welcome to the newsletter

In this week’s newsletter we remind you to keep left and share the path, 5 lucky parkrunners can win their way into the Australian Running Festival and one of our ‘most events’ leaders shares his tactics for the weeks ahead.

One of the key mantras we mention regularly at parkrun is “keep left and share the path”. In theory this should be a simple rule for parkrunners to follow however in practice, and in the heat of the moment, that isn’t always the case. Most of the time there is no consequence to this however every now and then it results in a near miss or worse, a bruised and battered innocent bystander. Unfortunately recently we have had this occur on more than one occasion and I have received letters of complaint from both members of the public and the relevant local councils. As such I’d like to take this opportunity to remind you all to keep left, share the path and be courteous to all other park users at all times.
However it isn’t just up to you, the parkrunners, to make this right. Given the rapid growth of parkrun in Australia over the last few years some of our courses that were suitable for smaller numbers are now no longer as suitable for larger groups. On Monday this week I met Main Beach parkrun Event Director Libby Sargent for a morning run to plan some changes to her route at the ‘home of parkrun Australia’ that will help to alleviate the issues they are having with increased crowds. And I know that Jon Storey and his team at Claisebrook Cove parkrun in Perth are putting the finishing touches on a new parkrun event only 2km from their start line, all in the name of sharing the load. The same is happening at Kawana parkrun on the Sunshine Coast as well as numerous others around the country.
You could say parkrun is a “victim of its own success” but we can’t sit back and hope things get better. We have to be proactive in dealing with increased numbers across almost all events but we need your help.
Did I mention “keep left”???

Happy running,
Tim from parkrun Australia (get in touch)
p.s. Only 206 days until International parkrun Day 2014
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.
Professor Alan’s Essential Stats
Number of runners – 9,757
Number of volunteers – 588
Number of new registrations – 1,454
Total number of registered parkrunners – 97,036
All in for running

adidas has again partnered with a series of running events in 2014. The first on the calendar for the year is the Australian Running Festival in Canberra on 12-13th April and adidas wants to share the love with parkrun, by giving 5 lucky parkrunners the chance to represent parkrun at the event. Simply email adidas at parkrun@adidas.com and tell them why you need a boost to win. Winners will be announced in next week’s newsletter so get writing.
Stay tuned for details on how you could win entries into other running events in Australia later this year including the City2Surf in Sydney!
Show us your course!

Calling all budding filmmakers. With so many new parkrun events launching around the country it has becoming almost impossible for anyone to visit all of them. As such, we want to compile a high quality collection of course videos for our You Tube channel, for an example of an existing clip click here. To make this happen we need your help so if you’re keen, please follow these steps:
1. Use a high quality video device such as a GoPro mounted to a bicycle or pram;
2. Give the clip a brief spoken intro e.g. “My name is Joe Bloggs and this is the Main Beach parkrun course.”
3. Film the full 5km of your course, ideally on parkrun day to take in the atmosphere;
4. When editing speed the course clip up so the entire clip takes no longer than 2 minutes.
5. Please don’t use a copyrighted backing track without crediting it onscreen.
6. Use a service such as Dropbox to share the clip with tim@parkrun.com.
We will then upload each clip to our You Tube channel, thanks in advance for your efforts.
Upcoming Special Events
March
29 – Riverway (Qld) 1st anniversary, Manjimup (WA) launch
April
5 - Main Beach (Qld) 3rd Anniversary
12 - Fingal Bay (NSW) 1st anniversary, Augustine Heights (Qld) 1st anniversary
19 - Guinness World Record attempt – “Fastest 5km Egg and Spoon Race”
26 – Stones Corner (Qld) launch, Lillydale Lake (Vic) launch, Rockingham (WA) 1st anniversary, Ginninderra (ACT) 2nd Anniversary
Feedback from the field
Shay Thewlis Kennare - Participated in my first Claisebrook Cove parkrun last Saturday 15th March. A beautiful morning, great start to the day and wonderful, friendly company at the end. Coffee was great too!! Thanks to all the people who made me feel welcome and offered friendship and support both during and after the run. Great organisation. I'm looking forward to more.
Richard Wade - I completed my first Tuggeronong parkrun on Saturday 15 March. It was great to run with others and push myself harder than I normally would. I was very pleased to be the fourth fastest in my veteran age group which suggests that I have some potential :)) It was a pleasure to attend with the two lovely ladies in the photo, Ruth Mauldon and Sim Wright. I plan to regularly do parkrun for the challenge and the social opportunities. Thank you to all the volunteers who made this event happen. I hope to soon run with my eldest son (13) at Ginninderra parkrun.

