Episode 37 - Danny Norman
2016-09-21
— open the full-size artworkShow artwork, July 2016HostsMelissa Erbacher Scott Trickett
GuestsDanny Norman Vanessa Gibson
Show notes
The parkrun adventurers explore a new course and let our hair down, 80s style. Sandgate (opens in a new tab) parkrun Event Director Vanessa Gibson gives us the rundown on running round in circles at The Sandgate Sunset Run. And we talk podcasts and parkrun history with The parkrun Show original, Danny Norman.
Listen
Open on Podbean (opens in a new tab) Press any timestamp below to play from that moment.
Enhanced transcript
Speakers named, sound described and segments marked by the editing pass — not yet checked by a person.
Read the transcriptGuests
Vanessa Gibson
Sandgate parkrun's 200th event; the permanent course change out onto the newly reopened Shorncliffe Pier (350m long, 700m of the course, and the turnaround); how she came to found the event after her local councillor put out the call and Tim Oberg told her to start it herself; the Sandgate Sunset Run, a two-hour team relay of 250m laps around the Sandgate roundabout at night, now in its third year with a new 60-team social relay for ages 12 and up; and her stint co-hosting the original parkrun Australia podcast with Robbo and Russ.
Danny Norman
The episode's headline interview: running the original Bushy Park Time Trial in August 2005 (athlete ID 482); watching parkrun grow from 35 runners to ~150,000 a week; how writing the Bushy run reports led Tom Williams to bring him into the podcast alongside Martin and later Nicola; whether he misses it; Bushy still being home despite touring; his top parkruns (Bushy, Ellenbrook Fields, Surbiton Juniors, Marecchia in Rimini); 496 parkruns at 179 different venues; and his plan to run his 500th at Bradford parkrun for Event Director Linda Bussey.
In this episode
Welcome starts at 0:11
Melissa Erbacher opens episode 37, hosting with Scott Trickett, and the two swap hellos.
parkrun news bulletin starts at 0:19
Mock-newsreader bulletin, traded line by line between Mel and Scott: weekly parkrun Australia registration and attendance stats; parkrun HQ support-team volumes; weather cancellations, including the cancelled You Yangs and "Maury" inaugurals rescheduled to 24 September; the extension of the show's own Strava art competition deadline to 25 September; Kurt Fearnley's silver medal at the "Large Quadrennial International Sporting Event"; the winter running season (Blackmores Sydney Running Festival, Mitchell Street Mile, Devil's Lair Cape to Cape); and a magpie-swooping report with a first-person victim testimony from Deborah Mills, closing with a plug for magpiealert.com. Scott signs it off "And so that's the news news."
Strava Art Competition starts at 51:12
Scott confirms the entry deadline has been extended by a few days and that the winner will be announced next week, "100% guaranteed". Mel floats a coffee-table photo book of listener Strava art as future merch; Scott files it in the "ideas vault". Prizes referenced later in the episode are a certificate, two DVDs, a polo shirt and a "mystery option P".
Social Adventurers starts at 52:05
Weekly wrap of listener posts. Instagram: Miss Belt and Macalicious attempting the Strava Art Challenge, David D'Alessio's marathon, Sandy's Shell Life (Michelle), Running Guy Ryan, Mac Girl 19, Dirty Cheaters, Simon P King, Will B 1981, Evans High, and Nod Lightyear. Facebook: Rowan Durant on a noisy parkrun morning; Simon Mackley's 97th parkrun with his 100th planned at Mossman on 22 October; Sally Heppleston's PB after 18 months; Alan Connolly's eight-hour drive to Sydney rewarded with Sandon Point parkrun; and Alison Webster's last-minute Strava art.
The Perlustration starts at 53:47annual listener survey
Scott gives a short preview of the listener survey results, prompted by Sally Heppleston's 18-month PB drought: the survey asked "how long between PBs?" and respondents are struggling to set them. Mel suggests it means the audience is long-serving hardcore parkrunners; Scott insists "they're not trying hard enough."
Launches and anniversaries starts at 55:36"Where is the cake?"
Scott notes the two launches cancelled last weekend get another go this weekend (You Yangs and "Maury"). Mel asks "are there places we can go for cake this weekend, Scotty?" Anniversaries listed: Ashgrove (QLD) first, "Barrel" (NSW) second, Merimbula (NSW) third, Tamworth (NSW) second, and Toowoomba (QLD) third. The hosts note Victoria, SA, WA, Tasmania, NT and the ACT all miss out on cake.
Sign-off starts at 56:55
Coming out of the anniversaries, Mel asked Scotty for the week's educational word, and he offered "indolent", admitting he had been lazy and had not run enough during the week. Mel thanked him for the educational moment, he hoped the rest of her week and his own would be energetic and industrious, and he closed by trailing a massive episode 38 next week.