FAQ

Please do come and join us for a few sessions.  Look at the training page to see what might suit you and then come down and see how things work.

Your obligations are to:

• Be in the right place ready to run on time.  The locations of the training sessions are published under training.  If you cannot work out where to go then read training. Did I mention looking at training?
• Come dressed sensibly for the weather and season.  Don’t come on a dark rainy night dressed head to toe in black with no torch.  In the darker months wear high viz, flashing light bands and bring a head torch if you have one.
• Talk to the Run Leaders.  Make sure they know you are a guest and what your limitations are.  They will be able to advise you on how things are done and which of the options on offer might be suitable for you.
• On most runs we will take a register of guests.
• Talk to people.  Talk to as many people as you can, introduce yourself and make sure you find out who the run leaders are.  Make friends.
• Listen to what people say especially if you are warned to get off the road or run in single file.  You are responsible for your own safety.
• Be courteous to other road and path users. You are running with the club and your behaviour reflects on us. Be wary of pedestrians, dog walkers, cyclists, bins left out for collection and cars, especially when crossing junctions and driveways.
• Be accepting of everyone’s level.  We all began somewhere.  If you are just beginning then do not be embarrassed.
• Do not try too hard or over extend yourself.  If you do you risk hurting yourself and you won’t be back next week.  Increase your pace and distance slowly and incrementally.
• Have fun, smile, do your best and enjoy it all.

If you like it then join

This site has a menu item Join

No.  This has been discussed and agreed at the club’s AGM.  The view is that the membership fee is low and that we do not want a complicated membership fee structure.  The current fees are described under the Join menu option.

Do please tell your friends about the club and encourage them to come along for taster runs – we are always seeking new members.

The club does not issue any membership number.  Instead we use the member’s URN (Unique Runner’s Number) which is assigned by England Athletics.  Sometimes this is called your EA number.  Your URN does not change from year to year.  In fact, if it does then there is something wrong and you should contact the club’s Membership Secretary.

We no longer issue club Membership Cards. Instead, please use your England Athletics Competition Licence to get a discount on full priced items at Cotswold & Sweatshop etc.  See the Links page.

The club no longer issues Membership Cards. Instead please use your England Athletics Competition Licence as proof of club membership.

Please use this contact form.

In UK law a child is anyone under the age of 18.  The club does not have the organisation in place to comply with the legal requirements of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.  For this reason we require that all children and vulnerable adults are accompanied by their parent or legal guardian at all club training sessions and events.  The parent or guardian must be responsible for the safeguarding of their child at all times.

We charge only a nominal membership fee for under 16s.  We do however incur cost.  To help cover that cost we require the parent or guardian to join the club regardless of the extent to which the adult takes part in running.  In addition we want to encourage family participation in te life of the club.

It all depends on what races your child will compete in and what the race organisers require.

Cross Country:  Any Junior over the age of 11 on 31^st August must be an Affiliated First Claim Club member of Red Rose to compete in the Mid Lancs Cross Country.  Under 11s do not require affiliation to compete.  The minimum age is 8 on 31^st August.

Interclub:  The minimum age for the Interclub races is 14 on race day.  All runners must be affiliated First Claim Club members of Red Rose to compete for the club.

Other races:  In our experience no under 11 needs to be affiliated but it is up to each race organiser to set their own policy.

You will find that Google is terribly helpful on this point.

England Athletics define the rules of competition for athletics clubs generally and running clubs in particular.  Most, but not all, road races in England are run under the England Athletics rules.  Don’t argue, it is just a fact of life.

Under the rules an athlete may compete for up to two clubs.  One of these is known as the First Claim Club and the other optional club is the Second Claim Club.  Only the athlete’s First Claim Club can pay the athlete’s affiliation fee to England Athletics.

You can only have a Second Claim Club if you are affiliated by your First Claim Club.  More on that later.

