Boys (&girls) from the white with red and black stripe stuff

Ormskirk Parkrun… LP&S ‘takeover’ – by Debbie Crook

For those who are old enough to remember Boys from the Blackstuff (which I’m just about to go and watch) there was no need this morning for the famous catch phrase “Gis a job”, as Kit and Run Director Keith Farrer had everything worked out with military precision for today’s ‘LP&S Parkrun takeover’.
In the lovely spring sunshine, and with the gazebo up but thankfully not needed, the runners started to arrive. In collaboration with some of the Parkrun regulars we had all marshal positions covered, even doubled up on some, and seventeen pacers for the 393 participants that attended.

From my vantage point at the pond ‘the tunes’ were playing and the runners started coming thick and fast. First LPS athlete to come through was Dan Procter who finished 2nd overall with a new PB of 17:28, soon followed by Matthew Bennett who finished 5th and Harrison Wright who joined us for the first time at Ormskirk Parkrun and finished in a fantastic 8th place.

Swapping the ‘throwing’ hammer for running shoes we had Mar-bel Casey making her debut at adult Parkrun, making use of Sharon Roberts doing a fabulous job at pacing, and watched over by a very “proud mamma” who was marshalling at the “half zig-zag” point.

The pacers did a fantastic job covering from 19 to 34 minutes, and this is reflected in the fact that there were 82 PBs achieved overall today! These included PB’s for some of our LP&S athletes with Jack Clancy (19:43), Leo Sandells (20:44), Ivor Holroyd (21:11), Mina Griffin (22:23), Sam Clancy (23:27) and Kevin Griffin (28:07). Jack was eager to break the 20 minute barrier today, and I’m not sure if he borrowed Mar-Bel’s hammer because I would say that he absolutely smashed it!

For those who want to relive the event, there’s a short video here

It’s always great to be able to fulfil the role of ‘pond marshal’ where I witness so many people starting their weekend off with a run or a walk and a big smile. But today was a particularly proud day for me as an LP&S athlete as we were able to support our local Parkrun and all the people involved. The hard work that LP&S people put in today was clear to everyone, and the prep work the pacers put in before hand to ensure they got it right on the day meant it was a job well done by all!

So if you haven’t yet joined us in the Parkrun community, or are a bit apprehensive just remember what Yosser Hughes would say, “I can do that”.