Episode 87

2017-10-26

Roving reportersGreta — roving reporter (surname not stated) Lyndell Murray

Show notes

The parkrun adventurers take a talk down memory lane as we prepare for a parkrun party weekend. We head out to Dalby parkrun for a chat with Event Director Myf Schenk, and our roving reporters roll up to Murray Bridge and East Coast Park parkruns. Plus we announce an adventurous prize for pondering the pa perlustration

Enhanced transcript

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

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Guests

Myf Schenk

Event Director, Dalby parkrun (Queensland)

Dalby parkrun and the town of Dalby — launching an event in an inland Queensland country town, the flat three-lap creek course and its two-metre "Heartbreak Hill", building a volunteer team from scratch, her five boys, run directing, her alphabet challenge and proposed volunteering alphabet, and her top three events (Wishart, Highfields, Jells).

Interviewed by Melissa Erbacher, Scott Trickett

Roving reports

Murray Bridge

Reported by Greta

East Coast Park

Reported by Lyndell Murray

In this episode

Memory lane reminiscing (parkrun party week special)
Extended opening block in which the two hosts tell their own parkrun origin stories ahead of a weekend where both their home events celebrate anniversaries — Melissa Erbacher's Kawana (5th, event number two attendee, learned about parkrun through her local-government workplace) and Scott Trickett's Westerfolds (4th, after finding parkrun via running chat rooms and an underwhelming first visit to Albert Park). Covers first-anniversary cakes, Tim Oberg's stock compliment, fancy-dress themes (green at Westerfolds, 80s sports athletes at Kawana) and a digression about favourite Muppets.
Meet the ED
Studio interview with Myf Schenk, Event Director of Dalby parkrun in inland Queensland — a flat three-lap course along the creek with a two-metre "Heartbreak Hill", 35 events in, 90% tree cover. Covers the town, forming a volunteer team (husband Chris did the early course setups), her five boys, her alphabet challenge and her idea of a volunteering alphabet, and her top three events: Wishart, Highfields and Jells.
Roving Adventurers (roving reporter crossovers)
Greta reports from Murray Bridge parkrun's third anniversary in South Australia, with her junior assistant Jess taking some of the interviews. Talks to Run Director Rose (course along the river, the coin-operated papier-mache bunyip), trail runner Monique and daughter Helena, visiting parkrunner Sakshi, 204-parkrun veteran Ros from Mount Barker, and Michelle at the post-run cafe.
Channel 5 News Crew
Lyndell Murray files an international roving report from East Coast Park parkrun in Singapore, explicitly framed as loading herself "into the Channel 5 News crew chopper". Interviews running blogger Priscilla, South African tourist Mark, New Zealand first-timer Brent, long-time local Anna, and Run Director Daryl, then signs off comparing East Coast Park and West Coast Park.
Launches and anniversaries ("Where is the cake?")
Three launches this weekend — Cloncurry (QLD), Kangaroo Island (SA) and Railton (TAS), the latter being the 250th parkrun in Australia and in Tasmania's topiary capital. Anniversaries at Bunbury (WA), Darwin (NT), Highfields (QLD), Kawana (QLD), Mudjimba (QLD), Port Macquarie (NSW), North Lakes (QLD), Shelley (WA) and Westerfolds (VIC) — the hosts note that after this weekend every state and territory except the ACT will have an anniversary on this weekend.
The Perlustration (annual listener survey)
Final week of the annual listener survey. The hosts invent a giveaway on air to boost responses: TomTom (a parkrun partner) have supplied one of their "Adventurer" watches in parkrun orange, and listeners can enter by emailing any one of their own perlustration answers to parkrunadventurers@gmail.com within a week. Results to be broken down on the podcast in two weeks' time.
November Madness
The hosts announce the return of November Madness, a state-versus-state listener knowledge competition. This time they will not nominate contestants — listeners self-nominate or nominate someone else. Carryover champion is Melissa Ellis (Victoria), and the one rule is no Victorian challengers until she is dethroned, though Victorians can join a waiting list. No prize beyond the glory.