For the first of our members’ blogs we hear from our amazing 2023 Woman of Steel, Virginie Morris, with an honest and inspiring account of her running journey.

Virginie Morris, known to many for her podium positions, inspiring running achievements and the support and encouragement she gives to others, has allowed us all to get to know her that little bit better.

Thank you very much to Virginie for taking the time and thought in answering these questions so honestly and from the heart. We are sure this will inspire others reading this in many ways that go beyond running.

Tell us about your journey into running….

Although I came to running quite “late” in my life, I’ve always been active as a child, and regularly walked and hiked with my family in the southern French mountains. I was a dancer for over 20 years and this has been a huge part of my younger life. I sadly had to stop when going to university, however, I was lucky to study near the Alps and I spent many hours speed hiking in the mountains there. When I moved to London to carry on with scientific research… well…. the only exercise I seemed to be doing was walking to the pub! Luckily, regular trips back to France to see my family kept me sane and fit as my love of the hills never went away.

Over a decade ago, I moved to Dorchester and became a mother shortly after. Whilst my pregnancies were amazing, both births were traumatic, physically and mentally. Whilst my children are the greatest gift I could ever have hoped for, I suffered from post-natal depression after the birth of my son and, being left emotionally unsupported, my personal life started to fall apart. I took to running as a way to cope with the state of my homelife. At the time, there was only one running club in Dorchester: the Dorset Sole Sisters, a women only club, where I met Karen Mitchell and El Rollet. They were incredibly kind and supportive and, without knowing it, they saved my sanity!

A few years later, after the birth of my daughter, I started hearing about this new running club called RIOT. For months I often saw them whilst out and about, but they seemed so fast, so “professional”! I didn’t think I would fit in and be “good” enough, and was convinced I would be a laughing stock! But finally, one day in November 2019, I attended my very first Thursday run. On El’s advice, I chose Stamina, and it was lead by a lovely lady called Rachel Jones. I was very intimated, the size of the group seemed huge to me, but Rachel was incredibly welcoming and supportive, very friendly and smiling, and I had the most wonderful first run with RIOT! A few weeks later, I gave the Tuesday “specialised” run a go. This was a totally different experience, but again, a very positive and memorable one: a very small group, led by Paul Danbury, at night, going towards Maiden Castle. At that time, this was way out of my comfort zone. I probably had all the wrong kit and shoes on, not sure I even had a torch with me! But Paul was so kind, so inclusive and with such a heart-warming smile, my fears and doubts were immediately put at ease, and I came back home grinning from ear to ear and feeling rather chuffed to have achieved an off-road run in the dark!

These two runs have literally changed my life. They made me come back to the club, and over time, led to many new and unexpected friendships, and quite a few crazy challenges! RIOT has been a very big part of my life since then, it has transformed me not only as a runner but also as a person, and I will forever be grateful for that.

What does running mean to you?

Being free! I once read that “running is the movement of a free human being”. I don’t know if that’s always true, but it is certainly how I feel every time I’m on the trails. It always brings me peace and strength. It recharges and replenishes my mental and emotional batteries, it gives me space to think (or not think) whilst bringing me closer to nature.

I’m always very mindful of the fact that not so long ago, women were not “allowed” to run in events (or run at all in some places) and I never take that freedom for granted. Over the years, I have also learned to place enjoyment, happiness and gratefulness at the forefront of all my runs and races. This now surpasses any good or bad “stats” that I may get, and it is what keeps me coming back for more. As a mother, I have also come to understand the importance of being outdoors and being out of breath in young people. I am very humbled to be inspiring to my own children and to have been sharing many runs with them.

What are your biggest running highlights to date?

My very first Thursday and Tuesday RIOT runs, the Ooser marathon and Cafe50. They have all had a big emotional impact for a variety of reasons.

The Ooser was my very first marathon and it remains one of my most cherished and “landmark” runs (I must say here a huge thank you to Rebecca Bradley, who selflessly ran it with me to make sure I was okay as I had been in hospital the day before). To have won it, when I attempted it again a year later, was a moment of immense joy and pride. This race will always have a very special place in my heart.

Cafe50 was nothing like I’d ever done before, and I would never have contemplated doing anything like this if it hadn’t been for the friendships I made through RIOT. As I did it in memory of Claire Ridge, as I “felt” her running by my side, this will always be one of my most treasured running memories and achievement. I must thank Karen and Rebecca, as well as Malcolm and Louise Curtis, for their incredible and generous support and for getting me through one of the hardest part of the run.

What are your running aspirations for the year ahead?

