New book tells the story of parkrun from A to Z and includes Inverness

The Inverness parkrun event – now known as Torvean – is featured in a new book out this month.

There are eight million people worldwide signed up to the free, weekly, 5k events in 23 countries.

For many of them a personal best time is no longer the key ambition, as the global phenomenon of parkrun has hatched a whole series of challenges for runners, walkers and joggers.

Among the many unofficial challenges is to run a parkrun beginning with every letter of the alphabet.

That is 25 in all as there’s no X – so far – anywhere in the world!

Eileen Jones, a self-confessed parkrun obsessive since injuries stopped her competing in fell races, completed her quest at Zuiderpark in The Netherlands, and this book is the story of her journey.

In her list of 25 chapters in her book – p is for parkrun: a journey from A to Z – I is for Inverness, as the author travelled there before the change of name and location to Torvean.

But though it’s a personal memoir, the tales here are of the many quirky, enthusiastic and downright eccentric people she met along the way.

They include – the retired health and safety officer who’s about to complete his seventh alphabet; the cheerful woman on her way to 100 consecutive parkruns all reached by public transport; families running with children; and couples who got engaged on the way to the finish funnel.

Eileen’s the author of the best-selling How parkrun changed our lives (Gritstone, 2021). And and in one chapter here she highlights the Olympic-torch style relay which launched that book, in lockdown.

Also in the new one, Eileen talks to the children’s writer whose characters run at a London park; visits the tiny island off the coast of Ireland where parkrun is a way of life; runs with a pirate and Mother Hubbard and the Mad Hatter; and meets – at last – the blind runner whose story she told in the first book, and who has since gone on to greater challenges himself.

Each chapter leads with one main event, and then includes the rest under that letter.

In all, there are 135 parkruns, that she’s done.

But there’s only one I, U, V, Y and Z.

Says Eileen: “Every step along the way has been a joy. But this isn’t a gazetteer, or a travel journal.

"It’s a story about people, the wonderful community of parkrun, the characters I’ve met along the way, the remarkable event teams of volunteers, the people I’ve travelled with, the friends I’ve made, the cups of strong tea and the bacon sandwiches, and the cakes consumed at an unhealthy hour of the day!”

In a foreword, the founder of parkrun, Paul Sinton-Hewitt, writes: “Travelling the parkrun world with the alphabet as your guide is a perfect way to discover parkrun tourism and the joys of meeting far-flung friends and family members.

"Beware though, there is a health warning attached.

"Once started, you may never return.

"Eileen's memoir uncovers some surprises you are guaranteed to find along the way.”

Eileen Jones is a writer and journalist based in the Lake District. She helped set up the Fell Foot parkrun at Windermere, and has done more than 330 parkruns at 135 different locations. She is the author of How parkrun changed our lives. And now her latestbook is out – p is for parkrun: a journey from A to Z (Gritstone Publishing, £9.99) ISBN: 978-1-913625-10-8

DETAILS:

Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.