So I’m continuing on with the parkrun reviews (check out more reviews HERE). I’m very grateful for people having sent me reviews as there are obviously so many that I wouldn’t be able to get to (and would likely only visit once so wouldn’t have as thorough a view of it as someone who’s been more often). So thank you once again to Michelle for providing this great review of South Shields parkrun.
Photo credit: Facebook page
Location: South Shields parkrun takes place along the coast at The Leas, South Shields about 13 miles east of Newcastle and 8 miles north of Sunderland. You might have heard of South Shields before and have probably seen it on the TV as it’s where the Great North Run finishes! In fact, the last mile of South Shields parkrun is the same as the last mile of the Great North Run! It is slightly outside South Shields town centre but close to a park with play area and a short coastal walk from Souter Lighthouse (worth a visit!) in one direction and Ocean Beach Pleasure Park in the other.
Parking: There is plenty of free roadside parking available along the A183 Coast Road and further parking in the seafront car parks.
If you fancy taking public transport South Shields metro station is about 1 mile away (perfect warm up!) – just follow signs towards “The Coast” or “Seaside”. Numerous buses also run along the South Shields coast and are operated by Stagecoach.
Amenities: Toilets are available at the clubhouse inside Gypsies Green Stadium (close to the start and finish) and during summer months’ public toilets under the bandstand (a little closer to the start) are open.
Post parkrun coffee is at The Bamburgh which is on the Coast Road and almost opposite the finish. Alternatives on the coast itself include Sand Dancer which is opposite the start and just slightly further along Minchella & Co which do some of the best ice cream in the North East!
Photo credit: Facebook page
Course: I will admit now that the course has been reversed since I ran it! This means it is now overall uphill as compared to downhill!
The start is on the seafront promenade outside the Sandancer pub and heads in a southerly direction. Depending upon the weather the first short stretch along the promenade can be covered in a good layer of sand! The course then joins the coastal path at a gate at the end of the promenade which it follows along the cliff tops until it turns slightly inland and you reach a tarmac path at Minchella & Co ice cream hut. It is a bit up and down but overall a gradual up!
Once you reach the ice cream hut you turn right onto the pavement along Coast Road for the final mile (and the Great North Run final mile). This mile is again slightly uphill making for a tough last mile! The finish itself is opposite the Bamburgh pub (notice a theme here :P).
Photo credit: Facebook page
The coastal path itself is a mix of gravel, rough ground and grassy paths which can be puddly when it’s been wet and is bumpy in places so watch your footing. Being a costal parkrun you are well and truly exposed to the elements so maybe one to visit on a sunny summers day!
Elevation: As mentioned about the reversal of the route means it is basically an uphill parkrun!
You get some relief whilst along the coast path as it has short stints of up and down but the last mile is a slow, gradual uphill unfortunately!
Number of participants: South Shields is one of the North East’s slightly smaller parkruns with an average number of 130 runners but a record attendance of 329. The point to point run means there is no passing other parkrunners on laps to cheer each other on but the small field means no tripping over each other although you need to choose your moment to overtake other runners due to the rough nature of the coastal path.
As you would expect from any parkrun there is a wide range of finish times from just under 17 minutes at the fastest to around 55 minutes for the final runner so as always it’s one for everyone!
Thanks, Michelle! For more information, check out their Facebook page and Twitter account.
Please do send me any parkrun reviews and I’ll post them or if you have any comments or additional points on existing ones, let me know! The more information the better 🙂
Does your parkrun ever reverse its course?
What’s your favourite surface to run on?
I think these feelings are what people assume running feels like everyday for those who’re dedicated to their training. It’s like, you have your occasional runners, and then you have your serious runners. Sadly, having a perfected training schedule doesn’t prevent those bad days, whether you’re a professional or a speedy park-runner. So let’s talk about these days…well they’re not bad, it’s just that they’re super hard. The duvet covers are more inviting than the puddles and pavements, watching the next episode of TV would be so much easier than lacing up. I think that what makes it harder is that you know you’ll feel so much better after you’ve finished, but it’s just getting out there in the first place.
