Parkrun..

robinph

parkrun is a timed run as said and you are only racing against yourself.

But look at it as the people starting out of position at a parkrun will soon learn that they might be better off standing a bit back so that they don't get overrun with people, but they are learning this skill at parkrun rather than at another race that you have paid money to enter. Be nice to everyone and encourage them all to come back again next week, don't get too concerned with people out of position, it will always happen, but I'd rather they learnt about that kind of thing at a parkrun than in my next big 10km target race.

MarkY91

Never realised that would annoy people. Only ever done one race before...Terenure 5 mile and started little over halfway down. Loads surpassed me but the roads are very wide and had no problems. I surpassed tonnes in the later miles and hadn't a problem either

I know park paths are narrow and I'll put that into consideration for my 1st park run on Saturday. I'll start near the back. I'm a 25-26 min 5k runner atm.

menoscemo

MarkY91 wrote: »

Never realised that would annoy people. Only ever done one race before...Terenure 5 mile and started little over halfway down. Loads surpassed me but the roads are very wide and had no problems. I surpassed tonnes in the later miles and hadn't a problem either

I know park paths are narrow and I'll put that into consideration for my 1st park run on Saturday. I'll start near the back. I'm a 25-26 min 5k runner atm.

No need to start at the back if you are going to run 25/26. Check previous results and base your starting position on where your expected finish time would place you, but it sounds like you should be in the middle of the pack.

robinph

A good tip for any race that you've no idea of the standard on is to have a quick look at the previous results for it and see how many people would finish ahead of your time in the previous event, then at the start line yourself up about that many people back from the start. It's not fool proof, especially with parkruns where the course and standards can vary wildly from week to week, but if you turn up to Bushy parkrun in London doing about 25 minutes then you should be starting a good way back in the field with 400+ people infront of you and then just go with the flow, but if you turn up to Bere Island then you can probably get away with sticking your toe on the line without causing anyone too much upset.

edisonolmy

At Bere Island we didn't start at the front but we wriggled free of the `crowd' and settled into a rhythm almost immediately. If you run sub 25 at Bere Island you have a chance of actually placing first some weeks.

The most congested start I've been involved in was Cardiff. Huge numbers and a very long, narrow start area. I lost about a minute before I even reached the start line itself.

MarkY91

Yeah I'll just go to the middle


It's cool that you guys travel to the UK for some runs!

shergar22

MarkY91 wrote: »

Never realised that would annoy people. Only ever done one race before...Terenure 5 mile and started little over halfway down. Loads surpassed me but the roads are very wide and had no problems. I surpassed tonnes in the later miles and hadn't a problem either

I know park paths are narrow and I'll put that into consideration for my 1st park run on Saturday. I'll start near the back. I'm a 25-26 min 5k runner atm.

I'd hate for anyone to think I was having a moan about the organisation of the event or the concept itself. T'was more for the safety of the kids than anyone given the jockeying that can happen at the start of a run. I'd be hugely positive towards Parkrun and what it's trying to achieve.

Completely agree that it's not a race, but there will be those looking to record fast times (whether for pride or training for an upcoming race) and will be looking to take off fast.

IMHO Parkruns will be successful if there's a broad mix of all shapes, sizes and speeds, from elite (faster than me) down the line. If there's too much concentration from one grouping (fast or slow), I think general interest would dwindle. We need the fast ones to try and catch up to. :D

edisonolmy

I live in the UK technically, although would only ever run in England, Wales or Scotland if I was there anyway.

I would go to the events across the border specifically, although like to make a weekend of ones further away - Bere Island, Kilkenny, Tralee etc. Events like Tymon, Waterstown, Oldbridge and Cootehill I drove down and back in the same day.

rainbow kirby

MarkY91 wrote: »

It's cool that you guys travel to the UK for some runs!

Some of us live there...

I seem to be way more likely to go to a Parkrun when I'm back in Dublin though, running to Tymon Park, doing the Parkrun and running back to my mum's house is a nice 12km-ish run with quality in the middle. The fact that the start is 9:30am in Ireland rather than 9am over here helps too, I'm not a morning person :pac:

My local parkrun is Finsbury Park, a 2 lap course with a big hill in the middle and that starts on a downhill. Way too easy to start too quickly.

robinph

rainbow kirby wrote: »

Some of us live there...

I'm still waiting to bag my first Irish parkrun, but they didn't exist back in my day. There is now one less than a mile from where I used to live which would have been very handy. Will be planning on doing one next time I'm over for the DCM.

edisonolmy

I'm planning to do Finsbury Park when I'm in London in May. My brother just lives up the road, although he is closer to Oak Hill and Grovelands. I checked out the Finsbury Park course last time I was over and you are right, the temptation would be to start quickly.

