2010 parishwalk.com website

End of this road

2010-06-25T22:51:00.001+01:00

I've had a long day with all sorts of hic-cups with my tasks. No time to talk about them before switching to the race day blog which will be listed shortly.

Not quite the BBC

2010-06-25T06:52:00.001+01:00

I've just watched the published version of the file and its not turned out too bad. Here it is:

1295 visitors yesterday

2010-06-25T06:34:00.001+01:00

There have been 48 today since midnight.

Page hits more than doubled compared to Wednesday with 4166 (excluding pdfs).

Its taking too long

2010-06-24T23:37:00.001+01:00

I'm not going to be able to wait for the latest video to get to YouTube but it should be on my "channel" at about 12.30.

I have far too many things from last night to produce and publish before the race. I have 101 things to do tomorrow (about 91 of them being required within the same hour) so it is going to be tough.

Marie thinks this is sad

2010-06-24T23:35:00.003+01:00

I've just made this the desktop on my laptop so that I can remember (roughly) when to expect to see the leaders at the churches.

I did this one at lunchtime but didn't get a chance to link anywhere

2010-06-24T23:23:00.000+01:00

Third cut fits

2010-06-24T23:17:00.002+01:00

I did the first cut of the video of the 50th anniversary walkers before I went out tonight and it was 60% too long. When I came home, I edited it down again leaving out some of the stories that have already been told in other videos on the site.

The second cut was still over 12 minutes so I had to take out the introductions. This brought it down to 9.45 so there was just space to add a photo and overlay the credits in a different way to normal.

The 2nd Jools Holland concert was rather good tonight. Everyone I spoke to was in agreement with that sentiment and we spoke to quite a few.

One good thing about the when the Parish Walk is over is that I will no longer be asked if I am doing it this year - one of several who asked tonight was somewhat surprised that it is 30 years since I last took part. But I suppose the question then will be DID you do the Parish Walk?

Divide by 3

2010-06-24T17:51:00.001+01:00

The talk with walkers who started the 1960 event lasted more than 30 minutes last night and I'm about to try and edit to less than 10 - so here goes. Time is against me in every sense.

Video published

2010-06-24T06:59:00.000+01:00

2000 pages

2010-06-24T05:23:00.001+01:00

688 site visitors yesterday and they viewed exactly 2000 pages on the current site (excluding pdf files files which are not counted).

50th reunion

2010-06-24T05:19:00.002+01:00

Well done to Graham for organising the get together last night of so many of the walkers from the 1960 Parish Walk - and subsequent winners.

It was a great night at the Manx Legion Club and Tim Glover did a great job interviewing two groups of walkers, one from the modern era and one from the 1960 lineup. I've also taken a lot of video and I'm up early to start editing it. Circumstances at home did not permit this when I got home just before midnight.

Marshals

2010-06-23T06:34:00.003+01:00

Being a marshal doesn't preclude you from following the walk at other times of the day. Some oft e marshaling slots are quite short but they are vital to the safety and organisation of the event. There is a link on the front page to an appeal for a few more marshals.

Number of visitors continues to increase

2010-06-23T06:33:00.000+01:00

683 visitors yesterday.

Look what else Roger Black is up to

2010-06-22T22:20:00.003+01:00

http://birminghamnewsroom.com/?p=11001

thanks to big brother Mike for this link.

Hello

2010-06-22T07:54:00.002+01:00

542 people visited the website yesterday. 75 of you (well I am assuming that you are some of the same) visited this page. I only wish I had more time to tell you more news. The information page has been updated today.

A different kind of stat

2010-06-21T22:30:00.002+01:00

71.4% of the visitors to the Parishwalk.com site are using internet explorer as their web browser. Firefox is used by 12/0%, Safari by 9.6%, Google Chrome (my choice) 3.4% and others 3.6%.

This compares to the Manxathletics.com site where 81.4% are using Microsoft's IE, with 7.0%, 5.8% and 4.0% using Firefox, Safari and Chrome. Others only account for 1.8% as fewer visitors are using Blackberries and iPhones than with the PW site.

Learning from mistakes

2010-06-21T13:41:00.002+01:00

I'm not actually very good at learning from my mistakes but throughout my life I have usually added work to a schedule that is already full until there is a crash.

This year I will be doing a special feature on the 50th anniversary get together, hopefully including quite a bit of video with some of the "old timers". I am therefore dropping plans for a final featured walker for the 2010 parishwalk.com website - for once I am being sensible.

The next featured walker will be published when the 2011 site is launched at midnight on 1 December 2010.

