About us > Where we meet | History | Eccentricities | Cardiff
We are one of the largest running clubs in Wales. Anyone, regardless of ability, is welcome to join: if you look at our results page, you can see that while some of our members finish at the front end of races, most are in the middle, and quite a few bring up the rear.
We were formed in 1981, mostly from members of Cardiff AAC. We’re best defined as a road running club, although our main competitive league is the Gwent League (a series of five winter season cross-country races).
The name comes from the casino owned by one of our founder members, Gordon McIlroy, who offered to "put a few bob in" when we started.
For anyone interested in joining, or just in the Cardiff area and wanting some company for a run, the best thing to do is to show up at Llandaff Rugby Club from 6:30 on a Thursday.
We run together once a week (see above). After that we repair to the clubhouse for food and drink. Many of us meet to run at other times, and we do meet for track sessions or hill training on other days. We often share lifts to races and to/from training. And, of course, we sometimes go out drinking together too.
We don’t run beginners’ groups. Other clubs do, but we’ve never mastered the delegation business, and besides we feel that running isn’t a skill like swimming or golf - you just go out and do it. I’ve written a page of tips for beginners and a not very serious page on ideas for training. If you’re a woman and in Cardiff, we can put you in contact with a very gentle running group which goes round Roath Park Lake. If you’re male, sorry, blokes don’t do that kind of thing.
We don’t have a junior section, as such. Children of members do run for the club at times, but we aren’t able to offer coaching. If you are under 18, Cardiff Amateur Athletic Club offer development in all athletic disciplines, and can be contacted at Cardiff Athletic Stadium, Leckwith, Cardiff; 02920 228545.
Come and run with us, and talk to a few people. You wouldn’t buy a pair of shoes without trying them on, and we won’t ask for money until you feel comfortable. Payment gets you a club vest (free after you’ve run three races; until then you have to borrow one), and a warm sense of belonging.
If you’ve been running or jogging for at least a few months on your own, and have run a race and enjoyed it, you’ll fit in. Some of us have been running since school, some of us took up running as a replacement for other sports (such as football, rugby, or squash), and some of us started from scratch–in a couple of cases, after a lifetime of smoking.
If you feel you’d rather talk to someone first, here are some phone numbers.
| Name | Position | Number |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Nurse | Communication Officer | 07770 577 949 |
Simon has boldly taken on the role of ‘Communication Officer’ and is happy to help with membership queries or media interest (we do get some!). His wife had a baby in January 2007, so please try to call at a considerate time.
NB revised January 2007: Annual subscription is £12 per year, plus mandatory membership of Welsh Athletics, now £5. The latter used to confer insurance benefits should you be unfortunate enough to be injured whilst training or competing. The WAA no longer cover this, so the club does — for a further £3 a year (acutally a little less; how much less depends on how many member s we have: the surplus goes to the club). These add up to £20, or £5 less than last year. Membership of the WAA saves a pound on every race you enter. Mere club membership is no longer enough for this (for races in Wales).
About us > Where we meet | History | Eccentricities | Cardiff
Last updated 22 March 2010
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