welcome to the newsletter
I love nothing more than packing this newsletter full of inspiring stories of parkrunners achieving amazing things and this week I have something that really is quite special.
At Newy parkrun this weekend Alfie and Boaz Bonar will become, we think, the youngest twins in the world to complete their milestone 100th parkrun. On Saturday these boys will clock in at precisely 6 years, 2 months and 27 days… just amazing!
Looking at the stats it’s clear that parkrun is a family affair for the Bonars; Dad (Trent) has completed 120 parkruns, Mum (Sarah) 116 and younger brother Odin 41. But they don’t just run; Trent has volunteered six times, Sarah and the twins seven times, and little Odin four times.
At a time like this the attention is of course on the twins for achieving this milestone at such a young age, and rightly so, however I’d like to also congratulate Trent and Sarah for setting such a positive example to their children. It’s my hope that the lasting legacy of parkrun is a healthier ‘next generation’ and the Bonars are a prime example of this.
So it’s going to be a great Newy parkrun this Saturday. And to top things off, the Newy team have arranged for an extra special guest to attend and congratulate the boys.
And what are Alfie and Boaz’s personal best times for 5km? 25:36 and 25:49 respectively. Not bad for six year olds!!!
Happy parkrunning,
Tim from parkrun Australia (get in touch)
Were you a first timer last weekend, did you run a personal best or do you have any other feedback? We would love to hear from you on email, Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.
Essential Stats
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Win big on Whitehaven
With entry to the Great Whitehaven Beach Run; comes the chance for you to win over $10,000 worth of prizes for your home parkrun! A lucky participant of any Hamilton Island Endurance Series event will win for their home parkrun, club or gym; 3 nights’ accommodation in a Yacht Club Villa for up to 8 people at an event the following year, 8 trips to the Great Barrier Reef courtesy of explore, $2000 of custom team wear from 2XU, 8 pairs of asics shoes, $1000 worth of Shotz nutrition, 8 spa treatments and a $500 voucher at a Hamilton Island restaurant for the crew to enjoy!
So if the winter chill has you dreaming of warmer climes; then pencil in The Great Whitehaven Beach Run as your escape! With junior races, 5km, 10km and half marathon options; you can pound out a PB on the hard sand before sinking your toes into the soft white silica sand and splashing into the sparkling Coral Sea for recovery! With fun relays to finish, transfers from Airlie Beach and Hamilton Island plus asics competitor singlets all included in your race entry; this is a perfect excuse for visiting one of the top ten beaches in the world! Make a weekend of it and tick of Hamilton Island parkrun on Saturday morning followed by a run technique session with Steve Moneghetti as part of your taper and then top it off with a ‘Meal with Mona’; a pre-race Q&A session and dinner on race eve!
Click here to check out the details.
The books are back in town
The NEW 2016 | 2017 Entertainment Book Memberships are live. Click here to order now!
The Entertainment Book, and the Entertainment Digital Membership, are your guide to the most popular restaurants, attractions, shopping, travel and more, all with valuable up to 50% off and 2-for-1 offers.
20% of every membership sold is donated to parkrun to help us continue to grow our events around Australia. You can help us by sharing this link with your friends and family. Thanks for your support!
Upcoming Special Events
Launches:
04/06 – Narrabri (NSW), West Beach (SA), Bowen (Qld)
11/06 – Goondiwindi (Qld)
18/06 – Burley Griffin (ACT)
02/07 – Cobram (Vic), Atherton (Qld), Strathalbyn (SA)
16/07 – Renmark (SA)
Anniversaries:
28/05 – Castlemaine (Vic) 1st, Devonport (Tas) 1st, Highlands (Vic) 3rd, Mt Penang (NSW) 2nd, Penrith Lakes (NSW) 2nd, The Ponds (NSW) 1st
04/06 – Ballarat (Vic) 1st, Berrinba (Qld) 2nd, Canning River (WA) 3rd, Sandon Point (NSW) 3rd
11/06 – Frog Hollow (Vic) 2nd, Mitchelton (Qld) 3rd, Newy (NSW) 4th, Shellharbour (NSW) 2nd
18/06 – Carine Glades (WA) 2nd, North Shore (Qld) 3rd, Town of Seaside (Qld) 1st, Wangaratta (Vic) 1st
25/06 – Gladstone (QLD) 3rd, Jells (Vic) 1st, Logan River (Qld) 3rd, Mornington Peninsula (Vic) 2nd, East Coast Park (Singapore) 2nd
Cancellations:
04/06 – Penrith Lakes (NSW), Mt Penang (NSW)
11/06 – Darwin (NT)
02/07 – Main Beach (Qld), New Farm (Qld)
16/07 – Rocks Riverside (Qld)
10/09 – Mt Penang (NSW)
12/11 – Mt Penang (NSW)
parkdog of the week
Hi! I’m Gidget! I’m a girl and a midget! I’m an 18 month old, black Miniature Schnauzer and what I lack in size (I weigh 5kgs), I make up for with my REALLY ANNOYING BARK! I do the Fingal Bay parkrun in beautiful Port Stephens and it is by far the highlight of my week. When we arrive, I have to sniff ALL the other dogs to check out my competition and sometimes humans come and pat me because I look so darn cute! My human isn’t a very fast runner, so I drag her along for the first kilometre whilst I BARK REALLY LOUDLY BECAUSE I’M SO FREAKING EXCITED! The other humans look at me and laugh and secretly hope I don’t bark for the entire run because it’s super annoying and high-pitched. After a bit of running, I get tired and then my human ends up pulling me along. Occasionally I stop for a “fake” pee just so I can take a break. Phew! If there is a dog in front of me, which there usually is, I suddenly get a burst of energy because I really…need…to…CATCH…THEM!!! Once my human and I get closer to the end of the run, we really pick up the pace and sprint to the finish line. I think she just wants other humans to think that she’s a fast runner. Silly human. I am usually one of the last dogs, but I don't mind. I am just so happy that I get to run 5 whole kilometres every Saturday morning, but not as happy as my human gets about her coffee afterwards.
