Report June 1st 2024 | Whanganui Riverbank parkrun (2024)

Whanganui Riverbank parkrun Run Report 01-06-24
It was a beautiful morning, an incredibly early morning, but a beautiful one nonetheless.
A morning full of meeting, running, coffee drinking, chatting about interesting things, chatting about nonsense (the best kind of chatting), making friends, enjoying the wonderful riverbank scenery, and indulging into a well-earned slice of chocolate espresso cake!
Today was my first time to Whanganui Riverbank parkrun and it started with an enthusiastically set alarm clock. I was very kindly offered a lift up to Whanganui this morning from the Wellington CBD. We left just before 5am and made our way up past Waikanae, through Levin, Foxton, Bulls, and eventually into Whanganui. As the sky was getting lighter and fill with colour, we knew we were almost at Whanganui, which meant, we were almost at parkrun time!
We arrived at little early so parked by the market. I had a little wander around the market area and spotted the silver sphere in front of the Waimarie Riverboat, the turnaround point of the parkrun course. The market stalls were in pre-setup mode, getting ready for a busy Saturday morning, the King's birthday weekend, in fact. It was a nice little sneak peak of the course and an introduction to Whanganui.
We soon drove up the road to the parkrun starting line and gathering area and the fun began.
A canopy of orange vests, blue vests, cones, tokens, the awesome parkrun signs, abundant happy faces, and a table full of sweets (!) soon came into sight. We were definitely at the right place! Despite being a little early, there were already a good number of people, primed and ready for the morning's run. The course was all set up and ready for a mini stampede! A brilliant team of happy volunteers, and an equally happy bunch of runners/walkers/joggers were ready to embark on another another Saturday morning running/walking/jogging feat. Smiles were everywhere.
When I arrived at the volunteering bench, I bumped into Judy, today's run director, as well as the event director for Whanganui Riverbank parkrun. She gave me a lovely welcome and we had a little chat. Pre-run chats were already flowing in and around the starting line. As I mentioned, I spotted a bowl of sweets on the parkrun volunteering table and my parkrun joy sprang into motion. It was a sweet thing to see, and yes, sorry, terrible pun very much intended!
John was today's timers' welcomer, wielding the iconic bright yellow sign. As first timers arrived, he welcomed them and went through all the need-to-know information about the course and parkrun procedure. There were 12 first timers this week, with 4 being completely new to parkrun and doing their first ever parkrun! Welcome to parkrun!
Today's first timers were: Paul Bryant, Lauren Kenyon, Andrea Randall, Paul Randall, Pippa Randall, Adelaide Roper, Benjamin Shailer, Charlotte Shailer, Maddison Shailer, David Sinkins, Hannah Sinkins, and Linda Tetzlaff.
Everything was great, and before I knew it, Judy started rallying everyone together for today's runner's briefing. It was almost parkrun time! A heartfelt welcome, course safety mentioned, volunteers praised, milestones celebrated, and an overall happy spirit for the morning's run!
There were 16 volunteers today, from timekeepers, marshals, parkwalkers, token givers, token sorters, and more! One thing that was different and new to me was that today's photographer was actually a videographer! Paul Curran was recording the event from start to finish and compiled an incredible video of today's event. It really encapsulated the morning. The video is on the official Whanganui Riverside parkrun Facebook page and is well worth checking out.
Today's fabulous orange and blue-vested heroes were: Paul Bryant, Paul Curran, Mari Davenport, Brendan Gibbs, Sally Gibbs, Denise Lazelle, Murray Lazelle, Maureen McMillan, Alec McNab, David Mellsop, John Mellsop, Judy Mellsop, Michelle Selby, Jeff Smith, Aimee Tetzlaff, and Hayden Zervos.
There were also two milestone runs today. Congratulations to Ben Hague and Adrienne Smith who both ran their 25th parkrun this weekend and achieved their purple 25 T-shirt!
The starting line was buzzing, it was almost time to go. There were 93 runners, walkers, cheerleaders, and joggers today, all ready to conquer the Whanganui Riverbank course. Judy started the countdown, and, bang, off we went! Whanganui Riverbank parkrun number 179 was underway! The mixed array of heavy breathing, muscle flexing, fast walking, happy chatterboxing, and general cheer was happening up, down, along, and all over the riverbank course.
The course goes under 2 bridges and onto a really cool boardwalk section towards the marketplace and turnaround point. I gave myself a little ‘lets go' at the turnaround point to motivate myself to keep going. I say this most weeks, but I adore the out-and-back style courses because, towards the turnaround point, you pass fellow parkrunners both ahead and behind you, all cheering you on! Whether it's a loud ‘Well done, you've got this! Keep going!’ or a brief eye-contact and winking moment, we all know we’re in this together.
Parkrun never gets easier, and around about the 3-4km part of the course, I start to flag and the little words of giving up and starting to walk flood to mind. So, having others cheering you on, as well as cheering others on yourself, means that giving up just isn't an option!
We keep going. It never gets easier but our thresholds are much greater and able to be pushed than we think. Sometimes we just need that little bit of support to allow us to see this, and push our thresholds further and further back. The help and support of others should never be underestimated. This is why, as we all know, parkrun is absolutely brilliant, and why we come back each and every week.
The course has kilometre signs and these are brilliant motivation to keep going. I had a mini celebration moment at the 4km before then passing the gathering area to realise I still had 800m to go to the second turnaround point. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Thresholds are there to be pushed. I kept pushing, towards the home straight, and through the finishing line. Relief, and a brilliant run along the river!
I do try my best to soak in my surroundings during the run, however it is easier said than done when the exhaustion and inner-dialogue kicks in. However, I did manage to have a little look around during the run. I enjoyed the murmur of the market stalls at the turnaround point, as well as the views of the river throughout the course.
I was greeted by Denise at the finishing line who gave me my finishing token. It wasn't the smoothest of token collecting as I was still in running exhaustion mode, but managed to take it. Sorry Denise!
Post-run chatting was already in motion as I left the finishing chute. During the run I had been trying to keep up with Josh, the person in front of me, and I cheekily tried to overtake him at the end, but failed! So we had a great little chat and run debrief at the finishing area. If it wasn't for Josh, I don't think I would have pushed as hard as I did. Thank you Josh! Another reason why parkrun great
Time ticked on, runners passed through the finishing line, and the huffing and puffing concentration phase of the run soon turned into full smiles and the runners-high satisfaction phase! The bowl of sweets on the table were definitely hit, devoured, and enjoyed as post-run chats continued.
This is the time of the week where a chat about anything, and I mean anything, absolutely goes! Sometimes nonsense, sometimes serious information, but regardless, it's great! I was lucky to have a good few chats at the finishing line. Being 1st June, the official start of winter, one would think it would be the time of year for woolly hats and a desire to get into the warm! However, whilst a little chilly, it was very pleasant and not a wintery vibe at all.
Jeff, today's tail walker passed through the finishing chute, and the packing up of the parkrun equipment began. Tokens were sorted, parkrun signage was carefully taken town and folded, the parkrun table seemingly disappeared into thin air, and we made our way towards the parking area, ready for the short drive to Columbus Coffee in Mitre 10 Mega.
Congratulations to today's first finishers, Daniel (16:48) and Sally (18:47). Absolutely incredible times!
Top three (men):
1. Daniel C. Sinclair (16:48)
2. Gareth Jones (18:10)
3. Thomas Deighton (18:48)

