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?

Surely if you’re going to the park for a walk parking further away just provides the benefit of a longer walk!

@Sloejelly do you have evidence that parkrun prevents others from accessing the park?

Your local authority has decided that they are happy to allow part of their park to be used for an hour a week for free healthy activity open to all their residents. Take it up with them if you object.

Yeah I think they do.
You could look at this the other way. Should park run not be on because the old couple with their dog HAS to go there at that time?
It’s 90mins once a week, I’m sure people could work around that/go somewhere else/go at a different time.
If it’s that unbearable to be there whilst park-run is on, just see it as the park being “closed” during that time if it helps. Like I can’t go to my local swimming baths between 10-12 on a Saturday morning as it’s for children’s swimming lessons only. So I go at a different time.

Parks by their very nature are public spaces do to be used by everyone. A runner swearing at people to get out of their way is not acceptable. Entitled comes to mind.

Pay who, you 🤣🤣

Parkrun. Single handedly the biggest incentive that has people exercising ever. 1 hour every Saturday morning.
You are being totally unreasonable. Plus runners/walkers will get out the way of walkers. Just keep your dogs on a lead.

The difference is the swimming lesson provider paid for the use of the pool.

Incidentally, for those people who think ParkRun is an inconvenience etc, our GP surgery now prescribes ParkRun for various people and has a ParkWalk project manager, coaxing people into joining in, because of the multiple health benefits.

The council if it is a council park. 🙄

Presumably Park Run is on Saturday because it’s when most people can make it. It’s just for an hour or so and is amazing for community health.

let them have this time and everyone else can use the park before and after. Not a big deal.

My local park run runs round the only tarmacked (wheelchair-accessible) path, round the park's two lakes. Yes, it's only a small percentage of the area of the park, but it's 100% of the universally accessible space.

Other posters talked about football. Footballers don't take over the access routes through the park and they pay handsomely to hire a football pitch. Does park run pay a fee?

And if the venue is a public park, then the parkrunners have paid for the use of it, through their taxes, just the same as the dog walkers like OP, and the cyclists.

if Parkrun end up having to pay for the use of the land that means that most won’t be able to operate, or would have to charge people to take part. That would mean they the many people who benefit from Parkrun wouldn’t be able to.

like it or not Parkrun has massive positive impacts on public health.

But why there's no reason for them to pay the council to run around a public space. Are you going to start paying everytime you go to a park

Footballers pay for the use of pitches on public parks.

How does that logic work? Complaint is made on a random unfocussed forum? How do parkrun make changes if they're not told there's an issue at this specific park? The OP is just shouting at a cloud. She needs to actually try and take action or just accept it's grumbling about a valuable initiative she could very easily avoid

As you said, this is a time when most people are available so why should they have to go at a different time?

Just as would the swimming children’s parents. But the lesson providers still pay extra for exclusive use.

If it's one person wanting to cross, it would be difficult and possibly dangerous to try and get 30-40 runners to stop in their tracks. Much safer for the one person to wait a couple of minutes.

It’s the standard message read out at every single parkrun (including outside the uk so you can understand it in Germany or wherever too!) and they mean it. Please do contact the organisers to complain. Waiting 7 mins to park is not on and they should look at the route. The route each week will always be the same btw, and it’s 5k. You can look it up on parkrun’s website - just search for whichever park it is. Hope you get a good response.

You know what I mean though, was just using it as an example to help see things differently.

Out of the whole day, 90 mins in the morning is not a big deal. It wouldn’t make any sense to move a Park Run to a different time such as on a weekday.

Everyone just has to share. Not a big deal

@MaryRoze can you say which Parkrun it is? And if not, why?
Apologies if you have said I missed it.

Why wouldn’t it? If it is a time when most people are available who want to use the park?

Again, already said I had no issue using whatever car park was available. The issue I had was the Parkrun volunteer preventing me from accessing the car park.