The story so far

"And so… In the beginning there was Barry, and Barry took a wife who was known unto him as Janice. And she was a good wife."

Man and wife, athletes both, and of sterling ability honed in far-off Cowra, came the day in 1975 that they yearned to master the greatest challenge the Antipodes could offer: Ballina. Ballina held everything to dominate the world of athletics. Everything, that is, except an athletics club.

For five years Barry made the trip to Lismore where he joined the Lismore Athletic Club (Summerland), followed by increasing numbers of exuberant Ballina youth. Time passed, and as inevitably as cream rises to the top of the churn, so did Barry climb the ladder of the Lismore club.

Eventually, as President and chief fundraiser, the great man suggested that one of the weekly meets each month should be held in Ballina to more fairly share the travel load. A blunt refusal was followed by much gnashing of teeth, a plan to start a club in Ballina, disputes over who would enjoy the spoils of Barry's not-insignificant fundraising, and eventual consultation with the legal profession.

Founded in 1980

Ballina Athletics Club was formed on 21 July 1980, with track and field alternating with cross country from Shelly Beach every second week. Success was almost immediate: BAC contested North Coast athletic events and, supported by nothing more than car washes and raffles, were conveyed by bus to Sydney, where they earned over 50 medals at the NSW Country Titles.

Success followed success over the next 35 years, probably the best known being Kerry Saxby-Junna, daughter of Jan and Barry. Kerry competed at three Olympic Games and picked up medals in many international events, including gold at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Canada.

Shelly Beach endures

Even the most devoted amateur clubs rely on a host of volunteers. As happens so often, volunteers became hard to find, necessitating the gradual wind-down of the track and field division, leaving just the Shelly Beach cross country running strong.

The writer first encountered Ballina Athletics Club at the start of the 2014 season, attracted by a throng of people milling on Shelly Beach one Sunday morning. Amazed to see people hobbling, sprinting, being pushed in prams or carried across the sand, it was an easy decision to join the party.

Barry, a strapping lad of only 80 at that stage, was still running the 3K course while Janice kept time. Behind the scenes, through the long winter evenings, teams of unpaid mathematicians used fingers and the occasional abacus to craft recorded times into handicaps applied across the 6-month winter season. Frequent presentations, barbecues, healthy exercise and an enormous sense of pure family enjoyment made it easy to see why this wonderful club keeps going, still giving pleasure after more than 40 years.

Thank you

Barry and Jan, even with their tireless enthusiasm, could not have achieved this remarkable run alone. The list of helpers through the ages would be too long to catalogue, but some of the earliest and longest-serving deserve a mention: Michael Woods (coach), Narelle O'Donnell, Royla Morris, Gordon Smith, Carole Morris, George Morris, Ken Brown, Maureen Holmes, and Ted Batterham.

Spaces remain, waiting to be filled in exchange for a small donation to the BAC accountant, or, just quietly, to the IT Guy.