# 13th anniversary of first ever parkrun this Saturday



## Copepod (Oct 4, 2017)

Saturday 7th October 2017 is parkrun's 13th anniversary. The concept of 5km timed runs on Saturday mornings started in Bushey Park, London, in 2004. In 2017, there are 100s of parkruns, all over UK and several other countries.
There's time to register, print your barcode and plan which parkrun to join on Saturday. See www.parkrun.org.uk


----------



## Chris Hobson (Oct 6, 2017)

I love parkrun and have done just over a hundred. At the moment I am taking  bit of a break after a very busy year. Now that you have pointed it out, I would quite like to run on the anniversary though. I think that you must have the date wrong, it must be Saturday 7th.


----------



## Northerner (Oct 6, 2017)

Hadn't realised it had been going for so long!   Superb initiative!


----------



## Copepod (Oct 6, 2017)

Date amended in my first post. It's a great feeling to be running the same distance at the same time as so many people. I'm running in West Yorkshire tomorrow, while my sister is running in West Midlands. Next week a friend from East Anglia is coming for a weekend, including a parkrun, in North Yorkshire. Gicen my times, I will still be running when Scottish and Northern Irish parkruns start. 
Lots of apricot tops!


----------



## Chris Hobson (Oct 7, 2017)

I didn't do today's run in the end. Early in the week I woke with a nasty crick in my neck and it still hasn't quite freed up.


----------



## HOBIE (Oct 7, 2017)

Everyone Enjoy  Good for people


----------



## Copepod (Oct 7, 2017)

Sorry you couldn't run today @Chris Hobson. Sounds the sensible decision.
Personally, I'm happy to report beating last week's time, despite much windier conditions today. Plus there were lots of shortbread men with coloured icing shirts, baked by a man who did his 100th parkrun today.


----------



## Chris Hobson (Oct 7, 2017)

Wife Liz bought me a Sony Walkman for my birthday. I am happy to be free of the tyranny of Apple. I have spent Saturday morning stuffing the Walkman with music and the afternoon listening to it on shuffle.


----------



## Bloden (Oct 19, 2017)

Are Parkrunners sociable types? If I went along (I hate running) it'd be to meet people and to try something new... Do you chat while you're running?


----------



## Copepod (Oct 19, 2017)

Depends on the people. Some chat as they run, but others do their socialising before and at finish ares
a and at cafe. Marshals you pass when running generally cheer, clap or ring bells. Children who marshal often put out hands for high 5s. There's always a volunteer at the back, so no parkrunner is last. When I marshal on the course, I often see tail walker talking to parkrunners (often walking) towards the back of the field.
When I moved to a new city, I chose a small parkrun to increase the chance of seeing familiar faces each time I go. Wearing a T shirt that can act as a conversation starter is a tip worth considering.


----------



## Chris Hobson (Oct 19, 2017)

All the parkruns that I have attended have been friendly and sociable. Many people wear tee shirts from previous events and we often chat about those before the off. Comparing sports watches is another pre-run pastime. I've seen women that run in pairs and don't stop rabbiting for the full distance. I tend not to chat too much while I'm actually running as I like to get quite out of breath.


----------

