Episode 37 - Danny Norman

2016-09-21

HostsDeborah Mills Melissa Erbacher Scott Trickett

Show notes

The parkrun adventurers explore a new course and let our hair down, 80s style. Sandgate 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.

Enhanced transcript

Checked transcript — speakers named, sound described, segments marked.

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Guests

Vanessa Gibson

Event Director, Sandgate parkrun; co-organiser, Sandgate Sunset Run

Sandgate parkrun's 200th event, the permanent course change onto the reopened Shorncliffe Pier, how she came to found the event, and the Sandgate Sunset Run two-hour roundabout relay including its new social relay category. She also mentions co-hosting a few episodes of the earlier parkrun Australia podcast with Robbo and Russ.

Interviewed by Melissa Erbacher, Scott Trickett

Danny Norman

Original host of The parkrun Show podcast; Bushy Park parkrun founding-era participant (athlete ID 482); Event Director, Surbiton Junior parkrun

parkrun's growth from the 2005 Bushy Park Time Trial to ~150,000 runners a week; how he came to host The parkrun Show (186 episodes) via his Bushy run reports and Tom Williams; co-hosts Martin, Tom and Nicola Forwood; whether he misses it; his top parkruns (Bushy, Ellenbrook Fields, Surbiton Junior, Marecchia in Rimini); and plans for his 500th parkrun at Bradford.

Interviewed by Melissa Erbacher, Scott Trickett

In this episode

Channel 5 News Crew
Mock-serious weekly news bulletin read alternately by both hosts: parkrun Australia registration and attendance stats, inaugural events cancelled for safety (You Yangs and "Maury"), the extended Strava art competition deadline, Kurt Fearnley's medal at "the Large Quadrennial International Sporting Event", weekend non-parkrun races, and a magpie-attack scare story with a first-person victim account from Deborah Mills.
Mel's news / Scotty news
Hosts' own weekend round-up, cued at [00:04:15] "is there any Mel's news from the weekend worth sharing?" Mel has none; Scott recounts running Pakenham parkrun (a new event for him) in an 80s dress-up costume — leopard-skin women's pants, rocker t-shirt and a big wig — plus his daughter's parachute tracksuit, then a shared digression about magpie swooping season.
Meet the ED
Interview with Vanessa Gibson, Event Director of Sandgate parkrun: their 200th event that weekend, the permanent course change out onto the newly reopened Shorncliffe Pier, how she came to found the event after Tim Oberg told her to start it herself, and the Sandgate Sunset Run — a two-hour team relay around a roundabout that she and husband Dean created in 2014.
Strava Art Competition
Listener challenge to create artwork out of Strava GPS traces. Deadline extended to Sunday 25 September (announced in the news at [00:01:29]); winner to be revealed next episode; prizes are a certificate, DVDs and a polo shirt, plus a joke "mystery option P". Mel floats a Strava-art coffee table book as future merch.
Social Adventurers
Round-up of listener posts, cued at [00:52:05] "Now let's quickly wrap up social adventuring over the weekend." Instagram tags (Miss Belt, Macalicious, David D'Alessio, Sandy's Shell Life, Running Guy Ryan, Mac Girl 19, Dirty Cheaters, Simon P King, Will B 1981, Evans High, Nod Lightyear) and Facebook posts from Rowan Durant, Simon Mackley (97th parkrun, 100th due 22 October at Mossman), Sally Heppleston (PB after 18 months) and Allan Connolly at Sandon Point parkrun.
The Perlustration (annual listener survey)
Scott previews results of the listeners' survey question "how long between PBs?", reporting that respondents are struggling to get PBs — which the hosts read either as a long-tenured audience or, per Scott's joke, as listeners "not trying hard enough".
Launches and anniversaries ("Where is the cake?")
Weekly anniversary and launch calendar, cued by Mel at [00:55:59] "And are there places we can go for cake this weekend, Scotty?" Ashgrove (QLD) first, Barrel (NSW) second, Merimbula (NSW) third, Tamworth (NSW) second, Toowoomba (QLD) third; plus the rescheduled You Yangs and "Maury" launches. Runs into a running gag about which states miss out on cake.
Word of the week
Closing vocabulary bit — Mel: "last week we had the first ever educational podcast word of the week. Have you got a new one for us?" Scott's word is "indolent", chosen because he skipped his midweek runs; he glosses it as "addicted to the life of pleasure" and "feeling a bit lazy".