Running – I Walk Alone

A day at the races

The first Sunday in February found Commando and I leaving home at an ungodly hour to head to Goodwood Motor Circuit. We were off for a day at the races, but not in quite the way you would expect for such a famous venue. To most people, the name Goodwood conjures up race cars and chequered flags. The race track, on the picturesque Sussex Downs near Chichester, was the venue for Britain’s first post-war race meeting in September 1948. Graham Hill had his first single seat race on the course. In 1962, Stirling Moss ended his career at Goodwood when he crashed his Lotus during the Glover Trophy. Donald Campbell demonstrated his car, Bluebird here, in 1960 and 1962, before breaking the land speed record in it in 1964. We were at Goodwood for a race of a very different kind, though.

Carrying a torch

Parkrun number 463 on 22 October was my turn to write the run report. In time-honoured fashion, I’d prepared some of it in advance, mostly about the ghosts of Southampton Common and the old gallows because Halloween was fast approaching and I like to add a bit of history to my reports. The rest I would fill in later with any PBs, milestone runs and interesting incidents. Morning mist swirled across the flats as we headed towards the set-up team, and the words of Keats To Autumn ran through my head, Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness . . . When I learned them for my English Literature O Level, I was a Haley and had no idea I’d be a Keates one day.

Parkrun tourism and a wedding

Our parkrun tourism on Saturday 4 June was a little out of the ordinary. It was the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, and Commando wasn’t running because of a minor injury, but that wasn’t what made it strange. It was actually the wedding day of two of our friends, Helen and Andy, and they were beginning their nuptials at the twenty-fifth Bartley parkrun. Bartley parkrun is in Totton, so at least we didn’t have too early a start, although it took us a while to find the venue. It’s also a very new parkrun. Race number one was on 18th December 2021, and Helen and Andy have been part of the core volunteer team from the outset.

A blanket, afternoon tea and the Dave Hawkins pacers

Normally, writing blog posts is my weekend job. I set aside a couple of hours on Saturday and Sunday to throw together a few posts and then schedule them to appear during the week. Last weekend was a touch on the busy side. There was no time to rest, never mind write anything. What was I up to, you may wonder? Well, other than the usual stuff, I finished making a special baby blanket and went to a posh afternoon tea come baby shower for beautiful mother-to-be, Nicole. This, and the walk to Ocean Village and back, took up most of Saturday.

A surprise tributary

My walk on 28 September had taken me as far along Monks Brook as I could go without leaving Fleming Park and getting hopelessly lost, but I still had time on my hands before Commando was due to finish his run. Time for some aimless wandering along the paths and trails I knew well from several CC6s. So, I returned to the gravel path and began a circuit of what had once been a golf course. Huge pylons dominate the northern edge of the park. They rather spoil the view. The M3, on the other side of the trees to my right, didn’t help much either. The hum of traffic was a constant irritation.

The last Elizabethan Sunday – Overton

I spent the last Sunday of the second Elizabethan era in Overton, a chocolate box worthy Hampshire village between Andover and Basingstoke. Obviously, I didn’t know it was the last Sunday in Elizabeth II’s reign. Truth to tell, I didn’t know much about Overton, either. My knowledge extended only as far as the Overton Five Mile race I’d come to photograph, and the Bombay Sapphire distillery we’d passed on the edge of the village. Actually, I only knew about the gin factory because I’d noticed the polished metal cylinders as we passed. A little Googling told me the distillery had moved from Cheshire to this disused paper mill, Laverstoke Mill, in 2014. The visitor centre looks well worth checking out, if you’re a gin fan.

Return to Dorney Lake

Back in 2015, Commando ran a pre-London Marathon twenty mile event at Dorney Lake, a sporting venue built for the 2012 Olympic rowing events and now owned and used by Eton College. I’d had a wonderful few hours wandering along the Thames towpath to Windsor and back. When he said he had a race there on the last Sunday in August, I was excited to tag along. It was only a 10k this time, not twenty miles. I knew I wouldn’t have time to walk to Windsor, but I looked forward to another walk along the towpath.

Remembering Big Dave at Netley parkrun

Normally, my Saturday morning begins amongst the trees on Southampton Common, and involves a chat with my parkrun friends and a wander around the Old Cemetery. This Saturday was different. We headed in the opposite direction, towards Netley. The last time we went to Netley parkrun, was Christmas 2018. Before that it was January 2017, for Big Dave Hawkins’ two hundred and fiftieth run. This Saturday, the Netley parkrunners would run for Big Dave, but sadly, not with him.

Reflecting on life and death

Saturday 13 August, and my walk through the Old Cemetery was more reflective than usual. Last Saturday, a good friend, and one of the kindest men I know, ran his last parkrun. The whole running community was reeling in shock. Big Dave Hawkins was a familiar face at local events. He organised the pacers for all the big races, the Southampton Marathon, Winchester Half and the Great South Run. He always had a smile and a cheery word of motivation. It was hard to think that I would never experience either again. Out on the flats, Run Director Kate Budd was giving her pre-race briefing. I could hear her voice through the megaphone, and I knew she would be talking about Big Dave. Hearing her words was more than I could bear, so I scurried off to this place of peace and reflection.

Daedalus, a myth, a memorial and some history

On 3 July 2022, Commando decided to go for a nice flat run along the shore at Lee-on-Solent. Obviously, I took the opportunity to tag along and pay my respects to Leonard Thomas Haley, my first cousin once removed. I discovered him when I was researching my family tree on Ancestry.co.uk. As parts of his story inspired my current work in progress, it seemed fitting to pay a visit. I was also keen to explore the area around the Fleet Air Arm Memorial and enjoy a walk by the sea.