03/09/2026
Our spotlight this week falls upon Mike Bird - a runner who regularly flies under the radar (thanks to Amanda for that line!)
Mike is one of those runners who turns up at sessions regularly, and he's done nearly 500 of them, and generally just fits in with everyone without sticking his head above the parapet. But this belies the impact he has as he is incredibly supportive of all our runners. An example of this was when in the step up to 10k sessions he completed his run and then ran back to run in with other runners still completing their sessions. For this feature I normally do research to add facts about the runner in question and when I found an article Mike had written for Blackpool Freedom Runners in 2020 I thought to myself research over, just publish that as it tells you everything you need to know about a fantastic person, runner and member of our running group.
Monday Motivation by Mike Bird
My love hate relationship with running started at the age of 10. One evening, out of the blue and for no real reason, I decided to go for a run! I managed to get to the next village and back (my first 5km) just in time to stop my parents calling the police to initiate a search party - apparently, I’d forgot to mention where I was going!
So impressed with my athletic achievement, my mother then convinced our next door neighbour, a high school teacher, that I was the next Sebastian Coe / Steve Ovett (take your preference) and he should sign me up for the high school running team immediately. Two weeks later therefore I was sat on a bus, surrounded by menacing teenagers twice my height, trying to breathe through a heady cocktail of Hi Karate and Brut aftershave mixed with the underlying fragrance of John Player Special ci******es, on my way to my first run….
I came last! No one spoke to me…not even the teacher who lived next door! End of running career!
Over the years I have made several attempts to start running again – I joined the 6th form running club with a friend. The aim of this club appeared to be to run a 3 miles circuit around the school during lunch break and get back in time for the last sitting, before afternoon lessons started. In the 3 months I was in this club I nearly starved to death!
By the time I got back I’d missed lunch, most of the afternoon lessons and was put on report for persistent late attendance!
End of running ‘part deux’.
It wasn’t until I saw a TV programme that mentioned Parkrun in Blackpool, back in 2017; an opportunity to hurl myself around Stanley Park on a weekly basis! When I saw it, I said I’d give it a go!
Parkrun started as a one off, until I got my first time in, after that the competitiveness crept in, each week trying to beat my previous weeks PB. I’d manage to shave a second off here or there but after a while I thought there was something missing – everyone was running but very few people seemed to talk to each other or interact. They turned up, ran and went home. Don’t get me wrong some people prefer to run like that, but sometimes it’s good to have some motivation to keep you going.
This is when I spotted the Blackpool Freedom Runners group. After a bit of soul searching, I plucked up courage and turned up for a Wednesday run. The thing I found from those first BFR runs wasn’t how quick I ran (or how slow) or who I beat or didn’t, it was that sense of support and encouragement you got for being part of the team. The ones that finished ahead (way ahead in some cases) wouldn’t just leave, they’d stay and cheer the others over the line.
Even now, whether it’s a Parkrun, a 10k or any distance you’ll always spot someone in a BFR top ( we turn up everywhere) , you might not know them by name, but chances are they’ll give you a shout on the way past ( or maybe a Jelly Baby if it’s the BFR support crew). When you’re tired, out of breath and thinking of stopping sometimes it’s all you need, even if it only makes you go 10 feet further along the path, it helps to reach your goal.
Also, like Chris, my whole family are now involved: My daughter, grandson, my new son-in-law and his daughter all started running and I take great pride in seeing them run with the BFR shirts on. Even my wife, who isn’t a runner but thought she was missing out on something good, joined the C25K and gave it a go!
In her first Parkrun the thing that stuck with her most was a stranger in a BFR shirt cheering her on towards the finish -Thanks Tom Smalley!
Even Saturdays run, when Matt ran past saying ‘Well done Mr & Mrs Bird” made us laugh!
Looking forwards, I’ve got a half marathon to train for in April and a Park Run tourism tick list to complete plus anything else which takes my fancy through 2020 – Coronavirus permitting obviously!
So, I will finish this with a thank you to all those that organise and give their time, help and support to the rest of us in BFR – without you BFR wouldn’t be as good as it is now!
And so you now know why Mike is such a deserving recipient of having the spotlight shone upon him.
Thank you for what you add to our group Mike.
