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Event - The Brixton Bolt - 27th Oct

Why on earth isn't this 100m dash happening on Brixton's "ICONIC" new 100m racetrack:confused:

evelyn_grace_academy_z191010_lh1.jpg
 
Brixton Hatter said:
Wasn't the school PFI funded? In which case, they'd probably want to charge for use for a community event...
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ARK academies have a fairly complicated financial structure, but I am pretty sure Evelyn Grace did not involve a PFI deal. AFAIK it was a design and build deal with Zaha Hadid's wilder fancies being constrained by the price Mace had bid to construct the place.

Some lazy journalists assumed that because the sponsor charity is linked to people from hedge funds etc, it must be PFI, but actually those people with City backgrounds bringing their own money into the project were far more able - compared to NHS hospital administrators under immediate political pressure - to say no to PFI proposals that were crap value for money.
 
It was a toss-up between humiliating myself at this or on the tennis court. I went for the latter.

It was windy, cold and rainy as fuck while i was up at brockers so im assuming sprinting would have been equally tricky. Respect to anyone who attempted it. I hope the drug testers weren't in attendance.
 
Me and memespring toddled along and watched a couple of heats. Really good turn out but it was fucking freezing so we didn't hang around long. It wasn't exactly perfect sprinting conditions :eek:
 
nipsla said:
Me and memespring toddled along and watched a couple of heats. Really good turn out but it was fucking freezing so we didn't hang around long. It wasn't exactly perfect sprinting conditions :eek:
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I've seen some pictures of Brixton Blog. People looked well wrapped up :D

Glad I forgot about this as I didn't fancy going out in this weather
 
It was freezing but was there up to the over 40 finals. A great event. Well done to everyone involved. One of the organisers mentioned that it will be held in the summer next year. I'm sure this will become a really popular annual event.

Loved the fact that there were all sorts involved. From full lycra bodysuits to ladies in flat shoes dressed for a day of shopping.
 
Thanks to everyone who came down yesterday. It was bloody cold and I think that caused a few problems (runners going missing between races, seeking the warmth!), but overall I think for a first time it went pretty well. It was 10 weeks from inception to event, and was all done voluntarily (none of us are events organisers), so naturally there are lots of things to learn. I'd be interested to hear the thoughts of people who were there yesterday on how we might go about improving the event. The first improvement would of course be the time of year to hold it! We wanted to do it this year to follow on interest from the Olympics, but I think it would work well as a summer event.

I hope that those who were there found it fun and enjoyed it. The actual races were all great fun I thought, and the reactions of the winners, whether it was running straight to their family members, doing press ups, or just puffing out the chest and strutting around, were great to see. If anyone has photos then it would be good to see them. From our end, a few friends of mine filmed the event, so look out for our take on how it all unfolded.

Quite happy not to think about this for a few months now - hopefully see you next year!
 
When are the pictures going to appear on the Rogues Gallery... er, Hall of Fame?

Looking forward to seeing them :)
 
tshax said:
Thanks to everyone who came down yesterday. It was bloody cold and I think that caused a few problems (runners going missing between races, seeking the warmth!), but overall I think for a first time it went pretty well. It was 10 weeks from inception to event, and was all done voluntarily (none of us are events organisers), so naturally there are lots of things to learn. I'd be interested to hear the thoughts of people who were there yesterday on how we might go about improving the event. The first improvement would of course be the time of year to hold it! We wanted to do it this year to follow on interest from the Olympics, but I think it would work well as a summer event.

I hope that those who were there found it fun and enjoyed it. The actual races were all great fun I thought, and the reactions of the winners, whether it was running straight to their family members, doing press ups, or just puffing out the chest and strutting around, were great to see. If anyone has photos then it would be good to see them. From our end, a few friends of mine filmed the event, so look out for our take on how it all unfolded.

Quite happy not to think about this for a few months now - hopefully see you next year!
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I went, and I wanted to say well done to the organisers. I really liked the fact it was outside, in the very centre, and informal. People were signing up to run on the spur of the moment. Doing it on a proper sports track would have been quite different. I was impressed by the amount of work that had obviously gone into it. Great banners etc. My only suggestion for next year would be more music. I really hope it happens next year, I think I might run next time...
 
Is this an annual thing? Im up for next season. but yeh. a 1pm start would suit me and in summer please.

i cant make it otherwise. my joints need warmth in order for me to perform.

what was the winning finishing time?
 
