So today I am back in the capital at a new parkrun that has a lot of meaning to me Lordship Recreation Ground, Tottenham in the Borough of Haringey.

Parks History

This park is over 20 hectares in size and was officially open in June of 1936 with the local community being able to enjoy such delights as the Shell theatre, boating lake.

If you would like to read more about the parks origins dating as far back from 1619 there is a great article by The friends of Lordship Recreation Ground Link

LonDone Again

Today I regained my Greater London parkrun regionnaire status also known to parkrun tourists as LonDone. So, for anyone who does not know it means currently attending 61 events in the capital.

The reason why I chose Lordship Recreation Ground was simple my dad was lifelong Tottenham Hotspur supporter, and this park is just over 1 mile from their stadium, and this is why I am running in his spurs top today.

parkrun Loves cakes

Hopefully everyone loves to celebrate completing a parkrun with a slice of cake, but did you know Tottenham have a cake named after them?

The history of the Tottenham cake goes back to 1901 when the local quakers baked cakes for the local poor children to help celebrate the success of the football club winning the FA cup that year, brilliant story 🙂 Link

There were quite a few tourists for event 22 and it was finally lovely to bump into and chat with fellow tourist friend Cal in personal and I wish her all the best in her future running adventures 🙂

Course

The course is three and a bit laps of Lordship Recreation Ground that is run entirely on well-maintained tarmac footpaths with no real elevation to talk about 🙂

Points to note

• The course is very open and exposed to the weather that was tough running in the wind today.
• Great to run through the heart of the model traffic area.
• In the right conditions, this could be a very fast course to get a timer on

For me, it was just completing it today and getting my London regional status back. I know with a fair bit of training I can break the 30-minute barrier again but until then I was very happy with my time for 35:01

Facilities

Coming from Luton it was easy for me to use public transport and Turnpike Lane tube station is only a mile from the park.

There is street parking available near the park, but you need to make sure that you park in a zone B permit parking area that will give you weekend access, but I would still recommend going by public transport though.

Lordship Hub

Always great at parkrun there are toilet facilities available at the lordship hub before the start of parkrun and is located very close to the start.

For the post run coffee, we retired back to the lordship hub for well refreshments, and I loved their bacon & egg toasted sandwich 🙂

The Hub was built in 2012 as part of a regeneration scheme as a place where the local community can meet up and provides services for them and is run by an army of lovely volunteers. Link

Model Traffic Area

In all the years of parkrun tourism I have never seen a model traffic area incorporated into a parks landscape.

Originally built in 1936 as a fun place for the local children to ride their own or hired bikes and at the same time learn road safely. Link here

Today it’s great to see the model traffic area still being enjoyed and a great local charity Wheely Tots using the facilities engaging through cycling with the local community.

If you are local here is the link if you wish to sign up for a session with Wheely Tots Link

It was so heart-warming seeing community cooperatives like Lordship Hub and charities like Wheely Tots using Lordship Recreation Ground to its full potential for the local people of Tottenham.

In my books you are all truly outstanding people and should be rightly applauded for what you do.

Conclusion

I would like to thank this weeks run director Sarah and her all her team of volunteers for making us all feel extremely welcome. Well done team Lordship 🙂

I think you have got a great community spirit going on at Lordship, and it was a sheer joy meeting you all at parkrun.

So, I am happy signing off completing with another great London parkrun memory,

I will be thinking of my dad this weekend of how much I miss him especially as it’s my birthday on Sunday.

Finally, what next for me, try to complete my Lucky dip tourist list, keep an eye out for any new London parkrun events, but most of all be just being happy running especially at my beloved parkrun.

Anyway, take care everyone until next time,

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Back in the capital today at it currently stands newest parkrun event Stockley Country parkrun that is based at Yiewsley in the London Borough of Hillingdon.