To inspire, support and encourage more people, of all abilities, to take on running and challenge themselves, to learn and discover more about what they can do. On a personal level, I would like to be able to run the UTMB one day, not “the” major race but perhaps one of the shorter distance they offer. This is a “long term” aspiration but I hope to be able to do it before I’m too old! I would also like to do more races in France as it feels very special to run in my home country.

What do you enjoy most about running RIOT?

I think what sets RIOT apart from other running clubs is that it’s both a serious and fun running club. It’s “serious” in the sense that we are encouraged to take part in races, league races, and we have some specialised running sessions for our members (which are absolutely fantastic to improve your running and, over time, enable everyone to run better and faster). But it’s also a fun, inclusive and relaxed club and the support throughout is just phenomenal. The club challenges are also what makes RIOT unique. They bring members closer together, whilst encouraging them to push themselves beyond what they would normally do or think they can achieve. This is extremely rewarding and satisfying, and as it’s done in good spirit, there’s always a bit of fun and banter to have

What does it mean to you to be the new Woman of Steel for 2023?

I never would have thought myself worthy of deserving this magnificent title, and I am still trying to come to terms with the fact that the lovely comments voters said were indeed about me. I am immensely grateful for the kindness and support of all our club members. It is extremely humbling and gratifying if I have, in some small way, been able to inspire someone else. I think as whole, RIOT is brilliant at supporting us through the ups and downs of our training and running journey.

Quick-fire Questions!

Favourite running shoe: I’ve recently discovered Topo Athletics which are fantastic, but my Hoka Speedgoat have carried me to the end of many hilly trail runs.

Road or trail? Trail!! Hilly trails!!!

Favourite running distance: Half-marathon. It’s long enough to be challenging and rewarding, but not so long that it takes require months of training to do it.

Favourite post run snack: Depends on how long and hard the run has been. A pint of milk, something chocolatey or sweet… and/or something salty!

Favourite place to run: We are spoiled for choice in Dorset! Puddletown Forest, Maiden Castle … and the coastal path! The woods always bring me peace and happiness. As for our lovely coastline: the challenges and rewards of the hills on one side, the power, tranquility and immensity of the sea on the other…bliss!

Weirdest item you’ve run in: Hmmm…. Can’t really think of anything….maybe as I grow older I’ll be bolder!

Favourite event: Hardy Half, along with races from Badger Trail Events….and most of the Purbeck Trail Series runs.

Favourite RIOT challenge: EMC!! I love how the whole club comes together. There’s a real sense of companionship and camaraderie amongst us, lots of banter and support to get those miles done. The fact that it’s done for a very important charity makes it all the more satisfying.

Thank you again to Virginie, we hope you all enjoyed learning more about our new Woman of Steel!

We look forward to more blogs including one from our Man of Steel for 2023, Mark Brown (we promise, no nudity!!). We also have a blog coming from Malcolm Curtis documenting his Ultra Trail Snowdonia Adventure.

If you want to write up a blog on an event or your running journey please get in touch with us! From your journey to 5k to half marathon, marathon and more – all your achievements will inspire others!

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RIOT Couch to 5k!

On a sunny morning at the end of March at the Great Field parkrun, 19 RIOT Couch to 5k runners completed their graduation 5km supported by RIOTers. They might have had a sunny day for this achievement, but they have been building up to this through January-March, running through cold, dark, wintery months encouraged by Kerri Oliver, Mark Stockman and other RIOT supporters. This is a huge milestone in their running journey and as a club we congratulate them and look forward to seeing them regularly on RIOT club runs.

Mud, mud, glorious mud

March 2023 has been the wettest March in 40 years, so it is no surprise the terrain on many trail events has been extra challenging. This meant there has been plenty of energy-zapping mud to add to the hills, bogs, pebbles and technical terrain. That didn’t stop March being a month crammed full of trail events for RIOT members.

March started off with the Grizzly and Cub, these races are notorious, not only for the quirky things to distract you en route (wishing tree, beer and crisp bar, random people in fancy dress, shoe piles and the bands) but also for the bogs, and miles of pebbles incorporated into their 10 and 20 mile routes. Well done to all that took part, whether you did 10 miles, 20 miles or rounded up to 26, these races are tough no matter the distance, congratulations to Louise Curtis who achieved her longest distance run of 20 miles.

Next up was the White Star Running Larmer series! Though these races don’t have the grizzly pebbles, they do have plenty of ups, downs and mud. At the Larmer 7 we had Eden de Leon and Stephen Collins, well done to Stephen for his course PB. Jasmin Evans took on the Larmer 10, her first race since injury, she had an incredibly strong run, resulting in 2nd lady showing her patience in her return to running has paid off. Tamsin Horsler achieved the hilly half marathon, and was joined by a blister for the last 3 miles – ouch!

