.

How do interval sessions generally work at a club? Say for instance, I'm targetting a 10km programme that prescribes various intervals. Is it a case that there's always someone who'll be running 400, 1km and one mile reps? Or is it just one distance per interval session? i.e. we're doing 400s and that's it.

RayCun

If you have your own training plan that you want to follow, you can't rely on there being other people running at the same (ish) pace as you and doing the same session unless you arrange it beforehand.
So either you talk to the coach before you start the plan and say "I would like to do these sessions on these days, can you set that as the training for those days?" or you choose between the session in your plan and the session everyone else is doing.

dechol

Anyone suggest clubs around Harold s cross ternure that would suit a beginner runner ? I have completed marathon in just under five hours but have never done any kind of speed work.

HelenAnne

dechol wrote: »

Anyone suggest clubs around Harold s cross ternure that would suit a beginner runner ? I have completed marathon in just under five hours but have never done any kind of speed work.

Sportsworld?

dechol

HelenAnne wrote: »

Sportsworld?

Do they have many beginners?

RayCun

PM claralara or digger2d2, they're in Sportsworld.
There's also Dublin Striders on Sundrive Road, if you're that end of Terenure, don't know what the standard is like though.
Most club you can go along to a couple of sessions, see what they're like, before you're asked to join.

Pisco Sour

A female club mate of mine from New Zealand took up running in her early 20s, and did fun runs and the like, at various distances from 5K and up, with times which would not set the world alight. When she moved to Melbourne she decided to join a club to continue on the running. She joined the club I am with. Initially she started running with a group of other women doing long runs, until one day one of the coaches, who clearly spotted something, suggested she run with the lads. After a small time doing this, they asked would she be interested in doing a bit of track stuff. She said "what the hell, ok". After a few sessions of testing out what she would be good at they decided to throw her into middle distance running, and in her first full track season she qualified for Australian National Champs over 1500m (finishing top 20 in the country), came around 7th in the 1500m at the Victorian Champs, and got a medal in the Victorian Mile Champs. She also just missed out on the National standard for 800m.

Now in her second full season she has already run a 58 low for 400m, 2:12 high for 800m and a 4:31 for 1500m, and is set to go to nationals in both the 8 and 15. She's in her mid 20s.

What's the point in all of this extreme example? Not to actually try recruit distance runners to track , but to show that joining a club can help bring the best out in a runner. Having good coaches around you can nurture you and bring out the best in you, can focus on your strengths, and help to improve on your weaknesses. There really is only so much you can improve by training solo.

geld

Pisco Sour wrote: »

....that joining a club can help bring the best out in a runner. Having good coaches around you can nurture you and bring out the best in you, can focus on your strengths, and help to improve on your weaknesses. There really is only so much you can improve by training solo.

Says it all!

Deedee2012

dechol wrote: »

Anyone suggest clubs around Harold s cross ternure that would suit a beginner runner ? I have completed marathon in just under five hours but have never done any kind of speed work.

Bros Pearse Knocklyon too far for you? I just did DCM in just under five hours too having joined the club as a beginner. Brilliant club, all levels of runners and great craic, couldn't recommend them enough, come down and try a couple of nights with them. I bet you'll join if you do!

RayCun

And maybe next year you'll win the Best Beginner award from the club, like Deedee2012 did on Saturday

statss

Me and a buddy have gone down to Sportsworld Terenure over the past couple of weeks...I'm a novice....the sessions have been good and will definitely help me improve. There are runners of all paces taking part and everyone we have met so far has been friendly. In fact, I've a goal now to take part in DCM as I'm sure if I stick to the weekly training with the club I'll be fine for it.

dechol

Thanks a million everyone. Think I will sportsworld a go. Knocklyon not too far way deedee but I can walk to sportsworld so might suit better.

RedRunner

dechol wrote: »

Thanks a million everyone. Think I will sportsworld a go. Knocklyon not too far way deedee but I can walk to sportsworld so might suit better.

Good luck Dechol, I'm taking the plunge myself too this week except I'm on the Northside.

rom

My own experience http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=79235855&postcount=1

Must say it was very nice to have 10-15 people from my club and every other Cork club cheering me on for DCM this year. Each one made me forget the job at hand for a minute or two.

opus

Taking the plunge myself come Jan but went along to my first track session last week. Had never done much running on a track before so all a new experience.

Tipp man running

rom wrote: »

My own experience http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=79235855&postcount=1

Must say it was very nice to have 10-15 people from my club and every other Cork club cheering me on for DCM this year. Each one made me forget the job at hand for a minute or two.

Good to hear a positive mention about "The Barrs"...relocated to Cork and checking up on clubs and St Finbarrs suits my location nicely..will leave it till after Xmas to pop in.

opus

Tipp man running wrote: »

Good to hear a positive mention about "The Barrs"...relocated to Cork and checking up on clubs and St Finbarrs suits my location nicely..will leave it till after Xmas to pop in.

Snap that's one I'm joining as well! The only reason I hadn't done it sooner was that their track sessions was based in CIT but now they're back at the newly resurfaced track at the Mardyke.