Tag: parkrun challenges

Victoria Embankment parkrun, Nottingham

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!

Local parkruns with celebrations and lots of mud!

As well as recent touring to the new parkrun in Watford, and another London one in Barking, I’ve alternated with local weekends.

For the final parkrun of Feb I was keeping in local and planning on going to Panshanger as I could run there from home, however on our Friday club run the discussion (as it usually does) turned to parkrun on Saturday, and lots of people were heading to Stanborough, so I decided to head there instead. The two parkruns are about 2 miles away so either is good for a parkrun sandwich. I’d run through Stanborough on runs, but not been to the parkrun there since October, so I although I knew it would be muddy I didn’t think it would be quite as bad as it was!

Pre parkrun photos with the pop up

As I arrived I saw lots of the OH ladies (including our newest member who was 2 weeks old then!), and when I finished there was a nice bunch cheering me in as several of them had kindly waited. It was a bit chilly and damp for parkfaff so we all headed home (Andy cooked some Pret vegan croissants which we used to get from the Tesco freezer but now sadly seem to have been discontinued in there- possibly on Ocado still for anyone who’s interested!).

Muddy scenes and the new sign for Haribo Corner!

Anyway, back to Stanborough- it’s three laps on grass, and I was expecting the lower part of each lap to be boggy, but I wasn’t expecting the elevated ground to be as slippery and muddy as it was. On my second lap I was being overtaken by the front runners and felt quite nervous as I hate the sound of people coming up behind me- on the downhill slope I just kept imagining that someone behind would slip and then crash into me. At least I could somewhat relax on my final lap! I did get to admire the new sign for Haribo Corner- there is a lovely marshal known as Haribo Dave who offers Haribo on your second and third lap, and this week he had a new sign for that corner! I love personalised touches to parkrun so this brought me a smile each time I ran past. I took it very gently, walking the muddiest parts as I felt paranoid that I’d slip and hurt myself, finishing in just under 40 mins.

When I finished I could not work out why my top had such a large splodge of mud on it (around the front pocket- I tried to take a photo to show but it was not easy to)- anyway I worked out later that as I warmed up I took it off and tied it around my waist so it must have got muddy from being so close to the floor. I also found out that my trail shoes had holes in them as I had cleaned them and this showed up the holes. I ordered a kit called Pair Ups (which basically contained some tools, some KT tape and some glue) and have had a go at repairing them in the following week.

More mud

Then last weekend was another local one as a club mate was celebrating her 350th parkrun, and had chosen Jersey Farm. It was the most gorgeous day, with blue skies and a chilly wind, and Jersey Farm park looked really pretty in the sunshine. I got to try out my newly repaired trail shoes (as the upper had holes but the grip and soles were still fine).

Enjoying the sunshine along with Poddington my wonky bear

It was fairly busy at the start which meant I managed to meet up with Catherine and her daughters (and dog) by the pop up, and only saw the other OH ladies as we walked to the start line.

Pop up and start line pics

As mentioned it was a beautiful day- the ground was pretty good going there with only a small section of path still being muddy (and my trail shoes held up well), and I just enjoyed the scenery and ran with a few other club mates.

Just look at that weather! And I didn’t take photos of the mud but it was pretty much dry underfoot.

After a group of us ran/walked the course, we headed to our prearranged parkfaff location which turned out to be full (no pre booking allowed). I had been looking forward to a big breakfast (our original plan was the Smallford farm shop which does full vegan breakfasts as well as things like granola and hash browns) and so was a bit disappointed, especially as I’d driven there only to find out that everyone had already gone to a different place. I’d changed my shoes and put a different top and jumper on when I got back to the car so that I didn’t have to go inside all sweaty, but at this point I was tired and cold and was tempted to just go home. I am glad I didn’t as the place we ended up at was really nice- I’d not been there before but it was very close to JF parkrun (H and Co Coffee- by the little Tesco), there’s parking right by it but you could easily walk there from JF as it’s about half a mile away.

Parkfaff time!

There we had a little celebration for Catherine and enjoyed a longer catch up in the warm. The cafe did a delicious oat milk matcha and vegan carrot cake so although I didn’t have the breakfast I was looking forward to, of course it’s about the company (and I didn’t need to use my emergency cereal bar that’s in my parkrun bag!)

So that was parkrun number 442 for me, and my 45th at Jersey Farm. Up next? A repeat of an event next weekend (one I last went to in 2016) and then hopefully tourism to somewhere new in the final week of March.