The first recorded history of Yiewsley goes far back to the year 1235 when it was originally known as Wiuesleg and today this hamlet boasts a population of over 12 thousand people. link here

Stockley Country Park itself is one of the biggest man-made parklands in London and “The parkland incorporates 11 lakes and nearly 200,000 trees and shrubs. A comprehensive footpath and bridlepath network is provided throughout the park, golf course and canal side.” ref here

Tourist Takeover

There seemed to be an unofficial parkrun tourist takeover for event 8 with number of unique attended most parkrun events covered by us all must be well over 2,000 in number 🙂

500 Milestone

Very big well done to Steven Ramek who joined the exclusive 500 events milestone club at Stockley, he also finished so fast he had time to volunteer as a barcode scanner.

Outstanding effort all round sir!!!

Taking of 500 parkrun milestone I would like to wish tourist friend Dan Cale who will be running his own in a few weeks’ time all the best!

Finally, a special mention to fellow parkrun blogger & friend Steven Stockwell who achieved 200 different parkrun events last week here at Stockley and you can find his excellent detailed blog report here.

Course

The course consists of one small anticlockwise lap around a football pitch then followed by two large clockwise laps of the park. At the end of the second lap this time you turn left to head back down to the football pitch where the finish funnel awaits!

Is it is undulating in nature with a long incline at the start of each large lap and surface running surface is mainly a mixture of gravel & compacted earth footpaths that are remarkably in excellent condition.

Points to Note:

• If you are looking for a fast time, please place yourself in the events field where you think you are going to finish time wise as in places it is hard to overtake on this course!
• As they state some faster runners may overtake you on the second long lap, so just very be weary of this when they are coming round at high speed.
• The course is easy to follow with well placed directional arrows.
• Always a plus point the final stretch is downhill to the finish 🙂

So, in summing up this course is quite tough to run with its undulations, but I love a challenge and was so happy I did not slow down to walk at any point. Time 35.:35

Facilities

Decided to drive down to the Stockley Country with free car parking available that is very close to the start of the parkrun sat nav UB7 8BU.

As stated on their event website there is no toilet facilities or cafe available at the park. The closest toilets are at Tesco Superstore that is about 1 mile away from the park and opens at 7am on Saturday’s sat nav UB7 7FP.

While on the subject of toilets I found this very useful website called fetchingly The Great British Public Toilet Map that is great asset if you urgently need to spend a penny and here is the link

For the post run coffee, we returned to Tesco where there is a Costa inside for well-earned refreshments after our parkrun endeavours 🙂

Conclusion

I would like to thank from the bottom of my heart this week’s run director Jeremy and his team of hi vis heroes that’s ranks were swelled not only by Steven, but fellow tourist including Danny Norman as run report writer and Rosemary Egbe course event set up, top work team Stockley!

Had to smile in completing Stockley Country without knowing at the time I completed the fun Snakes challenge of visiting 10 parkrun events that start with the letter S, brilliant bonus 🙂

So now I’ve completed 61 of the 62 available parkrun events in Greater London I am looking forward to regaining my regionnaire status at Lordship Recreation Ground parkrun in a few weeks time.

So, until next time happy parkrunning everyone 🙂

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Always a pleasure to be back running again in the capital and today I attended Charlton that is in the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

History of Charlton House & Park

Charlton House was built in 1612 by Sir Adam Newton and this Jacobean mansion is unique in London. The adjacent Charlton Park is what remains of the house’s original grounds.

Be great to have visited their house and gardens in the summer as I am sure it would to a beautiful place to explore and relax in after the parkrun link here

Football Memories

Last time I was here at Charlton, was when my hometown team Luton Town play them in the FA cup on 27th November 2011 that ended up as 2-2 draw, but sadly we lost the home replay 1-3 😦

I do love this Addicks mural adorning the bridge as you leave Charlton railway station this was commissioned to commemorate 100 years of playing at The Valley.

Course

The course consists of three clockwise laps of the perimeter of Charlton Park that almost has no real elevation and running surface is a mixture of mainly grass with small sections of linking tarmac footpaths.

