Yes, it's another year and another parkrun. Us, and 465 others turned up for the 9am start in almost brilliant sunshine. A lovely sunrise over a choppy sea bought out the amateur mobile photographers getting the perfect shot or the perfect selfies to mark this special event. We cycled the very flat and traffic-less route to park our bikes adjacent to the finish funnel. Last night was an early New Year's eve with a delicious steak dinner for 2. a bottle of bubbly ( cheap stuff) after starting the evening with a gin & tonic and a fascinating look at the rise and fall of the Woolly Mammoth, according to the David Attenborough, Swindon dig-team ! Sleep was punctuated by the occasional firework and then severely curtailed by some very local 'bangs' at midnight.....hey-ho! But for a few hours later, we were pacing around the bedroom deciding if we would both wear the black '100', was it really 12C outside and should we have a banana first? Back to the parkrun. Toilet stop, warmup and join the throngs on the pebbles. 
It was obvious from the off that there were 'lots' and thankfully we soon spread out before we actually started to pass peeps. These of course included first-timers that had no sense of 'pacing it' , small children with an adult both shuffling erratically with the promise of sweets or an ice cream at the end( good for them for getting out there) and dog runners that always seemed to need a lengthy poo-break! So, both in, in mid 33's, not bad considering the lack of sleep, poor diet and alcohol! Coffee and cake at the kiosk plus a longer route, via Ferring, back home for a bacon-butty brunch.
Just as winter can conjure up some stunning, clear, fresh and 'wonderful to be alive' parkrun mornings, it can invariably bring the wettest dreariest and 'stay in bed' days also. Today was one of those! Wisely, or stupidly, we had put our names on the volunteering roster as we had promised to join a Sunday morning 'parkrun' training day with Lesley's running club......open to all......so that is why I was included! The promise of rain coming early and finishing late had us using our car to get to the start instead of a bus. This was partly to enable us to dress accordingly and keep spares in the car and we had also volunteered for a 1-6pm shift at the local vaccination centre, so no hanging around coffee-ing and cake-ing today. As well as being wet it was also windy and a tadge cold, well it is January! 
Our dress sense was captured by a parkrun photographer that soon went 'viral' on Facebook! If I start at the bottom, extra warm trousers that we purchased from a well known Japanese shop in Oxford.......brilliant, no wind penetrates and no heat loss, waterproof walking trousers, Runderwear long sleeve base thermals, fleece, waterproof trekking coats, ex-Moonwalk (London) poncho, high-vis, gloves, but removed as we were doing 'tokens' and dexterity is a must for the 266 slightly mad crowd of parkrunners. Peak caps with hoods-up and in Lesley's case, as she was customer facing .... a mask! It all went very smoothly with Mike parkrun, a frequent RD at Worthing, welcoming the soggy parkrunners to 'sunny' Worthing and we welcomed the even more soggy group, back with their tokens! Even though a fair-few looked cheesed off, they at least turned up and many thanked us for volunteering in such awful weather.............shame really as Sunday was the exact opposite with a chilly, fresh, cloudless sky, perfect for running but hey-ho!
The morning breaks as many mornings this week, frosty! 
The 700 bus is on-time and we alight at the pier where an ominous amount of parkrunners are already gathering. The sea has just a ripple and the wind.....or gentle breeze has gone back to a westerly, so harder out than back today. I can't resist a picture of the stunning sun-rays across the tranquil sea before a now, mandatory pre- run loo-stop and a very gentle warm up. Today is Lesley's running club's 'mass participation' day and as the club has only about 50 signed up members and with the 'thirds' rule being applied, only 18 turn up! This appeared to be a cross section though from age, circa 20s, to age circa 70s. From fast and competitive, to even slower than us! Amongst the 497 parkrunners gathering at the start-shelter I managed to get a 
group picture before the slightly, scrambled- off! Lesley and I soon got into our <34 pace shuffling together, dodging the pier bollards, the surprised morning strollers and quite a few folks that had overestimated their starting pace and being overtaken by those that must have arrived late or just underestimated their pace! We seemed to be in or around a pack of 4 or so, lady Worthing Striders for most of the run today and the 'beauty' of an out & back is that on our out we got to cheer-on the rest of her club as they strided back towards their own goals. So, it was mid-33s for both of us with me slightly ahead as Lesley is working towards the Worthing 10km in April, so lower pace, longer distance for her. The Coast cafe is closed for refurbishment so a stroll to Cafe Nero in town for a coffee and chinwag with a few of the team....... just as an aside, the almond croissant was a touch naff and the flat-white, a touch tasteless! The Coast doesn't open till later in the month so will have to choose another venue for a while. Bus 700 back to enjoy the rest of the chilly day........chilling!
We are well into the wintery month of January and a 'blocking-high' is dominating our weather pattern this week, last week and it looks set for next week. This sunny and frosty weather is just right for winter and this morning is set to be....the same. However, close inspection of early morning daybreak from our bedroom window reveals very little condensation on the window, (our rough guide to outside temperature) a cloudy sky and no frost on the shed roof! 8am is our must leave by time on parkrun day and 7:45am is check the 700 bus app time only to reveal that the 8:15 and 8:27 are both going to be no-shows! Covid and lack of staff have turned our reliable and prompt coastal service into a guessing game that must be hard for those that need to arrive at their jobs.....on time! with us it is simply, use the car and walk-in for the last 20minutes or get the bikes out! No rain, not too cold so.....it's bikes today! Half an hour cycle, tether the bikes, remove outer clothing, loo-stop and ready for the off with a full 10 minutes warm-up / natter, to spare! Circa 475 of us burst into life, us near the back after starting on the beach.
A steady pace as we overhaul or are overhauled by other shufflers. Today threatened to be a bit sqiffy as we had achy bodies from previous days of gardening or training etc. however the first km was fine, so was the 2nd, 3rd and 4th with both of us putting in excellent times on the low 33's with me............a PB! The Coast cafe is now reopened and was pretty full as we took our flat-whites and compulsory cakes before the cycle back home. Rumours around the cafe were of a heart-attack en-route of a male runner, we saw nothing of the frightening scene but read on the Worthing parkrun facebook page that all appears to be 'ok' . Marshals, members of the public and a quick to arrive ambulance had saved the day and all wished him well. On sobering reflexion, at home, my Fitbit stats showed I maxed twice at 178 bpm and averaged 170 bpm for 33 minutes! Very high for me ( at 73) but feel it could have been my spare watch is telling porky-pies.........must check when my replacement turns up as I felt ok and am always conscious that I don't push it too hard.
New Fitbit and just me today as Lesley and a contingent from her running club are doing a volunteer 'takeover' ........well not quite as there are just 10 of them available! Bikes today, as I lock mine to a tree at the finish and discover I have left the lock keys at home! So, I pretend lock it by just coiling around the crossbar and tree. I should say, our trusty Marins are well-aged and heavy with probably zero street-cred, unless you collect old, well used machines that are difficult to lift and take some serious energy in propelling, even on a flat shiny surface! of the promenade. Lesley is doing 'turn-a-round marshal and this involves cycling to almost midway point......with a bollard......well before 9am so as to not miss the speedy from runners and believe me you would struggle to keep up with them on a bike! The day is stunning, chilly and a bit of a westerly breeze as ,close on 400 gathered for ~Mike parkrun's briefing. We were all chillingly made aware that last week. 2 volunteers, members of the public and an adjacent defibrillator saved a parkrunners life! He stressed the need to have your 'ICE' up to date as the 70-74 age grouped ( same as me) guy had an early-issue barcode card with no contact details. Back to today's shuffle and I start my watch leaving the info on heart! Will it get to 178 and average at 170 again? Thankfully, an old spare Fitbit did tell porkies as I was back to normal for my 34 minutes.
It was good to see Lesley at the turn-a-round as I knew now the wind would be behind for the remaining 2.7km. I did a little flypast gesture and settled down for the return at the same pace as a girl who chatted about her best time of 26 minutes.........before the injury, then back around 30 minutes...........before getting covid and now picking it back up to 34 before hopefully, getting back to around 30 again, she said.. This was a good pace for us to just enjoy as she kindly let me over the line first. Not very gentlemanly, but she insisted and so I did! Thankfully my bike was still there, I never doubted for a second. Lesley returned after her turn-a-round duty to join in the cheering-on of the latter finishers who really deserve the accolade and all the support. The Coast cafe was pretty full inside as they are renovating the outside area on the beach and it is currently closed to those hardy enough to enjoy the el-fresco coffee and cakes. We really enjoyed the inside today as the chill wind would have soon cooled our flat-whites! Back on the bikes for the 20 minutes back home.