That was just Saturday, the results from Larmer don’t stop there… on Sunday a strong group of RIOT ladies took on the 20 mile route with Virginie Morris placing 5th and Karen Mitchell, Eleanor Rollett and Rebecca Bradly, all deep into their marathon training, sharing 6th place. Last but not least, well done to Andy Mutter and Rob Scott who completed the marathon, in prep for big April events!

Speaking of marathons, one in a weekend is enough for most people, but not for Andy Mutter who took on the Jurassic Coast Challenge which consists of 26+ miles on three consecutive days along the Jurassic Coast. He finished strong and took 2nd place overall. Not only that but he carried a sausage from his full breakfast along the way, providing an entertaining variation of “Where’s Wally” through a series of event photos.  Virginie Morris and Paul Burrows also took on an ultra with the Long Distance Walkers Association Cerne Giant 50k, congratulations to Virginie for achieving her longest ever run. 

Elsewhere this month, David Ryder achieved a course PB at the Studland 10k and Lucy Putt completed the Up and Downs 10k!

The month of the mad March half marathon 

RIOTers were out in force at half marathons, both locally and further afield. Many were using these events as part of their training for other upcoming events such as Manchester and London marathons, testing pacing and fueling strategies, whilst others were aiming for PBs or just enjoying being out at a local running event.

First up was Cambridge Half marathon. Sometimes you have those runs, where you push so hard that it makes you feel a bit sick at the end. Despite the training not going exactly to plan, William Loates finished the half marathon not only with 30 seconds of dry heaving, but a very impressive 9 minute half marathon PB and a speedy time of 1:21:37. We look forward to seeing what you achieve next!

Next up was Weymouth Half marathon, this half always gets a big turn out from the club and 2023 was no different! A sunny morning, running along Weymouth seafront supported by lots of RIOT marshals is the perfect setting for a good morning out and it was great to see everyone enjoying themselves. Well done to all that took part in the event or volunteered. Special mentions to Esther Ward for her impressive run, Claire Lane, Emily Coplestone, Michelle Hunt and Gemma Allner who achieved 10 mile or half marathon PBs.  Wendy Britton, who once tail ran the race dressed as a parrot for charity, for her half marathon PB, this time she was in running attire and the bright leggings she is known for! Lastly, congratulations to Anne Woodruff, Anne has really been putting in the miles and effort into her training, determined to go back and take on the course for a second time and put that half marathon PB she deserved to bed, well… all that training certainly paid off!

Lastly, Yeovil Half marathon. The clocks have gone back, you’ve had one hour less sleep and it is drizzling… that didn’t stop RIOT runners at this half marathon race. Great efforts by all who ran but special mentions to Shannon McCabe for running her first half marathon and furthest distance and Terry Sneller for achieving his half marathon PB. We hope you all enjoyed the downhill finish! 

Scattered throughout the month were other events, with Reni McPhail at the trail New Forest half marathon, Cendrina at the Grand Canal Canter and Sally Miller for her speedy half marathon PB at the Bath Two Tunnels. It has not just been about the half marathon distance, a shout out to Dee Lewis who achieved the 10km distance at the Bath Two Tunnels and Toby Alford for his 10km PB at Weymouth Bay 10k, extra impressive given he had achieved a 5km parkrun PB just the day before!

Well done to everyone that has been out running this month, sorry if we have missed anyone. If you would like to highlight anything for future blogs, or get involved with writing them then please get in touch with us. Good luck to everyone racing in April, we have another big month coming up with RIOTers to shout about at the Oner events (currently underway as I type), the Dorset Oooser, Manchester Marathon, London Marathon and the Marnhull 12k!

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https://dorchester.runriot.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Dorchester-RIOT-Accounts-to-31-March-2020-with-Independent-Examination.pdf

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This month, virtual events were gradually replaced with physical ones, and RIOT have put in some impressive performances both on race day and on the days in between.

This month’s PBs were earnt from David Howell, Martin Smith, Edward Land and Scott Southgate to name just a few. George Peters and Vikki Browne have been putting in impressive mileage whilst training for their Jurassic Coast Ultra events taking place later in May, and Gemma Allner ticked off her longest run yet with 14 miles completed.

Mary Godding celebrated her 40^th birthday with a 40km run while Jo Brookes and Claire and Paul Carlin took part in the New Forest Half Marathon.