But what is the point of all of this? Everyone obviously has days full of energy, and days where they really begin to question why they ever chose to take up running. Well I guess I just want to say that this is what makes runners special. The people who don’t run are the people who quit on their bad days. The people who thought it would be easy and effortless have long given up. If you can still call yourself a runner after the DOMS, the 5am starts, the Sunday miles whilst the rest of the family are still in bed- then you should congratulate yourself. Being a runner is hard. But it’s also amazing.
I could do my cardio first and then do my usual weights. It meant for a longer period in the gym but seen as how I wasn’t running it made sense. Plus I really enjoyed it. I like the gym and feel like it’s my “happy place” right now. And a lovely woman gave me a really nice compliment one day by saying I had a fab body and clearly worked hard. That was nice because, well, yes I do kind of work fairly hard so it’s nice someone doesn’t just assume it’s good genes or not eating – like so many people have said to me before. Cue dramatic eye roll whenever someone says that to me.
I was more impressed with my negative split. I mean the start was fairly awkward because I was stuck behind lots of people, having positioned myself too far back, but then that helped stop me going too fast. I did feel fairly shattered by the end. My niggle felt fine though the entire run and at the end so I was more pleased with that than anything to be honest.
To be fair, the route I took was fairly flat so it was easier to push the speed but I was really pleased with being able to maintain a faster pace. I mean, I couldn’t have run much further at the pace I was going but it was nice to blast out some speed. Probably not entirely sensible I guess with the old niggle but it felt fine during and after so I’ll take it!
My dad had his new Netley parkrun t-shirt on as well, bless him (oh I also have to make a correction to a previous post where I’d said he lost 20% of his body weight – which wouldn’t have made any sense. He’s lost almost 2.5 stone, which is ten percent of his body weight… stupid Anna).
April and I ran together, with my friend Mike, but Jo was super fast (despite coming back from a niggle herself!) – she came first at the Southampton parkrun just the day before…naturally. But April and me tend to be around the same speed so it was nice to run and chat. My shin played ball and only niggled a tiny bit so I was quite happy.
All in all it was a very festive parkrun, with lots in fancy dress and a band playing. My dad did very well, getting a 5 minute PB with a time of 46:32 minutes, which even beats his Lee-On-Solent time (a vert flat course) and he wasn’t last! He was over the moon.
We headed straight to the Cathedral where the actual Christmas market was located and wandered around slowly looking at all the different stalls. 
There were lots of craft-style stalls selling handmade jewellery, scarfs, ornaments etc. There were also food-related stalls selling cheese, dried meats and fudge and then hot food stalls selling bacon rolls and burgers.
I shared it with my mum and dad (who didn’t want one of their own as they’re trying to be healthy – who even are they??) and it was delicious.
Not sure why I felt the need to touch Mary’s shoulder. Perhaps I just thought it made her feel more involved in the photo 😉
Despite seeing the churros being dipped into boiling oil and then quickly sprinkled in sugar and chocolate and handed to me within a one minute period I still felt the need to try one immediately. And then, delightfully caught on camera by my loving father, managed to look oh so attractive in my first scorching bite. The burning was worth it though, they were damn good (but if I had one tiny criticism it would be more chocolate was needed…but that’s just coming from a very greedy person).
Overall, the markets were really good. There was a choir, it was very Christmassy and the food was good. But it was rather small and there were no gingerbread biscuits or more snacky items like that (again, this is from a greedy person). It doesn’t help that I’ve been to Berlin where their Christmas markets really do steal the show and I’m comparing them to that.
My main was a chicken salad. Honestly the food was AMAZING. I’m actually not a huge Thai food fan (or Chinese fan either) but it was so good. The flavours were so fresh and tasty. However there were some very cheeky sneaky chillies in my salad and halfway through the meal I felt like my tongue had had a layer taken off the top of it and my eyes were streaming. The ribs were to die for though, obviously.
I mean, Sod’s Law will be that my next run will be terrible and I’ll be back to square one, but hey let’s be positive. It’s Christmas after all 😉