Preston Park Brighton parkrun this week and a family turnout to watch and run...........well just our 10 years old grandaughter, but she did a good job of keep our pace down as we needed all of our strength for tomorrow! 
Son and girlfriend were looking on as we had booked a viewing at their new flat in Varndean just a few minutes walk away from.....Preston Park and its 2 loop + ......round the park, parkrun. Just a slight hill at the end towards the cafe otherwise, lovely flat tarmac. To take part in a parkrun is inherently safe but for a second week we had a 'casualty', this time a lady that had stumbled and needed the services of the marshals, parkrunners that had stopped to offer assistance and a couple of passing police officers that had spotted the scene as they drove past. I suppose that within any crowd of around 400 participators. something could happen to anyone that is maybe pushing hard, getting tired or looking at the view and trip over (my trick!). The moral of the story is surely it is better to be out in the fresh air, enjoying the moment, than to still be in bed, watching Breakfast Saturday, or Cash in the Attic etc. etc. Time today was not an issue, we trotted around in 50 minutes as our grandaughter did a great 'pacing' job, leaving sufficient reserve for tomorrow.
Sunday, it's a day in the calendar when I had been volunteered for a good-cause charity run in Arundel. Now if you know 
Arundel you will be aware that it has a fine village and a fine castle.......set on a fine hill! The picture borrowed from the castle website shows its fine features on a.......fine day! Our day was far from fine. The forecast, so often we find, exaggerates the bad weather. Today they got it spot-on, in-fact, it was a tadge understated as there was no mention of a monsoon at 10am! We turned up at 7:45 for an early start for 'Rundown Cancer' along with an estimated couple of hundred other hardy soles. Carpark pay machine was eventually mastered ( doesn't wake up till 8am) Toilet queue eventually cleared ( doesn't get opened...you guessed....until 8am ) by which time the rain joined in with the wind to make us soggy before we had registered or pinned our numbers to our T shirts! The Run burst into life after the mandatory safety briefing and on a nice day the castle walls, the River Arun, the millpond and old mill, The Black Rabbit pub and the beautiful, car-free, undulating lane, would have been stunning.Today it was head down for 2 miles out and head down for the 2 miles back. I would say it was flat for half and hilly for the rest! We were not without familiar faces as Worthing Striders, Lesley's club, had also turned up and 
Stuart from our local Ramblers who lives nearby, kindly cheered us on and took this photo of us trying to look like it was enjoyable and I suppose in hindsight it was good fun really, as when it rains and rains and you get soaked right through, you just have to laugh and say.....at least it wasn't cold........and just count ourselves lucky that we can do it! The finishing time? Again, it was not important save to say, around 50 minutes. Not bad in that rain, wind and those hills! The only disappointment was there was no chance of the socialising get-together afterwards as the passing monsoon had scuppered that and 'dampened' any enthusiasm but to run back to the car and drive home before a chill set in!
Feb 12th and the weather should be a little fresher as we join around 400 others to face the westerly wind up to the turn-a-round. Tomorrow is one of Lesley's Sussex 'fun run' league and being her first she wants to leave a good margin of reserve for the hilly Tilgate Park 4 mile so she can at least score a finishing point!. So it's a normal circa 34 minutes for me and a just 'enjoy' the moment for Lesley trying out her new orange windproof jacket in anticipation of tomorrows grim forecast! 
At least we didn't miss out on the croissant and coffee before we walked along the prom towards home! Tomorrow soon came around and the weather report was getting better with rain now expected around midday. I did my usual and trotted off to the best vantage / encouragement spot on the run which turned out to be a thrice pass-over on the bridge between the two ponds.This seemed a popular spot and the first runner came sprinting down the hill in 7 minutes! 
That was the first 2km and Lesley came down looking in fine fettle at about 15 minutes. Sharp left around the large lake clockwise and back across the bridge, around the small lake, back again from the lake path and up the last hill and back through the park to the K2 running track. I had already left my cheering-point and ascended the hill to give encouragement at the top. Unlike a lot of the latter runners that had already decided to walk, Lesley slowly shuffled to the summit and then I took a shortcut back to the finish where a lap of the running track completed the fun-run in just on 1 hour ( 61mins.) Back to the car home and the heavens opened on cue. Unlike the previous Sunday today we were both dry and settled down for a wonderfully welcome roast dinner cooked by daughter...............P.S. Lesley scored 1 point for her club, she assumed for just taking part and finishing! The picture makes it look s if she was last but there were plenty of club runners still to finish.
Littlehampton parkrun on the promenade following a stormy week of high winds and structural damage........well, I have only 3 fence posts to repair. This weather, with the deluges of February rain fall has caused mayhem to the parkrun programme with flooded events and anywhere with woodland the risk or actual fallen trees. Promenade runs faired no better with many local events having debris and pebbles across the path leading to cancellation! With prediction or just plain luck, Lesley's club had asked all to 'mass run' at Littlehampton promenade some 15 to 20 minutes away, by car. Our 'warm-up' was the shuffle down to the start from the carpark a couple of km's along the promenade. 
It was a glorious morning, slightly breezy as we greeted some volunteers, out early, to sweep the pebbles off the course. A good support team had already gathered and we took our usual photos followed by the loo-stop and then a chatter to the gathering crowd, including a few Worthing Striders and recognisable faces from Worthing parkrun. It is an out and back loop and then another out and back loop so we should see quite a lot of the 'faster' runners today. First timers briefing over and then then main briefing of congratulations, milestones, tourist destinations, keep left and the countdown to off! Lovely downward leg with the strengthening westerly behind us before the first turn around when the wind started to take its tole on my stamina. I slogged on, not too bad so far, lost my hat just before the turn around, Lesley retrieved on her way past and thankfully the wind behind us once again. Lesley and fellow slower team mates were just ahead but I found myself thinking about the next turn-a-round at the beach cafe. The breeze was far from gentle now as for the second time, I lost my hat, blown on to the pebbles and retrieved by me as I knuckled down for the homeward leg. Finishing time was not not bad, just a few minutes down on other flat PB's but of course the first and fastest time at Littlehampton! Farewells to the team and volunteers before a walk back to the car, via the Edge Cafe for a superb bacon roll! How lucky were we this morning as just a few minutes later, the sun disappeared and the rest of the day turned to grey skies and rain!
It's been a pretty bad week for the world as Russia, or Putin, decide to invade Ukraine. We can only watch in disbelief and hope that the people of Russia see their 'leader' is sovery wrong and do something about it! It seems a bit pale to talk about parkrun and the weather when others are fleeing or fighting so a bit low-key this week as 390 get out for a very sunny and Spring like run. PB's for both of us.....by seconds with Lesley finishing strongly this week and me.......just trying to stay in there.
Friday morning shuffle around the seafront and back through smart bungalow-ville of Ferring when a 'pull' occurs in my left groin. I slow down to a walk back for the last mile. That's it for parkrun tomorrow and I promptly volunteer my services to marshal instead. The day is chilly but dry as I take up my position at Worthing Pier to clap and encourage.
Lesley has joined some running buddies to see if she can put in a good time.........not being hampered by me! I take up my cheering point and quickly realise that 'something is going on' For the next 45 minutes the whole troupe of the adjacent pier theatre is turning up with families and friends for a dress rehearsal or performance. At 10 minutes to nine I have about 50 or so performers, carrying their costumes and due to someone not having the key to the doors, are standing all over the pavement that is shortly to be invaded by 420 parkrunners! 9 am and the doors open and thankfully most are inside before the front runners appear. This just leaves the next half-hour of 'crew' presumably with stage setups, parking and rushing boxes of clobber, back-and-forth across the prom and into the theatre. I do my best to usher them across, when the coast is clear, but the out-and-back route soon produces the fast-ies, coming back in the other direction! Apart from that it was uneventful! Lesley was just outside her Worthing PB and despite me not running, I still had a cake and coffee at Coast as sometimes it can be more chilling to run than marshal!