Yvonne Farrell - Last weekend was my first parkrun. Last year my New Year’s resolution was to lose weight. This year I am more than 30kg lighter. This year I wanted to get fitter and my New Year’s resolution was to do a fun run during the year. Last weekend I did my first Shepparton parkrun… well really it was a very brisk walk. parkrun is just the perfect length for me to do. I felt really encouraged by everyone and it definitely won't be my last fun run.
Jeanette Algie - Completed my 3rd Toowoomba parkrun on the weekend. 3 PB's so far. I am really enjoying the experience of running in a large group. The course is a great mix of hills and flats, Margaret and her team do a fantastic job. Always a big turnout too for a regional town with 232 runners last week.

Sally Mitchell - This is a photo of my son Hugh and I at parkrun on Saturday. It was his 5th birthday, so it was a fitting day for him to be running his 5th parkrun, at his 5th location. He's run at Wynnum, North Lakes, St Peters, Merimbula, and now finally at our home parkrun, Sandgate. My two older boys had run off ahead of us, finishing their 27th and 24th parkruns, having started parkrunning just over a year ago as a way to train for their school cross country event. Fast or slow, it's a fantastic start to our weekend. Thanks to all the regular runners at Sandgate who encourage and cheer my boys on every week!

Tracey Smith - I had an awesome PB at Main Beach parkrun last week. We had a 30 min pacer and that's has been my goal since I started parkrun 8 weeks ago... Was ahead of him until half way then I had his balloons in my face ha ha! I kept up with him for a way then I started to tire about 1km out, I think he sensed this and encouraged me and others around us ... I finished one second in front of him... 30:01 still just off my goal but a full minute off my PB... Couldn't have done it without him, he's back again this week so that goal is going down!
Vicki Thornbury - Hubby ran another PB this week at Golden Beach parkrun... so proud of you! Even prouder of our Grand-daughter Lilly who ran with pop and also ran a PB... good stuff for a 13 year old. Love you to pieces guys!
Bright Pink - Today I missed out on my favourite Saturday morning ritual… parkrun. I get around between New Farm parkrun, North Lakes parkrun and Sandgate parkrun but have travelled to Mitchelton parkrun, Minnippi parkrun and Bunyaville parkrun too. I have done a collage of the last few runs. I couldn't tell you what times I have run, but I can tell you how much fun I have had with my fun-buddies. parkrun is for everyone, walkers, serious runners, people trying to get fit and backyard legends like myself and my mates. If you ever needed an excuse to get fit, parkrun is it!

Michael Schultz - Do you what the 27 represents? It’s the number of parkruns in Qld. I have done 26 of them so I booked flights yesterday for Townsville as North Shore parkrun will be number 27 for me. It will also be my 97the run overall. Number 98 will probably be at Sandgate but I’m not sure about 99 on 12 April. Number 100 should be at Sandgate on Easter Saturday with an egg & spoon… It is still my home parkrun and the one I enjoy most around here. Kirra would be a choice more often if it was closer. 101 will be Stones Corner of course but after that it’s a long way to 250…. at least 3 years!
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: Richard James
Club: Pegasus Hockey
Age: 35
Home parkrun: Kalgoorlie-Boulder
Occupation: Control System Engineer
Number of runs: 20
PB: 26:39
Number of times volunteered: 8
Favourite volunteer role: Run Director - Allows me to still run.
What do like about volunteering at parkrun: Helping to keep this great community event going for the benefit of all those who take part.
Most memorable or funniest parkrun moment: Most memorable would be the good turnout we had for our New Year’s Day parkrun despite the pouring rain and post celebration tiredness.
How can we improve parkrun: Make sure that everyone knows how much fun it is getting to give something back to the event you love.