News
Brighton & Hove Nordic Walking Group | Ashdown Forest Nordic Walking Group | Multi-Activity Outdoor Trails Network
Nordic Walking for Health is running a taster session at 11am on Saturday 27 May in Preston Park as part of the city's Olympic and Paralympic Games celebrations. The session is followed by a historical tour of Preston Manor grounds. For more information, go to 2012 Five Rings Walk Challenge
From Autumn 2010 ...
The Flo & Co group runs social walks every Tuesday at 11am for no charge. The location and route for the following week are agreed at the end of each walk.
The group actively encourages people, who successfully complete a full course with Nordic Walking for health or with another accredited instructor, to join the group.
To join the group and its phone/email list, email Jenny Hayward or phone Jay Fletcher on 01273 832059.
Castle Hill Nature Reserve
If you're interested in joining a Flo & Co member on one of his weekly Nordic walks (NOT Tuesday PM or Thursday AM) through the reserve, email Peter Stanley or phone him on
01273 692987.
From Summer 2008 ...
Nordic Walking for health is actively involved in the Brighton & Hove TAKEPART International Festival of Sport (a London Olympics 2012 Legacy project) and has promoted Nordic Walking at the 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 Summer events.
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| Finishing a Course on the Seven Sisters and becoming new group members - Spring 2009 |
A bit of fun at the end of a Universities' Course - Summer 2009 |
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| Meeting the Mayor
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TAKEPART Festival 2008 |
Club members at the Nordic Walking Stall - TAKEPART Festival Launch 2008 |
From Autumn 2010 ...
This group is for competent Nordic Walkers ONLY, i.e. people who have successfully completed a course with an accredited Nordic Walking Instructor.
2012 walks will be announced soon.
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| Learning downhill |
New Year 2012
Planning the twelve starter routes for the four outdoors activities are well underway and will be disussed with the City Council as landowners and park managers early in the New Year. Once approved, work will begin to make them fit for purpose, including sympathetic waymarking and interpretation.
These will then be mainly publicised via the internet, including the South Downs National Park download application currently under development.
Summer 2011
Having secured support from the South Downs Collabor8 (EU INTERREG IV-funded) Project managed by the South Downs National Park Authority (go to Collabor8 for more information), a small stakeholder meeting was held in December 2010 to float the proposal and set up a group to take the project forward.
An overview of the whole scheme - The Stanmer Experience Project - was circulated following this meeting describing the basic proposal and outlining what to do next.
The project's action group met for the first time in April 2011 and agreed how to take the next steps. It met again in June to discuss starter trail routes in the park for walking, Nordic walking, cross-country running and off-road family cycling. These are now being mapped out for all parties to approve. A Nature Trail will be included. They will then be publicised and promoted mainly via the internet..
To find out more, contact Nordic Walking for health
Spring 2009
Nordic Walking for health is very ambitious in the long term about Nordic Walking: let's make Brighton & Hove the first Nordic Walking City in the UK, so that visitors to our attractive city are more likely than not to see people Nordic Walking along our seafront promenade and undercliff path or in one of our many parks!
If you or your organisation is interested in seeing the proposal outlined below become a reality, join the network of supporters by emailing peter@nordicwalkingforhealth.co.uk
A Multi-Activity Outdoor Trails Network would be a trail network of maintained, 'information-rich' paths and tracks, specifically designed for outdoor activities/sports that is purpose-made for people seeking to improve their health, fitness and well-being and/or sports performance.
Proposal Aim
To establish a network of outdoor trails fit for participating in physical activities that provide effective exercise within Stanmer Park, Brighton.
Proposal Objectives
- To promote wider and sustained participation in effective outdoor exercise among the local, resident population
- To promote public access to the South Downs National Park, especially among underrepresented groups
- To make the local area even more attractive to visitors and tourists by offering a choice of outdoor exercise
- To enable specific 'sedentary' target groups to become more active through Walking-based exercise
- To provide a 'stepping stone' for such people to move on to other effective forms of exercise
- To increase membership of related local sports clubs
- To facilitate rehabilitation of individuals recovering from illness or injury - or living with specific conditions responsive to such activity - through effective and safe exercise on 'fit for purpose' trail surfaces
- To resource major local employers with exercise programmes for managing stress and musculoskeletal problems among employees
- To provide limited local employment opportunities
- To increase public awareness of local and global environmental issues.
Key Features
- Open access - accessible to all
- Safe for all
- Stop-free - no need to stop for directions to allow for timed exercise
- Professionally planned - 'fit for purpose'
- Way-marked and informing - signs and notices with maps, trail descriptions, health & fitness guidance and information about the locality, e.g. flora & fauna, local businesses, all linked to web and paper-based sources
- Easy to read signposting - international signage to facilitate quick & easy understanding of the nature of the trail, e.g. distance, terrain, time, level of difficulty
- Vandal-proof signs - robust & durable.
The idea is based on the inspiring model and concept of Nordic Sports Fitness Parks™.
These are well-established, for example, in Scandinavia, Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg and the Czech Republic.
Relevant activities and sports include:
- Nordic walking
- Natural walking, including a Nature Trail
- Cross-country running
- Off-road family cycling
- Community rehabilitation following illness and injury.
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