Deary, deary me!

For months and months I have been parkrunning with children.  I love running with children, I really do, but I do miss my weekly 'me against the clock, all out blast of (almost) speed.'  From time to time I do get to run by myself.  This normally happens when Husbando and I are away by ourselves at a book fair or some other such excitement.

The last weekend of October saw us venturing to North Wales for a reunion at my old school.  The school closed a couple of years ago and has recently been bought and will reopen with a new name in 2016.  We were tempted north with the promise of food and fireworks!  We stayed on Thursday night in a former boarding house  - possibly the most luxurious B&B I have ever stayed in - ready for a quick run around the old cross country course in the morning.   We had a lovely day at the school, followed by a civilised dinner in the dining hall and some stunning fireworks.  Then we sat in the rec in our former sixth form boarding house and made a pretty good attempt at drinking all the alcohol in Wales!  It was all good fun, and great to catch up with friends I haven't seen for years, but at the back of my mind I knew I had to get up in the morning and get to parkrun.  

I'd done my research.  I knew that there were two parkruns in North Wales, I knew which one was closest and I knew the route to get there.  But when the alarm went off at 7am all I wanted to do was stop the infernal noise that was ripping my eardrums into shreds.  I did manage to throw my running kit on and Husbando and I crept out of the sixth form boarding house, into the car and we were on our way - until I called for an emergency stop at the edge of the A55!  Surely all athletes prepare by trying to consume their body mass in wine the evening before a run? Our second stop was at a McDonald's in Abergele for coffee and hash browns (the athlete's breakfast of choice).  I spent a few years living in Abergele - the idea that it has anything as cosmopolitan as a McDonald's is still something of a surprise to me!  

Conwy parkrun is dead easy to find.  You just drive along the A55 to junction 18 and follow the signs for the RSPB reserve.  Or that is what I am told - I had my eye's closed and was whimpering quietly to myself.  When I opened my eyes, to bright sunlight, we were in the car park right next to the start, a few steps away from the loos and the cafe.  Perfect.  And the views were stunning - across the River Conwy.  There were people in halloween costumes, so with my hungover pallor I probably didn't look too out of place.  Husbando said he would run with me.  I told him to run by himself as I didn't want to slow him down.  

The course was a flat out and back, running towards the castle (it is a beautiful castle) beyond it and then back again.  The only elevation was over a railway bridge.  It should have been a lovely, fast run.  Husbando had a lovely run, not pushing himself too hard but achieving a very good time.  Me?  Well, every time I put my foot on the floor my head screamed.  All I wanted to do was finish the damned run.  I could see it was beautiful, I even appreciated the smell of the sea, but I was sweating pure alcohol.  I struggled to keep going.  All the time I was cursing myself for throwing away a good running opportunity.  I managed to pull a little bit of pace out of the bag in the last few metres of the run to overtake a woman I had been following for ages.  Husbando was waiting at the end of the finish funnel (I had the barcodes in my pocket) and declared himself surprised that I had managed to run at all, let alone scrape in under 27 minutes (26.44).  I was just glad to stop running.

I am cross with myself.  Conwy parkrun is lovely, stunning scenery, flat paths, lovely cafe, great volunteer team and yet I wasted the chance for a good run by over indulging the night before.  I would love to think that I could come back and run this one again, but the realist in me knows that the likelihood of me being back in North Wales again is slim.  This is a shame.  I had forgotten how beautiful it is up there, but it is a long way away!  

A weekend of runnning

On Saturday morning we set off to London nice and early so that Husbando could get to  his book fair .  We dropped small children off with various friends as we would be staying over night in the big, bad city and made our way into London along the A3.  This made Wimbledon Common parkrun a logical event for me to attend.  I had done very little research into what the parkrun was like, other than noting the postcode we should aim the sat nav towards, but in my mind I was thinking it would be similar to Bushy Park and Richmond parkruns in terms of the ground underfoot.  

We got there nice and early, and Husbando dropped me off before heading into London.  I found the start and wielded a mallet to help get the poles for the finish funnel into the ground while sheltering under an umbrella.  I chatted with a few regulars and mentioned that I needed directions to the nearest bus stop or station after the run - only to be offered a lift.  The run briefing commenced with much talk of people being put off by the weather and 'jokes' (or so I thought) about snorkels and swimming costumes being necessary.  I picked my way around some sizeable puddles on the way to the start, but thought that it couldn't be too bad.  Anyway, once your feet are wet it is just as easy to go through puddles as it is to go around them.  As is often the case in a new parkrun, I found it hard to know where in the mass of runners I should start, and on Saturday I think I put myself too near the back as I spent the first hundred metres trying to get past people.   I soon settled into a rhythm though, or as much of one as the ground would allow.  We went from a rough path with big puddles to mud with big puddles and tree routes, to puddles and tree routes with a little bit of soggy mud around the edges.  It was great fun if you like that kind of thing.  For the record, I don't! Especially when I had been planning to remain 'parkrun fresh' until we checked into our hotel room later in the afternoon.  I was just thinking about this when I stepped in a puddle that was knee deep!  Sod's law said it had to be my weak right foot - but at least I was icing it instantly! I carried on, making a mental note to avoid that particular puddle on the second lap.  Not a fast time for me - 26.22, but I think to try and go faster in road shoes on that ground would have been suicidal!

