The Dunoon Hill Runners AGM and Prizegiving will be held on Saturday 27 February 2016 at Kirn and Hunters Quay Bowling Club, starting at 7 pm. Please forward any agenda items to the Club Secretary – secretary@dunoonhillrunners.org.uk.
Following the AGM, a presentation of trophies and awards will be given. Renewal and new memberships will take place between 7 and 7.30pm.
The minutes from the DHR Committee Meeting of 11 January 2016 can be found here [PDF].
Please take note of the following conditions before joining any Beginners’ runs.
The Braes hosted Dunoon Hill Runners 2nd Annual Charity Quiz Night on the evening of Saturday 14 November 2015, which again was a completely sold out event! The club, now boasting nearly 70 members, enjoyed a fun-packed evening involving 20 teams all aiming to be crowned champions and, with last year’s winners present, it was going to be a close run affair.
After 2 hours and 9 rounds of hilarity – sorry, questions, plus the need for a tie-break question to split the top two teams, surprisingly it was the smallest team on the night that emerged the winners! Iain Cairns of Argyll Financial Services proudly stepped up along with his wife and in-laws to collect their prizes. Some would say his team had a distinct advantage as they had a retired geography teacher on board, given that Kenny Taylor who set the questions is also a geography teacher. Last year’s winners placed 3rd and, interestingly, they also had a geography teacher in their midst!
Teams also enjoyed a curry and their generosity was plentiful as they delved deep into their pockets to buy up large amounts of raffle tickets with over 20 prizes on offer, the greatest majority of which were kindly donated by local businesses who were nothing short of generous and supportive to the club.
The two charities chosen this year lie close to the club’s heart as both affect some of our members on a daily basis. The first charity chosen is Samuel’s Smile; it aims to help children diagnosed with rare forms of life limiting diseases. Founded by Samuel Bell’s parents, Samuel himself was born with an extremely rare disease called Total Interstitial Hirchsprungs disease and now at 17 years old is the oldest surviving person in the world with this condition. More information can be found here. The second charity to benefit is the local Multiple Sclerosis Society. Dunoon Hill Runners recognises that sometimes local charities can get lost amongst their bigger counterparts and, being mindful of this, we remain determined that monies raised would also benefit those locally affected. A grand total of £876 profit was raised on the night allowing the club to donate £438 to each of the two nominated charities.
Dunoon Hill Runners would like to extend their thanks to everyone who paid a ticket and attended the night; it is only through your continued support and generosity that makes events like this possible. We also wish to acknowledge all of the local businesses that kindly donated the raffle prize gifts, Argyll First, Bookpoint, Cothouse Garage, David Shields Joinery, Elite Clothing, Juno, Kennedy Chemist, Lorraine Community Fitness, Pink Fizz, Timothy Sharp Jewellers, Walkers Garden Centre and West Coast Motors. Thanks also to Jennifer and her staff at the Braes for their patience and great hospitality.
Dunoon Hill Runners is holding a Quiz and Curry Night at The Braes, 1 School Brae, Dunoon on Saturday 14 November 2015 at 7 pm. Members and non-members are cordially invited to form a team or find a table. Ticket costs £8 per person. Half the ticket proceeds will be allocated to local charities, and the other half buys your curry. There will be lots of opportunities to win some of the excellent prizes lined up for the event!
If interested, please contact a Committee member.
Beginners’ training has commenced each Wednesday evening at 7 pm. Please refer to the Club calendar for meeting places each week. Anyone interested in starting running (or returning after a break) is invited to come along and join the fun.
The minutes of the DHR Committee Meeting held on 18 September 2015 can be found here [PDF].
We are actively looking for new sponsors as we start to think about season 2016. Without sponsors we would not be able to keep membership fees low or subsidise costs for members which we really want to do. Sponsorship money has this year helped:
a. Reduce costs of new vests for members
b. Provide trophies and medals
c. Pay for race entry for members competing in prestigious events
d. Subsidise the purchase of branded race flags
We currently offer 3 sponsorship packages outlined below. If you, your organisation or any of your contacts are interested please contact a member of the committee who would be delighted to discuss options.
A number of local businesses currently offer discounts to our members. Details of your business will be posted on our website and in the annual newsletter which goes to all club members. This encourages members to support these local businesses. Typical discount is 10%
Last year we were able to buy two trophies and prizes for the first prize giving. If you sponsor a trophy your name will be attached to that award at Prize Giving that year and you will be mentioned in local press and on the club website
These sponsors would have a club run race named after them that year. E.g. the Mundell Volcano Run. They would feature in local press and on the club website. We currently organise 4 club races. Kilbride, Spooky Salomon, Club Handicap and Volcano Run
Sponsors can have their logo featured on club kit – e.g. Hoodies, Training Tops, Shorts etc.
Once again many thanks to our current sponsors for this year. Details are here.
Club Secretary, Kenny Taylor, has written up a race report after completing the 2015 Kyles 10 Miles race – it can be found here on his blog.
David, Ricky and Ian
It’s hard to keep up with all the races in which the Dunoon Hill Runners club has been represented! Most recently, on 4 September 2015, 3 members took on one of the oldest and most prestigious hill races in the UK calendar – the Ben Nevis Race. This race requires pre-qualification and there are strict cut-off times for the half-way point, the summit and completion of the route. David Walsh, Ricky Reid and Ian Marshall all succeeded in completing in highly respectable times, despite the warm temperatures, and can be very proud of their achievement. Results can be found here.
Kyles 10 Miles 2015
On the same day, 12 Dunoon Hill Runners took part in the beautiful Kyles 10 Miles Race, up from 3 participants last year. This is a truly scenic route and it’s safe to say that everyone thoroughly enjoyed running in the sunshine and success was achieved all round. Results can be found here.
The weekend prior saw DHR competitors successfully completing both Cowal Highland Gathering races – the 5K road race on the Thursday and the Camel’s Hump hill race on the Saturday. Hill race results can be found here.
Last but not least, David Walsh and Ian Marshall also competed in the Ochil 2000s Hill Race on 22 August. Results here, whilst Iain and Ronnie Cairns ran the Bute 10K (Ronnie’s blog post here).
A special mention must go to Anne Lloyd Evans who came in as 7th female in the inaugural Glencoe Skyline Race. This races is described as “fusing mountain running and alpinism in a pure test of speed, endurance and skill on an uncompromising, world-class course”. It is not for the faint-hearted, taking in many of the Glencoe peaks and ridges, including the renowned Curved Ridge and Aonach Eagach. Well done, Anne! (Results here).
The season is not yet over, of course, with more races lined up such as the Great Scottish Run, the Glencoe Marathon and Mamores Half Marathon and the Glen Ogle Ultra, among others!
