17 and counting where will it go from here.

January so far has been full, action packed and a slight blur. My life as a stay at home father has returned after a short break as I returned to work. I joked at the time when I returned to work that I came back for a rest, and after a couple of weeks of school runs, baby feeds, after school clubs and countless parties the joke has defintely lost its punch line. 

The first week back coincided with the start of Jantastic, a website for runners to join a running community, log their runs, set yourself targets and achieve those goals for the first 3 months of the year. It's designed to help you keep to your New Years resolutions or to get back into the routine of running after the Christmas break. As well as that it's a very helpful tool to push your training that little bit extra and with the added social element of running teams and rivals it adds a little bit more fun into the cold winter months.

So during the day in the first week I was cruising around almost zombie like but on auto pilot and then on an evening I was pounding the pavements trying to get my running back on track and the training for the big runs of the year started. With a few 10k and 10m runs planned and my first half marathon all before the end of April I needed my training runs and my routine back. The second week has been a lot smoother and I even managed to find a bit of time to do a bit of shopping and planning for the up coming Shepley First School fun run. 

The boys have settled down too from the change from Mummy to Daddy during the day and we've had a lovely time almost getting to know each other again. It's a strange change for them too having just got use to Mummy and her routine and way of doing things to then have Daddy do things slightly differently or at different times. Just a slight change can throw them and that was all to true with Clark taking a couple of steps backwards with toilet training, luckily he seems to be gaining those steps back again already.

My running is also back on track and with the added pick me up of new shoes thanks to Nana and my birthday present I have managed to meet my Jantastic targets fairly easily. As ever the routine and awesomeness of parkrun is going strong and this weekend was another record breaking for Huddersfield parkrun. 621 runners, breaking the record by 9 and only 3 weeks into January is such a fantastic start to the year, keep up the good work guys. This parkrunday we also had 4 new parkrunners join in, Becky joined us a couple of weeks ago but this week her husband Paul came along and ran with their sons Zane and their new arrival Travis in his buggy, thus creating Team Horsfall. Along side Team Pattison and Team Horsfall was my sister Jessie and she had brought with her and all the way from Liverpool, her boyfriend Matty who was running his first parkrun and being a parkrun tourist as well. We've already talked about plans for us to do the return trip to Princes' parkrun (Liverpools parkrun), as I've already said to a few people 2014 is the year of parkrun tourism. 

I then got thinking about how many people I have directly or indirectly introduced to parkrun and how many of them have really enjoyed it and continue to take part in parkrun. When I say indirectly in kind of mean the butterfly effect, I.e. They registered because they came with someone I introduced to it via word of mouth or social media. Roughly counting I think I got to about 17 people that I know of that have taken part in parkrun resulting from me taking part for the first time back in June of last year. Only 7 of these are family members and the rest comprise of friends or friends of the family, and this is just the start, I wonder how many of these 17 will end up encouraging others to take part too. This is one of the main reasons for the success of parkrun and why Mr Danny Norman gets wildly passionate about parkrun when talking stats and growth on The parkrun show podcast. I enjoy Danny's passion and I hope that it rubs off a little on everyone, then hopefully the stats and growth will continue.

I hope to increase my tally of people I have help to discover the joys of parkrun in the next couple of months and with the Shepley First School fun run being held at Huddersfield parkrun this year I could easily double my number if not treble it. Only a few people at Dexters school have heard of it never mind take part in it, so with the possibility of about 30-40 people taking part in the fun run, my number should increase a lot. However It's not about how many I can introduce it's how many of them continue and return on a regular basis to increase their fitness, better their times or just as a regular fun and social event. This is usually due to the fun friendly atmosphere and people that run, volunteer and organise Huddersfield parkrun. So a big thanks to Simon, Mark, Kerry, Kev, Jo and many others sorry I don't know everyone's names, keep up the good work and let's keep breaking those records too.

How many people do you think you have encouraged and introduced to parkrun and all its awesomeness?

Keep running everyone

Merry Christmas and a Happy Double parkrun 2014

Happy new year everyone and I hope Santa brought you all some amazing gift this Christmas. Most of our Christmas was centred around parkrun ands it's many holiday events. As well as the runs there were plenty of presents and food and lots of family time.

