Black Park parkrun - event 746

On the 4th January 2025 I ran the Black Park parkrun which was the 746th event held at the venue, my 219th parkrun and 137th different course I'd attended.

With the weather changing quite dramatically and temperatures dropping, we've entered into cancellation season and so some last minute adjustments to the schedule are advisory, and plans B, C and D are a sensible necessity.

The original plan was to travel down to the south coast and run Littlehampton Prom, but as the previous event was cancelled it put the event number out of sync and would have meant repeating an event number had we visited it. As I know Foordy has a preference for flat coastal events plan B was Southsea in Portsmouth but a combination of the weather and a dodgy Hamstring changed the plans again.

Foordy had been feeling a bit of tightness in his hamstring and wasn't sure that going full beams on an out and back was a good idea. He suggested a trail course that with the cold temperatures would be firm underfoot and the earlier winter mud would be frozen over which is how we ended up finally settling on Black Park.

Based near Slough, Black Park Country park neighbours nearby Pinewood Studios and it's forest has been the location of many films and TV shows from James Bond to Harry Potter. But being a forest there isn't anywhere you could immediately identify or recognise.

Upon arrival one thing was abundantly clear. It was COLD! Another pre-parkrun stood waiting during all of the pre-run formalities regretting life choices and wondering just why the hell I couldn't stay at home in bed!

Dressed at the starting line in gloves, jacket and running tights they all remained on at the end, except for the gloves, it was that cold! I normally strip back layers quite quickly, but they all stayed on this time around.

The course, starting from the main pathway next to the new cafe complex is a single lap figure of eight course and is ran entirely on form, compacted gravel paths.

Unlike most courses which can be fairly well described by breaking down segments of the course and describing key features. Black Park, due to its continuous nature through the forest is void of key landmarks.

That is by no means any criticism whatsoever ever. The course in fact is one of the nicest courses that I've ran and compares with Sherwood Pines which I ran last spring.

It is a very well attended event with 748 participants on the morning Foordy and I took part. But at no point really aside from the start did it feel overly congested. The wide paths helped spread the large numbers quickly and the course looked great in parts with long straights pathways dipping gradually revealing a long wide train of people in both directions.

There is something uniquely pleasurable about running through the forest. As mentioned before, the atmosphere changes and the sounds are different. It was even more magical with a hue of white frost on the branches and the grounds around us as we made our way along the course.

Whilst the ground was firm underfoot there were areas of shingle where it felt a little tricky to get some decent traction and so overall the course felt a little more challenging that it should have been.

I finished in 377th place out of a field of 746 participants in a time of 31.19. My times have slowly been getting slower over the second half of 2024 after a strong start to the last year. Not sure why if I'm honest with you. But hoping that things ebb and flow and that by carrying on with the routine that times pick up again. 

Not that it's about times though! I'd gladly walk courses like Black Park as that way you get more time to enjoy it!