Race Date: Sunday 1st June 2025; Distance 5.5 miles
The Gerald Story Memorial Run is a charity event organised by Worksop Harriers in honour of one of their founder members who was instrumental in the local Cancer Research committee, and who sadly was taken by the disease himself.
The run was in its 42nd year, so obviously far older than me (ahem). I was informed about the event by Nick Mould who is a Worksop Harrier who pops up at many a local race – I met him at the 3 Lakes Classic a few years ago and he was having a bad day, so I consoled him and then proceeded to paste him to the wall (sorry Nick), but we won’t mention that.
The run sets off from the grounds of Worksop College so there is no parking anxiety, and you can pick your number up within minutes of getting there. There was a toilet – I believe there may have been more somewhere else, but who can resist the opportunity to queue up for a single stall with no light and no flush – it’s the awkward smiles on changeover that make it. Seriously though, there were two toilet marshals, so I am pretty certain, there were more toilets somewhere else. It was all very friendly and well supported – one of the toilet marshals had a giant, reassuring pack of bog roll on hand!
The start line had a genuinely friendly and relaxed atmosphere – it felt like Parkrun probably should if it was actually a run, and not a race.
The first mile takes the runners out of the college grounds, through a gate and onto the narrow paths of the golf course. After a field hop, the route then widens out onto a broad tarmac path. At this point I realised I probably had set off a bit too Ibiza Sunday Sessions and not quite pounding-pounding techno music enough, so I speeded up a bit.
The route takes runners around various firm paths in Clumber Park – familiar to those who have attended the Parkrun, or the Worksop Half. I must confess, the advice to wear trail shoes seems a bit OTT – if it was a wet year, which I’m sure it often is – a pair of grippy road shoes that you don’t like too much would presumably do the job, but hey, we shouldn’t judge our flatland cousins.
The run does ascend in the last two miles, so even though it is not big elevation, it does start to grind. At 5.5 miles it is tempting to think “It’s just an imperial Parkrun”, but of course it is closer to a 10K than that.
This was an extremely rare occasion when I spent the whole run overtaking; I was only overtaken by two people over the course of the race, and in the end I placed in between them like the chocolate paste filling of the Penguin biscuit provided on finishing – quality.
Overall, it was a great event – well organised, easy to access and yes, free Penguin. It was lovely to see Cara Hanson at the end, but strange there weren’t more Striders afoot. I would definitely recommend this event – five stars on Trip Advisor.
The male race was won by Adrian Hopkinson in 36.02. The female race was won by Amelia Arbon in 38.54
Striders Results:
