Group Spotlight: Jog Duffield

Jog Duffield is a Jog Derbyshire group based in Duffield, Derbyshire. Group leader Julie Corne tells us all about it.

How many leaders do you have? 3

How many co-leaders do you have? 1

Roughly how many participants regularly run with you? 15 – 20 is a normal session, although we have over 70 on the WhatsApp group!

When and where do you meet? During the summer we meet at Eyes Meadow. In the winter we meet at St Almund’s church car park. We now have three sessions – Mondays and Wednesdays at 6.30 pm and Saturdays at 9.30 am. All sessions are very mixed ability with Couch to 5k incorporated about twice a year.

Tell us about the history of the group. How long has it been going and how did it start?

Jog Duffield celebrated it’s 10th birthday in April this year and held a family BBQ to mark the occasion. The group was started when I saw an advertisement for jog leaders with Jog Derbyshire. I went on the LiRF course and felt out of my depth as everyone else was affiliated to running clubs. But everyone was so friendly and I was determined to stick with the plan of a Duffield jog group. With the support of the two Jog Derbyshire co-ordinators the group finally got started in April 2012. I followed it up with the CiRF course in May 2015 and learnt so much about running.

Tell us a bit about the group

We have always been a small group and have become good friends. We balance challenging sessions and social runs and mix it up with strength training and speed work. Everyone is so supportive towards each other; whether encouragement for an event or motivating new members. We really embrace the Jog Derbyshire ethos of providing a friendly, social and safe environment for jogging!

What’s your best memory of Jog Duffield?

In April 2020 during lockdown, we did the 2.6 relay, which was in lieu of the London marathon. We all made a video of each runner covering their 2.6 mile leg of the relay and put them together to make a continuous relay. We raised £100s for a charity supporting disadvantaged families. The camaraderie through the WhatsApp chat as each runner completed their leg was really uplifting during the pandemic. You can view a video of this here

Are there any extra-special members of the group who deserve a shout out?

Kirstie and Maggie, our newly trained leaders (thanks to the DCC emergency Covid fund) are so motivating, inspiring and enthusiastic.

What’s the best thing about being part of Jog Derbyshire?

All the new friends we make and other amazing runners we meet.

Are there any opportunities for other groups to join you?

We always welcome new people to run with!

You can find out more about Jog Duffield by visiting their Facebook page here.