It's volunteering again for me as the 'strain' is not completely cleared up. However, its going to be a challenge or a different kind as I have been designated as timekeeper today! This involves the parkrun app and a degree of dexterity combined with observation, concentration and sharpness of finger-to-screen.This is also carried out with a windy chill that eventually affects your hands and number importantly, the counting finger! 
The day is set fair as we stop the 700 short on the promenade to get a good warm up for Lesley and a morning stretch for me. Walking to the start with finger poised on the app start button it was good to be at the front of the crowd to see the keen runners jostling for the front row before the, off. It's a brisk walk back to take up my position with the co-timer (two peeps in case it goes pear-shaped) and in just a few minutes the first guy is back, some 3 minutes ahead of the rest. Nice to see him cheer on the rest with applause and encouragement and amazing to see the 4th or 5th pushing a sleeping child in a pushchair and around 12th a guy pushing a girl around in a wheelchair..........incredible! Close to 400 today and a certain.... Lesley... managed a PB, without me pacing her ( holding her back, she said) . All back in 50 + minutes and my numbers were spot-on, none missed or double clicked! Might be asked to do this task again? Coast cafe is mobbed with parkrunners as we are quite late but room with a view upstairs was fine for coffee and cake before a pleasant walk, all the way home in the warmish sunshine.
It's a running club monthly 'tour' of local parkruns and Lancing has been chosen this week. As we look out of the bedroom window the sun is already bright and barely a breath of wind. Decision made and it's bikes to the start today as we check Google and it says 36 minutes from us to Lancing Green parkrun.........what could be better? Trusty Marins, padded cycle shorts, flat paths, sunshine and now, just a gentle easterly. This is not the 'usual' direction but hey-ho and off we go at 8am. We cycle a convoluted meander that winds down under the railway line through the suburbs and joins the promenade cycle/walkway all the way to Lancing. It is as we go up onto said prom-path that the easterly strengthens and we struggle to make just a few miles-per-hour. A bike needs a certain momentum for balance and stability and at our head-down pace it was teetering on the edge! We pass Worthing pier and the Worthing parkrun start where the early-birds are already gathering and we have a few miles to go still. 
The new build sea-front tower block creates a hurricane like gust that almost has us dismounting........but heads down and we arrive at 8:45 in time to lock our bikes, greet the run club in time for photos, briefing and off! I still have my dicky groin but it's not so bad and I decide to 'take it easy' today. The now strong Easterly sees to I stick to my plan straight away. After Worthing, Lancing seems much more relaxed with around 150 starters there is no big gathering but then again, it is a narrower path that follows the 'out & across the green then back' before joining said path! Having done this parkrun several times ( 2019 the last one) The out and back was familiar, sea on the right, turn-a-round at the orange beach hut, sea on your left and just before The Perch, down hill to the finish! Not a bad finishing time for my dodgy pull-thing with enough strength to cycle back to Coast cafe for the usual coffee and cake where the Worthing parkrun were still not quite packed up.
Back to Worthing on another glorious morning, so good we cycled again. The breeze was gentle and the views along the prom and out to sea were wonderful, if not, a bit hazy today. 
Mandatory selfie taken, and both in our lightweight summer attire, no sleeves, warm hats (only peaked for sun) or gloves and me in shorts! I decided to run with my now, 4 weeks of leg thingy. Wise or not? 3-2-1 & Lesley seemed to disappear into the morning sunshine without the hint of me trying to follow...... with that annoying shuffling sound ( I don't think I do !) I can't say it was comfortable but I think I will have to live with the pain or stop running and all the problems of becoming an overweight, lifeless, couch-potato! Slight exaggeration as I still walk well and often and go to the gym etc. Somewhere in the middle 30's would be good as I high-five'd Lesley just after the Canada flag, me going west and Lesley going east, on her way back! As I approached the finish line she was cheering enthusiastically with a hint of smugness, knowing she made a good time.......yes, it's another PB. Me? around 35 mins, as hoped for, with an aching upper leg too-boot as we sat for coffee and munching croissants upstairs at Coast. The day was so good we walked back, all the way passing enthusiastic swimmers taking advantage of the mild, sunny and very calm sea.
A week in British weather is a very long time. Gone is the 18C mild Spring and back are hard frosts, snow showers and a cold northerly wind.Looking out of the window at 6:45am on parkrun day, confirmed the weather forecast was spot-on. 0C rising to 3C at 10am. Frozen windscreens, chill breeze and plenty of time meant it was to be a fuel saving day again. The app says the 700- 8:15 is on-time today so the 10 minutes walk to the bus stop in our winter attire donned with coats, hats, gloves and scarfs.........but importantly, sunglasses. 
Yes. it is another stunning morning, the breeze is not bad at all, the sun is sparkling on a Mediterranean like sea and underneath our winter clothes we are warm! We chat with the early morning runners and one of the quicker guys we always see said he walked from Bognor to Brighton last Saturday, yes 30 miles, 10 hours! Why? he didn't really explain, not for charity but sort-of training! I am still a bit limpy so no great run times expected and not achieved! However, just grateful to be out there in the fresh air, shuffling along, looking forwards to coffee and cake!
We do seem to be lucky or is it just living by the sea that the weather is set fair once again for today's parkrun, (151 for me)along the prom. The pictures I take prior to our run are beginning to look a tad 'same-ey' so today I include a gull that was posing in front of the pier! 
Lesley has stepped up a gear in distance in training for the Worthing 10km in a couple of weeks but that does mean she has to slow down on the 5km so as to not over do it! With my left buttock strain I have no problem in slowing down and today I decide to walk a bit......run a bit. Along with almost 400 others, as I am still sporting a runny nose after a few days (covid tests negative) and it would be wise to keep around the rear of the crowd. I see Lesley disappear and I find my speed walk pace is quicker than some of the shufflers including our ladies .........albeit one has had a recent knee replacement and is waiting for the other to be done in August! I try the counting method of 20 for shuffling and then 20 for walking and so on..... until the 20 shuffling becomes 30 and 20 walking etc.etc. 41:04 was the finishing time and position 333! Lesley had a good run with her 'slow' pace time of 34 mins. Perfect finish to the parkrun was sitting outdoors at the refurbished outdoor beach-eating area at Coast, soaking in the sunshine and gentle breeze.
It's warm again and has been all week. We have enjoyed a week of finishing off the front garden path and a long walk with the our local ramblers around Arundel park. The only downside is my grandaughter ( yes the one that has done parkrun with us) has gone down with the dreaded covid.....again! Thats another birthday spoiled as well as the last two and Christmas. It's day 5 and she feels fine so we meet on the beach, at a distance, not sharing cups, but thankfully sharing cakes! It's been a week of using our trusted but heavyweight Marins to get around on and the lack of hills around here are a bonus but do nothing for our Fitbit stats! Saturday morning is no exception as we take the 20 or so minute warm-up cycle, tethering them close to the start and close to Coast cafe. 
Compulsory selfie for the family Whatsap and join what seems to be a big gathering today ( 450) as we chat, listen to the briefing and head off from our usual start place, on the pebbles.Lesley has gone out of sight by the time I pass the pier and with my stiff bum-thing I take quite a bit of time before my pace settles to a fast-norm (for me) On the shuffle back I keep within a few yards of 'lady prom-shuffler' that we see from time to time at parkrun and when we also shuffle , mid-week. Her 'pacing' gets me over in a few seconds outside PB! Lesley is inside hers and the fastest time this year. Still, it's not about racing, it's about the coffee and cake, socialising afters? My Wendover Woods T-shirt attracts attention at Coast outside as a group have come down from nearby St Albans as tourists & for their Easter Holidays. We chat to a couple from Valentine Park parkrun in South London, also on the holiday-tourist trail..........all in all, a nice day.
We have a busy week with rambling, gardening and last training for Lesley, prior to her Worthing 10k taking place on Bank Holiday Monday. This means that it will be a gentle parkrun and a 'normal' one for me. Not too many this week as there is a busy programme of running events so just the 340 and a good crowd of volunteers! My time is around 34 and almost an enjoyable, sunny shuffle along the prom and back. Monday, and its an early start. I have volunteered to marshal the 10k and meet up to be shown my position which is on the end-of-prom roundabout. So, donning my high-vis ( yellow bin-bag with MARSHAL on the front) I take up my position to welcome and encourage all the 1500 runners, walkers, pushers and shufflers, of both the 10k and half-marathon events. The roundabout is rounded for both events, out and back, but twice for the half-marathoners. Both races start almost simultaneously, one has blue numbers and one has red numbers...so no confusion there? Lesley was really fine, considering her hip....knee...foot...things she finished in 1 hour 10 minutes, roughly the same time as the half marathon winner! How do they do it? I stood in the centre of the dual carriageway ( road closed so don't worry) and had to keep my eyes on both sides trying to see who was out, back and finishing!
