Hamilton Lake parkrun

New Zealand, Saturday, December 21, 2013

Angela Coates and Paul Pascoe

We’ve been waiting for a few years for Hamilton to put on a parkrun as we have visited Lake Rotoroa quite a few times for a walk and to see the Pukeko (a wading Bird). Finally we spotted (not that I’m stalking parkrun NZ or anything) that a parkrun was coming to Hamilton. Would we be able to get to it during our holidays, too right we could, or no worries mate as they say here.

We turned up outside the Yacht Club, where the start is, in good time and immediately were greeted with enthusiasm and friendliness. We were informed about the running club, the course and how proud they were of their runners, especially the family that had attended all 10 runs so far and how the little boy had knocked so much time off his first run/walk and how he really enjoyed it now. That’s what parkrun is all about.

Angela and Paul. Some people will go to great lengths to get out of running the Christmas Handicap.

Anyway we set off on a glorious sunny morning, no strong wind like the night before, at 8:00 (the start time in New Zealand). The route is one lap of the lake on path and boardwalk then a little add in loop on grass to make up the 5k. After dodging the Pukekos and geese it was a good run with a few twists and turns, feeling okay until just after the 3k (for both of us actually), then the feeling of the heat kicked in, but we carried on and even managed to avoid the cross fitters at the end (there was a group of people doing cross fit right at the finish, a Christmas treat for them doing it outside, yeah right).

We thanked the organisers at the end and apologised that we couldn’t go for drinks and cake as we needed to vacate our Motel. It is a fantastic location, we love it anyway, and would definitely go back. The magic of parkrun, the other side of the world but still the same format, great organisers and volunteers and the diversity of runners.

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