What is it like to do a parkrun? Everything you need to know.
It’s a normal Saturday morning at around 8am and I’m awake bright and early. I’m getting on my running gear, ready to head to my local park to take part in today's parkrun. On the jog from my house towards the park, I keep in mind why I decided to take part in this 5KM run in the first place.
I've signed up for my very first running race. I'm excited to enter a race where I can pin on my race number and receive a big shiny medal at the end. In my excitement I’ve begun fundraising with everybody and anybody who will listen! But the reality of actually running is beginning to set in, I need to be able to comfortably complete a distance of 5km and at this moment, this seems like a far away goal. To be honest, running just for running sake never really appealed to me in the past. If I was running, it was normally because I was taking part in a team sport of some kind, not running outside in the park, but now I find myself on this new adventure, where I will solely focus on just running.
On my arrival to the park, I can see in the distance a crowd of people beginning to gather. I can see some figures in high visibility vests standing near banners waving about in the breeze. Some people on the pathways that surround the green spaces are vigorously warming up; they bend and stretch out their legs, maybe using a nearby tree or bench for support. Some others seem to be putting in extra laps of the park whilst having a catch up with friends about their week. The atmosphere is great, very positive and friendly.
I put my bag down at the bag drop and I huddle around what is now, a much bigger crowd for the run briefing. At the beginning of each run, I am welcomed by marshalls, they go through any safety measures, changes or news. Runners are celebrated for their dedication to parkrun by getting a shoutout when they hit a certain number of runs. There is a big applause from the crowd, who cheer on attendees for their commitment to both running and volunteering. I am amazed at the accomplishments of the people who have attended consistently for many years, hitting their milestones of 50, 100 and 250 runs. parkrun also awards t-shirts for milestone runs and I can see many people around me wearing them proudly.
start
I make my way with the rest of the group, to the start line, people pass by me with milestone shirts, running club shirts and I even see some t-shirts with funny slogans on, which fill me with joy. People laugh and joke and are looking forward to their run. Up at the front are the fastest of the pack (parkrun is not a race) who are jostling for a good position on the starting line, I decide to put myself a little further back in the crowd, people around are hovering their hands over their smart watches… I hear the word to go! and with a flurry of beeping watches, we are off across the grass in a blur.
I set off on my first Kilometre, I feel my legs starting to warm up a little bit more. A lot of people pass me in a hurry for a quick time, that's okay by me. I just keep my pace. As I continue to pass volunteers along the way I exchange a “thank you marshall” to which an encouraging reply comes. There are also plenty of onlookers cheering, clapping and supporting me at every part of the course. I feel so welcomed and safe as I continue around the park, hoping that today I will run a good time or maybe even get a personal best.
Soon I’m at the three Kilometre mark, I notice the little sign stuck into the ground, alerting me to the fact that there's still two kilometres to go, my legs are starting to feel more tired now but I’m moved with the buzz of the crowd and all the different people taking part. I notice a lady whooshing by with a buggy, her baby seems to bounce around joyfully as she traverses the corner with ease. A bit later I’m overtaken by a man, seemingly being taken for a run by his dog, who is tethered to his midsection by a harness and lead. I think that his pooch might be enjoying parkrun just as much as he is! I also see many families all running together. I hear a dad encourage his son to “keep going” as we approach one of the steepest hills of the run.
I’m approaching the end of my run now, I see some familiar faces up ahead of me, the terrain under foot is flat so I try to up my pace a little, to catch them up. I’m aware that the finish line is not far away now, I just have to keep going for the last section. I can soon see the finish line ahead of me, I hear marshalls cheering me on, that I'm “nearly done”. I notice a couple of people now running either side of me. They seem to have found some extra energy to sprint to the finish line and it spurs me on to have a little friendly race with them at the very end.
Looking sweaty but feeling happy, I cross the finish line. I‘m given a little plastic chip containing a barcode, I take this over to more friendly marshals who scan this to log my run details and positioning. This will register me for this run and will allow me to see how I did later on.
finisher token, make sure to return these at the end of your run please.
I leave the park feeling a sense of achievement that my run is complete, it’s still fairly early in the morning so I jog home and I am looking forward to my regular egg and bacon sandwich for breakfast. Over my coffee, I check online to see where I placed for the run and double check my individual time. I really like that there is so much data available so that I can continue to track how my running is progressing over time.
If you are looking to take part in your local parkrun or you'd like to volunteer as a marshal, It's totally free to get involved with and every ability is welcome. You don’t even have to run your parkrun if you aren't quite ready yet, you can walk or take your own pace. Parkrun also provides a valuable place to practice if you are using a couch to 5KM program. Practicing your interval training, no problem, walk, jog, walk, until you can run for the whole distance. There are also always supportive marshals at the back of the run, to make sure that one gets left behind.
Head on over to www.parkrun.org.uk or www.parkrun.us for more information on where your local run is taking place.
