Did my third Parkrun this morning (third consecutive week, in fact). Really enjoying it - not something I ever imagined I'd say about running.
Our local one (Whitstable) is two laps of a course that goes along the prom (eastwards) then back along the top of Tankerton Slopes -
http://www.parkrun.org.uk/whitstable/courseI started doing it partly as a way to persuade my son to do some exercise in the rugby close season, and I'm pleased to say he's really taken to it.
We ride down to the start together, and afterwards do any errands we need to do in town before riding home, so that's a good ten miles cycling on top of the run. A great way to start a Saturday. Having the organisational structure and the set time and place makes it so much easier to motivate yourself to get out and do it. And my son's keenness makes it harder for me to bottle it...
First time out, I set a pace of 5min/km on my Forerunner and finished almost bang on target in 24:56. That pace felt quite comfortable, so next time I pushed a bit harder and used the easterly wind to blow me back to the finish after the turn, so I clocked 23:44, with a 4:14 final km, which I was pretty pleased with.
Didn't do quite so well today - about halfway between those two times. The wind was a stiff westerly, which made the final leg very hard work. But what's really galling is that my son beat me for the first time. And not only that, he beat my PB by 12 seconds!
Race on...
d.