Happy weekend. For any of you new graduates whom have started running during COVID-19 world you may have heard of a thing called parkrun. parkrun is a free 5K which takes place every Saturday morning all around the world. It is for everyone, slow, fast, able, disabled, big, small and everyone in between. Oh and don't forget about the super Mum's and Dad's who push their babies in buggies. You can walk, jog, run, run/walk, it's not a race, just a run in the park and loads of us here on Bridge to 10K did it religiously every Saturday morning.
parkrun is back thankfully in Northern Ireland and England as well as some other Countries around the world. And as I write this our friends in England are running in their parkruns and the friends in Northern Ireland are gathering at the start line getting ready to set off.
Wales, Scotland and The Republic of Ireland are still awaiting a parkrun return. So until parkrun returns we take part on our own in a Virtual parkrun every Saturday morning. We post after our run and let everyone know how we got on. The little run report can be done over a post actual parkrun coffee and treat/cake. (parkrun is all about the after run coffee and cake, and meeting friends old and new). It can be run/walked on any route close to you which is 5K. Does not have to be done in a park, you can even do it on a treadmill.
If you are a new graduate and would like to start, all you have to do is a 5K run/jog/walk anytime today or tomorrow and write a little run report under this post. It's like a little community and it is good fun, sets you up nicely for the weekend. If you want to you can register on the parkrun website and you can log your 5K (not)parkrun. In fact you can log any 5K done during the week as a (not)parkrun on the website. I only log Saturday runs, when I remember.
For anyone whom has not done a real parkrun yet and if it is available to you, give it a try. It is the most wonderful community event. Saturday mornings will never be the same again.
Looking forward to my run later today and also looking forward to hearing from all of you running in real proper parkruns and (not)parkruns. Happy running and have a lovely weekend.
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damienair
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Good morning Damien, it was on Wednesday that I ran my 59th (not) parkrun in a time of 34.06, not a PB but the first time that I have had a sub 36 minutes let alone a sub 35 minute 5K on that particular course, not my usual route around that loch which is flatter than the one I ran on Wednesday morning.
On Friday morning I ran another 5K with my friend from my Thursday morning walking group who graduated from C25K two weeks ago when I ran with him, he has ran 2/5Ks since graduating but yesterday with me was his quickest in a time of 36.09 which I congratulated him with.
I was happy because that route has 2 small inclines on it, its the course that I have only used in the winter or when the weather is wet, only a 2 minute walk away from where I live,. 😊 🏃🏾
My friend asked me to accompany him on runs 3 of weeks 5,6,8 and 9 of C25K which I did, he was a little naughty because although I told him to run at least 4/30 minute consolidation runs he immediately after he graduated ran 2/5Ks in a time of of 39.30 and 37.50 respectively, his 3rd 5K was the run he ran with me, for him a PB time of 35.09.
Good morning! I’ve done a separate post today, as it is my 60th birthday and I did an extra 3 (not) parkruns during the week so that I could do my 60th this morning. It was just too tempting! Time of 30.44, which was my fastest 5k of the week 😃😃
Fantastic. Congratulations on your Birthday and matching it with you 60th (not)parkrun.
My second PR today. I went to the more accessible course this week as struggled over grass last week. Rain cleared up as I set off. I got a PB - my fastest time since summer 2020. Pleased that I ran it all, I was going fast for me! It took me 42 mins.
Morning Damien and all. I’ve not run all week as I have been trying to rest my Achilles. Very frustrating but I knew it was coming. Not sure I can do another week of no running though…
Anyway, today I volunteered, pre-setup and timekeeping. Never done timekeeping before and it’s a bit nerve racking but the new volunteer app makes it pretty straightforward. Unfortunately I pressed the volume button by mistake and it accidentally incremented by 1 just after the off. So I was one ahead for most of it. There were two of us and a number checker though so it will get ironed out. Otherwise we were pretty much in sync with each other. I think I’d be happy to do it again but I’m not so sure about the standing still for an hour!
