News
16th APRIL 2025
THE ANNUAL RRR QUIZ NIGHT will take place on Friday 25th April this year - featuring quiz, stand-up bingo & a raffle. Doors open 7pm for a 7.30pm start. It's £5 per person, payable on the night - non-members welcome. Maximum of 6 per team, but don't worry if you don't have a team, just turn up & we'll sort you out. Donations of raffle prizes would be greatly appreciated - please let me know & I can arrange collection, or they can be dropped off at Up & Running Oldham or brought on the night. Look forward to seeing you there! [Natali Brown]
6th APRIL 2025
BOOKINGS ARE NOW OPEN for the chip-timed RRR Track 5K at The Radclyffe Athletics Centre on Wednesday 4th June - race 5/17 in this year's RRR Club Championship. There will be 2 races, 7pm & 7.35pm for those looking to go under/over 24 minutes. Please follow this link for more information & to book your place. Places are available for members of Royton Road Runners only for now, but we plan to open this event up to non-members closer to race date. [David Emanuel]
5th JANUARY 2025
THE PROVISIONAL ALLOCATION of RRR members to groups for the 2025 Club Championship is now available - click here to see which group you have been assigned to [UPDATED 6/1/25]. The aim is for all groups to contain members of a similar standard so that they are as competitive as possible. Group allocation is based primarily on race performances last year, using these thresholds. Please check which group you have been assigned to - if you believe this is incorrect please email, with your reasons, to let us know. Please note that a number of members, including recent joiners, have not yet been allocated to a group - decisions on these will be made after their first few races of this year, based on performances against the thresholds. [David Emanuel]
9th JANUARY 2025
THE ROYTON ROAD RUNNERS ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING will take place at 7pm on Friday 31st January at Royton Cricket Club to cover the following agenda items - approve the minutes of last year's AGM; receive reports from the Chair & Secretary; receive a report from the Treasurer & approve the annual report; elect officers to the committee/other club roles; agree membership fees for 2025-26; deal with other relevant business. If you have any business to add to the agenda, please submit by email by the 21st January. [Adrian Brown]
COMMITTEE/CLUB ROLE NOMINATIONS - as in recent years, anyone holding a committee or other formal role with RRR - with the exception of the honorary position of Club President - is required to be elected/re-elected on an annual basis, on the approval of members, at the AGM. This has always been the case for committee positions but is now extended to cover all other roles, with the hope that this may encourage more members to take the opportunity to get involved in the running of the club. As a first step, if you are interested in putting your name forward for any of the positions shown in this document, please complete the nomination form by 19th January at the latest. As you will see, you will need to provide the names of two current members of RRR who have agreed to act as your 'proposer' and 'seconder'. Once your nomination form has been received you will be contacted with further information about the election process. If more than one person is nominated for any role, there will be a secret ballot of members to determine who is elected to that position for the 12 months following the AGM. If you have any questions about this process, or any of the roles, please speak to a current member of the RRR Committee. [Adrian Brown]
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MANCHESTER MARATHON WATER STATION - volunteers required for Sunday 27th April! I'm sure many agree this is such a rewarding day cheering on all the runners, especially club mates & other local participants. Please note it does require you there most of the day & I ask for those who do volunteer to please take there turn in multi-tasking - this will involve stints of reloading the tables & picking up the empty bottles as well as giving out water. If you are interested please get in touch - please note that you don't need to be an RRR member to volunteer. Nearer the time we will look at lift sharing, etc. [Jenny O'Callaghan]
12th NOVEMBER 2024
THANKS TO EVERYONE who submitted nominations for RRR Club Runner of the Year & Charity of the Year...the committee has now agreed the shortlists & it's time to cast your votes. Please follow this link to make your selections by 5th December, with the winners to be announced at Presentation Night on Friday 6th (tickets available here). Every single vote counts! [David Emanuel]
10th NOVEMBER 2024
THE CLUB IS deeply saddened to hear of the sudden passing of popular RRR member Neil Bradley. Neil was a huge part of the club, regularly at club training nights & races, organising social activities & parkrun away days. Our thoughts are with Judith & family at this very sad time. Tomorrow we run for Neil. [Carl O'Callaghan]
