Did my first Parkrun! Mud, ice and tutus - all good fun.

[ClarkeyCat]

I dragged myself out of bed this morning in the frosty -1 temperatures and braved my very first Parkrun. I was really nervous going alone (my friend was supposed to come but had to drop out due to family issues) and contemplated putting it off, but I'm glad I didn't.

I was a bit daunted at first by all the regulars doing very professional looking warm-up routines at the start, I was convinced I would stand out as a total novice and I was also unsure how I would manage the cross-county route having only ever run on pavements, but was cheered up by the ladies celebrating their 100th Parkrun by doing it in fancy dress.

I deliberately did it without my headphones as I wanted to experience it properly so had no idea of my pace without the app giving me updates, but I tried not to overdo it. It felt like a bit of a struggle at first - very muddy and slippy, icy patches and several places where you had to tip-toe round the edges of huge puddles that spanned the entire width of the riverside path - and I did wonder if perhaps I'd bitten off more than I could chew.

However I settled into it and despite feeling pretty tired after the second lap over the really muddy bits I managed a quite respectable 32 minutes for the 5k.

I was hugely gratified at the end when a lady came up to me and said she'd been running behind me and was very envious of my steady pace throughout the run, so perhaps I didn't look like as much of an obvious newbie as I felt!

I'd also like to take my hat off to the man who managed to run this in 17 minute 53 seconds - amazing!!!

[Hidden]

You are amazing! Well done. How did you find using road shoes on grass? I hit a muddy path a couple of runs ago and was sliding all over the place.

[ClarkeyCat Graduate in reply to Hidden]

A bit slippy, my foot went from under me a couple of times but it was manageable as long as I didn't try to go too fast- I think you'd need other shoes if you were going for speed.

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate]

Well done..I take my hat off to you ClarkeyCat. A great time, especially in those conditions. Congratulations on your first Parkrun, sounds like it won't be your last😉xx

[ClarkeyCat Graduate in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

Thank you! I'll definitely go again.

[TJMazz Graduate]

Well done, and for going on your own and not putting it off. Sounds like you really enjoyed it. 🙌🏻😀👍

[Elfe5 Graduate]

That's fantastic, very well done.

Your post made me chuckle, I read the first bit, was really inspired and thought

"This could be me in about a month's time ". Then I got to the end and read your amazing time and thought

"Oh no it couldn't!" ... But thanks for the inspiration anyway - I will get to park run in my own snail way eventually! 😃

[ClarkeyCat Graduate in reply to Elfe5]

It's all completely relative though - I was quite pleased with my time until I saw the times of the people who crossed the line first - I'm a total snail in comparison to them!! 😂😂

[Langley-Loper Graduate]

Well done! I am still too scared to go to a Parkrun, either alone or with friends. To do your first one alone with the tricky conditions underfoot is great.

[ClarkeyCat Graduate]

Go for it! It was pretty friendly with loads of mixed abilities. Yes there were lots of very professional looking runners who were super fast but plenty of people walked a lot of the course too, and no-one really seemed to pay too much attention to what others were doing.

[thisfishcan Graduate]

Well done !! I enjoyed reading your post. I hope to do a park run once i have completed C25K.

[ClarkeyCat Graduate in reply to thisfishcan]

Thank you!

I’m sure they’re not everyone’s cup of tea but definitely worth trying it at least once I’d say.

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

Slip, slip slippy! Well done you !