Claire Carlin also completed her first Ultra during April.  Not only did she achieve the elusive sub-4 hour marathon during the event, she also finished 1^st female.  This outstanding performance earnt Claire a nomination for this month’s RIOT Member of the Month, along with Sadie Mitchell and Shelley Carter for their first duathlons and Virginie Morris for her first marathon.  Other nominations went to David Howell and Edward Land for PB running, and Claire Journeaux and Nick Guppy for consistently heading out the door.  Gemma Shone was nominated for a great time at the Ooser half (which was also her first ever event!) and Bronwen Bruce also earnt her nomination at the Ooser for completing her first marathon.  Being a regular on the run leaders sheet, Nikki Rich was nominated for great engagement since club runs have resumed.

It was a really strong group this month and after two rounds of voting the joint winners of April’s Members of the Month were Bronwen Bruce and Nikki Rich – well done to you both!

With over 20 RIOTers in attendance at the Dorset Ooser Half and Full marathon it wouldn’t be possible to list them all, but well done to each and every one who took part.  As we’ve mentioned, several members ticked off new distances at the event, including Louise Curtis who completed her longest run yet.

Running hasn’t been the only event which has seen the RIOT blue on the start line this month; Martin Smith and Paul and Claire Carlin have also competed in duathlons, with all three putting in impressive performances despite still being early in the season.

As if this month wasn’t busy enough, we also held our AGM, hopefully the last time as a virtual event! Thank you to everyone who attended, full minutes will be published on the website in due course so do keep an eye out for those if you missed the meeting itself.

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• AGM Minutes
• Accounts Summary
• Chairperson Opening Address
• Review of the Year – Club Secretary
• Membership Report – Membership Secretary
• Financial Statement – Treasurer
• Future Plans – Chairperson

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RIOT-ing our way through June

Hot on the heels of the RIOT Chaingang Challenge which resulted in Paul Danbury donning our infamous tooth costume on a run around Dorchester, the beginning of the month saw the completion of the first ever “RIOT Roulette” challenge.  Across two weeks, eight teams used a combination of skill and sheer luck to avoid elimination from the challenge masters Jo McDougal and Paul Danbury.  Well done to Team Six (Sam Mercer, Keith Horn, Paul Gardner, Emily Wiltshire and Rich Archer) for surviving each cull and being crowned the RIOT Roulette winners!  Special mentions go to Rich Archer for completing his longest run of 15 miles during the challenge, and also Andy Mutter who, in the lead up to the challenge, ran an impressive 100 miles in just one week for the Centurion Challenge, finishing with a marathon consisting not only of 24 x 1.1 mile loops but a tense scrabble battle at the end of each loop.

21st June 2020, the longest day of the year, saw the return of one of the club’s favourite events; Race the Sun where we ran in 30 minute slots as a relay from sunrise to sunset, though the sun appeared to be hiding for much of this years event! The RIOT Man and Woman of Steel, Malcolm Curtis and Shelley Carter, kick started the challenge with a sunrise run at Ringstead at 4:43am.  This was our biggest Race the Sun challenge yet and throughout the day 94 runners completed an impressive collective total of 270.18 miles!  The question is; can we beat it next year? 

As if the Race the Sun challenge wasn’t enough, the summer solstice also saw a number of RIOTers taking part in the grueling Phoenix 24 challenge, running at least one mile on the hour, every hour, for 24 hours!  Not just physically tough this challenge required great mental strength to keep going during the night (and in the rain!) so a huge well done to everyone who took part, we hope you take pride in your weighty medal.

June brought with it the long-awaited return of our Thursday night club runs. In line with current government guidelines these were limited to groups of 6, but that certainly didn’t limit the enthusiasm of our members. Thanks to plenty of generous run leaders offering a great variety of routes, we were able to offer even more runs from the second week onwards, and members have enjoyed routes covering road and trail around Dorchester and further afield. The feedback from these smaller groups has been really positive, largely due to their ability to allow different members to cross paths and really focus on the social side of running and we will be considering whether these could play a role in future club runs, in addition we will now be complementing the Thursday runs with Tuesday hill and speed sessions! It’s not just group running which has started, we have also seen RIOTers going out on bikes, with two groups of six heading out to Moreton on a beginners cycle – led and tailed by more experienced members of the Club. 

Special Mentions

There has been a large number of achievements this month, which is especially remarkable considering the impact the coronavirus crisis has had on many.