If you compete in a race in which your First and Second Claim Clubs are in contention then you must represent your First Claim Club.  If the competition does not offer a team prize then you may compete for either club.

This is most important for the Interclub and Cross Country races where there are team prizes but may affect other events.

England Athletics allow a period of 12 months grace from the date your affiliation lapses in the hope your First Claim Club will renew your affiliation.  After this time they will remove your record from both your First and Second Claim Club’s England Athletics Club Portal.

You need to do the following

1. Resign formally from your previous club. You need to do this by email or letter and you should keep a record of the date of resignation and ideally a copy of your resignation letter or email.
2. If possible get written confirmation (email or letter) from an officer of your previous club stating that they have no objection to you changing your First Claim Club.
3. Log onto your account on the England Athletics myATHLETICS portal using your URN as your username and start the change process using the appropriate menu item.
4. The portal and the form both say you need to send a cheque for £10 payable to England Athletics. If you were last affiliated more than two full seasons ago then it is worth phoning England Athletics to ask if the fee is applicable.  For example, if you last joined your previous First Claim club in May 2013 and they affiliated you then then your affiliation would have lapsed on 31^st March 2014  If you then wanted to change your First Claim Club to Red Rose after 1^st April 2016 then two full seasons would have passed and the fee should not be charged.  Phone, put your case to them and hope you are successful.
5. Applications received by England Athletics are often processed in a few days.  If you want more information on timescales then please contact England Athletics directly.
6. If you do not hear from England Athletics then phone them to understand why. If you do hear from them then please let the club’s Membership Secretary know. England Athletics sometimes tell us but sometimes they forget. If they forget and you do not tell us then we will not affiliate you.

The club does not issue any membership number.  Instead we use the member’s URN (Unique Runner’s Number) which is assigned by England Athletics.  Sometimes this is called your EA number.  Your URN does not change from year to year.  In fact, if it does then there is something wrong and you should contact the club’s Membership Secretary.

In the past you hardly ever needed the number.  Some race organisers use the runbritain online entry system which is available to any race that obtains its UKA Race Licence through runbritain.

The online entry system asks for a runner’s unique runners number (URN) which is then automatically checked through the England Athletics database to ensure that a runner is genuinely affiliated to the governing body. This is important from a race organiser’s perspective because it ensures that the price difference between affiliated and unaffiliated runners (usually £2 as of 2019) goes to the race.  Organisers are increasingly likely to use this system to check runner’s affiliation status.

Call England Athletics on 01213 476543

A few weeks after England Athletics receive your affiliation fee from your First Claim Club, England Athletics will send you an information pack which includes a card known as your Competition Licence.  This card has your Universal Runners Number (URN) on it.  In my experience it is the number that you need when entering races and not the card.  The number is increasingly being used by race organisers to clamp down on abuse of the discount on race entry offered to affiliated runners. Keep the card safe.

As a reminder of your URN and as a way of getting discounts.

If you lose your card and want a replacement then please log onto your account at England Athletics using the  myATHLETICS  portal and print another.

Failing that then please contact Membership Services at affiliation@englandathletics.org or call England Athletics on 01213 476543

This is really important.  Follow that famous slogan.  “Just do it”

Update your information on the England Athletics myATHLETICS portal. Your username is your URN which was sent in your Welcome email. You can set/reset the password from the portal.

Each club affiliated to England Athletics can have access to the details of its registered members through a web browser.  Using the ‘Portal’ authorised officials of the club can access and update the details of club members as well as pay the affiliation fees for their First Claim Club members.

Athletes can access their own records using the Athlete’s Portal myATHLETICS. Use your URN as your username.

Update your information on the England Athletics Athletes myATHLETICS Portal using your URN as your username.

If you do not keep your postal address up to date then you risk your England Athletics pack going astray.

If you do not keep your email address then you will not get any club information, newsletters, reminders etc.

If you do not keep your telephone numbers up to date then we have no means of contacting you if your email address fails.

