Many club members will know that Paul D’Urso, an enthusiastic, friendly and caring BRAT Club member, died unexpectedly earlier this year. In his memory, the Club would like to endow 2 annual awards, to be awarded each year to the two best performances at a mass-participation running event (female and male) – in 2010 this will be the Birmingham Half Marathon. The “best male and female performances” will be decided by a small panel of club members on criteria including overall position (chip), podium or category place, first time attempt at the distance or personal best and % improvement, meritorious act (e.g. raising charitable funds, sacrificing personal time to pace another runner around the course), and finally, in the event of a tie, the faster runner wins. These criteria are certainly in keeping with Paul’s approach to life and with his family’s wishes. You can donate as much or as little as you wish to contribute to the funding of these awards, using either PayPal or your credit card – see below. If you would rather pay by cash or cheque (made out to the BRAT Club), please speak with Mark Hirsch, Duncan Hough, Richard Carney, Martin Ludford, Pat Cox or Tauny Southwood. Thank you very much for your support.