Wythenshawe parkrun
Event number 471
30th April 2022

A beautiful, sunny Spring day made for perfect running conditions this morning for the 273 runners who took part. Of these, 29 runners were running at Wythenshawe for the first time, including 10 who today ran their first ever parkrun. Welcome to the parkrun family, your Saturday mornings may never be the same again. Congratulations to the 38 runners who today achieved pb’s, including first home Andrew Haney and 4 of our youngest runners, George, Alice, Charlie and Lois. 24 different running clubs were represented, with Altrincham & District AC and Winston Runners fielding the largest contingents. 

It was my first time at Wythenshawe and it was a delight. A great mix of trail and tarmac, winding through a lovely setting, with fantastic, supportive volunteers and The Courtyard cafe, a great place to have a cuppa. Shout out to today's volunteers, thank you, without you parkrun cannot take place and it is very much appreciated. If you have never volunteered, consider taking a turn. There are a variety of roles; something for everyone and training and support will be given. 

The volunteering stars of this week's event were:

Tristan POCOCK • Alan LAMB • Andy HOLLOWAY • Kate HOLLOWAY • Martha WHITEHEAD • Sam MCGRATH • Nessa HAND • Lisa BEATTIE • Jonathan TILL • Jane GAVIN • Steve THURSTON • Claire MULVENNA • Norma BURGESS • Jodie LEWYEWPHA • Libby DAY • Stephen HODGES • Isaac BETTEY • Vishnu PANDARAPARAMBATH  and notably  Natasha AH-FAT who only set out on Saturday morning expecting a gentle stroll in the park and ended up timekeeping.

Wythenshawe parkrun no.469 – 16^th April 2022 – Easter Delight

On a gorgeous Easter Saturday morning, 248 of us made our way to Wythenshawe Park and we all walked/jogged/ran our way around our course and enjoyed some sun afterwards.

It was definitely a day to enjoy for those who were celebrating milestones, and this week we had quite a few. Paul Barber ran his 400^th parkrun, Anthony Harrison ran his 250^th parkrun, and brought some work colleagues along to cheer him along, Martin Lindsay ran his 100^th parkrun as did 12 yr old Sophie Morgan. We were also treated to a fantastic looking cake and many thanks for this.

And in continuing the theme of celebrations, 36 of you were able to celebrate recording a new Personal Best. And first of all, I must congratulate Sophie Morgan again who managed to reduce her Previous Best by exactly 2 minutes on her 100^th parkrun, so well done again Sophie.

Looking at the results, I can see that William Lord (160 Wythenshawe parkruns) recorded his 2^nd successive Personal Beat taking reducing it by 13 seconds, Edward Lord (87) on his return to Wythenshawe recorded a new PB of 18:05 and Richard Jellyman (60) smashed his previous best by nearly 30 seconds with a time of 18:37. These were also our first 3 finishers and I wonder if this has previously occurred. However parkrun is far more than the first three finishers and Dawn Fenton (77) took 35 seconds off her previous best, Claire Smith (68) reduced her PB to 27:09, Emma Marsh (60) for the 6^th time in her previous 9 parkruns recorded a PB, reducing it to 34:31 and Andy Rawlins (33) recorded a new PB of 20:29. Well done to you all.

On a day like Easter Saturday we see a number of parkrunners returning home and also welcome some first timers as well. There were 26 first timers to our event with 10 making their pakrun debuts. As well as tourists from a number of local events we also welcomed  tourists from St. Helens, Arrow Valley and notably Brianna Whyte aged 7 and Angela Spibey who normally run at Girvan Prom in Scotland which normally has 20-30 participants and were first time tourists at our event. I hope that you all enjoyed your visit to our event and we look forwards to seeing you again soon.

parkrun is an event that can only go ahead due to our amazing volunteers so please can you make sure you say thank you to them as you go around the course and at the finish line. This week led by Jenn Lutton they included Shahzad Zia, Linda Edmondson, Katharine Lay, Cary O'Donnell, Nessa Hand, Dan Martell, Andy Blackburn, Sue Strickland,  Kevin Torkington, Jonathan Butcher, Jane Gavin,  Sam Mcgrath, Lisa Beattie, Jonathan Till, Steve Thurston, Claire Mulvenna, Norma Burgess, Jodie Lewyewpha, Helen Beaumont, Isaac Bettey, Vishnu Pandaraparambath, Paul Tomlinson & David Tomlinson.

