The RW Forums: the unofficial guide

Many people are confused by the RW forums when they first log on. What does it all mean? And why do some threads have more than 20000 replies?
Use this unofficial guide to help you:

General
Over 60’s: Enter at your peril, this is where ‘mature’ runners hang out their cardigans to air, and you don’t want to know what they keep in their pockets.

Sean Fishpool’s HR in simple English: Detailed and helpful on-line running coach thread or sinister cult promoting Danteuesqe descent into a hell populated by more semantics than the Telegraph crossword companion? You decide.

Staying Healthy: be humbled and inspired by this day-by-day account on coping with cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Beginners.
Mainly sensible q&a section with few threads more than 20 odd long, and therefore both useful and accessible to people with less than 5 hours a day to spend on the Internet. Breeding ground for new forum addicts.

Training.
Don’t know your Yassos from your lactic acid stackers? Post your speedwork queries here for advice from the committed.
Daily training thread: if reading about the antics of the Horvillers doesn’t give you a motivational kick up the backside, nothing will. Be prepared to know your 400m splits, and share them here.

Gear.
Exactly what it says on the tin. For gadget geeks and those who actually know (and care) what model of running shoe they are currently using, and can provide a potted history of changes in the mizuno midsole support since 1975.Generally useful and serious, but look out for maverick threads, usually on the topic of runners’ underwear. A good place to slip in a quiet question about heart rate monitors without being heckled.

Health and Injuries.
Home of the long established triple alliterative ‘Fat Club’, originally started as support thread for would-be dieters but now the Forum’s own Samaritans, the friendliest place on the forum, and open all hours. Prize to the first person who dares ask whether anybody’s actually lost any weight yet.

Events.
Think you know your geography? Look on here and you’ll find the names of more obscure villages than you realised existed. Who goes to all these races, and is there anyone left to man the emergency services? Check no of replies – more than 50 and it’s a chat room for the three people who’re sharing transport.
If you’re organised and considerate you’ll also post your race reports here, under the title ‘race report’.

Unofficial Forum Runners Club.
The Forum’s own daytime telly studio, come in here to keep your fingers on the pulse of the nation in regard to footie, soaps and music. Mention running on this forum and you’ll be expelled to General or, worse, Training.
The Dark Side – younger, hipper version of the Over-60’s but was actually here first, that’s why they’ve got more than 23000 entries. Enter only if you have extremely flexible employer with lenient Internet policy, or if you are the boss and make the rules around here.

Temporary: Website bugs.
Originally a place forum reactionaries vented their pleas for the return of the edit function and nested threads, but not visited by anyone outside RW for months.

London Marathon.
Still just about hanging in there with sensible questions, training comparisons and general support for all marathoners. However will shortly start to descend into hysteria as April 13th approaches and ‘How long’s your longest run?’ begins to compete with ‘Help!!! Have pimple on my bottom – will I still be able to run the flm?’

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