Parkrun - the back of the pack is where it's at :-)

[pianoteacher]

I started Parkrunning with my week 7 run 1(including warm up/down walks) and absolutely fell in love with it!

I decided a couple of weeks ago to give something back and volunteer as without people willingly giving up their time Parkrun could not happen.

So today I was Tailwalker - ably assisted by my 13 year old son. We donned our high vis vests and set off at the back very glad to be walking rather than running in the heat! We sometimes have people at our course who walk the whole thing but not today so we did have to trot a couple of times to keep up

Very proud to cross the line in last position with a time of 53:06

If you are considering doing Parkrun but worried about your finishing position please don't let that put you off. You cannot come last and remember the volunteer at the back may be someone who just like you began running thanks to this wonderful programme x

[Jay66UK Graduate]

Love it. Well done.

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to Jay66UK]

Thanks Jay - it was really fun. Would definitely volunteer to do it again x

[Tasha99 Graduate in reply to pianoteacher]

I promised my local ParkRun I’d volunteer when I go sub 30. That’s looking further and further away 😳😂

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to Tasha99]

That's what I said but then I decided just to do it anyway! They didn't need me for the first week I volunteered and that was my first (and to date only) sub30!

Might work for you.........😂

[Tasha99 Graduate in reply to pianoteacher]

He he I doubt it 😂

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to Tasha99]

I don't think I could do it in this heat or if there were any hills involved..........

You will get there

[Millsie-J Graduate]

We are a friendly lot at the back😀

[Ripcurlrana71]

See you can bring your pace down!! 😂😂😂 x

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to Ripcurlrana71]

😂😂

I was very, very glad to be walking this morning - it was stupid hot! No breeze either - unheard of by the sea! Massive kudos to everyone who ran even if it was only for part of it x

[Saartjie Graduate]

Well done pianoteacher . I have yet to get to my Parkrun. It is on my to do list though. Great to give something back like that...especially now you have progressed so much with your running x

[Gran4z Graduate]

That's a nice place to be, and generous of you, good thought 😍

[pianoteacher Graduate]

Definitely well worth doing Saartjie so many different people taking part! We had a family from Australia this morning - the young lad probably about 11 or 12 ran sub20 😮 The determination of those at that back to keep going is equally as impressive x

[sallenson Graduate]

Nice job!

Paul Hewitt (who set up parkrun [all one word, no capitals!!] in the first place) always says that he's far prouder of the people who are slow but get there in the end than he is of the rabbits who do it 16 minutes.. It's good to be slow sometimes...

My wife went down to the Hastings seafront for a run this afternoon and fell asleep on the beach instead. Wise move it seems to me

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to sallenson]

That is a very wise move on your wife's part! It was boiling at 9am - God knows what the temperature was by this afternoon 🔥

[sallenson Graduate in reply to pianoteacher]

Bedgebury was just a thick warm foggy blanket at 6. Where fog is fog and not just a bit of mist.

When will it all end? I need some traditional English summer weather again!!

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to sallenson]

It unfortunately needs to end sometime - my house is a tip! I am English therefore pre-programmed to drop everything and go outside at the merest hint of the sun

[sallenson Graduate in reply to pianoteacher]

Quentin Crisp, many years ago, decided to give up cleaning altogether. He realised that after a certain depth, household dust stops accumulating...

It's the dead flies that are bothering me...

[KathE53 Graduate in reply to pianoteacher]

I’m glad I’m not the only one! I’ve hardly watched any TV either! I’m really determined to do a parkrun this year. I completed Race4Life last week - ran it all- but can’t consolidate yet- hols coming. Thought if I put it on here it would help with the motivation. Very useful comments. Thank you.

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to KathE53]

Well done on your Race for Life! I find putting stuff I hope to achieve on the forum helps me to stick to it too - good luck with your first parkrun when you do it x

[Tasha99 Graduate]

Great work! I wish people weren’t worried about ParkRuns! Such fantastic events!

[Dexy5 Graduate]

Well done pianoteacher and what a brilliant thing to do with your son too. He will learn so much by seeing the determination to achieve 5k (walking or running) especially by those who have stories to tell. You qualify for a volunteers t-shirt after 50 .

For all those who seem too scared to do a parkrun I say stand on the finishing line of your local one and watch the elation of even the slowest runner/walker as they cross the line and you will be taking part the following week.

[pianoteacher Graduate in reply to Dexy5]

Absolutely Dexy! We see so much that is good at parkrun. We are in awe of the fast runners as we see them well on their way back when we reach 1.5km. But also we have seen many impressive displays of determination from all sorts of different people including an older blind lady running with a guide a couple of weeks ago x