Meet the Bears🐾
Our Shop Team
At Running Bear, we’re a team of running and fitness enthusiasts, who will be delighted to meet you in our shop, talk to you on the phone or over email! We absolutely love what we do and always look forward to sharing our passion for running and knowledge to help our customers run happy and injury free!
If you’d like to read more about our Running Bear Team Values and our commitment to Social Responsibility, please click here!
Catriona
Owner
Catriona is the Owner of Running Bear and has 25 years of Retail experience. She is passionate about running and is also a keen cyclist. She is a member of the Wilmslow Running Club and is a Chair of The Wilmslow Running Festival. She loves to organise sporting events for Charity.
Jordanna
Manager
Jordanna is our Manager of our Alderley Edge Shop & Social Media and Marketing Specialist. She loves all things fitness-related!
Sophie
Manager
Sophie has over ten years of specialist running retail experience. She is a competitive runner with personal bests of 17:06 for the 5k and 35:48 for the 10k. She is a Level 3 qualified personal trainer and sports massage therapist. Sophie is a member of Liverpool Harriers and enjoys exploring the trails in the Peak District.
Lucy
Web Manager
Lucy ran cross country in both high school & college but now mostly runs to tire her dog out! Between Lucy & Ellie, they manage the website and pack your online orders.
Ellie
Web Leader
Ellie is a recent graduate from the University of Leeds. She was a runner from a young age and previously competed in athletics. Her favourite runs are the muddy ones with her mum, Carol, and sister, Sophia, who are also part of the Running Bear family. Ellie is a very keen netball player and has competed at County and Regional level and Leeds University.
Rik
Running Club Leader
Rik is an experienced operation & event manager. He is the administrator of Running Bear Running Club. He is a sports enthusiast (Man City Mad!) and is a 5K Runner.
Nick
Running Enthusiast
Nick has run for over ten years and is a member of Bramhall Runners. He has a passion for running any distance from Parkruns to Ultramarathons. His favourite races are the Fells XC Snowdon Marathon and Bullock Smithy. He is a Parkrun volunteer, and LiFR qualified. Nick also enjoys yoga and core work.
Carol
Running Enthusiast and Ambassador
Carol is one of our Running Bear Ambassadors; to learn more about her accomplishments & her Running Bear Journey click here!
Akkeal
Running Enthusiast
Akkeal has been running for over three years. His races range from 800m on the track to 10k on the road. His favourite distance is 5k with a PB of 14:46. He is also a member of the Stockport Harriers.
Hattie
Running Enthusiast
Hattie is a committed volunteer at Park Run and runs for the Boalloy Running Club. She has participated in both school and XC league. Her favourite runs are long country runs with good company.
Charmaine
Running Enthusiast
Charmaine took up running in her mid-twenties and loves to run on all terrains and distances but is particularly passionate about local fell racing. She is a member of Congleton Harriers and was the lead in children’s school Cross Country. She has a true running family!
Maria
Running Enthusiast
Maria loves trails and fell running but most of all.. just getting outside and running free without any commitments! She has run everything from 5K to Ultras and Endurance.
Geoff
Running Enthusiast
Geoff competes at all running distances from track to ultra. He has completed over 50 two day mountain marathons and has many class wins. Geoff finished ‘The UK Big 3 Challenges’ under 24 hours (Bob Graham, Paddy Buckley, Ramsey Round). LIFR qualified.
Malcolm
Running Enthusiast
Malcolm has been Running for over 30 years on all different types of terrains and distances. He is a former member British Police Cross Country team but also enjoys orienteering and fell running. He has an impressive list of Personal Bests and is a big contributor to the medal wall! He is also a member of Wilmslow Running Club and organiser of many running events in our community.
Clarissa
Weekend Bear
Holly
Weekend Bear
Maisey
Weekend Bear
Meet the RBRC Experts
As a member of the Running Bear Running Club, you will be hearing from the experts every week. You get weekly training plans and will bring you “live QA sessions”, and podcasts featuring people that will really make a difference to your running! Any questions or queries they’re on hand to answer your questions!
Coach Nick
RBRC Head Coach
Nick has an Impressive running pedigree from track to half marathon. He is a commentator for UK Athletics. He has worked professionally in International Sport and is a strong supporter of the local community through park runs. He has received the Community Hero award for services to sport. Nick is a Chairman of Manchester Cross Country League and is a race adjudicator for Northwest of England Athletics. He is a County selector and a Coach for RBRC Interval Sessions.
Angela Jackson
Specialist Running Physio
Angela has been treating athletes and runners of all levels for the last 28 years, including training with the Blaise DuBois clinic in Canada
As a specialist running physio, Angela has a major interest in injury prevention, including focusing on monitoring your load, strength programmes and she always works to return her patients back to sport better prepared than before an injury!
