What A Tangled Web We Weave …..

[UpTheStanley]

I had an idle thought this morning, and this is the result …...

It shows (I hope) everybody Dexy5 and I have run with this year at VRB parkrun meetups, and all the parkrun connections those VRBs have had with one another in our presence - so for instance I think cheekychipmunks met BaddieThePirate at Lyme Park, but we weren't at that one so that connection isn't shown.

So mine are in red (of course), Dexy's in green, and the rest in blue. If I've missed any connections, please let me know - and if I've missed any people …… well, that'll be messy. Apart from those already mentioned, I'd better already tag (in no particular order) Wimborne , Windoze , lexi6 , Katnap , Oldgirlruns , Sandie1961 , JonathanP , Sadie-runs , TailChaser , Shake-and-run , damienair and Coddfish .

Enjoy …...

Edit - I seem to have cut myself off at the bottom. Hopefully this will be better ….

[TailChaser Graduate10]

What a splendid thing UTS! Looks like Katnap and I are on a par with cheekychipmunks but you two are the ultra-tourists! How long until you qualify for your cow cowls?

[UpTheStanley Graduate10 in reply to TailChaser]

If Cheeky did it from her viewpoint, she’d need many many more spots on the circle 😀

Cow cowls? Either your spellcheck has been “helping”, or you’ve lost me there 🤔

[TailChaser Graduate10 in reply to UpTheStanley]

Definitely right, except I missed a hyphen out. It’s the unofficial tourist buff (black cow on a yellow background) you can claim after doing 20 different tourist runs. It’s a Facebook group, detailed as follows:

“***** The story behind the cow-cowl *****

A post was made to the UK parkrun tourists group in 2015 started it all off - a couple of tourists finished one behind the other at Canterbury, but didn't know at the time and missed the opportunity to say hello. If only they had some way of easily spotting each other at parkrun! And so the *cow cowl* was born.

Why a cow? If you've read the jargon-buster in the blurb for this page you'll know that the first parkrunner to complete 100 different parkrun events was Chris Cowell. The Cowell Club was a term coined by Danny Norman on the parkrun show. And then Nicola pointed out that half a Cowell was a Cow - so at 50 different events you've done your 'Cow'. A cow-head seemed a fitting motif for tourists. By poetic coincidence, 'cow-cowl' sounds like 'Cow-Cowell'.

So when people ask you to explain the cow-cowl, you now know the history. It's a piece of group "kit" so members of the UK parkrun Tourists Group on Facebook (to join you need to have completed a 5K parkrun at 20 different locations) can identify each other.

The only exceptions to this are friends and family of group members who are eligible but choose not to be in the group (or can't be, by dint of being mere calfs and heifers).

It's flattering that people think they are 'working towards their cow cowl' but not strictly accurate. They're really working towards membership of the UK parkrun Tourists Group - at which point they have the option of buying a cow cowl to wear wherever and whenever they want.”

Copied from the UK parkrun tourists Facebook page. We’ve got 7 to go. Cheeky must nearly be there. We get quite a few people at our parkrun wearing them. So now you have another niche to go for 😊

[Dexy5 Graduate10 in reply to TailChaser]

Thanks for that TailChaser, I’m sure Coddfish qualifies for one. I will have to keep an eye out.

I think the tourist t shirt has taken over now, although I do see a lot of people wearing them at their home parkrun which I find odd.

[Coddfish Graduate10 in reply to Dexy5]

Lovely set of connections Dexy.

I have often seen people wearing the cow buffs, particularly at London parkruns. Whenever I have talked to someone wearing one, they have been hardcore tourists, leading me to think you had to be a member of the Cowell Club (100 locations) to order one. They’re unofficial, not something you get through parkrun, but I must admit I haven’t looked into it. I have a visceral dislike of Facebook so don’t have an active account to join the tourist group. In terms of qualification, I am at 37 locations.

In terms of your connections, I have also run with Sandie1961 (but at GSR, not parkrun).

[Dexy5 Graduate10 in reply to Coddfish]

I know what you mean about Facebook- I started an account only so I could look at the parkrun site And leave messages with other parkruns after tourism.