Anyone know has it been snowing in Sligo?

dna_leri

edisonolmy wrote: »

Anyone know has it been snowing in Sligo?

yes but plenty of rain forecast

rainbow kirby

Highbury Fields and Hampstead Heath are close enough too - Highbury Fields is relatively flat but the course is 5 laps, Hampstead Heath is 2 laps of brutal hills.

edisonolmy

the 5 laps puts me off Highbury Fields. You're probably going to get lapped unless you're sub 20. I do, however, love a flat course.

robinph

Trying to figure out what one to run in the big smoke in a few weeks when I'm across there for the National XC at Parliament Hill. Not sure I want to run up and down the same hill in a parkrun in the morning and then do it again in a pair of spikes whilst getting thrashed by 1600+ other cross country runners in the afternoon.

Might try for a Bushy parkrun pilgrimage if I can figure out a sensible way of getting there and back.

rainbow kirby

robinph wrote: »

Trying to figure out what one to run in the big smoke in a few weeks when I'm across there for the National XC at Parliament Hill. Not sure I want to run up and down the same hill in a parkrun in the morning and then do it again in a pair of spikes whilst getting thrashed by 1600+ other cross country runners in the afternoon.

Might try for a Bushy parkrun pilgrimage if I can figure out a sensible way of getting there and back.

Bushy parkrun and Parliament Hill are around an hour's drive apart - a bit of a pain in the arse! Probably the best way to do it would be a taxi from Bushy Park/Hampton Court area to Richmond, then get the Overground to Gospel Oak.

MarkY91

Did a 5k on my own yesterday and did it in 26.09. I'm not as fast as I thought. I usually do 3 miles so need to adjust to the extra .10

Hopefully the runners get the adrenaline going wen I do the park run on saturday

robinph

Planning on getting the train across and staying for the weekend, that way I can wash the mud off in the hotel before the train ride back and herself then gets a day wandering round shops, so just need to find a parkrun near to an underground really.

yankinlk

edisonolmy wrote: »

the 5 laps puts me off Highbury Fields. You're probably going to get lapped unless you're sub 20. I do, however, love a flat course.

I get lapped by the leaders every week in Killaloe. Doesnt bother me in the slightest.

Amigaman

Hi Marky91 - 26.09 is a great place to start , I guarantee you'll be faster on Sat. there is just something about running a parkrun when you know you are competing with yourself but you have all the other motivations all around you to push you , I find this every week, on Sat. I'll be doing my 70th and I still get the same buzz , it will keep you comming back for more... Sligo registrations are really good 373 and still going strong , these together with the usual parkrun tourists ( Des ,Simon, Cathy I'm looking at you :-) ) total for the day may creep close to marly's opening day record...

MarkY91

Amigaman wrote: »

Hi Marky91 - 26.09 is a great place to start , I guarantee you'll be faster on Sat. there is just something about running a parkrun when you know you are competing with yourself but you have all the other motivations all around you to push you , I find this every week, on Sat. I'll be doing my 70th and I still get the same buzz , it will keep you comming back for more... Sligo registrations are really good 373 and still going strong , these together with the usual parkrun tourists ( Des ,Simon, Cathy I'm looking at you :-) ) total for the day may creep close to marly's opening day record...

I've been running since August. Doing 1.5, 3 and 5 mile runs and don't seem to improve so much. I guess I need to to speed training instead of just going out and running. I pace myself then te last 5 mins, I speed up and nearly die at the end. Doubt it's the right way to go about it lol. I should just o at a slightly faster speed as stay that speed the whole run?

I use Nike+ gps on my iPhone..doubt it's ever exactly the end length but we will see how I do on exactly 5k

Amigaman

Thats the other great thing about parkrun ( :-) you can see I'm a bit biased ) when i started running , after walking for about 3000km and dropping 11 stone , I literally didnt know my arse from my elbow :-) , second time I ran seriously was at Griffeen parkrun , there I found other vastly more experienced runners and all of them were so helpful to me, in particular John O'Regan who always had time for questions and was particularly helpful with tips and suggestions . In a couple of weeks do one of the volunteer roles ( scanner is really good for meeting all the runners and walkers in a parkrun ) and have a chat with the guys and gals and you will pick up helpful tips for improving your performance it becomes a positive feedback loop quickly ...enjoy , have fun :-) , after all its only a run in a park :-)

snailsong

edisonolmy wrote: »

I live in the UK technically, although would only ever run in England, Wales or Scotland if I was there anyway.

I would go to the events across the border specifically, although like to make a weekend of ones further away - Bere Island, Kilkenny, Tralee etc. Events like Tymon, Waterstown, Oldbridge and Cootehill I drove down and back in the same day.

