Head Torches

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Category: Safety

General advice on Headtorches

First published Sep 2019

As you will all have noticed its quite dark in the evenings now. For the main Arrows groups that start at 7:30 pm its pretty much already dark when they start but for the beginners groups starting a little earlier there is still some light - but its going really quickly now.

At the Arrows we strongly advise people to wear a head torch (and hi viz clothing) even though you may be comfortable that you can still see well enough. Its just as important that you can be seen as that you can see. We try to be safe by picking routes carefully and observing good road safety but if wearing a head torch saves just one accident then its worth it.

You never know - one winter evening you may even be tempted to do some night trails with us. Not scary - actually quite good fun!

Head torches have improved dramatically over the last few years and now - unless you are going off to run up Snowdon or something - a perfectly reasonable head torch can be obtained for between £10 and £20 from any number of suppliers. Amazon for example has hundreds to choose from.

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Running Safety

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Category: Safety

Safe running tips

Just a few thoughts to help you stay safe when running.

1. If at all possible don't run on your own. Running with a 'buddy' is much easier especially on those long marathon training runs.
2. Even if you travel light carry some form of ID with you - a card with your name and an 'ICE' number (In Case of Emergency). A phone is a good idea too if you can manage it.
3. Do some warm up exercises (rather than stretches) before you start your run. These should be designed to increase your heart rate and prepare your body for running.
4. Plan your route. If you find yourself getting lost retrace your steps rather than trying to go on further and getting totally lost. On very long runs have a 'plan B' so that you can cut the run short if you need to.
5. When you go out, let somebody know roughly how long you are going to be out and ideally your route. That way if you don't return in the expected time then somebody can raise the alarm and have a rough idea where to start looking.
6. In the winter months running in high-visibility clothing is absolutely vital but it's a good idea in the summer months too. On dark nights avoid dimly lit roads and try and stick to routes with adequate street lighting. Head torches are recommended - particularly ones with 'rear' lights too.

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ICE Tags

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Category: Safety

In Case of Emergency Tags 

IN CASE of EMERGENCY (ICE) identification tags. All runners are encouraged to carry with them an ICE tag whenever and wherever they run. The company ICEtags will do a set of three, each with the Arrows logo on the back and your info on the front, currently (April 2017) for only £4.20 (including postage) ... a real bargain. Each tag comes with a small hole so you can thread your shoe lace through it and have it permanently fixed to your shoe so you never forget it. The club logo is already stored at ICEtags.

Simply go to the ICEtag website, click on the 'runner identification' in the red banner, fill in your ICE details and click 'add to cart'. Click on the shopping cart and go through the checkout procedure. During this procedure a 'comments' box will appear - enter "member of harpenden arrows" - this will result in the Harpenden Arrows logo being printed on the reverse side of each tag.
Couldn't be simpler.

Read more: ICE Tags