First timers! - Burgess parkrun #619 - 04/07/26
- aqasanu
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
A 9-day extended family holiday had meant TWO consecutive Saturdays with no parkrun. Whilst it had been a once-in-a-lifetime trip, I had been feeling a bit discombobulated. The last time I missed two consecutive weeks was back in 2021. I bundled out of bed excited for the familiarity, kindness and good vibes that Burgess parkrun always brings.
As we strolled up to the start, I admired the blue chicory flowers, now in bloom on the Burgess peaks, and enjoyed the excitement of the pre-parkrun chatter.
Over the last two weeks, I’d missed some special milestones, including last week when Josna joined the 250 club. Josna is also a member of the banana crew that ensures there are bananas for everyone. She is also the ‘flower lady’ posting a daily picture of a flower in the Burgess volunteer banana crew WhatsApp group. It’s a beautiful thing to find in my inbox when I switch on my phone in the morning.
At the start line, I met up with Geoffrey and learnt that today was his birthday. This enabled him to officially do his first parkrun. What an awesome way to turn 4!
Hannah, today’s Run Director, announced the following participants achieving official milestones today;
Joining the 25 Club were: Patrick MILES, Freddie Crichton MILER, Benjamin WESTHEAD, Erin MCINTOSH, Harriet TILL and Vicky AK
Joining the 50 Club was: Jonathan NANKIVELL
Joining the 100 Club was: David JONES
It's always great to hear about people reaching these milestones, they’re always brought me a huge sense of achievement.
Hannah counted us down, and then we were off, all 699 of us, a great surge, always a great moment. The thoughts of the week, the stories in the news, all dissipate as we all surge forward, cheered on by marshals, friends and family members. There’s a wonderful release of endorphins that I don’t get from anywhere else, it felt great to be back.
Burgess parkrun is a one-lap course. The course shape allows walkers to see and cheer on most of the field at different points; it was great seeing so many familiar faces.
As we approached the ‘benches’ marshal point, we met Tom. I would later learn from him that this was his first volunteering stint. Tom shared that he’d heard that if everyone volunteers three times a year, it enables the event to keep going. It can be easy to forget that parkrun is volunteer-led. A huge thank you to Tom and the whole 32-person volunteer team today #hivizheroes
Today’s first female finisher was Ruby.
Today’s first male finisher was Yemane.
In the heat a whooping 87 people secured personal bests!
I hope the 100+ first timers to Burgess enjoyed themselves and that you’ll come again.
Happy running, walking and volunteering.
You can read about how parkrun was created by the founder, Paul Sinton-Hewitt, a care leaver, in his book ‘One Small Step’, The Definitive Account of how a run became a Global Movement by clicking here.
Comments