Coach on a mission to get Teesdale folk up off their couch

AN energetic mother-of-two has issued a rallying cry to all would be runners in 2017.
Barnard Castle’s Skye Archer has been one of several hard-working volunteers keeping Teesdale Athletic Club moving in recent years.
Her successful tenure with the club’s Couch to 5k group is entering its fourth year and the 46-year-old is keen to get the dale on its feet.
“Donna Hawcroft and I are doing a lot of work on Sundays and the idea is we use the incentive of the Raby races in May for our new batch of couch to 5k runners in January,” she said.
“People who were fitter when they were younger may be reluctant to come along but it’s easy access, it has a relaxed atmosphere and a lot of the emphasis is on building relationships.
“If people enjoy it they are more likely to come back.”
The 12 week couch to 5k scheme is aimed at all ages and abilities in a bid to get the most “unfit” running.
By running short bursts of 30-60 seconds and slowly building up the distances, novice runners take small steps towards a 5k run.
Ms Archer’s own passion for running was kindled at 11 when she saw the first London Marathon in 1981.
In the years since, she has completed more than a dozen marathons and become club secretary.
But it was a chance encounter ten years ago that set up her relationship with the Barnard Castle-based outfit.
She said: “I moved into the area ten years ago and I went to join the gym.
“One of the club’s members, Alan Bray, took me for an induction and told me all about it – that’s when I got involved with the committee and just trying to help out with day-to-day running of things.”
Dividing her time between her work with the National Offender Management Service, family and pounding the roads and fields of the dale, Ms Archer has become a mainstay of the athletic club committee.
Alongside the likes of Donna Hawcroft, Amanda Pettitt, Alan Bray and John West, Ms Archer said the club now boasts a rich seam of coaching talent.
But the long winter nights and a run of bad luck has made raising runners harder.
Ms Archer explained: “With more coaches we have the ability to cover all abilities – but we’re finding through bad luck and injuries we’re low on numbers. I had a chest infection and Alan has been out with injury.
“We’ve ended up with one running group again so we want to try to get plenty of back cover because sometimes people feel obliged to keep up with the group and that needn’t be the case.
“We pride ourselves on welcoming all abilities of runner to make them feel comfortable.”
Ms Archer’s running career has not been without its tough times.
Her resolve was tested by a potentially debilitating bunion condition in her twenties.
She said: “A doctor told me it could stop me running at the time – but I had surgery and it was corrected.
“People might think you won’t be able to achieve after having it but you can.”
With many new year resolutions already strained, Ms Archer stressed how consistency was key in regaining fitness through the 5k scheme.
She said: “The hardest bit is getting moving. By doing three runs a week and building the distance you keep chipping away at it.
“You cannot do it by just doing one run a week,” she added.