The parkrun 20202020 Challenge - Number 5

-

My fifth parkrun of the challenge was Greenwich. I expected it to be in Greenwich park - beautiful surroundings, wide paths, popular running park. No. It is in Avery Hill Park just outside Eltham, five miles away. Ok, so it is in Greenwich Borough but Avery Hill parkrun would make it much simpler.

Anyway.... I ran over there after visiting all the Blue Plaques in Greenwich Borough which took me through Blackheath, Greenwich, Charlton, Shooter's Hill and Eltham. With 14 miles already under my feet I would need to be in good form to go sub-20. I used the fact I wasn't keen on traveling all this way again to motivate myself.

The webpage gave me a good idea of the route. Three anti-clockwise laps starting at the cafe and finishing roughly in the same place. I asked a couple of runners about the dog-leg behind the trees and they clarified that it is actually a straight run to the path at the bottom.

After a quick stretch I started my watch and set off at speed. I hoped to get a fast first mile in allowing me some respite towards the end. I had to make a few avoiding manouevres to keep two metres from other park users but it was relatively quiet despite the warm, sunny weather.

Towards the end of the lap was a slow climb which sapped my energy, I was panting by the time I reached the top and relieved to have a stretch of flat/downhill to recover. One lap, one mile, 6:14.

Lap two I powered on, forcing myself not to drop the pace. I caught a couple of other runners which gave me an illusion of competition. Two laps, two miles, this one 6:15. I now only needed to do the last lap in under seven. I knew I could slow down but didn't want to risk missing out by a couple of seconds so I kept on the gas.

The last climb really hurt and I was gasping for breath but with only a quarter of a mile to go I wasn't going to slow up. I finished in 19:17, well under the 20:00 I was aiming for and meaning that the last mile was 6:08 with the usual 40 seconds for the 0.1 to the finish.


I really enjoyed the course and the setting and would recommend a visit. I hope to return when parkrun is up and running again and do it with others.


Popular posts from this blog

A bridge too far?

-
Image
A post on Facebook caught my attention. This is how many of my running adventures begin. Bex Band, founder of the women's adventure community Love Her Wild had walked across all the bridges in Greater London. Obviously this meant the Thames River. Less obviously there are 33 bridges in total starting at Hampton Court and ending at Tower Bridge. Of these, 26 have pedestrian access and she had crossed them all. 'Hmm, that would make a good run' was my first thought. Seed planted. A couple of months later on a mild, bright January day I travelled to Richmond. My first run was Richmond parkrun with my friend Vicki and her pal Nicola. 3.1 miles, no dear and a warming coffee later, I ran the nine miles to Hampton Court. Twelve miles done and I was ready to start my run! My goal was to cross each bridge when I came to it. That meant crossing Hampton Bridge and a sign denoting entrance to Surrey before turning and re-crossing it to begin. Yes, I am a pedant. Hampton Court Bridge I
Read more

Bushy, crewing and an Epping ultra

-
Image
What a weekend. It involved some running, some supporting runners and a bit more running. Saturday dawned wet and windy. 300 runners were assembling in Wendover ready for a 43 mile run into London. The fields were boggy, the paths were waterlogged and it was cold. Well, what do you expect on January 8th. These hardcore runners set off while I was driving from east to west London. My first stop was Bushy Park. This, as many will know, was the birthplace of parkrun. On 2nd October 2004 13 runners completed the first 5k with support from Paul  and Joanne Sinton-Hewitt. 17 years later it is a global phenomenon. This was my running pilgrimage. I have wanted to run Bushy since I ran my first parkrun in September 2012. This would be my 291st. A gentle rain was falling as I parked up by the Diana Fountain just across from Hampton Court. To stretch my legs - and kill some time, I was an hour early - I ran around the park exploring the tree lined avenues, gated gardens and open marshland.  Tiny
Read more

The Druid's Challenge

-
Image
This weekend I signed up to be a member of the support team on the Druid's Challenge ultra running event in the Chiltern Hills. My friend Matt was running the three day, 85 mile event. I was allocated to help with set up and checkpoint duties on the Saturday and Sweeper on Sunday. The Druid has been going for 12 years. It is organised by XNRG, a family business that 'help people challenge themselves and break through their mental and physical barriers, whilst providing peace of mind with expertly run events, going the extra mile for every competitor.' They also put on the Pilgrim Challenge and a number of charity events raising money for Humanity Direct. To get there for the 7 o'clock start I left London at 3:30am. The benefit of this was clear roads and the ability to drive through the centre of London with no Congestion Charge to pay. I arrived at the agreed meeting point outside the village of Watlington.  The first wave of competitors were walkers. They were brought
Read more