Capital Times

Cardiff and beyond on a rainy December day

What a miserable, waterlogged December we’ve had in the UK – and the rain shows no sign of abating. 

These are not good times for a hiking blog writer; the only walking that Harri and I have done for weeks is completing two short walks around Cardiff for www.walkingworld.com

The ground everywhere is so soggy and boggy that it’s impossible to leave the pavements and tarmac trails unless you have a decent pair of Wellingtons. And after my spectacular puddle dive back in November when I injured my right foot and couldn't run for nearly three weeks, I'm now steering clear of anything that resembles ground water.

A disintegrating Christmas present completes
Newport parkrun

Even the Christmas parkrun was a wash-out; the 150+ hardy runners who braved the torrential rain and thick mud in Newport ended up soaked to the skin and plastered in mud for their efforts (I speak from experience here as I was one of them – starting the race as Mother Christmas, finishing as Alice Cooper). 

Imaginative fancy dress outfits disintegrated in the 20-40 minutes it took parkrunners to splash around the filthy, saturated route at Tredegar House. The lakeside path had been deteriorating for weeks but the conditions on December 22 were the worst I’d ever experienced.

I feel somehow to blame for all this rain. At the end of October, I sent a tongue-in-cheek email to the parkrun newsletter saying:

“As I approach my 50^th parkrun at Newport, it’s occurred to me that I’ve never run it in the rain. I’ve only missed two parkruns since I started and I usually complete in under 30 minutes which must mean it never rains in Newport between 9am and 9.30am on Saturday mornings. Perhaps you would consider holding parkrun on a daily basis in the interests of some nice, dry winter mornings?"

Before alarm bells start sounding in the ears of parkrun volunteers, I should add that my suggestion was not greeted with a resounding 'let's do it' (or even printed in the weekly newsletter). I did, however, receive this spirited response from Michael at parkrun HQ.

"Hi Tracy
Thank you for taking the time to write to us. It means a lot!Here at parkrun we like to keep things as simple as possible, which just means providing free 5km runs on a Saturday morning to anyone who wants them. Also, as our events are run by volunteers, I don't think it would be practical to ask them to run an event everyday.Interestingly, there could be a scientific explanation for why it hardly ever rains on a Saturday morning (eg http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080811/full/news.2008.1017.html)
I hope you find this answer interesting."

I digress, but only to emphasize how the seemingly interminable wet weather has forced us to hunt for new territories for our hiking pursuits. For us, Cardiff has become the new Brecon Beacons, the only corner of this lush green country where you don’t need to don thigh-waders to go for a stroll.

Looking across Cardiff Bay towards the Custom House

Wales’ capital city might not boast the spectacular scenery of the Black Mountains or the stunning beaches of Gower, but it does have a lot going for it:

1. It’s flat - flatter than almost any other place in Wales; the mean-spirited might even call it 'vertically challenged'. However, flat means more miles covered per hour, you can see where you’re going and you have enough breath to walk and talk. Flat wins Cardiff lots of brownie points, in my opinion.

Bute Park's paths can get pretty busy

2. Its trails and footpaths are well-used – while generally advantageous, this can occasionally be frustrating. We were forced to wait for several minutes on a corner of Bute Park one Sunday while hundreds of Santa Clauses ran, walked and limped past (hint to the slowbies: an event advertised as a 5k run means you have to move your legs quickly!). On a brighter note, footpaths that are used by other walkers, roller-bladers, cyclists,  students , basically the world and his dog, mean that you can locate them without needing a 1:25,000 OS map and that you can leave your bramble-cutting scythe at home.

3. The proximity of its long-distance trails, e.g. the Taff and Ely Trails, to the shops. Where else in Wales can you finish an eight-mile hike and pop into Tammy Girl to buy your niece’s Christmas present?

The Norwegian Church has an idyllic  location

4. There are nice places to eat en route, sites of interest, activities, pubs.  There are craft shows in the Norwegian Church, whimsical Christmas stalls along the Hayes selling crepes, mulled wine and unusual gifts and you can even stop at the Dr Who Experience if time travel's your thing. 

5. Park and ride  – for people who think life's too short to queue to get into the John Lewis car park (or, like us, are too poor to pay the massive charges).  Cardiff's park and ride offering is amazingly good value (£3 after 8.30 am, just £1 before) and even more convenient for those of us coming from the Newport direction.

6. Cardiff Bay - what an amazing feat of engineering the barrage is. And the views across the Bristol Channel are fantastically disorienting (try to work out which direction the open sea lies - your brain tells you one thing, your eyes another).  I don’t think I’ve ever been so proud of being Welsh as when I ran the Cardiff Half Marathon in October. Running across the barrage in glorious autumn sunshine was definitely the highlight of an amazing day.

7. Last, but not least, Cardiff is a vibrant and spectacular city. True, it's taken me 50 years to appreciate what I've got on my doorstep, but that's the trouble with familiarity. Cardiff's always been there on the signposts, just a short train away, a place we went to ice-skate, see a pantomime, Tom Jones in concert or to spend our birthday money. Finally, I can recognise its real attractions.

