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?

@DysonSphere as I said, I live overlooking A city centre park and I absolutely do not recognise any of the things you rant about mention. I’m looking out now at the park. PR cleared up hours and hours ago. I can see a family playing football, people walking through into town, with and without dogs, a group doing a boot camp, a family feeding the ducks, kids playing in the playground, cyclists passing through, there’s about a dozen kids on the skate park oh and there’s a cricket match on next door. Everyone just getting on with having fun, going about their lives, nobody frothing or moaning about others. I don’t know about the park you speak about but blimey I think you need to unclench.

As for events, festivals, concerts, markets etc we have quite a lot here. I personally love it. I enjoy seeing other people enjoy themselves, using the park. That’s what it’s for (plus I get a free ticket to listen to the music).

14 minutes 😂 I thought it was only the park runners who were there with stop watches

Yes, annoys me too, as do rambling groups who take up the entire width of footpaths and won't move into narrower file when others are walking the other way. As do cyclist groups who won't go into narrow file on cycle tracks, footpaths, etc. As do joggers who barge past when the path is too narrow, i.e. on canal footpaths where they go very narrow under bridges etc.

Far too much arrogance and no thought for other people from all kinds of groups of people. They obviously feel empowered being in a group - most wouldn't behave like inconsiderate knobs if they were on their own. Safety in numbers and all that!

@Spinet

Being evangelical about a hobby doesn't make it a cult, and nor does the way that some people disagree with OP.

As you say, you're being hyperbolic. I could say that mowing the lawn was a cult. It wouldn't make me right. Love the way you're defending your point whilst referring to it as hyperbolic. You both agree with and disagree with yourself. You've got Schrodinger's argument.

Who actually owns the park - is it the council? I'd get in touch with them and tell them about the officious volunteers at the car park entrance refusing access, and also about the rudeness of the participants. If Parkrun wants to use the park, they need to be considerate of other users.

No, she's indulging in something called a metaphor.

Look it up.

Park runs are usually distance based (5K) not time based, it’s just most people finish 5k within an hour even if they run/walk.

Park run is just something that wannabe middle class people feel they 'should' do

Is it now? So presumably Parkruns are all in middle class areas and all the runners are middle class then? I don't think so.

@MasterBeth please I am begging you, take some time to understand what victim blaming means.

At least park runs are the same time and place every week so it's easy to avoid them. Most people finish within 45 minutes there are usually only a few stragglers who haven't graspedq the "run" element of Parkrun. It's easy to go elsewhere or change time.

@MasterBeth

Thanks for your unsolicited sarcastic advice. Looks good on you!

Look it up? 😄

Think they need to watch our local park run haha, what middle class people there are in the area wouldn’t be seen dead there, they’re at the gym!

You can't really complain about too many people using public parks. One thing we should have taken from the pandemic should be that outdoor activity is a very good thing. It doesn't spread viruses, it keeps people fit and socialising.

You could fucking try.

You love it, so perhaps you are blind to those who don't. Hence my rant.

You haven't been ill or stressed for example and needed the relaxation of the green space (proven scientifically to reduce blood pressure and cortisol as a side note) only to be confronted with crowds of runners - who are individually obsessed with their timings and don't take kindly to you 'blocking' - aka walking along at a leisurely pace - what is in their minds now 'their' exclusive space/trail.

When you're in a crowd the natural default is to assume you will be made way for, not the other way around, (same attitude in group dog walkers) it's a way we tend to think as humans, so it's not a communal space at that point in time.

I'm talking - honestly not that seriously but I'll continue anyway - about the religious fervour that exists around the collective hobby of running for pleasure.

Lots of people are very enthusiastic about their hobbies. Some people's hobby is being snide and wildly exaggerating about other people's hobbies. They can be quite enthusiastic about it too.

It’s like saying public parks can only be used for the purposes I agree with! I might not like county fairs being held there, too many kids, too much music but I’d never suggest they couldn’t be held because it interferes with what I want to do in the park that day!

You might want to look up "metaphor", too.

It’s still once a year. If you can’t stay at home or out of your home for one day a year then that’s a bigger problem.

I agree with you. We have the same problem, both on Sats and Suns.

I wonder if things have just go too big - maybe at first there were just 20 or so runners? Now, you can stand for 20 minutes in our local park and they just keep coming. You can't walk along, or cross, the paths.

Another problem may be that runners are given a code of conduct (perhaps, stay on one side, give pedestrians priority, let people cross etc) but just ignore it? My experience with groups of children/teenagers makes me think this - you can tell people what the rules are till you're blue in the face, but you can't actually make them obey!

I know it's a great idea, but in practice, it tends to be a bit anti-social and does adversely affect other park users.

Yes. I want to stand on the bandstand at 3pm on Saturday afternoons... can't someone do something about all these musicians who are getting in my way?! It's really not on that they just take priority!!

Get a grip. It’s one hour of your week. It’s not the end of the world is it. Christ.

Someone needs to look up 'supercilious'.

I just don't go about life in a binary way! What sensible person does? Actually I was just kind of being silly but also kind of really think what I'm saying while also conceding that others have the right to go about their lives as they choose. Basically just being a human living in a society.

Ps there may be a cult of mowing the lawn but just mowing the lawn is just mowing the lawn...