Parkrun volunteering

[Teacherm]

Hi, Just a little post to recommend volunteering at parkrun if anyone’s unsure whether to give it a go. I marshalled for the first time today with my son and it was so nice seeing people smile and press on a bit harder when we called out (hopefully) encouraging things. The coordinator was really friendly and explained everything, then checked in with us as he ran round. The only thing that was tricky was working the walkie talkie properly 🤦🏼‍♀️ but that wasn’t an issue really. I’m quite shy usually and this was outside my comfort zone but it was such a positive experience, I’d definitely do it again. If it’s something you’re considering, go for it! 😊

[Madge50 Graduate10]

Fabulous 👏👍, you absolute star, (and son) 😄, high vis hero’s!

parkrun only exists because of volunteers, I love it......parkrun is the best invention ever! It’s a great community to be part of, the possession I am most proud of is my 25 volunteer shirt....👚

Well done you, here’s to many more!........(and that purple t-shirt....😉)

Mx

[uncle_wiggy]

Got my first marshall volunteer post booked for 2 weeks time, really looking forward to it too! Glad to hear that yours went well 👍

[Tasha99 Graduate10]

I love tail walking

[Dexy5 Graduate10 in reply to Tasha99]

Yes I’m tail walking next weekend. We ♥️ parkrun

[Dexy5 Graduate10]

Well done Teacherm. Every runner should volunteer occasionally and I find it as rewarding as running.

[JonathanP Graduate10]

Great post Teacherm. Nice to get the appreciation from runners too - 'thank you marshal' 😀

[Curlygurly2 Graduate10]

Great post, I recently started volunteering at my local parkrun, I've tried a lot of the different roles. My favourites are timing (easier than it looks) and first timers brief, you get to run AND a volunteer credit!

I'm about a third of the way to my volunteers shirt...

[Teacherm Graduate10 in reply to Curlygurly2]

Wow, you are brave doing the timing! I think that’s a bit too much responsibility for someone as rubbish with technology as me! Haha. But I quite fancy token sorting - looks quite therapeutic!

[Curlygurly2 Graduate10 in reply to Teacherm]

Apparently lots of people are scared of timing, but it's ok, you have some one checking it's all in sync every few minutes. I made a mistake on my first time but it was ok, we knew where it happened so the results processor could correct it. In any case, there are two timers, just in case one makes a mistake. It's just clicking a button anyway, not very technical!

Give it a go, you might like it!

[HinchleyMum Graduate10]

I did it for the first time yesterday too - great fun!

[MatthewMace]

Glad you enjoyed volunteering! For others looking to volunteer, we've got a blog post on why you should consider it! It really is such a positive experience and I'd recommend it to anyone

running101.co.uk/5-reasons-...