Two festive fancy dress parkruns in King’s Lynn
Lynn parkrun celebrated Christmas with two bumper fancy dress events in The Walks.
The first was the usual Saturday run, when West Norfolk Mayor Cllr Margaret Wilkinson was special guest, accompanied by her consort Dawn Leigh, dressed in a very fetching elf’s costume.
With 318 runners and 24 volunteers, it was a very busy morning, with lots of runners in a variety of fancy dress, none of which seemed to deter them in running although the thought of the coffee and cakes at the end of the run no doubt helped with the motivation.
The mayor was there to greet the runners as they finished and took the time to chat with many about what motivated them to turn up each week to take part. The sense of commitment to fitness, health and well-being was clearly apparent, as was the diversity of those taking part, from the very young to the very old, to those who can run around the 5K course in less than 20 minutes, to those who take over an hour, everyone taking part being treated and valued by parkrun equally.
The mayor was clearly impressed by the volunteers who ensure the event remains free to all who wish to take part. She commented on the community spirit of all taking part and was particularly impressed by the inclusive nature of the event, with individuals of such a wide range of varying abilities taking part.
The runners used the opportunity to collect for the Mayor's charities, this year being the Pandora Project and West Norfolk and Waveney Mind.
Christmas Day saw 376 and 25 volunteers gather again in The Walks to run the 5k course, with many of the runners once again getting into the festive spirit by running in fancy dress.
Lynn parkrun event director, Gary Walker said: “It was a delight to have the mayor with us for our Saturday run and seeing her greet every runner as they came through the finish funnel was appreciated by everyone taking part. The Christmas Day run with such a large crowd out all enjoying the fresh air and earning their Christmas dinners was absolutely fabulous.”
Parkrun is a free 5K timed run which takes place in The Walks each Saturday at 9 am. Further details for anyone wishing to take part can be found at: www.parkrun.com/kingslynn or alternatively, just turn up in the Walks and speak to one of the organisers. A junior parkrun for children aged four to 14 also takes place in The Walks on Sunday mornings at 9am.
