Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Exercise

Chat to other fitness enthusiasts on our Exercise forum.

Original poster

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

999 replies

OhOneOhTwoOhThree · 15/08/2015 17:35

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 Grin. Like parkrun we're very inclusive and always welcoming to new starters Smile. And we love hearing about new courses we haven't been to Smile

OP posts:
Thread gallery
27
FiftyNineOhEight · 02/01/2016 12:20

Thanks cinnamon, I still didn't fell 100% but I trundled round and we all went for breakfast at the end Smile. I didn't wake up until 8.25 so it was a bit of a scramble to get there.

One of our runners had a horrible accident coming into the finishing straight - he slipped and at worst has a broken leg, at best a dislocated hip. An ambulance came to take him away, poor bloke. Apparently there were lots of injuries at Cambridge as well this morning.

Well done Thursday you are brilliant Grin

And as for mini-feet and his friend, words fail me. What a pair!

Well done for getting out there chutneyfamily - hope you all have clean dry feet today Grin There was a young boy at SA yesterday running completely barefoot (not even in the barefoot trainer/sandal things).

cinnamongreyhound · 02/01/2016 13:06

Yay for your pop up cafe and I saw your post on the ed page feetheart, love it!!

Glad your ok ThursdayLastWeek, just seen on the ed page that someone broke and dislocated their ankle at your home run, glad it's not you!

Oh no disaster FiftyNineOhEight! We had a lady have to be collected by car yesterday but doesn't seem to be anything permenant.

Yay for your cheery dc ChutneyPig Grin

I was 30s slower than yesterday but enjoyed my run. We had a little rain and I'm now on 93 runs!!

Enkopkaffetak · 02/01/2016 14:21

Ds and I did our first ever parkrun today. Our closest is Royal Tunbridge Wells and that is a 25 min drive but we went and I did enjoy it. Boy am I in fit though. I walked and ran it ds age 14 did it 10 mins quite kernel than I managed. .Smile considering suggesting to his rugby coach to encourage parents and players to join the run.

Wrote about it on Facebook and two local friends are expressing interest in setting one up locally as they had heard about them and felt they would be great for motivation.

MelanieCheeks · 02/01/2016 15:21

I met a few people during the past few weeks who've come up and told me how much they enjoy my blog, so here are all those Christmas lotta parkruns

ThursdayLastWeek · 02/01/2016 19:05

No not me cinnamon I saw that the woman had slipped but there were already plenty of capable folk with her so I ran on. Apparently it was rather gruesome to look at.

steppemum · 02/01/2016 22:50

well, I volunteered this morning, and was on scanning which is a lovely job, as you get to congratulate happy post run people!

It absolutely chucked it down for the whole of our run, everyone was soaked.

dh said it was very muddy with lots of puddles right across the path.

knee is very sore, kept me awake a lot last night. if it isn't better by monday I will have to go to the doctor.

FiftyNineOhEight · 02/01/2016 23:04

Sorry to hear your knee is still so sore steppemum, hope it is nothing too serious Flowers.

chutneypig · 03/01/2016 06:52

Welcome Enkopkaffetak. The juniors are terrifyingly fast but a great thing to get in to for everyone.

Poor woman with her ankle, so easily done.

Glad you enjoyed the scanning steppe but sorry to hear your knee is still troubling you. Definitely agree doctors is in order on Monday if it's not better.

Tail running for me this morning. Not sure whether DS will join me as he's a bit tired from his two parkruns this weekend!

feetheart · 03/01/2016 07:29

steppe - not sure GP will say much more than rest and ibuprofen though best to go and see first.
Do you have a local, friendly sports physio? Much more likely to get a proper diagnosis and what to do about it to get you back running, it will cost but better than going insane not running (that may just be me :)). Ask for a recommendation from other local runners.
I'm back to mine this week to see if I have the OK to start running again - I've been good and done all the exercises she told me to so I really hope I'm good to go

feetheart · 03/01/2016 07:32

And welcome to Enkopkaffetak.
If you need any info about setting up a parkrun just ask - I was doing the same thing this time last year. Yesterday was our 37th event :o

HalleLouja · 03/01/2016 15:11

I marshaled yesterday and cheered on and abused some people I knew the runners.

The person at the back kept apologising so we told her she beat everyone sat at home on the couch. She seemed really pleased when she finished.

steppemum · 03/01/2016 21:45

a question for you guys.

I have got into a small disagreement on another thread about parkrun.
I won't rehash it, but it raised a couple of questions for me.

How many people on your parkruns come in at 40 minutes or later? What is the average longest time each week? Do you have people who just walk, or does everyone jog/run?

As RDs and volunteers etc, what is your expectation about how long you will be out there from first runner to last?