Great photos there!

jennyj said:
I went, and I wanted to say well done to the organisers. I really liked the fact it was outside, in the very centre, and informal. People were signing up to run on the spur of the moment. Doing it on a proper sports track would have been quite different. I was impressed by the amount of work that had obviously gone into it. Great banners etc. My only suggestion for next year would be more music. I really hope it happens next year, I think I might run next time...
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Thanks, much appreciated. It's been a busy 2 months to get it all together and as well promoted around Brixton as possible. I think in the end half of the sign ups came from people on the day, who hadn't registered by email. We were offered the possibility of laying down a running track and a few other fancy bits but I like the idea of it being raw and something that essentially doesn't take itself too seriously and isn't intimidating to would-be runners. I think that the moment you start trying to professionalise it, you put people off.

I agree completely on the entertainment front, we discussed the idea afterwards. Unfortunately one of our acts fell through quite late in the day, but we didn't really have time to put a programme together. Next summer (Gabi, yes we hope it will be an annual event), we will definitely look to have more of a carnival vibe with music, stuff for kids etc.

The winner of the mens race, Andre, came through in 10.3 seconds. Note that the track distance was not 100m, more like 90m. Still a very impressive performance! For those who missed it, a local video editor has shown his own speed credentials and put together a very nice highlights package:
 
tshax said:
The winner of the mens race, Andre, came through in 10.3 seconds. Note that the track distance was not 100m, more like 90m. Still a very impressive performance! For those who missed it, a local video editor has shown his own speed credentials and put together a very nice highlights package:
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and the women and kids? Don't like how the mens race always seems to be more important :(

With the kids, you could have a future Olympian and yet their time's not even mentioned :hmm:
 
Minnie_the_Minx said:
and the women and kids? Don't like how the mens race always seems to be more important :(

With the kids, you could have a future Olympian and yet their time's not even mentioned :hmm:
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Isn't it just because the kids races were earlier and - like me - he didn't get there until half way through the event?
 
editor said:
Isn't it just because the kids races were earlier and - like me - he didn't get there until half way through the event?
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Maybe, just thought he'd know the results.

Will have a look at the Brixton Bolt website to see if it's been updated.

Would be great if one of the kids got a really good time though, could inspire them to take it up
 
It's been updated, but no results for the kids:

Mens
1st: Andre Nembhard (winning time 10.3 seconds)
2nd: Calvin McLeish
3rd: Nic O’Brian

Womens
1st: Hannah Riley (14.5 seconds)
2nd: Rebecca Scroggs
3rd: Jennifer Watson

Mens over 40s
1st: Paul Marriott (12.36 seconds)
2nd: Henry Bonsu (12.73 seconds)
3rd: (13.32 seconds)

Womens over 40s
1st: Harmony McLeish (14.2 seconds)
2nd: (14.4 seconds)

Boys under 16
1st:
2nd:

Girls under 16
1st:

Girls 14
1st:
2nd:
3rd:

Boys 11
1st: Luca Allick-Smith
2nd:
3rd:

Girls 11
1st: Alicia
2nd:
3rd:
 
Minnie_the_Minx said:
and the women and kids? Don't like how the mens race always seems to be more important :(

With the kids, you could have a future Olympian and yet their time's not even mentioned :hmm:
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As Editor has said, the kids competition was in the morning. They had their own medals ceremony and their names are slowly making their way into our hall of fame on the website. Also I should add that the person who made this film was not someone I had asked, he was completely independent and I had no input over the film (although I think he did a brilliant job with it). A friend of mine who did our promotional video was there right from the start and I'm sure his version will show the kids as much as the adults. Regarding the men and women, I think that (unsurprisingly) the men just played up to the camera and naturally took more of the focus. What can you do when you have a guy like Paul, who won the mens over 40s, who turns up, passing resemblance to Usain Bolt, and he's there in full Jamaican get-up doing press ups at the finishing line? He was great! I don't think that the womens or the kids events were given any less importance. I think if you look at the work of Jeannine who was there all day taking photos, you'll see that showmanship aside, it was something where everyone had a bit of limelight.

http://www.brixtonblog.com/brixton-bolt-in-pictures/7827
 
Minnie_the_Minx said:
I wonder if Harmony and Calvin McLeish are related?
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They are!

And yes, it's all a bit chaotic trying to get the results together. My bedroom is currently floor to ceiling in bunting, banners, programmes, and results sheets. I hope to have it all updated by tomorrow...
 
tshax said:
They are!

And yes, it's all a bit chaotic trying to get the results together. My bedroom is currently floor to ceiling in bunting, banners, programmes, and results sheets. I hope to have it all updated by tomorrow...
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If they're married, do you think you could badger them into having lots of kids ;)
 
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