Tag: parkrun challenges

This week my Dad fancied some tourism, and although I have said I am happy to repeat (e.g. he’s not been to Northala Fields and I’d happily go back there) he was keen to find a new one for us all, so after looking at my list of Nendys he chose Stockley Country parkrun, which is very near to Heathrow. (Branka and I had originally planned visiting here a while back but the weather was awful and we didn’t fancy driving around the M25 that day so went somewhere else instead). My brother was able to come too which was great as he often works or plays football on Saturdays so doesn’t come to as many.

The course page is very helpful, listing the car park to use as there is a dedicated one that is only unlocked for Saturday morning for parkrunners to use (at the end of Chestnut Avenue- google maps shows it as closed as it is only unlocked by the parkrun team), as well as mentioning the nearest Tesco for the toilets (as there are no toilets in the park either). We drove and stopped at Tesco on the way, and it was about a 3 minute drive from the Tesco to the car park so easily done if you were driving there.

The name “country park” made me picture something else in my head, but this really is a patch of maintained greenery in the middle of a very built up area of London. As mentioned there are zero facilities- no toilets, no cafe, no information signs- however it was such an enjoyable one to visit.

The walk from the car park was well signposted (they had the parkrun signs up by the entrance to the car park and then an arrow showing which way to walk)- just after exiting the car park and walking through a tiny wooded area we could see the field with the pop up and collection of parkrunners. We probably parked at about 8:45 but this was fine as the start was so close.

Pop up photo and of course Poddington came too

The pop up was framed with two flags, so we got a few photos before leaving our jumpers on the tarpaulin of trust. The volunteer who did the first timers welcome was great, and then the RD came and joined in, saying he’d finish the talk and then walk us to the start line. The RD was quite humorous with his briefing, reminding us to turn right twice and left once (and then making us all chant “right twice, left once” before continuing), reminding us to get the cars out of the car park by 10:15am (unless we wanted them to be there for the week- he did mention free Heathrow airport parking!) and then quickly walked us over to where the parkrun begins.

It started a little way back from the finish area, and this is very narrow so although there were low numbers, you’d want to try to seed yourself a bit. After doing an anti-clockwise lap of the first field (which did have a wooded section in it too), you then turned right at the top and did two clockwise larger loops, and then at the final time of reaching the top you turned left to run back past the start area and into the finish. The course was very well marked with cones on all the junctions of the paths showing you where to go, and a few arrows up as well. There were a couple of marshals out there too, and the RD walked around so we got to thank him as we passed him at one point too (I think he maybe walked the first small loop but in the opposite direction of the runners as he would have to go from the start to the finish).

Map of the course– the white box to the left of the finish area was the event car park so you can see how close they are

Despite it being close to Heathrow, it felt really peaceful there. We could hear so many birds (and running with my dad meant that he could tell me which birds I was hearing) and loads of the trees were covered in blossom so it felt very much like an oasis of nature in such a built up area. There was a faint background hum of a busy road nearby, but that was easy to tune out.

I’d worn trail shoes and I think that’s what I would always choose, as although the ground was dry and the paths were stony, I prefer the thicker sole of the trail shoes on uneven ground. It wasn’t too hilly, but it wasn’t flat either and as you were running through wooded areas as well as track-type paths you did have to watch your footing. It wasn’t busy though and we didn’t get lapped (we were not sure if we would as it’s more than two laps)- there were only 90 finishers that day and that seems fairly standard looking at the recent results.

Token 57, a pop up photo after running and some blossom trees– much respect to the person who ran with a buggy as that cannot have been easy!

After finishing we chatted with the RD and a few other parkrunners (one who had travelled from Crystal Palace parkrun and was trying to go to one parkrun in each London borough) but then it started drizzling so we headed back to the car, and thankfully the journey home wasn’t slower than our journey there- about 45 minutes.

Voronoi before and after:

I’ve had this collection of 9 in the u-shape close to Heathrow for ages and ages, so it was good to finally visit one of these. Also, note the change of nendy as the new one in Harpenden started. The 8 left in that section are Bedfont Lakes, Hazelwood, Hanworth, Crane Park, Kingston, Richmond Park, Old Deer Park and Gunnersbury so still two months of touring left just for this one section!

So that was parkrun 445, location 153 and another one towards Lon-done- currently 60/85 visited

What next? Similarly to last post, no concrete plans yet but of course the new Harpenden one in due course as well as local events and touring.

The original parkrun plan for this weekend was going to March (in March)- well, I say original plan- that was meant to be earlier in the month but things happen- I think I re-did my parkrun planner about 4 times just for this month alone- however that changed when we got tickets for a gig in Nottingham (Paul Draper who was in Mansun was touring and playing Mansun hits) so we ended up going to Nottingham for the weekend.

