welcome to the newsletter
In this week’s edition of the newsletter we celebrate the launch of the parkrun photo book, reinforce once again that parkrun really is a family affair and celebrate a truly inspiring showusyourparkrunner.
I rarely use my piece here in the newsletter to shamelessly self-promote, but this week I’m doing it! And the reason is that we have just released the much anticipated and extremely wondrous ‘parkrun photo book’ as being proudly displayed above by Tuggeranong parkrun Event Director (and self-confessed parkrun fanatic) Gary Clarke
This book celebrates the first 10 years of parkrun with 120 A4 pages of amazing photographs wholly submitted by parkrunners from around the world, including of course Australia. Better still the book was produced by a volunteer team of parkrunners who were either photography, design or journalism professionals, so the quality is super.
The book features interviews, inspirational stories and anecdotes as well as page after page of stunning photography. Proceeds from the sale of the book, as with all items in our online shop, go directly towards the operation and expansion of parkrun. Initiatives like this are vital in helping us to deliver on our promise: a parkrun in every community that wants one.
So what are you waiting for? Click here to purchase the greatest photo book since Cosmo Kramer’s ‘coffee table book about coffee tables’… bit of a Seinfeld joke for those of you in the know!
Happy running,
Tim from parkrun Australia (get in touch)
Were you a first timer last weekend, or did you run a personal best? We would love to hear about your experience on email, @parkrun_au or on Facebook.
Essential Stats for Australia & Singapore – 14/03/2015:
Number of locations – 108
Number of runners – 14,909
Number of PBs – 3,811
Number of first timers – 2,012
Number of volunteers – 1,000
Numbers of runs (all time) – 966,561
Number of members – 188,864
Number of members (global) – 1,522,954
Anzac Day 100
After much consideration we've decided that this year we're not going to parkrun on Anzac Day, April 25. We appreciate that some of you may be disappointed with this decision however it has been made with the best intention to: 1. Avoid any potential logistical clashes with Dawn Services; and 2. Pay our respects to what is sure to be a much larger than usual national commemorative occasion. Normal service will of course resume the following Saturday, May 2.
‘A Family Affair’ by Annette Dickson
As a family we are scattered down the south coast... so what better place for a family reunion than parkrun!
Last weekend was our 3rd whole family parkrun get together. The photo above shows us at Shellharbour parkrun, the home event for 4 of the family, when 9 family members ran and 2 volunteered (one being our youngest, aged 4, with his Dad Paul). So we had 3 generations involved, our patriarch Trevor being 77yrs old! Dad loves his parkrun crowd and hates missing a Saturday now!
We come from 3 different parkruns: Shellharbour, Sandon Point and Merimbula. We are a new fitter family, having more fun than we have had for years, when we gather for a family parkrun, coffee and breakfast! Just 2 years ago only 2 members were fit enough to even make the full 5km without stopping… now 9 of us have done so last year! Some had never run in their 75yrs on the planet, others hadn't run for 34yrs! We want to thank those who brought parkrun to Australia and the inspiring volunteers who kicked off each of our "meets"!
So, BIG thanks to parkrun for getting us "on the road again" + fit again + enjoying a great new skill and fun achievement ALL TOGETHER as 3 generations!
May we encourage you to gather your extended family… to parkrun!
Do you run with your family at parkrun? We’d love to hear about it…
The Pointy End
Who are you? Speedy Sandgate parkrunner Leif Mawson with a PB of 16:49 in VM35-39 age category.
How do you run so fast? It is a case of consistent training with a bit of luck with injuries. I also imagine my wife and kids chasing me when the legs get tired!
How many km do you run per week? At the moment about 70-75km.
What type of training is typical? Lots of hills, weekly long runs, 5-10km as quickly as possible.
How long have you been running and have you always been ok? Constantly for 3 years, obsessively for 12 months!
Favourite distance? All distance are enjoyable in their own way but parkrun 5km are of course lots of fun. Nothing is more satisfying than completing a marathon however!
