Adam Bird - My Personal Blog

On the 21st March 2026 I ran the Clacton Seafront parkrun which was the 417th event held at the venue, my 281st parkrun and 194th different course I'd attended. Spring is a great time to take part in parkrun, the sun is out, and temperatures are warming up but isn't to warm for running. Trees are carrying blossom and everything is brighter and just feels more cheerful. Running by the sea feels fresh and the waves are calm and it just somehow feels a whole lot better than the cold, grey depression of winter. Next up on this slow visit of the UK's parkrun venues was Clacton Seafront on the Essex coastline resort of Clacton on sea. Greeted by a tourist hotspot coming out of hibernation with the fun fair pier dusting off cobwebs and hopeful expectation of another strong summer season.  Bright sunshine, beautiful clear blue skies it was the perfect spring morning. Parking on the seafront was free for three hours giving Foordy and In plenty of time to enjoy the event and it'...

On the 14th March 2026 I ran the Cranleigh parkrun which was the 452nd event held at the venue, my 280th parkrun and 193rd different course I'd attended. The more weeks I visit new parkruns the harder it is to find a new parkrun and the further distance I have to travel. Having only got 1 more event to visit in London, 1 more in Kent and a small handful left of Essex parkrun choices are coming harder to rationalise. My goal is to ultimately visit all events that comprise the Greater London, East of England and South East England regions. This would be around 300 different venues in total and an amount that would take 6 years to complete if attempted in full. But with Gillingham away games providing opportunities to visit other regions and life getting in the way then that should be plenty to keep me going. Next on the list for me this week was Cranleigh in Surrey, 8 miles south of Guildford and often referred to as the largest village in the UK. It's parkrun venue is situated ...

On the 7th March 2026 I ran the Ingrebourne Hill parkrun which was the 59th event held at the venue, my 279th parkrun and 192nd different course I'd attended. The world of parkrun is forever shifting and changing, new events cropping up whilst others close. In the past few months new events have popped up in Essex, Kent and Greater London which has impacted my ability to 'complete the set'. I had carefully planned the last Greater London venue and tied it in with the first available gap in my Wilson Index, number 59. Meaning a wait of over a year before I could visit and mark the event as done. Of course they are my own rules and nobody else's so I don't have to stick to this methodology, but it works for me and I quite like it. Waiting is all part of the fun! However, as I worked my way around our great capital with the goal of making Ingrebourne Hill the 64th stop of 64 parkrun venues in Greater London a new one popped up! Greenwich Peninsula parkrun started on t...

On the 28th February 2026 I ran the Fell Foot parkrun which was the 493rd event held at the venue, my 278th parkrun and 191st different course I'd attended. Last week I revisited Bushy Park parkrun to celebrate with Mark and his 50th milestone. It was great to be running again at the home of parkrun, my second visit after celebrating my 100th milestone back in 2022. It was just as good as my first, the rampaging, Braveheartesque start, throngs of people and chaotically organised finish complex all in the wonderful grounds of a royal park. But this week was back on the road and back to the Lake District for my second visit. Barrow Vs Gillingham is not for the faint of heart. A near 650 mile round trip, with almost 11 hours in the car. With great mileage and travel to contend with Barrow away is almost certainly best done with an overnight stay. I fully commend those who do it in one day, or take the long slow trudge up by coach. Two years ago we did the trip with Reaso and George a...