We’d been to Nottingham a fair few times before, and I had been to Forest Rec (Feb 2017- my 16th parkrun location) and then a NYD double of Gedling and Colwick in 2019 (here I got a taxi to Gedling, ran it, then ran to Colwick which ended up being further than I thought- I never learn- arrived just in time to parkrun and then Andy picked me up after on the way home). I don’t mind repeating, but when I looked, a new and very central one had started in Nottingham a couple of weeks ago. This was just over a mile from the hotel so it was absolutely perfect for a parkrun sandwich.

The pedestrian suspension bridge by the start/ Poddington ready in the hotel/ the Notts County football ground as seen from the finish area/ the start area before the first timers welcome

The route to get there was very straightforward too, basically a straight line until I reached the river, and from there I could see the embankment path and very soon I could see the parkrun finish funnel being set up. I knew it would be busy as it was only event 3 (and 1 had 573 finishers and 2 had 896) and I could see that the finish funnel was a long one. There is a pedestrian suspension bridge to the other side of the bridge and loads of people were coming over (I think the parking is possibly on the other side of the river) and it had the feel of a place where lots of people were getting active outside (a bit like a place with a seaside prom)- loads of cyclists, people rowing, people out walking and running.

Pop up photo with Poddington

As you can see on the course map below, the start and finish were in slightly different places. The pop up was by the start, but the team were advising people to leave their things by the finish as they said they would move there, however lots of people did leave jackets etc by the start, and because there was a marshal by the start (directing people to either do the loop again or go straight on to the finish) it probably would be OK. After getting a pop up photo (there was a volunteer there who was basically offering to take your phone and do photos rather than the usual thing of asking someone in the line to do it) I went to the finish to leave my jacket and bag. I left my gloves in the bag (as usually my hands heat up quickly and I end up taking my gloves off) but I wished I hadn’t as the wind was strong and cold and my hands didn’t feel like they were working properly.

Volunteers holding up the signs to help people seed themselves/ the path by the start area and then the views of the daffodils and water as we ran

Not many people attended the first timers welcome but I was glad I did, because they had a tannoy for the main briefing but they kept having trouble with it not working (plus of course a lot of people chatting during the run brief). One thing they mentioned was that the river was used by lots of rowers, and they would have their coaches cycling along (which I’d seen when I arrived)- so we were asked to keep left on the lower path as there would be cyclists using the path and going fast to keep up with the boats. They also warned us about the steps (we were not to go on them under any circumstances)- I had no idea the steps were there (they lead from the path down to the river) so I was glad of this warning.

Anyway, the course is very simple- you start and head north-west along the embankment until you reach the turnaround point- here you head down to the lower path (which is right by the water) and go back to the start. You repeat this a second time, and then when you reach the start area again, go straight on (north-east) past the finish area before turning and heading into the finish.

It’s very flat indeed- there is a slight slope from the lower to upper path but that it is. They were trying to seed people at the start by having volunteers hold up times- I stood in the 30-35 min section but I still came across plenty of walkers ahead. However I am sure once more people become regulars here it will become a bit like Preston park in Brighton where the majority of people do keep to the seeding and it means it’s a bit easier to run as you are with people going at your pace.

I really loved this route- running by the river was fantastic and the bank between both paths was covered in daffodils, there were loads of swans and geese on the river, and it was entertaining to see the rowers go by too (and yes the cyclist still surprised some people despite the rowers being clearly visible on the water and people up ahead shouting “bike”).

They definitely did not want us running on the steps- that sign was by the turnaround point/ river views/ views of the front runners heading back on the lower path while I was still running out/ the finish funnel as seen from the lower path before I finished

There was a guy a bit ahead of me running and carrying a proper big camera (one with the big lens) who kept stopping to take photos- he would have taken some fab ones where he was crouched down taking pictures of the daffodils up close with the parkrunners in the background (you can see him below in the top left photo).

The photographer/ the runners nearly as silhouettes on the upper path/ loads of swans/ rowers on the water

This event felt to me similar to some of the bigger London events, or Hove Prom or Southampton Common, in that it felt like there is a big running scene locally combined with great outdoor facilities. The volunteers were fantastic and enthusiastic, and as it’s so central to the city I am sure it will be well-attended by tourists (plus it’s a V). As I finished the funnel was full and backing out onto the route, so the timers had moved up away from the funnel to extend. The funnel managers were doing a great job of trying to keep everyone moving and keeping in order as we got into the funnel. I finished in 535 place with a time of 30:49, 40 people finished between 30:00 and 31:00 so it was a very busy time to finish. I heard one person complaining about the congestion on the course but when there are so many hundreds of people at an event it is to be expected, and it did thin out fairly quickly.

The timers moving away from the funnel (I was just in the funnel here and took a photo behind) and one final pop up pic

It didn’t take long to get through the funnel and the scanners were just past it, so after scanning I decided to get a pop up photo at the end before putting my jacket and gloves on and heading back to the hotel to warm up.

So that was event 444 and location 152 and such an enjoyable one it was too.

