To think ParkRun need to consider banning racers?

Why do people keep saying it’s a fun run?? No mention of that at all on the Parkrun info, and certainly I’ve never found it fun.

I don’t do it much these days (too broken) but when I did I never found it fun, if I went I went hard! I’ve been first lady a few times, I ran pregnant, I ran pushing a buggy and none of those time I’d say it was fun. Once I ran round with one of my kids - it was slower than I’d usually go, I didn’t feel like I was going to die all the way round, I guess maybe that was fun 😂

Each to their own though, and if you do it for fun - good for you. I used it as a measure of my running fitness, running in a group made me push harder so I’d always be quicker than if I ran 5km on my own, I was competing with myself but comparing myself to others. It was and still is a race. No question.

However, pushing, shoving or being a dick in a public park - never ok.

Statistically if you have a gathering of hundreds of people, if 1% of society are knobbers, there'll be a couple of knobbers present, whatever activity it is.

Report people breaching the parkrun expectations of behaviour to the RD and they'll record as an incident to HQ and they'll take action such as emailing the offender and potentially removing their result.

I've been a parkrunner for over a decade and seen the change from my 30 mins to being relatively near the back to parkwalk being embraced. Some runs are victims of their own success. While it's brilliant that so many people are getting active and getting involved in the parkrun community, there are some courses I now avoid because of the density of the crowd as a mid-pack runner, or number of laps on tight courses. I'm happy with 2 laps, but find 3 awkward as I can end up lapping the tailwalker as I'm being lapped.

I've seen an elite in action running at her (then) record breaking pace, and loved that as a mediocre veteran age grading, I could run at the same event as an elite and see what they do in action. At a race I wouldn't because they'd be umpteen pens ahead of me and finishing before I'm halfway.
I don't care what pace people run at as long as they respect the other park users around them. Personally my pace/ intentions will vary by the week; sometimes I just want to participate, sometimes I have a specific workout/ pace in mind and sometimes I do want to test myself which is easier when surrounded by peers.

Perhaps it was for the same run but I saw a post by a Parkrun on Facebook last week reminding people that this behaviour isn't acceptable, Parkrun is meant to be fun and requesting that the guilty parties didn't return.

My husband has attended lots of parkrund around the country and not seen this.
The run director and the marshalls should take this on board and out a stop to it.
It's a shame you have experienced this, but how do you know it's happening across the country?

I'm not embarrassed to put my hand up and say I'm a park racer! I wear my racing shoes and treat exactly the same as I would a race - and I do also enter paid for races. Shouting , swearing and shoving is not acceptable at parkrun, races or any situation. That's just antisocial behaviour which should not be tolerated.
Having said that , as a faster runner I find it really frustrating when I am blocked by social runners, 3 or 4 abreast across the path - this is also anti social behaviour.
As an aside many people have suggested that faster people do a proper race , but since the explosion in popularity of parkrun , there are now fewer paid for 5k races available.

How do you know this happens if you've never done one?
It's not just a 'friendly jog-along". It is that and many other things.

In the last few years they tightened the rules about taking dogs.
They are now "Whenever someone is walking, running or volunteering at a parkrun event with their dog, the dog must be on a short, handheld, non-extendable lead, in control, and at the participant’s side at all times. The use of waist harnesses is prohibited."

I can't imagine it's particularly fun for the dog tbh. I also don't know how well the rules are enforced.

People are doing a park run & taking their dogs running next to them?? 🙄🙄 that must be lovely for the people running who dislike dogs/are scared of them or are allergic to them then.

@justletusrun by excluding others, saying they shouldn’t use the space, their arguments aren’t valid etc you are being just as bad as the people you are complaining about. Either it is inclusive or it isn’t, you cannot have it both ways.

I only do Parkrun once every year or so as I am usually busy on a Sat am so when I do I usually aim for a decent time. I would never push or swear at anyone else though as I'm not an absolute arsehole.

Park Run is for everyone. So new runners, ppl
who walk, ppl who run and walk, experienced older runners, fast inexperienced runners, super fast runners, competitive runners. Everyone.

In most multi lap courses they’ll tell you to keep to the right (or left), and overtaking should be on the opposite side. Often faster runners or Marshalls will call out “lead runners coming, keep to the right” or similar to warn of their approach. Quite often in a loud ish voice cos they do so ahead of time.

