A Visit to the Penninghame Estate, near Newton Stewart

 

Penrith parkrun, after a 7am start from Timperley in lovely weather. A nice fast course. Results are here.

Then a trip to Dumfries for provisions.

Then Threave House and Gardens provided an excellent venue for coffee and cake, then a picnic lunch.

... and quite a few photos.

The Daffodil Bank - we are just a bit too late!

After that, a short journey to our destination, where 20 of us are celebrating Robin's 60th birthday. 

Dinner at The Crown, in Newton Stewart.

Friday = Isabella Day (65)

Rabbits in the kitchen. 

Then a trip to Wythenshawe Park for some scootering and practice on a balance bike.

After that we went home for a fun day with Grandma Sue.

After which Grandma Sue was shattered! And I expect Isabella slept well!

Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 April 2024 - Fletcher Moss parkrun, and the Manchester Marathon

We chose to avoid the Wythenshawe mud, in favour of Fletcher Moss's network of dri(ish) tracks, for Saturday's parkrun.

After dropping Isabella off last night, Sue and I enjoyed the company of Mick and Gayle, who had parked their campervan, Bertie, in nearby Frieston Road.

Mary Berry's 'Humble Pie' seemed to be appreciated, washed down with a bottle of Mick's finest Bordeau Superieur.

Anyway, Saturday morning was soon upon us, and we took a 15 minute drive in convoy, to park outside Isabella's house in Didsbury, from where a short walk took us to the lovely tree-lined start of Fletcher Moss parkrun, pictured above. 

Setting off at the back of 455 participants, Teddy, on his first parkrun, got pushed the first section. We took over 9 minutes for the first kilometre, but sped up after that, as Teddy and his family spectated from the banks of the River Mersey.

 

The Barbers joined us afterwards for coffees in the Sports Centre, and Jenny and Owen also turned up. It was Mick's 100th parkrun, achieved nearly 18 years after his first parkrun, which he assured us was some sort of record to be proud of. Perhaps!

 

Full results are here.

Sunday morning found Sue and I trapped in our housing estate, with our local roads closed for the annual Manchester Marathon. I'd been on the point of entering, but was put off by the advertised 6 hour cut-off time. I'll know better next time! (The last finisher took 7:24.)

The half way point is about 200 metres from our house. There were cheers from the roadside as the leaders went past at about 11:10.

Two of those pictured above, 108 and 113, came second and third in around 2 hours 18 minutes. The winner must be hidden from view. Number 156 dropped out.

Those following were cheered past as I watched from Park Road. Here's the 2:45 pacer with his entourage.

A couple of hours later, Sue and I went out to cheer on our friends, Caroline and Lexi, who would finish in around 5 hours, with Caroline overtaking her daughter at around the 18 mile mark. Sue ran with both of them for a while, and I failed to get any pictures. I was too busy ringing the handbell we have for such events.

A massive choir was putting on an impressive performance outside Timperley's Methodist Chapel.

By the time the runners (many of whom are walking at this point) had been to Altrincham and back, they were strung out along Altrincham Road before returning to Timperley. At this point the 5 hour pacer went past, closely followed by the 4:45 pacer. Oops!

A great event in perfect weather (results here) with 21,500 finishers. Well done everyone.

Friday = Isabella Day (64)

Another lovely day with Isabella.

"More fish fingers? More beans? I think I'll give Grandad's soggy toast a miss!"

Adventures with Thomas. Great fun!

Then some banana flapjack was made, and before we knew, it was time to go home.

This and That - A Diary Update

It's some time since my last posting, so here's a brief update on an uneventful couple of weeks during which we've had a new garden fence, new desktop and laptop computers, more work assisting Reg with his autobiography, and an assortment of running and other social events that seem to have swallowed up any otherwise 'free' time.

On 25 March we enjoyed a performance from the Night Owls at Eagley Jazz Club. The band comprised: Reeds: Diane Hammond, Trumpet: Ben Richeton, Trombone: Duncan Winfield, Piano: Robin Dewhurst, Drums:  Andy Bold and leader, Tuba and Bass Sax: Dan Price. Excellent.

On 29 March Sue and I met with Andrew (from whose Cheshire home the spectacular rainbow pictured above was admired), together with Sue and David, and Dave and Betty - some of our 'South African' friends - for a meal at 'The Dog' that proved to be tasty and enjoyable.

The following day, Wythenshawe parkrun offered another chance to get our trainers muddy, as part of a turnout of 195 runners and walkers. Fewer than usual, as less muddy options were taken by some of the regulars who attended drier venues. Full results are here.

It was even warm enough to enjoy our post run coffees outside in the courtyard.

Later that day, camera shy Jack and Scott finished installing our new garden fences. They seem to have made a good job of it over the course of the week, and we would recommend them - 'Level Fencing Manchester', subcontractors for Rock Steady Fencing Urmston Ltd.

Sunday morning saw Paul in familiar pose briefing the 100 plus runners before setting them off on their regular Sunday morning Community Run of 2km or 5km.

After that I returned home to provide an Easter Sunday lunch for the family plus Jacob's mate Seb. I think they enjoyed it.

1 April, and Sue and I avoided any practical jokes and admired the rapidly greening foliage in De Quincey Park.

3 April, and a walk to the shops in Sale drew the camera out for another leafy vision. My daily walks somehow miraculously avoided the frequent rain showers, though a plan to watch cricket at Old Trafford had to be abandoned.

Peter and I were students at UMIST in the late 1960s, and despite moving to Canada, where he now lives with his wife Cassie, Peter has kept in touch. They visited us on 4/5 April and we took a short stroll beside our local canal (Bridgewater). It was good to see them, albeit briefly, and to 'catch up'.

A visit to Dunham Massey allowed Peter and Cassie to use our NT membership to enjoy the Winter Garden, which is at its best just now, while Sue and I went for a wander around the estate.

The weekend's running wasn't recorded on film, and was eschewed by Sue, who went on a yoga retreat weekend in Criccieth. I did the Alexandra parkrkrun with 543 others and despite a half minute delay at the start I managed a respectable time and an age related 64%, the best for a while. Full results are here.

Sunday's Community Run also passed uneventfully (and slowly) in surprisingly sunny weather after many had been put off by early morning rain.

8 April found us at Dot's house, celebrating her 99th birthday with a sausage sandwich lunch and a game of cards, during which she spent some time stuck on a score of 99!

Returning home from that, Sue and I were soon on our way to Eagley for Trad Jazz entertainment with John Hallam and the Tom Kincaid Trio, who played to a full house.

I'm sure I've missed something, but at least 'Blogger' is working. Now I have to return to the mysteries of different versions of Microsoft Outlook and the move from Office 2003 to Microsoft 365. I think I'll carry on with Reg's autobiography first.

The following image shows that in the 400 days since I replaced my phone I must have had contact with the internet for some time on each of those days. How sad!