“It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done.”

That’s Elaine Chapman talking about her decision to join Running Somewhere Else, the popular running club based in Cirencester.

And it’s fair to say that the club are just as pleased that Chapman decided to join them in 2013 because she has been one of their driving forces in recent times.

She has been club captain for the best part of two years after serving as vice-captain for about a year and clearly loves all things Running Somewhere Else.

“It’s such a friendly club,” she said. “There’s something for everyone. If you want to race you can, you can get out exactly what you want. The club are going from strength to strength.”

And Chapman is really enjoying her captaincy role as well. She is ably supported by her vice-captain Tom Cooper and said: “It’s a kind of standalone role, you’re part of the committee but you can do your own thing as well.”

One of the changes that Chapman has brought about is the way the men’s and ladies’ club championships are decided.

“I brought in a new format in 2018,” she said, “I’m trying to have more races and get more people involved.”

The new format certainly met with the approval of her vice-captain because Cooper is currently the men’s champion.

The ladies’ champion, meanwhile, is Sharon Smith and Chapman is one of her biggest supporters.

“She amazing,” enthused Chapman. “She’s a lady vet 65 and one of the top runners in the country for her age group. She’s a quite outstanding athlete and I think she underestimates how good she is.

“I think she’s 69 this year and ran the Yorkshire Marathon last year in three hours, 38. That was second in the country for her age group, it’s really impressive.”

Chapman, who is 38, is a pretty decent runner herself. She first started running in 2004, three years after moving to the area.

“Before I joined Running Somewhere Else, I ran on and off on my own for six or so years in between having children,” said the mum-of two.

“Then I decided I fancied a new challenge. I went to the Highworth 5, got talking to someone from the club and I was hooked.”

She’s happy to run anything from five miles all the way up to a marathon. Her first run over 26.2 miles was the London Marathon – “That was a really good experience,” she said – completing it in four hours and 20 minutes, and she has since run another five marathons.

It’s fair to say that Chapman’s running, like the club itself, is improving all the time, and she is keen to stress the important work that the club’s coaches perform.

“We’ve got a team of coaches,” she said. “Dave Whitlow is our head coach and he’s brilliant. He and his team are always bringing in new ideas.

“We’ve got more than 100 members now, I think it’s something like 110 to 115.”

As Chapman says, the club are going from strength to strength.