The state of my clothing meant that I had to make my way to Sweatshop, armed with Husbando's credit card, to acquire new running tights and socks.  I had clean and dry trainers in my bag so avoided having to buy a new pair of those too.  Given the awful weather (well, it is a Bank Holiday weekend) I didn't think that I'd want to spend the rest of the day in shorts, and was beginning to think  might need capri length tights for Sunday too.

Our hotel was just off Southampton Row.  In fact Husbando proposed to my outside that building (which used to be a Barclays Bank) 21 years ago!  We checked in, tried to decide what we wanted to do that evening, went out for supper, came back to the room and I fell asleep at about 8.30pm.  At around 2am I was woken as two other guests were talking rather loudly as they passed our door.  I was convinced that having had as much sleep as I ever normally get in a night I would not be able to get to sleep again, but the next thing I knew was that Husbando was getting up to go to work!  I had the luxury of not needing to get up for another hour, so went back to sleep until 7.30am.   We had breakfast together and then he headed back to work, and I made my way to Green Park.

The weather was lovely.  I was very glad of this as it meant I could wear my shades.  I was almost in tears as I walked to the start.  It was my baby girl's eighth birthday and  I wasn't there.  I'd never been away from any of them for a birthday, and here I was making my way to a race I couldn't run as well as I wanted to because of poor training on my part and a painful ankle.  I knew that my daughter would be having a whale of a time - she was staying with her best friend, someone she rarely sees since she has moved away from our area and with whom she shares a birthday.  But I still missed her very much.

As I passed the statue of Eros in Piccadilly Circus I saw a 'Fetch' shirt was soon chatting away to the lovely Lully.  We bumped into another Fetchie, philthet, outside the Ritz but we failed to locate the other Fetchies.  I made my way to the UNICEF flag and said hello to the lovely people there.  I've run several races to raise money for them, and they are very supportive of their runners.  On the way to the start I saw some super speedy runners I know,  in their Basingstoke and Mid Hants Athletics Club strip making their way to the first starting pen (Red A, I was in Red D).  The race was started by Mo Farah - who had pulled out of running the race, this will be the only time that I can say that I left him standing on the start line!  

The first quarter mile was very crowded, but I wasn't worried, I wasn't aiming for a specific time. I just wanted to get around without damaging my ankle too much, and to try to enjoy myself.  There was just enough breeze to keep the heat down without feeling as though one was running in a wind tunnel, the crowds along The Embankment were vocal and encouraging.  Just as we approached the underpass the front runners were coming back in the opposite direction.  They had started 8 minutes ahead of us, but there were moving seriously quickly!  I grabbed a dinky bottle of water from the water station and carried on.  I slowed slightly as I scanned the runners passing in the opposite direction hoping to catch a  glimpse of people I knew, and wanting to shout encouragement.  I saw two or three and cheered them on. 

The supporters in The City are always a bit more sparse than along The Embankment and Birdcage Walk, which is actually something of a relief.  A chance to settle into a pace and concentrate on running rather than watching the crowds.  There was a band in Leadenhall Market, and another one near Blackfriars Underpass (I think) that was playing 'Tainted Love' as I ran past.  As I came back onto the Embankment a girl running in front of me was obviously struggling - I ran with her for a while reminding her to breath deeply, not to push too hard, but when she stopped to 'chuck her cookies' I checked that she was OK (ish) found a marshall to look after her, and then we parted company.  2 years ago, on a blisteringly hot day it was me throwing up due to sun stroke, then carrying on to run the rest of the race shivering as I felt so cold!    I wasn't watching my Garmin, and knew that I was way off PB pace, but when I hit the '800m to go' point I thought I would time how ling it took me to run 800m.  I've never timed myself over that distance and was curious.  It took me 3mins 51seconds.  If I'd been able to run a straight line rather than trying to run around people (and traffic signs) it might have been a bit faster.   I crossed the line in front of Buckingham Palace in glorious sunshine, feeling better about running than I have all month.  When I looked at my watch I saw that I'd run a respectable 52.31, and even with the time I'd slowed down and stopped to help the other runner, I'd managed a negative split.    

