Club night run emergency kit bag - PLEASE ALL READ

At the last committee meeting it was decided that we need to up our game a bit in terms of safety on official club night runs (without interfering with their enjoyment in any way!).

We often have new members on night runs who may not have run on the moors before, let alone at night. With the best will in the world they might not have tried and tested kit available yet. Equally....ahem....not all long term club members always turn out in bomb proof kit. No comment!

We have put together a lightweight club emergency kit rucksack specifically for night runs, or other runs into the wilds where inexperienced club members might be present. A gale lashed wet summer run can still soon result in a hypothermia situation very quickly.

I hope nobody thinks we are patronizing experienced members with this bag or suggesting that everyone carries this stuff on every run. Far from it.

It is just felt that we have a duty of care to new members until they have tested kit and gained experience themselves.

This new bag is not to be confused with the comprehensive heavy duty emergency kits that are available for all race organizers (which should be scattered around the course at our club races - they are stored in the club garage).

The night run bag is a lightweight running rucksack (17 litres). It contains 3 items:

1. An extra large fleece which should fit all club members. This is wrapped in a plastic bag.

2. An orange emergency bag of the type most of us will be familiar with.

3. A lightweight reflective foil emergency shelter that several people could climb into.

It has deliberately been kept to the absolute minimum, in terms of simplicity and weight, to encourage use!

Suggested use:

Lets say a runner becomes immobile up on the moors at night. Mountain rescue arrival could well be a couple of hours away. Casualty should be put in fleece, then in survival bag, and finally wrapped, along with two other runners, in the survival shelter. The 3 bodies will soon generate a warmer environment in the emergency shelter. If casualty cannot risk ANY movement, both fleece and survival bag should be placed over them, and the shelter, again with at least two others in it, be unfurled over them.

Share that bodily warmth!

While this is going on others should be heading off to raise alarm.

The kits ONLY function is to keep casualty as warm as possible pending mountain rescue arrival. It is NOT a substitute for people bringing their own bumbag and regular kit. The rucksack has been chosen such that it has enough room for the carriers own regular kit.

It is suggested that the night run organizer does a head count at the start of the run and designates a sweeper who will always run with the back runner. Regular group catch up stops should be made to repeat the head count.

The designated sweeper runner at the back should carry the emergency bag.

REMEMBER. Night runs are inherently more serious than day time runs. More chance of a fall in the dark and because there will be no one but us up there till morning.

The committee felt that for simplicity it should be the responsibility of a night run organizer to obtain the bag from the previous organizer.

Charlie, I believe that you are the next organizer and first guinea pig for the system. Lets see if I can get the bag to you before your run! If you want to email me on andygart2000@yahoo.co.uk we can take it from there! I won't be at the next night run.

Andrew Gartside