Use this guide to get the most out of our club.
If you have joined the club, or are thinking of joining, you may have questions about how things work.
If you can't find what you need on this page, use the contact on the form on the right-hand side to ask questions.
When and where we meet
On Tuesdays, we meet at 6.45 pm in the bar at Tilsley Park. There are announcements for the past week including race results. There will also be club news and details about upcoming races and events.
After this, we head out for a run together. There is usually a choice of three distances (the shortest is around 5k). We will give a quick explanation of the routes on the night, but we post the routes for the coming Tuesday on the website homepage. All routes are available as pdf descriptions and Strava maps on the Tuesday run routes page.
First-timers
When you come to a Tuesday run for the first time, let a current member know that you are new. We will make sure that there is someone to run with you.
On Thursdays, there are track coaching sessions at Tilsley Park. You will need to pay the fee use of the track, but coaching is included in your membership. As a club member, you will be able to compete in several track and field events over the summer.
How to find out about races
As a club, we have an active race calendar. Racing is a great way to stay motivated, get together with clubmates and take part in a variety of different types of running. Also, there is usually cake.
Year-round races
At Tuesday runs, we announce upcoming races that we are taking part in as a club. These are the races included in our Club Championships competition. You will need to register and pay for the races yourself, but we provide details on this website. The list of club champs events is available on the fixtures and results page.
Club champs races tend to attract more members, but there are lots of other local races you can run. A useful resource for finding them is the Oxon races website. The site is run by Barry Cornelius who also photographs most local events, making the pictures available for free.
Winter races
We take part in two cross country (XC) leagues throughout the winter. XC is open to all club members so if you'd like to take part, take a look at the cross country page for details.
Summer races
Over the summer, our club competes in the hugely popular Mota-vation series. There are five races, on Thursday evenings, each around four miles. Organised by Kidlington Running Club, they are for club runners only but are very inclusive and a lot of fun. They are all in pretty Oxfordshire villages on quiet roads. , and details will be posted on this website nearer to the time.
As a club, we also compete in the Midlands League and the Vets League for athletics. There are several 'open' athletics events over the summer that anyone can enter. They are an excellent opportunity to get some track and field experience. The fixtures will be posted on this website and at the Tuesday evening announcements.
Running a race as an AAC club member
If you chose not to opt-out of England Athletics (EA) membership when you joined the club, then you will be an 'affiliated' member. This means that you will often get a small discount on race entry. Look out for the section of the race registration form for 'club affiliation'. Where asked, enter your EA number (sometimes called URN) and the club name. This also makes it easier to find you in a list of race results.
Club champs races
If you wish to take part in the Club Championships, you must wear an AAC vest for it to count towards your score. You can order your club vest from our club shop. If you're not bothered about the club champs or are running a race not on the fixture list, you do not have to wear a club vest. But it does make you easier to spot!
Find out more about the Club Championships (club champs)
The Club Championships is an internal club competition that all members can take part in. Full details including fixtures are available on the club champs page.
How to get a club vest
You can order club vests, adult t-shirts, buffs and hoodies online in our club shop.
Find out about what's going on at the club
News and events (including social) will be posted on the homepage of the website. We also have a private Facebook group that you can join as a new club member. This is a great way to find out what's happening around the club and keep in touch with other members.
How to ask questions about the club
Our contacts page provides email addresses for some members of the committee, however, in general, we avoid putting personal email addresses on this website. If you wish to contact a person with no email address listed, you can use the 'contact us' form to the right of the contacts page. If it is of a personal or sensitive nature, please request that the person be put in contact with you.
Where to get help or advice if you are new to running
First of all, asking a club member about running is a great way to make new friends. Most runners can talk for hours about running, running kit, running shoes and so on.
If you are completely new to running, our qualified run leaders organise regular couch to 5K courses.
We also have an advice section on this website where we will add document and links as they come along. Of course, if there is anything you'd like to see on the website, use the contact form to the right of this page to let us know.
parkrun
A great place to meet other local runners, including lots of AAC members, is parkrun. The nearest event is very close to Abingdon town centre. Check out the parkrun Abingdon website for more information.