Some editing to do

2010-06-21T13:38:00.003+01:00

I'm not going to have time to edit the website until this evening but here are some changes that I will be making on advice from race director Raymond Cox:

1. Typo "Reflective"

2. Road Safety section. "Competitors must wear a reflective bib above the waist at all times and after 10pm an illuminated light source must be carried".

3. Road Closed section. "A1 is closed between 08.20 and 09.00 and not 09.20 as stated."

4. Toilets section. Toilets available at the Old Lancashire Hotel Santon. Remove Glen Darragh Road from the list. Add on Lower Ballakaighen Farm, Kirk Michael.

5. Cut off times. *Peel will remain open until 6pm for finishers.

6. Registering mobile numbers on-line. Before 20.30 on Friday June 25th.

Go, go, go

2010-06-19T17:51:00.001+01:00

Just had a 20 minute chat with Race Director Raymond Cox. Everything seems to be well under control so I shall see what news I can share here during the next few days. I am well aware that about 50 people a day (on average) are checking out this blog but my focus has moved away from it a bit since the entries closed.

New feature on manxathletics.com

2010-06-17T21:35:00.001+01:00

Site updates

2010-06-17T20:03:00.002+01:00

The right hand block of each page has been re-designed tonight to give more prominence to the link to update your entry and to standardise the recent links that have been added:

Update my entry

Full list of competitors

Elizabeth Corran (race secretary)

Programme

Scottish Widows Parish Walk website

Changes to road closures

manxathletics.com feature

Realistic expectations

2010-06-14T13:46:00.003+01:00

Wow! Even if you are not a motor sport fan, if you watched the TV coverage of the TT races you could not fail to have been impressed with the production, the races and the Manx countryside from the air.

And at last the iomtt website is catching up the standard of the TV coverage. The live times were great although they could have just done with posting (and displaying prominently) the revised start times more frequently on days when there were postponements.

This is the 10th year that the parishwalk.com website has covered what is now the Scottish Widows Parish Walk and I have tried to make it a little better each year. And I'll be working myself into exhaustion over a 26 hour shift in addition to taking time off work before and after the event to try and continue those improvements.

But with the best will in the world, the site will fall well short of the professional standards set by the TT TV coverage. I have to be a jack of all trades and therefore I am master of none - and I am funding my hobby.

Last year I received an email from one irate competitor because I did not take her photograph when she finished in the dark. I had the same complaint about not getting all the competitors at the Manx Mountain Marathon this Easter.

By all means make suggestions, or drop me a line when I make the inevitably mistakes, but don't expect the impossible. I'm trying to rope in as much help as can for the website coverage but most of the spare hands are already doing other vital jobs for the event.

The Scottish Widows Parish Walk magazine 2010

2010-06-14T13:44:00.001+01:00

The Scottish Widows Parish Walk magazine 2010 is a full-colour special edition magazine available for all participants that you will want to keep as a souvenir recording your achievements this year. This is the second year that the magazine is produced.

The magazine includes:

Full results and winners from every stage
Colour Photos
Stories and Features
History of the Parish Walk
Previous years winners and highlights
Isle of Man walking events
International Walking events
Walking clubs on the Isle of Man
Editorial
Details of the sponsors
Course Map and Parish lists

You can order in person, online, or by post for just £2.50 +30p postage and packing. Why not order five copies for £11.20 and save 20%. (Posted to one address.)

www.racewalkingrecord.net/Parish

Information: Race Walking Record is the magazine aimed at people who pursue walking as a serious competitive activity. RWR was started in 1941 and has been distributed worldwide for 70 years. Current readers include several Olympic medallists, other famous sportsmen, The International Olympic Committee (IOC), UK Athletics (UKA), The International Athletics Federation (IAAF), USA Olympic Committee (USOC), and Australia's National Sport Information Center (NSIC). The Parish Walk Special is the first ever special edition produced by RWR, and the 2010 edition is the second year that it will be produced. It is being produced in recognition that the Parish Walk has become the most significant walk in and around the UK and is intended to help promote walking within the Isle of Man, and in turn promote the Parish Walk to the rest of the world. The special will be an A5 magazine containing 36 full colour pages of results, photos, reports and useful information.

John Constandinou, Editor: Race Walking Record.

Three changes to the information page

2010-06-14T07:41:00.002+01:00

In addition to the new road closure on the Peel Road which is featured on the home page of both the Parishwalk and Manxathletics sites, there is a new time limit for walkers going beyond Rushen and the Manx Telecom Merit Award is listed among the prizes.

Visit the information page here:

http://www.parishwalk.co.uk/Information.htm

If you have any other suggestions for what could be published there, just let me know.