I am not your Mum – It really is up to you.

We prefer to communicate electronically using email, the website and social media.

• The club’s website is at http://www.redroseroadrunners.org The site has all sorts of useful club information including the normal times of training sessions, club calendar and competition results and advice. Check out the new Blog section.  There is a button to allow you to subscribe.  You can submit entries to blog@redroseroadrunners.org
• The club has a Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/RedRoseRoadRunners which we use to communicate official club notices. Please go there and ‘Like’ it.  We do like to be liked!  The Facebook page has the latest news about training events and races.
• We also have our Facebook Group http://www.facebook.com/groups/265695165398/ This is the members’ forum which has a number of lively conversations on it as well as some great pictures.
• We also have a Twitter account https://twitter.com/RedRoseRR
• The club has a number of email lists that it uses to send information emails to the membership.

There are a small number of Postal Members who are people who have been with the club for a long time and do not have internet access.  We communicate with this group of members using the Royal Mail.  We do not anticipate increasing the number of Postal Members.

The welcome letter that you receive when you join the club has the email addresses of the club officials who might send you emails about the club. These people might be worth putting in your address book or safe senders list so emails from them don’t end up in your junk folder.

If you have lost the email then please use the contact form on this website.

We expect our members to conduct themselves appropriately when using electronic communication to share information with other members or when posting material on public websites connected to the club.  We do not tolerate disrespectful comment.  See the club constitution section 4.

You can help the club in many ways including

• Volunteering your time to help run the club
• Being an active member, racing, training and socialising with your Red Rose friends
• Running in your Red Rose vest at races
• Encouraging and helping others
• Representing the club at the Interclub and Cross Country
• Being welcoming to other members
• Bringing other people along and introducing them to running
• Being the best you can be
• Marshalling at events
• Helping out with providing something for the buffet at the Interclub

The club is only as good as its members.

Look twice before crossing roads and on country lanes make sure you can be seen on blind corners.  If you run in the dark then wear something bright and reflective.  If you have one wear a running torch.

Dress appropriately on track and trail runs and carry sensible kit.  Remember that the weather and your circumstances can change suddenly.  If you are out in the countryside or on the hills and you get even a minor injury then you may risk hypothermia.

Many race organisers are following the new England Athletics rules of competition and banning the use of headphones on safety grounds.  The logic is that you are far less likely to hear traffic, instructions from marshals and warnings from other runners.

The detail of these new rules can be found here.  Search the .PDF for rule 240.  At the time this FAQ was last updated (Feb 2017) the rule said

“RULE 240 S 5 UKA SUPPLEMENT – HEADPHONES

The wearing of headphones, or similar devices, (other than those medically prescribed), is not permitted in races on any single carriageway road that is not wholly closed to traffic. This restriction does not apply to races held on dual carriageways provided that there are clear, structured separations between the separate carriageways. Competition Providers of races held entirely on roads closed to traffic may apply this condition where appropriate to local circumstances.”

The club does not ban the use of headphones at training sessions but we do encourage you to talk to one another and headphones get in the way of that so we prefer it if you didn’t wear them when training with us.

When you are on your own then it is your choice but for safety we think there are good grounds for not using them if you are running in areas where you may encounter cycles or vehicles.

You do not need the card to come to training or other club events.  The card reminds you of your URN and allows members to prove they are club members and get discounts at local stores and therapists.

Currently we think the card can be used in the following stores

• Cotswold Outdoor  15% off full priced items
• Sweatshop  10% or greater off full priced items
• Ultimate Outdoors 15% off full priced items

If you have a problem then let us know.

The card can also get you a discount for therapists.

