Latest / The Folkestone & Hythe Sports Podcast / LISTEN BACK TO RACE DIRECTOR RAY JOHNSON CHATTING ABOUT SUNDAYS FOLKESTONE COASTAL 10K.

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LISTEN BACK TO RACE DIRECTOR RAY JOHNSON CHATTING ABOUT SUNDAYS FOLKESTONE COASTAL 10K. · The Folkestone & Hythe Sports Podcast

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: In the show today by Ray Johnson, who's the race
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: director of Sunday's Folks and Coastal ten K. How are you, Ray,
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: and how's the race going?
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: I'm good, thanks Kevin. Yes, all going great and really
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: good turnout sold.
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Out good, really sold out. Wow, there's still some great achievement. Yes,
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: children's so turning the clock back? Now how many what
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: number is this? How many years you've been going?
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: Soh gosh, it's the fourteenth year? Now?
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: Fourteenth?
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah, So yeah, it's really gay momentum as you know,
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: because you come along, which is great and you know,
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: literally sold out of one thousand runners, so we pushed
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: that out as far as we can, so we're full
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: and you know, as a result, it's a really really good,
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: amazing event. And this is the six year consecutive year
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: sold out.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: Really that's terrific. Yeah, it's one people left to get
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: in quick, isn't it. And but let's turn the clock
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: way back. I mean, what made you think of this
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: this race? I mean, we talk about the half marathon
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: if we get a chance, But you know, how did
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: it all come about? Were you just sitting around and thinking,
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: you know what?
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: K Well, as you know, we'd come back to it,
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: but yeah, with a half marathon. I set that up
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: in two thousand and six. So following my experience with
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: the London Marathon, which I first did my first one
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: in twenty one, I thought, well, okay, let's bring that
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: experience to folks, and so with the ten k linked
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: in with the Olympic gear and everyone was talking about
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: sport and wanting to do something and so as a
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: result of that, I thought, okay, there's got a ten
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: k on the map. Because a lot of people, you know,
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: they can't manage a half or marathon, so the ten
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: k is an ideal sweet spot. And so it built
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: up from there. So it started in twenty twelve.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: Twenty twelve, yeah as a year that sticks in everyone's mind,
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: don't it, because it was Olympic year and it was
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: such a everyone was on a high, as you say,
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: about the sport and you know, with tourists coming over,
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: stuff on the telly and lots of volunteers at the
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: Olympic Park. Yeah, it was a great, great time. Can
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: you actually remember how many were in the first race there?
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: So yeah, no, it was so we restricted it to
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: one thousand, and I think we were eight hundred and twenty,
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: so it was really quite good to again and then
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: you know from there it's just increased the.
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: Year on year, right, So tell us about the people
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: behind the scenes. Obviously you need helpers and sponsors and
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: that let's give them all the plug.
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: Yeah, definitely. So first of all, we've got a lot
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: of people from the respective rotary clubs, so it's Folks
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: and Folkstone Channel and Hive, so they come out to play,
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: to volunteer. We've got the police Cadets. We've got a
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: couple of companies that are given us volunteers, so like
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: Church and Dwight and Saga, so they're the main ones.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: And there's a few from the running club and other
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: volunteers that have just done it for years. You know,
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: people can park run so they're brilliant and they all
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: love the event and the atmosphere, so that's really good.
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: And then of course we've got quite a few sponsors,
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: so everyone I be familiar with Saga, but they're our
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: main sponsors. But we've got Eurotunnel on board, Folks in
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: High District, Church and Dwight, Kap Holiday Extras, Roger Dehar
• 3:06
  Speaker 2: and Chad with First Jenner Group Voco, Clifton and Folks
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: and care Centers. They're the main ones and we've got
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: lots of other sponsors as well.
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, it's really good. So I mean again just
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: the random question your runners you've got you know you're
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: sold out, but do you know where these runners are
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: coming from?
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: Yeah? All over? So it's amazing. Definitely know there's somebody
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: coming from Birmingham. Yep, you get the usual suspects from Kent,
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: which is brilliant, the running club things like that. I
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: mean I've just literally seen a message on Facebook with
• 3:37
  Speaker 2: the Folks and Running Club and it looks like I got
• 3:39
  Speaker 2: ninety on board. And of course they do register early.
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: You know, it's a serious event. So yeah, all over,
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: but definitely Cambridge over in Suffolk, somebody from Cardiff. So
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: I think the furthest I know is Birmingham.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: Really really great? Yeah yeah, so okay, let's let's talk
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: about some information about the race. This has a beef
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: for spectators now because there'll be no entries on the day,
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: so tell us about where it is, what time parking,
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: how do you get there, you know, because the town's
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: are mess at the moment with all the roadworks, So
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: just fill us in on detail challenging.