Do you have a coach or squad? No coach but have a great group of guys around the Sandgate area to go for a jog with, also lots of solo runs…
How much faster would you like to go? How long is a piece of string? The next challenge is to run a New York Marathon for my age, currently sub 2:55:00. A sub 16:30 5km is also on the wish list.
What big events do you want to run? Looking forward to running a second Boston Marathon this year, maybe New York one day. It would also be nice to run the Sydney Marathon around one of the best harbours in the world.
#showusyourparkrun
As many of you are now proud owners of some of the official parkrun merchandise available from our online store we have started a new photo segment here in the newsletter where you can wear (or hold) the kit in an interesting and exciting location… or perhaps even with a celebrity!
Once you have the photo please email it to us or post it to Twitter or Instagram with the hashtag #showusyourparkrun
This week’s entry is from Amanda Brooks and it’s a bit special. This is the ultra-inspiring Turia Pitt holding one of our limited edition t-shirts. In case you haven’t heard of Turia here are some excerpts from her Wikipedia entry:
“Turia Pitt is an Australian mining engineer, burns survivor, motivationalist and author. Pitt was competing in an ultra-marathon through WA's Kimberley region in 2011 when she was caught in a bushfire. She suffered burns to 80 per cent of her body and had four fingers from her left hand and her right thumb amputated.
Pitt was named the NSW Premier's Woman of the Year and she was a finalist for Young Australian of the Year. She is an Ambassador for Interplast, and she graced the cover of The Australian Women's Weekly, which attracted worldwide media attention. She is also a humanitarian, and raised close to $200,000 for Interplast by taking on a section of the Great Wall of China.”
What an amazing woman.
parkdog of the week
This is Rosie, an eight year old Border Collie X Smithfield, rescued through the RSPCA by Brett and Melissa. Rosie is obsessively active and likes to be at the front of the group except her people can't keep up with her (yet). Rosie's a ‘veteran’ of two parkruns and her PB is 30.03. She'd love to say hi / woof to everyone at Gatton parkrun, and is very keen to play frisbee after the run if any parkrunners have the energy to throw it for her!
FAQ - Can I run with my dog?
Most of our events do allow runners with dogs, though in some locations this may not be possible, please ask at your local event. You can find their email address at the bottom of the event's website.
Please note that we only allow 1 dog per runner.
In any case, we ask that at all times your dogs are under firm control, kept on a short lead or harness, and that you take extreme care to avoid tripping other runners. And remember, you cannot register your dog, or any other animal, with parkrun - this is for humans only.
Upcoming Special Events
Launches:
21/03 – Yamba (NSW); 04/04 – Traralgon (Vic); 11/04 – Warragul (Vic); 18/04 – Sale (Vic); 09/05 – Altona Beach (Vic); 16/05 – Taree (NSW).
Anniversaries:
21/03 – Campbelltown (NSW) 1st, Mount Barker (SA) 1st; 28/03 – Riverway (Qld) 2nd, Manjimup (WA) 1st; 04/04 – Main Beach (Qld) 4th; 11/04 - Fingal Bay (NSW) 2nd; 18/04 - Augustine Heights (Qld) 2nd; 02/05 – Ginninderra (ACT) 3rd, Rockingham (WA) 2nd, Stones Corner (Qld) 1st, Cleveland (Qld) 2nd, Lillydale Lake (1st).
Cancellations:
21/03 – Menai (NSW), Kingscliff (NSW); 28/03 – Launceston (Tas), Penrith Lakes (NSW); 04/04 – Toowoomba (Qld); 11/04 – Pittsworth (Qld); 25/04 – All events cancelled due to Anzac Day 100; 02/05 – Geographe Bay (WA); 30/05 Mitchelton (Qld).
