team kerr

ORMEAU

This is probably the busiest parkrun in NI, often averaging 350 runners and more, but it has been around for 5-6 years and is a pretty slick operation.  It starts on the path from the Ozone up into the Ormeau Park. There is plenty of parking and toilet facilities in the Ozone building, which is also where there are post run refreshments. The start is a bit congested, which is inevitable with the numbers involved, and it is on a slight incline with a right turn midway up the hill, so there is a bit of steering to be done to stay safe at the start. Thereafter, however, it is a relatively flat, wide tarmac path for most of the run. Ormeau is a lovely mature park with plenty of tree lined paths, a bandstand, two playparks and wide open spaces, so it is a very pleasant run. There is a bit of a downhill towards the Ravenhill Rd / Ormeau Embankment end of the park and this is followed with a climb as you enter lap two of the circuit to repeat the same loop. Scanning is done just beyond the finish line. Overall it is definitely one of the easier NI parkruns and it is very accessible for either off-road joggers (like mine) or running chairs that are designed for road use.