I mentioned last week that as the number of people attending our event starts to increase with the warmer weather, please can you try to run, cycle or car share as you make your way to the event. If you are planning on getting to the event later than 08.50 then please can you make your way to the overflow car park next to the athletics track as the main car park will be full by this time.

See you at the starting line on Saturday

Jonathan

Wythenshawe parkrun no.466 – 27^th March 2022 – Goodbye Muddy Passage

I am sure that I was not the only parkrunner who had mixed feelings when our Run Director Richard announced this week that the area known as Muddy Passage was having its surface reworked and should no longer be muddy in the future.  Whilst the thought of a mud free section is appealing, it will also mean I will have to think of another excuse for a slower than expected time on a Saturday morning.

However out of the 256 of us who ran/jogged/walked our way around the course this week, 47 of you did not need any excuses as you smashed your personal bests in brilliant running conditions.

My highlights this week were Clare Day (93 Wythenshawe parkruns) who took 41 seconds off her previous best, Claire Hamlin (59) whose previous best was set in 2017, Claire Smith (65) who managed perfect timing to reduce her best by a second, Claire Mulvenna (31) who reduced her best time to 23:07 and finally to Katherine Steele (32) for not only being the only parkrunner not called Claire/Clare to have run over 30 times at Wythenshawe to record a Personal Best but also for improving that time to 31:42.

In terms of milestones, I have spotted that Charlotte Dean ran her 150^th parkrun, Nick Hamlin ran his 100^th parkrun, whilst Neil Wilkinson, Dominic Wathey & Santosh all ran their 50^th parkruns, again congratulations to you all.

We also welcomed a number of parkrun tourists, including  Mark Foster from Ormskirk who has volunteered an amazing 252 times, Peter Thompson from Banbury, Rob Hogg from Ally Pally as well as parkrunners from a number of local events.

All of the above celebrations and milestones could only go ahead due to our fabulous volunteers, who this week were led by Richard Evans and included Suzanne Julia Kesteven, Alan Lamb, Andy Holloway, Martin Stratton, Andy Blackburn, Beth Evens, Richard Kennaugh, Sam McGrath, Nessa Hand, Jonathan Till, Claire Mulvenna, Norma Burgess, Tim Field, Jodie Lewyewpha, Fleur Gregory, Isaac Bettey, Vishnu Pandaraparambath, Paul Tomlinson & David Tomlinson.

Many thanks to all of the volunteers and if you can, please volunteer as I can guarantee that you will have an amazing time contributing to our event.

A quick reminder though that from this Saturday’s event the rules concerning dogs has changed and that this is as below

One dog on a short, handheld, non-extendable lead by the side of the participant, and within reach at all times. Care must also be taken to avoid tripping other parkrunners

Over the previous weeks I have not mentioned the pleasing numerical times that I know our Event Director is so fond of. However seeing his time of 19:19 made me smile and so thank you Andy Holloway for reminding me to check the times this week. Joining Andy in the Timing Hall of Fame this week are Oliver Lee 22:22, Kevin OHara 24:24, Dianne Lawlor 33:33 & Rachel Ross 35:35

See you at the starting line on Saturday

Wythenshawe parkrun no.465 – 20^th March 2022 – Spring is in the Air

After a touch of parkrun tourism last week ( I can highly recommend Newborough Forest parkrun if you are near Anglesey) it was back to a warmer and drier Wythenshawe on Saturday compared to previous weeks as 233 of us walked/jogged/ran our way around the park.

Due to the combination of drier conditions under foot and aided by a rare tail wind across the football fields, an amazing 44 of you were inspired to run harder and faster than you had done before and achieved Personal Bests.