6th NOVEMBER 2024
THIS YEAR's RRR PRESENTATION NIGHT takes place on Friday 6th December at Royton Cricket Club, doors open at 7pm. Tickets cost £12.50 per head (food included). Non-members/partners welcome. To book your ticket(s) please click here. Look forward to seeing you all there! [Natali Brown]
16th OCTOBER 2024
WITH JUST A COUPLE of (very familiar) 2024 races to go, it's time to start planning the make-up of next year's competition. To help with this, we'd really appreciate your feedback on the races that were included in this year's RRR Club Championship. Please click here before the end of October to provide your rating for each race & feedback on the club championship format in general. We look forward to hearing your views - they really do count! [David Emanuel]
18th SEPTEMBER 2024
ARE YOU ALREADY looking ahead the end-of-season RRR trip to Keswick for the Derwentwater 10 on Sunday 3rd November? As usual we will be putting on a coach for this one & you can now book your seat(s) via this link. This is always our most popular day out, the coach usually fills up early, so don't leave it too long to sign up. Please also make sure you enter the race if you intend to run - entry limit is 500 and it's already close to half full! [David Emanuel]
17th AUGUST 2024
IN ADDITION TO THE North West Counties Road Relays (see below) we are looking to enter teams into the Cross Keys Road & Fell Relay on Saturday 14th September. For those who haven’t done this before, it involves teams of 4 running 2 fell legs (2.5 miles) & 2 road legs (3 miles). You can enter online or on the day. We are planning an 'away night' recce on Thursday 29th August (although you can’t recce the whole of the fell leg, as some of it is on private land) - this date isn't isn’t ideal for those running the Heights Ultra Trail, but it was the best date for the Cross Keys. Nearer to this training night, I will need to know who wants chips to eat in the barn. Regarding the race, I would suggest either sort yourselves into teams of 4, or email us stating whether you want to run a fell leg or road leg & between us we can sort some teams.
[Simon Howard]
11th AUGUST 2024
A GREAT OPPORTUNITY to run as part of an RRR team! It's been a few years since we've taken part in the North West Counties Road Relays, but we're hoping to return this year. The event will take place at Edge Hill University, Ormskirk (about an hour away) on Sunday 8th September 2024. Each person taking part will run a 2-lap 5K in a team of 3 (women) or 4 (men). The women's race starts at 1pm, the men set off at 2.30pm. This is open to all first-claim members and there's no restriction on the number of teams a club can enter; the more RRRs involved the better! The aim will be to put people in teams of similar abilities.
Cost of entry is just £7 per competitor. If you'd like to take part, please let us know by sending an email & paying the £7 entry fee - either by transfer to the usual club account (Sort Code 30-96-26, Account No 01306698) or by cash to a member of the committee. If you pay online, please include 'YOUR NAME/RELAY' as the reference if possible.
Once we know the level of interest we'll be in touch with further details. If you have any questions please let me know! [David Emanuel]
25th JULY 2024
BOOKINGS ARE NOW OPEN for the chip-timed RRR Track 5K at The Radclyffe Athletics Centre on Wednesday 11th September - race 13/17 in this year's RRR Club Championship. There will be 2 races, 7pm & 7.35pm for those looking to go under/over 24 minutes. Please follow this link for more information & to book your place. Places are available for Royton Road Runners for now but we will open this up to non-members closer to race date. [David Emanuel]
26th MAY 2024
THE RRR ANNUAL BEER WALK is taking place on Saturday 13th July this year, starting at the Horton Arms, Chadderton (OL1 2SZ) at 12.30pm. All welcome! [Natali Brown]
29th MAY 2024
THE RRR MEMBERS DAWN TO DUSK CHALLENGE (definitely not a race!) for Dr Kershaw's Hospice will take place this year on Sunday 23rd June. The plan is to have at least 2 runners in your RRR vests setting off every hour (some clockwise, some anti-clockwise), starting at 05:00 with last runners going at 20:00. The route is the same 4.5 mile loop used in previous years, taking in Thornham Lane & Thornham New Road, starting/finishing at the Hopwood Arms (M24 2RA) - we are of course planning to make it a social as well! Donations are optional but let’s support our charity of the year. If you are interested in taking part, please send an email with your preference(s) for start times (on the hour) & I will allocate. It would be great to fill up every time slot throughout the day. You are welcome to take multiple slots if you want extra training! [Carl O'Callaghan]
11th APRIL 2024
