Exeter Riverside Parkrun returns on Saturday
Published: 11 August 2021
Exeter Riverside Parkrun returns on Saturday (14 August) after a gap of 17 months.
Organisers have worked closely with teams from the City Council to come up with a new route.
Parkruns up and down the country were suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic but have recently started to return since restrictions have lifted.
Saturday’s run starts at 9am and is open to everyone. However people taking part need to register beforehand and familiarise themselves with the Parkrun format by visiting the Parkrun website. Runners will need to attend a pre-run briefing near the red and white buoy at 8:45am and bring their race barcode.
Co-Event Director Martin Brint, said: “After much hard work, we are so happy to get our community back together on Saturday. To see them running together for the first time in over a year will be quite emotional.
“None of this would have been possible without the amazing work from Exeter City Council. We would like to thank Daryl Taylor and James Bogue, especially. Whilst some Parkruns have not had much support from their local councils, I honestly believe that ECC are a great example of a council who want to encourage these events.”
The Riverside Parkrun starts and finishes on Exeter Quay near the marina/boat yard on the south bank of the river Exe. The course is predominantly four sociable laps of a field, making this an off-road course.
The start is on the shared path and heads south east through the River Valley Park for approximately 600m before turning right into Bromham’s Field. Runners turn left at the entrance, to run four clockwise laps of the clearly signed and mowed course. Runners are warned that the field is not a prepared sports field, so they will need to be ready for a few bumps and divots. Once runners have completed four laps, they will emerge out of the same gateway, turning left, then forking left to finish on a raised bank flanked by wild flowers.
Cllr Duncan Wood, Lead Councillor for Leisure and Physical Activity, said: “It’s great to have the Riverside Parkrun back up and running. So many of Exeter’s running fraternity have missed the run, people of all ages and abilities, from those starting out and just trying to keep fit to more serious club runners and athletes – Parkrun appeals to so many.”