Episode 26 - Double Anniversary

2016-06-28

In this episode

• Event Director interview — Puarenga parkrun, New Zealand (Alison King)

  The hosts cross "across the ditch" to Rotorua, New Zealand to interview Alison King, Event Director of the newly launched Puarenga parkrun. She explains the name (Te Reo Māori for "sulphur flowers"), the two-lap geothermal Sulphur Trek course with its steam vents, the 128-runner launch (beating Anderson parkrun Napier's 97), how the Marathon Talk podcast got her into parkrun, her one previous parkrun at Barry Curtis in Auckland, and her plan to run Norwich parkrun on her sister's wedding day. Signs off with "it's the parkrun where you never run out of steam."

• Facts in a Haystack

  Ian Hay's stats segment. He abandons a planned State of Origin Queensland-vs-NSW stats comparison ("no matter which angle I looked at, I just couldn't find a way for New South Wales to win"), then covers the winter drop-off in national attendance (from ~25,000 in April down to ~18,000, and under 10,000 in the flooding week), and analyses the Peel Club — parkrunners who have run one event in each of the eight states and territories. Mel has just become the club's number 10; 13 people sit on seven states and 64 on six or seven. He notes Peel Club members average 49 volunteer stints each.

• Social Adventurers

  The hosts read out listener posts from Instagram (Expat Runner at Kilkenny, Running Guy Ryan dressed as a clown at Logan River's third birthday, Bunny_79 at Town of Seaside, Miss Spelt at Nambour, Mama of Hope, Hey TJ's jellyfish crazy socks at Jells, Tesla Fox at Mornington Peninsula, Running Optimistic, Jenna at Crissy Field, Will B in 1981 the "parkrun evangelist", Jez Savage at Pioneer) then move to Facebook (Gary Nisbet and Peter Pohlman congratulating the show on 25 episodes, Tim Baldwin's Mornington Peninsula anniversary costume pics, Rowan Durant at Albert Park, Liv Coop at Black Butt reaching her 20th different parkrun).

• Launches and anniversaries ("Where is the cake?")

  The weekly calendar slot. Three launches in three states: Cobram (Victoria), Atherton (Queensland) and Strathalbyn (South Australia) — with Scott hinting that "Underscore PK" might go to Strathalbyn and file a roving report. Only one anniversary: Aveley parkrun in WA celebrating its third.

• parkrun adventure challenge (listener challenge)

  Scott announces there is a challenge for listeners but deliberately withholds it — the reveal is deferred a week ("you've got seven days of thinking of what our challenge is going to be"), with the hosts committing to attempt it themselves first. Only clues given: "It's to do with running... It's to do with parkrun."