At last count in the past 15 days Dexter has done 4 parkruns and 19 in total (almost 2 and a half marathons and for a 5 year old that's incredible), SJ has done 5, and 15 in total since giving birth to Flynn (just as incredible) and I have done 6 because of the double on New Year's Day and 26 in total since June.

These runs have been some of the best parkruns I have done with various fancy dress and festivities involved. So much so that the parkrunday after Christmas Day when I was running in just my usual attire it felt strange and is almost felt a little naked. 

This wore off by New Year's Day as my focus was on the excitement of doing the double parkrun of Dewsbury then Huddersfield. There was a good number of regular Huddersfield parkrun runners at Dewbury parkrun doing the double including the EDs Simon and Mark, and the rest of the Huddersfield running bunnies. 

Then this parkrunday it was completely back to normal but with a few extra faces and some new gear to run in. It had been my birthday this past Thursday and SJ had got me some new running clothes which I immediately donned for this parkrunday, all matching colours too. Plus I was trying out a new toy I got for Christmas from Santa, a video camera in a pair of sunglasses which can record in full HD and for a good couple of hours too. I asked Santa for them specifically for the Yorkshire Warrior in April but knew I needed to get used to them so why not try them and film my parkruns now and again. 

There was a few mishaps with the glasses and I didn't manage to record he first 3km of the run but the  last 2km or at least most of it was and I was impressed with the quality and ease of use once I had it going. I also took some footage of my after run, where I had a chat and rest with my friend Steve before I went off to catch up with the rest of Team Pattison. Plus we had a new face running with us this week, it was Becky, my sister Jodie's best friend. It was her first parkrun and she did a brilliant sub 40 time as her first PB, a good bench mark to start off with. Brilliant job Becky. When we got home I looked through what I had managed to capture and made this short video as a test video for what could be a regular thing.

Now at this time last year I was setting myself a mileage target to hit based on what I would usually run around Shepley. I had set myself a target of 1000km but I didn't even get close I think I'd be lucky to have got 800km and if it wasn't for parkrun I don't think I would have gone past 500km. So this year I won't set a distance target instead I have come up with a different target. Whilst organising the New Years Day double parkrun I posted on Facebook that 2014 would be the year of the parkrun tourist. For those who don't know what that is, it's a person who travels to other parkruns other than the Home parkrun they have designated online. So my target for this year will be to do at least 5 more different parkruns, not including Huddersfield, Barnsley and Dewbury as I have already done these. There are at least 10 that are within 1 hrs drive of us so fairly easy to do. So I have no excuses on completing this target this year, plus I have at least 3 10k runs, a 10k obstacle run, a 10 mile obstacle run and a half marathon to train for and all before august. So mileage shouldn't be a problem this year, the test is breaking the usual parkrunday routine to go to a different parkrun. 

Here are a few photos from the Christmas period that I have liked from the Huddersfield parkrun Facebook page and a few of my own when I remembered to get the camera out. 

Plus I hope you enjoy the video even if it is a bit rubbish, I hope you all have a good 2014 and hit all your targets you set yourself.

Keep running everyone

 

Go Team Pattison

Christmas parkrun and last weekend at work

Over the last couple of weeks my running has all but disappeared to tiredness from working or other plans have taken priority. Other than parkrun last week I hadn't done any training runs and as a result I have put on a couple of pounds ok maybe 6. I not one for worrying about my weight but I was about a pound off losing 2 stone since I started running and keeping fit 18 months ago. That was a couple of weeks ago and I was looking forward to breaking the 2 stone mark but the lack if runs has now put that back a few weeks/months. Then this weekend It was my weekend in so the usual parkrun would be off the table and another run crossed off. However this parkrunday was the Santa parkrun with dress up encouraged, so was gutted I was going to miss it being at work etc. So all week I had been working an extra few minutes here and there so that there was a possibility I could duck out from work for an hour to run with Team Pattison at parkrun. I still had to wait and see how busy work was on the day, so there was no guarantee I could leave until the last minute. 