I hope you are enjoying the more spring like weather we have been having.

Barking parkrun- good things come from last minute plans

The original plan was for some tourism in the opposite direction, but on Friday night that plan was postponed, so Branka and I decided to head to Barking parkrun and work on Lon-done some more (and enjoy a mud free parkrun- after weeks at Letchworth and Stanborough we both wanted a mud-free run!).

With lots of London tourism, trains are preferable, particularly when travelling back as the roads just get so busy and you can just relax on a train. However, the train route to Barking wasn’t simple, involving 3 changes, and meant getting a train at about 6:45am. Andy suggested driving, and when I looked it was a 55 min drive, which isn’t too bad (and a lot quicker than the 2 hour train journey). The drive was fine and fairly quiet, and we parked up in the car park by the allotments (mentioned on the course page) just before 8:30, which gave us time to wander through the park, see the start area and find the toilets.

Pop up and photo frame fun- yes Poddington the Wonky Bear came too- we are wearing purple for IWD

The first timers welcome was really welcoming, and they explained the course really clearly. It’s two laps, and for each lap you ran along to the lake, next to the lake, then turned at the end and ran back along the lake on a slightly higher path, then did a lap of playing fields. As you run by the lake he challenged us to count the species of birds that we would see- saying their record was 17- I love touches like this and it made it feel very personal. They mentioned also there would be a 30 min pacer too. At the start we bumped into one of the parkrun huns (Lucy) who told us that they often call out your mile time and half way time, and as it’s a flat course and not too busy it was good for fast times. I had run quite quickly on the Friday club run, but decided to try and keep on front of the 30 min pacer and see how I went.

Scenes from the park- a grey day but a pretty park filled with daffodils and blossom on the trees.

Lucy was correct, it was not congested at all, and I found a pace pretty quickly. I was behind the 30 min pacer guy for a while, but at a mile my time called out to me was 9:04, and then at the halfway point was 14:04, so I worked out that if I kept pushing I would have a chance of getting under 28 mins. (For all my parkrun years apart from 2021 I’ve managed this, so it is in the back of my mind to every now and then make the most of a flat course to try and keep that record going). I don’t tend to look at my watch but I could feel I was running well, and at the final turn (where you can see the finish line straight ahead) I happened to glance and saw 26-something, but I had no idea whether I could run the final stretch in under a minute, so I just counted my steps in my head and went for it. A guy properly raced up behind me and we pretty much crossed the finish line together- he was a hair in front (we got identical times in the end) and when I stopped my watch it was sub 28 so I just had to keep my fingers crossed that the official time would show that too.

Did I get sub 28? A finish area pop up picture and the list of my best parkrun times

I was very happy when I got the text- 27:50 was my official time- hooray!

After finishing I ended up chatting to a few fellow vegan runners (I had forgotten I had my buff on so wondered how they knew!), and then chatted to parkrun hun Lucy for a bit before Branka finished. The vibe of this parkrun was so friendly- people were hanging about and chatting, the finish set up was a bit like Ellenbrook Fields with a long straight line to the finish and loads of people hanging around by the finish to cheer in other people. I am very glad we went there- a really friendly and local vibe, fast and no mud!

Token and the back of the “half way” sign which reads “If you’re reading this message your eyesight is great but you are running in the wrong direction!”/ Community Orchard seen on the way out

We decided to head back to the car so walked back through the park- I noticed a community orchard sign which is such a lovely idea (it even said to please just take fruit for yourself and leave some for other people and for wildlife). The journey back still took under an hour so I was home by 11am which isn’t bad really considering how long journeys can take.

Since the 5k app updated and is now the parkrun official app, the colours on the map have changed and now it looks like someone has spilled weak orange squash all over my map:

Voronoi update

So that was parkrun 441, event 151 and currently 39/65 London events (current open ones- eg I have been to Victoria Dock but now that is closed).

Next up is a local one to celebrate a friend’s 350th, and then hopefully a new (to me) one in the Southampton area.

Holywell King George V Playing Fields parkrun (Watford)

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.

Greenwich Peninsula parkrun

The quest for Lon-done continues!

On Friday night we were in London seeing Hercules with family, and had planned to go back in on Saturday for some exhibitions at the British Museum, so after seeing that hotels were reasonably priced, stayed in London for Friday night, which of course for me means a parkrun!

