Swindon’s largest running club, Slinn Allstars, have celebrated their tenth anniversary and marked the historic event by surprising each of the club’s members with a commemorative technical t-shirt.
During the last ten years, the club has grown from an initial dozen people into a thriving 260-strong club. The ages of members range from 18 to 81 and the abilities and reasons for running are just as vast. Some people run purely for social reasons or to keep waistlines in check, some enjoy challenging themselves and adding to their medal collections and others go the extra miles and undertake marathons and ultra-distance challenges.
The group’s name, Slinn Allstars, was chosen because two of the founders were Les and Clare Slinn. Les, who has a personal training business in the town, is still a member of the club today. The word “Allstars” represents that the club caters for people of all abilities.
Mike Wakefield, an original member and Club Chair, attributes the success of the club to their ethos that running should be about taking part and helping people achieve personal goals. Mike said: “Ten years ago Swindon didn’t have a non-competitive running club that embraced all abilities so a few like-minded friends decided to start one. Our rationale was simple and that was to cater for anyone, of any ability, who wanted to run with a group for pleasure rather than in a competitive environment.”
Running trips and social gatherings, both organised and ad-hoc, are an important element of club life. Each year members have the option of taking part in an annual club trip, which will usually be a race that offers various different distances so that it caters for all abilities. Recent destinations have included Edinburgh, Madrid, Mallorca and Bournemouth. March 2018 will see club members, and their partners, visiting Cyprus for the Paphos running event.
An important regular gathering for club members is parkrun (sic), which is held at Swindon’s Lydiard Park. parkrun is a free run that takes place at 490 locations every weekend around the world. It’s a timed run, or walk, 5k for adults and accompanied children at 9am on Saturdays and 2k for under 11s at 9am Sundays. Slinn Allstars runners make up the largest club represented at Swindon’s parkrun and members regularly volunteer to help run the events. Allstars have run almost 12,000 times at parkrun and have covered approximately 36,000 miles collectively. Equally important is the visit to the cafe afterwards where runs are discussed and lasting friendships formed.
Slinn Allstars running club has helped around 500 people take up running. Twice a year, in January and September, the club runs a ten-week course for beginners. Members are paired up with those undertaking the course and, following a structured programme; beginners can progress to being able to run 5k. Many beginners continue after the ten weeks and then join the running club.
Sarah Clark is one club member who did just that and attributes joining the club as life changing for her and her whole family. Sarah said: “Joining Slinn Allstars running club was one of the best things that I have ever done. Personally, I’ve had a very challenging time recently with several serious health issues within my family and my mental health has suffered as a result. Being able to run, with the wonderful friends that I have met through the club, has been an absolute godsend for me and really has helped me through some tough times. Being active is known to be good for both mental and physical health and I know that running is certainly good for me. In 2011, I had lost over half my body weight through healthy eating and exercise. I was finding the gym boring so decided to challenge myself to do the Allstar’s beginner’s course. My mentor Karen was wonderful and really encouraged me. Once I’d finished the course, my husband Ian joined the club with me to help keep me company. I’m not a fast runner but there are now plenty of people in the club that run at my pace, or are happy to keep me company even if they are usually a bit faster themselves. Once they had turned 18, my children Jack and Chloe joined the club so it’s quite a family affair now! We’re known as Team Clark!
The club, which is affiliated to England Athletics, runs from St John’s Hall, Haydon Wick, Swindon on a Tuesday evening at 7.30pm and on a Thursday evening at 7pm from Swindon’s Village Hotel at Shaw Ridge during the winter months and Broome Manor Golf Club once the clocks change.
Ten years on Swindon now has a thriving and friendly running community with six clubs catering for all different types of runners and many members varying their runs between different groups. There is also a well-established large parkun, an annual Half-Marathon event and regular local races that often raise money for charity. In November each year local Pride of Swindon award-winner Alan Butler organises Runvember, which sees hundreds of runners challenge themselves to run every day, no matter the weather, and to collect supplies for the town’s homeless. Slinn Allstar’s members have raised over £15,000 for local charities such as Swindon’s MS Therapy Centre, Prospect Hospice and Wiltshire Air Ambulance and the club’s own event, Dauntsey 10k, is held in May each year and raises money for local good causes.
Looking back to January 2008 Mike is very pleased that Slinn Allstars got off the ground and proud that the club has grown into what it is today. Mike said: “In an age of growing obesity, busy lives and increasing social isolation sports-related clubs are increasingly important to the health of the nation. Clubs like ours and events such as parkruns and Runvember really do make a difference to the lives of a great deal of people. I’m very proud to be part of that”.
To find out more about the club, or the next beginner’s course, go to www.slinnallstars.co.uk, email: running@slinnallstars or phone 07547 647569
