I headed over to Wythenshawe Park to take part in their Parkrun 5K event this morning. Because of the poor WIFI in the hotel I wasn’t sure where the park was, so I left earlier and then found out that the sodding park is just down the road, so I had to walk around the park for 45 minutes in the freezing cold!

I wasn’t aiming for a fast time or a PB, not with a 10k race the next day, I was going to use this race as a sort of light last minute (day) training run. I was also going to use the new running shoes I had been meaning to wear-in during some earlier training sessions, but because Sports Direct took too long to deliver them, I only got them the day before I left London.

I almost fell over several times as the tread on the shoes was having quite a bit of trouble gripping on the muddy and waterlogged ground and the laces came undone nearly ever km. I got through it in 27:07, which isn’t as slow as I would have liked to have done.

I was starving (I don’t eat much before a run, just a cereal bar or two) so headed off to find a cafe to have a lovely full English. Well I think there must have been a discount going on because I had to try about 8 cafes before I could find a seat! There were lots of single people eating at tables and spreading their stuff around so nobody could share their table.

I spent the evening in the hotel bar, which again had the same screaming toddlers running around. this time they irritated more than just me and the staff were trying to get the parents up to their rooms so as not to instigate anything from the several men who wanted to enjoy their beer and food.