Points to note.

• Even though this is largely a grass course, I have been told by one of the locals that it drains well and never gets to muddy.
• Very easy to overtake on this course with no real pinch points.
• Love the long gentle decline from furthest point away of the course down to the border of Charlton house 🙂

My time for the event was 33:24 very happy with that on a very cool blustery day.

Facilities

I decided to take the train from Luton with one change at London Bridge to Charlton, then there is a 15 minutes walk to the park.

Driving there does seem to be free street parking for maximum stay of two hours on the road leading up to Charlton Park.

Always good news is there are toilet facilities available inside the park that are open before the parkrun starts.

Post run coffee

We retired to the lovely community cafe inside the park called The Old Cottage Coffee Shop and I can say as well as great friendly service they do a delicious bacon & sausage roll 🙂

They guys need to be championed for all the brilliant work they do for the local community from supporting elderly residents having a Christmas meal to charity fundraising for local good causes. You are a true inspiration to all of us! link here

Conclusion

I would like to thank this week run directors Gavin Hose and Martin Edwards and their team of Hi-Viz heroes for making as all feel very welcome on the day.

For the record this was Martin’s first stint as run director and I think we can all agree he done a splendid job on event no 73.

Also thank you for giving me a volunteer credit for the small part I played in course set up for the event it was greatly appreciated.

So, if you want to run on a fast flat course with a lot of room for overtaking, friendly community to welcome you then Charlton parkrun must be high on your tourist to do list, you have been told!

Best

Mark aka Silent runner

This is just my own take of recovering my fitness from a mild case of covid that for me was the first time I have caught this virus!

At the start I let my body fight the virus and I did not contemplate thinking about exercising until I returned a negative lateral flow test result.

Important if you are not sure in anyway, please consult with your GP to see if you are fit enough to start exercising again!

Take it Easy

Walking

So, I started to exercise to see where my fitness with gentle paced walking sessions very close to my home.

These sessions started with 30 min walks and grow into 1 hour long, all the way through I was monitoring how I was feeling and if I felt like I was struggling at any point would abandon the walk.

Running

I knew that I was not going to run at the level of running fitness before I contracted covid and I needed a personal plan to ease my way back to full fitness.

So, I decided use the NHS Couch to 5Km plan at an appropriate week to start running again and in my case I started on week 5.

I mixed my sessions between treadmill and outdoors and decided even to incorporate one of the sessions into a parkrun at my local event of Luton, Wardown.

Conclusion

I am so glad I have decided to take this recovery slowly, listen to my body, but I am happy with my progress so far!

I have now completely run a parkrun and a attended a 10 miles guided walk with a lovely local ramblers’ group that I am a member.

Finally, I look forward to continuing parkrun touring, writing about your lovely events and the most important thing is to be happy in what you do 🙂

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Links

• NHS Your covid recovery link
• Bupa Returning to exercise link

Always great to be back in the capital with today’s event located at Southall, West London.

Southall Park History

This park has a very interesting history where once the Merrick family owned a house, they call Southall Haw that later become known as Southall Park.

Then in 1839 it changed from a privately owned house to an asylum until 1883 when it was burnt down to the ground.

Finally. from 1910 onwards the council took control of the park and have been making improvements ever since for the benefit of the local community to relax and enjoy in. Link

It was lovely chatting into fellow tourist Amanda & Bill from Wanstead and it’s always a great pleasure in mine being accompanied by my best buddy Martin 🙂

Course

The course starts with a small loop back, then you run three fairly flat clockwise laps of the perimeter of Southall Park that’s running surface is mainly made up of a tarmac footpath, and a small section of Hoggin path.

On the final lap, you turn off onto a short grass section to where the finish funnel awaits.

• There are a couple of places where the tree roots have slightly lifted the tarmac path that you have to be aware of
• The course is a bit narrow around the short hoggin section that could cause a pinch point for overtaking, but to be fair the field of runner is very stretched out when you reach this point.