Voronoi update:

Up next? Well, after having to rearrange my March planner so many times I have not got anything concrete in the works, but there will definitely be more tourism coming up, just arranged a bit closer to when they happen!

A new fairly local parkrun popped up recently (in Watford), and to fit in with when my dad was around, we decided to go for event 5. Happily Branka and Holly could make that date too (and possibly one of them wanted an event 5 for Wilson Index reasons?), and lots of OH ladies were keen to come along too, as well as Rory making the trip around. As I’d been to a couple of new events recently (Crystal Palace and Greenwich Peninsula), this meant that Holywell parkrun would be my 150th different event. Is that a Cowell cow?

So, onto the morning. Dad drove and I was quite glad of that as it’s quite central in Watford- I’ve not driven around the ring road in Watford for many years- and the route took us right next to the Watford football ground which again I’ve not been to in years (we used to go there quite a lot)- I got to see the Graham Taylor statue outside the ground as well as the large mural. It was very Watford FC themed as I noticed when we drove out of the car park that the arch that you drove under had a mural with players from the past on it.

Holywell parkrun ( I will call it this as in the first timers welcome the volunteer said “Welcome to Holywell King George V playing fields- it’s a long name so we just call it Holywell”) is very close to both Cassiobury and South Oxhey (both are 1.2 miles away according to the home page). There was a car park that we were directed into by marshals- as the car park had no markings they definitely needed the marshals to make the best of the space. We got there at about 8:40 and there was still plenty of space but I imagine it filled up fairly quickly.

OH ladies crew and Poddington the Wonky Bear

From the car park you could see arrows set out for the course, and a short walk from the car park took us to the start area, outside the Watford Cycle Hub.

Three Peas crew and extended parkrun friends

Here we took many pop up photos (although my dad was missing from all the start photos as he went to use the toilets and ended up in a very long queue as there were only 3 cubicles working- something to consider for the future), and then after hearing the first timers welcome, I walked around to the finish area (again about 2 min walk away) to leave my bag on the tarpaulin of trust. By the time I walked back to the start, the main briefing was going ahead and after looking around for my dad, he managed to find me as the RD said “go”!

The course was described as nearly 4 laps of playing fields on silt/gravel paths. Two of my running club friends had volunteered here previously, so I had asked them what shoes would be best, and they thought road shoes would be OK. To be fair they had marshalled so had not seen the whole course, only a section of the path. However, I would have been happier in trail shoes as some of the path was muddy or puddly, and in some places it was so narrow you ended up on the grass and in mud. It’s pretty flat with a few slopes, so I think it would be a fast course once it’s a bit firmer.

I ran with Dad and we pretty much chatted our way around which always helps to pass the time too. I didn’t find the laps too repetitive, but I can see that you might if you were on your own. As each lap went through two different playing field sections, your view changed a lot (unlike York racecourse where you just see the same view the entire time). The part between the finish and start area was a wooded section with a bit of a twist so your view changed and you couldn’t see the playing fields. You also passed a very cool “mini road” for kids to ride bikes on, which had junctions, markings and even little pretend EV charging points. It was really good to see. At one point I ran past someone with With Me Now gear on, so I called “Dolly or Bev” to them and then had to explain to my dad later on about that and the “arbitrary” reply that I received! It didn’t have too many people there- 209 participants on that morning- and although it felt busy with the laps it didn’t feel too congested.

Tarpaulin of Trust and the finish funnel/ photos taken mid run

Anyway, we kept a pretty good pace (in fact the good old Marathon Talk royal flush negative split was achieved- each mile being faster than the previous one) and after hoping to go sub 30 (after being bang on 30 at Greenwich last week) I was really pleased to get in under 29 mins with a time of 28:51. All that marathon training had meant I had slowed right down, and although I do not focus on times, it’s nice to have a faster one every now and then.

I also really loved being there with lots of people I knew- it was fun to spot people at the finish and chat to lots of friends- definitely a great morning.

My muddy trainers at the end and my finish token

After finishing, we stayed and chatted to people at the finish. We even saw Aqasa (check out his blog- Nuhorizons.uk) who Branka, Holly and I had met at Peckham Rye parkrun back in September last year.

Three Peas with Aqasa/ pop up pic with my dad at the end

We couldn’t stay too long as we had to get back for breakfast (my mum is excellent at making vegan pancakes) before Dad dropped me home, as he was coming back to Watford for the match later. But I am sure I will be back- especially if I am after a flatter route (and one that is less busy than Cassiobury).

Dad, Rory and me with the pop up at the end, and the teapot that my mum gave me for breakfast!

So that was parkrun 439, location 150, and of course Queen of Herts completed yet again.

Holywell parkrun isn’t on the 5k app yet, but it is on the parkrunner app (the black and white one)- the “before” showed it in yellow as it was my NENDY- you can see how close it is to the other Watford parkruns when you look at the map:

Up next? I have no concrete plans, although the three peas do have some pencilled in plans coming up, and I have a trip to Southampton next month so hopefully I can visit a new one in that area too.