Special mentions this month go to:

• Claire Ridge who despite only graduating from Couch to 5k in November has since gone on to complete her first half marathon, in a fantastic time too!
• Malcom Curtis has lived up to his Man of Steel status by running an incredible half marathon during which he achieved an impressive 7 distance PRs and 17 segment PRs in just one run!
• Jennifer Mustoe who completed her first 10k despite only starting running at the end of March.
• Brian Fields, Alex Door and Matt Ings who smashed the Café 50 ultra-run in a record-breaking time.
• Bill Britton and Claire Carlin for completing their longest run to date of 20 miles during their marathon training.

June hasn’t just seen running achievements, lots of RIOT have been out and completing some impressive distances on two wheels. Despite the Tour of Cambridge cycling event being cancelled, well done to the following members who still got out and completed 100 miles in the saddle: Christina Guppy, Delia Carr, Paul Pomeroy, Nicholas Guppy, Kirsty Eveleigh (who all achieved their first century), Matt Ings, Paula Fry and Martin Smith. Well done also to Dee Brooks who completed the mental challenge of 100 miles over 24 hours on the turbo trainer. There have also been lots of RIOT taking to the sea, nice swimming and running by all those competing in the aquathlon series and congratulations to Bella Lowis for completing her first virtual triathlon.

We look forward to seeing more of your achievements through July, please don’t forget to share them with us on the Facebook Group and Strava.

The club held a successful virtual AGM on 2nd July and more communications on this will follow soon. 

Written by Christina Guppy and formatted by Rachel Jones 

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February kicked off with a chilly run around North Dorset, the Blackmore Vale Half Marathon, this was the second Dorset Road Race League event for the club and a good run for those building up distance with their marathon training. This race had undulations, head winds and a final killer hill (which took every last bit of energy to power up – unless you are our resident hill runner Wendy Britton).  The RIOT team had a great event with many getting half marathon PBs, including Kirsty Eveleigh, Rob Kirkpatrick, Chloe Morley and Alanna Wrixon, we also want to give a special mention to Dee Brooks for completing her personal challenge of 24 half marathon events in 24 months and a congratulations to Chris Peck for coming 3^rd in the Dorset County Half Marathon Championships and second claim runner Alex Door for coming first lady.

Whilst some were pounding the roads of North Dorset others took on a very different challenge at the Bustinskin Portland Coastal events, including; 10k, Half Marathon and Marathon. Congratulations to Mark Brown, who took an amazing one hour off his 2019 Portland Coastal Marathon time, congratulations also to second claim runners Andy Mutter and Mark Evans for also completing this hard run. Well done to Sam Mercer and Katherine Downton for taking on the muddy half marathon, and to all those who completed the challenging 10k; Josie Warr, Sarah Dunford, Martin Ings (with a very last minute entry), Sofia Carter and Virginie Morris – that first hill up is not to be underestimated!

Variety was the name of the rest of the month as RIOT were at lots of different events across the country.  Simon Fowler, Holly and Graham Harris and Claire and Paul Carlin were all in attendance at the Upton Country Park Winter Warmer 5k and 10k (congratulations to Paul for his 10k PB). Paul Carlin then went on to complete a much muddier challenge later in the month at the Avon Tyrrel 10k. Well done to Martyn and Julie Oliver, who, upon hearing about the cancellation of Bournemouth 10, completed their 10-mile virtual run in some stormy conditions along Weymouth seafront lining them up for the next Imperial Series event, the Larmer 10.

Not all RIOT stayed local, they were off around the country at a range of events (giving me lots of races to add to my 2021 “race wish-list”). Martin Mustoe (a rare race in the UK) headed ‘up north’ to Blackpool, for the Great North West Half Marathon.  Christopher Peck achieved a sub 75 minute half marathon at Wokingham Half Marathon.  Bella Lowis and Matt Ings got in some Grizzly practice wading through bogs at the Terminator, but for Bella, one muddy race wasn’t enough as she then followed this with the Cousin Jack Classic V, an 18 mile run from Cape Cornwall to St Ives.   Wanting to add to his medal collection following the 10k event last year, Scott Civil traveled to Dartmoor for the technical run up and down the moors at the Hameldown Hammer Half Marathon. Congratulations to Chris Monteith for his 4^th place in the Woodbury Common Wild Night run. Lastly, keen not to waste the opportunity to race on the 29^th February, Rosie finished the second event in her twelve month challenge (and smashed some PRs whilst at it) by finishing a mentally and physically tough 10 x 1 mile loop race at the Lee Valley Velo Park 10 miles. Finally, as I write this we are all thinking of Matthew Stear who will be in the midst of his 50 mile ultra, the Chester Ultra 50 mile, we look forward to reporting on this monumental achievement in next months blog.