So in summary, this is a very fast course if you’re looking for a time on the day. I was very happy just been able to run a parkrun without stopping for the first time after contracting covid just before Christmas, time 35:31

Facilities

As stated on their parkrun event website, there are no toilet facilities in this park.

Travelling by Car

There is limited permitted parking around Southall Park, but you need to be gone before 10 am.

There is no parking restrictions though on Green Drive postcode UB1 3AZ. I would get there early though as when I was doing my recce around the park at 8:30am there seemed to be no spaces available!

By Train

For me, it was a no brainer as ever since it’s opened. I’ve wanted to travel on the Elizabeth line. It was very simple journey to make from where I live in Luton with just one change at Farringdon, then onto the Elizabeth line to get to Southall with the train station just a 15-minute walk away from the park.

Post Run Coffee

For the post run coffee, we went to a Chaiiwala restaurant on The Broadway postcode UB1 1QF for a lovely breakfast at as you could see, highly recommended.

Conclusion

I would like to thank this week run director, Pardip and his team for volunteers for making us feel extremely welcome on the morning.

I hope I have got this right Pardip told me he is going for a world half marathon fancy dress record dressed as a banana, brilliant stuff and all the best on this challenge sir 🙂

I don’t say this often, but this is one of the loveliest parkrun communities that I’ve ever had the fortune to visit and should be rightly applauded for the warmth of their welcome.

So, if you’re travelling to London, why not pop down to Southall parkrun for a flat fast course, supported by one of the friendliest communities in the country, a simple winning ingredient.

For me, I now have just three events left to do to get my LonDone status back and I’m really looking forward to my next capital adventure 🙂

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

This year was when I had enough confidence to come back to parkrun and coaching again.

Virtual Ending

One thing that helped me keep up good mental wellbeing and fitness during the pandemic was virtual challenges and I finished my last booked one back in March that was The Trafalgar Way 271 miles long.

I decided though to continue logging my distances travelled on a personal spreadsheet until the date of my second virtual challenges anniversary on June 17th clocking up an overall distance of 2,380 run/walk miles over this time 🙂

parkrun

Tourism

I badly missed parkrun tourism during the pandemic and writing my blog reports about their events. So, it was not until this year I started touring again with the first event being Corby back in March.

I have attended 12 events in total this year including mini break holiday at Margate and it was great to be back in London at Sutcliffe on the path to regain my regionainaire status. I now only have 3 left to do again in Greater London 🙂

parkrun milestones

Also went to Stevenage for their 250th event 6 years after attending their inaugural one back in May 2016.

In August visited good tourist friend Lynette for her 250th event held in the beautiful city of Chichester

Local parkrun friend’s milestones included Evelyn, Terry completed 250th events, the legend Geoffrey notched up 250 days volunteered almost entirely made up of Luton event set up. Finally last but definitely not least Dawn who celebrated her 100th parkrun.

Not a parkrun milestone but a massive shout out to Shelah who recently completed 1000 days continuous running streak, outstanding effort!

Volunteering

As anyone knows me, I love to volunteer at parkrun and this year I added two more roles under my belt:

Visually Impaired Guide

I was very honoured to be invited by Will one of our visually impaired students at the University where I work to be his visually impaired guide at Wardown, Luton parkrun.

Since then when required support both him and Simon as a guide at parkrun & the athletics track where they are completing their Couch to 5K programs

Park walker

Love this role where you are simply walking around the course ahead of the tail walkers supporting/cheering on the athletes taking part.

On the day I tried out park walking at Houghton Hall parkrun I could not have asked for a better co-volunteer to walk around with than Laura, we talked about everything parkrun, lovely morning spent.

Races

Run 3 races this year starting off with 5K Bedford Autodrome in March where I bumped into good parkrun friend Val, then run the iconic Westminster Mile in May bumping into quite a few parkrun tourist’s friends.

