Flatter a tiny bit longer

 I couldn't be arsed to drive anywhere else today so went back to Woodbank to have a jaunt up their little slopes on their very well measured 5k course.  What I did have in mind was Alexandra parkrun as it is flat and allows my little legs to run round and round without the nonsense of the sharp turns, neck breaking down hills, ankle destroying cobbles and bridges that the local ASBO owners use to chuck stuff at you as you go past (on the plus side it's how I manage to finish higher up at times, £3 well spent, for an extra 50p, they stop your Garmin....for an extra pound, they don't nick it) 

I arrived at Woodbank, but once again, the people had not reserved the John Space despite the fact that it was possible that I was going to turn up. However my day was made better with the wonderful news that Alexandra parkrun had been cancelled and Woodbank (despite them not asking me) had altered their course, I would imagine as a result of my comments above, to be a flattish (well as flat as these Northerners can manage) 3 lapper.  The thought of  the little faces of people turning at Alex to be met with a 'bugger off too much ice' sign when I was running around elsewhere, made my heart glow with joy.  

Anyhoo, the dastardly duo in charge took the 277 of us through the course, basically, start when they go 'start', run, run run, till you get to the Rose Garden, up through the gates, turn left at the sign thing, on the bottom and the other at the top, run past the right slope to the Harriers ground and to it again twice.  In order to bugger up anyone's chances of getting a PB, they added around .02 of a miles on it.  Either that or they did it as they thought it was funny. 

Back to the most important thing about parkrun....  How I did.

Well  I'm planning on running the Daffodil 10k tomorrow at 8 minute miling so thought I'd have bit of a go at parkrun and see how much quicker than that I could run.  I did ok averaging 7.21 so I'm hopeful I can run under 50 minutes tomorrow. 

Tom Rogers from Traffford AC came in first today with 18.57 and the first lady was Alice Willson at Saddleworth Runners with 20.56.  Bonkers fast both.

Thank you as ever to all the marshals and the two RDs Stuart Bell and Sarah Russell, without whom, I would not be able to prattle on for the above paragraphs.  Top bananas both