Running Scared at Ockwells Junior Parkrun Takeover

It was a spook-tacular Junior Parkrun at Ockwells, Maidenhead today. The rain clouds cleared, and 72 runners gathered to run the free, timed, 2km route around the fields and paths. Thanks to Run Director Sam Gillespie, 10 GoodGym volunteers were welcomed to fill the roster with marshals and timekeepers

Parkrun was a very special occasion for two young ladies today. Twin sisters were both running their 100th junior parkrun - what an amazing achievement! This was also sadly going to be their last junior parkrun before they regularly hit the dizzy heights of adult parkrun on Saturdays. GoodGym Area Activator Amy Lovell also presented Amanda Quincey with a medal for completing 50 good deeds and let the runners (and parents) know that they would be treated to chocolates and cakes after their run. Bone appetit! Amanda led the warm-up assisted by keen volunteers and spurred on by some very enthusiastic vampires and skeletons in the audience. It was fang-tastic seeing all the children run around in fancy dress today. We spotted a superhero, a cheer leader and even a ghost! All the runners put in a fa-boo-lous effort with a whopping 17 personal bests. We were also delighted to welcome 5 first timers today too! Juli was busy timing the ghouls and monsters running through the finish funnel which was carefully managed by Sophie Lack. You couldn’t miss marshals Kanika and Diya in their rainbow wigs and they were joined by Sheila who is a regular volunteer at Junior Parkrun cheering the crowds on. Kelley took some excellent photos and also helped marshal the children around the course. Nick and Amy scanned all the barcodes once runners had completed the course and Georgeta wore the tail magnificently even giving chase when the runners sped off with a burst of energy. Happy Halloween!