The free weekly 5K, how it works, and where to find the best ones around Teesside.
If you are building towards joining a running club, parkrun is very likely the single most useful thing you can do on a Saturday morning. It is free, it happens every week, it is 5K, and nobody minds how long you take. Here is everything a first timer needs to know, including where to find the ones near Stockton.
parkrun is a free, weekly, timed 5K that takes place in parks and green spaces all over the country at 9am every Saturday. It is organised entirely by volunteers. There is no entry fee, no qualifying time, and no obligation to come every week. You turn up, you cover 5K however you like, and you get a time by email later that morning.
The bit that surprises people is the word timed. It sounds competitive, and it really is not. The timing exists so you have your own number to look back on, not so you can be ranked against a club runner in a vest. Plenty of people walk the whole thing. That is completely normal and nobody blinks.
Our sessions are built around being able to run 5K without stopping, so if you are working towards that, parkrun is the most natural stepping stone there is. It gives you a weekly 5K to aim at, in company, with no pressure and no cost. Plenty of Striders arrived at the club having built up exactly that way.
It is also a very low stakes way to find out whether running with other people suits you at all, before you commit to anything.
Register once at parkrun.org.uk and print your barcode, or save it to your phone. You only ever register once, and the same barcode works at every parkrun in the world.
Take it seriously though, because parkrun runs a strict no barcode, no result policy. If you forget it, you can still take part and nobody will stop you, you simply will not get a time. Most regulars have a paper copy in their car and a screenshot on their phone, because everybody forgets it once.
Arrive about fifteen minutes before nine. There is usually a first timers briefing, which is worth going to even if you feel daft, because someone explains the course and points out who is who. Then there is a main briefing, and then everybody sets off.
Two things worth knowing. Start further back than you think you should, because it saves you getting swept along too fast in the first minute. And look out for the tail walker, who is a volunteer whose entire job is to be last. You cannot come last while they are there, and they will happily chat the whole way round. For a lot of nervous first timers, that one detail is what makes it feel doable.
Afterwards someone scans your barcode and your finish token, and your result lands by email later that morning. Then, almost always, people go for a coffee.
Teesside is very well served. These are the ones closest to us, and they are genuinely different from each other, so it is worth trying a few. Always check the event's own page on parkrun.org.uk before you set off. Courses occasionally change, events get cancelled for frost, flooding or events in the park, and every so often one stops running altogether.
This is the one you will hear Striders talk about most. It is entirely on tarmac paths, it is flat, and it is quick, which is why it has a reputation locally as the course to go to if you fancy a personal best. The route runs a little over two laps of the park, starting near the lake and the visitor centre.
Being flat and fully surfaced also makes it one of the friendlier courses for a first ever 5K, since there is nothing technical to worry about and you can see where you are going the whole way. There are toilets at the visitor centre. Parking around the park can fill up, so leave yourself a bit of time.
Two laps of a genuinely lovely park, mostly on tarmac with a short section off it, taking in open parkland, woodland and ponds. There are a few gentle inclines, but plenty of flat in between to get your breath back.
There is a café right at the finish, which makes it a good one if you fancy making a morning of it. Marton station is only a few minutes walk away if you would rather not drive.
The tough one, and the one to save until you have a few under your belt. Two undulating laps around the country park on paths and tracks, part of it along an old railway line and part through woods, including a steep gravel climb.
Trail shoes are worth having, especially in winter, and it is not a good choice if you are pushing a buggy because of the hill and some steps. Very satisfying when you finish it though.
Worth knowing that despite Redcar's seafront reputation, this one is in Locke Park rather than along the prom. It is mainly on footpaths with a few small footbridges along the way. Parking is at Redcar and Cleveland College on Corporation Road, TS10 1EZ, and the park is walkable from Redcar town centre and the station.
Wynyard Woodland Park, Sedgefield, Hartlepool, Marshall Drive and Darlington South Park are all comfortably within reach for a Saturday morning, and there are more beyond that. Once you have a barcode you can use it at any of them, which is how a lot of people end up quietly collecting new courses.
All three are usually fine, with some sensible ground rules. Under 11s need to stay within arm's reach of a parent or guardian for the whole event. Dogs are welcome at most events, but on a short handheld lead that does not extend, and not a waist harness, and you cannot run with a dog and a buggy at the same time. Buggies are fine at the flatter, surfaced courses like Albert, and a bad idea at Flatts Lane.
If you have children aged 4 to 14 who fancy their own version, junior parkrun is a separate 2K event held on Sunday mornings, including at Albert Park. Do note that Stockton Striders itself is an adults only club, so junior parkrun is a parkrun thing rather than something we run.
parkrun only exists because people give up their Saturday morning to marshal, scan barcodes, or walk at the back. If you are injured, or having a week where running feels like too much, volunteering is a genuinely good way to still be part of it. You get thanked far more than feels necessary, and it is a very easy way to get to know people.
parkrun celebrates a few milestone counts along the way, starting at 25 runs, then 50, then 100, and onwards from there, with the same idea applied to volunteering. It sounds like a small thing. It is remarkable how motivating a number can be on a wet January morning when you would otherwise stay in bed.
parkrun is brilliant, but it is one 5K a week on your own terms. If you find yourself wanting structure, coaching, and people who expect you on a Tuesday, that is the point where a club starts to make sense. We ask that you can run 5K without stopping, and if parkrun has got you there, you are exactly who we are looking for.
Have a read of what to expect at your first session, or get in touch and we will book you in.
If you can cover 5K, come and try a club session. Your first one is free, and we will book you in properly so someone is expecting you.
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