Reality Rules Parkrun Launch 3 October 2026

actual footage.

With a fetching wig and some stick on eyelashes for max effect. Got to make an effort, after all.

Now, I wish I'd known that. I could have looked out my giant inflatable knob costume specially.

Milestones have always (or at least for a long time) been a thing for parkrun so signing up allows you to work towards those. You used to get a free t-shirt when you hit 25, 50, 100, 250 etc (somebody just got 1000 which means he barely missed a run in 20 years!). You now pay however to order them you need to enter your number to prove you've done the runs.
There are also lots of silly challenges to take part in.
So there are definitely non-competitive reasons to sign up, but the competitive side is of course still huge.

Which begs the question, if it's not competitive as they claim (although we know for many taking part it is), then why ask people to sign up?

When I went for the first time I wasn't given the option of not signing up - I was just scanned in, directed to the starting area along with the 300-plus others, and off we all went. I'd been under the impression it was a fun thing with everyone going at their own pace, whether that was running, jogging or walking with buggies and dogs. It could not have been further from that - multiple running clubs were jostling for position at the front and then went off at a rate of knots. They finished as I was at the half way point, with many checking their times and taking it very seriously. I was really surprised to get an email later showing my time in my sex category, along with everyone else's- I had no desire to see it, it served no purpose whatsoever other that to show me where I was compared to others, which is exactly what happens in a race. Non-competitive and fun it was not.

I haven’t run for years, but this thread has inspired me to do a park run. If only so I can join Reality Rules Parkrun Club. Thanks to @Doowoddy ’s tail walker info, at least I know I won’t be last!

But you can run without signing up. You just show as 'Unknown' on the results page.

The average finish time in 2005 was 22:17
The average finish time in 2020 was 32:30

The idea people were running 5k in 22:17 (average, so many running much faster that that!) non-competitively is laughable.

The whole 'fun run' idea is how it has evolved but you can't say that's what parkrun is.

I joined up the other day. 'Gender' is a drop down menu that includes 'male/female/other/prefernottosay'. You cant sign up without making a choice, or without a DOB.

Its as though the organisers themselves no longer believe in the original concept.

The original concept was time trials for club runners.

Perhaps they don't show it on the website but course records are still clearly shown for each event on the app. They don't state they are male/female records but each event has two records, one with a male name and one with a female name.

The whole 'its a run not a race' is part of the inclusivity, it encourages participation from people outside the traditional running world which is of course a good thing, but it glasses over the fact that for at least 10% of runners it's indeed a race.

In fact the whole point of having a tail-walker is not only to make sure everyone gets around the course safely, but so that no runner's name is last. The final finisher is always a volunteer tail-walker ( and often more than one person in this role) because coming last is discouraging. This fully acknowledges the 'race' element of the rankings.

Have you come here straight off Reddit given your user name is so transparently motivated by blind, rabid hate?

It started as Bushy Park Time Trial and was originally incorporated as UK Time Trials Ltd.

The idea that nobody cares about their relative time when they participate in a time trial is ridiculous.

I genuinely don't understand why trans woman wants to enter Park Run in the women's category, rank first and get women course records, pissing people off in the process.

At best, affirmation.

At worse, a knowing and deliberate invasion of a traditional womens space and boundaries as they get off on causing discomfort and the control it gives them.

R.e. "not a race" is a ludicrous defense when they publish weekly rankings and times. They stopped publishing records, but a lot complained and now someone just data scraps them onto a website.

If it's not a race, don't release public race times and rankings. Quacks like a duck and all.

@Wishesandhorses “Hard to think of one, honestly, beyond the feeling of I’m being treated as a woman, I have access to something men don’t, and I’m outperforming them and getting recognition for it.

The recognition certainly could be a motivation. They are are named, as female and get to hold the women's course record. Anyone Googling could see their race history, and not know they are trans as it's just a name.

The rest I'm not sure about. If someone genuinely has gender dysphoria, wouldn’t outperforming biological women actually highlight the biological differences that are supposed to cause that distress?

It is of course perfectly possible to join in with parkrun without registering, or you can run without scanning your barcode. I appreciate some people are working towards challenges and milestones but if it is really so non-competitive, and disclosing your sex is an insurmountable barrier, you can simply turn up and run, it is allowed.

ETA Apologies for cross post @IwantToRetire. Am a slow typist!

Yes, this should suit everyone who claims to only be interested in their own and their friends' results.

Great, that's perfect then.

Open category for men and women who don't care. Female category for women who want to compete with eachother.

Glad we solved it :)

So, just to clarify,

Parkrun doesn’t ever collect or publish record holders for each course?

Parkrun doesn’t have categories?

Parkrun doesn’t publish first finishers?

Because if they are, it is absurd to claim that Parkrun is not competitive. Those elements make it competitive. It is dishonest to say it is not competitive if it does the above.

I'd join an open category! I don't gaf about results.

In fact, I expect most people would? seeing as it's a 'fun run' and 'not competitive'

It really is the main three arguments round and round and round.

It is not competitive / it is not the Olympics / it cannot be policed.

Along with a flawed ‘middle ground’ argument which clearly prioritises male people out of fear of negative reaction therefore rewarding the bullying of women.

Exactly. It doesn't need to be difficult. No genital checks by the volunteers (as hysterically suggested will happen on the Reddit thread about this!).

Let's not assume all transpeople are liars, as a PP commented that's pretty transphobic.

Presumably an open category would be absolutely massive as every handmaiden and misogynist who doesn't care about results will join it, so it won't be outing at all.
Job done.