• Gus Muncaster of Performa Therapy will offer Red Rose members one third off their first consultation.  Performa Therapy is based in Leyland.  You can contact Gus on 0751 5572 156 if you want to make an appointment.
• Mac McCormack of MJMTherapies will offer any Red Rose member 20% off all consultations.  Mac offers a range of services including Hypnotherapy, Counselling and Performance  Therapy.  See his website for details of all the services on offer.
• Lee Lawrenson runs REALIGN, a sports injury and massage clinic popular with Red Rose members. Lee offers his fellow club members 10% off every session. You can contact Lee on realignpreston@gmail.com
• Athlete Matters are a specialist Sports Physio service operating from two clinics, one in Preston and one in Worsley.  Athlete Matters offer club members a 10% discount on treatment.  You can contact them either through the phone numbers on their website or on their email address to arrange a consultation.
• Nikki Sneddon runs Ribble Therapy and Beauty a mobile sports massage and beauty clinic.  Nikki also operates from Fulwood Leisure Centre and her base in Walton-le-Dale.  Nikki offers all members a £5 discount on each session which makes a 60 minute treatment £30 and a 30 minutes £20.  You can contact Nikki via the message option on her Facebook page

Alternative uses for your card…

• You can flash it nonchalantly in front of your friends in an attempt to impress them.
• You can use it to remind you of your URN
• You can try to gain access to the press gallery at your local stadium.

At least one of these should work.

If you live in Preston and use one of the council gyms then you might want to ask the membership secretary or club secretary for a letter confirming membership. The council may give you a discount on annual membership of Westview and Fulwood Leisure centres on production of the letter or your England Athletics Competition Licence.  Since Preston sold all the leisure centres to Better we are no longer sure if this works.  Try and let us know.

Inform the club’s Membership Secretary of the issue by email membership@redroseroadrunners.org

Do think about running in club races and competitions but please remember that if you do, you must wear a club vest and keep it in full view of other competitors at all times in the race if your results are to be taken into consideration in club competitions.  Exceptions to this rule may be made if foul weather encountered during fell races mandates the use of weather proof outer clothing.

I really can’t stress the need to wear your club colours enough!  Club competitions are run by rules and this is an important one – you must declare your club colours to the other competitors.

By a club competition I mean those on the Red Rose race calendar. If you are not sure then please feel free to ask a member of the committee.

We encourage you to wear your club vest at other competitions to promote the club.

The club purchases running vests from a supplier and then sells them at cost to members. If you want to buy a vest then goto Kit and Clothing for more details.

You can read all about the club competitions at http://www.redroseroadrunners.org/competitions/

The Interclub races are competitions between a number of local clubs with team and individual prizes.  There are two sets of Interclub races, the Road Series and the Fell Series.

You can read more about the Interclubs and the other competitions at http://www.redroseroadrunners.org/competitions/

Each year is a little different.  We normally arrange a number for all eligible club members.  The best thing is to follow Facebook and to ask what the current arrangements are a month before te first race.  You can find all the races on the club calendar.

We normally will distribute numbers at training sessions and before each Interclub road race.  Please, only pick up a number if you intend to race.

Arrive early if you wish to pick up your number before a race.  You must wear a Red Rose vest and have your number on it.  It is your responsibility to keep your number safe through the entire season and to remember to bring it and some safety pins with you to the races.

Joe Swarbrick, collates members’ involvement in races and submits an article to the Lancashire Evening Post.  If the LEP editors approve they publish it in the sports section, often under an outrageously cheesy headline. These articles show we are an active club and generate interest.

Joe gets his information from races he participates in or from people he knows in the club who were present.

Please let Joe know by email if you compete in a race that he is unlikely to know about. Perhaps you might also help him a little by offering a few words on the race as source material for his article.

Joe needs to submit his article by Monday evening for publication later in the week so you need to get news of weekend races to him promptly.

Joe’s email address was in your Welcome email.  If you have deleted that then use the contact form on this website.

The club takes part in the Mid Lancs League

If you want a place and did not request one when you joined the club then you can request one here.  You will get lots of information from that link also.  In addition why not talk to other club members and ask about their experience.  It is good honest fun in the fields.