AUGUSTINE HEIGHTS PARKRUN REVIEW

GETTING THERE

So Augustine Heights is part of a newish residential development slightly north of Springfield lakes. Brookwater, which is the neighboring suburb gets a lot of advertising on TV. There are still vacant lots in the area and developers still have their offices on site. Springfield Lakes is quite a way from my home and you have to travel quite a way along the Centenary Highway but for locals, this is a perfect position.   

PARKING

I was a bit late for the start of this run and managed to park on the corner of Christopher Street and Santa Monica Drive right near the roundabout. I dashed across the grassed and slightly boggy park to the start and as a result, I started in last place. There is ample street parking all along the perimeter of the park which extends along Santa Monica Drive and Renehan Place. 

TOILETS

There are unfortunately no public toilets nearby so after a 45 minute drive, I had to run with a full bladder. No big deal though. 

THE COURSE

This course starts near the main BBQ shelter off Renehan Place and I unfortunately missed the announcements, recognition of volunteers, 10, 50 and 100 milestones as well as the normal briefing so I followed the directions of the marshals and the rest of the field. 

The path runs along the sidewalk and concrete park pathways but it is quite narrow. You first run out to a turnaround point in Ambrose Drive. The oncoming runners along this narrow pathway were a bit hard to navigate, and because I started at the back of the pack, I was trying to overtake as many people as possible which was probably not ideal. There were only 120 participants on the day so it wasn't that bad.

I didn't see any other members of the public along the route which was fortunate for the Parkrun fraternity because the path is so narrow. On the return leg you take a right turn and run along another path towards McAuley Crescent and do a loop back to the start. This is then repeated. I personally don't like running laps and having to run past the start/finish, but this only happened once. 

The course itself is quite pretty. The suburb is fairly new and the park is well maintained which is cool. It is fairly undulating, but not enough to really slow you down. 

What I did notice was that there were lots of really good runners which is probably indicative of new property developments which attract young families and as a result, young fit runners. 

VOLUNTEERS

As I said previously, I missed the briefing at the start, but I noticed on the Facebook page that their volunteer rosters are healthy and there is a lot of encouragement on the site. 

PHOTOS

I went to the Facebook page to download the picture of me running on that particular day and sadly no one took any pictures. It is also possible that the pictures weren't uploaded for that day because I seem to remember someone with a camera along the course. Either way, its not a problem at all. I just wanted photographic evidence to prove that I was actually there that day. 

Clickhere for the Facebook page

THE ALL IMPORTANT COFFEE AFTERWARDS

Springfield Lakes shopping Centre is fairly close but the big bonus about this event was that they had a coffee barista van onsite which was well supported. People hung around for quite a while after the run and I sensed a really nice community spirit. 

OVERALL 

I am not a great fan of the double loop and the turnaround point and the path was a tad narrow, but I liked the vibrancy of this community and the large gathering of really good runners was a surprise. The Gary rating for this event is 7.5/10.