Get ready to pass the baton! All you need to know about the Striders World Champs Relay

Back in 2012 to celebrate the London Olympic Games, Striders organised our own relay from Westminster Lodge to the Olympic Park - or as close as we could get to at the time - and all involved agreed it was a great day out.

So, with the World Athletic Championships being held in the capital this summer, we're going to repeat the run using the same route.

We hope the relay will be a good opportunity to bring the club together for a sociable run. There will be plenty of chatting and the occasional stop.

Stopping to take in the view during the 2012 Olympic Relay

WHEN?

Following our poll, the date has been set for Saturday, 5th August.

Apologies to those who can't make it. It was very close between then and the 12th so we had to go with the day when more volunteers willing to drive minibuses and lead runs were available.

We are aware the Bearbrook 10K is the following day and it is a Club Champs race. The relay is not a race, it's a fun, sociable run and you can do it at any pace you wish. So if you are racing, you could still get involved by running at an easy pace, or join in/drop out earlier on one of the legs to run less than eight miles if you can get a lift or use public transport.

The first leg will leave Westminster Lodge promptly at 8am with the aim to get to the Olympic Park by about 4 - 4:30pm. We'll then spend an hour/90 minutes soaking up the atmosphere in the park and then head for home about 6pm.

There will be options to leave earlier if you wish. For the latter legs, you will not need to catch your minibus until later in the day. The last one will leave Westminster Lodge at about 1pm, to be confirmed.

THE ROUTE

The mostly offroad route consists of five 7-8 mile legs. Starting at Westminster Lodge, the route runs roughly south of St Albans via the Colne Valley Walk and then to Aldenham for the first change over.

From there it heads to Aldenham Country Park and then Mill Hill Golf Course for change over number two. Leg three then continues east following sections of the London Loop and Dollis Valley Green Walk before heading south again to change over three near Hendon.

The route is mostly offroad (and hopefully won't be as muddy this year!)

Leg four carries on south, running parallel with the North Circular for a while and then heads south again via Big Wood, Hampstead Heath with great views of Central London. Then there is the longest road section passing through Belsize Park to Primrose Hill - again great views of London here. Then it drops down to the Regents Canal for change over four.

The final leg follows the Regents Canal via Camden Market to Victoria Park where we then follow the Hertford Union Canal all the way to the Olympic Park.

Last time as we were using a coach, we had to leave as soon as we got there because the driver was running out of driving time. This time we plan to use minibuses, driven by members who have volunteered, so we can be more flexible and spend some time in the Olympic Park.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED

Please sign up here and let us know your preferred pace and any leg preference.

We will select the groups so that everyone is of a similar pace and it will be down to the Run Leader assigned to each leg to keep everyone together.

Sign up now! T-shirts will be provided

If you can't run, please let us know if you could drive one of the minibuses instead.

Please sign up before Monday, 24th July so we have time to coordinate the legs, leaders and drivers.

T-shirts will be provided so don't forget to select the size you want.

We hope to see lots of you on the day!

Combining hearts and minds: Katie Bunting reports on the club's first mindfulness run at Heartwood Forest

Katie Bunting reports on the club's first mindfulness run which was organised by Gareth Beavis in June...

I must admit I drove to Heartwood Forest thinking it would just be a great social run in a lovely location.

And it was, but I also came away thinking a bit more about myself, my attitude to running, and (not to sound too corny) how I can hopefully help a couple of people close to me who, until recently, I had no idea were having some mental health issues.

Heartwood looked beautiful on the day of the run

I think it’s easy to look at family and friends and think "they look fine, they're getting out and about, they've said they're ok" but I think the complexities of mental health issues make it hard to always know if someone is having some problems.

The day of the run was sunny and warm, very warm in fact, so I was quite glad the run was a steady 5km with several stops. Heartwood looked beautiful in the sunlight; the meadow flowers were in full bloom and recollections of running the Stampede route in driving wind and rain soon became a very distant memory.

We started off by focusing on our breathing which I did find odd, especially standing in the middle of a meadow with my eyes closed but it was strangely relaxing and one of the things I have taken away from the run is the importance to stop every now and then and just take a few minutes out to draw breath.

Gareth had planned the route with a couple of sections where we didn’t talk and focused on our breathing or how our bodies felt. Yes, it was strange to run with others and not talk but it was also interesting to just focus on how my body was working and feeling as I was running.

Heartwood was the perfect location to enjoy being outdoors, and greeting horse riders, dog walkers and a couple of people running with radio aerials (I’m still not too sure what they were looking for!) reaffirmed my enjoyment of running and being a member of Striders.

All too soon the run was over and we were back at the car park, where we headed to the local pub for a well-earned drink and chat. The run had been very well organised and everyone looked hot but relaxed at the end, and I think we all had learnt a little bit about ourselves during the run.

Thank you Gareth and I look forward to the next one.