Discussion
Volunteers
We always just get enough, but do work at it. Every week we post on Monday on facebook and twitter with a reminder later in the week if there aren't enough.
Once I posted on a Friday and said that we only had 1 vol and this meant that although the run would go ahead we wouldn't be doing any timing or finish tokens - this kicked people into action and suddenly we had enough!
There are some people who do more than their share and many who do less, I checked stats and found that 65% of people who've done more than 5 runs had never volunteered and two thirds of all volunteering was done by 21 people.
There are some who've run 40 times and never vold but that's the same if you are in a car club or am-dram or running, some people won't help and other's do a lot.
When we put out an emergency appeal for vols you can guarantee that the regulars will respond but they aren't the ones we're trying to get the message to.
We've had a couple of clubs who have come forward and provided a full set of volunteers for a week as they are appreciative that we give them a timed 5k every week and they don't have to organise it.
Overall we do OK but it's probably the main bit of work we do during the week.
We always just get enough, but do work at it. Every week we post on Monday on facebook and twitter with a reminder later in the week if there aren't enough.
Once I posted on a Friday and said that we only had 1 vol and this meant that although the run would go ahead we wouldn't be doing any timing or finish tokens - this kicked people into action and suddenly we had enough!
There are some people who do more than their share and many who do less, I checked stats and found that 65% of people who've done more than 5 runs had never volunteered and two thirds of all volunteering was done by 21 people.
There are some who've run 40 times and never vold but that's the same if you are in a car club or am-dram or running, some people won't help and other's do a lot.
When we put out an emergency appeal for vols you can guarantee that the regulars will respond but they aren't the ones we're trying to get the message to.
We've had a couple of clubs who have come forward and provided a full set of volunteers for a week as they are appreciative that we give them a timed 5k every week and they don't have to organise it.
Overall we do OK but it's probably the main bit of work we do during the week.
T shirts. Background info - it's parkrun UK who give the shirts, some other countries (eg Australia) have similar arrangements, some countries don't have shirts.
The UK distribution is currently done by Bushy's run director - I think it might be voluntary, although he might be paid part time - must have started as a small job, but now is a big job.
adidas must put some finance into the shirts, they get their logo on them, but whether they pay a nominal amount or the full cost I don't know.
The reason that there was a shortage of supply recently was just that numbers had grown much faster than expected and the shirts are made in the far east and printed here so from placing the order to sending out to runners takes quite a while.
Part of the reason why they don't sell kit is that they only have 4 full time staff, selling kit would most likely mean employing someone and setting up a website and payment process so it would be quite a big step to be able to do it and is off the main track of what pr does - free 5k every week.
I don't think losing Lucozade is particularly an issue, last year Pru Health came on board so we were 1 sponsor up and now Lucozade have gone we're back to normal
We were expecting a wet and windy run today, but the sky brightened as 9 o clock approached and it was sunny by the time we ran
The UK distribution is currently done by Bushy's run director - I think it might be voluntary, although he might be paid part time - must have started as a small job, but now is a big job.
adidas must put some finance into the shirts, they get their logo on them, but whether they pay a nominal amount or the full cost I don't know.
The reason that there was a shortage of supply recently was just that numbers had grown much faster than expected and the shirts are made in the far east and printed here so from placing the order to sending out to runners takes quite a while.
Part of the reason why they don't sell kit is that they only have 4 full time staff, selling kit would most likely mean employing someone and setting up a website and payment process so it would be quite a big step to be able to do it and is off the main track of what pr does - free 5k every week.
I don't think losing Lucozade is particularly an issue, last year Pru Health came on board so we were 1 sponsor up and now Lucozade have gone we're back to normal
We were expecting a wet and windy run today, but the sky brightened as 9 o clock approached and it was sunny by the time we ran
In case you're waiting for results, a tweet from HQ says texts will have been sent, websites updated during the next hour, emails sent later.
They've done a major update of the results processing software that should handle future growth and today is the first time it's been used in anger so there have been some delays.
They've done a major update of the results processing software that should handle future growth and today is the first time it's been used in anger so there have been some delays.
944fan said:
I have found that you need to sacrifice some races and experiment. Try a negative split, equal split, anything etc. Try them a few times and see which one works for you. This is what PR is great for. You can, for free, try different races strategies each week and experiment multiple times without throwing away a race and the entry fee.
