Return of parkrun

WE LOST a lot with the pandemic starting in March 2020 and it's only now that restrictions are beginning to come off.   Although there is a stark warning as COVID cases are increasing across the whole of the South East putting emergency services and hospitals under pressure.

Today saw the reopening of parkrun and this included Clair parkrun in Haywards Heath (my home town).   The free 5km Saturday morning runs were due to restart on Saturday, June 5th before issues around accessing running spaces pushed their return to June 24th.   Parkrun UK said in a statement: “A huge amount of work has been done in recent weeks to ensure we have permission to return from the large majority of landowners.   Whilst this delay is disappointing, we respect the fact that a significant number of these permissions were contingent on the country moving into Step 4, and we will therefore target a reopening date of Saturday 24 July.”

Organisers had previously said the decision to proceed with events from June 24th was subject to any changes in the road map announced by Prime Minister, Boris Johnson.   It comes after Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick and Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden wrote to all councils in the UK urging them to permit weekly Parkrun events to resume in their areas.

The ministers recognised the pressures that local authorities were under to consider requests for organised outdoor sports safely, but emphasised these events were exempt from legal gathering limits and could take place with any number of members as long as they were in line with Covid guidance.

Parkrun added: “Parkrun needs approximately 80 per cent of Parkruns to be allowed to go ahead to prevent people travelling across the country from areas without a Parkrun operating, to ones which are.”   The government had been clear that Parkrun events were legally able to occur, with research showing mass-participation events such as marathons and fun runs can occur safely.

“We therefore strongly urge local authorities to ensure that they are applying their powers in a consistent and proportionate manner and progressing Parkrun’s applications at pace in order to allow these events to return as soon as possible,” Mr Jenrick and Mr Dowden added.

Clair parkrun, on a warm slightly overcast day, saw approx. 100 runners arrive for the first event on the 24th July.   From the start it looked and felt like a community coming back together, we were all out there, running and training, but almost at times, in isolation.   Social distance took over and the briefing started with the normal advice, but also the current COVID guidance expected from runners ...

• Distance yourself whenever possible
• Be quite at the briefing and start line
• Position yourself to your estimated finish time
• Minimise the amount of time you are in proximity to others
• Respect other people's personal space
• Support your children to socially distance
• Observe local COVID-19 guidelines
• No spitting or high-fiving or any other non essential contact
• Show your barcodes to the scaner from a distance
• Stay at home if you or anybody else in your household is unwell
  

The principles are simple as a lot of the land Parkrun uses belongs to local authorities.   Runners do not have right of way to other park users and it's important Parkrun, local authorites, runners and other park users see how we, as runners, respond to the events reopening.   That will ensure the events stay open and bring us together as a positive community who have do a lot of good in the community during lockdown.

With the briefing over the 5km run could begin.   Instead of running I decided to help marshall the event from the top end of Clair Park.   Motivating runners as they reached the top of the back hill and preparted for the downhill stretch.   Giving advice to other park users entering the footpaths.

I lost count of the amount of smiling faces as they rushed past me, other park users who were pleased to see the event back and the positivity.   Parkrun is about community that has been missed and everyone was just so pleased to have it back, people have really missed it.   Friendships were rekindled and people started to come together for the first time in months.

 

And we thought this was just about running?