To think the National Trust should not let Park Run volunteers marshal the cars at a NT property

[ParkRunIdiots]

So rocked up a very large NT property with lots of parkland at about 9:25 today.

had gone through the payment control bit, then you drive for about another mile (no joke) to the car park. Just before the car park all traffic stopped in a traffic jam caused by two Park Run people in pink vests who would not let any cars through.

So I sat there and say there and sat there, not a single car moved through. I could see the runners approaching from the right, at times there were gaps in the runners but still no car was allowed through. After ten minutes still no car had been allowed to pass. Several cars behind me did a 20 point turn and left.

Then I realised that the runners weren’t even crossing the road as I’d originally assumed, they turned right and ran alongside the road edge, which has a massive Green verge they could run on . So in my mind no need to stop any car. Or if some risk assessment has deemed it too dangerous to have the cars beside the runners then it means there’s no access to the car park for about 45 mins, in which case the NT property needs to open later!

the runners were all strung out, no big wide bunch/crowd, so single file or in pairs.

anyway I honked at this point. One pink vest guy had obviously been waiting for this moment and charged up, ran past me and bollocked the car behind me who was mid 20 point turn and leaving. That driver grassed me up so the park run guy came and condescendingly told me “when there’s a gap” we will let a car through. I said it was ridiculous, that there had been plenty of gaps, nobody had been allowed through and the runners weren’t even on the road!

At which point he told me if I didn’t like it I could leave!

then the other marshal let some of us through, even though there were still runners running alongside the verge the same as there had been for the last ten minutes! I think they were letting cars through in groups of 5 or 6 as some had gone through just before I got stopped. Again when there were runners there! So nothing to do with gaps!

diagram for an idea.

I do feel like emailing the NT and telling them they need to have an NT person there overseeing it, and preventing the Parkrun people been rude to other users.

I may be slightly anti park run after my (on lead, walking to heel) dog was trampled on and tripped over by several park runners on the inaugural run of my local new park run on a narrow public bridleway and they shouted at me for been there with a dog (even though I’d stepped into the mud at the side). Still not forgiven them for that.

I didn’t know it was on. I had no idea there was one at clumber. Maybe the NT need to advertise that there’s restricted access on a Saturday morning 🤷🏻‍♀️. Or manage the situation better? Don’t you think saying to people “don’t come” is very selfish? The situation could be constructively looked at to improve it for both parties

You keep making it pop back up on my "threads I'm on" and I could no longer contain my irritation 😄I'm unwatching it now so you can froth away undisturbed.

and I was quoted / mentioned twice so I got two ruddy emails as well.

Clearly you only want to hear from those that think YANBU but really, move on OP. ParkRun is the same time every week - avoid it next time eh for everyone's sake

Again, extraordinary arrogance from the park runners who think everyone should be aware of their events, their timings and their duration and need to change their lives for the sake of the park runners, rather than think about how they might be less of a nuisance to the rest of us.

One person delays their walk for 10 minutes v 100s of people doing their predictable activity. It's not exactly asking anyone to donate a fucking kidney is it?

But there’s a way of running it/organising it so nobody gets delayed. Isn’t that better? 🤷🏻‍♀️. It wasn’t just me either, dozens of cars in queue, many turning round.

YES!! I actually did one about five years ago, and in my head it's on Sundays.

Do you not know how to use mumsnet?

Dont make stupid comments if you don’t want people to respond to you. Avoid it next time eh for everyone’s sake

It’s not one person you’re inconveniencing compared to hundreds of park runners. It’s hundreds of park runners compared to everyone else in the community who are entitled to use the park.

But in this case it's not inconveniencing hundreds of people. It's a small section of road/track that is closed to cars for around 30 minutes to ensure the safety of the park runners/walkers.

Other NT park users - walkers, joggers, cyclists etc. are still able to use the road. There are other car parks so the car users don't have to wait if they prefer not to.

Please stop making up lies.

A disabled person was knocked down and injured during the River Run (not Park Run, entirely different event - I'd never heard of "Park Run" before this thread) as a direct result of organisers planning a huge race on extremely narrow busy central London streets at nighttime on a weekday, which is obviously very dangerous and organised with zero thought to the impact on disabled and elderly and other members of the public who were also using those narrow pavements and alleys.

Your response to hearing that an event had injured and badly frightened disabled people was to dismissively say that disabled people also participate in Park Run, you essentially acted like the fact that wheelchair users participate i something somehow cancels out the fact a disabled person was injured.

I absolutely did not say that Park Run exploits anyone, I said that YOU were exploiting us disabled people by using us as strawmen in your argument.

As an actual disabled person, please stop.

How nice for you to brag to disabled people about being able-bodied.

The op clearly said this is the route she was directed to as everywhere else was coned off.

why should parkrun take precedence over NT users who have actually PAID to use the site when parkrunners are using it as a favour and should be working around other people using it

Unless you know, all signage and maps now indicate that what was once the main car park is accessible parking only. They should have someone at the junction directing people to that car park if they're going to block access to the central bark and cow pastures car parks

Parkrun by us leave a shit load of litter and block wheelchair access, park all over the verges as the car park seems too small for their oh so healthy "local" selves. Sounds entirely in keeping with these asbo types I've encountered.

Again, you don't seem to want to acknowledge what actually happened. The OP and many other cars were held in a queue. It was not communicated to them that there were other car parks they could use. Presumably this exact same thing happens every week so, yes, it will be inconveniencing hundreds of people.

madamreign · 23/09/2023 19:25

You were sat in your heated car, with a padded seat and a radio for company at least. Presumably you were not in a rush to get to work or anything.

YABU”

You let your car idle with the heating on when you’re parked, Madamreign? YAVU.

Love the fact that park run encourage use of public transport to attend then state that the nearest bus stop is 2.5 miles from the start.

Why do runners need to run in packs?

To annoy the rest of us.

Absolutely. If this was the set up there would be no problems. I now know (thanks to MN) that I can go through the cones and use the accessible parking. But no thanks to the NT who have misleading signs, coned off the road and no staff directing cars away from the park run. I'd be very happy to have been directed away from the park run.

And while I now know, people who don't use Clumber regularly are likely to have the same experience I did and this will happen on a weekly basis.

Or it could be organised better and everyone is happy.?

How is it predictable to the general public visiting a NT venue that a park run will be taking place there at the time they choose to visit?

You are of course being somewhat disingenuous claiming it was one person being delayed. You know perfectly well that it was more than that.

Why does it have to be one vs the other? Why can the 100s not divert their route somewhere in the very large park so that they don't delay anyone? Why can't they adhere to the basic principle on which Park Runs are organised, i.e. that they do not inconvenience other people using the area in question?

Company
Safety
Sense of community
Enjoyment
Spend time outdoors with friends
Camaraderie
Support
Competition

I like to run in a “pack” because I was once sexually assaulted when running alone. Parkrun is a safe and inclusive place for me to run. Is that a good enough explanation for you?

Parkrun is a great concept, but it shouldn't be so disruptive to other people accessing the park.

I do think you should contact N Trust and Parkrun (though clearly not the run director above). It sounds like it wouldn't be too difficult to adjust things so that everyone can benefit from the oark.

From the plans, it doesn't look as if there is any car park they can use that would avoid being delayed by the park run, apart from the accessible one which self-evidently isn't available to everyone.

Indeed! Why use 5 words when 500 condescending ones will do. How joyful.