Flaxmere Park, Swansea Road, Flaxmere, 4120
Type of Course – Three laps
Shoes Required – Road
Things to know
Toilet block near start/finish. Children’s playground near start/finish.
Parking is free and there is street parking for motorhome parking.
Permanently marked.
There are no showers nearby.
Forgotten your barcode? Email the event team and they may be able to print a spare for you.
Cafe: There is a coffee cart on-site.
Location of start:
The event starts just opposite the Swansea Rd car park. If you park in Henderson Rd, walk into the park and then walk anti-clockwise until you reach the start.
Getting there by public transport
There is no public transport available for this parkrun.
Getting there on foot
The start is across the road from the Flaxmere shops within walking distance for most Flaxmere residents.
Getting there by road
From Napier/Hastings Expressway (SH50A) leave expressway at roundabout with Flaxmere Ave and York Rd. Follow Flaxmere Ave. Turn left onto Henderson Rd, left onto Swansea Rd, car park is on the left opposite the shops.
Additionally, roadside car parking is possible along Henderson Rd or Flaxmere Ave, which would necessitate a short walk to the start.
Stats
First run: June 15, 2019
Inaugural attendance: 144
Record attendance: 144 (15/06/2019)
Course records
Women: Eva Goodisson 18:08 (05/02/2022)
Men: Darian Sorouri 15:55 (22/5/2021)
The story behind Flaxmere parkrun…
Philip Shambrook, founding event director
I had been parkrunning in Australia for a few years before returning in October 2018.
I was planning to set up another parkrun in Hawke’s Bay so it was simply a matter of finding a team of people and a location.
The team was easy. The issue was finding somewhere suitable.
We wanted a nice location with access to toilet facilities and coffee. While we have kilometers of flat, limestone trails for cycling, running, and walking we did not like any of them for a new parkrun.
We had almost given up when someone mentioned Flaxmere Park.
Flaxmere is a suburb of Hastings that you tend not to go to unless you live there or have a reason but it turned out to have a park that might have been made for parkrun.
On our first visit we walked one lap of the park and found it measured 1.7km. The path around the park is winding, shaded from established trees and with a great sealed surface. It was ideal. From then on it was plain sailing.
We decided right from the beginning that we needed to work with the community so we set up a first meeting with the council and the local community leaders.
That was probably the best thing we did as the Flaxmere demographic is largely Pacific Islanders and Māori and quite insular.
Council and the community were then on board from the beginning and worked with us to deliver Flaxmere parkrun within four months from first meeting to first event.
We could have probably launched earlier but ended up arranging the launch to tie-in with Matariki, opening of a new children’s playground and the launch of a housing initiative.
If there is anything to highlight about the setting up of Flaxmere parkrun it would be the need to be aware of the community. I was instrumental in getting Anderson parkrun going in as much I brought together the event team while I was home from Australia in December 2015.
In that case there were no community members involved, just council.
While it might be that Napier Council and Hastings District Council are different, it is clear that Napier Council is not as involved or interested in Anderson parkrun as Hastings Council is with Flaxmere parkrun.
Why should people visit Flaxmere parkrun? It’s a nice flat course on winding sealed paths. During the summer large established trees provide shade virtually all the way around the course.
The park is one of the unsung gems in Hawke’s Bay and well worth a visit in its own right. It has also recently been awarded the title of New Zealand’s Most Active Park.
Flaxmere Park is a pretty park all year round. However, in spring the fresh green growth of the trees and the grass imbibe the park with vibrancy and life.
In summer, the grass can get brown and look tired but the green trees provide welcome shade. And in autumn the colors as the leaves change provide bursts of colour that are in stark contrast to the greens of the grass.
While in Flaxmere…
Pekapeka Wetlands
Splash Planet
Wineries and Cellar Doors
Gannet Safari at Cape Kidnappers
Hawkes Bay Farmer’s Market every Sunday