In other news…

This month consisted of our first club challenge of 2020, the completion, in teams of six of the 400 miles from Munich to Budapest which included running, cycling and swimming. This culminated in a tense race between Team 1 and Team 6 who were aiming not to be the last team to arrive. Thank you to all who took part and supported the challenge, and congratulations to Team 3: Mark Allwood, Rob Scott (III), Katie Smith, Mark White and Darren Grummit who arrived to Budapest with a final blustery run with full team support up to Hardy Monument. So far we’ve traveled 1342 miles from Dorchester to Paris, Paris to Munich then Munich to Budapest… time will only tell where we will end up next year!

It was not really a month for parkrun PBs when the local parkrun is along an exposed seafront, but well done to James Scott, Mark White, Scott Civil and Toby Alford who all achieved Weymouth parkrun PBs this month.

RIOT Tourists of the Month: This was very much a tale of contrast with Mary Godding running in the chilly French Alps and Clive Scammel in the heat of Jordan.

Thank you for reading, if you’ve any achievements you’d like to point out for next month that we’ve missed just get in touch. We are looking forward to a busy month packed with races and with our awards event on Friday 13^th March – we hope you’ve booked your tickets and voted for your Man and Woman of Steel.

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Couch to 5k Graduations

We’ve had two Couch to 5km courses this year with over 30 new runners graduating at Weymouth parkrun. The January graduates have since progressed on to 10k, 10 mile and beyond, and our most recent graduates have been welcomed on to our weekly club runs with some even taking on their first RIOT challenge, Festive 24. Bringing new people into running (and RIOT) is important to us and it has been brilliant seeing our graduates achieve the milestone distance at the graduation parkrun that they trained so hard for. At the graduation run they were cheered on by our members who supported them all the way as we took-over the parkrun volunteer rota. If you are inspired by our Couch to 5k graduates and want to kick-start the new year off with a new running lifestyle then book on to the new c25k course which begins on the 9th of January.

Adventure Race

One of the big 2019 highlights for us was the start of the RIOT Adventure Race series! At the ‘Adventure Race I’ a group of RIOT runners could be found huddled together at sunrise in Maiden Castle car park with numb feet and much trepidation, as pre-event details were scant and they had no idea what to expect. Armed with a map, runners scattered in different directions across the snow-covered ground on the hunt for points (which came in the shape of book pages) and challenges (such as eating cake with Rosie), once scores were totted up Chris Monteith, Sue and Charlie Thompson were crowned winners of Adventure Race I. Fast-forward to May 2019 and the ‘Adventure Race II’, which was bigger and better than the first, with more participants coming along to see what it was all about (thank you to Mike and Liz Elliot for hosting). The second event was no disappointment, with RIOT runners out hunting for book pages, completing challenges (needless to say there was no cake eating challenge at this event, instead something much more gory lay in store), and embracing the new twists such as a “bonus books” and a Chauffeur (if you were lucky enough to spot them). George Peters, Brian Fields and Rob Kircher-Smith won the Adventure Race II, but as we go into the New Year we are looking forward to seeing who will be next to have their names engraved on to the coveted winners shield. The Adventure Race III will be held on the 8th-9th of May with more details to come in 2020.

RIOT Challenges

Wow, once again, what a year for our challenges! These are carefully designed to help provide motivation to run (outside of races and events) and to encourage mixing with RIOTers you may not meet on club runs. 2019 was started with the highly competitive Paris to Munich challenge and finished with the more personal challenge, Festive 24.  However, our top challenge highlights are a tie between Race the Sun and The 230. Race the Sun had RIOTers running from sunrise to sunset on the longest day of the year, each taking selfies for the Race the Sun live-feed, this year we finished with a BBQ and rounders game at the Rugby Club to see the last runners in at sunset.  The Autumn 230 challenge involved teams of four working together to tick off a certain mileage distance each day. The 2019 version of this challenge brought with it a new twist, a daily photo for extra points, including a selfie with a yellow car or recreating a pub advert, but what made this challenge special was the community spirit that our 230 teams showed in some of the photo challenges, with RIOT members picking litter, donating to food banks and shoe box appeals, we even made the echo!