I can not name all 44, however my highlights were Claire Gwyer on her 98^th Wythenshawe parkrun achieving a time of 23:27, Alexander Lyons recorded a 2^nd consecutive PB breaking under the 24 minute barrier for the first time, Richard Caulfield for the 4^th time this year recorded a Personal Best of 29:24 & Wendy Cotton on her 21^st parkrun at Wythenshawe recorded her best time of 33:11. Congratulations to you all.

Out of the 233 parkrunners we alsp welcomed 25 first timers to our event with 5 of them making their parkrun debuts. This week we also welcomed parkrun tourists from Rugby, Milton Keynes, Penistone, Luton as well as a number of other local events.

Our event can only go ahead due to the generosity of our volunteers giving up their time for us to run, and this week led by Alan Lamb they included Claire Gwyer, Diana Evans, Richard Evans, Jeffrey Mark Critchley, Andy Holloway, Kate Holloway, Barbara Wright, Martin Stratton, Andy Blackburn, Beth Evens, Jonathan Butcher, Sam Mcgrath, Lisa Beattie, Jonathan Till, Claire Mulvenna, Norma Burgess, Jennifer Simpson, Emma Marsh, Jodie Lewyewpha, Libby Day, Fleur Gregory, Lenny Gregory, Isaac Bettey & Vishnu Pandaraparambath.

At this time of the year, there are a number of running events on Sundays, so if you want to rest your legs before the event then why not volunteer on the Saturday and help our event to run smoothly.

In terms of milestones I can see that Jim Brett celebrated his 250^th parkrun, Edyta Burgess and Shui Ip celebrated their 150^th parkrun whilst James Walsh celebrated his 100^th parkrun, so congratulations to you all.

One of the many things that I love about parkrun is that I can bring my dog to our event, and judging by the barks of appreciation at the start I know I am not the only one. But please be aware that it has been decided from parkrun HQ that there is to be a rule change concerning dogs from the 2^nd April, namely that

One dog on a short, handheld, non-extendable lead by the side of the participant, and within reach at all times. Care must also be taken to avoid tripping other parkrunners

See you at the starting line on Saturday

Jonathan

I often mention in my run report how lucky we are to run in a beautiful park and seeing some of the photos that were posted from this week’s event I can see that I am not the only one who thought the same as on a sunny day the park looked amazing.

However the rain from earlier in the week had made some parts of the course very muddy and I think I must agree with the parkrunner who compared it to running in treacle.

I also heard that a couple of you slipped or lost shoes/keys in the mud, so please be careful and if you do see someone in trouble, please can you assist them as we are all parkrunners together and it could be you requiring some assistance next week.

This week, we had 207 parkrunners walking/jogging/running our way around the course with 43 first timers to our event with 8 making their park run debut. A quick check of the results shows that as well as a number of tourists from local events we also welcomed parkrunners from Pennington Flash, Porthcawl, Bedford, Blackpool, Rother Valley & Abingdon. Welcome to you all and we look forwards to seeing you soon.

Over the last couple of weeks, we have had to ask for volunteers quite late in the week in order for our event to go ahead, as I have mentioned before, if you fancy helping our event to go ahead then please do sign up, I can guarantee that you will really enjoy it and be smiling all Saturday morning.

Our band of smiling volunteers were this week led by Charley Dean and included Andy Wright, Barbara Wright, Beverley Goodwin, Claire Mulvenna, David Tomlinson, Eleanor Cordingley, Frank Cordingley, Hayley Gavin, Holly Waddell, Isaac Bettey, Jackie Cordingley, Jane Gavin,  Jodie Lewyewpha, Jonathan Butcher, Joseph Murray-Brown, Katherine Gwyer, Libby Day, Lisa Beattie, Margaret Carleton, Mia Cordingley, Nessa Hand, Nick Singleton, Norma Burgess, Paul Tomlinson, Tristan Pocock and Vishnu Pandaraparambath

In terms of celebrations I think we should start with the 13 who recorded Personal Bests this week, my highlight this week was undoubtedly Emma Marsh who absolutely smashed her previous best by a minute and a half on her 57^th Wythenshawe parkrun.