There were 332 this week, a little up on last week but down on average. The fastest runner was about 3 minutes slower than last week as we had the fastest parkrun time in the world last week! 😱
It was my 49th volunteering so I’m looking forward to claiming the new 50 volunteer shirt next time 👍 That might give me an incentive to not run next week…maybe…
You just have to keep pressing the button and stay awake OG (although the second bit was quite hard having stayed up for some of the triathlon last night) 😴
Wonders! Fastest in the world 😳😳😳 What an amazing achievement. You do right to rest your Achilles, you don’t want to end up on the IC and I’m sure your timekeeping was much appreciated
I know! I’ve started following him on Strava and he’s amazing. His mile PB is 3:58 😱
I’ve just had a thank you email from our RD as we were both new to it, which was really sweet. So yes, it really was appreciated because I’ve never had one of those before!
Achilles is going to have a gentle test on Monday I think 👍
well done, that's brilliant! I did my second Park Run today and yet again got a sub 30!!! Im loving running with other people, it really pushes me which is what I need. I was so excited again when I arrived this morning! Definitely hooked!!😜🏃♀️
They did thanks OG. It flares up occasionally and I have hammered it recently so as I’m between organised races and PR has restarted, it seemed a sensible time. Fingers crossed I’ll give it a test on Monday 🤞🤞
I've done timer a couple of times and handed out the tokens too. I like those jobs, it is cool keeping each other up to date to make sure it is in sync. Gets pretty manic from 28-34 minutes doesn't it? Well done for volunteering.
Thanks Damien. Yes, I think I prefer it to marshalling, it suits my personality more. And yep, that’s exactly when it was manic! I don’t think I’d do the tokens though, I’d definitely drop them!
I don’t think it counts, but I ran past the people setting up for the park run earlier this morning! 😊. Will def give it a go in the coming weeks. 🏃♀️🏃🏻
I did my local, hilly one today. Came in 33/78 with an official time of 29'36". I did have one walking break of about 30 seconds, though, as my HR was going into the 180s. The slight speed up to the finish line had my HR peak at 197!
39m of elevation gain/loss according to the watch. The watch recorded it as 4.51 km as the tree cover meant GPS wasn't particularly accurate and it cut corners.
No Park run for us today. We had our first Covid injections on Thursday and as the nurse jabbed me she said “The Australian government aren’t telling you this but you really shouldn’t do any strenuous exercise for a good few days” 😱 2nd injection has now been booked for earlier in the week so park run will not be disrupted 🤣
Sadly some parts of Australia are going back to a full lockdown again, apparently police are patrolling streets to make sure people remain in their homes, of course no parkruns will take place in those areas.
I was giddy with excitement as my parkrun returned this morning. So nice to see familiar faces as well as shiny new pink volunteer vests. I’m still resting my post tib, so I didn’t tackle a 5k today, but I did conquer the volunteer app without a hiccup as I was barcode scanning!
I’m Apple, my colleague this morning was Android - both worked pretty well once we got over our first time nerves. Relatively few people needed to be sent off for manual recording. Overall I preferred it to the old scanners😊
Well done for Volunteering. I think I'll Volunteer for the first one when parkrun returns here in Ireland. I'd love to do Tail Walker. Never done that one before. Congratulations on you V25 too.
...But also I beat my PB by a whole minute. I got 42'24'' on my Garmin (42'47'' on Park Run - I started WAY at the back). I have been nowhere near that time since January - even last week I only beat 45 minutes. I think having people just 30m-40m in front of you encourages you run just that bit faster. I had a lot left over (perhaps too much!) to "sprint" the last 300m. It was great fun. I will beat the lady with the pug* next week. The marshalls were fantastic. I will be back - I may have a better sleep next week! (NB *UK's fastest pug I am sure).
