| What's your full embarrassing name? |
Penelope Anne Forse (nee Yule). |
| Married, or are you young, free and single and like to mingle? |
Married. |
| Where do you live? |
Locks Heath. |
| Do you work or stay at home? |
I work as a Research Technician at Southampton University, in the School of Biological Sciences where our Ladies captain, Chris Haskell, also works. We try not to spend too much time talking about running, but 'tis very hard not to! When I stayed at home I worked hard bringing up three energetic boys. |
| How long have you been a member at Stubbington? |
I've been a member of Stubbington for 12 years after initially making enquiries for my eldest son Richard who enjoyed running. I saw Pam Lucas in the shopping centre and she gave me Pat and Dennis Woodward's phone number. |
| Can you remember your first race? |
My first distance run ever was for Chichester AC at age 15 in the senior womens' Goodwood Cross Country - it was two miles and five furlongs of the horse racing track! I was sixth overall and the first Intermediate girl. With SGR&AC, my first race was the 1993 Eastleigh 10km when I finished fourth in the V40 category. Dennis Woodward had patiently trained with me from the New Year when I was in a fairly unfit state, and he gradually introduced reps, intervals and hill sessions as I got fitter. With him as my training partner I started to do half-marathons then the London Marathon in 1995 as well as cross-countries that are my first love of the running events. A big THANK YOU to Dennis. |
| How often do you bother to go training? |
Five to six times per week - well it keeps me on the streets. |
| What is your favourite training run? |
From home near the Locks Heath Centre / Holly Hill / Hamble Tow Path / Warsash Sailing Club / follow shore to Solent Breezes Caravan Park / cliff path to Thatchers Copse / Brownwich Lane / L/H Sports & Social Club / home. Approx 12 miles (but bizarrely its getting longer!). |
| What was your best ever race? |
For SGR&AC - winning the Portsmouth Half-Marathon in 1994 - thanks to Dennis's training plan. In lifetimeit was seventh at the 1980 World Cross Country Championships at Longchamps in Paris - yes, would you believe it, another horse racing track! My dad bet on the horses so it made his day to see his filly coming in as the first Brit! He gave a lot of credit to the 'trainer', my husband Alan who got me into peak condition for the 'soft going' surface. |
| And what was your worst or most embarrassing race? |
I was tripped up at the start of a Gosport 10km and hobbled in with a cut knee and elbow and a pb! At a Hampshire Cross Country League race at Basingstoke I'd been fussing around getting the juniors warmed up for their races, then mistook the start time for my race. I still had trainers on, chatting away to some junior's parents when I realised my rivals were on the start line - doh!. As I got my spikes on and ran to the start, all the ladies were past the first bend, and Martin Wellstead and Andy Rogers were most amused to see me playing catch-up! |
| Do you have a pre-race ritual? |
Four hours before a race I eat a Weetabix with milk and sugar, have a couple of cups of decaffeinated Earl Grey or Green Tea, a plain biscuit a couple of hours before then just water. I warm up for 40 to 45 minutes which includes 10 minutes' jogging, dynamic stretches, and 4 x 70m strides. Not that I'm a creature of habit, you know! |
| What is the best piece of gear you have bought? |
Long-sleeved Helly Hansen thermal tops - they and the other brands who've copied them have revolutionised winter training. The only problem is when ma-in-law tries to iron them! |
| Worst piece of gear? |
Some over-the-counter orthotic inserts that gave me a 1" diameter blister after a five mile training run. A visit to a reputable podiatrist swiftly followed and the orthotics that he made for me have been wonderful. |
| Why do you run when you could be sat at home watching EastEnders? |
I run because I like to keep fit, to keep not too far behind the juniors I coach, I'm lousy at most other sports, I hate TV soaps and the only soap I follow is The Archers - usually the omnibus edition when I'm lying in a hot bath after my long Sunday run. |
| What does she/he who must be obeyed think about your running? |
I think Alan has stopped wondering when I'll hang up my running shoes. Being lousy at other sports includes golf, so on a Sunday morning while Alan plays a round of golf I have a long run with Mike Bell and a long bath on my own, leaving the rest of the day free for nodding in the armchair over the Sunday papers. |
| What is the one piece of advice you would give to any new runner? |
Don't buy cheap shoes and get your first pair fitted at a good running shop, eg: Alexandra Sports - don't buy over the phone or internet until you know whether you pronate, supinate or have a neutral gait. |