No problems though, no medical issues so I could enjoy the day until the tail bike came through following the last half marathon shufflers including a girl with a white fluffy dog in her rucksack! Yes, double take as on the way up I thought it was a fluffy toy mascot but when it turned it's head with a doggy expression of 'are we nearly there as I feel all-shook-up' ( sorry for that, only Elvis was doing the post run entertainment in Worthing and very good he was too, albeit much slimmer in the white suit than I remember!)
It was to be a volunteering day for Lesley as she would be running the Vitality 10k in London on Monday ( Bank Holiday) and wanted to 'save herself' for what turned out to be a long day! Early train up and meet in Green Park at 9am to warm-up for the start, shuffle down with the RED wave, those that would run in around an hour, after joining, of course, the mandatory loo-queue! 
As 'bag-man' I wandered off to find a lovely viewing spot at the last bend just as the first finishers in the elite race were sprinting over in 38:40s!! Mo was second this year but still quick! Lesley was 1 hour 09. Very pleased with a pretty consistent an even paced run! Back to Worthing parkrun though and another sunny and breeze free day as I finish in the 33's, timed by Lesley for her first try at 'digital' timekeeping. So, without a 'pacer' I did pretty well.......and the leg is still a bit squiffy!
Another week has passed with barely a hint of rain, except for a 15 minute downpour that had the garden breathing a sigh of relief, save for some essential watering for the burgeoning vegetables. That has been that for most of April and now the same for the beginning of May! Just shorts and T's today as it's already warm when we trot down to the 8 am: bus. Chris and dog are already on-board for the 15 minute, stop at almost all stops (due to a cancelled earlier '700' had doubled the passengers!) before our usual alighting a couple of stops short of the pier so as to do a warm-up shuffle. 
By the start we partake in the enjoyable and very 'parkrun', social catch-up with the friends we have made and then the always sudden & wobbly, pebbly off after the essential briefing. We both run together at what seems a reasonable pace.......for us. The sun soon warms and the breeze going west is nil. We pass Maurice early on, the 75+ who always starts near the front of the crowd (450+ today). Maurice is great, each week he sets-up and takes down the funnel, then runs when he feels fit and his dodgy knees aren't playing-up too much and always finishes in a competitive 33+/ 35+ minutes! He has already told me that the 4th jab has taken the oomph out of him....but his pace seems pretty good to me. Jogging together we overhaul a few and get overhauled by a few as well including a 'mum' with a double buggy! The way back from the, almost half-way turn, has just enough breeze to keep you cool and we both finish with a 'sprint' at around our flat-run PBs. It's warm enough again to stay and cheer on the tail, chat a bit more and of course, coffee and cake at Coast outside on the beach.The new long bench and tables encourage more after-event conversations as sharing seating takes some of the British reserve away!
A planned short break in Devon staying in a luxury Pod on a farm in South Devon and although it seems situated a million miles from anywhere, with oodles of peace & quiet, views to die for, it does have a pub within a short walk and a stunning sandy stretch of beach that is 20 minutes drive away. And, on this beach, or promenade to be more precise, something happens each and every Saturday.............yes, it's the Exmouth parkrun. So, up bright and early on a stunning sunny morning with just a hint of a breeze as we don our T's and shorts. 
Parking nearby is easy and free if you go somewhere near the lifeboat station on the far side of the dunes. This spot is shared by just the parkrun fraternity at this time in the morning but we can imagine it fills up pretty quickly later in the morning. We follow a few likely parkrunning suspects across the dunes and onto the stunning promenade that is to be our seaside run today. A 10 minute warm up shuffle to the start area that is already buzzing with expectant runners and a host of volunteers. The beach is golden sand and the sea is a mediterranean shade of blue as boarders and those now inevitable, cold-water swimmers, already there in droves. We have a chat with a few and are 'warned off' of the chicane close to the easterly direction start. It's not our problem we feel as it only affects the bunched -up masses at the start! The RD welcomes everyone including 'tourists' from as far away as Hartlepool. I imagine that during the peak season there would be a good proportion of tourists boosting the near 400 today! One young lady spoke to us and wished us well, she was down from Bristol with her family and said they can "do without me for an hour" on Saturday and it soon became clear she was a, elite runner being first female and about 5th overall. Check stats afterwards, she was not quite as young as she looked and had come female-first quite a few times. So, the course heads east shortly before looping 360 and heading along the prom passing to the right of the lifeboat station where already the first runners are seen to be returning to the finish! We shuffle on until the promenade finishes where we loop back again east. Many runners have already passed us but on our return there are still plenty shuffling, walking and 'strolling'. The course then keeps right of the lifeboats station ( one side out and one side back) making it feel a little less like an out-and-back but more like a sausage shape loop. The finish green comes into view, pretty full with the usual hubbub post parkrun, but we have an additional loop as far as the 'yellow seafront hotel. before the 360 and sprint for home! 
Not a bad run, Lesley is uncatchable and I won't let the two behind pass ( where has this competitive streak come from)? Anyway.....PBs for both of us! We head back east, nearer to our car, to the recommended coffee and cake stop and relax in the warmth of a mid-May perfect warm day The cafe is in a fairly new 'trendy' section of the beach where all the boarders and swimmers and on Saturday, parkrunners, 'hang-out'. On reflexion we must say, Exmouth ticks a lot of boxes, not just it has a superb parkrun, friendly team of volunteers, easy & free parking nearby behind the dunes, flat and fast course, plenty to take your mind off the pain on the waterfront..........but it's a nice town with a lovely beach, good shops, a station and even an open-top bus along the seafront ( yes we couldn't not take it as it was a regular Stagecoach to Sandy Bay and we could use our concessionary bus-passes) ps. Sandy Bay turned out to be one of the biggest holiday static caravan sites we have seen!............nice bay and nice beach though!
Barely a breeze as we take our bikes this morning and cycle the short flat route to Worthing prom. There is a lack of bike tethering thingies as the closest to the start has plenty of bars but they are full of orange rental (abandoned) bikes and as usual a few tethered bikes that have not been collected, due to being possibly, dare I say, stolen or......rubbish rides or important bits have been plundered like wheels, saddles and handlebars! I assume 'someone' from the council eventually releases the locks and the rusty hulks are re-cycled (sorry for the pun)! So we tether ours to the 'things you can't do on the beach, sign-posts, It's perfect weather, as I said, little breeze and sunshine with no real heat at 9 am. Well over 400 today including a bride and groom to be, her in a suitably attired veil and him in shorts and T, assuming it was the future hubby! Beach start, pebbles and pavement signs overcome, bollards missed and we soon find our 'pace' shuffling along together, passing 75+years old Maurice, just before the Canada (Ukraine) flag. About turn and peaked hats donned as we run towards the low sun, the pier and then the finish. 
Just over 33 for both with me at the end of my tether & Lesley, well she could have kept going, at that shuffle pace, to Shoreham and beyond! We cheered on the latter finishers before taking a prime spot upstairs on the Coast terrace for ......you guessed, coffee and almond croissant. Worthing had a Mediterranean feel this morning with sparkly blue sea, 'cold-water' swimmers basking in the 12C waters, parkrunners enjoying post run snacks and chats, what could be better?
Rouen is the largest city in Normandy and stands on the River Seine some mid distance between its mouth at Le Havre and to the east, Paris. The river is quite wide at Rouen, wide enough for those huge pleasure cruise river boats and today it was just a 15 minute walk away from our 2 night, rented studio, almostin the centre of town. Whilst visiting friends further down country we thought we would stop off and soak up the history and culture, oh and by- the-way, it has a parkrun. Now could we just fit in our first French tour? So at 8:15am (France time) we head on-foot, through the narrow streets, cross the strangely quiet dual carriageway and onto the quayside for a few hundred meters, cross over the bridge to the south side and look for Warehouse 106, where parkrun Rouen has taken place for about 5 years. We spot an orange T and then another with a buggy, heading along the river bank. Having checked out the usual numbers of weekly participants, we weren't surprised that for few a few minutes around 8:40, there was just a gaggle. However, we were warmly greeted by the RD (or whatever they call them in France) who in broken English described the course and then nearer 9:00 we had our first timers briefing using a map that had the kms marked, arrows to show the loop and the finish that looped back after the start. There were a motley group of Brits, 8 in total including us and about 40 others. It transpired we had a girl who used to live in Aylesbury, who had run both the aylesbury parkrun and our beloved Wendover Woods. She also did virtual kettle-size in Lesley's lockdown class. 
