Once upon a time, Friday nights were about putting on a pair of heels and going to the latest club with friends. Nowadays, my Friday nights seem to be spent wearing trainers and the only club I’ve been to recently is a running club.

Last Friday evening I took part in a local race – the Specsavers Walkington 10KM. Hosted by Beverley Athletics Club, it’s a scenic one lap circular route from Walkington returning via Little Weighton and finishing on the playing field. It’s usually hot and humid, it’s after work and it’s an undulating course. These are the reasons (I tell myself) I’ve never finished this race in under an hour. However, this year I was on a mission – I wanted sub 60. I’d even bribed myself with a chippy tea if I managed it.

This year race numbers were to be collected on the day so I headed down straight from work to allow plenty of time. The 1.75-mile family fun run sets off at 7.15pm with the main event kicking off at 7.30pm.  For a small race with an entry limit of just 800, you can’t fault the organisation. The evening starts with a cake stall (the real reason I got there early and there’s also ice cream, teas, and coffees on offer.

After fuelling up on Rocky Road we headed to the start area which is about a 1KM walk away. The course is billed as undulating – for me,  it’s hilly. That said, it is very scenic. I’d met up with a few friends before the race but once the gun went off we all went our separate ways. A lot of the course is on rural roads so headphones were banned for this event. It’s pretty much uphill to around the 4KM mark and with a few further climbs around 6KM and 8KM. I usually just use it as a training run, yet this year I actually felt OK which made it more enjoyable.

Fish and Chips were a clear motivator for me as I crossed the line in 53.56 with over a 7-minute course PB. I was really surprised as it’s only a few seconds over my Leeds 10k time the previous week – and that is a flat course. There is no race bling, but it’s super cheap to enter and all finishers receive a T-shirt. It may not be the easiest of courses but it’s great for hill training and there is cake.

The only downside to this race is getting out of the playing field after the event. I spent almost as long sitting in a queue to leave the car park as I did to run the race. Nevertheless, I’ll be back next year.

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Entry Cost: £15.00 Unaffiliated / £13.00 Affiliated / Family Fun Run £3.50
Water stations: One, halfway – paper cups

Parking: Plenty, although if you are there early you will be last out, as I found out!

Photos: No
Baggage Facilities: None, parking onsite

Post-Race Goodies: T-shirt  / water
Highlights: Well organised and there’s cake!
Low points: Getting out of the car park