Have you come down to our parkrun in Westport yet? If not when are you coming?
I might be a little biased but Westport is considered by many to be a nice weekend destination. We also have the best little parkrun in Ireland. Honest.

MarkY91

Amigaman wrote: »

Thats the other great thing about parkrun ( :-) you can see I'm a bit biased ) when i started running , after walking for about 3000km and dropping 11 stone , I literally didnt know my arse from my elbow :-) , second time I ran seriously was at Griffeen parkrun , there I found other vastly more experienced runners and all of them were so helpful to me, in particular John O'Regan who always had time for questions and was particularly helpful with tips and suggestions . In a couple of weeks do one of the volunteer roles ( scanner is really good for meeting all the runners and walkers in a parkrun ) and have a chat with the guys and gals and you will pick up helpful tips for improving your performance it becomes a positive feedback loop quickly ...enjoy , have fun :-) , after all its only a run in a park :-)

11 STONE? Jesus..fair play! That's some admirable achievements. I'm just In it to keep fitness during winter without football with friends and to lose a small bit of bodyfat. But slowly loving it more. I should get into LDR this year!!

edisonolmy

snailsong wrote: »

Have you come down to our parkrun in Westport yet? If not when are you coming?
I might be a little biased but Westport is considered by many to be a nice weekend destination. We also have the best little parkrun in Ireland. Honest.

I plan to do Westport in the spring. I'm even brining the dog as I saw there's a dog friendly hotel right in the middle of Westport - the Wyatt I think it was called.

The idea is I do a bit of driving around the west coast, do Westport one weekend and then head down to Galway the next. By the summer there will be more than one Galway event to choose from, I'm told.

Gael23

I've seen pictures on Facebook of people with Buggies and Dogs,or both

kingtut

I'm highly unfit (and a few stone overweight) and the fastest I ever did a 5k in was 27:13, never did a parkrun before but is it something that would be suited to me or is it elite runners only?

Pawwed Rig

Would be perfect for you knig tut. Our local one ranges from 16 mins to 40 mins so you would finish in the main bunch

Amigaman

Hi KT - as I said a few post back I am overly biased towards parkrun but I would honestly say that it would be perfect for you , parkrun is not about proving you are the fastest but it is geared towards consistency of effort its you against the clock every week , and if you beat your time well and good if not there is always next week . And after a while it becomes all about " the next week " without even realizing you slip into training routine , which is after all nothing more then routine application of focused effort. So I would say to you ...give it a go the entry threshold is low ( turn up and participate) the only thing that is required of you ( if you want a time ) is that you bring along your barcode ( parkrun I.D. ) - I hope you do the parkrun and I hope you get the bug like I did :-)

Murph_D

Amigaman wrote: »

Hi KT - as I said a few post back I am overly biased towards parkrun but I would honestly say that it would be perfect for you , parkrun is not about proving you are the fastest but it is geared towards consistency of effort its you against the clock every week , and if you beat your time well and good if not there is always next week . And after a while it becomes all about " the next week " without even realizing you slip into training routine , which is after all nothing more then routine application of focused effort. So I would say to you ...give it a go the entry threshold is low ( turn up and participate) the only thing that is required of you ( if you want a time ) is that you bring along your barcode ( parkrun I.D. ) - I hope you do the parkrun and I hope you get the bug like I did :-)

And don't forget to volunteer the odd time.

snailsong

edisonolmy wrote: »

I plan to do Westport in the spring. I'm even brining the dog as I saw there's a dog friendly hotel right in the middle of Westport - the Wyatt I think it was called.

The idea is I do a bit of driving around the west coast, do Westport one weekend and then head down to Galway the next. By the summer there will be more than one Galway event to choose from, I'm told.

Great, the Wyatt is about a 2 minute walk to the start. Send me a pm when you,re coming and we might meet for a pint or a jog or whatever.

Redgraffle

edisonolmy wrote: »

I plan to do Westport in the spring. I'm even brining the dog as I saw there's a dog friendly hotel right in the middle of Westport - the Wyatt I think it was called.

The idea is I do a bit of driving around the west coast, do Westport one weekend and then head down to Galway the next. By the summer there will be more than one Galway event to choose from, I'm told.

The Wyatt is class for dogs - 2 designated rooms for dogs and he's able to walk in and out by the reception as if he owns the place

Pub and restaurant part of the hotel so you can keep close and check in from time to time. We had a great time there... Walked the dog the next morning and spotted the parkrun - so p*ssed I didn't know there was a parkrun in Westport at the time - had the running gear in the hotel and all :mad:

Can't wait to drag the wife up there again for another weekend

kingtut

Thanks for the responses guys! I got my finger out and signed up to park run, now to find the nearest one to me

Which parkruns do you all typically go to?