In terms of celebrating milestones we congratulated Tim Rainey on his 100^th parkrun at Wythenshawe, Trevor Holliday on his 200^th parkrun, Stuart Gordon on his 150^th parkrun and Claire Mulvenna on her 50^th parkrun. Bev Goodwin also celebrated her 25^th time volunteering, whilst Katherine Gwyer celebrated her 13^th Birthday by volunteering as well.

For those who may have missed it, there was also a special announcement regarding the Horticultural Centre Toilets being open from 8.30 on a morning. Please please please can we use these facilities and not the Hall Gardens as it is just not right and if this continues then the Council may not let us use the wonderful park on a Saturday morning which would inconvenience all of us.

Lastly to celebrate International Women’s Day this week, my favourite quote for this day

“Here’s to strong women: May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.”

See you at the starting line on Saturday

Jonathan

Wythenshawe parkrun no.462 – 26^th February 2022 – Mud, Mud and more Mud

Looking at the weather over the previous week and seeing the amount of rain that fell, I guessed it would be a wet and muddy Wythenshawe parkrun and the conditions didn’t disappoint.

The addition of the water slide around the Cromwell Statue was an inspired idea and I heard a number of shouts of appreciation from other parkrunners as we all encountered it.

It is mentioned in the pre run briefings, but please can you take extra care when running through puddles as we do not want to see you slipping and hurting yourself or others around you.

However, aided by a number of other cancellations we had 262 parkrunners who enjoyed our wet but fabulous park this week. This included 39 first timers to our event with tourists from Endcliffe, Phoenix, Ormeau, Mile End, Eastbourne, Tring and Tooting Common as well as a number of local other events. We hope you enjoyed our friendly parkrun and look forward to seeing you again soon.

Our event only goes ahead due to the amazing generosity of our volunteers who give up their time for us, this week led by Jenn Lutton they included Jeanette Barber, Frank Cordingley, Margaret Carleton, Alan Lamb, Katherine Lay, Charli Pavin, Andy Holloway, Kate Holloway, Alan Powell, Richard Pavey, Cary O’Donnell, Martin Stratton, Beth Evens, Jonathan Butcher, Holly Waddell, Nessa Hand, Lisa Beattie, Jonathan Till, Claire Mulvenna, Norma Burgess, Stuart Whittle, Jeanette Mcelwee, Jodie Lewyewpha, Fleur Gregory, Isaac Bettey & Vishnu Pandaraparambath

We are always requiring volunteers to assist ourselves so if you have a race on a Sunday or fancy a different parkrunning experience to running then please do volunteer.

On such a wet course, I wondered how many of you would manage to get a Personal Best and amazingly 18 of you did. It is generally accepted that the more parkruns you do at a venue, the harder it is to get a Personal Best. However amazingly, given those conditions Beatrice Cordingley on her 105^th Wythenshawe parkrun managed to break the 20 minute barrier for the first time recording 19:58. George Horsfall on his 37^th time at Wythenshawe also managed a PB as well taking 19 seconds his previous best, so congratulations to you all.

I was at the back of the course this week, so struggled to hear all of the celebrations, but I could see that there was cake, so many thanks to the parkrunner who provided this. A quick check of the results show that Kate Joynson ran her 150^th parkrun, whilst  Jon Terry ran his 100^th parkrun.  Maggi Gmerek celebrated moving up to a new age category.

If you do have a special celebration coming up, then please do let the team know either on Social Media or on the day so that we can give you a big shout out before the run starts.

In a week where we had the 22/2/22 date, I was hoping that one of the faster runners would have provided a time of 22:22 to round the report off, however that was not the case, instead we managed a 28:28 courtesy of Hugh Mckenna and 34:34 from Jill Hudson, which still bring a smile to my face

See you at the starting line on Saturday

Jonathan