Finally, an annual tradition for me is to run the Love Luton 10 km at the end of October that is alway one of the highlights of my year for me being with local running friends especially in my top buddy Martin Ball 🙂

Coaching

I always enjoy coaching and it was a real pleasure again to be able to support my club Stopsley Striders on our annual beginner’s course that was the first we have held this since 2019 before the pandemic.

I was co-coaching team red with one of our excellent new crop of coaches Nicola who was a natural.

Walking

One joy I did find over the last few years was walking and this summer decided to join local organised walking groups to me in Bedfordshire.

One group I joined was the Bedfordshire Walking Club that I attend one event with them every month. They state on their profile page they are not a gentle rambling group and averagely walk over 3 mph this is great for me as it helps with my base fitness with average walk lengths are over 11 miles.

Conclusion

It’s been quite a wonderful year and I have been honoured to meet me so many brilliant people throughout 2022.

So what for me 2023 I will carry on completing my lucky dip tourist list, coach, attend organised walks and just be happy.

Have a wonderful New Year guys 🙂

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Always a great pleasure of mine to be back in the capital after being 3 years away running new events to me and today I visited Sutcliffe park, Eltham that is in the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

Evolution of a park

Formerly known as Harrow Meadows the land was developed into a park in 1937 and named after the Royal Borough of Greenwich engineer Mr J Sutcliffe

Due to this area being a flood risk the park was redeveloped in the 1990’s and reopened in 2004 to become ‘a very special place, where it has been possible to protect 600 houses and business from flooding downstream. This has been achieved by reshaping and restoring the natural river floodplain“

I always love to hear stories where public parks are transformed for the betterment of their local community of which it serves and brings nature back into the park for generations to come!

Course

The course is a simple, three clockwise laps of the perimeter of Sutcliffe Park with very little or no elevation to note that starts and finishes just outside the sports centre.

The running terrain is a mixture of well maintained tarmac and gravel footpaths

Points to note

• At the end of lap one and two, you run around an oak tree to start the next lap
• On the final lap there was a short grass section where the finish funnel awaits that could get boggy, but it was fine on the day

Sutcliffe is a seriously fast PB style course, and I was very happy with my time of 30:15 that is my fastest time of the year 🙂

Facilities

There are toilets available before the start at Sutcliffe Park Sports centre that is always great news for us tourists 🙂

Travelling By Car

Due to the train strike I decided to drive to Sutcliffe that is unusual for me as if it is straightforward, I will use public transport from my home in Luton to London.

There are a few points I need to address about using your car to get to this parkrun and they are:

The advice on Sutcliffe parkrun event website is there is paid parking available at the sports centre car park postcode SE9 SLW this is fine and relatively cheap at £1 per hour.

Problem is the payment meters do not allow you to pay before 9am, the event team though kindly start the event a couple of minutes late so you can pay for your parking.

I seriously recommend if you are going to park at the sports centre car park download the Y-Pay application onto your smartphone and make payment in advance for the car park before you travel to Sutcliffe on the morning of the event you are attending.

I did find out on the day that there is free road parking just outside the park on the A210 that has the same postcode address.

ULEZ

Sutcliffe Park is just inside the Ultra Low Emissions Zone ULEZ that if your car does not meet the set emissions criteria you are charged £12.50 per day to travel around this zone. Please check the TFL website to see if your car is exempt from this charge link here

Finally, on ULEZ the London Mayors office plans to extend this zone to all London Boroughs on 29th August 2023

Post run Coffee

I retired for a well-earned coffee to Better Coffee Corner that is inside the sports centre and sat down to have a lovely chat with fellow tourists who’s local parkrun is Tunbridge Wells

Conclusion

I would like to thank the lovely, Catherine and her team of Hi Vis heroes for doing an excellent job today.

So, if you are looking for a fast flat parkrun with a very friendly community then Sutcliffe has to be very high on your tourist list 🙂

Now I have 3 more Greater London parkrun events (currently 60 in total) to visit to regain my LonDone regionnaire status and I am looking forward to it 🙂

Until next time happy parkrunning everyone 🙂

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Great to be back on the road this week in market town of Rugby, Warwickshire and this being the first parkrun I have ever run in this county.