Personal Achievements

A major highlight through the year has been seeing you all rewarded for your hard work by achieving things you may have once not thought possible. In 2019, we had lots of RIOT members stepping out of their comfort zone and taking on their first pool and open-water triathlons, with others going on to complete Weymouth Ironman 70.3 – which was amazing to spectate and support through the RIOT aid station. We also saw people achieve PBs across a range of distances from 5k to 10k, half marathon to marathon and more. Personal achievements can also come through the completion of super tough events and we have certainly witnessed our members taking part in a fair share of them, including the Snowdon Brutal Triathlon, UTMB, Trail du Petit St Bernard, Climb South West Jurassic Coast 100k, Ironman Dun Laoghaire 70.3 and the Isle of Wight 100k, just to name a few. However, with personal achievements it isn’t always about the PBs or taking on tough events, it can be achieving a distance for the first time, taking on a RIOT challenge or simply just getting back out and running when you may not want to.  We were able to recognize just some of the great achievements and contributions of our members in our awards event in March (read the blog here) and we look forward to our next awards event on the 13th March 2020.

Running and Beyond!

The social aspect of the club remains a strong theme running throughout RIOT, naturally much of this comes from running, such the as social “take-overs” at Yeovil Half, Weymouth 10, Dumble Bimble and the Poole Festival of Running where RIOTers attended on mass to cheer each other over that finish line. We have also enjoyed our social runs where we try different trail routes and running with other members we may not regularly have opportunities to run with, our social runs have taken us to the Purbeck coast for the Pasty Run, over White Horse Hill to the Springhead for a roast and also include our summer trail tourism to Ringstead, Thorncombe Woods and The Fleet.  However, it’s not all about running, there have been a wide variety of other events throughout 2019 which have taken us away from our trainers and lycra, including; the Awards Event, the Christmas party (with over 80 of us descending on Kingston Maurward for a Christmas dinner and a “few” drinks), the Duchess of Cornwall pub quiz, the Race the Sun BBQ, (which had music from Blue Bridge (thanks to Holly and Graham), rounders games and a bouncy castle) and more recently, we had our RIOT bake-off, which encouraged the bakers among us get baking for charity.  Lastly, the biggest social aspect beyond running events is the support and encouragement which runs through the club, whether it is face to face or on social media, we remain proud of the community you have all created and we look forward to more of this in 2020!

Thank you all for another great year running RIOT, for your continued support and to those who help us make the club run smoothly from inputting ideas, supporting our Couch to 5k course and volunteering to lead and tail club runs. We are now looking forward to 2020 which will have lots more running, swimming and cycling, but which also brings RIOT Juniors, RIOT swimming lessons, the Adventure Race III, more challenges, takeovers, a new C25k course and more, but for now we just want to finish by wishing all our members and their families a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

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We’ve had a lot of new people join over the past few months, so we thought this would be a good time to give you a refresher of who is on the committee and what we do, so if you have any questions about anything specific you know who to speak to! Alternatively contact us through Facebook or e-mail (getintouch@runriot.uk).

Amy Mason – Chair

Amy Mason, our Chair, is known for her love of rotas, and is responsible for one of the most important jobs; co-ordinating weekly runs, ensuring they are covered with a lead and tail, that routes are suitable, and you know where you’re running! With that role comes development of our Run Leaders skills through training events and enrolment on England Athletics courses, along with recruitment of new leaders. At Weymouth Ironman, RIOT has carved itself a reputation for its lively bike feed station, this is in part due to Amy’s hard work helping co-ordinate the station, she also helps arrange RIOT marshals for other local events. But, it’s not all about rotas, in the committee Amy is well known for stepping in to “chef-up” at events, from bacon sandwiches to BBQs (and has not yet managed to poison anyone). In 2020, Amy with Carly, will be organising a new monthly RIOT Kids Club, an informal session of running fun and games for the many mini-RIOTers and will be coordinating our Tuesday rota, aiming to bring you a varied programme of sessions. In her spare time Amy enjoys time with family and friends, and her claim to fame in running RIOT is her perfect- pacing in London Marathon (and enjoying it!) and her dubious completion record in a RIOT challenge!

Carly Ings – Treasurer

Carly Ings is our Treasurer so keeps an eye on our accounts and reports annually to members on our expenditure. As with all our roles, Carly does much more than handle the treasury, many of her jobs are often under the radar as she can turn her hand to most things including; website maintenance, setting up booking forms, organising Christmas Party (behind the scenes), creating mailings, Adventure Race support, inputting into challenges and creating the now-famous Festive 24 bauble. Carly also brings the voice of reason to the committee, along with ensuring we adhere to high grammatical standards! However, arguably one of the most important aspects of the club is our Couch to 5km course which Carly oversees, getting new runners to 5km, and beyond, as she sets them up on their running journey with that kind but firm encouragement we’ve come to know from her. In 2020, Carly will also be working with Amy to organise an informal RIOT Kids session.  Away from RIOT, Carly loves nothing more than a good book but her claim to fame running RIOT is her supporting cheer at events, which can be heard across the globe and her return from running retirement more times than we can count…

