Pontefract Parkrun

**VIA (VERY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT)**
It's never too early to start getting excited about Christmas.
Here at Pontefract parkrun we have had it confirmed we are good to go for an additional run on Christmas day and New Years Day. Hooray!! ☃️
... Christmas day will start at 9am, just like any other parkrun day. However New Years Day will be slightly different and will start at 8:30am!
New Year's day is always VERY popular and especially so for those that want to "do the double" and head off to a second parkrun after us. By making our start time 30 mins earlier it will allow for people to get to a second event safely. It will also give our volunteer team the chance to close down properly and allow them the time to get a run in at one of our parkrun neighbours too.
As with every event we need a superstar team of volunteers to make the magic happen. If you can help out please email pontefracthelpers@parkrun.com alternatively you can comment below.
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It's parkrun eve and the wind is howling outside. But don't worry it'll soon be joined by heavy rain. The perfect excuse to get your oldest running kit ready for a trip to the park tomorrow. The forecast isn't great but don't let that put you off. You're from Yorkshire, you're as hard as nails. See you in the morning. Puddle jumping optional. We start at 9am. #DFYB

****MIDWEEK MOTIVATION****
This week we are hoping to motivate each and every one of our runners & volunteers to check that they have updated their ‘In Case Of Emergency’ details. It’s not hard and will only take a few seconds.
Follow the ’Update My Profile’ link on your results email and check that we have the right details for you. After recent events at Pontefract Half Marathon we’d love to have up to date details for you all - just in case.
... HQ have a league table of events with ICE details completed and we are currently mid table. Let’s all have a concerted effort and fill in those important details so we can at least make the playoffs 🤣
Thank you.
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Pontefract parkrun event number 382 saw 242 people run walk or frolic around the racecourse. 22 first timers and 48 PB's, the weather held out for us wonderfully. The event was made possible by 19 volunteers:
Gregory SKELTON • John Richard BELL • Kenneth BINGLEY • Andrew JACKSON • Laura ROYSTON • Rosemary ELLIS • Pam GREEN • Lucy RIDER • Steven DENNISS • Debbie BARTON • Simon HEALD • Jude ABBOTT • Noah WILLIAMS • Mel BLACKBURN • Emme ROYSTON • Kevin WALTON • John HOBAN • Phil... WARDLE • Magan GOWDA
One slight glitch with the results this morning, can we please remind all parkrunners to only cross the finish line once, and if you do cross the finish line, please take a token, it helps so much in terms of keeping everything in line for us.
Finally we had a runner lose some Powerbeat 3 headphones between the finish and the old park entrance, if you've found any please let us know and we'll organise getting them back to their rightful owner!
See you all next week for more Pontefract parkrun fun. If you're running at York Marathon, maybe rest the legs and be a high viz hero, we always welcome volunteers.
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Good morning parkrunners, this Saturday I have enough volunteers to run our out and back route but NOT enough for the normal route. If you'd like the regular run, I really need 2 marshalls, a token collector and a funnel manager. Would be very nice to have some token support and another barcode scanner, but that's nice to have as opposed to required. Why not be a high viz hero and join me in the morning?

***Midweek Motivation***
Good morning Pontefract parkrunners, this week’s midweek motivation comes to you in the form of a massive THANK YOU! A great big Pontefract parkrun thank you goes to our friends Kirsty Shepherd, Laura Royston and Tom Camponi, all regular runners and volunteers at various parkruns in the area. These guys not only give up their time to parkrun on a regular basis, but were helping marshal, and in Toms case taking part in the Pontefract Half Marathon last... Sunday. When they were called into action to administer CPR to a runner following a heart attack. Their quick thinking and selfless actions have been commended by the paramedic and hospital teams as not only being vital in saving a mans life, but also ensuring he has the strongest possibility of retaining his brain function. We are very proud to be able to count you among our friends. You are an inspiration for community spirit and the support that extends beyond a Saturday morning.
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Wow you were all amazing today. Well done to everyone who completed the Pontefract Half Marathon this morning 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

