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?

No-one needs to do a lot of things that cause minor inconvienience to other people.

So what, frankly?

I am not free to move around as I see fit if the park run organisers take over paths, block routes and put cones in place. If I was free to move around as I see fit there would be no issue.

As a runner it's not OK to be rude to people although if they are deliberately getting in your way then I would say it's fair enough. I was running towards a couple walking together (not at park run) there was no space to go either side and they refused to move over or just walk single file so I pushed my way through them.

Surely if you just moved to the left and slowed to a walk they'd have to move over? You shouldn't have pushed though them at a run.

Not if there is a right of way, if rights of way are in place then everyone is entitled to use it, no matter who owns it.

Exactly. Follow the conversation. Some people were suggesting that people need a park run. It's a far more honest argument to talk about it as something they want to do

Probably not but I have been to lots of different parkruns. Only once in my experience was everyone finished by 35 minutes - the exception rather than the rule. Mostly there are a few between 50 minutes and an hour who are walking. There are always non running volunteers otherwise there couldn’t be a parkrun.

I was running towards a couple walking together (not at park run) there was no space to go either side and they refused to move over or just walk single file so I pushed my way through them.

So, you committed a minor assault? Good for you!

Ok, then.

My point still applies. Parkrun is a couple of hours a week and is an extremely beneficial thing to a lot of people. Just like a lot of other mass events that happen every day up and down the country, most of which aren't "essential" either.

If parkrun, or a big concert or whatever makes a lot of people happy but inconveniences a few... so what. Obviously people shouldn't go out of their way to be arseholes but parkrun is at the same time every week on the same routes every week. It's not hard to avoid.

so you are again suggesting people should change what they do to accommodate you.

reading what some of the people do on this thread my working lab is far better bagged than many park runners woudl you suggest they are put on a leash !

Footballers are paying for the exclusive use of part of the park (a pitch) for a period. If park runners want exclusive use of part of the park (the path network) for a period, they should pay.

If they are not paying for exclusive use then they should not get in the way of dogwalkers, people in wheelchairs, kids on bikes, anyone out for a stroll. Their free use of the park doesn't trump anyone else's free use of the park.

The fact that there are hundreds of them doesn't mean they can behave how they want.

(Payment for refs and equipment is entirely separate to the hire fee paid to the council. Irrelevant.)

If parkrun, or a big concert or whatever makes a lot of people happy but inconvienciences a few... so what.

It inconveniences many in my town as runners run three laps up the main path through the park into town at mid morning on market day. It would be fine if they looked out for walkers and ran single file to pass people on that part. Or there is plenty of space to pass on the grass if, for example, an elderly couple feels safer walking together.

Yes ours always say to be courteous to other park users as it is a shared space.

Unfortunately the minority spoil it for majority. I am always courteous to others using space
Unfortunately humans going to human.

I can't believe you're admitting to just pushing through people and acting like that was justified. How arrogant. If I am out walking and I see a couple coming towards me, I go around them. I don't know why runners think they have priority.

No-one should be organising a regular, weekly mass activity in a public space which you happily recommend other people to avoid. The fact you're doing the same annoying thing at the same annoying time every fucking annoying week is not the great positive you paint it as.

And we have no idea how many people you are putting off going to the park with your antics

This is hilarious. Demanding "flexibility shown by non-park runners." You realise that it's literally everyone else in the country! The arrogance!

The average time it takes someone to run a park run is around 35 minutes. The carpark will be much emptier after this.

Get a grip and move your schedule back half an hour and give your head a wobble.

Yikes. I didn't mean to be arrogant.
I meant "flexibility show by non-parkrunners who wish to use the park where PR is being held during those 90 mins of the week".

For their safety yes I suggest dogs are leashed in crowds of people

Not sure why dog owners wouldn’t want to keep them safe, not to accommodate me.

Big misinterpretation on your part there

What if you are walking faster than people blocking the path? Do the slowest people get to block the path and everyone else should go elsewhere?

Everyone should be aware of others and share the space.

Some walkers deliberately refuse to move and pretend they can't see you to make a point. To be fair if they're pretending not to notice you, it's fair game to say that you didn't notice them either!

The venn diagram of people who hate parkruns and people who think it's fine to let their dog off the lead wherever they go despite having made no efforts to train in recall etc. is pretty much a full circle, in my experience.

I've never been to a run where consideration for others wasn't mentioned multiple times, both in the first timers briefing and in the pre run briefing that everyone has to listen to. Our local park is run by a charity and the carpark and cafe sales generated by the park run crowd once a week is essential for them to keep running.

There will be idiots taking part, just as there are idiots everywhere. I can't stand the dads who insist on racing at full speed with a double buggy (always dads, I've never seen a woman do it in over 200 parkruns) and clip every other runner they push past, for one example. But it's a minority of people. For most it's a great opportunity to get some exercise and be social - it's lovely to see a diverse group of people across all ages sharing an experience.

And I would support you if it was every week 600 kids on their bikes. The problem is that park runners do not see or care about anyone else this is the issue there is no reason that everybody can’t share the space but on here there are park runners saying non OR should not use the park at this times. They should move for park runners they should not have their dogs off leads. I am a runner I don’t park run so I see the benefits but the attitude on this thread has made me see more of what I have heard about the attitude of the park runners.

You clearly have no understanding of dogs, my dog is safer off a lead then on it he can’t get trapped or pulled. He is perfectly trained as a working dog and it would only be people getting in his way than him them he will walk at my heal stop dead and wait when told to and would only attack if instructed to.

on the other hand you have people on here justifying pushing and barging people who don’t get out of their way, I am guessing the people who they push and barge are people they feel stronger than making them bullies. I have never been pushed or barged by a runner but probably because they can see I would fight back.

Well, if you move to the left and walk towards that person, I'd say fair enough (unless it looks like one person is relying on the other to feel safe walking, like some elderly couples), but not run at them.

I haven't seen anyone say that others shouldn't use the park at that time for the benefit of the runners, they're making the logical point that if being in the park at the same time as the parkrun bothers someone, then they should come at literally any other time to avoid it. It's the non park runners willingness to share the space that's the issue there.