Amigaman

I'm heavily skewed to the Griffeen parkrun 66 of my 69 parkruns have been there but I've also run Malahide ,Waterstown and Kilkenny( which is lovely ) -the man to talk to is edisonolmy he is on a mission to run most if not all of the irish parkruns :-) - good luck with your first run whereever it is..

rainbow kirby

When I'm back in Ireland it's always Tymon, for convenience (I run down from my parents' house in Firhouse).

Considering doing HIghbury Fields in the morning if I can drag my fat ass out of bed!

Pawwed Rig

kingtut wrote: »

Thanks for the responses guys! I got my finger out and signed up to park run, now to find the nearest one to me

Which parkruns do you all typically go to?

I think we all agree that St Anne's is the best parkrun but if you can't make it there then whichever is closest to you is worth a shot.

sammyjo90

Going to the sligo one tomorrow, shall be my first timed run and my first 5k since DIL in salthill last year. anyone that is going you shall find me at the back :pac:

mrshopkeeper

kingtut wrote: »

I'm highly unfit (and a few stone overweight) and the fastest I ever did a 5k in was 27:13, never did a parkrun before but is it something that would be suited to me or is it elite runners only?

All of the Parkruns are set up for individuals of all abilities: you can look at the 'Results' section for any of the weekly events on the parkrun website and you will see that the majority of participants would probably not describe themselves as 'elite runners.

Most (if not all) Parkrunners love to see a good crowd out on the Saturday morning - it enriches the event to have high numbers of participants regardless of finishing times.

MarkY91

what time should i turn up to the starting line at for the tymon run? 9:20? bit of a warm up then

RayCun

MarkY91 wrote: »

what time should i turn up to the starting line at for the tymon run? 9:20? bit of a warm up then

Yeah, 9.20 so you can do the warm up

MarkY91

finished at 24:27. 32 out of 94.

im delighted with that. will aim to progress throughout the year. i gave it my all. got a cramp last 5 minutes and was struggling with the breathing. very fun and well organised event(tymon)

sammyjo90

I wasn't dead last in the Sligo but I came fairly close
Weather was shocking at the start,hope its nicer next week!

Amigaman

@Marky91 - Well done great base to start from I suspect the parkrun bug has bitten you :-) @sammyjo90 , congrats on the first parkrun in sligo and remember if we didn't have those days like today we'd never truly appreciate those beautiful summer parkrun saturdays :-) , hopefully we will all have a lot of those to come this year - happy running - ed

MarkY91

sammyjo90 wrote: »

I wasn't dead last in the Sligo but I came fairly close
Weather was shocking at the start,hope its nicer next week!

everyone is at a different level of fitness and age etc. most people i know, wouldnt complete a 5k run. congrats on completing it. maybe you can aim to finish a couple of seconds faster next time and so on.

sammyjo90

True that ed!

Ah yeah I know mark, I literally just started two weeks ago so now that I have a time I'm just gonna concentrate on beating that

crisco10

First time in Tymon in time today. Great event! Very different buzz to Marley, a smaller community feel to it....Like the course, The wind was a bit cold and biting today but I imagine on a calm day it's a real PB'able course.

Ended up accidentally stalking a fella and running on his shoulder more than was polite. He was nice about it tho, he seemed to know everyone in the area too. lol!

Here's the garmin for the course in case anyone is curious:

http://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/686646215

I do Marley Park when I do it, I'll probably do it next Saturday but then my long runs will be switching to Saturdays thereafter until the summer. I must look into volunteering at them. I'll give sligo a lash when I'm up there too.

KJ

I would love to do a park run. I signed up recently and I live minutes from Malahide park but I can't seem to get a Saturday off work. The next Saturday I have off, I'm doing a 5k race in Phoenix Park and the one after that, I'm doing a 5k on the Sunday morning so will miss out that day too. Maybe I should volunteer for that one.

Caprica

Did my first parkrun today in Waterstown Park. Very enjoyable event, nice atmosphere, well organised with a turnout of just over 100. It's a tough two lap course, there is a flat section along the Liffey (but wind was in your face today) and the rest of the loop is hilly, coming of the second lap to the finishing section there is a tough hill. So it is not a PB friendly course.

Haven't run in over two months due to injury so I expected it to be tough, was happy to get home in just under 20 mins.

Wubble Wubble

Ran my "home" parkrun of Hartstown for the first time this morning, trundling around in 23:04 (14th place FWIW) while I try and get the running mojo back. There's no real hills to worry about. First lap is considerably longer than the second, and there was a major windchill to boot. Malahide was where I ran my first, and it's still my favourite; the run through the forest on lap 2, and running up that little hill at the end can take a lot more out of you than you might think!