The town is probably being best known as the modern birthplace of the game of Rugby where the sport takes its name from the public school in the town.

The story goes that in 1823 “when William Webb Ellis caught a football at Rugby School and ran with it, a game was born.” source

Today’s venue

Rugby parkrun is based at Whinfield recreation ground that is the largest multipurpose sporting venue for the town and caters for football, rugby and cricket!

Also part of Rugby parkrun course is run around Whinfield woods that boasts recent grants for both planting new trees and improving the paths around the woods.

Excellent stuff love investments in green projects that are good for one’s mental health and the natural environment!

Course

The course consists of 2 clockwise laps of Whinfield recreation ground & woods with a mixture of running surfaces that included gravel, tarmac paths and grass field sections.

At the end of the second lap, you turn right with the finish funnel awaiting you!

Points to Note

• There is a wide start line on the grass near the changing rooms and I would start off at the pace you are going to run the event as the following corresponding paths around the main playing field is hard to overtake on
• There is a short trail section they call Wilderness that incorporates a downhill then short but sharp uphill piece that will test your fitness
• Love the Strava name for the uphill section Alpe-d’ cemetery with a gradient of 4.8
• Could see running around the grass football pitches perimeter getting very muddy if they have a long period of rain
• Love 2 lappers as the pace I currently go did not get me overtaken by the faster runners that is always a boost to your morale.
• Finally, tourists do not panic like me with no other parkrun runners are around, they all seem to turn up at 8:55 🙂

Over I am happy with my time of 32.47 and I was delighted to be able to run up the hill section twice 🙂

Facilities

There is free parking at Whinfield Recreation ground and Cemetery Sat Nav CV21 3SB, but there are no toilet facilities in the park.

For the post run coffee they retire, to The Canal Lounge @ Bridge 66 Sat Nav CV23 0EY

For me I had to get away afterwards, but on the way home I was so hungry, I pop into the closest service station for breakfast.

It was not lost on me being a Luton Town supporter that I was having my pit stop at Watford Gap Services 🙂 but little did I know was that the service station took its name from the Northampton village of Watford with a population of 320 🙂

Conclusion

I would like to thank this week’s run director Joel and his team of Hi Vis heroes for doing an excellent job on the morning and it was great to chat to the marshals & tail walkers David, Tracey Donaldson after I finished my run!

So, if you want to experience an interesting multi terrain course with a hill section then I can highly recommend a visit to Rugby parkrun.

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Great to be back on the road again after 6 weeks away from parkrun touring with today visited Watermeadows parkrun that is based at in the lovely market town of Towcester, Northamptonshire.

Watermeadows History

Watermeadows park used to be part of Easton Neston estate and closed off to the public until 2009 when it was purchased for the people of Towcester, by the then South Northamptonshire Council.

The park has been developed over the subsequenting years to give the local community a beautiful green space to be proud including a natural designed play area for the children.

Milestones

So today I have reached the unofficial milestone of 150 parkruns events with 125 of them being different ones.

I have been blessed with so many great adventures on my travels that I cannot wait for to see what happens in the next 150 🙂

I would like to also give a big well done to my running club & parkrun friend Dawn who reached her 100 events at our home parkrun of Luton, Wardown today.

Course

The course is a simple just over 4 clockwise laps of Watermeadows park, run almost entirely on newly laid gravel path that is almost flat in elevation terms.

After finishing the final lap there is a short stretch run back along the footpath, then you veer off onto the grass where the finish funnel awaits.

Sorry no course map image this week as I am still getting to grips with my new sports watch and my map was not accurate enough to publish!