Feedback from the field
Gary Clarke - It was a day of celebration and sadness this week at Tuggeranong parkrun, as we farewelled our founding Co-Event Directors Gareth & Kelly Candy. The Candys brought parkrun to Tuggeranong in 2013 after discovering this fantastic event whilst living in the UK. Their passion and enthusiasm for parkrun struck a chord, and more than 3 years on, Tuggeranong parkrun has grown into a strong, vibrant, passionate and supportive parkrun community. For a variety of reasons (including their growing family and Gareth's role as President of the parkrun Australia Board), their role on the event team evolved. This month, they completed their final events as Run Directors because they are preparing to move to the northern suburbs of Canberra....close to Ginninderra parkrun. Our loss is their gain. Gareth & Kelly, along with their little family, Jessica & Lewys have become part of the fabric of our parkrun. Their legacy as founding Event Directors will never be forgotten. Their passion for community, and advocacy for better mental and physical health through exercise and community engagement will stay with Tuggeranong forever. We wished them well this week by presenting our parkrun royalty with a montage of their parkrun photos on canvas....and a parkrun crown for Princess Jessica.
Luke Gibson – It would be great as an addition to the regular information you provide in the weekly newsletter to have a short few paragraphs about parkrun somewhere around the world. We love to hear what's happening in Oz and a little of the UK, and the occasional brief mention about another country, but I'd be fascinated to hear the set up and takes from various parkrun territories from around the world.
Kerin Thomson - Each year on my birthday, I invite all friends to join me for a birthday parkrun at Carine Glades and breakfast afterwards. On Carine Glades 100th event, we celebrated my 50th birthday with a parkrun too! In my birthday posse, we placed: 2nd male; and 1st and 3rd female (I was the 3rd female breaking my PB) and lots of PBs! This is some of us at breakfast afterwards (that's me in the blue top with the cupcake in hand)! Highly recommend a parkrun to celebrate a birthday with friends and family.
Thomas Pratt - Had my first parkrun at Aveley in WA last Saturday. Been wanting to do it since our daughter did it over 3 years ago whilst we were still in UK waiting for our house to sell. I read the Facebook page regularly dreaming of the day I would be living here near our daughters and grandchildren and could do it. However, after waiting five years(!) we got an offer on the house in 2014 only to be told that I had prostate cancer the following day! To cut a long story short, as we had our visas granted years before, I had the surgery later that year in Perth. The alternative was to cancel the sale of the house as I wouldn't be able to fly after surgery and, in any case, the visa was about to expire. Had always been fit (trained 4 times a week in Taekwondo in UK) but surgery put paid to that. Now I am actually cured (not without some ongoing issues but at least I've dodged the bullet!), it's time to get my life back. The parkrun is my first proper training to regain my fitness. Arrived at Aveley last Saturday, it was raining and damp (just like UK) so I felt at home. Whilst the weather was cool, the other runners and the volunteers gave me a very warm welcome. Veronica gave us newbies an introduction to how things are done, then we were off! I settled into a jog, well back in the pack, wasn't feeling too bad until I saw the "1km" marker (thought to myself, not even a quarter of the way around, will I be OK?) Sometime later, I slowed to a walk for a few metres then back into a jog a few times, it began to feel enjoyable, I was going to finish! Bit of applause at the finish was great, I'd done it, can't wait for the next one! Wasn't last (32:50, I'm 69 next month so not bad for a first attempt) but wouldn't have mattered if I was, everyone was so encouraging. Such an enjoyable experience with nice people (especially the volunteers). Not as many runners as normal (so I am told) because of the weather so it's going to be even better! Not sure if I'll be doing Taekwondo any more but definitely doing as many parkruns as I can. Great event, looking forward to many more and also to volunteering to return the favour.
Drop me an email if you have an interesting parkrun related fact, happening or comment that you would like to share with all parkrunners.
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 laser engraved silicone wristband 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
Children under the age of eleven must be accompanied at all times by a parent, guardian or other designated adult of the parent's choice. It must also be ensured that children place themselves appropriately at the start so as to prevent a situation where they are being repeatedly overtaken. This is to ensure the safety of your child.
Our Sponsors
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building our future
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