Feedback from the field
John Mayne - My housemate Karl, a sports nut, spent 9 months away from almost all forms of fitness due to an ACL injury sustained in touch football. Obviously this was quite a difficult period for him to endure. To encourage Karl as he geared towards full recovery, a group of us joined with him to celebrate his first ever parkrun @ Rocks Riverside Park. It featured three other debutants, and for a uni student who doesn't get out of bed until midday on Saturdays (Karl), we were proud of his achievement on multiple fronts
Nicola Kildea - I did my first parkrun last Saturday at Torren in Adelaide. A big thank you to my gorgeous friends for getting me out there. I loved it and was so thrilled to have achieved my best time for this year as I am in the middle of chemotherapy for breast cancer. It is a fantastic event, so fun and supportive, I will be back in between treatments and thereafter. Thank you all.
Alan Burrell – This photo was taken at Wynnum parkrun on Saturday. It is of 9 year old Noah Carter, a really fast and talented young runner helping out sorting tokens with one of the volunteers, Manakore, a previous parkrunner of the month and a really nice guy Of course we got permission from Noah's father for you to use the photo!
Cindy Campbell - When I started Canning River parkrun in September 2013, I thought it would be a short term hobby to help me reach my weight loss and fitness goals. I never dreamed that one day I would be celebrating my 50th parkrun, which I did on the 28th Feb. I was so excited about this milestone that I asked myself why. I realized it was because those runs where a part of a journey. At first it was just about learning to run 5km. Then it was about beating my time each week. Then my long string of PBs got noticed and volunteering to marshal found me getting parkrunner of the month. I was so proud of myself, which boosted my confidence and motivation. I got to know more people as time went by and have made some great friends. It is with these friends that I trained for my first half marathon, which I completed on the 8th Feb in Busselton. I still can't believe that I did it, but I'm really glad I did. My hubby once asked me if I was leading a secret double life. I told him I was, but it wasn't a secret. There is ‘mother and wife me’, then there's ‘running me’, which is completely just me and what I want to do. It keeps me fit, healthy and sane and best of all it's free, so there's no excuses.
Drop me an email if you have an interesting parkrun related fact, happening or comment that you would like to share with all parkrunners.
Volunteer Profile
Name: Paul King
Club: Not fast enough and too often injured but it would be Multisport Gold.
Age: 43
Home parkrun: Coomera, Qld
Occupation: Operations Scheduler, BP Fuel
Number of runs: 40 ish
PB: 21:02
Number of times volunteered: About 9
Favourite volunteer role: Photographer
What do like about volunteering at parkrun: Watching others sweat.
Most memorable or funniest parkrun moment: Wasn’t funny but doing the timekeeping, hitting the wrong button and stopping the clock. Panic. Boss Renee saved the day.
How can we improve parkrun: The only way is to make the participants more aware of the importance of volunteering. Really push it. Most people at Coomera do their share.
Reminders
Barcode reminder
Printed barcodes are used at all our events to record your result. Please click here to collect and print your barcode. No barcode = No result = No exceptions. To order your barcode on a durable plastic key tag as shown above please click here. #dfyb (don't forget your barcode).
No printed barcode, no result.
All questions answered
Do you have a question about parkrun? How do I collect my club T-shirt? How do I get my barcode? All your questions are answered on our brand new support site
Volunteering at parkrun
We ask every parkrunner to volunteer 3 times a year. When volunteering you receive the maximum number of points towards the yearly competition.
Children at parkrun
All children under 11 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Guardians must ensure that children place themselves appropriately so as to prevent a situation where they are being repeatedly overtaken at the start. This is to ensure the safety of your child.
Our Sponsors
At Suncorp Bank we value the communities in which we live and work. From helping keep Australians safe from the sun to supporting what matters to the community through our sponsorship of major running events and parkrun Australia, we're dedicated to making a real difference in people's lives. Explore Suncorp Bank
building our future
Stockland is Australia’s largest diversified property group. We develop and manage residential communities, retirement living villages and retail centres – the building blocks of thriving communities. Explore Stockland