We had a 250 shirt and very rare, a 500 shirt from a gentleman from Wales. ( he too had run Aylesbury and wendover Woods......and nearby Tring.......and hundreds more! We had a lady from Halifax that wore the special neck scarf of the band of hardy tourists, plus a few other intrepid brits that were just passing through. Trois, deux, une and off on this, keeping the water always on your right, flat course. Together, we reached our turn point that took a tarmac path beside the working quay. After a few hundred meters another runner in mauve was spotted going around this loop again! adding about 1km to his run ( he still finished way in front of us and yes, he was a Brit!) For us it was just a gentle-ish shuffle back by the Seine, through the start cranes and about turn, back to finish in the upper 33's. Not bad as it was pretty warm and no shade.Also, incidentally, it was our highest placing of 26th & 27th. Then, lots of photo's for us and for the facebook pages of Rouen parkrun especially for those special number shirts and the travelling tourist group! Nice gesture of friendship with bottles of water, cakes and biscuits supplied by the local team. Great time, thanks to the friendly team who managed to describe the course so well (except to one of us) and were warm and friendly with the same ethos as we find everywhere.......well done parkrun!
Back from our France road-trip & visit & parkrun..........straight back to early start Saturday and worthing parkrun. Friday night we went for a dip in the now warm sea and wandered back to The Bull for a pint in the garden only to find fellow parkrunner, Chris and his running black Labrador partner.......oh, and his wife , who we have not met before. One pint led to another and they eventually left as they had a pizza ordered! Not the best pre-run preparation? Weather is still warm enough to sit outside and warm enough in the morning with the sea looked inviting, as we cycled down to the start. Our usual chat and banter with the now increasingly familiar fellow runners.
It's beginning to feel very much like our home now. Pete and Barbara are there at the start and the usual selfie posted on the family Whatsap, just to let them know we are still alive, at least, before we ran! Due to the hectic last few days we both decide to take it very easy but, that is much easier said than done, with almost 400 around you, pulling you on. However 34: 39 was pretty averagely slow. Lesley was a minute quicker as I lost her somewhere past the pier.....first time! Long driving had made my leg thing a bit more painful....that was my pathetic excuse and I was saving myself for finishing off the patio stoning and slabbing. It was promising to be the last of the busy ,working in garden, thing before I check back to the list, drawn up a year ago when we moved in!
Another week has passed by and for me, no time for a midweek shuffle as too much to do! However an interlude in the busy-ness with a hike up Highdown to meet my sister, who was singing with a local group, to welcome the sunset for summer solstice. Despite predictions of cloud it turned out to be one of the better sunsets for years. Maurice dancers did their thing.......bit weird this Green Man and bells & flowers everywhere and grown up people banging sticks together. It's hard to believe they may just be normal people when they take their clobber off! Hey-ho, the sunset and choir voices were quite moving with a big round of applause when it finally disappeared at 9:17pm. Our parkrun soon came around and Lesley had put her name down to run a league 'fun-run' at Hassocks mid-day Saturday. Felling this would be a stride too far after parkrun she volunteered instead to marshal near the pier. This event had lowered the participants with only 300 or so today as the fun-run series has all the local running clubs taking part and then, son=me were doing the Brighton Trail Marathon on Sunday.......mad! So billy-no-mates had no pacer but had a stiff, head-on breeze for the out section and a pleasant helping hand on the way back! This showed later in my 1km segments of 7's up and 6's back to finish in a respectable 33.39. Then........off for brekky and off to Hassocks where the fun-run shared with a local school fete, with a Beer-tent and a Gin caravan! Schools have changed? Lesley was in , in well under the hour but seemed pretty cheesed-off with herself..........and said sheI didn't enjoy it! The course was around field margins, over 3 styles and all long grass! We decided that in an 'inquest' afterwards that, like me, she has an economical step (shuffle) and does not lift her feet at all. This must cause her to have to kick all the grass, weeds, heather, dandelions, out of the way, rather than springing over them! Still, probably got 1 point and was no where near last as plenty of others looked like they had spent the morning kicking long grass!
A Monday morning 6km shuffle for me around the Ferring, Goring Gap and back home in a very shuffly time! Good news though was the sky was blue, the sea was positively mediterranean (with a little imagination) and my gip bum was just, OK. We had a fair bit of finishing off in the garden with the last slabs to form our 'allotment' path and then the last of the patio stones to lay. We had a Wednesday evening Ramblers walk around East Preston beach and Ferring Rife, that was just 4 miles, had nearly 30 turn up, over half stayed for fish & chips supper on the village green and a good dozen completed the evening with a drink in The Clockhouse bar/pub! This led many of us to think this would be an excellent social evening event so watch out on the future programme! Lesley ran a 'long-distance' training run from home to the end of Worthing prom onThursday evening and I took the bus, half of the way! 
Sunset from the pier was stunning..........so was the burger we shouldn't' have had afterwards. Saturday soon popped up and as for weather, we are 'stuck' in this rut of fine weather, clear skies with occasional cloud cover, mild day time stiff breeze from the south-west and chilly evenings after about 8pm.Taking the 8:15am 700 bus that arrived at 8:12! we then did our usual attempt at a warm-up to arrive at the start with chats to fellow parkrunners that we are getting to know quite well. A head wind greets us and Lesley, due possibly to being closer to the ground, copes with this better than me and I soon find myself behind her and that is where I stay. Even after the about-turn, with the breeze behind us, I keep her just in sight but well out of any possibility of catching her! 
But, as I have said before, It's not about winning............etc.etc. Lower 33's for both of us and Lesley's eldest son and eldest grandson are about to descend on us for a nice few hours of throwing stones in the sea, ice creams, penny arcade games and those roundabout rides that kiddies love and it seemed.......just right for a lively 4 year old! All this followed by lunch in our back garden, floating plastic ducks on our pint-sized pond.
The 'Lions' have cancelled the next two prom runs, as is a tradition this time of year, with a fun-fair and motor show taking place for the expected throngs of holiday makers.We are still in to this no-rain and record temperatures spell that seems endless. We are also in full swing with the self-assembly kit at home, where we are creating a garden room. It has to be a rare miss for one week and a trip to Littlehampton the next! We are blessed with stunning venues for parkrun and many just a stones throw away from home. Before the crowds, the river view was tranquil and serene. 
A big contingent from Worthing joins in with the local crowds and boosts the numbers to well over 300......and it is alsotheir 100th, so cakes at the end!. It's hot, so not fast, just an enjoyable out and back and out and back again! I just pip Maurice and finish 2 minutes behind Lesley. It should have been Bognor this week but our fabulous Stagecoach busses.........mainly a rude driver.....said no way. For us it was just a run so we could simply walk down to the beach and do Littlehampton but for others they were trying to get to work at care-homes, shops and nearby, Butlins. I trust the bus driver will get his come-uppence one day!
Well it was inevitable in the end.........Covid strikes! Us, and nearly 90,000 other football fans packed into trains, tubes and Wembley Stadium for the Ladies Euro-Cup. Three of us , 'struck down' by the virus. As well as feeling yuk for a few days it had a knock-on effect on our parkrun as well as postponing our walking holiday to Exmoor! Once 'negative' we parkrun volunteered, moved our hols to the Isle of Wight for later in the season and got on with life, thanking the vaccine for just contracting a mild-dose. 
The weather is still in the upper 20's and a cycle ride down to the start with catch-up chats and off on a slow, back to fitness shuffle in the upper 38 mins. During 'covid' we did manage to isolate & continue our garden project, despite the 30+heat and not feeling too good. We now have a lovely garden room to sit and chill, play patience, savour a deserved G&T etc.etc. Although brief, covid leaves you a bit short of energy for quite a few weeks, we found......well that was our excuse for turning in some pretty slow, but delightfully enjoyable shuffles. It could have also been the very warm mornings with crystal clear skies and almost zero wind-speed, nothing to keep you cool and always the thought of trying not to "overdoing' it.
