June parkrun update

 4/6 - Today I was planning on going to Drumchapel with some buddies from Rouken Glen but I did not get a good night sleep the night before due to worrying about something not parkrun related.  So, I didn't fancy the drive over to Drumchapel and opted for Queen's instead.  When I got to the start, I recognised more volunteers than runners.  Turns out there were 100 runners and 49 were first timers.  Seems everyone has gone away for the weekend with lots getting their Q for the alphabet challenge.  I was not expecting a good run today due to my tiredness and I was going very slow pace.  But surprisingly I didn't have to walk till the 3rd lap and that was only on the 1st and 2nd hill, the third one I was ok on.  So, I finished in just over 34 minutes but really the achievement was just turning up today.

11/6 - My parents were up for a trip today and offered to take me down to Stranraer to do Agnew parkrun after the fun I had last month trying to get there.  But as it should be doable by train when the trains do sort themselves out, I thought it would be a good opportunity to do a parkrun that is a bit harder to get to.  And that parkrun believe it or not is Loch Leven parkrun.  It feels like it should be easy, but you can't get public transport to it from my flat in the morning and it's even a bit complex getting somewhere to stay overnight and get there in the morning despite their being a bus stop next to Loch Leven Larder where the parkrun is.  So, my parents made it easy for me and gave me a lift in the morning.  Which I am very much grateful for.

We arrived in plenty of time and made our way to the start.  I started quite near the back and went off on the small loop.  It goes up a hill and when it comes back down the hill you can see the people behind you. This is when I realised there was only the tail walker behind me to my surprise.  Usually there at least some walkers but not today.  Once you do the small loop you do two big laps.  The first big lap I ran it all and managed to pick a few people off.  The second lap I had to walk jog as was feeling it a bit. It was very tough conditions today as it was very windy and the course is very exposed.  But I did enjoy it all the same and got round in just under 34 minutes.

18/06 - Today I was meant to be number checker at Queen's but due to a few dropouts in the morning I was moved to marshal point 2.  A fun morning all the same.

25/06 - Today was my parkrun buddy Stuart's last RD stint at Queen's park so a couple of my Rouken Glen buddies and I decided to go down for it.  It was nice because after Stuart had done the pre-run briefing, he said if the timekeepers were ready.  Craig one of the timers and another run director at Queen's said no and continued to thank Stuart for all he has done for Queen's and at parkrun. I think he and we all know Stuart will continue volunteering in some capacity, but this was his last RD stint.  And he deserves all the plaudits for all he has done for parkrun over the years.

In terms of the run itself I started walking in the second hill of the first lap and I was lapped earlier than ever before just coming round the last bend of the first lap.  So, I didn't think I was doing too well. But turned out the guy only went and smashed the course record. I continued running the flats and downs and walking the ups round the last 2 laps.  On the last lap the new course record holder was now doing some hill reps to warm down while supporting folk like me who were still busting a gut to get round.  I was going faster down the hills so came in just under 34 minutes again.

I look back at my average time for the last few months and it's been pretty consistent at around the 34-minute mark.  This is a lot higher than I usually am for this time of year.  And in the first 6 months of this year, I've only managed one sub 30-minute 5k which is unusual for me too. I have been doing Queen's a lot though.  I think that is what I am going to change going into July as Queen's is one of the toughest parkruns in Scotland.  With Largs Prom and Elder park started up which are both flat I think I'll try and get them done in July and take things from there.

Volunteering at parkrun - My own experience and thoughts

 Volunteering at parkrun is probably one of the most talked about topics at parkrun.  Mainly because without volunteers parkruns across the globe cannot go ahead.  There are also many different opinions on how often you should volunteer and in some cases whether you need to volunteer at all.  As some folk point out, the term "volunteer" implies it is totally up to the individual whether they want to or not.  Personally, I have had all sorts of opinions on the matter over the years and that is what this blog is going to be about along with my own journey with volunteering at parkruns over the years.

2009-2011

My first stint at parkrun started in June 2009.  I got the whole setup straight away during my first parkrun and volunteered the very next week.  Back then I hadn't even thought to do a 5k as I was more of a long-distance runner so volunteering at parkrun made perfect sense. During my first volunteer stint I was put on finish token support being paired off with a chap called Ralph, someone I still come across at parkruns to this day.  

That's the first thing I would like to point out about volunteering.  It puts you in a situation where you basically have to talk to people, it is extremely social.  Even marshalling where some people think they are put out in positions round the course by themselves.  You still go to the positions and come back from the positions with marshals who are near to your location, so still get to chat.  

In those days although a few parkruns did open up in Scotland other than Pollok, Pollok was the only parkrun I attended in this period.  In my head I thought I volunteered a lot but actually I didn't volunteer as much as I thought because over that 2-year period I only volunteered 38 times.  It would have been more if I didn't have the attitude that volunteering every week wasn't really the done thing so I did skip quite a few weeks, sometimes due to races as well and others where I was running parkrun which I only did 16 times over the 2 years.

But the thing is back then you did get people like today who volunteered a lot.  But the general rule of thumb was to volunteer 3 times a year.  And if everyone did that then Run Directors wouldn't have a problem getting volunteers every week.

I was also always a very last-minute volunteer in those days. I'm not sure why but usually if an email came out on the Friday, the day before the event, I would volunteer then rather than nowadays where I usually volunteer a week in advance.  On top of that I would do any task and would more often than not be found token sorting in the cafe.  Token sorting is something I have always found fun.  Mainly because I like having something to do when socialising.