Stanley decided to restrict the VRB chart to parkrun only.

[Irish-John Graduate10]

You lucky lucky VRBs

What a neat idea - the web of happy miles and great Runners

[AlMorr Ambassador Graduate10]

That is a very good 'tangled web' UTS, I am just wondering what has happened to our friend from New Zealand, not heard from Lexi6 for some time, remember she visited us a few months ago but has been silent for some time.

[Sandie1961 Graduate10 in reply to AlMorr]

Not heard from Wimborne for a while either!

[Dexy5 Graduate10]

An idle moment? I must be taking my eye off the ball!

[Sandie1961 Graduate10 in reply to Dexy5]

😂😂😂

[Sandie1961 Graduate10]

I take it GSR doesn’t count, otherwise I’d be connected to Coddfish but love it 😊

[UpTheStanley Graduate10 in reply to Sandie1961]

The logic I used was indeed "parkruns only", but I think a dotted line between you might be an appropriate addition to the original …...

[Sandie1961 Graduate10 in reply to UpTheStanley]

😂😂

[JonathanP Graduate10]

Very picturesque UTS - looks like one of those Spirograph pictures that were so popular when I was a lad!

[cheekychipmunks Graduate10 in reply to JonathanP]

One of my favourite things JonathanP ! 😀

[Dexy5 Graduate10 in reply to JonathanP]

Yes I had one too.

[Coddfish Graduate10 in reply to JonathanP]

Yes, I had the same thought. I think I still have mine!

[JonathanP Graduate10 in reply to Coddfish]

Very impressive hoarding!😀

[51mc Graduate10]

Amazing graphics, I hope that you had some help putting it all together!

[UpTheStanley Graduate10 in reply to 51mc]

Thanks and no, but I have spent far too much of my life using PowerPoint for a multitude of purposes 😜

[Tasha99 Graduate10]

Love it!

Mine is a straight line between me and Beachcomber66 🤔🤣

[cheekychipmunks Graduate10]

Whoa UTS, I like that! We need to keep up the good work in 2020 too! 🏃‍♀️ 🏃‍♂️😀👍

[Windoze Graduate10]

Through my tired eyes in Munich airport it looks like spaghetti 😂 awesome tho 😎😎

[cheekychipmunks Graduate10]

Just one omission that I can see UTS - SkiMonday - or was the fact he was volunteering at Eastville and not running make a difference? 😀

[UpTheStanley Graduate10 in reply to cheekychipmunks]

Good question well asked. I think I’ll say “yes” cos it’s easiest 😀

[cheekychipmunks Graduate10 in reply to UpTheStanley]

Good answer - I think! 🤔😅

[Curlygurly2 Graduate10]

I'm missing something..what is VRB please?

[UpTheStanley Graduate10 in reply to Curlygurly2]

Virtual Running Buddy - someone you chat to on here as if you know them, but will probably never meet unless you arrange to find one another at an event - usually a parkrun.

[Curlygurly2 Graduate10 in reply to UpTheStanley]

Thank you xx

[Coddfish Graduate10 in reply to UpTheStanley]

Except of course some of us met in real life before meeting on here!

[Tbae]

Very cool UTS.💥

I am Billy no mates so no web and not even a line.🙃🙈🤣🤣

⭐️🏃‍♂️👏👏💥

[UpTheStanley Graduate10 in reply to Tbae]

Aaaah 😢🤣😀

[roseabi]

This is awesome!!!

As well as a fabulous diagram, a good many RRBs have been created by your endeavours 😊😊😊

[damienair Administrator]

Wow. I’m impressed. That has been a very good 2019. Well done UTS and Dexy5 for moving around the country to visit everyone at parkrun. Meeting up with you all at Eastville parkrun was the highlight of my year. Just pipped the post on my 25:36 PB. Wishing you an equally successful 2020. Hopefully we will meet again at Portrush and add a few more connections to that Web. UpTheStanley Dexy5 cheekychipmunks

Damien

[Katnap Graduate10]

Is that proof of the Higgs boson?

🎅🐱 Xmas Katnap 🐱🎅