We have a 'guest', Brian, Lesley's Brother has arrived for a 5 week stay all the way from, close to the Hobsonville parkrun, 
Auckland NZ. Although not really a parkrunner as such, he was persuaded by Lesley to try out his home event when it first started a couple of years ago. At around 47 minutes, he managed 2 events by fast walking but found the 8am starts a bit challenging! No excuse now though as a more chilled 9am start saw him shuffle with Lesley at Worthing in a decent PB time of 44 minutes.
The 8th of September saw the death of our longest reigning monarch, Elizabeth. 
Although not unexpected, she had been with us on the throne, almost since I was born and the whole time Lesley has been around! Brian had joined us for a 5 weeks holiday from his home in New Zealand. We shared the grief and the build-up to the state funeral. It seemed a bit odd doing the Worthing parkrun on the Saturday before but we were all respectful, most in our black gear where possible and a 2 minutes silence with a short remembrance before the 3 of us set out along with many, many, others. No photos, just the usual chat and coffee afterwards. It was going to be eventful week as we had booked our old ramblers holiday for the week in the Peak District and Lesley still is suffering from the foot & hip thing. We wanted to see the funeral on the box on Monday so we booked a night on Sunday in the same hotel and managed to see it all before the others arrived later in the day. Walking went well with us opting for the not too challenging shorter routes along with the majority of others who, like us, had a few body-issues!
Walks in the Peaks are over and being in a different place we chose to add a couple of days to our trip with a short stay near Bakewell! No guesses for what was on the doorstep, literally, of our superb B&B at Hassop Station in Derbyshire. 
Having read-up on it, the Bakewell parkrun took the old railway route from Hassop to Bakewell and back again. So 8:30am we drifted out of our room, crossed the car-park and joined the home crowd and tourists for this reasonably flat run ( it was a railway line so this gave us prior knowledge). The route was a definite down hill gradient, passing the old Bakewell station before an about-turn and a slight 'slog' up hill to the finish close to Hassop Station. Plenty of folks to chat with and a good crowd of cheery volunteers. The Station has been converted very sympathetically to a large cafe and a bike hire/sales/repair shop. Needs must and we took advantage of the 'included' breakfast with our B&B which was superb. Cereals, fruit juice, full English or whatever you want, toast, tea and as 'guests', the luxury of table service and no parkrun, bikers queues. Quick showers and back down for afternoon bike hire and a half day ride to the top end of the line and back with a cafe stop half-way. So, highly recommended for an overnight or several days, lovely parkrun, nice adjacent cafe, close to Bakewell to walk a couple of K's down the old railway into town for restaurants etc. No parking issues and no probs to have a few drinks!
Brian, despite his busy schedule, managed to fit in another Worthing run as well as hill-walks and coast strolls to maintain his (and ours) fitness levels. 
Lesley is still suffering from her foot/hip thing but manages pretty good times, just a couple of minutes behind me! Although she is not doing many club-runs they had a mass run at Worthing parkrun with me an 'official' photographer, again. There are still a couple more orange vests somewhere, probably upfront to get a good start! You can probably spot that there are now a few wearing longer leggings. This means Autumn , although blue skies and sunny days, is starting to produce single figure temperatures first thing with a definite chill at the start!
A late cancellation, due to filming crews on the promenade, has the three of us rescheduling our Saturday morning with a drive to Littlehampton. Brian is still fairly keen and needs no persuasion to rise and be ready to go at 8am. No hint of a breeze, crystal clear skies and an autumnal freshness greets us for the walk to the meeting point. 
The usual large numbers of volunteers and boosted numbers of runners and walkers soon fill up the prom. We don't spot too many from Worthing as they may have gone on to a closer Lancing or taken a rest-day as the Worthing 10km was to run on Sunday as well as a Sussex league event. One of Worthings fastest lads (15-17 age category) was there and studying the final results, he won by a margin! However, it's not all about winning...............!! Littlehampton had done a superb job of pacer volunteers from 20 minutes right through to 40 minutes as well as two 'blue high-viz' parkwalkers. I aimed for the 34 minutes girl as being an ambitious but do-able time, in no wind and flat conditions. After an up & down and up again my 34 minute pacer had kept to a good pace for me but the other 6 or so she was carrying had either speeded up or, more likely, slowed! This just left me and I managed to hang on in and finish in 34:02, a PB for Littlehampton and Lesley was not far behind and Brian not too far behind her!
That was to be it for Brians 5 week stay as on Sunday we drove him back to Heathrow for the 29 or so hours back to NZ where Spring was warming the wet winter, he had missed a little of, with temperatures now on a par with our Octobers' exceptionally warm days. We followed him at the start and finish of his flight on that brilliant app that showed him leaving the UK over Scotland, mid-flight 1st part of his flight over Greenland, landing at Houston and hours& hours over the Pacific, whilst we were asleep, before coming into Auckland and landing exactly on time at 5:55am!. We soon got back to normal at home with just the 2 of us but both contacted horrible colds by Tuesday......no idea where we picked it up from, Not Covid so after the grotty first couple of day we tough-ed it out and carried on daily walking. Saturday came round and still not 100% but 
parkrun was beckoning as we decided to just parkwalk to avoid people and coughing fits! Another stunning morning and the long-sleeves were soon a poor choice .....even walking. So, a quick pace, stretching Lesley's hip until just after the turn when I left her (at her request) and broke out into a trot for the last 2km. Me, around 40 and Lesley, 44! Most enjoyable, so was the sit outside in windless-warmth at Coast with croissants and coffee. Politically the country is in a mess and the economy is trashed. Inflation is 10%, the fuel bills have tripled and groceries bills just creep up & up in price....... good news though is parkrun is still free and runs at 9:am every week it is able to do so! We are looking forward to shaking off our cold next week and of course, partaking in the Worthing parkrun, as it will be their 250th!
It looks like rain this morning for Worthing 'green' 250th event. We tried to wear green but our wardrobes were a little short of actual green but......green socks and yellow/green T shirt was the best we could do. 8am, 100 bus on time and a 'scenic' 20 minute ride on a seconded double-decker through streets far too narrow even for the usual single decker! At 8:30 it definitely it looked like a large green gathering were going to get a morning splash, if not in the next 10 minutes probably sometime during the run! We had our usual pre event chat with familiar faces, Chris and his non-plus Labrador, Evert with bragging tails of not only running a cross country last weekend but doing a PB for the Great South Run 10 mile at Portsmouth on Sunday! It seems a shame that Lesley is not up to doing the run just yet as she really enjoys the camaraderie, the atmosphere and meeting up with old Aylesbury friends that turn up for it each year.................perhaps next year we hope? So off we go, running all the way.....yes running...to finish in a respectable and uninjured circa 37 minutes. The rain doesn't materialise and it is another very fine and mild late October morning. After milling around at the finish for 10 minutes we do our usual and look to join the short queue at Coast. Short it isn't! We have never seen the queue that long and decide that we should try the newish cafe next to the newish tower-block. Bayview Club, sounds rather up-market but they have a side kiosk for take-outs and they serve from the main restaurant to a nice outdoor seating area. We chose baps and flat-whites with the cost surprisingly less than Coast and the quality was excellent! So, somewhere to go for a change especially as Coast frequently is struggling with numbers at 9:30 to 9:45.
Worthing 'tourists' in a new parkrun.......to us! Southsea promenade is a flat 'out & back and we join in before we take the Isle of Wight ferry for walking trip and then a relaxing break for the rest of the week. 
We left home early, arriving and parked up by 8:15. Greeted by an almost deserted prom where we took a warm-up shuffle to the loos by the lake and back in plenty of time for our 1st timers briefing. Nice crowd of around 300, pretty similar in numbers to Worthing and a well organised team of volunteers that had the benefit of a prom-shelter to keep all their gear giving protection from any inclement weather the exposed prom may throw at them plus a small stage for the briefing guy who had the aid of a superb PA system that could be heard easily, even above barking dogs and chatty runners! The narrow start between bollards was almost overcome by a staged staggered start from >20 minutes through to <>40 minutes. A good idea but it still took 30 + seconds to pass go! We set off at our usual pace, finishing in 35 + minutes. Nice cafe right at the finish with good ambience, views, coffee and baps.............only downside was the ridiculous answer to a request to swop the poached egg for scrambled.." sorry Madam but we cannot exchange items from the menu on weekends"! Considering they had other items on the menu that included scrambled egg it left a 'bad taste' and we decided to downside our breakfast request to baps, that were £6:00 each less.......hey ho their loss!
