Beckton parkrun bling

Apparently madness is contagious.  I took a tiny leaf out of @n0rm‘s book today and cycled to my parkrun, the inaugural Beckton parkrun in the London Borough of Newham.

The parkrun itself brought to mind a number of other runs that I’ve been lucky enough to do.  Like Cannon Hill, Netley Abbey and King’s Lynn, it has an out-and-back section that allows runners to offer encouragement and to guage whether their rivals are gaining on them.

Like Lloyd Park, there is a tempting hole in a hedge, though unlike Lloyd, you actually run through it as part of the route.

And like Bedfont Lakes, the final lap is slightly different to the first lap, adding a little variety to the route.

But unlike any other parkrun I’ve attended, there was bling!  Apparently the Mayor of the London Borough of Newham has said that any sporting events that take place in the Borough during Olympic Year should get a commemorative medal.  So the 53 runners* who turned up for today’s inaugural came away with a little keepsake.

*53 runners that included an encouraging number of first-time parkrunners, who may go on to form the backbone of the parkrun, Chris Cowell (1st on the most events table), Paul Freyne (2nd), John Matthews (3rd), Paul Fielding (4th), Linda Cowell (5th), Danny Norman (presenter of the parkrun show), Norm Driskell (ironman-in-training), John and Joanna Cassell (creators of the we love parkrun t-shirts) and Vanessa Rayner and Rick Oliver who I’ve crossed paths with at many of the North-of-the-Thames parkruns.