What a beautiful morning! Ninety-nine runners and walkers, and another nine volunteers, thought so too. Three people picked a very good day to do their first-ever parkrun. Welcome to Barry LESLIE, Matthew BALL and Jules O’FLAHERTY.

Welcome also to those at Anderson parkun for the first time: Te HUNT (who did his first few in Invercargill three years ago), Judith OGUGUO and Iwan WILLIAMS (who have done 13 and 17 parkruns (respectively) at 11 different events in several different countries.

Congratulations to Kerry HARPER who completed his 50^th parkrun today. Thank you for sharing your magnificent cake!

There were no surprises at the front today. Mark FISHER led the way in 18:30, followed by Brendan PHEASANT in 19:21 and Kevin HARVEY in 19:43.

The front three females were Amelia SMITH in a Personal Best time of 20:25, Lucy MOLONY also in a Personal Best time of 23:11, and Kathrin SILLER inching closer to her PB in 24:24.

Seven others also scored PBs. Congratulations to: Mark BOYD, Lyrissa FONTAINE (for the third time in a row), Emma NEWTON, Edmund FISHER, Liam HOULISTON, Ebba BURTON and Leah SARICH.

Each of the people who achieved an age-grade percentile in the 70s was in a different age/gender category: Amelia SMITH JW15-17 (75.92%), Kevin HARVEY VM45-49 (74.22), Perry NEWBURN VM65-69 (73.78%), Mark FISHER VM35-39 (72.70%), Trish CUMMINS VW70-74 (72.42%), Barbara EDMEAD VW65-69 (72.00%) and Ian MCKEE VM55-59 (71.88%).

Gratitude, as always, goes to the team of volunteers: Eric PHIMISTER (Run Director), Richard BERBER, Glenn CAMPBELL, Theresa COWEN, Trish CUMMINS, Peter EDMEAD, Paul GIBBONS, Sally HOULISTON, Steve HOULISTON, Andrew JONES, Nneka OKONTA and Robyn PERRY.

Sally has done a few volunteer roles but today she tried something new. Here is her perspective: “Volunteering today, I took up the challenge of barcode scanning for the first time. As barcode scanner I was also able to enjoy being part of the ‘cheer squad’, cheering on our runners and walkers as they came around the start / finish line, before taking up my position at the end of the finish funnel. Having written our run reports regularly I have become familiar with many names but the benefit of barcode scanning meant I was now able to put names to faces as barcodes were presented for scanning.

Barcode scanning is an easy and fun way to get to know fellow parkrunners. So if you haven’t tried, why not give it a go and get to meet the other participants.”

GOOD NEWS! Our friends in Scotland will be resuming their parkrunning next Saturday, 14 August 2021. They have waited almost 18 months for this day. As promised when we resumed in July 2020, we will do it with them. Check out the album on our facebook page (3 July 2020) to be inspired. It’s time to shake out the kilt, dust off the flag and dig out the tartan. Our bagpiper is warming up her lungs ready to greet you and there might even be a Scottish sweet surprise.

Trish Cummins

If you didn’t make it to parkrun this morning we’ll assume you got lost en route because you couldn’t see your way. Don’t worry – by next week the sun will be shining and you’ll have no excuses to not be here. Eighty-two runners and walkers, and another nine volunteers, found their way through the fog to join us at the park.

Welcome to those who visited Anderson parkrun for the first time: Martin FEY, Meredith CROWE, India ESSUAH, Reece JULIAN (Melbourne), Susan DESTOUNIS (Gisborne), Jono and Anna WILLIS (Barry Curtis, Auckland), Jeni HARRISON (Lower Hutt) and Stefan WONG (Kapiti Coast).

If you know that someone is planning their first parkrun, do let them know that there is a special briefing for them at 7:50am, before the general briefing. It’s nice for new people to be confident about where they’re going and what to do at the finish.

Michael SINCLAIR (with buggy) sped his way round to finish first in 18:37. He was followed across the line by Steffan WONG (19:41) and Kyle BLYTH (19:55).The first three females were Katie LINDSAY (in a Personal Best time of 21:55), Kathrin SILLER (25:09) and Celina FRY (also in a Personal Best time of 25:26).

PBs were in short supply today. Apart from those mentioned above, others who pushed their way through the fog for a PB were: Nigel JOURDAIN, Lyrissa FONTAINE and Brittany TURLOCK. Congratulations all!

Many thanks to today’s vital volunteers: Shayne CRABTREE (Run Director), Trish CUMMINS, Peter EDMEAD, Tim MASON, Wendy MCCLUSKEY, Eric PHIMISTER, Sarah RENWICK, John RHODES, Keith RODEL, Meg RODEL and Hans Peter ROMBOUTS.

An observation: the numbers of males and females today (not counting the ‘unknowns’ who didn’t have barcodes) were exactly the same.

A reminder: check that the ICE phone number on your printed barcode is up to date. If that number has changed, go to your profile page and update it. Having your barcode with you, and easily accessible (ie, a printed version), with correct details, is an important safety requirement.

There were no reports of errant geese (as there have been recently at another parkrun) so I think it’s safe to say that our geese are much better behaved. It’s wise to be aware of any wildlife (especially as spring approaches) – let’s treat them with the usual respect given to “other park users”.

Finally, a message to our fellow parkrunners in Scotland – we’re still standing by for your big day. Does anyone have a possible date that we can look forward to? Even a rumour will be good! Best wishes to you all.

