Parkrun still growing in popularity

The crowd is not there for goals, tries or wickets – they are there to run.

Parkrun has become a weekly ritual for families and fun runners since it began in Launceston more than five years ago.

It has gotten so popular that a second branch was started at Windsor Precinct at the end of last year.

The event shows no signs of slowing down, drawing in more than 300 people each week.

Parkrun Launceston event director Michael den Hartog has seen its growth within the community first hand, having been involved for four years.

He said inclusivity formed the basis of its appeal.

“Every Saturday morning, we get everyone from serious runners to people who walk the event,” he said.

“There is no pressure on people.

“It’s at the same place every week and it is free.

“There is a broad community there, and people come back.”

The first parkrun was held at Teddington in the UK in 2004.

There may have been only 13 people, but the premise was the same – a free five kilometre run where the results were timed. 

It launched in Australia on April 4, 2011, with the Gold Coast’s Main Beach providing the first circuit.

Launceston was one of the first 20 sites to have parkrun in the country and the first within Tasmania.

Since November, 2012, more than 6000 runners have completed 274,345 kilometres.

Mr den Hartog said there was never any shortage of newcomers to parkrun events around Australia.

“Once they have done it a few times, it is quite common for people to become parkrun tourists,” he said.

“When they travel, they make sure on Friday night there is a parkrun near where they are staying.

“My wife and I are about to head to Queensland, where we will have the opportunity to attend two separate parkrun events.”

While it is among the most prominent, parkrun is far from the only source of social running in Launceston.

Events such as the Launceston Running Festival and the Launceston marathon are complemented by community fun runs such as the Lilydale Lope.

This year marked the 44^th year of the Lope, with 38 competitors taking to the circuit.

Given the event has traditionally attracted a field of more than 50 runners, it represented one of its more modest turnouts.

At the time, organiser Frank Nott admitted parkrun could have affected numbers.

“We’ve found that parkrun has impacted numbers since it was introduced,” he said.

“People aren’t going to run five kilometres and then come and do this.”

The Lilydale Lope forms part of the Launceston Running Club’s season of handicapped events.

First established in 1948, the club holds 20 races in Northern Tasmania from April through to September.

It is one of multiple community running groups represented in the parkrun results, along with Ultrain, Newstead Athletics, Tasmanian Masters Athletics, and the Esk Valley Orienteering Club.

Launceston Running Club president Michelle Frost was diplomatic when asked about how parkrun had changed Launceston’s fitness landscape.

“I think it probably has had a small impact, but we like to see it in a positive way,” she said.

“People can do parkrun and learn how to be a five kilometre runner, which is the shortest distance we offer in our events.

“If they want to challenge themselves, they can come to our club and do anything from five kilometres to 21 kilometres, while also getting to run in different places each week.

“A lot of our runners will do parkrun at 9am and then come and run with us at 11am.

“For me, it is about working with them and we see it as a way of increasing our audience in the long run.”

Globally, the influence of the weekly event has extended beyond the fitness sector.

General Practitioner clinics in the the UK now have the option of becoming ‘parkrun practices’, where doctors can prescribe the social running group to patients.

There was also the launch of the first prison parkrun in October last year, where inmates of a Cumbria facility made their way around a five kilometre course within the site’s perimeter.

In its newsletter for this week, parkrun listed five of its most remote events, which included Novosibirsk in Siberia – a town more than 1300 km away from its nearest neighbour.

The website not only features testimonials from runners, but also stories of survival, with a defibrillator used on a woman who suffered a cardiac arrest at a Queensland parkrun this month.

Despite being the fastest growing fitness movement ever, Mr den Hartog said parkrun still manages to maintain its connection to the community.

“Before we head out each Saturday morning, we have a pre-race briefing, which is just a chance to make sure everyone is right to run on the day,” he said.

“We also celebrate milestones, such as someone reaching 50, 100, or 250 runs. 

“If someone gets to that stage, they are publicly recognised.”