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In 2005 Quakers Running Club was 'Highly Commended' by Cancer Research UK for its continued support of Darlington's Race for Life. Click here to view the award.

 

 Enter the Darlington Race for Life

The club is also recognised by the Flora London Marathon for its dedication and support given to beginners and has been designated a Flora London Marathon Running Club Partner, the only club in County Durham to receive this accolade.

London Marathon Partner Club Site

 

About the Club

The club's main training base is at Queen Elizabeth 6th Form College Playing Fields, Abbey Road, Darlington, DL3 8LR. We train on a Tuesday and Thursday evenings (meeting at the school at 6:30pm). Formed in May 1995 with a membership of just six. The club was formed to promote the participation of all disciplines of athletics and has quickly established itself as one of the regions more active promoters of running events.

At present the club boasts a coaching staff of twenty qualified coaches specialising in a wide range of disciplines from sprints to ultra distance running, including field events, as well as more diverse disciplines such as fell running, strength & conditioning and orienteering. We cater for all types of runners and boast a varied membership, accomodating for all ability ranges. No one is ever left behind! We consider ourselves to be the most friendly and active running club in the area.

If you are interested in joining, you might find our membership introduction pack useful. Click here to download the file as a PDF.


Race Report: Mermaid 10k PDF Print E-mail
Written by Michael Joyeux   
Tuesday, 06 April 2010 09:36

 

 

On Good Friday, the Quakers headed en masse up the Marske for the Mermaid 10k race. It was commented by one of the race hosts that the "Quakers had taken over the race" - we had 30+ runners on the start line. This was the first race I did as a Quaker four years ago and I've ran it ever year since. It's a great quick start to the bank holiday weekend with a pint after the race and fish and chips for lunch!

The race was well organised with loads of parking at the start, entry on the day and an easily accessible start line. The terrain was all road and pavement with no hills or slopes; personal best territory!

The race went off with a bang and went round the housing estate once and then onto the sea front. The start was slightly crowded with a couple of bemused pedestrians getting caught in the rush. There were a couple of bumps on the way down as the runners got mixed up together. The field quickly spread out into single fileas we went past Bydales School at 2km. From there there was a long stretch along the sea front with a few people cheering and shouting us along. There was a water station at 5k, which we passed again at 7km. The weather was lovely and cool and it was perfect running weather.

The faster runners started to lap the rear of the field and it was great to get and give some encouragement. Come off the sea front we had a 1.5km sprint along to the finish! I ended up racing with a couple of lads, unfortunately ending up on the losing end! But I still managed to cross the line in a new personal best of 37:50. I know a lot of Quakers crossed the line with PB times.

There were a lot of runners who didn't get a goodie bag, there must have been a lot more entries on the day than they were expecting. I know a couple of people, who had preregistered, were thinking that priority should have been given to those that entered before the race.

Overall, the race was fantastic and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a 10k personal best or as a race to gauge their speed at the start of the running season. Highest recommendation!

Quakers Photo Gallery Update

500(!) Photos from the Mermaid 10k Race have been added to the Photo Gallery! Thanks to Dave Aspin and Sue New for taking the photos!

Click here to view the photos!

Mermaid 10k Results (Download as a PDF) - Thanks to New Marske Harriers

 
 

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