Dr. Kate
Dr. Kate
Dr. Kate recently retired from being a GP for over 30 years. An experienced runner across road, trail & fell for Wilmslow Running Club you’ll be used to seeing Dr. Kate at a lot of the local races in and around Cheshire. Dr. Kate will be on call to help answer your running-related health queries, as well as running Q&A sessions to answer those burning questions!
Emma Venables
Massage Therapist
Emma is the Principal Massage Therapist at Premier Sports Massage & Fitness, and is fully qualified with a wealth of experience in treating clients with all varieties of injuries and ailments with her skills extending into Pilates & Circuit Training – strength, flexibility and general fitness are all key for running. Now she’s here to help you Bears be fit and raring to go!
Clare Broomhead
Yoga Instructor
Clare started her yoga journey when she broke her thoracic spine 9 years ago & since then has intensively practiced yoga. Clare has over 500 hours of teacher training – her team is here to add a different dimension to your running experience! Learn more about Free Yoga on Sundays through the RBRC!
Phil Gartell
Running Coach
Phil is a triathlete and Ironman and loves his cycling and swimming as much as his running, so if you have any questions other than running he’s your man.
Phil is a qualified running coach and coaches weekly at his local running club. He loves helping others and gets immense pleasure from seeing the progress in people’s running.
Chris Standidge
Coach
Chris first started triathlon over 23 years ago racing for the GB Junior Team between 1995 and 1998. He has been coached himself by some of the top coaches in the sport, developing his knowledge and experience over a long history of training and racing that has taken him all over the world. Chris’ racing has all been done whilst working full time so understands the challenges of fitting in training around work, family, and other commitments so he builds a plan around your current lifestyle. Chris has immensely enjoyed coaching athletes to the next level, whatever the starting point, and is now proud to be coaching Kona Qualifiers and multiple GB Age Group Team Members and IM Age Group Podium Winners.
Justine O'Donnell
Nutritionist
Sport and nutrition have always been Justine’s passion, from working as a Manager at David Lloyd to qualifying in pilates and fitness instruction and running a healthy food blog. Justine is currently studying for a master’s in sports nutrition at Manchester Metropolitan University, indulging in her love of reading and researching all aspects of sports nutrition. Justine will use her experience and knowledge to help you guys optimise your nutritional programme and gain your performance goals!
Laura Fairhurst
Coach
Laura started competing in triathlon in 2010 coming from a running background. Her first triathlon created an immediate love and draw to the sport with a competitive thirst for more.
Laura is a driven and competitive person in both life and sport and shares that passion with her athletes. She likes to find what drives and motivates them and work with that spark to get the best out of them. She thrives off making a difference in their life, whether it be to be able to progress from a super sprint to standard distance or to achieve their GB AG vest to compete in European and world championships.
She has a very encouraging nature and will help you to bring the best out by getting to know you as a person and an athlete.
Josh Barrow
In his mid-twenties, Josh (@lureofthewild_) decided to switch up an active social life spending his weekends in bars and restaurants in his hometown Hale, Cheshire for something more meaningful 💭 . He moved to the Lake District in 2017, as a complete life overhaul in the pursuit of something better 🌄 .
Carol Bird
Carol (@birdyruns) started running in her mid-forties at the Race for Life 5k, since then she has run over 35 Half Marathons and 5 Marathons🤩 She began running seriously in her fifties & believes that running should not be defined by age!👏🏻
About our Running Bear RC Partners
Together for Short Lives
Together for Short Lives help every child and family living with a life-limiting or life-threatening condition get the very best care and support so they can make the most of every moment together. In 2018-19 they saw a 59% rise in calls to their helpline from families needing the support of their much-needed assistance.
By supporting and speaking up for children and families, and those that support and care for them, they are driving for a better quality of life and end of life for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. They literally help change lives.
Yoga on the Edge
Our welcoming and airy space is nestled in the heart of Alderley Edge Village, everything about the studio has been considered with our members in mind. We welcome all abilities and have cultivated an environment where every yogi can discover their own yoga journey, exploring their capabilities and thriving. We have created a true haven of tranquillity for you to enjoy practice safely.
Physiofit
The team at Physiofit are passionate about keeping you running pain free. Physiofit was established in 1992 by Angela Jackson, with the aim of providing excellence in physiotherapy care. They are a large team of passionate and experienced physiotherapists who specialise in the prevention and treatment of runners and can quickly establish an accurate diagnosis getting you back running without delay. They will work with you to establish why your injury occurred, teach you how to monitor load, and give you a strength programme to ensure return you to sport better prepared than you were before the injury.
Total Tri Training
Total Tri Training offers a range of triathlon coaching services for all abilities of athletes from professional to novice and from sprint distance to Ironman distance racing. They are a UK based online coaching specialist utilising the latest technology to provide “real” coaching through digital platforms along with face to face time whenever possible. They pride themselves on ensuring that all of their athletes are treated as individuals offering a bespoke environment and structure to enable them to achieve their personal goals, be that finishing their first triathlon through to Age Group qualification.