 

Cardiff Bay has been transformed
in recent years

So, while the British weather continues to do  its worst (and Harri ensures me that it's forecast to carry on raining - now there's a title for a good old British comedy film), you'll likely be finding us wandering around Wales' capital city.

Happy hiking in 2013 everyone!

They've made a runner out of me

Morwenna and Imogen (and Colin Tebby) arriving for parkrun 

'Congratulations! Our records show that you have completed 50 parkruns. You are now eligible to receive a free parkrun 50 club tee shirt, sponsored by adidas, in recognition of your achievement.’

What parkrunner wouldn't be excited when the above email lands in their mailbox?

50 parkruns! 

That’s 250 kilometres of Saturday morning running with a wonderful crowd of people, many of whom I now class as good friends.

It’s 155 miles circumnavigating the (often muddy) grounds of Tredegar House, mentally ticking off those 1km markers.

It’s 50 separate texts, each one sent to my mobile just after 11am to let me know how my legs have performed that day.

And it's 50 emails noting my overall and  gender positions for that day's run, plus lots of other scintillating statistical information about my own performance and that of my fellow runners (and believe me checking the stats becomes very addictive!).

parkrun is what Saturdays were made for – and what makes it even more of a must-do event is that every week I’m joined by my equally enthusiastic family and friends.

And they're off...

parkrun is now such a massive part of my life that it's impossible to believe that just over a year ago, I’d never even heard of it.

From its humble beginnings at Bushy Park, Teddington, in 2004 (there were just 13 runners for the first run), parkrun is now an international sporting event, providing free, timed weekly 5k runs across the globe.

Founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt wanted to keep parkrun simple. Once a runner is registered, they just turn up unannounced at any event and compete against themselves.

The letters PB resonate with every parkrunner, for they are a constant reminder of the day they exceeded their own expectations and ran the fastest 5k race of their life – their ‘personal best’.

Everyone remembers the turning points in their lives, those moments when everything changes and life will simply never be the same again.

My ‘parkrun moment’ came in late September 2011 when our family was gathered in Caerleon for a meal to celebrate Morwenna’s graduation. My (former) sister-in-law, Catherine, was sitting next to me and, aware I’d taken up running a few years earlier, she asked me if I fancied going along to Tredegar House the following weekend to run a 5k around the lake. It was an organised event, she told me, but a free one. All I had to do was register online in advance and then I’d get timed for my efforts. I’d run the Swansea 10k a year before so the distance wasn't of particular concern. In effect, I was simply going along to hold her hand.

Imogen's efforts are rewarded

A week later, I met Catherine in the car park and the rest, as they say, is history. I was pretty much addicted from day one – though at that point, I had no idea that I’d soon be on first name terms (and Facebook friends) with many of the other runners.

Within weeks Morwenna had joined me, then her father, David, and his other sister, Allyson. The children didn’t want to miss out on the fun so it wasn't long before Amber, 7, Imogen, 6, Megan, 11, Connor, 10, and Abi, 5, were all dashing up the avenue and around the lake. Harri's occasional runs resulted in some impressive results, while his father, Garrod, put his running shoes on for the first time in over 20 years. Morwenna’s school friend Rachel turned up with her fiance (now husband) Wayne and Rachel’s mum, Sue, was soon a regular. 

Julia congratulates Amber on her first parkrun

parkrun was no longer an occasional Saturday morning event but was fast becoming a religion. 

In the Brew House, our after-run family gathering had long outgrown one table and we were regularly ordering tea for eight.

Chatting to fellow volunteers, I learned that one couple – Gareth and Sian – lived a few doors away from me, and I renewed contact with several old school friends and former work colleagues.

As the running bug took hold, Morwenna and I decided to join a club.

Newport parkrun is organised by volunteers from Lliswerry Runners and Caerleon Running Club and we were ‘courted’ by both clubs. After much deliberation, we chose Lliswerry on the basis that the runs were more likely to be flat (Caerleon is far too hilly for my liking).

With encouragement from club members, I achieved the unimaginable in 2012 and completed two half marathons – Llanelli in March and Cardiff in October (with Morwenna).

Nothing can beat the sense of achievement and the exhilaration of running long distances - the changing landscape, the breeze on your face, the adrenalin rush. When it's going well,  I feel like Maria Von Trapp running down those Austrian hillsides.

Tail-running the day before the Cardiff half marathon

When I started running four years ago, I could barely run to the end of Springvale estate without collapsing in a heap.

If anyone had told me then that one day I’d be the proud owner of an exclusive tee-shirt emblazoned with the number 50 to signify that I’d run 50 x 5km races, I’d probably have told them they were bonkers.

But I have. I’ve done it. With a little help from my (running) friends, some weird-looking gel toe tubes from Wilkinsons and lots of orange squash, I’ve become a member of parkrun’s 50 club. I have a big red 50 next to my name on the much-lauded weekly race results page. I have booked a place on my first international half marathon.

At the age of 51, I am proud to call myself a runner.