Points to Note

• New path was only laid by Christmas last year and is in excellent condition!
• Be careful if you go onto the grass to overtake as it is a bit uneven and cracked in places
• Narrow gate pinch point near the playground section that are to be fair marshalled

Overall, this is a very flat well-maintained course to post a fast time on, for me I was happy with a posted time of 32.42

Facilities

There is free parking at Tove long stay car park Sat Nav NN12 7AH and as stated on their parkrun event website there are no facilities in this park.

For toilet facilities they recommend using is at Tesco, Old Tiffield Road, Towcester, NN12 6PF

For the post run coffee, I retired to Claire’s Cottage Kitchen that is a lovely mobile cafe that is set up just outside the parks main entrance.

I do recommend after completing you parkrun pop up to the top of the ancient monument Bury Mount for excellent views of both the park and the town.

Conclusion

I would like to thank Grace this week’s run director and her team of high viz heroes for making us all feel extremely welcome on the morning, well done guys!

So, if you want a flat fast course to visit then Watermeadows has to be high on your tourist list, you have been told!

For me that I have learned on my travels is parkrun events evolve and are not cast in stone, courses are modified and, in some cases, even change location.

So, my parkrun event reports are only as accurate I can make them for the day I visit, but if I ever go back, I will update my report accordingly to reflect any changes that may have occurred.

Finally, until next time happy parkrunning everyone:)

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner

Great to be back again having a parkrun mini holiday break for the first time for me in nearly three years with a visit to the quintessential of English seaside towns in Margate, Kent 🙂

Special Mentions

Huge congratulations today go to Kylie running her 50th parkrun and Hi-Vis hero Holly who tail walked on her 25th volunteering event, top work ladies!

Course

The course starts at the shelter, then you run 500m west, run around the bandstand and back past the shelter run 2km until the pumping station you then run around the bend onto a small grass loopback section onto the main footpath again and finish back at the shelter.

The course steady undulates in elevation along the cliff top footpaths and apart from a short, small grass loop back section is run on well-maintained wide tarmac paths!

Points to note

• I have been told the short grass loop back drains well and never get that muddy
• As they state on their course description always kept on the left at the junction points on the course

My time was 33:44 that I will happy take that especially as somehow, I ran 5.11 km 🙂

Facilities

We stayed in rented suite on Ethelbert Crescent with all the mod cons, so my journey on the morning was just a half mile walk away from the start of this event.

If you are driving, they state there is free street parking on the B2051. Update I have been informed that you can use the toilets at Walpole Bay Hotel that is very close to the start of this event!

For the post run coffee, we retired to the Palm Bay cafe where I had to indulge myself with double scoop of vanilla ice cream 🍨 and a flake, how lovely and refreshing treat that was to behold.

An alternative if you want a more substantial breakfast, I can highly recommend the well named builders’ breakfast from the Rendezvous Bistro.

I didn’t need to eat for the rest of my day after that monstrously beautiful, cooked meal I had for dinner later in the day, but they are open from 9am.

Other Attractions

There are a lot of things to do in Margate if you plan to stay for the whole day or longer after the parkrun.

Walpole Bay Tidal Pool

If you wish to cool down after your parkrun, why not don on you bathing gear and try the grade 2 listed Walpole Bay Tidal Pool that is 4 acres in size. The tidal pool is located directly below the finish line of Margate parkrun, so you have no excuses 😊

Shell Grotto

We went to the fascinating Shell Grotto that has 4.6 million shells studded into the limestone walls and was discovered by luck in 1835.

A truly breathtaking sight to behold!

Conclusion

I would like to thank this week’s run director Allison and her team of hi vis heroes for an excellent job and the nicest compliment I could give to you all are one of my most favourite parkrun communities that I have ever had the pleasure to visit 🙂

I would say apart from my home parkrun of Luton, Wardown I could not find a more lovelier bunch of people to spend my parkrun morning with. Top work guys 🙂

So, if you are looking for inspiration for a seaside mini break with a top parkrun community, then Margate must be on your parkrun touring to do list, you have been told!

Best

Mark aka Silent Runner