Luckily at 8.40am on parkrunday I left work jumped in my car and drove to meet up with the rest of my parkrun family, I even arrived with 10 minutes to spare so didn't have to rush into my Santa outfit. As I had to be back at work ASAP I was running on my own so left the rest of Team Pattison at the back of the pack and headed towards the front. After a quick Christmas sing song instead of a run brief instigated by Kerry, we were off. Everyone involved was in great spirits and were very festive in the various roles, and some of the marshalls had Chirstmas songs playing on speakers from their phones as we ran past. I had a great time at parkrun the only thing that sullied it was my time, I only just managed a sub 24 time. I hope it was a result of the flailing Santa suit that acted more like a parachute at times, and the tiredness from working since 6.30, and nothing to do with my fitness and lack of training. I had no time to dwell as I now had to get back to my mums quick shower and change back into my work clothes then drive back to work.

Back at work and I was feeling a bit rough from all the running around I had just done over the last hour. Luckily work was fairly quiet and I hadn't been needed whilst I was out, not sure if that's good or not. I really enjoy my excursion from work I felt like a little boy skipping school or something.

This weekend at work has been my last as from January 3rd I will be leaving AGAIN. SJ goes back to work after her maternity leave on January 6th, and as we have found out the cost of 3 children in child care is stupid. I would quite happily stay on at work and put the kids at various settings but to do that would mean I would be paying £90 to go to work each week. So I will be becoming a stay at home father again, a job I love but  it just doesn't pay enough!!

Why in this day and age can you not afford to go to work!! Whilst it is, with a little scrimping just affordable to stay at home and look after my kids. This is without claiming benefits, not that, that is the answer but we wouldn't qualify to claim if we wanted to anyway. Enough now I'm not one for ranting which means it must be really annoying for me to rant about it.

Anyway back to the festivities I completed my last Sunday at work then headed home to get ready for the Santa's grotto my mum was putting on for the kids and a few other friends and their children too. She has done this for the past couple of years and it has been really good for the kids each time, and this year was no different. It was however Flynns first visit to Santa and he seemed to take it well.

So this weekend has felt really Christmasy and a good start to the holidays. Thank you to Simon, Mark, and Kerry at Huddersfield parkrun and all the volunteers they had this weekend. 

Plus thanks to my mum and Peter for another great Santa's grotto. I now can't wait till Christmas Day and the Christmas Day parkrun with the boys and both buggies, plus all the presents and family time too.

I know I should take my own advice as well when I say this, keep running everyone. 

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!

Dexter and parkrun fame

Over the last 2 weeks Dexter has had a great deal of excitement surrounding parkrun. About 11 days ago whilst watching 'The One Show' SJ sent in a photo of Dexter and I running at parkrun on his 10th run. She did this because they were announcing the final 10 for Sports personality of the Year and asked the viewers to send in photos of people in their household who should be recognised for their achievements.

SJ sent this photo in with the tag line, this is Dexter running with his Daddy completing 10 5k parkruns and we thought no more of it. We went off doing some tidying and forgot about it but about 20 mins later we heard Dexters' name on the TV and we came running to rewind it to see if we heard right. We had, so we rewound it again and shouted Dexter to come watch TV, he had no idea what was about to happen. We pressed play and this happened,
 

So when parkrunday came and he was crossing the finish line he was greeted by it's Dexter off the TV. He was then approached by Jude who thanked him for getting her on TV too! This puzzled Dexter as he's still at that age where the rest of the world doesn't really exist and he doesn't get why other people saw him on TV, and that other people can watch the same thing as him. 

All week at school he was asked at about it by various parents and still he was a little shocked at the attention he was getting. Plus SJ and I were getting the strangest of questions from people like "did The One Show ask you for a photo of Dexter?" "Did you get any money for it?" And "Will he be on again?" to which our reply was NO it was just a bit of fun.

Then this past parkrunday eve we got a message on Facebook that Dexters 10 club T-Shirt was ready for us to pick up at the next parkrun. So on parkrunday when we picked it up the lovely attention Dexter got for his T-Shirt was great and it made him feel great. So thank you to everyone that made a fuss of him and made his parkrunday even more special.

