About us
We are a social, friendly, local running club based in Cove, Farnborough, Hampshire, for adults of all ages and abilities.
Our origin story
Cove Joggers was originally formed in 1984 and was called the Cove Joggers Sunday Club. The original club colours were black and white. In time, the “Sunday Club” was dropped from the name, the club colours were changed to purple and green, and the “famous” running centipede logo was created: many legs running together.
Our club runs
We have five club runs during the week: Monday 7:30pm, Tuesday 6pm, Thursday evenings 6pm and 6:30pm, and Sunday mornings 9am. Our members also take part in local parkruns on Saturday mornings, and we have a parkrun “tourism” group who visit parkruns further afield. Our evening runs are around five miles long. Routes and starting points change from summer to winter.
Summer: trail routes around Southwood and Hartland Country Parks, Fleet Pond, Hawley Woods and Lake, and the woods across the canal from Frimley Lodge Park.
Winter: we meet at 6pm and run circular five-mile road routes from Cove Green.
We also run an intervals session on Thursday at 6:30pm throughout the year, open to any ability, great for improving speed.
Most Sunday mornings we meet at 9:00am at The Samuel Cody School in Farnborough, for a run or walk, with routes of varying distances around the surrounding area including Hawley, Minley, Fleet Pond, Basingstoke Canal, Blackwater Valley and Deepcut.
We love races
Many of our members enjoy races locally and further afield, such as: Frimley Hospital 10km, Farnborough Half Marathon, Wellesley 10km, Woodland Woggle, Runnymede Relays, Elstead Marathon, Endure 24, Yateley 10k series, Fleet Half Marathon, London Marathon, Manchester Marathon, Bramley 20/10, and many more.
Cross country
We are members of the Southern Cross Country League (SCCL), which holds a series of off-road races during the autumn and winter months (October to March). We participate as a team alongside other running clubs in the area. Conditions can be challenging, usually hills and mud.
Beyond the run
Our “Beyond the run” social group is a chance for members to get together socially. Past events include our annual summer barbecue, quiz nights, curry night, post-race pub get-togethers, bowling and more.
Annual awards
Within the club we have three awards in memory of some very special people.
Mike Porteous Member of the Year Shield
In memory of Mike Porteous, who gave so much time and effort to club training sessions over the years. This shield is awarded at the AGM and is based on attendance at club runs and representing the club at races.
The Ray Tapp Memorial Handicap Run
In memory of Ray Tapp, who served as club chairman from 1990 to 1998 and created the original annual handicap run. This annual event takes place at our AGM and involves a 3.6 mile run with staggered start times so everyone finishes roughly together. There are trophies for the first man and lady, a fun and popular event.
Dennis Devey Club Person of the Year Award
Dennis Devey sadly passed away in 2024. He was a member of Cove Joggers for over 35 years, loved running (even into his 80s) and was known throughout the local running community. The award is given each year at the AGM to the person who, in the committee’s opinion, has contributed most to the life of the club over the past year.
England Athletics
Cove Joggers are an England Athletics affiliated club, which gives our members numerous benefits including cheaper race entry to many races throughout the year.
We welcome new members and would love to invite you to join a few of our club runs for a free trial. Please contact us at covejoggers@live.co.uk.