Wow what a morning! We had it all going on today, sunshine, milestones, birthdays, a new PA system, a new post parkrun breakfast stop and a VIT (very important tourist) from Swindon.
So without further ado here is today’s run report;
This week 290 people ran, jogged and walked the course, of whom 21 were first timers and 57 recorded new Personal Bests. Representatives of 26 different clubs took part.
... The event was made possible by 18 volunteers, thanks go to;
Joanne CONROY • John KEES • Karen COOK • Jodi HAYWARD • Martin PLACE • Rosemary ELLIS • Mervyn DAVISON • Steve CONROY • Alfie CONROY • Chris SHARP • Ken POYNER • Emma PLACE • Rachel PLACE • Sebastian HUNTER • Stuart WHALE • Sue DAVISON • Anita SHARP • Emma HAYWARD
We had tourists from; NORWICH STOCKPORT HULL SWINDON (a special shout out to Marshal Bear - see pic)
Nifty at 50! parkrunners hitting their 50th parkrun today were; Paul Cartwright Jeremy Wells Jacqueline Ingle (bagged a milestone PB too) Jacob Seal Richard Nichols Well done everyone!
Happy birthday to both Neil Stearne and Les Martin, both 21 again I believe!? and both starting their special day off in the best possible way.
The new PA system seemed to work ok, and I was reliably informed you could all hear me, whether you wanted to or not!! Seriously though we have very important messages we HAVE to communicate each week, so it is vital that everyone can hear the run brief.
Each week after parkrun we head off to a local cafe to process the results over a brew and some breakfast. From today we now head to Pontefract Squash Club, it’s within a 10 min walk from the park and they do great breakfasts. Why not join us one week, we always need a hand sorting the tokens.
Finally to everyone running the Pontefract half in the morning, a massive good luck for tomorrow. Keep your eyes and ears peeled (can you peel ears??) at around the 10 mile mark, you might see some familiar faces #parkruntogo
Have a great week everyone, see you next Saturday, when Greg will be dropping the mic (not literally we hope)
Jo
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It's a big weekend locally for our running community with the Pontefract Half Marathon taking place this Sunday 30 September.
Who is joining us for a pre-race leg stretch tomorrow?
For those that have a spare couple of hours on Sunday morning the organisers of the half marathon are still after volunteers to help marshal. Please contact them via their Facebook page or website.
... https://www.pontefracthalfmarathon.co.uk/ volunteer.html
See you at the lake tomorrow, we shout GO at 9am!
#DFYB #Loveparkrun
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****MIDWEEK MOTIVATION****
This week our motivational message takes us to the Peak District where last Sunday a number of our regular runners took part in the Ladybower Ultra Series.
The event is a tough one over a stunningly beautiful course and different race distances. But the parkrun spirit is there, runners supporting each other & fabulous volunteers & spectators.
... Your Co-Eds Jo & John, Kevin Chippendale, Dave Stainforth, Julie Ruby & Tim Owen all completed the 35 mile course, whilst Rich Lord, Gill Chippendale & Steph & Mark Ramskill all ran the 20 mile option. Brilliant support on the day was provided by Mel Blackburn, Mel Owen, Jo Yendell & Keith Graham. Thanks guys.
The message we want to get across is that your running journey doesn’t have to stop with a 5k in the park. With a little effort and some amazing support from those around you, you can achieve anything you put your mind to.
Pontefract parkrun is now led by a pair of Ultra runners, who without watching all of you achieve incredible things week in week out may never have set off on that journey.
Thank you.
Jo & John.
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Yet another fabulous Saturday morning in Pontefract Park saw 294 complete our course on a great day for PB chasing.
59 of you managed to beat your previous times on a still, mild & overcast morning, the sort of perfect running weather we seldom get in our corner of Yorkshire.
Nick Bell ran his 250th parkrun with a years best time after starting at the front of the field. Well done Nick.
... Tourists from Norfolk, Bridlington & Barnsley added to our 23 first timers today, thanks for giving them such a warm welcome. Especially as 3 of those were making their parkrun debuts.
I’d like to personally thank every single person that stepped up to volunteer today. On Friday morning we didn’t have enough people on the roster to safely stage the event, these guys all deserve your applause. Special thanks to Michelle Parrish for drumming up a team of 5 volunteers from her family to help us get things going.
Next week Joanne is back at the helm and might just be using our swanky new PA system 🎤
Thanks all for making our parkrun the best for miles around. John.
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Storm Ali has done her worst but it won't stop us from running in the morning. Let me know if you are running a milestone or if you've blowing in from far afield as a tourist. We start at 9am with a volunteer team of 5, what can possibly go wrong? See you by the lake, John.