Agree with the above, free run every week is perfect for trying out strategies.I think I'd concentrate on not dropping the pace for the 4th k, if necessary sacrifice time from the first k so that you can hold the pace for the 4th and then push on over the last one.
RizzoTheRat said:
I also made an effort to start a bit slower today, and ended up with my second best time so far, largely helped by me trying to stick with a mates 8 year old daughter for the first 3.5km, though she got away from me after that 
Tsch! Bloody kids, beating the adults, do they not have any manners these days I finished my run and went back to run the last half k with my 14 yr old daughter, she takes about 30 mins but likes to sprint the last bit, I paced her up the hill and then she took off for the last 80m and I was at max power to stay with her! She was chuffed with a 30sec PB and her 10th run.
I'm getting worried now that she will be beating me in a while!
Still not near my PB from 2 years ago (another 35 secs to go) but 59 secs quicker than I've done in the last 2 years, first time under 23 mins for 2 yeas so very pleased about it!
I've used this http://the5krunner.com/2011/08/22/5k-sub-20-minute... which may have helped.
I've used this http://the5krunner.com/2011/08/22/5k-sub-20-minute... which may have helped.
If you look at the results, is your expected time close to the person above you? What can happen is because of an error or a runner not following the right proceedure, all the runners are moved up or down one or two rows.
This is the reason for writing down a sample of results as people cross the finish line; when something goes wrong the check sheet shows roughly where it wsa wrong.
It might be worth mailing your run and telling them what you think your result should have been, it is useful to get info from runners in order to narrow down where there was an error.
There isn't anything that whizzes the time from the timer to the token The timer records a list of finish positions and times, the scanners record a list of finish token/position and Athlete ID, we then put both lists into a laptop and it merges the 2 together.
If someone's ducked out of the funnel or crossed the finish line twice or the timer clicks more (or less) than they should have, the 2 lists get out of sync and we have to have an educated gues how to get them back in sync!
This is the reason for writing down a sample of results as people cross the finish line; when something goes wrong the check sheet shows roughly where it wsa wrong.
It might be worth mailing your run and telling them what you think your result should have been, it is useful to get info from runners in order to narrow down where there was an error.
There isn't anything that whizzes the time from the timer to the token
The timer records a list of finish positions and times, the scanners record a list of finish token/position and Athlete ID, we then put both lists into a laptop and it merges the 2 together.If someone's ducked out of the funnel or crossed the finish line twice or the timer clicks more (or less) than they should have, the 2 lists get out of sync and we have to have an educated gues how to get them back in sync!
lost in espace said:
First ever parkrun today, chose Clermont, Florida. Nice bunch of people, lots of Brits. Might even pop down to my local one in St Albans now!
Clermont was started by people who used to run at Hove and Eastbourne and will always get Brit tourists as it's so close to Disney. Of the 3 in the US it seems to be picking up fastest, the other 2 have very low numbers, the septics don't seem to have quite caught on to the idea yet!Is it St Albans that starts by the chimes of the town hall clock?
Todays news "Paul Sinton-Hewitt, founder of the Parkrun organisation, which aims to get people into running in the UK and overseas, becomes a CBE for services to grassroots sport participation."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27830525
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27830525
Cos18 said:
Flat compared to PV! Have you tried Preston Park? I hear it's a PB course, I need to try it out in the near future. Hove is so convenient though, being (almost literally) on my door step
The general opinion is that Hove is faster than Preston for slower runners because the hill is less, but slower for faster runners due to the 3xU turn - you can get round the U turn at a slow 'race pace' but not at fast pace. Maybe only 15 secs difference though, compared to Haywards Heath and Tilgate which we reckon are both about a minute slower.This isn't based on scientific proof but just a general feeling from me and some of the regulars who do both.
Cybertronian said:
Which courses are generally considered the fastest the UK has to offer? My local at Cannon Hill used to be quite good but they went and added a cheeky hill at the end, slowing everybody down by 5+ seconds.
