Entry Form for the Abbotts Ann 5k/10k Fun Run

Race Ten Details - Will you join us one last time?!

As you may have heard, our last race in the series of ten was recently cancelled.  The venue on the Isle of Wight was badly damaged after the Isle of Wight festival, and the seemingly endless bad weather meant it had no time to recover or be repaired.  As such, the Race for Life organisers had no choice but to cancel the event, leaving Team Tonia unable to complete our ten race challenge.

 Emma and I have desperately been looking for an alternative, to ensure that we fulfil our promise to our sponsors and complete all ten races. 

And now we have it:

Race Ten……..in Abbotts Ann!

 Our local village is hosting its second 5km & 10km cross-country fun-run on Sunday 16^th September and Team Tonia will be there!  This will be our tenth and last event and we would love it if you could join us once more!  The event is open to men, women and children, and is accessible for pushchairs and dogs (although pushchairs would be better on the 5km route).  The entry fee will go towards the organiser’s fundraising project which is to rebuild the pavilion on the village sports field, but obviously all entrants would be welcome to raise their own money for Cancer Research via our new JustGiving page: www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/TeamTonia.  Emma and I are thrilled with the sponsor money already raised, so there is no pressure to raise any more (unless you want to!) – we just want to complete our ten races.

So….if you would like to join us in your Team Tonia t-shirt - running, walking, jogging, wheeling a pushchair or bringing the dog – Emma and I would be thrilled!  I have posted the registration form as the next post on this blog site, so please print it off, complete the form and post it with your entry fee to the address given.

Really hope you will join us! 

Love Kate & Emma xxxx

Pretty in Pink in Portsmouth

RACE NINE: PORTSMOUTH - 22ND JULY 2012

From L to R: Val Emery, Janine Baugh, Emma Dowinton, Kate Bone, Sarah & James Ford
Front: Sheila Oldacre & Keswick, Rachael & Aidan Busuttil, Lisa Rawson, Steph Brown, Sam & Tom Yeo
Missing from picture: Rona Mackie, Liz Jones, Liz, Nancy & Maggie Bragg

Race nine took place on a sunny Portsmouth seafront on Sunday 22nd July 2012, and saw 14 Team Tonia members don hats and suncream for the first time in a while! 

Sam and her six year old son, Tom, arrived first, and fiercly guarded our base camp spot next to the Jaffa Orange van.  This was Emma's first race without her children in tow, which meant she did not have to squeeze in a quick breastfeed before the start, nor squeeze herself into her fifteen sports bras in public! 

Getting fired up before the race

Without this necessary but time-consuming welfare issue to contend with, we were able to erect the banner in record time and found ourselves scarily organised and calm prior to the race.  Just then, our calm, collected ambience was shattered by the arrival of four strapping firemen, sending our group of mature pink ladies into a quivering gaggle of giggling girlies!


One of our support crew, James, was able to help pick us up off the floor (after he had taken the photo) and help us to regain our composure, just as his wife Steph appeared from the toilets wondering what all the giggling was about.  A special mention must go to Steph and James, who had flown over from Canada especially to take part in this race (I like to think so, anyway!). 

I want to ride my bicycle

Also arriving in style was Emma's work colleague Val, who cycled to the race venue and cycled home again.  (Really?  Was the race not enough exercise for you, Val?!).

As if one super-keen athlete on the team wasn't enough, we then discovered that Sheila and canine companion, Keswick, had already competed that morning in the 10km Race for Life, when we saw them walking towards us already proudly wearing their medals.  The runners-in-waiting commended the pair on their extra efforts, running the 6.2 mile distance instead of the 3.1 miles.  But then we were stunned when we saw them lining up once more to complete the 5km, only one hour later.  Apparently Sheila is in training for a marathon; I'm not sure what poor Keswick thought of it all!

Our team consisted of four employees of one of our sponsors, Fostering Solutions.  Accompanying them were their support crew, including our youngest supporter, baby Aidan.  Proudly wearing his miniature 'Team Tonia Support Crew' t-shirt, he escorted his mum around the course in his pushchair.

The Fostering Solutions Ladies: Emma, Rachael, Lisa & Val

Rachael and Baby Aidan

As the start of the race grew near, we were growing increasingly concerned for three of our team who had not yet arrived. The traffic into Southsea and the parking was proving to be a challenge, so we feared they would not arrive in time to start the race.  We reluctantly took our group photo without them and made our way to the start line, keeping our fingers crossed that they would arrive in time.  As we became swept up in the sea of runners, joggers and walkers, we didn't see the three missing team members and former University classmates of Emma's, come sprinting across Southsea common, just in time to start at the back of the 8,000 entrants.  The additional warm-up didn't phase Rona Mackie, Liz Jones and Liz Bragg, who ran with her children Maggie and Nancy.

Once the race began we all split up, anxious to achieve our own personal bests in what was to be our last official Race for Life event.  As we turned the first corner, Emma and I were amazed and very touched to see a long-standing family friend and former neighbour cheering for Team Tonia as we passed.  She and her husband had been planning to visit friends in the area and decided to make the visit on the same day as the race, so they could watch us first.  Linda was not only a friend of Mum's, but was also the lady who helped deliver me when I was born, so it was very special to see her there waving a Team Tonia banner!

Although the course was flat, the heat was powerful.  Unfortunately one of our serious team runners, Sarah, was hindered by a shoulder injury along the way, and ended up being escorted by her son as she crossed the finish line.  Another dark horse of the team had a touch of the 'Paula Radcliffes' after the 3rd kilometre, and had to disappear off-piste (no pun intended!) for a short while.  Despite this, both she, and Emma (who used 'Paula's' disappearance to just steal the lead) finished in good times.

As we crossed the finish line, Emma and I felt a pang of sadness that this would be our last official Race for Life event.  The cancellation of the Isle of Wight race due to the recent bad weather means that we cannot complete ten 'official' race for life events, as the Isle of Wight event was the last race in the South of England.  However, with the support of the Cancer Research UK team, we have decided to run our last race in our local village, taking part in their very own cross-country 5km (and 10km) fun-run.  This race will take place on Sunday 16th September 2012 starting at Bulbery playing fields in Abbotts Ann. 

The event is open to men, women and children, and is accessible for pushchairs and dogs (although pushchairs would be better on the 5km route).  The entry fee will go towards the organiser’s fundraising project which is to rebuild the pavilion on the village sports field, but obviously all entrants would be welcome to raise their own money for Cancer Research via our new JustGiving page: www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/TeamTonia.  Emma and I are thrilled with the sponsor money already raised, so there is no pressure to raise any more (unless you want to!) – we just want to complete our ten races.

So….if you would like to join us in a Team Tonia t-shirt - running, walking, jogging, wheeling a pushchair or bringing the dog – Emma and I would be thrilled!  Please contact me for more details and I will forward you the entry forms.

Kate xxx

31st July 2012