Trish Cummins

A cool, overcast morning awaited Anderson’s 250th parkrun event! Even so, there were 108 happy faces and some birthday sparkles seen running, walking, skipping and dog-running around the park, adding some colour to the morning. A number of participants also came over from Flaxmere parkrun to join in the morning’s fun.

We welcomed Leah SARICH who used her bar code for the very first time – well done! We also welcomed first-time Anderson visitors James RAINGER (Flaxmere) and Andy MEARS (Whangarei). Andy has completed nine different parkruns over the past nine weeks! He is well on his way to completing every parkrun in NZ! Andy has an impressive list of parkruns from numerous countries and today was his 205th parkrun event.

The top three male runners today were Brendan PHEASANT (18:51), Michael SINCLAIR (19:10) and Mark FISHER (19:28). Well done.

Our top three ladies over the line were Anna WILLIAMS (19:42), Kate O’MALLEY (20:19, a new PB), Paul SHERWOOD and Kathrin SILLER (24:57).

Conditions today were favourable for many, with 10 setting new personal best times. Congratulations to Daniel SPARLING, Kate O’MALLEY, Paul SHERWOOD, Sinclair MACMILLAN, Rachel O’SULLIVAN, Tania WAIN, Gretchen STONE, Larissa FONTAINE, Beenie YUILL, Sophia EDMEAD, Nathan WEBBER, Jennifer ZHOU and Kate CORMACK.

On another note, most parkruns in England were resuming for the first time since COVID lockdown began in 2020. At Bushy parkrun (the home of parkrun) 1056 participants returned for their first event since 14 March 2020!

Finally, parkrun is not possible without volunteers. Ros Mann was Run Director (RD) for the morning (despite being injured) and this was her last in that role. Ros has been an RD since 2019 as well as undertaking other parkrun volunteer roles. Thank you Ros for your contribution and we look forward to seeing you again soon.

Thank you today to all our volunteers: Ros Mann (Run Director), Cameron APPERLEY, Caleb ARROWSMITH, Deanne ARROWSMITH, Theresa COWEN, Peter EDMEAD, Megan LEAHY, Maria MCLEOD, Faye NORTHE, Nneka OKONTA, Eric OPPERMAN and John RHODES.

Sally Houliston

Ninety-eight hardy parkrunners shrugged off the cold and made the most of the fact that there was no wind, rain, or frost on the ground. Eight people did it for the first time! Welcome to: Dave HOLLAND, Geoff MARTIN, Angela CLOTHIER, Jenny ROSE, Fred KOENDERS, Phil HARTY and David DICKS.

It is very likely that most or all of the above were part of the large contingent who took part today in honour of their friend Ken MCLAREN’s 60^th birthday. Ken was also celebrating 50 years of running. A simple mathematical calculation tells us that Ken began running as a 10-year-old and the photos show us that Ken likes to dress colourfully on special occasions. Congratulations Ken and thank you for sharing your special cake (made by Daniela SALZMANN) with us all.

Welcome also to those parkrunners visiting for the first time: Alison HAMILTON, Anne BENNETT (Whanganui) and Craig LINDSAY (Auckland).

Two weeks ago, when Ros MANN was Run Director, she earned her V25 t-shirt but felt she couldn’t congratulate herself. Today we can say, “Congratulations Ros, and thank you for all of your volunteering so far!”

The volunteer team who earned our gratitude today consisted of: Mark SMITH (Run Director), Donna CAMPBELL, Theresa COWEN, Trish CUMMINS, Peter EDMEAD, Tim MASON, Nneka OKONTA, Eric PHIMISTER, John RHODES, Kathrin SILLER and David WAIN.

Congratulations to Chey DEARING who blitzed the field and took 14 seconds off the PB he got a year ago. His new time of 17.10 gave him a magnificent age-grade percentile of 85.24%. He was followed by Brendan PHEASANT (18.38) and an unknown third runner. Kevin HARVEY (19.13) was next across the line.

The female front-runners were: Kate O’MALLEY (20.34), Sophie HOGAN (21.40) and Michelle MUKHTAR (in a new PB time of 22:54).

Nine others also achieved PBs. Congratulations to: Daniel SPARLING (for the second week in a row), Craig SMITH, Elsie SMITH, Lucy MOLONY, Belinda HOGAN, Justine RESTIEAUX, Debbie RICHARDS, Jennifer ZHOU and Megan LEAHY.

Tomas BRIDGEMAN, who finished 7^th, recorded a Buggy PB of 19.45. All of you other buggy-pushers, do let us know of your personal achievements. There are no official statistics for these but I acknowledge the extra preparation involved in getting one or two small people organised in time for an 8am run so here’s a shout-out to all of you.

I also want to acknowledge all of those (and there are many) who participate in parkrun with their own personal form of restraint that other people cannot see – a lack of fitness, niggly or major injuries, the effects of increasing age, mental or social struggles, family responsibilities, etc. Many of us do understand the frustration of not being able to move as fast or as easily as we used to (or would like to). Inside our heads we might be much younger or fitter than our legs and other parts can keep up with. One of the great things about parkrun is that we are all free to do only what we are capable of, or feel like doing, that day. Congratulations all 98 of you (plus volunteers) for doing whatever you did today. That was a great achievement!

Trish Cummins