welcome to the newsletter
In this week’s newsletter VitalityHealth update us on their faces, Jantastic is just around the corner, parkrunners lend a hand, we look forward to New Year’s Day and I reflect on 2014.
It has been a truly amazing year for parkrun UK however as I stand here writing my final newsletter of 2014 reflecting on our last 12 months there are three sad moments that sit above all others in my memory. I’ve been a runner for a long time and am of course aware that it’s a sad reality of mass participation events that where you bring a lot of people together, sooner or later you will experience the death of a participant. I thought long and hard before writing these words, and don’t feel there is one right thing for me to do or say, so perhaps a simple repeat of my newsletter of April the 3rd is most appropriate...
“The beauty of our wonderful extended family is that we are able to spend time with so many more amazing people than before, people who we’d never otherwise have met. Our lives have been enriched more than we could ever have imagined thanks to the folks we’ve run or volunteered with every weekend. But, as the number of people we’d never have met grows it’s a sad consequence that the number of people we’d never have lost does the same. They can never be taken away and perhaps if anything positive can come out of this it’s that at times like this we should celebrate the opportunities parkrun has given us rather than focus on the things it's taken away.”
My thoughts and those of the entire parkrun family around the world are with the friends and families of Steve Worland, Nikki Herbison and Darren Ablewhite.
Last year I wrote that in 2013 we’d gone from 158 to 236 UK locations, an increase of 78… as of today we have 303 5k events and 36 junior 2k events, which at a total of 340 is an increase of 104 amazing parkrun communities. I also wrote that our record weekly attendance had gone from 22,300 to 37,400, an increase of 15,100… over the weekend of November the 1st and 2nd this year we saw 55,849 runners take part in a UK parkrun event, a whopping increase of 18,449. In terms of volunteering this time last year we were seeing around 3,000 people get involved each week… right now that figure sits at just under 5,000. Add those numbers up and a busy weekend for parkrun UK right now is around 60,000 parkrunners volunteering and/or running. Wow.
Twelve months ago we were extremely excited about October’s tenth anniversary of parkrun and it certainly didn’t disappoint with parkrunners around the world celebrating not only ten years of parkrunning but Paul’s much deserved CBE. He received it from HRH Prince William at Windsor Castle on Thursday the 2nd of October, precisely ten years to the day since he set the first 13 parkrunners off on a lap of Bushy Park. That weekend the BBC did a wonderful piece on our amazing organisation and just last week Paul was named as one of the Telegraph’s 100 Britons of 2014. I know I speak for Paul when I say that every accolade or award he receives is accepted on behalf of every single parkrunner across the world, it is recognition of the contribution every one of you has made.
Perhaps the most significant development this year however has been the growth of junior parkrun from six events at the end of 2013 to the aforementioned 36 right now, with a special mention to Pontypool juniors who kicked off their first event in style on the last Sunday of this year. I can only imagine how many children will be enjoying our free, weekly, timed events come the 10th anniversary of junior parkrun.
Finally, I’d just like to thank everyone who has in some way contributed to parkrun in 2014... be you a runner, volunteer, ambassador, member of staff, supporter, sponsor, landowner, friend, family member or Commander of the Order of the British Empire you are part of something special.
With 2015 just around the corner I can assure you that it is going to be an amazing year for parkrun UK and the future has never looked so bright.
Happy New Year,
Tom
faces of Vitality Run Series
Thank-you to all parkrunners who wrote in to become a Face of the Vitality Run Series for our March events! With four upcoming events, we were overwhelmed with several motivating and inspiring stories. We will be contacting you all over the coming week to let you know if you have made it through to the next stage. Short-listed candidates will be required to undertake a ten minute phone interview so make sure you stay near your phone early next week! The winning Faces of Vitality Bath Half Marathon will be announced next week with the remaining runs to follow.