THE ANNUAL RRR QUIZ NIGHT will take place on Friday 26th April this year - featuring quiz, stand-up bingo & a raffle. Doors open 7pm for a 7.30pm start. It's £5 per person, payable on the night - non-members welcome. Maximum of 6 per team, but don't worry if you don't have a team, just turn up & we'll sort you out. Donations of raffle prizes would be greatly appreciated - please let me know & I can arrange collection, or they can be dropped off at Up & Running Oldham or brought on the night. Look forward to seeing you there! [Natali Brown]
27th MARCH 2024
BOOKINGS ARE NOW OPEN for the chip-timed RRR Track 5K at The Radclyffe Athletics Centre on Wednesday 15th May - race 5/17 in this year's RRR Club Championship. There will be 2 races, 7pm & 7.35pm for those looking to go under/over 24 minutes. Please follow this link for more information & to book your place! Places are available for Royton Road Runners for now but we will open this up to non-members on 23rd April. [Natali Brown]
27th FEBRUARY 2024
THE PROVISIONAL ALLOCATION of RRR members to groups for the 2024 Club Championship is now available to view here. The aim is for all groups to contain members of a similar standard so that they are as competitive as possible. This year we have revised the thresholds - time ranges for each group for the key race distances 5K/10K/10M/HM - to reflect changes in the make-up of the club over recent years. Group allocation is based primarily on race performances last year, but please check which group you have been assigned to - if you believe this is incorrect please let us know, with your reasons, as soon as possible. Please note that a number of members, including recent joiners, have not yet been allocated to a group - decisions on these will be made after their first few races of this year, based on performances against the thresholds. [David Emanuel]
2nd FEBRUARY 2024
BOOKINGS ARE NOW being taken for the RRR fun bus to Coniston on Saturday 23rd March. We'll be leaving from the Radcliffe Street car park, Royton (OL2 6RH) at 7am sharp, returning to Royton for 7pm. Click here for the booking form - payment to the club account please. Hopefully see you there! [Natali Brown]
29th JANUARY 2024
THANKS TO ALL THE RRRs who attended our Annual General Meeting on 26th January. Key decisions on the night were the elections of Ady Brown, Angela Rogowskyj & Andy Hall to committee/key roles. With an imminent rise in the England Athletics membership fee, an increase in the annual RRR membership fee to £50 was also approved. [David Emanuel]
9th JANUARY 2024
VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED for the RRR water station at the Manchester Marathon on Sunday 14th April! I'm sure many will agree it is such a rewarding day cheering on all the runners, especially clubmates & other local runners. Please note that it does require you to be there most of the day & those who do volunteer are expected to take their turn in multi-tasking, involving stints of reloading the tables, picking up the empty bottles as well as giving out of the water. I am optimistic that we will be giving the same location as last year (even though we did get their speaker stolen!). Nearer the time we can look at lift sharing etc. Please let us know if you'd like to be involved - you don't have to be an RRR member to volunteer! [Jenny O'Callaghan]
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THIS COMING SATURDAY (13th January) is Shaun Armstrong’s anniversary. We think it would be a fitting gesture if we could get as many people to wear their RRR bobble hats at Oldham parkrun in Alexandra Park on Saturday morning to show our fond memories of Shaun. [Paul Timms]
4th JANUARY 2024
THE NEXT RACE in the South East Lancs cross-country league, scheduled for Saturday 20th January, has now been moved to Marl Pits at Rossendale (BB4 7SW) as a joint event with the Red Rose League. Please note that there will be no 'on the day' entries. Runners will need to collect new numbers (for this race only) at Race HQ before the race. There are also different start times for this event - the senior women's race sets off at 1.35pm, senior men at 2.15pm. [David Emanuel]
14th NOVEMBER 2023
MANY THANKS TO everyone who took the time to submit nominations for Club Runner of the Year 2023/Charity of the Year 2024 - based on these the RRR Committee has decided on shortlists & now you have the chance to cast your votes. Just click here to make your selection(s) - deadline for voting is Tuesday 28th November and the winners will be announced at the RRR Presentation Night on Friday 1st December (don't forget to book your tickets!). Both of these categories are usually very close, so every vote counts! [David Emanuel]
13th NOVEMBER 2023
THIS YEAR'S RRR Presentation Night will take place on Friday 1st December at Royton Cricket Club. Doors open at 7pm. Tickets cost £11 per head (food included), non-members/partners welcome. Please follow this link to book your tickets. Look forward to seeing you all there! [Natali Brown]
1st NOVEMBER 2023