If that wasn't enough we then joined in the annual Huddersfield Santa Dash where Dexter, Clark and Flynn were star attractions in their reindeer outfits. Plus some star apperences from last years  and current Santa Dash champion parkrun ED Simon and this years runner up and Co parkrun ED Mark, well done guys on your efforts today.

Plus the Santa Dash got a small section on the local news program where the boys, SJ and I can be seen running/walking in our various costumes and Tinsel. 

And to top off a great day we went to see the Coca-Cola lorry mainly for SJ and I as the boys had no concept of what it stands for, but that didn't stop Dexter loving it.

What a great weekend, and don't forget to keep running everyone.

An icy adventure at Huddersfield parkrun

Today we were up and ready in plenty of time to get to grandmas house. We even arrived with time to say hello to everyone and take in the decorated breakfast room and accompanying signs on the front door.

It was gonna be a thanksgiving theme. We have adopted some of the American celebrations through Nana who lived there for a year and gained a lot of really nice American friends in the process. 

As we walked round to the park we realised how frosty it was and that it could be an interesting parkrun. So when we entered the park and the slight slope down to the start was almost an ice rink then we new this was going to be tricky.

This parkrunday I was taking control of Flynn and the buggy for the first time and SJ was running solo for the first time. She was doing it to see how much time the buggy adds to a run, but maybe the icy conditions aren't the best for a first solo run. We all aligned ourselves at the back of the gathering pack at the start where almost every child was sliding around on the trainers on purpose having a great time. Nana was a little nervous about the icy conditions but was still hoping to do it. 

All the joy filled children at the back made it hard to hear Kerry do her run brief, so we assumed that she was telling us to be careful on the icy patches are round the route. As we set off we all took it easy on the main straight down the hill, some on the grass at the side and some on the road. About halfway down it got a bit too precarious for nana and she decided to give this weeks parkrun a miss rather than fall and knock her confidence for while if not for good. I don't blame her at all, parkrun will be here every parkrunday so there is no need to make yourself do it if you think you may get hurt.

So Dexter, Flynn and I carried on running and then got slightly confused at what should have been the first corner. The route was different and it only took seconds to realise that's what Kerry was explaining at the run brief. Running on we noticed the course was really different and thought It must be because of the icy patches. As we passed other parkrunners we pieced things together from what we heard along the way. We were running the old route apparently and it's 3 laps long too so it felt like a completely new parkrun to me.

Dexter and I were keeping a good pace but at the same time so was SJ and she was maintaining a good distance between us and herself. I was so proud of her for doing so well on her first solo run. 

As we passed the halfway mark of the 3rd lap we could still see SJ in the distance and Dexter was still running and not whingeing things were going well. As Dexter and I reached the top we could see we were catching SJ and we picked her up in the last corner. So she ran with Dexter down the hill to the finish which was now at the bowling greens. I liked the finish with the funnel and barcode scanning round the bowling green but I can see how it could get a bit congested at busy periods of a parkrun. 

SJ and Dexter crossed the line together and Jodie finished ahead of them by a minute or 2 with me and Flynn bringing up the rear a few seconds later. Then we all met up with Nana and Grandad who had the other boys with them. Nana asked about the route and how icy it was and to see whether or not she made the right decision to stop and I told she had, she wouldn't have like the uncertainty of which bits were icy and which were ok.

So then it was off to Grandmas for our thanksgiving breakfast, pancakes, maple syrup and everything. 

It was delicious so a big thanks to Grandma and Peter for their great parkrun breakfasts of late. Whilst eating and discussing parkrun our times came through via text and SJ was pleased to have knocked about 3 and a 1/2 minutes off her PB, which is brilliant and I'm so proud off her. For someone who before the birth of Flynn was a "I don't do running" person to now have done 8 parkruns and have a PB of 36.28 is just fantastic. 