I was aiming for Greenwich Peninsula- Branka had already been here so we wouldn’t tour there together, and it’s probably the most central one left that I’ve not been to. However the forecast looked below freezing, and I had seen that they had cancelled once earlier in the year when it was icy, so I was keeping my fingers crossed.

Anyway, all was well, and I got the Jubilee line there from Southwark, arriving at North Greenwich station at about 8:15am. I had allowed plenty of time as on a few previous London trips even going through the train station has taken a while (going to Burgess I spent so long in London Bridge station getting to the tube that I nearly missed the start of parkrun), and although it looked close at the other end I didn’t know how easy it would be to find once there. In the end the train journey was meant to take 20 mins but I am sure it wasn’t that long, and the parkrun start was so close to the tube station, although I was following google maps which was going to take me around the houses a bit, but I happened to glance to the right and saw the big red sculpture that I recognised from all the pop up signs.

After having so many rainy and cloudy days recently, it was amazing to have such blue skies, but it was so cold- my hands were freezing even with my gloves on (not fun taking them off to take photos).

I think I arrived just in time as there was one person by the sign who took a photo for me, but once I moved away the queue built up and did not go away until the main briefing! There were loads of tourist tops, people with Lon-done t-shirts and so I chatted to a few parkrunners (it took my mind off the cold too!). One person was very taken by my Wonky Bear, and at least this time I could explain it (whereas last week a person took a photo and before I could explain they had walked away). I wandered down to the river to take some photos and admire some of the sculptures.

The blue skies were amazing!

We had the first timers welcome before the main briefing, where the RD explained that there was work going on on the path which meant that the start was narrower than usual. He tried to seed the start, but when he said “any sub 16 runners” a lot of people laughed, so he replied with “well you laugh but some people are that quick!” I waited for the 30 min group to be announced but really I should have gone a little sooner as I was behind quite a few walkers (and not speed walkers, normal pace walkers). There was a place for bags under a little shelter against a wall, so I had taken my jacket off at the last possible moment!

Views from the run as well as the funnel queue at the end

I really enjoyed this- it’s basically an out and back (although you start in the middle- if you looked at it from above you go right, u-turn, back past the finish, u-turn again, back past the finish and then a bit further before the final u-turn) you run past the O2 and then in the other direction have views out to the Thames Barrier. There were various sculptures to see, and loads of tourists arriving for the O2 which made it feel very central to London rather than being in a suburb which they often are.

Just look at the map- very central:

You can see from my pacing that I was stuck for a while behind people not at my pace- I do not mind really but it wasn’t easy to run in a rhythm as there was a lot of stop-starting (people ahead avoiding puddles for example), and as it was narrow and for the most part you had people heading back towards you, you really could only have 2 people side by side, which meant overtaking people was tricky. Although it’s flat and a fast course, it was much harder than say Battersea which had much wider paths. Something to consider if you were heading there and hoping for a specific time.

Token/ token sorting/ photo at the finish

At the finish they had a very long funnel which looped around and around, but it moved quickly which I was thankful of as I had taken my jacket off and left it in my bag at the start, and as soon as I stopped I was feeling chilly. I went to get a photo by the sign with my parkrun top, and then headed back to the tube. I really enjoyed seeing all the paving slabs with facts and quotes linked to GMT. I feel like when I’ve been to the O2 it’s usually been for a concert so I’ve not lingered enough to notice these. There were also trees filled with lanterns for Lunar New Year.

Admiring the GMT themed paving stones/ tea to warm up/ breakfast/ Poddington the Wonky Bear

I got a tea to take on the train with me, and then got off one stop early to get us some breakfast (Ole and Steen do an amazing plant based pastry called a social slice, which is sort of cinnamon bun dough filled with vegan custard and chocolate chips- trust me it’s so good). Then I had to text Andy and ask him to drop a pin because I only remembered the way back to the hotel from Southwark station and I’d got off at London Bridge…

Voronoi update! Sadly now Victoria Dock parkrun is paused the map looks a little different, but still after Greenwich I have joined up a few more sections of the map once again.

That was parkrun 438 and location 149

38/65 for London events

It was definitely an easy one to get to from central London, and one I’d revisit if I was in London and needing to be back quickly too. However, my next London trip will be from home so that will hopefully be a new one (not planned yet).

Next up- some more local tourism with all the people (my dad, the three peas, OH ladies, parkrun friends…)