Janice's times

2010-06-10T13:52:00.001+01:00

Everyone is disappointed that Janice Quirk is unable to compete this year.

I've just completed the same exercise with her split times and progress as I did for Jock at this time yesterday. I demonstrates what will miss. Just look at the split time between Maughold and Lonan where she was 27.26 faster in 2009 than in 2008 and 5 minutes faster than Jock Waddington!

http://www.parishwalk.com/2010/JaniceSplits.pdf

Jock is on the blog

2010-06-09T13:42:00.002+01:00

I've not been doing so much Parish Walk blogging recently so I thought I would spend half an hour this lunchtime putting together some stats on Jock Waddington's last three years in the events.

Here they are:

http://www.parishwalk.com/2010/JockSplits.pdf

Real names

2010-06-03T21:29:00.003+01:00

These two words seem to be hard for people to understand.

The forum does not allow people to hide behind nicknames - its only open to real people.

I'm afraid that I don't even reply to the (many) people who email asking why they have not been approved as users. If they can't be bothered to read the rules I can't be bothered to write.

Harsh but fair.

Feature postponed

2010-06-03T21:26:00.001+01:00

I'm not going to get the latest feature done this week.

Simon Cox

2010-06-03T19:56:00.004+01:00

I have written a piece about Simon Cox in the Bradford 50km on manxathletics.com tonight.

The 61 year old is hoping complete the Parish Walk course in around 17 hours this year. This would be a personal best but probably also an over 60s record.

Here is Simon's Parish Walk record:

1993: German - 06:02:08;
1994: St Johns - 05:55:54;
1997: Finish - 19:45:27;
1998: Finish - 20:06:23;
2000: Bride - 12:09:00;
2001: Finish - 18:57:52;
2002: Finish - 20:46:10;
2003: Ballaugh - 09:09:00;
2004: Finish - 17:14:03;
2005: Finish - 17:37:34;
2006: Finish - 18:37:19;
2007: Finish - 20:56:46;
2008: Michael - 08:15:53;

Cheap laughs

2010-06-02T22:07:00.004+01:00

I have just signed off the manxathletics.com site and blog saying that I was too tired to continue. But I checked the stats for the PW site and saw that more than 200 people a day are visiting and around 60 a day are even checking out this blog.

So rather than do any research, but to try and keep your appetite, I am going for the five minute cheap laugh approach.

Pictured above are 18 year olds Allen Moore (brother of Colin who takes part in Manx walking) and someone who when he now sees a young person with an afro hairstyle, is inclined to warn them to get a hair cut or they will regret it in later life!

For no apparent reason

2010-06-01T22:03:00.002+01:00

..other than I like to produce something that nobody is really expecting rather than to be "perform" to order, here are the fastest times between Santon and Malew for the past three years:

David Griffiths - 00:35:35 (2008);
Sean Hands - 00:36:57 (2008);
Jock Waddington - 00:37:15 (2008);
Michael George - 00:38:01 (2008);
Mark Hempsall - 00:38:20 (2008);
Michael George - 00:38:39 (2007);
Sean Hands - 00:39:16 (2007);
Robbie Callister - 00:39:19 (2007);
Maurice Bellando - 00:39:23 (2008);
Jock Waddington - 00:39:29 (2009);
Robbie Callister - 00:40:06 (2009);
Ray Pitts - 00:40:06 (2007);
Thomas Melvin - 00:40:08 (2007);
Ray Pitts - 00:40:21 (2009);
Janice Quirk - 00:40:23 (2009);
Andrew Titley - 00:40:25 (2007);
Sue Biggart - 00:40:28 (2009);
Alan Cowin - 00:40:32 (2008);
Sue Biggart - 00:40:37 (2008);
Sue Biggart - 00:40:39 (2007);
Matthew Haddock - 00:40:47 (2008);
Ian Dunbar - 00:41:12 (2007);
Andrew Titley - 00:41:17 (2008);
Dave Mackey - 00:41:39 (2009);
Janice Quirk - 00:41:44 (2008);
Eammon Harkin - 00:41:47 (2007);
Darren Mealin - 00:41:51 (2008);
Alan Cowin - 00:42:09 (2009);
Mark Hempsall - 00:42:10 (2009);
Steve Partington - 00:42:10 (2007);
Ian Wakley - 00:42:10 (2009);
David Lon Chambers - 00:42:15 (2007);
Chris Cale - 00:42:20 (2008);
Edmund Shillabeer - 00:42:29 (2009);
Michael Readshaw - 00:42:33 (2009);
Tony Duncan - 00:42:42 (2007);
David Griffiths - 00:42:48 (2007);
Martijn Biesmans - 00:42:48 (2007);
Jane Mooney - 00:42:53 (2007);
John Shimmin - 00:42:58 (2007);
Dave Cain - 00:43:01 (2007);
Rosemarie Crellin - 00:43:02 (2008);
Michael Shipsides - 00:43:03 (2009);
Jane Mooney - 00:43:04 (2008);
Andrew Gosnell - 00:43:07 (2009);
Mark Harvey - 00:43:07 (2007);
Terry Moffat - 00:43:08 (2008);
Vinny Lynch - 00:43:14 (2009);
Chris Cale - 00:43:16 (2009);
Richard Gerrard - 00:43:17 (2009);
Richard Spenceley - 00:43:28 (2009);
Eammon Harkin - 00:43:38 (2009);
Martijn Biesmans - 00:43:39 (2009);
Andrew Titley - 00:43:39 (2009);
Vicki Rawlinson - 00:43:41 (2008);
Stephen Harvey - 00:43:41 (2009);
Alan McCulloch - 00:43:43 (2008);
Martijn Biesmans - 00:43:46 (2008);
Michael Shipsides - 00:43:47 (2008);
Alan McCulloch - 00:43:49 (2009);
Darren Mealin - 00:43:50 (2009);
Andy Green - 00:43:50 (2009);
Jock Waddington - 00:44:00 (2007);
Dave Taylor - 00:44:10 (2009);
Adam Killip - 00:44:10 (2009);
Shirley Gage - 00:44:13 (2009);
Mark Honeyman - 00:44:15 (2009);
Stephen Harvey - 00:44:23 (2008);
Doug Allan - 00:44:29 (2008);
John Stubbs - 00:44:31 (2008);
Les Brown - 00:44:32 (2007);
Chris Cale - 00:44:35 (2007);
Ian Dunbar - 00:44:38 (2009);
Christopher Flint - 00:44:41 (2009);
Terry Moffat - 00:44:44 (2007);
John Shimmin - 00:44:45 (2008);
Kathryn Kennaugh - 00:44:45 (2007);
Les Webb - 00:44:47 (2009);
David Cain - 00:44:49 (2009);
Erin Callister - 00:44:54 (2009);
John Shimmin - 00:44:57 (2009);
Catherine Lowey - 00:44:57 (2007);
Doug Allan - 00:44:57 (2007);

Website between now and the day

2010-06-01T13:41:00.004+01:00

I am planning to cut down the number of entries on the blog. I've spent far more time here in the last 7 months than ever before. I hoped that by continually reviewing the entries I could generate enough publicity to ensure that everyone entered in time.

Since the close off my focus has been on finalising the entry statistics and trying to improve the database, particularly with regard to the analysis next year. If I can list the entries on a regular basis and link to their personal achievements then it should encourage people to let me know if the entrant is not the same as the one with the same name from 1968 (or whatever).

Having set up the stats to enable me to also update most of the databases pretty quickly after the event (the most improved is always tricky) I now want to focus on a simplified front page for the day itself (one of my hates is visiting a website on the day of an event and you are still being told where to enter or where to stay) and to get my cameras and equipment ready.

My brother Mike is again helping me up to Peel and he has been stocking up with spare batteries for his cameras. I'll send him to the start and onwards to Union Mills whilst I will take Marie to Braddan for her to play her now usual role of video camera woman leaving me both hands free for still photos for a change.

Hopefully we shall reposition ourselves around Newtown where I will be in the studio in the back of the van with Mike on the camera again. We'll probably have a brief stop on the Sloc before heading to Peel in good time - the photos there were very popular last year.

I am still hoping there will be a major new facility in Peel (and possibly another church) but that has still to be finalised.

Sean Hands did a great job at the finish last year on the help desk protecting me from people distracting me from website publication at the finish. I hope to further improve the quality, however, with another member of the team helping with photos and video at the finish.

This was supposed to be about the website prior to the event. I plan to do the final featured walker this week.

Turning over the calendar

2010-06-01T13:33:00.003+01:00

I produce a few calendars each year for family and friends using my own photos and we have one in the office.

Suddenly the Parish Walk seems a whole lot closer when we turned over the page this morning to see a photo of the Parish Walk.

