Reigate Priory parkrun - event 513

On the 31st May 2025 I ran the Reigate Priory parkrun which was the 513rd event held at the venue, my 238th parkrun and 156th different course I'd attended.

In preparation for a parkrun I ensure that I do my research beforehand. What's the course like, where to park, how popular is it, all the standard things. But sometimes knowing too much can be counter-productive.

Reigate Priory parkrun is a great example of knowing too much before you go. I knew that it was hilly and as a result I'd let it get into my head and had convinced myself long before I had actual arrived at the park on Saturday morning that I wasn't going to complete the event and that the hills were actually going to kill me. 

Upon arrival on the Saturday morning I was blessed with a beautiful sunny summer's morning with high temperatures and little wind. The sun always makes everything look that much pleasant and the surroundings at Reigate Priory were very much that and more.

Based in the centre of Reigate itself, (another place I'd never been and likely wouldn't have either had it not been for parkrun). The park is, like many a mixed use facility which serves the town and on a sunny Saturday morning it was incredibly busy as parkrunners, football teams and other clubs, including a team of people taking part in a bootcamp style keep fit class.

The park itself starts quite flat, at least on the northern side closer to town with a large formal house and gardens which is close to where the meeting point is. The further south from town you head, deeper into the park the ground begins to rise upwards. The grass gives way to trees and continues to rise upwards looking over the park.

The parkrun course is essentially a two-lap course with a short little bit extra to get too and from the start and takes in majority of the space.

From the start, outside the quite regal looking house, the course heads around the perimeter of the park in a northern direction. Alongside this perimeter which leads into a triangular tip at the far northern edge was where the bootcamp gang were and cheered every one of us as way made our way past.

We followed the edge of the triangular tip and came back upon ourselves heading back into the park, all on grass as the undulations began to kick in.

The course dipped down a little bit as we headed towards a small lake. There was a swan marshall here, keeping us away from a mother and her recently born cygnets. Although I suspected as we ran by that she'd gotten used to a storm of 500 people stomping on by every Saturday morning.

Once around the lake we were into the woods where the prior knowledge of the course started to bite. I knew here that the course began to climb and as expected - it did. The difference between a 2D view on television Vs the 3D view of reality can be quite stark. But for whatever reason this time the climb wasn't quite as bad as I had imagined it and I managed to make it all the way up to the top in one go. Part way to the top is a dip, which is quite steep on both the descent and ascent back up. I even managed to overtake a few other participants much to my joy and surprise.

At the end of this stretch the route leaves the edge of the woods and comes out at more or less the highest point of the park. Which is great news as the next stretch of the course is all down hill.

Following well worn paths the descent is gradual and good fun, heading back towards the swan bridge where the course does a U turn and heads towards a tree lined avenue back towards the start/finish section. Participants take a left on the first lap and complete the course again, after the second lap participants take a right heading towards the finish.

I'd made my way around the first lap without issue. But then the second lap was a complete disaster. Whether it was the warmth or the fact I'd got into my head and made things tougher than they needed to be I don't know. The net result was an itty bitty lap where I ran, walked and basically sulked my way around.

Once out of the woods for the second time and realising the rest of the course was all downhill and put my dummy back in and ran the rest of the course no problem, finishing in 377th position out of a field of 476 participants in a time of 33:26.

When people talk about running, they tend to think solely of the physical attributes required to run. Muscle, stamina and speed. None of that matters if the head doesn't work.

Reigate Priory was a beautiful parkrun in a beautiful park and a town I'd love to have a leisurely mooch around one day. I need to return back to this one, if only to find the head that I lost somewhere on the course.