To think Parkrun shouldn't take priority over the rest of the public?

[MaryRoze]

9.30am every Saturday, our biggest park is inundated with Parkrunners. There are hundreds of them.

They take up the 3 biggest car parks (including the one at the start of the dog walking trail), meaning I need to park at the furthest away one. Not a problem except I can't get to the furthest away one because volunteers stop the traffic to let the runners go past.

Once I get parked, I'm pushed to the side of all the main paths because they're running 3 or 4 abreast. I try to go down the muddier gravel paths, but they're down there too. An older couple today got a "fuck sake" because they couldn't move out of one runners way quick enough.

Parents are being stopped from crossing the path between car park and playground with their kids because the runners are passing by.

I get that Parkrun is fantastic for people's physical health and mental health, and it's clearly very popular but AIBU to think they need to be courteous of other park users too?

It should be up to park run to stop running events that inconvenience people.
Which would be all Park Runs. And assuming the same rule was also applied, most races of any kind, lots of other sporting events, carnivals, village fetes, music festivals and parades of any type should also be banned...pretty much any public event in fact as they probably all inconvenience someone.

"get the bus"? The one that runs along the road that is closed?

The local geography, sandwiched between hill and river, means all the roads within walking distance are accessed only by the road which is closed. parking the car on another road and walking to it doesn't solve the problem. It's not just her who is "inconvenienced", it's the entire village population. And they don't see any of the much-vaunted "economic benefits".

Exactly that. The number of people who are disdainful/ angry about other people doing exercise is significant. Yet when you dig deeper it is usually down to personal insecurity or desire to join in, but feeling unable to. Parkrun is for everyone and that includes people who just want to walk.

Parkrun is a community. It is a social activity for many. ParkRuns offer chipped times, accurately measured distances and have first aiders and sometimes pacers. Runners provide each other with motivation. It's a great way to meet new people and make new friends. All things that aren't available running by one's self.

And plenty of people do chat as they run round, although that's not something I've ever managed.

I run alone during the week, and ParkRun at the weekends. Most people do both.

Other park users absolutely should not be excluded from the park every week. If Park run want exclusive access, as many posters seem to think they should so they don’t have to give way to other park users, they should be paying the councils or other landowners handsomely for it to compensate others for their lack of access.

I think this lies behind the irrational hatred of cyclists too.

@Sloejelly other park users are absolutely not excluded. Parkruns take up a tiny section of the park, identified and agreed in consultation with the park owner, for just over an hour. That is it.

Often it is parkrun has to move aside for other park activities - we have a lot cancelled ones round here to allow for summer events to take place in the parks.

I am off to my Park run — now. I can't be arsed to get up at 7 - 30 on a Saturday. I usually just urn up in the afternoon and do it on my own. I think you can even email in your solo time, if you want to. Though I dont bother.

Yabu because it's literally an hour so you can go any other time. If you choose to go at that exact time just to moan about it that's on you

Also, if I do it on my own, I can start at the front, not at the back (I am a very slow old runner[; which means I am running 5k and not 5.1k

Then Park Run should pay for that hour.

ParkRunners generally don't want exclusive access as far as I know and I've been running them for a decade.

I turn up, I chat to anyone around, I run the course, avoiding dog walkers, children, dogs, drone pilots, cyclists. Register my time, and then head home. I don't want or expect anyone to be excluded.

What seems to have annoyed the OP, is that other people have already parked in a parking space she regarded as hers. And that is most definitely her problem. She should get there earlier if she wants to be assured of a PUBLIC parking space.

Yet a large number of posters are saying that park run is ‘only an hour’ and others should turn up at another time,

@MaryRoze

could agree more.
arrogance is the word plus the noise at the end.

No. They are saying of parkrun bothers them they should use it at a different time.

Different.

Puppy enslavers? Utter, peak mumsnet 🤣

If they don’t want to share the park with other people then yes avoiding a time it is known to be busy is best!

Just like there is a fayre on at a local beauty spot today. I don’t fancy being in the crowds so I’m not going to go along and then complain that there are people there!

And do what? Give park run exclusive access for that hour so no one else can use it? What a great idea. Not. Can you imagine the uproar! How about as adults, we make the decision to go before / after park run or just get on with it, and stop moaning.

So many people love the park runs, and around here they're only once a week. The runners who are rude would be rude whether they were on a park run or running by themselves, that's an individual issue, not a park run problem. You could say the same about rude dog walkers with out of control dogs - should we ban all dogs because of issues with a few individuals? (I'm 100% not saying we should btw, just for illustration)

I've got no skin in the game, I just go to our park for a gentle stroll and a cup of tea (dog free) in the cafe every so often, but I really don't have an issue with park runs for a short time once a week.

Rather than Park Run ensuring they do not prevent other park users from accessing the park.

Not so different.

Parkrun is an hour max, once a week. There are waves of runners, so if for example you wanted to cross a particular spot, you may have to wait a few minutes if it's at the point at which the bulk of runners pass it.

I love parkrun. I'm slow, oldish and fat and I still love it. It's a wonderful multicultural event, genuinely open to all and free which is just amazing. It has helped many people embrace a more active lifestyle and you can walk as well as run it.

As for complaining about having to park at the furthest car park, what on earth is wrong with you OP? You should try to find some joy in your life, not destroy that of others.

But I do agree parkrunners should be courteous to other path users and not assume they have priority.

It's a couple of hours once a week at a scheduled time. Just walk your dog earlier/later or somewhere different on a Saturday morning. You can walk a dog anywhere.

Dog walkers are far, far more of an issue when it comes to taking over public spaces. The vast majority of them are inconsiderate and you cannot avoid them regardless of what time you go to the park.

Just don’t go during that hour or so. I live near a park with a park run, and just avoid it before 10am, it’s not hard.

There are waves of runners, so if for example you wanted to cross a particular spot, you may have to wait a few minutes

Or the runners could be the ones to let them pass rather than expecting to have priority,