Delamere Parkrun (& the Sandstone Trail)

For reasons no longer known to me, I signed up for Viper 369 and it is approaching fast. I was feeling the need to get some mud and hill training in (I hate mud and hills) and so a group of us decided to go and run Delamere parkrun followed by a longer run along the Sandstone Trail. 

I've only been to Delamere once and it was at the end of a 10 mile race (was a bit delirious) so wasn't sure what to expect other than hills and mud. It was hilly and muddy. Did I mention the hills and the mud? There's a car park really close to the start of the parkrun (it normally costs £4 but the machines were broken so didn't have to pay) where there's also NICE (!!) toilets, a cafe and a bike hire place. From there it's just a couple of minutes' walk/jog (sprint if you're running buddies are anything like mine). We got the general introduction/safety instructions from the nice guy with the megaphone and then we were off in a crazy fast start. 

We'd started in the middle of the pack but there was such a buzz that it was very easy to get carried away with the speed. The others we were with vanished quite quickly (including Paul who ended up getting a pb after warning everyone he wasn't going fast!!) leaving me and Bryan to run together. I was into my first half a mile and couldn't understand why I couldn't breath until I looked at my watch and realised we were doing a crazy 8/mm pace. The idea was not to race so we'd still have some energy left for the run after so we slowed down a little, started to breathe again and could enjoy the pretty view. 

Delamere parkrun route

Delamere parkrun elevation

The course starts with a path that's just over half a mile, next is a two a 2 mile loop of the lake and then back towards where you started. I was expecting it to be very hilly and it was a bit but no where near as bad as I thought it was going to be.  There's quite a few downhills too so i think it evens itself out overall and it could be a fast course.  I was wearing trail shoes but I noticed a lot of people were wearing normal trainers and not struggling.  Whilst it is muddy and rocky, the majority of the route is quite solid and not too uneven so it's actually a lot nicer to run that I thought it was going to be.  I'd like to go back and try it again when I'm not running 8 miles after (and haven't spent the night before drinking cocktails in the hot tub).  Everyone except Martin (who got a pb of 22:33) was technically first timers so times do not count but was some great running going on from Warrington Road Runners (I merely tried to keep up with Bryan whilst not dying).

With parkrun out of the way we headed of to the Sandstone Trail towards Beeston (doing the Sandstone Trail Race backwards).  Me, Paul and Bryan covered about four and a half miles before turning back whilst Luke, Martin and Tarja went further and faster and did 11 and a half in total.  I found out that 'doing a rocky' means running up lots and lots (and lot and lots and lots) of steps, Bryan is the King of Hills and that Paul knows quite a few Steps lyrics and we may have spied Michael Owen's house.  Whilst we were having fun and enjoying ourselves (think the guys enjoyed the bit of the run that I couldn't talk) Martin was doing "Spiderman falls without the special effects" whilst trying to protect his Garmin but thankfully we all survived injury free.  It was really fun but hard going, especially in the really muddy bits (I could only see with one eye for the whole time which certainly added to the adventure).  Afterwards we all went to the cafe and had a nice hot drink, well except for Tarja who decided to go and do the parkrun route again (Crazy lady!!).  We certainly earned out cake today.

If you would like to know more about Delamere parkrun then click here.

Tail Running

Yes, I know my spelling is terrible but no, I didn't miss out a letter. This tale is indeed about the tail because I wanted to share about the most rewarding job I think you can do as a runner. On Saturday morning I will be getting up at the god awful hour of 7am (yes I know that's afternoon for some people) to purposely run a very slow parkrun and it will be great because I get to be the tail runner. 

 For those who don't know, a tail runner is the person who runs right at the very back to make sure that no one gets lost whilst also letting the volunteers (who are amazing amazing people BTW, please try to remember to thank them when you run past) on the course know when they can leave. I've been near the back in some races where the marshals have gone because they've assumed that everyone has is finished and it can be a bit confusing for the runner. To avoid this and ensure that everyone gets the same experience regardless of their speed you stick someone at the back so you know where the end is. That is the tail runner pretty much. 

I've done the job at parkrun a number of times now (and also once at cross country which wasn't fun) and I get a lot out of it. Everyone always starts too fast (without fail) and so you always spend the first quarter of a mile actually running until people wear themselves out. It then either settles into a nice gentle jog or a run/walk (and occasionally a sprint to catch up if people drop out) depending upon the person at the back. Sometimes you're with the same person the whole way but often it can change around a lot, especially if there's a bit of competition going on to not be at the back. I've also met all kinds of people from first time runners and beginners, people recovering from an injury, even cute adorable five year old girls. Occasionally you'll get the odd person who looks at you like you're a stalker in neon yellow and wish that you'd go away but on the whole most people are very friendly. You find that they all have their own stories and reason for being there and it's very inspiring. I often find myself coaching people a bit to get them round. Either it works or I'm just so annoying that people just want to get it over with, but I get a lot of thanks (people too polite to say they wanted me to shut up) which makes you feel a little warm inside and makes it worthwhile. 

People are often very apologetic, that they're sorry that I'm having to go slow for them or that they're taking too long but a few years ago I would be exactly where they are. So I try to instill in them a little of the parkrun ethos, that it's not about time, position or whether you run or walk. It's about setting yourself that 5k target and achieving it at your own pace. Then maybe next time you do it at little better, the time after a little faster and you keep going.  You'll get your time each week and you can build on it.  I think the two hardest things are committing yourself to start and then getting yourself to the finish. If you can find the courage and the determination to do both of those then you're already a winner. I also like to make sure no one is ever last. Some tail runners don't like to get a time because it can affect their Run Britain handicap and average times which is fair enough but I'm quite proud of handing over my barcode because it saves someone else from being the bottom of the results (I do do a little cry for Run Britain though but I tell myself it's good to be a little less obsessed with what my handicap graph is doing).

I love parkrun and from the back it's easy to see why. The amount of support the people at the back get from the other runners and volunteers is truly awesome and they're made to feel just as important as the person who finishes first. It's a genius idea that really supports a community idea of running. Plus we always get cake. Whoever said you don't get something for nothing was right though, it takes a whole lot of work from some very dedicated people to give us our free Saturday morning 5k. 

Some of the volunteers at my parkrun in Warrington are there week on week without fail and they do it with a cheer and a smile. I would highly recommend having a go at volunteering if you can because it is a great experience and they'll even reward you. Your first three stints as a volunteer earn you 100 points a time (which is the same as finishing first) and there's going to be a volunteer t-shirt when you do 25 stints or more (also, if you're tail runner and you get barcoded it can count towards your 50 t-shirt too but don't tell anyone I told you).  It’s also a great way to still get a parkrun in when you have a race the next day (which is quite often for me).

You can find out more about how to volunteer at your local parkrun here http://www.parkrun.org.uk/