Ideas on how to organise a Run and run notes

15 November 2020 / Words and Photos: Jeff and Pamela Rowe

A Recognisance (Recky) Run to Organise Run Notes for a future Chapter Club Run.

It’s great when you go on a Club Chapter Run and the Run Organiser or Run Leader has been on a Recky Run beforehand to confirm distances for the run and the expected time it will take to complete. Also they check out comfort stops, Morning Tea stops and Lunch Venues. All this is only for a day run.

As many of you will know Club Runs don’t just happen. Someone has to come up with the idea. Then confirm with the Chapter Run Co-ordinator that the run can be fitted into the Chapter Events Calendar.

With the date confirmed a description of what the run will look like has to be written. This has to be detailed and colourful enough to advise members of what to expect and to encourage them to join the run. Morning Tea and Lunch Venues may also need to be booked.

When this is all okay the Chapter Convenor is kept in the loop and the event is listed on the Chapter Events Page by the Web Page Co-ordinator. A ‘Google Booking Form’ is created and you wait to see how many members you get to join the run on the day.

We were recently asked to join a Run Organiser on one of these ‘Recky Runs’.

It’s almost essential to have a Navigator that can look down as you go along to take notes and record distances travelled without feeling car sick. Sometimes it doesn’t matter how smooth the driver is.

Starting from the meeting point at the planned departure time, with our Odometer set to Zero and with a rough idea of the run route, two cars set off.

Keeping very close to the posted speed limits and noting all the twists and turns we arrived at our Morning Tea and comfort stop. Distances travelled were checked and a note taken of the time taken to reach this point.

We enjoyed a lovely Morning Tea and visited the facilities. All set now to continue we set off with the time noted and the Navigator with pen in hand ready to continue to note corners, turns and distances travelled between our planned stops.

Arriving at the Lunch Venue the distance travelled was noted, and compared, together with the time taken to reach our destination.

Now with all the important information in hand and an understanding of the route to be taken our Run Organiser or Run Leader can get in front of their computer and write up the ‘Run Notes’ for their run.

Some would say why not just use ‘Google Maps’. We’re sure many do, to map out the route, but if you want to plan for a good day and have an idea what to expect of the facilities and venues then a Recky Run is a must.

We enjoyed our lunch and the run home having had a great day being part of the organising of a future Chapter Club Run.

A few days later we received a copy of the written up ‘Run Notes’ with a note asking us to please check them for accuracy. When this was done they were ready to be used by the Run Leader with confidence that the content was correct to be given to members and the venues they were going to were of a good standard.

This was a great day, we enjoy doing our own Recky Runs as well as joining others doing theirs.

If you can go on the run as well after doing the Recky Run then that’s an added bonus.

Thank you Garry and Jan Gibson for asking us to tag along on this Recky Run.