Not that I take this parkrun tourism malarkay seriously or anything, you understand, but there’s an alphabet to be completed and I’m on a mission to conquer it!
There’s no X at time of writing, and the nearest Z is in Poland. Someone on the UK parkrun tourists Facebook page shared a link to a tracker, monitoring progress towards various targets, which includes an alphabet table, minus the X and Z. I modified the tracker slightly by adding an admittedly amateurish outline of Ireland, and a COWELL countdown which will take me to 50 different events. Oh and I colour coded it (well of course I did….)
So. Inverness. I managed to be doing this one by dint of having a meeting in Edinburgh on the Monday, and travelling to Bonnie Scotland a few days early. I’d never been in Inverness before, and I like nothing more than a new city to explore at my own pace. I found Inverness to be utterly charming – the River Ness is big and fast flowing, and the various bridges crossing it each have their own, often wobbly, personalities.
It’s a small enough town to get your bearings quite quickly, and is heaving with kilt, shortbread and whisky purveyors. I was staying in an Air BnB close to the parkrun site, but even that was only a 20 minute walk from the city centre, along a glorious riverside and island hopping path.
Access:
I flew into Inverness airport, and a fairly regular bus service takes you to the city entre for £4.20 in 20 minutes. The parkrun used to be in Bught Park, but its alternative (and probably permanent new) home is a few minutes away in Whin Park. Easily reachable by car, and the number 2 bus passes close by as well. If you’re a tourist, the Hop On Hop Off Bus stops nearby too!
Facilities:
There’s a reasonably sized car park, and some decent loos, intriguingly financed by the delightful sounding Common Good Fund.
Coffee and post-run analysis talkes place in Cobbs cafe in the botanical park a few minutes away.
This is a really sweet cafe, but they do ask that runners remove their muddy shoes before entering.
They do bacon and egg rolls, scones and snandwiches, but I was overawed by the selection of traybakes, opting eventually for a pistachio and cranberry slice.
Course:
The Whin Park course starts at the playpark, and uses the duck pond as a gravitational focal point.
One lap of it, and then onto 3 larger laps, passing the plastic hippos 3 times.
It’s by the river, so it’s a fairly flat course, but can get a bit mucky.
Most of the pathway is gravel or trail or grass (or puddle) , so trail shoes are a good idea. Start and finish are in the same area, so you can find a tree or picnic table or bit of helter-skelter to leave your coat and keys at.
Crowd:
Average attendance is a nice manageable 150 – there can be a bit of overtaking round the duckpond, but there’s no big bottleneck problems. I found the regulars really welcoming and chatty, and was quickly laughing and comparing stories with a few of them. Billy was lovely – a pretty speedy guy, he shared the profound thought that some runners find it hard to just run, and not compete.
I’ve never had this problem, I must admit, but we both agreed that the success of parkrun was dependent on it being a run, not a race.
Strangely Appropriate Song On Shuffle:
The parkrun weather fairy was having a bit of a lie-in, I think, and it was decidedly dreich as we set off, although the rain did stop after a while. But yeah, the Dave Mathews band intoning
“These fickle fuddled words confuse me
Like will it rain today”
brought a wry smile to my face. And then a softer heart-tugging moment when “Calum’s Road” came on, geographically apt, and I’d also been dancing to it the night before thanks to Nicol McLaren’s Band at the Dingwall Rally in Culbokie.
Gear:
Oh, my Garmin really is starting to worry me! You think you’ve located satellites, and then when lined up at the start it loses contact! My 150 shirt and tartan leggings were commented on,and I was using my arm pouch instead of my waist belt for my phone.
Time:
Nope, my times are not getting any better at all, and I sauntered in around 34 minutes. This is close to my first ever parkrun time, which makes me wonder if I’m getting any better at running at all. But I try not to focus on those negative views. I’m running every week. And meeting new people.
And setting myself targets that I can acheive, and get excited about.
And The Rest:
I adored Inverness, and I hope to revisit again soon. There were lots of lovely eating places to chose from, many with menus offering 2 courses for £9.95, or even 3 courses for a tenner!
The scenery was stunning, and I took a trip on LochNess and to Urquart Castle. And I even managed an evening’s Scottish Country Dancing with some more hospitable and charming locals. We danced till midnight, and when we left the hall it was still light outside…
Filed under: Dance, Parkrun, running, Scotland, travel, traybakes | Tagged: Inverness, parkrun | 1 Comment »
in Dunne e Crescenzi overlooking the dancing fountains.
I couldn’t find any Bush, so being in Dublin I settled for local tipple, Jamesons.
We’re getting into a good groove now – my husband lets me know when he has business trips to parts of Ireland, and I work out which one has a nearby parkrun I’d like to visit. On this occasion it was to the city of my mother’s birth, and the capital of the self-styled Rebel County, Cork.
It’s a wee walk to the start of the run at the Regional Park, where there are a limited number of parking spaces. And also a loo, though it’s one of those plastic pods which demands 20c off you.
There are markers at each km, and also a countdown at the finish. Useful info is chalked onto the path at the start, as well as an encouraging message near the finish.
The Facebook group UK parkrun tourists is for those seriously serial and widely travelled runners who have been to more than 20 different events. At that point, your name appears on the “Most Events” table, and as an unofficial means of recognising each other on our many jaunts, the cow cowl is worn a visible symbol of this acheivement.
I’m carrying about an extra stone (14 pounds, 5 kg) after an indulgent Christmas period, and I need to up my miles and down my calorie intake.
The event began in 2012 and attracts big numbers – there were 533 on the day I visited, their record attendance was 942, and it is often the second biggest attended event each week after Bushy. An educated guess suggests that the record numbers co-incide with the start of University term, when fresh faced students are eager to maintain a fitness regime.
There are a number of routes around the grounds which can be used depending on weather conditions; I experienced Route C, which was basically 2 laps, incorporating a sneakily hidden hill behind the trees. The surface was all tarmac and the paths were wide.
with its run through the wardrobe door, past the lamppost,
4 chairs, and then some fairy doored trees.
and I chose my accommodation based on proximity to a parkrun I had yet to do. So I ended up in a very well located Air BnB in Bermondsey right beside beautiful Southwark Park.
Wide tree-lined avenues,
and car-parking didn’t seem to be an issue. Most people walked, so I’m guessing they live locally. Bermondsey tube on the Jubilee line is a 10 minute stroll away, and there are a couple of bus stops near by too. Sadly, the toilets are in the cafe,
which doesn’t open till 9, but Surrey Quays shopping centre is the closest alternative.
I did spot my first cow cowl “in the wild”, as well as an apricot shirt from Stormont.
So I tucked the keys into my grey wrist band, and looped Cracker onto my watch strap.
I love my Ron Hill arm pocket for my phone – I’d lost the last one I bought, but they were reduced to £4 this week in Pure Running, so I bought a replacement. I fully expect the original to turn up tomorrow….
Indeed, we hit the 2km mark at 9.55, which is my target sub 25 minute pace. But I reminded myself that it doesn’t pay to knock yourself out on the first visit to any parkrun – make it feasible for yourself to go back later and get a PB!
So we eased off a bit, and I even stopped to take a few photos around the route. I was pretty happy with my 27.27 time, and on the last time that I’m running in this age category it was pleasing to be first in that group. 17th lady, 77th overall.
I think it’s one of the best UK entries in a long while, and it was sadly under-marked by the voting juries.
Dancing At Lunacy 