Originally founded by Paul Sinton-Hewitt in London in October 2004, parkrun, which is a weekly Saturday morning 5km time trial, has grown to become a phenomenal success, and the event is now taking place simultaneously in 1,400 locations across 23 countries and five continents. 

And as a result of this, a phenomenon such as “parkrun tourism” has taken off, with park runners seeking out a parkrun event on their travels, be it a parkrun in a neighbouring town, country, park or even a different continent.

Checking out Nonsuch parkrun

So during my time in London, I made it a point to do a London parkrun for fun, whilst there. I was based at my friend’s house for the duration of my stay in London, and the nearest parkrun to her place was the Nonsuch parkrun. So I checked this one out.

And the Nonsuch parkrun was different to anything that I had experienced back home in Singapore.

Nonsuch parkrun Begins Much Later

For starters, the East Coast Park parkrun in Singapore always begins at the early hour of 7:30am in the morning in order to combat the insane Singaporean heat and humidity.

But Nonsuch parkrun in the UK begins at 9am, as the weather is much cooler and kinder to runners. So to me, this had felt like sheer luxury as it meant that I could sleep in longer. I am definitely not a morning person.

A Much Bigger parkrun Event

As well, my home parkrun, the East Coast Park parkrun, is a small and cosy event, attracting about 100 runners each week. Compared to that, the Nonsuch parkrun was massive. 

Celebrating Star Wars Day

When I reached the park on 4 May 2019 and got to the start point, I immediately realised that the number of runners had been many times more than what I was used to, in Singapore. It didn’t feel like a parkrun event. Rather, it had felt like a race instead.

I later found out that the 4 May event had attracted a course record of more than 900 runners, with it being Star Wars Day. No wonder the crowd had felt so huge.

Star Wars Day is celebrated on 4 May every year because a common phrase used in Star Wars, “may the force be with you,” sounds just like “may the 4th be with you.”

Moreover, there were a lot of runners dressed in Star Wars related costumes to add some spice and flavour to the event, as well. 

Amongst these, I spotted Princess Leia, Darth Vader and Stormtroopers. And in addition to runners, there were also a couple of dogs dressed up in full costume too. 

The fun and festivities at Nonsuch Park was like nothing that I had seen in Singapore, with the intense heat and humidity back home probably preventing runners trying to run in sweltering fancy dress costumes.

An Easy Two-Lap Course

The Nonsuch parkrun is a two-lap course around Nonsuch Park and is pretty straightforward and easy to follow, with marshals lining the route at the key intersections of the route. 

To my relief, it was a flat course, taking place on a mixture of road and trails, with nothing posing as a challenge.

There Were Pacers

And interestingly, pacers were present too, for runners who may have wanted to run a certain target time. 

This was most likely possible because of the larger number of runners at the Nonsuch parkrun. In Singapore’s parkrun, pacers are non-existent because the number of runners present each week is so much smaller. 

So this was something which I had not expected, but it had been good nonetheless, for me to help to better gauge my pace.

Geeking Up The Run Route

Moreover, on 4 May, the marshals were also dressed in Star Wars themed costumes and I could hear songs such as the iconic Imperial March playing out from the loudspeakers along the running route, too. 

It made me think, for a fleeting moment, that Darth Vader would suddenly come out.

Nonetheless, this was fun and it really helped to add a nice festive touch to the event that I had enjoyed, as a Star Wars fan myself.

And I particularly liked the touch where the tail walker’s orange volunteer outfit had read “Luke Sky Tail Walker” and that had brought a smile to my face.

A Refreshing Run

And the cool weather in the UK was also refreshing to run  in. So as a result, I ran my fastest parkrun in a while, completing the 5km course in 28 minutes and 15 seconds. 

I am not a fast runner, but this timing had been several minutes faster than my usual time range in Singapore – which is generally between 31 to 34 minutes.

I was pleasantly surprised by the result.

This had been despite the fact that my legs were still slightly sore and tired, from having completed the London Marathon just one week earlier.

Long Funnel and More Scanners

At the finish area too, there was a long funnel that seemed as though it could have been at least a couple hundred metres long for runners to filter through.

As well, there were three volunteer scanners to scan runners’ barcodes. 

As such, this had reminded me somewhat of a race rather than a parkrun event.

That is because in Singapore, the funnel that comes after the finish line is probably less than 25 metres and there is only one volunteer scanner, who can usually cope adequately with the much smaller numbers of runners present.

An Interesting Experience 

While I would say that I had missed my cosy parkrun at home to some degree, running a massive UK parkrun at the Nonsuch Park was definitely an experience for me, and I would definitely be back at Nonsuch Park on Saturday morning if I happen to be in the UK again.

Star Wars Day Treats

After the run, there had been a large assortment of cakes, biscuits and tarts, in celebration of the Star Wars Day, and a company was also giving out free cartons of eggs, which you definitely do not see in Singapore at parkrun. 

So I decided to queue, to pick up a carton of eggs to bring back for my friend.

Gathering For Coffee

Finally as with parkrun tradition, I joined some of the runners for coffee after the run. We gathered at the Nonsuch Mansion cafe which was a short walk away from the start/finish point of the run. 

It was great to meet some of the local runners there and join in the conversation and post-run fun.

As well, there had been a mini celebration too, with a runner also marking the completion of her 50th parkrun, so this meant more cakes and cookies, which were provided by her and some of her friends too.

It had been definitely a lovely way to end the morning, surrounded by like-minded runners and hitting a sugar high at the same time, after an energising sweat session.