“A beautiful location to run, with a couple of barely noticeable inclines.”

I headed to Barking parkrun with members of Dacorum & Tring AC on the way to Spitfire (a 24-hour relay race in nearby Hornchurch) it was a great opportunity for some tourism and to enjoy running with some friends.

The course itself is a wiggly two laps around the stunning Barking park completely ran on pavement. There are a couple of tight bends, but the paths are wide and overtaking a breeze (this is a buggy runners dream!). Thankfully, there are lots of marshalls and signs to stop you getting lost around the labyrinth-esque twists and turns of the park. The route goes past the lake, through some beautiful gardens and around large grass playing fields. Overall though Barking is a beautiful location to run, with a couple of barely noticeable inclines.

Numbers are generally around the 100 mark, so it has retained a very friendly local vibe. It was very well marshalled and apart from some slightly dodgy toilets – broken locks and no loo rolls – the facilities are excellent. There was even a PB hooter! I would definitely recommend this one and hope to get back in the future to run a slightly more competitive time when I’m not racing later in the day.

Facilities wise: free and plentiful parking in two car parks about 400m away from the start line (Note that in one of them you have to pay if you stay for more than an hour!); toilets close to the start line – but bring your own loo roll; there is a cafe right next to the start line; lots of facilities for children including a splash park, peddle boats and playpark.

Find out more about Barking at parkrun.org.uk

Personal Stats

PB – 31:13
Best Position – 76th
Times run – 1