York is supposed to be fast, Bushy has the world parkrun record, is a 1 lapper so to slower runners to get in your way, I think Newbury is flat - was Greenham common runway.My outright PB is at Kings Lynn, 1 sec fasted than at Hove but when I was in less than PB shape - very flat and not too crowded, but does have a U turn, I think Norwich is flat and tarmac, haven't run it yet, it's on the list for the next time I go up there to see my mum.
Some Gump said:
Finally done my first parkrun - but lost the bloody ticket part way round the course. Oh well...
You don't need to have your barcode with you when you run, I always leave mine in my tracksuit to be sure I don't lose it!Well done anyway for getting along there, we have had people who go off for another lap to find their lost barcode!
Bits and pieces of parkrun news if you don't follow the websites/facebook and emails.
Great North run made a fuss about reaching a million runners this year after 25 years, meanwhile parkrun UK passed 5 million last weekend (6.5m I think worldwide) and at current numbers UK will have the next million runs by December.
Last weekend parkrun world had 78469 runners, much more than any other running event, although it doesn't look like there will be the 100k that some Aussies are trying to encourage for the 10th anniversary on 4 Oct. Someone sent me a facebook link thing for a 100k group but I never took it too seriously!
A few of us from Brighton are going to Bushy for the anniversary, I don't imagine that there will be much chance of a fast run but we think it's worth it for the experience. Might take a Thermos, don't imagine the café queue will be small either.
If you're there look out for me, I'll be wearing a parkrun 100 shirt, shouldn't be difficult to spot
Great North run made a fuss about reaching a million runners this year after 25 years, meanwhile parkrun UK passed 5 million last weekend (6.5m I think worldwide) and at current numbers UK will have the next million runs by December.
Last weekend parkrun world had 78469 runners, much more than any other running event, although it doesn't look like there will be the 100k that some Aussies are trying to encourage for the 10th anniversary on 4 Oct. Someone sent me a facebook link thing for a 100k group but I never took it too seriously!
A few of us from Brighton are going to Bushy for the anniversary, I don't imagine that there will be much chance of a fast run but we think it's worth it for the experience. Might take a Thermos, don't imagine the café queue will be small either.
If you're there look out for me, I'll be wearing a parkrun 100 shirt, shouldn't be difficult to spot
Well, another bit of news this week, parkrun branded kit for sale http://www.wiggle.co.uk/parkrun/
There have been requests off and on for ages about being able to buy this sort of stuff, so I guess that's been noted.
In a way I'm not sure if this marks the end of the nicely amateurish phase of parkrun or if it's the beginning of another good phase.
Having said that, it's not going to make a difference in the parks and if it gets some money in to support events it's good, I guess that the sponsors are being asked for more money as we've grown there comes a point at which they won't pay any more.
There have been requests off and on for ages about being able to buy this sort of stuff, so I guess that's been noted.
In a way I'm not sure if this marks the end of the nicely amateurish phase of parkrun or if it's the beginning of another good phase.
Having said that, it's not going to make a difference in the parks and if it gets some money in to support events it's good, I guess that the sponsors are being asked for more money as we've grown there comes a point at which they won't pay any more.
I'm sure that people would pay for their 10,50 etc shirts but the fundamental things are staying, free runs, free shirts etc
Full story is here (for anyone who doesn't read parkrun emails! http://www.parkrun.com/news/
Full story is here (for anyone who doesn't read parkrun emails! http://www.parkrun.com/news/
Roger645 said:
Wonder if it will break the 1500 mark for the anniversary?
Wouldn't be at all surprised.Cybertronian said:
A friend and I regularly talk about Parkrun being a victim of its own success. My local event is despised by the local council along with other people that use the park between 9am and 9:50am, purely due to the sheer numbers of us now (close to 600). I'm a fairly regular volunteer and get my ear chewed off from time to time by dog walkers foolish enough to use a narrow-ish path that makes up part of the course.
The thing is that we only fill the park up for those 50 mins, the other 167hrs 10 mins of the week we aren't there - if I knew 600 dog walkers used the park in one particular hour, I'd go running at a different time! Our park's big enough that they can walk the dogs in a different bit of it anyway.The oddest complaint we've had was on the day before Brighton Marathon, parkrun at 9 followed by kids mile races, 2000 kids in 20 races over the day. During parkrun a RUNNER was moaning to one of our volunteers that he couldn't have his usual run because the park was full of....err....runnners.
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