Ashton Court for me today. I’ve been looking forward to taking on the hill all week. It’s the first time I’ve run there for months and I was curious to see if I’d improved. Answer was an emphatic yes! 👏
Garmin time was 37:09, PR time 37:23 as it took a while to get through the start. I knocked 1:20 off my previous AC PB of 38:43 and of course I’m thrilled. I even overtook several runners on the hill, and loads were walking up. My new Brooks Revel 4’s felt awesome too. Light as a feather and I’m convinced they helped!
Now to choose Burnham or Clevedon for next week? I’m spoilt for choice. Happy running everyone. 😀
Excellent and very well done Cheeky. I must admit I am a little jealous. Would love to be back at parkrun and trying some parkrun tourism. Very well done on your run and congratulations on your PB.
Funny rainy run today. It was a timed 1 hour effort in my HM plan. Obviously a rest week after 13k last week. I made 8.4K in the hour at 7:09 pace which I think was sensible. 137 bpm average heart rate was a plus. I think that my fitness is starting to recover. 10 miles next Saturday. Buried within all that was a 5k of 35:17, a bit slower than Thursday’s tempo 5k at 34:00. All about building slowly…..
Hi damienair …I’m pleased to say I did parkrun this morning…it’s not my favourite but I have to admit that I kind of enjoyed it this morning…as you know, it’s more or less on my doorstep but there’s actually a fair in the park at the moment that leaves tomorrow, thank goodness…I could’ve bought my own waltzer with the amount of money 3 children can blow in a fortnight 🤔😩 …I can usually see all the runners so am guilted into joining them now and again…last week was the first one since the pandemic put a stop to it but I was away at a wedding so couldn’t go…it was good to see everyone back together ☺️
Hi Damien, happy weekend to you. I hope your run goes well for you today. 👍I was super excited to return to Parkrun today for the first time in 18 months. It’s not my favourite course, as I despise hills, and this one in Chichester has three laps of them. 😅
I struggled getting up in time and only just made the start after I left my barcode at home and had to run back to get it. 🥵 I must also try and stop the general faffage and get my act together in future.
Anyway, it was a wonderful and surreal experience running with others again after so long, and although I found it really hard work, I did manage a course PB of 22.45, and came 25/238 runners, as well as being first in my age category.
Yes cheeky, definitely worth considering. 🤣 It was my usual level of faffage and general forgetfulness. It does seem to be getting worse though. 😬 I lost my wallet twice today. 🙄
My first post lockdown parkrun (we scanned barcodes last week) and my fastest home parkrun since November 2019 although I have managed faster at other, less muddy ones. Faster than most of my recent runs so I am pleased with that.
It could so easily have been around 200 parkruns by now, if only.......
But never mind, it's back and it was wonderful.
And it is great to see those "first parkrun" and "second parkrun" posts on the forum. Now you know what we have been going on about.
Hi I did my second real Park Run today and yet again did well under 30mins, which I only ever managed to do twice when running on my own. So I think it may have been you that said that my time for a 5km would improve once I had chance to run with other people and it definitely has!! I have to say after my best ever PB last Sat on my first proper Park Run last Saturday, I then did a 10km on Sunday and a 7km on Thursday, so I must admit when I got half way round the Park Run today my legs felt really heavy and I was convinced I was much slower and hadn't done it in less than 3o mins, but results came through and I did 28.54 so I'm delighted again!😀🏃♀️
Very well done and great finish time. Yes running with others really helps with your pace. After a few weeks you will recognise people whom are just a few seconds faster than you. These become your parkrun nemesis. And your goal then becomes a mission to beat them to the finish line.😀
Hi Damien! I was a bit naughty today because I did some parkrun tourism. No, I know it’s not encouraged at the moment for obvious reasons but I’m away staying at my brother’s this weekend for a family do and he lives a 5 minute drive from a parkrun so what’s an OldGirlRuns to do! A very different 3 lap course from what I’m used to - on grass, fairly flat with a few little ups and downs and a really wide start down a playing field. Now, I confess it was a run-walk and in my brisk walking phase I had a lovely chat with another walker, herself an injured runner. I was 237th out of 251 in a time of 47.31 which I thought was generous at almost a minute less than what Mr Garmin was telling me! But I’ll take it thank you! So thank you Arrow Valley parkrun for being such a welcoming and friendly bunch - I’ll be back!