After our holiday or it is fair to say, at the end of our holiday, the weather took a turn for the worse. The high winds during the week turned into gales with heavy squally rain soaking us on our final afternoon. This change in weather seemed to be set in for a good few days.........including bonfire night parkrun Saturday! The forecast looked grim and we hummed and ah-ed at the view from our bedroom window. Darkness and rain expected soon and throughout the day. Decision made, bus their and bus back. 
Huddled into the shelter at parkrun start, we chatted and joked with an ever burgeoning crowd that included the nearby Lancing Green, cancelled due to unsuitable ground, churned up by the recent fair vehicles. A keen looking guy and his family asked as to where we start and it conspired he was 'obsessed' with parkrun, according to his ex NZ wife and searched out one wherever they went. Not unique at all! Chatting with her, she was born and brought up in Blenheim on the South Island, a parkrun we took part in a few years ago..........flat, out and back beside the river. Back to Worthing and the rain just about held off as over 300 runners, shufflers and walkers braced themselves for the westerly wind and driving rain.........however, it was not as bad as we thought, thank goodness. Lesley with her dodgy foot 'let me go' on the return and I managed to pass Maurice in a splendid time (for me) of 36:17. Lesley did a respectable time in the lower 40,s! We didn't hang around for too long as damp had penetrated from rain and 'exertion' so we joined the small queue in Coast for our usual pick me ups. Rain had really started and we had no choice but to run the short way to an awaiting bus for the short journey home. Our usual plan is straight into showers, arguing as to who is first, but.........not today! On returning from I.O.W. we were greeted by a dead boiler. No heat, no hot water just an error code and an acrid burning smell. End of it's life, 13 years old with a few leaks and intermittent faults had drawn just one conclusion! So our routine now is home, cuppa followed by, David Lloyd club for a shower and warm up! NB: new boiler promised for next Thursday so watch this space!
New Boiler arrived on time at the right price, good engineer and hooked up to Hive so we both have an app to control the times and temperature..........wherever we are, even at a distant parkrun!! 'IHeat' is the company with a simple intuitive web-site. straight forward pricing and humans on-line to back it up. That's the plug done and no, there is no commission for me! Back to the parkrun and the weather has been pretty kind with temperatures to please, even a September day! 
Lesley is 'tokens' volunteer today and will be kept busy with what looks like 400 plus, boosted again by the weather and Lancing being cancelled again. Looking at my previous 'splits' on Strava I realise that I start slowly for the first 3km and finish less-slowly for the last 2km. Today, after the chatter and banter, I try to up my pace as the coaches say, at the beginning. This ploy works pretty well and I finish in a respectable time of just over 34. I am a little fatigued as I take Lesley's token and have to wander around the finish area to get my body back to normal! As it was Worthing Striders preferred parkrun day we meet up with the other orange vests, after the finish of the event, in Coast for a coffee and croissant chat..............just for a change! On studying Strava, my splits were a reverse of normal, 2km at under 7mins and 2km at over and the last km at just under! What this proves, I am not sure but it is probably too late to change a habit.........on a permanent basis!
It's a Children in Need and Walk with Joe Saturday, and Lesley has volunteered again, taking the new 'blue' parkwalk high-vis! A bit of a hiccup as there was no sign of the blue-bib amongst all the usual volunteer jackets............no probs it was found in the stash cupboard at Splash-point! I wandered up to the start, making a pathetic try of limbering up. Chat and banter with rest of the usual gang and shortly before the start, a box of 
Pudsey ears needed suitable heads to don these, surely wind resisting, fun things! Considering the obvious 'drag' from these fun-ears and my change of tactics with a 'quicker' 2km, I turned in a pretty decent time in the upper 33's and Lesley park walked and park talked her way to a circa 48 minutes. Dave, our now regular walker is chipping away his time with 1 hour 12 on his first parkrun to a respectable PB of 54:25 minutes! He now has a small clan of fellow paced walkers that keep him company now that he is a veteran of 22 events.
A chilly and rain threatening day for the last parkrun of November..........where has the year gone? We have 2 parkruns this weekend........well one is the official at the normal day and time and the other is the "mental-Elf" charity run on Sunday morning that will be the same distance and almost the same route! Lesley decides to don the Blue parkwalker high-vis to save herself for tomorrows Elf-fun-jog. Her foot problem is still there but she feels it could be on the mend. A mid-week hilly Ramblers walk tested her pain barrier and she coped for the first 5 miles. Unfortunately the walk was just over 5 and the last couple of hundred yards were a struggle. 
Almost 400 parkrunners shared this amazingly moody sea scape of a hazy sun and damp promenade. Lesley soon found a slow recovering fellow club runner to encourage, chatter and generally, share the 57 minutes with! I, decided to take things 'easy' finishing in 34 minutes after joining the last 3 km with 3 lady 'pacers' I put in my usual 'excuse' for a sprint only to be left behind by the said 3 ladies who did a better job of a final push to the line than me! Still, It's not a race, we keep getting told. Sunday, rain is forecast for most of the day. It's intensity will vary from heavy.......to very heavy with localised flooding. Not the best for fun enjoyment. We decide to drive and park as close to the Splash Point green where fun and frivolities, loud music and registration is already on the way. Between the gloom we had spotted a few elves emerging from vehicles, their gaiety covered in waterproofs in an attempt to keep out the damp for as long as possible. We had our 'emergency' ponchos that really looked quite fetching....not! With the aid of a charity shop and random stuff in our wardrobe we looked like a couple of ageing elves to be sure. 
Numbers pinned and greetings with the 'team' we duly warmed up with a couple of over-enthusiastic keep-fitters until the town crier and mayor welcomed, thanked, and counted down with the off, dead-on 10am. It was soon obvious that some of the runners, those generally that had not an inkling of elf-ism, thought it was a race and not just to trot and look silly for an hour! However, with an improving Lesley-foot we two shuffled all the way, no stops, waving at the crowd ( I use this word loosely) and arrived back to a tumultuous welcome, in around 47 minutes. Not bad as it was 5km+, we were very wet and weighted down by elf-attire. Loads of pictures that will be shown at some embarrassing time in the future and all back for an elf take-over of Coast cafe!
Birthday has passed by and the cold snap is truly upon us and shows no signs of going away. We seem to be in one of those 'blocking highs' that bring warmth and joy in the summer and shivering glumness at this time of year.
Weather warnings issued, -15C in Scotland and days of below temperatures as far south as.......Worthing! or to be more precise Littlehampton! Yes, its the Striders mass participation week at Littlehampton promenade parkrun........and it's chilly to say the least. It's decidedly chilly with ominous clear skies as we stroll down for the 700 Coastliner that arrives thankfully, on-time, at just after 8am. We jog down to the prom from the Anchor Springs bus terminus. Just as an aside, whoever was responsible for naming the bleak & dismal bus-stand must have a huge sense of imagination or humour!! The sky and the sea are just stunning and even though we are next to the 'warm' sea the prom and beach are glistening from the hard frost and low sun! -4C someone muttered through their breath. Despite it being 8:45am just a few parkrunners had gathered to join the full contingent of hardy volunteers. Gradually folks appeared, rubbing their gloved hands together....as you do...chatting and joking but all are drawn to nature's spectacle on this unmissable morning. 
We soon spot a few 'Striders' with their distinctive orange vests and get down to do the obligatory photo shoot of around 10 club runners, not an easy task as they have pop off for a loo stop and do their warm-up routine. Following the briefing we are off on a nice steady trot at the maximum Lesley can cope with. We do the up and back and up before I am told to leave her behind and do my own thing. I shuffle past a 'support the lifeboat' T-shirted lady who apparently was going to do a club-swim after her run! Brave or silly, I have no idea. I finish in a reasonable time and cheer Lesley over the line, about 1 minute behind me. The Striders are all there to cheer her on and we gather up our warm gear to walk back along the riverside path to one of the Strider's trendy riverfront apartment for a nice post run chat with a post run coffee and cakes! We take up the offer of a lift home and the bright and chilly Saturday morning ends very nicely!