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: So the actual start of the race effectively is on
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: the Coastal Park not far from the bottom of the
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: lease lift. So if you imagine you're on the foreshore
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: or on the promenade, it's kind of from there, and
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: then the race itself would go over pretty much to
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: the High Golf Club on the promenade, straight straight to it,
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: through Sandgate etc. And then back again. So it's there
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: and back. That's the race itself. The start of the
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: race generally is going to be in the Folkston Coastal
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: car Park area, the car park at the bottom of
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: the lift, so we kindly get that given to us
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: by folks and hid District Council and again they're a
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: good supporter. So that's just for race registrations. There's no parking, so.
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: That's important actually because a lot of people do head
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: down there little car park. Yeah sure, so if you're
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: listening to this, that is not the official car park
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: as for all the helpers and the marshals and people
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: like that. So where can people park?
• 5:10
  Speaker 2: Yeah, so that will be closed until at least one o'clock,
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: so they'll probably have to go either the leastcliff Haall
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: car park or maybe down in the harbor, so they're
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: going to put on an extra space down there, so
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: it will be busy. But as you know, restrictions in
• 5:25
  Speaker 2: Hive as such that folks, and there's not too many
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: spaces available, so just make sure you get there early.
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: You know, runners have been told. But it's quite a
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: really important thing because of it's going to be smiled up.
• 5:36
  Speaker 2: We block out the whole of the harbor. It fills
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: up even on a non bank holiday somewhere yea, So
• 5:44
  Speaker 2: it's going to be busy and spectators. Good place for
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: that would be probably around Seabrook area on the Hive.
• 5:52
  Speaker 2: Princess Parade area is always good, or perhaps Sangate the
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: stretch between there and the point area which is Brook.
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: So yeah, you know, so it's good.
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: So a bit of advice might be to run as
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: if you come in with spectators, you might possibly get
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: these spectators to drop you off and then go out
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: on the course.
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: Absolutely it's a good thing, or if not, perhaps just
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: drop them off at the top of the top of
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: the lea.
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: The top of the leaves the zigzag puff.
• 6:18
  Speaker 2: Down the zigzag absolutely, which is oppositely the bands stand
• 6:20
  Speaker 2: if anyone's not familiar, and then that zigzags down into
• 6:23
  Speaker 2: the coastal Park, hang a left and then get to
• 6:25
  Speaker 2: the start that way, and a lot of people do
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: that and we put signs out. Yeah, yeah, directional arrows.
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: That's great. Now, just correct me if I'm wrong. Is
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: there a junior race this year?
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: There is? So we've already got fifty registered, okay, so
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: I think we'll probably get up to eighty, so it's
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: going to be not set out, but it's going to
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: be set out. It's two hundred so so we'd be okay.
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: So juniors are welcome to come along five pound on
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: the day. Just go to that car park to register,
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: or you can register online. Still it's still open the portal. Yeah.
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: And what time the races? What times do they start?
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: During good points? So the kids race, child children's race
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: under fifteen years old, it kicks off at nine thirty
• 7:06
  Speaker 2: sharp and it's about six hundred meters so it's quite
• 7:10
  Speaker 2: a nice and easy short one. And then the main
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: race for the elite runners who have to pre register,
• 7:15
  Speaker 2: which now closed. That's nine to fifty five, and then
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: the main race will go at ten.
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: Soh so you've got an elite start.
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, we have. Yeah, we phased that in this year.
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: Okay, yeah. Are you expecting any course records or anything
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: like that, any superstars?
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Actually I'm not sure what the course record is,
• 7:33
  Speaker 2: but I don't think so it's going to be very crowded. Yeah. Yeah,
• 7:37
  Speaker 2: and it just depends on the wind and the weather.
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 7:40
  Speaker 2: So the main thing, you know, spectators and runners are like,
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: make sure you hydrate, bring water please, just don't rely
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: on us because you know, just make sure you take
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: loads of water on board beforehand, as you know your
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: experience runner. But at the same time, you know, spectators
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: make sure you bring plenty down with you as well.
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: You know, you can never have.
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: Enough, right, Yeah, and have you done the weather check?
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: Because it has been too hot for running almost, isn't it.
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: It's cooling down a bit now, But what was it
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: looking like.
• 8:05
  Speaker 2: For It's looking pretty good. So it could be about
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: twenty two degrees that's still hot. Yeah, it might be
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: a bit cloudier, it may be a bit of rain.
• 8:14
  Speaker 2: That's not too bad, it's but twenty two. You know,
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: it's still hot. So again, can't emphasize enough to make
• 8:19
  Speaker 2: sure you bring into your water on board. But the
• 8:23
  Speaker 2: good thing is with us in Sunday Folkstone. You know,
• 8:25
  Speaker 2: we've got that sea breeze going on so often it's
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: there and I think it will be so that's nice
• 8:31
  Speaker 2: to you know, enjoy the race and the atmosphere a
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: bit with that, just to cool down a bit on
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: that coast.
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: And it's almost like another bank holiday weekend. I mean
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: it was mobbed last weekend. Incredible and this race, if
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: it's pulling in that many people, we've got encourage them
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: to stay around folks them absolutely and enjoy it. Get
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: up the harbor arm, I'll get down the beachs. But
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: take your rubbish home please. Yeah, it always happens, that's
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: another subject. But yeah, please, if you've never been to folks,
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: then you know, have a little walk along the lead,
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: go down the bottom, walk along the zigzag and enjoy it.