I am wondering if our parkrun is unusual.

steppemum · 03/01/2016 22:05

sorry, that sounds like a bit of an inquisition! Just trying to get a feel of how typical we are.

Knee noticeably better, but still limping.

standingonlego · 03/01/2016 22:08

We have 300-350 runners. Our final 10-15 home are a number of regulars plus a mix of the injured in recovery mode plus slower folk. Last lady has over 40 parkruns and a PB 0f 49min, usually home in about 54 min. And we have legendary Bob in our Vm80-85 category with nearly 200 runs coming in about the same (he used to run 17 min 5ks in his youth, he now says - "why give up? I still love it! And to be honest, how many men my age go to an event every week where hundreds of people are pleased to that I am still alive :) ")

Parkrun is inclusive

standingonlego · 03/01/2016 22:09

About 10% of our runners are over 40 mins

MelanieCheeks · 03/01/2016 22:26

Estes quite often someone or more walking. At ecos in Ballymena, we have a blind walker who walks it with her guide dog. I'm intrigued as to what the discussion was about!

feetheart · 03/01/2016 23:22

steppe - we average about 150 and have about 10% come in over 40 minutes. This includes walkers, walk/runners and the occasional injured runner.
Yesterday we had our regular 'hip replacement crew', a runner with cerebral palsy who walked/ran, a regular who brought her autistic son for the first time and a lady doing her first ever 5k who struggled but did it. Our tail runner came in at just under 54 minutes.
I expect to be out there until 10am though that often, but not always, includes packing up. All the volunteers expect the same, as that's what I have told them from the start :), but in reality the course clears up behind the tail runner.
I am intrigued about the disagreement but can't be bothered to search for it!

lego - I love the sound of Bob :)

steppemum · 03/01/2016 23:28

standing has found the thread Wink

to sum up the whole thread

op asked if she could walk parkrun as a newbie.
lots said yes of course
some said it was unfair on the volunteers to make them stand and wait for the walkers when it was supposed to be a RUN.

It upset me because I am always so touched at how nice and inclusive and supportive everyone at our parkrun is. But we do have quite a large run, and quite a few slowbies like me so I wondered if we were unusual.

steppemum · 03/01/2016 23:33

just looked at our stats for last week. It was chucking it down with rain, so overall numbers were low.
22 people came in over 40 minutes (which is probably less than 10%) but still is 22 people!

Enkopkaffetak · 03/01/2016 23:34

I will run a few more times before I decide if I am going to look into setting one up. Also made more complex by my working every 2nd saturday so not so sure I would be a great lead person/

steppemum · 03/01/2016 23:45

welcome enkopkaffetak

I keep wanting to read your nn as Dutch, but it isn't, but it is similar. What language is it?

feetheart · 04/01/2016 00:21

steppe - I found it too . . . and commented . . . rather a lot! Probably just as well I hadn't found it earlier but, then again, maybe I could have shot the stupid people down!
Your parkrun is not unusual, every one I have been to has been friendly, supportive and inclusive. We average 150 (though we got 185 yesterday!) and have a wide range of times and a good spread of runners and walkers and every single one is celebrated, the slower ones even more so than the fast ones as they are the ones who have really made the effort.
I'd better go to bed or I will start ranting :o

chutneypig · 04/01/2016 06:54

It's Danish isn't it enkopkaffetak? I've been to Denmark a fair bit for work - my language skills are awful, but I managed to learn a few key words like thank you and coffee Smile

Ours is nearly 300 hundred and we get a fair few walking most weeks. Not always but there's a lot of support. And I'd say ours is quite performance focused if that makes sense. Very friendly of course and inclusive to slow coaches like me but there are more runners to the faster end.

cinnamongreyhound · 04/01/2016 07:06

Welcome Enkopkaffetak!

We generally don't have walker steppemum but have done in the past and they're always welcome. I have one rd who feels you should at least make the effort to run some as its called parkRUN but I have to tell him that's not really the point. The fact is they may well be running at some point in the future if you give them the confidence and support. I tail ran a few weeks ago with a young guy who has anxiety issues and so although his heart rate is fine he thinks it isn't and panics that it's too high so can't run. He ran the first 1/2mile then walked. He didn't even run over the line which many walkers do that we've had before and still got a cheer from those left. Ds1 ran but mostly walked his first one in 50mins and I felt guilty as it was really rainy but he finished and second time he was 45mins. Our average final finisher is usually 45mins and does a mixture of running and walking. We have 60-80 most weeks so quite small. We try not to pack up directly behind the tail runner of we can and always leave the funnel for final finisher even if most other signs are packed up before they get to the finish and mostly are done by 9.50-10.

chutneypig · 04/01/2016 07:08

Just read the thread. I'd had a quick glance when it was positive but oh my Shock. Great responses from you guys. I'd hate to think the OP was put off.