Most times the father runners will thank ppl who’ve moved over.

Swearing or pushing is obviously wrong, but that is pretty rare. usually the race director will warn about it on the next run.

I have also seen ppl refuse to give room for ppl overtaking, again no excuse for shouting or swearing, but it’s also anti social.

its perfectly acceptable to race at park run, iagain its for everyone, t’s how you do it that counts. Not everyone can afford to pay into a race every week or even month, so it’s a good place to test yourself.

YABU as women do this too.
YANBU no one should do this.

There are always speedy people at our local one, I wouldn’t be positioning myself in the way of the sub 20 runners, its a bit idiotic to expect someone moving so fast to try and dodge you, one of you could get hurt.

Parkruns don’t tend to be a one-lap course, so the overtaking will be on the second etc lap. Even parkruns near me held in pretty big London parks like Battersea are 2 laps.

Totally agree racers shouldn’t all be tarred with this brush. @justletusrun my DS14 is a club runner so I know a bit about competitive parkrunning! The mini London marathon, which was this morning topically, up until this year had some London boroughs requiring a parkrun time for qualification. There’s nothing wrong with it, and racing is not synonymous with rude behaviour, quite the reverse! It’s these individual idiots who are the problem and someone needs to have strong words.

Sadly my running days are over. I did 2 marathons, 2 10ks and loads of half marathons. Never did a park run.
Sadly the fun could be spoiled by the wanna elites.

The women should stop, let the blokes in frocks go through, head back to the start line and set off again without them

That's fine until you get the mediocre club runners placing themselves near the front, thinking they want a clear run, but then causing a logjam.

ive never done a park run as I find the excessive competitiveness in what should be a friendly jog-along spoils any enjoyment of the event.

So much of this thread doesn't apply to me due to the nature of my local park run. It's a single lap so there's no overtaking, unless runners are where they shouldn't be in the pack. That's not too much of an issue though as the start is wide and there's a couple of hundred metres before it narrows meaning the racers have opportunity to get to the front. The start/finish/milling about area is huge and not in the way. It's also on a common on the outside of town big enough for a 10k, without ordinary pedestrians about.
I've done multi-lap runs and thought them OK, but not a patch on single lap runs. Try others and maybe you'll find one you like more.

Never have been a runner, a couple of years ago joined Parkrun. I was slow but tried my hardest and hoped to one day be an average weekly runner at Parkrun. It’s a great idea run by volunteers and a great social feel and not designed for elites.
All I got was people running too close to me and jabbing me with their elbows, brushing past me, tutting / swearing, one spat near me which could have been accidental but I think it was meant. They might as well run into me and be done with it, I didn’t feel welcome by these people. The lady who ran alongside me explained people want to get better PBs and sometimes were not very kind or allowing. I guess it is good for people timing themselves and recording it. I expected it to be a novice’s run to try their best to keep fit, not people on a high trying to achieve some professional runners fix of a pb. Needless to say I haven’t returned and just run around local roads on my own instead.
I hear it depends what location you do, aim to do one with wide paths and one loop and avoid thin paths and multiple laps.
Shame, as losing the sight of why it was designed.

my local one is like this. The last time I did it was december and there were people pushing and shoving to get to the front. One of my running club members was pushed over and the runner didn’t even turn back to see if she was ok.

Yes but that’s not the same as “racers”. Not all people who go all out at Park Run at wankers, in fact most aren’t. Some of the nicest people at the one I go sometimes are the quickest people. There’s a couple of guys and a woman who regularly go back and run with others. Whenever I go to Park Run I treat it as a speed workout/test.

Looks as though they generally need to sort things out. Aren't Sharron Davies and Tracey Chapman taking them to court over self ID chaps posting fastest woman?

Yes, the Park Run official mantra that it's 'just a run, not a race' always comes to mind and makes me laugh when I look at the line of men on the start line, elbows forward, faces set, determined to 'win'
I gave up Park Run earlier this year after doing about 100 because I got fed up of the pushing and shoving. I'm a slow runner and people were constantly running past me and cutting in front of me causing me to collide into them or have to stop running. I have a shoulder injury which doesn't stop me running but I just can't take risk of people shoving into me and hurting me.
I still run but I go out alone or with a friend later in the day

Do you mean 7%

They are welcome to speak to the organisers and arrive early to start at the front. The problem is these types of people rarely think like that.