I enjoyed my first buggy run to as it was a new challenge and gave me a different perspective on parkrun. I was really proud of Dexter too as he seems to getting better and better and his running is coming on leaps and bounds.  The best thing is it's happening without him noticing, I can see his improvement even if he can't and I can see that in a few months or a years time he could be easily in the sub 30 category. I think Santa might be bring him some more running apparel.

Thank you to all the volunteers this week in the cold and see you again soon

Keep running everyone

My first Leeds 10k Abbey Dash 2013

This Sunday it was my first ever Leeds 10k Abbey Dash and also the biggest event I've been to so far.

My running friend Steve and I both signed up for it a couple of weeks ago and both of us hadn't really done any training for it other than a couple of 5k runs on a Thursday night and a steady parkrun on Saturday. But both of us still wanted to beat our PBs and smash them at that.

We arrived in Leeds nice and early and made our way across the city centre to the gathering area and start pens. Some how even though Steve is faster than me, I ended up in the Sub 45 group and Steve in the Sub 55 group. We got to the start area and there was already a couple of thousand people there warming up, using the toilets or dancing to the music that was blasting out across the empty site of the old international swimming pool knocked down a while a go. 

At the far corner were the start pens with enormous flags attached with the different group colours and category on them. 

After the official warm up we all gathered in our assigned pens, even if some people just ignored the different groups and went where they wanted to go. Which I didn't mind if your trying to improve your time and you think your fast enough but some people were from the 60+min group and as we started running were instantly passed, and got in the way a bit. Soon enough though we were on our way and spreading out and running at our usual pace. 

The route for the Abbey Dash isn't the most interesting route by all means but it's the whole event that gets the adrenaline going and the crowds along the road that keeps your mind focused. As the run unfolded I found myself hitting mental walls at various stages that co inside with what my body is used to. At the turn and 5k point I hit my parkrun wall where my body thought I would stop, but once I was passed that my body surrendered and seemed to just say, ok we're still going, alright. So I still kept my pace going at a similar time to the first 5k. Up until 8k I was ok but here is where I've always seemed have to a mental wall. From 7.5k to 8k I think I slowed a touch but once again as I passed that wall I found it a bit easier again. That didn't last long at all though, as I hit 9k the lack of practice runs took its toll and my cardio was shot. My legs felt ok but my lungs where just burning and my head was pounding from dehydration. It was here where I realised I might not break my PB and the last few hundred metres were slow and as others still pushed on and passed me on the finish straight it was hard. Then I realised that Steve who was in the wave behind me still hadn't passed me this cheered me up as even though he will have a faster time I will beat him to the line. Then with 200 metres to go Simon from Huddersfield parkrun passed me on a mission to beat his PB of 45.55 and I knew if he kept going he would smash it, so I have him a big "go on Simon" as he passed and then I tried to push on myself. I crossed the finish line and forgot to stop my running app until I was further up the finish funnel, so I had no idea what time I got.

 I caught up with Simon and congratulated him, he showed me his watch showing a time of 44 mins something so he had beaten his PB and smashed it too. Unluckily later on though he found out his timing chip had failed so ended with a DNF instead of a new PB which is a shame, but just means he'll have to beat it next year instead.

After collecting my T-Shirt and drink I went to wait at the pre-arranged meeting point that Steve and I said we would be at, after we finished. To my surprise Steve was already waiting for me, so I asked him when he passed me as I hadn't noticed him passing me. He said that when they were moving the pens to the start line he jumped on ahead of me, so he was always ahead of me. Oh well the thought of being ahead of Steve kept me going that last bit of the run. 

As we got back to the car to go home we were discussing times and as I wasn't sure what time I had got I had come to the conclusion that if I beat my PB 46.21 then I'm happy but if I do manage to get under 46 mins I'll be ecstatic. About 10 seconds later no lie I got my result text in and my Gun time was 47.23 but my chip time was 45.58!!!! Yay!!! I did it, great! 

That did it, that perked me right up and topped off a great weekend of running and family time. So a big thanks to Steve for driving and for inadvertently spuring me on the last few hundred metres. Big thanks to Simon and Huddersfield parkrun for the only bit training I really did. Plus a big thanks to my family for joining in with the running these past few months you've made it just that extra bit more special.

Keep running everyone