100 Not Out!

Coventry parkrun celebrated it's one hundredth event today in a very crisp and wintry War Memorial park.

A couple of days ago some bright spark (my brother Andy) had the idea to mark the 100th event by running in fancy dress. Thinking "100?", Andy (obviously!) came up with cricketers and of course batsmen (scoring a century) so a few us discussed turning up as cricketers. Turning up in whites would not be enough though, oh no, we had to wear full cricket whites, cap, batting gloves, "100 NOT OUT" signs and, of course, a bat! Foolishly five of us agreed!

I would have to say that running with a cricket bat is not to be advised. Cricket bats are actually quite heavy, and runners around you need their wits about them as you switch arms every few hundred yards. I'm not sure if it was the different running action, or perhaps the build up of ice on the bat itself, but the bat gradually felt heavier and heavier!

Cricketer runners have to be very careful of other runners - no one wants a cricket bat in the face when out for a parkrun. Luckily we managed to avoid almost everyone. I did manage to catch Andy at one stage, but that was just to slow him down a bit - only joking Andy!

Knowing that we wouldn't be looking at PBs this week three of us agreed to run together. Unfortunately for me that meant that I was the weak link, slowing the other two down. To be honest I think we all just enjoyed the run waving our bats at anyone willing to clap of cheer us and we weren't at all bothered by the time, finishing in a very respectable 21:29 as it turns out. Not bad given the outfits and carrying those bats!

We tried our best to pose for the cameras where possible with a few decent shots on the official photos. A bit of a mix-up, forward defensive and saluting at the same time:

Completing the run:

Hopefully we brought a few smiles to peoples faces. It was certainly a great deal of fun, but the next time someone suggests I do a parkrun carrying a lump of wood, I may have to think twice before saying yes.