In the meantime, here’s an update from our Faces of the Vitality Brighton Half Marathon
This week we regret to announce that Sophy Dunn has withdrawn her position as a Face of Vitality Brighton Half Marathon due to illness. Sophy has been medically advised not to run for the next eight weeks and therefore is unable to partake in the Vitality Brighton Half Marathon taking place in February. On behalf of Vitality, we wish Sophy all the best in her recovery and look forward to seeing her put her running shoes back on in 2015.
Rhys, on the other hand, has managed to combine the festive season celebrations with his passion for running…
“On Thursday my running club hosted a Christmas doubles relay 5k race complete with presents and grub! I ran to and from the relay so totalled about eight miles for the day”
Rhys has also been given some training tips this week from our Vitality running coach and industry expert, Martin Yelling. Check out Rhys’ full blog here
Want to achieve a Half Marathon challenge?
Be part of the Vitality Run Series - a series featuring eight of the UK's most exciting running events, brought to you by Vitality. Get active and take on a new challenge - run one, run two or run the whole series.
A Vitality Run Series event may provide the motivation you need to become a fitter and healthier new you in 2015. Find out more here.
are you ready for Jantastic?
parkrun event teams everywhere are signing up for the England Athletics supported motivational fitness challenge Jantastic. From Ashton Court to Worsley Woods, from Blandford to York, from Dulwich to Oldham and from Mile End to Lincoln, parkrunners are getting ready for the Jantastic challenge.
Jantastic is a free digital participation challenge to help people set and stick to their New Year fitness goals. It’s open to everyone to participate. Whether a first time or experienced parkrunner Jantastic aims to help participants achieve their personal targets.
To take part and join thousands of other parkrunners across the UK and the rest of the world pop along to www.jantastic.me and sign up, then search for your local parkrun team from the ‘join a team’ dropdown list.
Jantastic starts on Monday the 5th of January 2015. The question is, which parkrun event team will end up the highest scoring team at the end of the Jantastic challenge!
research
We invited parkrunners via the newsletter to take part in three different research projects this year: the use of Couch to 5k apps, bone health in masters athletes and running in pregnancy. We are proud to report that the parkrun community came up trumps and all three researchers were delighted with the responses they received. Thank you for your help.
nearly time for New Year’s Day
Christmas is done but it’s nearly time for more extra parkrun fun. See the Christmas Compendium for news of New Year’s Day events happening near you. Please check for cancellations before travelling and note that start times may vary.
parkrun population
Here are this week’s summary statistics for parkrun UK (including junior parkrun & Christmas Day parkruns)
Number of runners - 52,884
Number of volunteers - 4,696
Number of first timers - 8,325
Number of PBs - 4,978
Click here to see our weekly attendances since we started.
we are parkrunners...
Current UK Demographic
We look forward to welcoming you to our free, weekly, timed, inclusive 5k (2k for juniors) runs in 2015.
feedback from the field
Let us know if you have an interesting parkrun related fact, happening or comment that you would like to share with all parkrunners
Hi parkrun UK
We have been regulars at Roundhay parkrun since New Year’s Day 2012 and for the last year have been joined by our now two year old son Kaiden in his buggy. On the 11th of December our boy was admitted to hospital with appendicitis (although now is well and at home for Christmas) which meant we were absent for two parkruns. Our lovely parkrun community obviously missed him though and sent us this message which really helped raise our spirits. We think parkrunners are the nicest people in the world and are so happy to be part of it!
Regards,
Kieren and James Balkwill
Hi parkrun UK
The community aspect is what makes parkrun so special, but this seems to have been brought particularly into focus at a time of year that can be a painful, lonely time for many. I was lucky enough to run at Maidstone parkrun (visiting from Shrewsbury) on Christmas Day. It was a wonderful way to start the day and I was made to feel so welcome; so much so that I returned two days later to run in the last parkrun of the year - I couldn't think of a better way to end what has been quite a difficult year personally. I am grateful for parkrun at any time of year, but my first Christmas Day parkrun was invaluable. Thank you to all of parkrun.
Regards,
Margaret Connarty
Hi parkrun UK
On the 20th of December I completed my 100th parkrun. I'm so happy that I found parkrun and the wonderful people at Alice Holt parkrun. I simply love the fact that parkrun is about community and that absolutely thrives at Alice Holt. We have runners aged from eight to 80 and it's a delight to see them all every Saturday. parkrun rocks!
