Adam Bird - My Personal Blog

On the 2nd May 2026 I ran the Whitecliffe Lake parkrun which was the 26th event held at the venue, my 286th parkrun and 199th different course I'd attended. My routine right now is a fairly simple one when it comes to choosing a venue on Saturday mornings. Is it the closest one to me that I've not done yet and does it coincide with an event number that I've net yet completed. When things come along that upset my routine I get more precious about it than I should and have to remind myself just what the hell it is that I'm getting anxious over - absolutely nothing at all! 6 months ago a new parkrun popped up on my radar, a brand new parkrun in Kent, bringing the number of venues in my home county up to 26. It also meant that I had a new NENDY, and even more was that I didn't have far to travel to get there. A mere 4.7km as the crow flies in fact. I had therefore planned to visit the new Whitecliffe Lake parkrun in Ebbsfleet at the soonest opportunity, providing that ...

On the 25th April 2026 I ran the Upton Court parkrun which was the 625th event held at the venue, my 285th parkrun and 198th different course I'd attended. What makes a good parkrun and why do we enjoy some events much more than others? I'm not sure anyone knows the answer to that, but I found it fascinating that both Mark and I really enjoyed this parkrun when all of the clues suggested perhaps we might not. Upton Court parkrun takes place in Upton Court, a public recreational space in the town of Slough. The surroundings were nice with some rather fetching houses lining the roads leading up to the entrance of the car park. But the course primarily is a two lap affair which takes in majority of the perimeter of the space and is mostly ran on grass. I think part of the lower expectations were due to the grassy nature of the course. But the weather played a crucial part. Not only have we had a long dry spell, but the temperature was warmer than recent days and the sun was out. ...