Jo McDougal – Membership Secretary

Jo McDougal, our Membership Secretary, is all things membership! With that role comes lots of admin which keeps her busy; queries on claim, affiliations, composing membership mailings, welcome e-mails, setting people up with England Athletics and sometimes some investigative work! However, Jo is more than a Membership Secretary and is also a creative brain who inputs into many of our challenges, but one of her biggest legacies to RIOT is the “Race the Sun” challenge, an idea which stemmed from Jo and is now a much anticipated event within the calendar, bringing RIOTers across the club together. Jo also supports our Couch to 5km group, co-ordinates marshals for events and our parkrun takeovers. Away from RIOT, Jo is well known for her chocolate brownies and her claims to fame in RIOT are her vast collection of medals and her ability to do the splits not once, but twice in a game of rounders.

Matt Ings – Vice-Chair

Matt Ings, our Vice-Chair, is known mostly for being the clothing guru, we started with T-shirts and thanks to him now have a full range including; swim hats, dry-robes, tri-suits, cycle jackets and coats, so RIOT can be seen across all disciplines, However, behind that big box of clothing is a driving force behind many things, often behind the scenes, which make RIOT what it is, whether it is RIOT swimming sessions, the Christmas Party, a Coach to Yeovil for RIOT on Tour, British cycling affiliations, bike training, Weymouth Ironman feed stations and local discounts…to name a few. Matt leads our Tuesday speed sessions and keeps our all-important, summer time-trial times logged. Within the committee he is known for a calm, laid-back approach, along with being the one to go to if you need a clever spreadsheet. Matt also helps organise the Adventure Race, with set-up, logistics and most importantly reality-checking Paul when the ideas get a little “too Barkley”. In Matt’s spare time he can often be seen encouraging others to partake in triathlon and his claim to fame in running RIOT is winging it (and infuriatingly still doing well) and also a little known fact but he came up with the name “Dorchester RIOT” at our inception in 2017.

Paul Danbury – Creative Director

Paul Danbury, our “creative director” is occasionally referred to as the ‘pantomime villain’ of the committee. Paul makes no secret of the fact that he likes to make a challenge of running and also fully believes running should be a level playing field, these are beliefs that echo through his clever design of our club challenges. Paul designs and co-ordinates a range of challenges from festive 24, Everest Challenge and 230, which aim to encourage members at all levels to mix and get out and run. Paul’s most recent idea was the Adventure Race, a treasure hunt with a twist (and some hints of Barkley marathon), this is now a firm favourite event within the club, brimming with the unpredictability and dry humour we’ve come to associate with Paul. Paul also designed our now-famous (in Dorchester) branding, makes all our graphics, “compèred” our Awards do, works on the website, organises trail runs, night runs and jointly leads our Couch to 5km course. In his spare time he can often be seen completing push-ups and his claim to fame in running RIOT is becoming the fastest committee member in our 1km TT and once topping the Strava weekly mileage leader board.

Rachel Jones – Secretary

Rachel Jones is our club secretary, and as with all good secretaries she is the backbone of our club. Our resident wordsmith, she is the author of the monthly blogs and is always in tune with our members’ activities and achievements, making her a bit of a Strava stalker. Being a competitive sort, Rachel loves nothing more than a Strava crown and a RIOT challenge! Rachel regularly leads runs and is a firm favourite, due to her patience, excellent pacing and unusual directions (“go left at that tree, then straight on past the big bush”) especially given she can’t tell left from right, but she has yet to lose a group! Her favourite type of run is most certainly an undulating one, and she loves nothing more than sharing this passion with our members by leading our monthly hill sessions, the coastal Pasty runs, Lulworth runs and our night run around Osmington. all of which boast stunning views and challenging terrain. Behind the scenes Rachel does so much for the club, from being the oracle when it comes to race dates, social media posts, posting sessions, funding applications, club VLM ballots, supporting Jo with any membership queries, arranging our committee meetings and making sure actions are completed. Rachel is a kind and thoughtful member of the committee and is often referred to as ‘Switzerland’ as is always the one to try and fairly resolve any issues that may arise, especially when it gets to a heated debate around challenge rules! In her spare time (which is limited) Rachel enjoys trail running, enjoying nature and more recently swimming and cycling, looking set for her to don the RIOT Trisuit very soon…

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