Regent’s Park 10k, 7th December 2025
Luke Woodend sends a festive report from the capital:
“Dearest Claremonters and Claremont fans. Please find below my long overdue 2025 race report debut, filed from the northbound Lumo service from Kings Cross as I attempt “a Likely Lads” for the championship deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Older / Geordier readers might get the reference…
This mornings race was The Regent’s Park 10k. I became aware of this one back in February when visiting family in London and spotting a “proper” looking race during a Sunday morning stroll. Online research confirmed it to be a running of Mornington Chasers’ monthly 10k, and crippled by fomo I vowed to take one in before the end of 2025.
Fast forward to December and I’m making my way to the start-line just off The Broad Walk for a 9am Sunday start. Drizzly grey skies are doing their best to obscure the BT Tower, but from a runners perspective it’s quite pleasant conditions, I was with around 200 runners lining up ahead of the chip timing mats.
The route is a three lap one. I’m not a fan of loopy parkruns but I always think a three spin 10k works quite well to break things up. I started toward the back and initially regretted that as the path for the first kilometre was fairly narrow. The field soon spread out though allowing me to get into a steady rhythm without tripping over feet (my own and others) and keeping off the muddy, slippery grass.
The route runs alongside the perimeter of London Zoo with all the sights, sounds and smells you’d expect. I certainly can’t recall doing a run before with camels and gibbons in view.
A fab scenic course in my second favourite city of the UK (we all know and agree on the best one). Thanks go to the fabulous, friendly volunteers. Particular nod to the marshal out towards the zoo whose Allez Allez’s were a boost, and whose shouts to keep going contained just enough menace to ensure I did just that.
I got around somewhere in the 52’s. This was a slower pace than I did ten miles in at Croft last week. I wore my standard Mizunos for this one rather than the cheaty bouncy Saucony sneaks I did Croft in, adding fuel to the hypothesis that carbon plated super shoes are frankly a disgrace and must be banned immediately.
With only the most modest of undulations I reckon this is a potential PB course for the fast folk. Well worth a look, and if you are in the smoke more regularly, you’ll get a discount for signing up for multiple runs. For me the biggest win was the choice of medals. I went for the big cat, and I’d be Lion if I said it wasn’t my favourite medal of the year.”
Well done Luke, finishing 101st in a time of 52:41.
