Better conditions for parkrunning this weekend than the past couple, significantly warmer and not actively raining (in the north east, at least).
Somewhere the weather is usually reliably better than the UK is Western Australia. Maria Dueñas decided a leisurely-paced parkrun was good prep, for a 50k trail marathon at 4:30am the following morning!
Other than Tara Hipwood at her ersatz home parkrun of Riverfront in Newport, everyone else stuck fairly close to the Toon. Cate Walker ran an impressive course PB in Saltwell Park, Jason Tipples doing the same on his return to Tyne Green in Hexham.
Aoife Monaghan made her debut at Leazes on the still enforcedly-altered course (the Northern Lights Trail set to occupy the park until the new year), while Bill Milbourne broke from volunteering for the first time since July to run at Whitley Bay. Our highest Claremont attendance was at Jesmond Dene, with Izzy Neatrour finishing first of the five, and 2nd lady overall.
I went over to Seaton Carew for Hartlepool parkrun. A flat out-and-back (with the ‘out’ slightly longer than the ‘back’), along the seafront, we got to enjoy a sunny run by the ocean, with a little bit of headwind to contend with after the turning point. Despite arriving less than 10 minutes before 9am, we were able to park on the road 50 metres from the start, with the cafe a stones throw from the finish, offering a selection of very nice cakes and desserts.