Top three (women):
1. Sally Gibbs (18:47)
2. Adelaide Roper (21:40)
3. Denyse Graham (24:43)
There were also 11 personal bests this week! Brilliant effort and a new time to break next weekend!
Today's PB breakers were: Tim Archibald, Hayley Curtis, Thomas Deighton, Ben Hague, Margaret Hawthorne, Kristin Jack, Andrew Kitson, John Mellsop, Amiria Paranihi, Russell Spencer, and Heather Verstraeten.
Big congratulations to everyone who scored their best time, especially to Ben who got a PB on his milestone run!
Post-run coffee time was here, arguably the best time off the week! The running stuff is just the excuse to have cake, really. A good number of people filled a long table in Columbus Coffee, and coffee, conversations, and a smattering of cake commenced.

As we all know, parkrun is just the perfect way to start the weekend. It gets you up early on a Saturday morning, lets you get your Saturday exercise done early, and is an excuse to meet up with friends (both old and new), and have a good chat over a bit of coffee and cake. By the time post-run coffee is over, it's only 10-11am with the whole weekend still ahead. Love it.
I had some great conversations in the coffee shop and learnt a little bit about the history of Whanganui Riverbank parkrun too! I sat next to Alec and had an awesome chat with him. Alec was today's event day course checker and was out walking the course at the crack of dawn! He showed me some beautiful pictures he took whilst he was out setting up, and he kindly shared them with me so that I could include them with the report. Thank you Alec for the beautiful photos and for setting up the course this morning!
Judy and John were also telling me about great places to visit and walks in the local area. I'm a tourist, so I'm keen to see and explore the area. I'm actually in Whanganui until Wednesday, and must admit, I am writing this report on the Monday morning after the run, sat in The Burrow coffee shop! I’m sat looking out the window to the river, facing where we ran on Saturday. The perfect place to write the run report.
Another coincidence, I have actually just bumped into John and Michelle in the cafe whilst writing this! Brilliant stuff. Life is spontaneous and the universe does its crazy stuff to keep us happy, sane, and able to parkrun.
Since the parkrun, I have been a true tourist and had a ride on the London Bus, the tram, been through the tunnel and up the Durie Hill Elevator, climbed the War Memorial Tower, visited the Whanganui Regional Museum, frequented a good number of coffee shops, and had a good few walks along the stunning riverbank. Whanganui is a wonderful place.
A brilliant parkrun weekend, and the King's birthday parkrun weekend!
Thank you Whanganui parkrun for welcoming me today and for the brilliant run 
Paul Bryant