So there's a wonderful weekend tradition in England (and many other parts of the world) that we managed to squeeze in during our UK tour, courtesy of he of the fleet feet himself, Andy Foster.
It's called Park Run UK, and it was the perfect way to start off a weekend (with apologies to Premier League fans who were glued to their television sets for a different kind of sporting event later that day).
Park Runs are volunteer-led, free 5K (3.1 mile) runs that provide social and relaxed exercise outings for thousands of runners and walkers every Saturday morning.
The first Park Run ever was in Bushy Park, in Teddington, UK, where 13 runners gathered on October 2, 2004. From there, park runs continued to expand across England, assimilating dozens of other green spaces into the Park Run repertoire.
This particular morning, we set off for Hotham Park in Bognor Regis, ready to leave an indelible mark on a 5K course.
Hotham Park encompasses 22 acres, first becoming a public park on January 1, 1947. It's named after Sir Richard Hotham, an East India merchant and House of Commons politician who was also considered the founder of modern Bognor Regis.
What's Bognor Regis? Funny you should ask.
Bognor Regis is a seasize resort in West Sussex on the south coast of England, about 55 miles southwest of London. The seaside resort Bognor was developed by the aforementioned Sir Richard Hotham in the late 18th century on what was a sandy, undeveloped coastline at the time. It was visited by King George V in 1928, which helped provide the regal surname, by royal consent.
This particular morning, we bore our best Bognor Regis smiles, pre-race.
Look how intently Andy is listening to the pre-race instructions. Actually, he was sizing up his competition.
And we were off! Andrew made a gametime start line decision to forego the pre-planned Group Run, in favor of Carlos' version of a Group Run. He bolted early and fast, and represented E Streeter nation quite admirably.
Andy hasn't hit the wall. Yet.
Heather and Andy know how to make an entrance
That's one proud dad running with his Boston Marathon buddy there.
Shedding some of the wardrobe on this muggy morning
There, as always, cheering her family on, is our biggest supporter, and on this day, official race photographer, Jackie
Andrew tried to lap past Heather on his home stretch run.
He was all thumbs up, she wasn't having any part of it.
Our smiles were even greater after the race was over.
Behind us is the park's original clock tower, housing Hotham's 1794 clock.
Fun fact: the Bognor Regis race organizer was making a trek to the United States the week after this race, to compete in his first Boston Marathon.
Duncan Stephenson-Gill did quite well for himself on that wet and wild Monday, logging the 26.2 miles from Hopkinton to Boston in 3:28:21
Nicely done, Duncan! And thanks for having us!
People reaching, people touching
A real celebration
Waiting for us all
If we want it, really want it
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For the day, yeah yeah
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