August 2014 to early 2017

I took an extended break from running from June 2011 to August 2014.  There were points I tried to get back into it but those attempts were short lived.  I had put on weight which is something I am still to this day not succeeded in shifting. But in August 2014 my running journey started up again and I decided to make running parkruns more regular to get fitter.  This meant putting the volunteering on the back foot.  But that wasn't the only reason I didn't volunteer as much.  My shaking had also got worse which my doctor had said is because of the medication I was on.  So, that made me a bit embarrassed to volunteer having gone from being able to do everything to having to say I can't do this job or this job.  Things like barcode scanning, timing and finish tokens do require a steady hand and I just didn't have that anymore.

I still did volunteer sometimes though once I had got some of my confidence up.  One time I think they put me on finish tokens accidently and I did it anyway.  I managed but I did find it difficult with the shaking.  In that 3 year period between 2014 and early 2017 I probably only volunteered about 7 times. The thing is you would have thought the number of parkruns I would have been a lot.  But especially in 2016 where I was trying to up the distance, I only did 26 that year.  Then I did 35 in 2015.  But most important thing about this period was that I was into running again, a lot more than before.

2017-2019

In about April 2017 I volunteered at Rouken Glen junior parkrun for the first time.  I had previously visited in November 2016 with my brother and niece as I ran round with my niece marking her first parkrun.  I can't remember why I volunteered that day, but I went back time and time again.  In fact, it became part of my Sunday routine.  The thing is like when I started volunteering at Pollok, I didn't know anyone.  But week by week, you gradually get to know more and more people.

In October 2017 I went on the Rouken Glen night out to celebrate their first birthday.  This is where I was asked to become a member of the core team. A team I am still a member of to this day.  Meanwhile in parkrun 5k land I wasn't volunteering that much still and, in my head, because I was volunteering a lot at the juniors I didn't need to volunteer at the 5ks that much.  Somewhere during this time the tail walker job began to become unpopular due to generally their being at least one kid crying at the back and eventually having to drop out.  But I started doing it and all of a sudden they started to give me the job on a regular basis. To be honest I didn’t really mind the crying kids, obviously I’d rather see them happy but I usually their parents would be their to deal with them so all I had to do was ask the question of whether they were continuing or not.

2019 to present

In 2019 I began touring a lot more and I think by the time October came around I had only volunteered at a 5k once and that was Drumchapel in June.  I was still volunteering at Rouken glen a lot though.  In October though I did think I should be volunteering a bit more at 5ks and when I did go back and volunteer at Pollok it was noticed that I hadn't volunteered there for quite a while.  So, I decided that really, I should be volunteering at 5ks once a month and that would be a good ratio.  Queen's parkrun didn't start long after this and for a time I couldn't decide which would be my home run, Queen's or Pollok before settling on Queen's.  Mainly because it's closer to my flat.  I still try and keep up my volunteering at Queen’s to this day.

Thoughts

It's very difficult to know how much you should volunteer. Mainly because some people don't run parkrun as much as others.  Some say, every 10 runs, some say every 20, 30. Some still say 3 times a year.  Some say only when you feel comfortable.  Then there's the argument about volunteering where you can still run. Does that still count? I.e. token sorting, pre-event setup, first timers briefing. Should you be giving up your run? Is it really giving up your run when it is so rewarding?

I don't have the answer. All I know is that when I do run my home run, I know I will know at least some else running. And when I am running round, more often than not I will know many of the volunteers.  There is no way I would know nearly as many people in the running community if it wasn't for volunteering at parkrun.  It is environment which makes socialising and meeting new people easy.   

May update

 Bit of a different update this month.  It started off ok then fell off the rails.

7th May - For the first parkrun of the month I was volunteering at Queen's as number checker.  Really enjoyed it.  Mainly hanging out with the timekeepers for the day Tim and Derek and it was great.

14th May -  My sole parkrun actually running of the month was back at Queen's.  Had my usual walking breaks and plodded round in 33.41.  Quite a few people I knew were there so got chatting to them before and after.  Craig, Jo, Lisa and Kirstin.  They were all way ahead of me for most of the run but I did catch Lisa just before the last hill.  But on the final downhill she went for it and I couldn't actually go any faster (or I can say I let her win lol.)

21st May - I had the day off on the Friday to head down to Stranraer by train and had a hotel booked not too far from the start.  I left at 1pm got the train in to towm.  Then I headed for Ayr where I had to change.  But that was to be the turning point, literally.  I got to Ayr at 3pm and saw my connection was cancelled and the next one wasn't till 5.30.  I was considering turning round then and heading back. But I thought if I turned back I would end up getting in at 6 and I would still get to Stranraer at 7 so not that much difference.  So I found a Costa, told the hotel to put my dinner reservation back to 7.30.  Then at 5pm I headed for the station.  Only to find that the 5.30 Stranraer train had disappeared from the board.  And it was only going to Girvan.  Then the final train of the day was also cancelled.  So I had no choice but to cancel the hotel, turn round and go home.  I couldn't really believe it.  I have nearly missed parkrun starts by a fraction before but have always completed them.  It took me off guard and the next day I ended up not going to parkrun.  I had already decided not to do juniors that week either just to give myself a day off.

With the problems with the trains looking set to continue it has put me in two minds whether to continue the challenge of trying to tick off all the parkruns in Scotland.  Half of me thinks this may just be bad luck.  The other half thinks maybe I need a new challenge that doesn't rely on public transport.  Even trying to go sub 30 at Queen's.

28th May - This one I was thinking of running somewhere but Richie, one of the run directors at Queen's, said he was going travelling and this would be his last RD stint at Queen's for quite a while.  So I stepped up to volunteer.  Then Thursday came and about half way through the morning I had to log off as I was feeling unwell and unforetuaneltey had to miss all parkrun activity that weekend.

So, not the best of months but still need to document to see where I can learn and improve. I'll get to Stranraer one day lol.