To think ParkRun need to consider banning racers?

[justletusrun]

My local parkrun has been overtaken by drama this week, after some men attended and basically turned the entire thing into a glorified race for themselves. They were pushing people out of the way, swearing at them and shouting at them to let them through.

I always thought the point of parkrun was to go and enjoy a 5k run and some socialising after. But it seems that across the country they’re being overtaken by people who are obsessed with “winning” it and getting the PB as a “chip time”.

i understand the sense of achievement you get from getting a PB, but I don’t think parkrun is the place to do it. Myself and many other women who have been attending for years are now considering not going again because it is so unpleasant.

AIBU to say they need to clamp down on this, before it becomes a big men’s club?

You’d think so!

i’d say racing isn’t bad in itself but the swearing, pushing etc is absolutely unacceptable. if you do go with the intention to race you still need to respect others around you and accept that they are equally entitied to take up space and therefore you may not be able to go as quick as you’d like to!

haven't RTFT but who organises your Parkrun? I mean I know its a "just turn up" thing but is there nobody who can intervene if people are pushing and swearing?

As lots of people have already said it’s absolutely fine to race at parkrun and try and get your fastest possible time and even to try and beat your friend or just some random person that you’re trying to catch up with. That is probably why the majority of people turn up at all and then get hooked and then volunteer etc

Pushing and swearing is of course, not acceptable.

It is an inclusive event, but inclusive also includes the fast runners as well as the walkers and everyone in between.

she wasn't out of order though - don't splash people and they won't swear at you.

Park run is whatever you want it to be, a serious competitive sprint or casual social jog while pushing a buggy, that's the beauty of it.

I didn't deliberately splash her. The course was near waterlogged - there were puddles everywhere and getting splashed is part and parcel of doing parkrun in those conditions.

How do you ban racers? The entire concept of that idea is absolutely ridiculous. Tie everyone together to ensure they all at exactly the same pace? There’s nothing wrong with running Park Run as fast as you can, it’s a very useful tool for that but you can do that in the right way, starting in the right place (for both that faster and slower) telling people to keep left (often for their own safety) etc.

The issue is Park Run needs to (somehow as it’s run by amazing volunteers that don’t need this strife) take note of awful behaviour and ban people.

I run a lot but rarely get to Park Run and I find the concept a like they don’t know what they want it to be. It’s not a race but is marked and timed.

If you have an issue you can either talk to the nearest marshall or speak or email the run director

thank you @AwesomeChampagne @justletusrun you have an answer

Check out Isabelle Sparkle on Facebook (account Martin Boyce, her father).

I dare anyone to tell that incredible young lady she should not be racing (context, she's 10 years old and smashed her PB again this morning, going sub 21mins for the first time! 😲 ) She and her Dad always overlap with the utmost respect in their videos, it can be done.

The 'racers' of today could be the future Team GB Olympians of the future. Thank goodness they have a platform to hone their skills against people of all ages and genders. I doubt she'd be so fast at her age if she was restricted to just racing against her own age group on the track. She's spurred on by chasing down fully grown adults at parkrun, and why shouldn't she? It looks like she 'raced' a woman today to be the first female finisher, and she achieved it. That 'race' probably contributed to at least 30 seconds of the minute she took off her previous PB.

Inclusivity means opportunities for all, regardless of age, gender or ability. Parkrun is definitely not just for us 'non-elites'.

Newsflash - running clubs aren't just for elites either!

You can be part of both, whatever your pace.

They shouldn't be pushing or behaving like arses. But it's fine to race at parkrun if you want to. I wouldn't go as fast if it wasn't for the speedy runners at the very very front pulling us all along.

I'm an average runner and get mightily pissed off if it's too busy for me to overtake at any point. We're meant to keep left and overtake on the right but some runners veer around a bit.

Because you have to pay for official races. They may not be so convenient, all manner of reasons. It’s fine to want to improve and to beat others at pr, it’s just not ok - ever -to be an arse.

No. My friend started taking her son as he was over weight and they ran together. The competitive element of trying to beat his previous time has helped her son become so much fitter and healthier and he is no longer overweight but loved trying to improve.

He wouldn't enjoy a running club but loves the park run.

But realistically you can do that yourself - I motivate myself and have managed to shave over a minute off my km pace over the last six months. I don’t need to be rude to others to do it either

The other poster’s DC who likes to chase a PB wasn’t rude to anyone, OP.

As often happens, in your situation a few men spoiled things for others.

it’s only 90 minutes in total (including before and after) once a week. The health benefits to a lot of the participants can be significant and the spaces would otherwise not be used much at the early time.

The race directors are volunteers too so other than the briefing at the start will have few resources to address antisocial behaviour.

parkrun definitely does not have chip timing.

I already stated the rudeness wasnt acceptable. The racing bit is ok.

I’m involved in my local parkrun. We use part of the local park for about 45 minutes, once a week.

We always ask everyone involved to be courteous and respectful to other park users.

We pick up litter from the course and we have contributed to work parties in the park to make improvements.

We support our local food bank with collections 3 or 4 times a year.

Our participants and volunteers use the cafe in the park. I would estimate that parkrunners spend c£30,000 per year in the cafe, which is run by a local couple.

i don’t think any of this is disruptive and cheeky.

Also, if you really don't like the idea of fast runners, or indeed anyone 'racing' at parkrun (in an appropriate manner, of course), here's a novel idea. Go out for your own 5k run, anywhere you like, any time you like, completely on your own if you so wish. Your right to attend parkrun is no greater than anyone else who is faster than you or chooses to approach it differently to you.

I'm not sure what is so difficult for some people to understand about the concept of parkrun. It can indeed not be a race but still provide each participant with an official time. This is so people can track their own progress. You are free not to look if you have no wish to track your own times, but many people enjoy this aspect of this community event. Whatever your pace, everyone can strive to better themselves. It's what motivates a huge number of parkrunners to get out of bed early every Saturday morning. Not everyone, but many.

Parkrun isn't for everyone. If you don't agree with the ethos, there is the option not to go 🤷🏻‍♀️

parkrun offer timed runs
parkrun has a start time and everyone sets off together like a race
parkrun publishes times by categroies of age and ‘gender'
parkrun publishes fastest (winners) records for categories
parkrun also publishes runners 5km times not from parkrun

Some people don’t check or care about their time
Some people compete with themselves for PB's
Some people want to win and get the best time in their category.

This is why parkrun should not allow men to self identify into the female category.

280 women’s parkrun titles have gone to men self identifying into that category.

In answer to the OP the runners were out of order for swearing but it is a race for many people.

I'm incapable of motivating myself when running. Too much listening to birds, saying hello to nice dogs, dicking around with my music and stopping to pick up the odd bit of litter.

Parkrun keeps me moving forward and focused. And the fact I don't enjoy running means I just want it over with and to be home as quick as possible.

Will I still get a result if I walk at parkrun?

Of course! As long as you’ve scanned your barcode after you’ve been through the finish funnel you’ll normally get your results via email within a few hours. You can also see your full parkrun results history in your parkrun profile.

I stopped going for this precise reason. The competitive and aggressive men doing their 5ks in 15 minutes. I found the sheer amount of people there overwhelming anyway- at least 400 turn up to my local one and it’s just a round track with a fairly slim path. It’s always men being aggressive as well, obviously…

There will always be some people complaining. 2 or 3 people on a MN thread hardly outweighs the tens of thousands of people clearly happy enough with the way PR is currently organised to keep going every week.

My point was more that, if it does need amending/changing (perfectly possible) the people best placed to do that are the people actually involved with it rather than a complete random on the internet who has absolutely no experience making no-shit-sherlock suggestions.