To have been really put off Parkrun by this

[rookiemere]

I'll start by saying I love parkrun. I've done over 130 of them and it's a real treat to discover a new one when we're away on holiday.

Everyone there is lovely and welcoming and it's such a great way to start Saturdays with a 5km run.

I am also older, fat and slow, but this is fine as I'm not there to win it.

So last Saturday headed to one of my usual parkruns with a friend. There was a traffic incident so many people didn't make it. This meant that rather than being in the back 10 or so I ended up being the last person bar the tail runner. Again all fine and someone has to be there.

However for the last km or so as I went past people who were dispersing made a big point of clapping loudly and shouting on encouragement. Obviously meant to be supportive, but I've run so many of the damn things and I just like to be invisible rather than the obviously last, slow ploddy person who people want to help.

I'm actually really nervous about going again, it upset me so much. I could go to one with more runners and then I should be less likely to be right at the back, but its a further drive and the whole thing has knocked my confidence and I don't know what to do.

If you complete the run and go across the finish funnel, you must take a finish token as that's how we work out everyone's timings - from taking the finish position token number and the time that number person crossed the line. If you cross the finish so the timekeepers noted that person number 99 finished in 27 minutes, then you "duck" out of the finish funnel and don't take a token, person 100 behind you will get given your token and be number 99 with your time instead. Get a few people doing that and the results can be out by several minutes towards the end, spoiling personal bests and so on.

If you don't want your time recorded against your name, take the position token but then hand it in to the token giver outer or one of the barcode scanners, that's fine. Just tell them you aren't registered, haven't got your barcode, don't want a time for whatever reason! We just need the number of people crossing the line to match with tokens for our results processing.

Yes yes, you’re very funny and clever

This is exactly what I was thinking. I’m slow and not particularly fit but I don’t find running ‘mentally challenging’ and I don’t need patronising encouragement, I just do it for a bit of fun, some peace away from the children and some fresh air! Mortified to think people are looking at me sympathetically and assuming it’s a mental battle!

I've volunteered at parkrun so on occasion i have worn hi-viz in a park.

And if you read through the posts I think grumpy is a very apt description, personally.

I like that it can be what you want it to be. The fast runners enjoy it and can be competitive and put in a really impressive time, everyone can try and get a PB or just get round and enjoy the scenery. You can meet new people or bump into old friends or be anonymous. DH and I go together and if it’s a three lapper he can do the last lap again with me which I really like. I guess I am just not very competitive.

I quite like the photos - not many people will go through them and find me (it’s not like they are tagged to our profiles and other people running isn’t very exciting) but I can take the picture of me and edit it and use it for Strava if I want. You can indicate you don’t want a picture taken but I realise that would be a hassle.

I am very grateful to other park users who must find the first 5 minutes or so pretty annoying when everyone is close together but they usually smile and say good morning and I try and get out of their way.

All I will say OP is that a lot of the people clapping and cheering have been the slow fat person at the back themselves, or someone very close to them was.
I don't know if that puts a different complexion on it for you.

Well said.

You’ve just reminded me of a very accomplished young runner at our junior parkrun, where I volunteer, who I’ve seen twice recently having to skip/jump his way over a darting dog. Park runners ime tend to give way to others and get out of their way without drama. I see the runners giving way to the dog owners much more than I see the other way round, although generally everyone rubs along very well.

Not really! Although if they have been that person then perhaps they ought be able to remember the ‘well done chubs’ feeling as a pp so eloquently put it.

@givemushypeasachance thats good to know - but it certainly wasn’t presented as an option when we did it. It all seemed to be about the pb.

I get what you're saying and thank you for posting, but I guess my thing is the narrative- fat slow runner eventually becomes thinner and faster.

That's highly unlikely in my case. Unless I go on a strict diet or dramatically increase my running I'm likely to get slower rather than faster. And I'm ok with that , I just want to do it in peace ( but I do really like parkrun generally).

@SirChenjins - given it's all volunteers, you do get all sorts of people turning up to help from teenagers doing their DofE volunteering hours to first timers who've never even run a parkrun before to someone who's volunteered 100s of times and perhaps is fab or perhaps has a rather fixed idea of how everything should be done! The policies on things do change, and run directors should explain to all the volunteers how to do things, but you may sometimes encounter mixed messages.

But it's physically impossible to force people to have their barcodes scanned - we would usually get dozens of people running who just don't have them, they've never registered with parkrun!

If you ever fancy doing the Dunfermline one (slowly) give me a shout and we can be at the back together and then get a coffee and cake

Thank you

Yes, I can imagine some Marshall’s are probably a bit more to the letter than others I take my hat off to them though (providing they’re not shouting through a megaphone ), volunteering of any sort is very commendable.

That’s bang out of order.

You ask why your life just be miserable @MasterBeth

It boils down to your view As I say, the tyranny of the majority.

You live in a society. A very densely populated world. So life must be miserable unless you live off grid in middle of no where - this just make life very difficult for you and your family

@EatingWormsMichael
Huffing along like a beetroot 🤣🤣🤣

Not just bang out of order but ridiculous too. What do you want to do doingprettywellthanks, report her to social services for not liking park run? Give over.

Have you read her posts?

the anger, the vitriol.

about a park run.

I think she’s “bang out of order” against the organisers and volunteers and runners

To have such anger and vitriol against “the tyranny of the majority” means that pretty much life is frustrating and anger inducing

There’s no faff at all. You have two easy options.

refuse to take a token at the start of the funnels

take one and then hand it in to the people scanning the bar codes without waiting for your own barcode to be scammed.

Either of these options will take you about 10 seconds.

If you don’t want to be photographed then tell them, they are not psychic.

Thanks @SirChenjins. I enjoy volunteering! I hated all forms of exercise at school, just thought I couldn't run as we only got sent off to run round a track and I would be knackered and out of breath and couldn't finish. No one ever taught me how to start running and build up stamina like through C25k. I came to it later in my thirties, with the ambition of running a mile, and then I saw a new parkrun was starting near me. Went along to my first ever one, the first time I ever ran in a group of other people! That was back in 2017. Now I've done 139 parkruns and volunteered 72 times, including being recruited to be an occasional run director at that local I first went along to. I think it's great whether you use it as a time trial, a social run with a friend every weekend, a goal for the end of your C25K, something to volunteer at when you're injured or resting for a race, or just time to get out of the house.

What SirChengins said; you are bang out of order. Looks like you're doubling down when you should be apologising. You had no right to make a comment of MasterBeth's worthiness as a parent. None at all.

@MasterBeth Totally agree!