Saturday 16 December 2023 - Wythenshawe parkrun #551

I was volunteering for run number 551, which used the 'Flag and Sandcastle' course. I was positioned in order to stop anyone from falling off the top of the flagpole. The sun was rising behind an impressive pond that in normal weather doesn't exist as more than a puddle.

With only 181 participants, the runners soon thinned out - I was positioned at the top of the flag only about 200 metres from the start at the bottom of the flag.

You can see in the next picture the spread out field running along the bottom of the flag.

I had only about ten minutes to wait for the leaders to come past on their second lap. Alice Stiles, on her first visit to Wythenshawe, appeared to be well clear in second place, but the results show her as coming third. Either she faded badly or someone took a shortcut.

Various folk were hammering along near the front.

The JM10 year old in the next two pictures was moving at a pace that matched his dad's PB - 23:18. Such children need to be accompanied, so his dad was under some pressure to stay with the young lad!

Further back, Jan was hopping along with a bandage still present on last Sunday's injury.

Sue was about a minute behind Jan, in 25:31.

I had quite a wait for the tail walker, so time for a couple more photos with the sun a little higher.

Coffees in the tearoom (we could go inside, as Paul had taken Rufus to Fletcher Moss, which has a dog friendly cafe) then my second volunteering role - sorting the 181 barcodes into order.

Full results are here, and there's a video (thanks Jan for the link) here.

As usual, a great start to the weekend.