Woohoo OGR brilliant! How wonderful that you’re back doing PR again! Bet it feels great. 😀
I’m guilty of PR tourism, but all the ones I plan on doing in the next few weeks are a similar distance from my house. I’m lucky in that there are about 6 I can call local! 😀
Very well done and it would have been a crime to humanity in general and parkrun had you not done some parkrun tourism whilst you were away anyway. Happy Running.
Thank you for interrupting words and a reminder. I've been running for two years on a planned parkrun route with a group and loving the coffee after which we got going a few months ago in 6s etc and now with more freedom! Didn't know about posting at parkrun but will check it out. Thank you
Morning Damienair and everyone ! Well done ! I’ve done 3 runs so far this week - abd two days left in my week as started Tuesday! Tuesday is my ‘weigh in’ day so being super good after a few Proseccos last night!
Well done. I lost 3 stone over 2 years ago. But with lockdowns, working from home, no races to train for etc the weight has slowly crept back on. Not all thankfully, but I have 1.5 stone to lose. We'll do it.
I visited Fareham this weekend as Andover wasn’t running. Got a PB of 29:12 👏🏼👏🏼. It is a very narrow course with a real cluster of people at the start so the busiest group I’ve been in since COVID, but great to do it. It never gets any easier 😂
Photo of park runners preparing for the off in Fareham.
Thanks . Is there many people that walk parkruns in your park run that you do. I can’t do one as working every Saturday. I would be afraid anyway I would be last keeping everyone back. I know there is tailwalkers .
No one would keep anyone back, I have attended 17 parkruns since my first in 2019, I have not seen too many people walking the whole route, the last runners at my home parkrun usually complete it around 50 minutes suggesting that they have ran at least for a little while, but you can walk the whole way if you wish to.
Thanks for volunteering. There's always a parkrun if just one runner turns up. But no parkrun without enough volunteers. I might volunteer one weekend and do a long run on a Sunday instead.
Yes, after the first runners reach you it’s just about continuous with my Parkrun. Ours is a three lapper and my hands do get a bit sore by the end, but it’s so worth it atm as everyone is so pleased to be there after such a long time away, it’s like a holiday camp.
No parkrun for me yesterday, looks like I will be on the IC for a while.😔
Something isn’t right with my knee (have had on & off problems throughout my running journey but never been that serious to stop) so am going to have to rest up and hope to get a physio appointment as soon as there is availability.
Anyway husband & my dad both did good times (dad did a PB in 28 minutes, not bad for a 76 year old and fastest in his age category!, husband just missed his PB by 2 seconds 😬with a brilliant time of 23.45).
If the knee allows, am hoping to do a parkrun tourism in Poole mid August, so would be lovely to see any VRB’s or if anyone knows the course. / any tips would be gratefully received 😊
Hello Damienair, a late report from me as it’s been a weekend with family visitors including my niece’s lockdown baby. 10 months old and only 2nd time we’ve been able to see him.
I snook a parkrun in just before everyone arrived. And beat last week’s time by 14 seconds . So fastest real parkrun this year and 2nd in age category.
He’s a bit of a wriggly worm at the moment and they’ve discovered he loves crawling up stairs. As you know, we have quite a few!
We had the usual breeze on the return leg but that helped cool me down a bit. My all time parkrun PB from 2019 is not yet achievable but I’m on the right trajectory.
Hi Damien…decided to fit in a last run for July…and ended up doing 10km.! I entered the first 5 km as this weeks (not) Park Run of 43:59. It was my 51st. Hopefully Park Run may return here in Wales on the 14th August 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼
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