FOR THOSE PLANNING to run the next South East Lancs Cross-Country race on Saturday 18th November, the venue has now officially been confirmed as Tandle Hills. The entrance area to the start/finish area is a public path between numbers 58 & 60 on Tandle Hill Road, Royton OL2 5UX. Parking on the surrounding roads is limited - please be considerate of other road users and avoid blocking driveways. The course itself, using farmer's fields, can be very muddy - make sure you fasten your laces securely! [David Emanuel]
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FEEDBACK TIME! It’s that time of year again where we need your feedback on the club race calendar for 2023. Please follow this link & rate the race season. There’s also a couple of other questions we’d like your opinion on before compiling the 2024 list. [Adam Stirling]
18th OCTOBER 2023
OLDHAM COMMUNITY LEISURE is still looking for volunteers to help marshal at the Oldham Half Marathon on Sunday 29th October. If anyone is not running or has a family member/friend who wants to help on the day, please click here to sign up [John Fay]
4th OCTOBER 2023
IF YOU WANT TO get yourself a seat on the party bus to the Derwentwater 10 on Sunday 5th November please follow this link. Tickets are £17.50 per person. The coach will leave Royton at 8am, returning about 8pm. [Natali Brown]
28th SEPTEMBER 2023
EARLY CONFIRMATION OF a couple of 2024 RRR Club Championship races! The season will start again with the Stockport Daffodil 10K on Sunday 28th January 2024. In addition, due to difficulties in arranging a coach to take us to Dent, we are introducing an alternative race/coach trip - the well-established Coniston 14 on Saturday 23rd March. Entries to both races are already open - just follow the links. We hope that the Coniston trip will be a popular option even for those who don't want to run the race! [David Emanuel]
21st SEPTEMBER 2023
THANKS TO EVERYONE who has registered for this winter's South East Lancs Cross-Country League. Still time to sign up - the pre-entry deadline is Thursday 28th September ahead of the first race at Heaton Park on Saturday 7th October. You can find further details & fixture list here. Pre-entry costs £10 for all four races - please click here to register. Each club is also required to provide at least 2 volunteers for one of the races - we have chosen the 3rd event of the series, scheduled for Saturday 18th November, which will take place at either Tandle Hills or Heaton Park. As a volunteer marshal you will required to be on site from 12pm to 3pm on the day. If you know of anyone available to help on 18th November please let us know. It doesn't have to be an RRR member! [David Emanuel]
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13th SEPTEMBER 2023
OUR NEXT SOCIAL EVENT is an RRR 20th anniversary party at Royton Cricket Club, 7pm on Friday 13th October. Everyone welcome, so spread the word. Tickets are £10 each, please click here to book. Be lovely to see everyone there for an evening of food & dancing to celebrate 20 years of our club. [Natali Brown]
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31st AUGUST 2023
BOOKINGS ARE NOW BEING TAKEN for the chip-timed RRR Track 5K at The Radclyffe Athletics Centre (OL9 0LS) on Wednesday 20th September, race 14/17 in this year's RRR Club Championship. As with the successful event earlier this year there will be 2 start times - the 1st at 7pm intended for those aiming to complete their 5K in less than 24 minutes, with the 2nd at 7.45pm for those expecting to take 24 minutes or more. The entry fee is £7.50 to cover the cost of the track & the chip timing providers. Booking is initially open to RRR members only - if spaces are still available closer to the event date we may open it to others. Please click here to book your place. [David Emanuel]
WE ARE ALSO NOW taking bookings for this winter's South East Lancs Cross-Country League, with fixture dates just confirmed. Pre-entry costs just £10 for all four races - please click here to register. [David Emanuel]
23rd AUGUST 2023
CLUB TRAINING ON Monday 4th September is an ‘away night’ from the Cross Keys, Uppermill (OL3 6LW). This will involve recces of the Cross Keys Road & Fell Relay routes ahead of the event on Saturday 16th September, with chip butties in the pub afterwards (I'll need numbers for food by Thursday 31st August). After an impressive turnout last year we’re hoping to see even more RRR teams taking part in these relays - click here for more details. [Simon Howard]
3rd AUGUST 2023
I'VE RECEIVED CONFIRMATION that our club will receive 1 guaranteed place at the London Marathon next year. As in previous years, if you entered the ballot for a place in the 2024 race but were unsuccessful - and meet our other criteria - you will be entered into a draw for this club place. The draw will take place at our annual Presentation Night on Friday 1st December. In order to put yourself into this draw, please forward a copy of your email from London Marathon detailing your ballot result to the RRR mailbox. [Jill Hickson]