parkrunners (AOWALC, #DFYB) Anonymous Keep on Going 5K at a time

[OhOneOhTwoOhThree]

This is a continuation of the parkrunning thread where are all are welcome to chat about tourism, tee-shirts, PBs and everything else parkrun (and sometimes non-parkrun) related.

If you have been lurking on a previous thread now is the time to come out and say hello . Like parkrun we're very inclusive and always welcoming to new starters . And we love hearing about new courses we haven't been to

I love my parkrun friends! I'm not a member of a running club (I find babies and clubs don't mix) but I'm a sort of accepted honorary member of the one closely affiliated with parkrun.

Makes for a much more pleasant experience at races and the like

No, I'm not a member of a running club either - I have a long commute and don't get back in time in the evening.

fifty I have the same problem - I'm not usually home from work til 7pm, I also live in a small village so I would also have a 20 minute drive to a running club. Parkrun is the only time I run with others, but I do enjoy running on my own - plenty of thinking time

Sorry had to laugh at FiftyNineOhEight's autocorrect of parkruns to prawns

Our club is very accommodating of my baby ThursdayLastWeek, in fact one club mate offers to babysit regularly! I don't make training very often but join social runs and got to social evenings.

Other than rain our parkrun was event free yesterday, was our newest rd's first solo stint and one of our other rd's is off to the states in 2 weeks for good

Same here BlackCat, although I do wonder if I'd get faster if I had the discipline of going to a club and doing different things like intervals - I am not very good at doing them on my own, even though I set off with good intentions

Haha cinnamon I missed that

I'm a member if a club, and the training sessions definitely help! ours is very friendly and grew out of a c25k group. I

It was a wild, wet and windy morning here at Northampton parkrun on Saturday. I got drenched! Never going to be PB day but I ran with the 2 lovely ladies I met through parkrun. It is a fab way to make new friends, and bump into people you do not see anywhere else :) a non mumsnet friend has even used it as a date and a place to admire hot men

I got my 50 shirt!
This is not a drill!

Whoop whoop Thursday. I checked mine and I have to wait impatiently until I can order mine.

Lego I wish I had discovered parkrun before finding my DH. However, it only started a few months before we got together...

I got my Volunteer shirt this morning too Thursday

Yipee Blathers! I expect there to be a lot of proud new tshirt wearers all over the parkrun country in Saturday!

I can now order my volunteer t-shirt - yippee :o
But my size isn't in stock - boo :(

Wet and windy parkrun for us on Saturday but lots of people turned up in red, we sang Happy Birthday to DS during the run briefing, I got to run with him and we fed everyone parkrun and Hobbit cake afterwards. We then dashed to MK and he helped to churn up the grass for the MKJunior parkrunners as part of the cross country league :o

Argh the rd for this week is really struggling to fill volunteer spots. I am struggling to stay zen about it and not post a cross status on fb. I know parkrun don't force runners to volunteer but if nobody does nobody runs, why don't people feel guilty or just basically want to help? Genuine question, I couldn't turn up week in week out for a free event run by volunteers and never do my but id be ashamed!!!!

Cinnamon - you are definitely not alone, MK have threatened to cancel this week as they don't have the volunteers and they have 400+ runners.
Have you tried the cute cats approach?

I quite agree cinnamon I'd be mortified.
Our RDs send out an email every week it seems.

One thing that has been successful recently is printing a big version of the rota and pinning to a board next to where everyone leaves their jackets etc with a pen for people to add their names. I think it adds to the guilt factor.

Once the RD asked everyone who had volunteered to raises their hands...and then SHAMED everyone else . That was a good day!

And you can mostly volunteer and still run. We've helped to set up and pack away. 9yo ds is getting typically competitive about working towards his volunteer 25 top.

Don't need to help to set up or pack away megletthesecond, ours can easily be set up by the RD and one of our regular marshals likes to do finish area. I think that's part of the problem, you would have to miss your run but I tend to run before or after if I'm RD, obviously not getting a parkrun credit though.

Personally I get annoyed by the 'I just want to get my 50/100 t-shirt' because so do I but it's going to take me from sept 2014 to March 2016 despite being at parkrun most Saturday's but then I believe in the whole parkrun community and do enjoy volunteering. I realise that's my choice but still!

We quite often have a FB appeal...followed by a threat of cancellation.

I like the idea of getting anyone who has volunteered to put their hands up.

I have promised to volunteer once a month, now that I've earned my 100 shirt.

We calculated that even at our little parkrun we need each runner to volunteer 9 times a year to have enough volunteers, which leaves you 43 other opportunities to run!

I saw that too feerheart, I am genuinely considering a post along the lines of.... those who haven't volunteered could you tell me what puts you off? Is it not being able to run, being worried about getting it wrong, thinking that actually someone else will do it but don't want to be rude!

To be fair I have only volunteered twice but am volunteering again this month....

I do often marshall at my club 5k.

I suspect now that running seems to bring up all the stomach acid I have I t0 my throat (pregnancy glamour eh? ) I shall be seeding my way to that purple tee

Warning: tissues needed for this week's newsletter

Such a shame about non-volunteers. I am down to volunteer next in December. While I don't volunteer as often as cinners I'm between a 1:5 and 1:6 ratio if I just count my home runs (although some of those had been as tail runner, so I've run - well walked usually - and volunteered at the same time). I've never thought about volunteering away from home, although I know some people do.

I'm about the same, if do more than once a month dh tells me off!