A week of contained panic as the build-up to Lesley's big birthday and her move into the next parkrun age category! I am trying to put on a mid-week surprise at the 02 Area after spotting Bryan Adams is doing his one-off covid cancelled gig on Wednesday............the same time as England maybe playing their quarters, if they get through!! They didn't. So disappointment followed by......... one panic less. Then, train strike. No sign of capitulation or settlement means plan 'B'. I book a car-spot in someones driveway just 10 minutes walk from Morden Underground, one and half hours drive north in freezing temperatures. The secret remained through our journey with guesses of, skydiving, parachute jump, wing-walking....all thankfully scotched by our ride on the Northern Line to London Bridge. Lesley has a distain for London in general, so she was pretty quiet and a little cheesed off, even with the twinkly embankment lights that, granted, were being tempered by the sharp icy wind towards the London Eye. Good job the TFL Uber 
Boat ride, 45 minutes of a splendid trip up river, changed her mood completely! We arrived at North Greenwich and took the icy path to the 02.. No big screens advertising Bryan Adams, so still unaware, even when we had dinner followed by a saunter around, passing all the designer shops to the 02 information desk............to cut a long story short and a few surprises we were upgraded to the Blue Room Lounge and then our 'gods' tickets were exchange for a VIP box seats.! Bryan Adams was great and home by 1 am! Thursday is the run club Christmas dinner and I am invited too! Oh what fun that turned out to be!
A heavy cold had broken out in the family and so far it was just Lesley that had to take to her bed a day after the packed Christmas party where tables of 10 were packed so tight that anyone wanting a loo-break or simply stretch their legs or perhaps converse with someone on the other tables, had to either mount the table ( not good manners) or slide under and back out the end (equally not the best etiquette) This meant that a sleepless night by both had scotched her last parkrun before moving up to the 70-74 bracket! I looked out the window and accepted the weather was still.......cold however, a sleepless night found me wide-awake and ready to go for the 8:10 bus leaving a hacking, coughing sniffing Lesley in bed looking...........just awful! Chris and dog shared the bus until their routine beach warm up and coffee at Cafe Nero ( just coffee for Chris and not the dog I believe). 
I had many layers and a warm coat on to put in my small back pack during the run, but it was about -3C and surely the turn-out would be low........wrong! The spectacular sunrise had already bought geeks with tripods and cameras to the beach and my phone-camera 'clicked' a few good shots of a cold December morning ! Some peeps today, despite the chill had even wore shorts and T's and a daring (silly) young lady, just short shorts and a scanty sleeved vest. According to the weather experts, this is the last day of the severe snap and we are to benefit from a week of heavy rain and wind......good oh!. After the briefing from Mike including milestones and an actual first time ever to parkrun (what a day to pick), we had warnings over ice on the prom and a hose crossing the path by the pier, a doddle compared with our old Wendover Woods run, thick snow, sheet ice on flat sections and the hills up & down! I ran with Maurice today, either he encouraged me or visa-versa and we managed to overtake quite a few fellow shufflers on the out and back. Now, Maurice is one of the stalwarts of Worthing parkrun and despite his age of being in the 74-79 age bracket, running from home to the start, 2.5km he says, setting up the finishing funnel, 5km parkrun, taking down the said funnel and then, running 2.5km back home, he still complains that he is getting slow! We both finished in the upper 35s, Maurice ahead of me when he put in surely a threatening, desperate 'sprint' on the last 50 meters of the home path! Coffee and cake alone for me today with a take-out Bakewell cake for the sickly Lesley at home! She did look pretty sickly both from the cold and missing a parkrun! Cake went someway though.
It's Christmas eve morning as we leave home for the 700 bus at 8:10 am and it appears to be running to schedule today. We must have looked a sight as we boarded the bus in our running gear and Santa-hats! Just one other traveller on board and a lovely looking sea as we approach Marine Drive. With hardly a person at any of the bus-stops we arrive pretty early in time for a loo break and a short jog warm-up. Already a handful of suitably Christmassy parkrunners are milling around sharing lighthearted stories and anticipating the numbers expected, but no one thought nearly 700 hardy soles would run, jog, shuffle, walk, push buggies, pull or hold back their canine companions as well as a good turn-out of high-vis volunteers who make these events possible. 
Our you lady Run Director introduced countless 'tourists', probably visiting friends or relatives, 1st timers & people with special milestones.........50, 100 etc. The local women's running club, Foxy Ladies, had a huge turn out all attired in Santa hats, suits and a few in inflatable outfits and a couple of Christmas puddings as well as lots of elves! Lesley and I ran together before she found some fellow runners with a similar speed and time, pushing me ahead on the return loop. I did manage to return a reasonable time, despite the huge volume of finishers forming a queue to go through the finish, in a healthy 34:19! After cheering Lesley and friends through, scanning our barcodes and thanks all round to the volunteers, we decanted back to Coast for our usual beverage, cakes and chat. Nice start to Christmas!
It's Christmas morning, it's Saturday and it's..............parkrun day! The morning is very quiet as we leave our house donned in our festival hats and jumpers. Not a sole in the road, no children, trying out their new bikes or go-carts, not even a child rigging up their Jet-tex rocket fuelled racers on the street or girls taking their dolls for a morning stroll in their new dolls-pram........where are they all? Well, some of them went to Littlehampton Christmas day parkrun. 
With no busses we drove the short 15 minutes to the promenade and made sure we had a change of clothes as the forecast said, wet and as we passed the locked toilets and joined the volunteers crew, it spitted and spatted for a while. A few of Lesley's run club appeared, the keener ones had run there! It was obvious there would not be the numbers like Worthing yesterday but over 200 appeared ready for the festive , off! After the formalities with the longest distance 'tourists' being Germany and yes, there was a genuine 1st timer to parkrun, our volunteer team sang a little Christmas ditty (courtesy of Noddy Holder) with words changed to more parkrun-ish! Nice touch, rain stopped and off at a slow pace for the first loop and then I was 'let-go' again putting in a fast (for me) last leg, finishing in a respectable 36 something! No cafes open so just a good bye all round and home for Christmas.
Last parkrun of 2022 and weather wise, it feels like, the worst this year!! Forecast was 'grim' and this morning was living up to the Met Office promises. We set about, in the pitch-darkness outside of the bedroom window, of choosing waterproof or water resisting attire, but what ever we chose would prove to be useless this morning. Wind was in a more usual SW but gusting 40+ mph. 
The prom certainly didn't inspiring as we gently warmed up with the heavy drizzle and wind behind us. Alison 'promenade' cycled past looking keen as ever and under the shelter a young girl was with her 'coach'....... or father deciding on what shoes to wear and removing anything that would slow her down, seemingly, totally unfazed by the weather! (see her result later) A hardy bunch gathered in the shelter at the start with the usual banter regarding the weather that had just taken a change for the worse! Heavy drizzle had become , just heavy rain as what looked as if 300 or so appeared for the briefing. Briefing, through the noise of the wind and rain, included the usual plus the Bearded Runner doing his last 12 miles today to complete his 2022 mile challenge for Mental Health. The off came with the usual confused shuffle away that was accompanied by driving rain from the start. As any slight shelter from the pier and the line of beach huts disappeared to the elements having a clear sweep across the promenade I was brought to a sudden stop by a buggy pusher who was adjusting the waterproof protection over a dry child. Having my face down to the tarmac, I was completely unaware of any obstacle that may be stationary or perhaps walking the other way! The latter was extremely unlikely as......who else but a parkrunner would be out, on New Year Eve at 9am, in this weather. The only consolation of this headwind was it would be behind me after 17 minutes! The rain was that special sort of rain that had a sharp needle effect on any area of skin that it came into contact with, this was just my face, between my hat and muff, both of which were soaking wet! On the about-turn, I was relieved that the wind had now become 'an assist' , driving hard from behind me , I could feel the last legs of the 5km were appreciatively quicker than the out section. I finished and de-tokened, being scanned by the team that had taken shelter under the summer roof buildings........very wise, before cheering a bedraggled Lesley over the line. Quick thank you's to the volunteers, beforepassing by Coast and heading for the bus ( yes, passing Coast, no coffee, no cake!)