****MIDWEEK MOTIVATION*****
This week we look back to August 2016 and the day we were joined by Ben Smith and The 401 Challenge.
Ben visited us as part of his epic adventure to complete 401 marathons in 401 days in an attempt to raise £250,000 for Kidscape and Stonewall. (He smashed that target & collected a BBC Sports Personality of the Year award).
... 443 people joined us that morning from far and wide, inspired by Ben’s incredible story of how he overcame bullying and suicide attempts to achieve something many thought impossible.
Lots of those 443 ran further that day than they had ever done before as we organised the days route after parkrun to include 5, 10, 13 miles and for some a full marathon, many achieving this awesome distance for the first time.
It was an incredible day in the presence of an incredible human being.
Were you there that day? Did you achieve a distance PB? Let us know how meeting and running with Ben affected you.
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This week at Pontefract 295 people ran, jogged and walked the course, of whom 27 were first timers and 64 recorded new Personal Bests. Representatives of 22 different clubs took part.
The event was made possible by 14 awesome volunteers: A huge thanks to John Richard BELL • Kenneth BINGLEY • Claire BARBER • Rosemary ELLIS • Mervyn DAVISON • Pam GREEN • Steve CONROY • Alfie CONROY • Andrew ARCHER • Andy EVANS • Sarah HUNTER • Peter COLLIER • Nathan DOY
This week we had tourist...s visiting from Cardiff, Lincoln, Dewsbury, Rothwell, Beeston and Nostel! We hoped you enjoyed the friendliest parkrun in Yorkshire.
People achieving milestones this week were: John Marcon and Graham Hunter (congrats on the new PB too) they both celebrated their 50th parkrun. Well done gents.
Yesterday afternoon we stayed in the park and promoted Pontefract parkrun and Pontefract junior parkrun at the Five Towns community day. It was a great way to encourage people to come along and highlight that walkers and volunteers are welcome. If you know anyone that would be interested then why not bring them along next week.
Speaking of next week the effervescent John Kees is your Run Director, I’m back on the 29th.
Jo #loveparkrun #dfyb
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We are all set up at the Five Towns Community Day at Ponte park. Come and say hello 😊
#lovepontefractparkrun #loveparkrun

Due to the unique way Facebook's algorithms work, our posts don't always get seen by you, our wonderful parkrun community.
If you think you haven't seen a post from us for a while, be sure to check our page for updates. (Our midweek motivation post is an important one this week)
In the meantime, I'm pleased to say it's parkrun eve!! Who is joining us down at the lake tomorrow?

This week's MIDWEEK MOTIVATION message is on behalf of our good friends at Pontefract junior parkrun.
If you can spare a couple of £s please donate to their defib collection. Our community helped us massively when we needed to raise funds for our own defib a couple of years ago and it would be amazing if we could help the juniors too.
#loveparkrun #lovejuniorparkrun

This week's MIDWEEK MOTIVATION message is on behalf of our good friends at Pontefract junior parkrun.
If you can spare a couple of £s please donate to their defib collection. Our community helped us massively when we needed to raise funds for our own defib a couple of years ago and it would be amazing if we could help the juniors too.
#loveparkrun #lovejuniorparkrun