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: In our town, go up the old high show.
• 9:06
  Speaker 2: Yeah. We always emphasize that, so the runners will get
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: messages about that. We recommend staying over in the hotels.
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: Some people do, so it's good test, some good crowds,
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: car sharing and all that good stuff.
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: Right, excellent, Now it's been a short and sharp interview Robot.
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: I think We've covered most things. Now is there anything
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: you specifically would like to say, anything important, or any
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: thanks or any major points you want to have. Yeah.
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, So first of all, to say thank you to
• 9:30
  Speaker 2: the runners for rendering. We've helped them. This will be
• 9:33
  Speaker 2: happening thanks to all the volunteers and the helpers and
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: everyone that gives their time up on the day in particular,
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: and also thanks to the main sponsors as well, and
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: everyone that's contributed to do that. To say good luck
• 9:45
  Speaker 2: to all the runners. Enjoy the day, It's going to
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: be a great day out, you know, share your pictures.
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: And also more importantly, a lot of runners are running
• 9:54
  Speaker 2: for charities. I want to hear about that.
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: Well, I was going to say about that. I mean,
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: the end result of this raise is that a lot
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: of people benefit. So just quickly quickly tell me what
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: sort of Yeah, after it's all over all the PaperWorks done.
• 10:06
  Speaker 2: Sure, Yeah, but it's that London experience again, to ticking
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: that huge box of encouraging people to run for charity
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: good courses of their own choice or if not for
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: the actual event itself, which will be assisting the Sports
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: Trust and a lot of people will be familiar with
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: the Three Hill Sport Park and so on, so they
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: do some great stuff for the kids in the summer,
• 10:25
  Speaker 2: so it's helping with that process. But it also supports
• 10:29
  Speaker 2: lots of other local charities like Touch Based Rainbow, all
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: those charities that you know are here about this race
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: actually contributes quite a lot to them, including the radio
• 10:38
  Speaker 2: station in fact, you know being here. So you do
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: a great job, you guys, And it's all that community
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: feel supporting the community as a community event to run
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: it back to beget the pun into the community.
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: Great great stuff. So there you go. You've heard it
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: there from the race director and what is it fourteen
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: or fifteen this.
• 10:57
  Speaker 2: Year or fifteen sorry fifteen?
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: This is the fifteen running all it And we've both
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: been at every one, haven't we absolutely yeah, yeah, yeah,
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: brilliant stuff. And so this is going to be a
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: massive day in the in the folks and calendar. You
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: can't get much bigger than this down the seafront. So
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: we welcome everybody along. We want you to have a
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: fantastic time. So big thanks to you Ray for coming in.
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: And you know the facts, like off the back of
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: your hand, you know it's absolutely you know you're doing
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: a great job for the town, for the running community,
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: and we look forward to another successful day.
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: Yeah and hopefully, hopefully this event will raise over a
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: maiming over eighty thousand pounds altogether.
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: Wow.
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: So it's pretty pretty big stuff. That's great and thanks
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: to everyone.
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: It is pretty big stuff. Yeah yeah, okay, Ray, and
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: I'll tell you what you've got. Just just got time
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: give us a quick plug for the half marathon just
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: a little bit. Just tell us when it is and
• 11:52
  Speaker 1: where it is. It's slightly different.
• 11:54
  Speaker 2: Yeah okay. So that starts on the lees outside the
• 11:57
  Speaker 2: Grand Hotel. So people from you that met the pole
• 12:00
  Speaker 2: the Grand around there twenty seven for September. And it's amazing, Kevin,
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: because this time last year we had ninety people were
• 12:06
  Speaker 2: already three hundred and thirty. Oh wow, it's crazy. So
• 12:09
  Speaker 2: I think that'd be a stout restricted to one thousand
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: to again quite seriously, if you're up for a half
• 12:14
  Speaker 2: and book it in soon, brilliant.
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: Okay, So there we go, get another day to check
• 12:18
  Speaker 1: out in the diary. Now the time the clock is ticking.
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: I've only just got to say goodbye. I just want
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: to say thank you to you Ray for coming in
• 12:25
  Speaker 1: and well, well that's it for me really for today,
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: and I'll be back on Saturday where our guest will
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: be Cassie Sinclair and she'll be telling us how the
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: training is going as she attempts to take on a
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: mountain section on her pushbike of a let up to
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: the France Fam which is basically a mini tour of
• 12:42
  Speaker 1: France for ladies. That's something I'm really eager to find
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: out about. I don't know anything about it. This will
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: be a first. She's going to run the Park Run
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: on Saturday, then she's going to cycle down and have
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: a chat with us and tell us all about it.
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: So tune in between ten and eleven with myself and
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: eighty Dawks and we'll see you all here on Saturday
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: on Radio Folkston