Regards,
Geoff Brown
Hi parkrun UK
I took part in the Inverness parkrun last Saturday. One guy turned up with two dogs. He tied up one of the dogs and ran lap one with the other. On the way round the dog 'performed' as dogs do. The owner responsibly scooped up the poop in a baggie and completed the lap with the item dangling from the hand not holding the lead. At the end of the lap he tied up the first dog and took the second dog round on the lead. The second dog performed equally well and its owner scooped and ran on to the finish. Unfortunately he still beat me. If he had had a third dog for the third lap I might have had a chance.
Regards,
Howard Swindells
Hi parkrun UK
At Guildford we had quite a spectacular Christmas day. In addition to all the usual festivities (and mud) we also had some outstanding athletic performances. Our first four men qualified for the Sub 17 Men table, we had three new age grade records, the second and third fastest recorded course times, a new female course record and a possible world record. The first male and female finishers were Phil and Emily Wicks and their combined time of 34:37 makes them candidates for the fastest married couple in parkrun history. Congratulations to Phil, Emily and everyone else who took part.
Regards,
Martyn Thomas
parkrunner of the week
Name: Karen Chart
Club: Collingwood AC
Age: 40
Home parkrun: Roundshaw Downs
Occupation: Software Analyst
Number of runs: 189
Favourite volunteer role: I really enjoy handing out the finishing tokens. It's fun watching people finish the run. Some finish with big grins on their face, others looking absolutely shattered. I was surprised to learn that this actually also applies to the people at the front of the pack, which is something I'd never have known without volunteering.
What do you do at parkruns: I start every parkrun with the ambition of finishing without walking. On a good day this ambition increases to finishing under a certain time and on a really good day I aim for a PB.
How has parkrun changed your running: It was parkrun that got me started with this running thing, which in turn led me to join a running club, which was closely followed by me signing up to run two marathons within eight days. So in summary parkrun not only introduced me to running but possibly also made me catch the running bug.
What do you like about parkrun: Everything really. I like that we can all turn up and run, no matter what standard we are. Everybody is so friendly and encouraging, I have received so much encouragement from so many people over the past few years that it would probably fill an entire event report if I were to mention of all these occasions. It really is a very pleasant way to start a weekend. One day I am hoping to have enough breath left to be able to repay this by being able to speak whilst running and therefore be able to encourage others.
Most memorable or funniest parkrun moment: My most memorable moment was when I first managed to achieve a PB. Taking 99 runs to achieve a PB is probably slightly unusual but it definitely makes the achievement very special.
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reminders
barcode reminder
Barcodes are used at all our events to record your result. Please collect and print your barcode here. No 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
Every parkrun event relies on volunteers and in 2013 alone over 33,000 of you came forwards and supported your local event. Volunteering is a wonderful way to make friends, feel great and have fun. If that sounds like it's for you then please contact your local event team for more details.
cancellations
For cancellations please check your event’s news page for the most up to date information.
upcoming anniversaries
January
Barnstaple parkrun 3rd
Wimbledon Common parkrun 3rd
Harrow Lodge parkrun 10th
St Albans parkrun 10th
Wimpole Estate parkrun 10th
York parkrun 10th
Carlisle parkrun 17th
Chelmsford Central parkrun 17th
Harrogate parkrun 17th
Lanhydrock parkrun 17th
Milton Keynes parkrun 17th
Newcastle parkrun 17th
Wimbledon Park junior parkrun 18th
Barnsley parkrun 24th
Eastbourne parkrun 24th
Walthamstow parkrun 24th
Warrington parkrun 24th
children at parkrun
Children under the age of eleven must be accompanied at all times by a parent, guardian or appropriate 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.
the parkrun show
You can download your copy of the parkrun show here. (iTunes)
The parkrun show is the audible roundup of the "goings on" of everything that caught the teams eye from the weekend in parkrunworld.
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