Graham Young's Parish Wall record

2010-06-01T08:16:00.004+01:00

I have been writing about Graham Young, who celebrated his 65th birthday at the weekend, on the manxathletics.com site. Here is his Parish Walk record:

Finish

1964 19:52:35

Finish 1971 15:43:12

German 1974 05:29:05

Jurby 1976 09:06:00

German 1977 05:37:00

Michael 1978 07:10:00

Rushen 1979 03:15:00

German 1980 06:13:00

Finish 1992 16:38:27

German 1999 09:23:19

After setting a record in 1971 he did not try and finish the course again until 1992 - when he won again. All his other entries were used as training or to help others. He walked with me until Jurby in 1976 to set me up for my first finish and he was with me to Michael again in 1978.

Lots of visitors

2010-05-29T06:52:00.001+01:00

Interesting to note (from the first day I had the counter back on) that there were 259 visitors to the site yesterday. That compares to 211 on the manxathletics.com site. Its usually during the week before and after the Parish Walk that the former is higher than the latter.

Kelly (and Quayle) from the Isle of Man

2010-05-28T14:03:00.002+01:00

Its interesting to note the most popular surnames of the entrants. Lots of traditional Manx names among the most popular. The reality is, however, that those listed before with five or more make up only 302 of the 1710 (less than 18%). 741 of the entrants do not share their name with any of the other walkers.

24 - Quayle; 24 - Kelly; 16 - Cain; 11 - Jones; 10 - Walker; 10 - Moore; 9 - Cowin; 9 - Brown; 8 - Watterson; 8 - Teare; 8 - Crellin; 8 - Clague; 8 - Christian; 8 - Cannell; 8 - Bell; 7 - Martin; 7 - Kneale; 7 - Evans; 7 - Craine; 7 - Callister; 6 - Thomas; 6 - Smith; 6 - Murphy; 6 - Marshall; 6 - Kneen; 6 - Hall; 6 - Davies; 6 - Corlett; 5 - Russell; 5 - Quinn; 5 - Morgan; 5 - Hughes; 5 - Hill; 5 - Graham; 5 - Glover; 5 - Callow; 5 - Butler; 5 - Breadner;

Counting the pages

2010-05-27T20:34:00.003+01:00

Wow - that exercise took longer than planned.

A few days after I launched the parishwalk.com website something went wrong the page counter so I have no idea of how many visitors have been visiting the site. I have been meaning to get around to fixing it for the past six and half months!

So I put the code onto the front page and when I started to copy it on to all the other pages I realised that I still had outdated links such as "enter online" on each page. So I had to copy these to about 20 pages and re-publish them.

Once that job was complete I thought I may as well put a counter on this blog. I know that people have been reading it because I get so much feedback. But, again I have not idea how many. I will now.

PS 20 people have been on the site since I starting writing this!

205 special cheers

2010-05-27T13:34:00.001+01:00

I was pleasantly surprised to receive an electronic copy of the Scottish Widows Parish Walk programme from Bridson & Horrox just after 8 this morning. I managed to get it published and linked to both the parishwalk.com and manxathletics.com sites more or less straightaway. Karen Kneale, the committee member who allocates the numbers (and does lot of other things besides) had still been working on this on Monday evening.

For me, and I am sure a lot of other people, the programme remains a great source of information, especially to identify walkers from their numbers on the day of the race.

In 1990, long before the parishwalk.com site was even a thought, I worked to improve the information as part of the package to which Clerical Medical signed up for (initially) a five year deal. For the first time we recorded whether an entrant was a previous finisher so that people using the programme to follow the race could recognise someone with a proven record. It also gave recognition to the handful of people who had ever walked 85 miles.

Little did any of us think that by 2010 there would be 205 in that category. And what a job it is to reconcile those finishes. Unfortunately two of them are not among the list and one name (the same as a previous finisher) has been included in error.

There were only 4 winners of the Parish Walk in the “noughties” and twice winner Peter Kaneen has not entered. That left defending champion Jock Waddington, course record holder Sean Hands and the winner of five of the last nine events, Robbie Callister, to take the top three numbers. Who could possibly argue with those three having such a special status?

Beyond that does it really matter what order they are listed? I don’t think so although I did send the list to Karen in fastest order number as one objective criteria. She has used this as a starting point but moved a few people up or down. John Cannell is still the only person to have won the race six times no matter what number he has.

For people who need more information than is printed in the programme then they can use the website – that is why I produce the stats. For anyone who thinks that last year’s result is much more significant than any other year then that is why the result is printed in the programme for the current year (another 1990 innovation).

For anyone else wanting a top three number for next year they will need to lift the trophy at around 11 pm on Saturday 26 June. To do that they will need to have trained hard, developed a sound technique and have the mental capacity to stay the distance at a sub 16 hour pace.

The public know that if your number is below 205, with one exception, you have already done all of those things except going sub-16. I respect all 205 of you.