 I didn't have as much time as I'd have liked afterwards to hang around and see other runners I knew - but I did say hello to a few people.  I had a hotel room to get back to and the bliss of a shower!  The goody bag was much better than in recent years - a nice tshirt, and enough samples of snacks and drinks to keep my children happy for a while.  This year's medal is lovely too - with the route on the reverse side.

All in all, a good day.

A hidden gem.

I have driven up and down the A316 many, many times, but I had never noticed Crane Park Island before.  What an utter treat it was to discover this wonderful nature reserve virtually under the shadow of Twickenham Stadium and in the middle of South West London's urban sprawl.  This park is the site of a former gunpowder mill, but is now home to kingfishers, water voles and Crane parkrun!

Thanks to some help via the Facebook page I found my way to the park.  Thanks to the most unhelpful dog walker ever, I was merrily heading off in totally the wrong direction.  "Oh yes, this is the way they come from every Saturday, just after 9am!" she said as I wondered if I was going in the right direction, under a bridge on a very narrow path by the river.  Luckily I bumped into a runner I met at the Abingdon marathon, I knew he looked familiar, but I am useless with names and faces so was very relieved when he called out 'MrsBridgewater!' as I approached.  At the start I met another runner I knew from Frimley Lodge parkrun  - the running world is very small!

At the start I put my favourite Gore running jacket in a stranger's back pack.  As you do.  The start is some distance from the finish so the lovely volunteers act as sherpas between the two points.  After the run briefing I tried to decide where to stand in the mass of runners.  I plonked myself towards the back of the middle, if that makes sense.  This was not a great place to start, the path is fairly narrow, and I got a bit blocked in for the first couple of hundred metres.  I was running naked  - i.e. without my Garmin.  Not through choice, but because it was away for repair.  Running without my Garmin at my own parkrun, where I could use other runners I know to gauge my pace, is one thing, running without it with a totally unknown group of people is a different matter!  I was also recovering from a nasty tummy bug, so had not idea how this was going to turn out.

The course is mainly on paths through the park (both compact gravel and tarmac) and is made up of one a three quarter laps.  You leave the park briefly three times - to run along the pavement of two roads.  This seems to be quite a novelty in parkrun terms.  I plodded along, not really sure of my pace, but loving the park!  Loads of bird song, and no traffic noise in the depths of the park - and sculptures, I want to go back and walk around so I can have a proper look.  There are no km markers, and that, along with no Garmin, meant I really did have no idea how I was getting on.  I chatted with a few people as I ran, determined to enjoy myself.  The finish hadn't been set up when I passed it the first time, so I didn't even know where I was aiming for!  I asked one runner I passed how long it was to the finish.  "You just go up that hill, round a couple of corners then up a bit and it is on your left."  Which was exactly what I had to do, but what I really needed to know was roughly how many metres!    You don't get much visual warning either - as it is just around a bend, but for the last few metres you can see the coffee van ahead, which must spur a lot of runners on a bit!

The coffee van being 'right there' at the end meant that a lot of runners stayed to drink coffee, chat and cheer on those who finished after them.  The coffee was very good too!  I met up with runners I knew 'virtually' from the FetchEveryone website, had a bit of a chat, drank my HUGE cup of coffee in the sunshine, before dashing back into London so that I could use the shower in my hotel room before I had to check out!  I've done a lot of inaugural parkruns recently, and they always have a bit of a party atmosphere, same faces, different venue, but turning up to an established parkrun on my own is a different animal.  I get quite nervous about it to be honest, so a huge thank you to everyone who made me feel so welcome.  I'll be back, and may bring small children with me!


In other news
Garmin must be praised for their excellent customer service!  Posted my watch to them on Wednesday, and a replacement was sent to me so that it arrived on Saturday.  This is for a watch that is out of guarantee - but only by a week!  That has saved me a few pennies!

As I was in London I decided to pay a visit to Sweatshop's self styled 'ultimate destination' for runners. I can only say that I was distinctly underwhelmed.  I have shopped at the Sweatshop concession in Harrods for years (and get lovely Harrods points when I do so), but I expected the flagship store to be bigger, better and have a huge range of lovely things for me to buy.  They didn't.  In fact there had been a greater choice in Harrods.  The service was good and friendly, but it lacked the 'wow factor' I'd been led to expect.

And finally...
We didn't know where to stay on Saturday night.  So we went to to lastminute.com  to have a look around.  We discovered their 'top secret hotels' - basically you book a certain star rating of hotel in a specified area, but you don't find out where you are going until after you book.  We ended up at W London - somewhere we would never have considered, but which we absolutely loved.  It feels as though we were living in a bond movie, very stylish and luxurious!