Yesterday (Saturday 13th March) was the 52nd notparkrunday. That’s a whole year without parkrun. When Covid-19 caused parkrun to be suspended back in March 2020, Mrs Chippy and I decided we would carry on with our regular 5 km runs at 9 am on a Saturday morning. Originally, we called them Socially Distanced Runs, until the notparkrunday word was created. I don’t think anyone expected parkrun to be suspended for more than a few weeks – there was astonishment when we reached 13.
There have now been 23 Saturdays without a parkrun in the UK – or indeed most of the rest of the world. The Covid-19 pandemic has meant that, for the first time since its inception in 2004, all events were suspended in March. Since then, only New Zealand has been able to restart (but has subsequently been re-suspended). Yes, we were 90% proud of New Zealand parkrun, but 10% jealous!
How have we coped? How have dedicated parkrunners managed without our weekly fix of running and camaraderie. [Read more…] about parkrun – it goes beyond running
