Episode 370 - What's in the Box?

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HostsMelissa Ellis Simon Mackley

Show notes

It’s Simon’s week in the co-host seat and apparently the weather up in Kingsland isn’t as great as they’d have us believe. Never mind. Mel had a lovely warm run at Ball Park (opens in a new tab) parkrun while Simon splashed it out at Chermside. We bring you some thoughts about Codes of Conduct and perceived barriers to participation, plus muse over the Adventurer growth in the UK. And we award an Obi to someone who didn’t even visit Dazzas! Because we can …

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In this episode

• Welcome starts at 0:23

  Simon Mackley on Quandamooka Country and Melissa Ellis on Wurundjeri Country, Simon's first episode since Ollie announced he is stepping back and his agreement to take an extra week a month. Listener feedback from Rory Marriott and Tracy Leiper on Lyndell's Ipswich report (Heartbreak Hill runs from the second marshal up to Chermside Road). Simon's parkrun was plan C at a flooded Chermside (event 393, exactly 300 participants, Turrbal land) after a wet Ashgrove the week before; Mel drove from 3.30am to Ball Park at Corowa (event 4, 65 participants, three out-and-backs on the Murray), where TOC missed parkrun for a trip to Corowa emergency department (nothing serious, he is fine), she met listener Mark Hibbard and wondered whether a midweek blood donation explained her sore quads. Then a mysterious box in the parkrun Learjet, Russ Jeffries' open letter (Freedom Runs quietly dropped from profiles) and the Yeppoon parkrun protest cancellation that went viral before parkrun Australia stepped in with a full roster.

• Dazza's starts at 25:59

  Random Acts of Kindness Day theme, "Dazza's Random Act of Kindness is giving you all a free parkrun and a delicious virtual treat." Posts read out: Brendan Scholarly (Batemans Bay, missed a course PB by four seconds); Anne Fry from South Australia (Maria Creek Reserve parkrun's first birthday, course and yearly PB); Andy Airey from the Netherlands, 39 of the "Airey Airways posse" at the new Z event, an 800km drive each way, five completing their first alphabet; Monty Slade in the UK (Hereford, collecting old trainers to recycle); Andrew Yeatman from WA (Moora parkrun's seventh birthday, on paparazzi duty in flip-flops); Calum Burrell (three of a Frond of five volunteering at Clarence, Lindsay Burrell and Pippa White scanning, Phil Corker Token Sorting for his 50th volunteer occasion); Tracy Leiper (Robelle Domain cancelled for wet weather, housework instead); and Heather Patzel from Victoria (touristing Wimmera River at Horsham with husband Daryl, adventurer Kirsty Ganji also there); plus Ryan Stoddart in NSW completing the Dizzy Heights Challenge at Australian Standing Stones, Armidale and Walcha, and Johan Duvenhage tail walking with Gillian Findlay at Toboshane Valley Estate in South Africa.

• the Obi Award — Phil Corker starts at 32:26

  Melissa hands the Obi to Simon to award. It goes to Phil Corker, for Token Sorting on his 50th volunteering occasion at Clarence parkrun in the UK. Phil did not post to Dazza's himself, he was named in Calum Burrell's post, and the hosts award it anyway: "he didn't actually send in, but it's okay because we don't have rules about things like that. So well done, Calum. You got Phil an Obi." This matches the show notes: "we award an Obi to someone who didn't even visit Dazza's!"

• Emails starts at 33:11

  One email, from Tracey Wood: since Abby was included at the end of an episode she has listened right to the very end each week, and this week was rewarded with Melissa's giggles at the segment bloopers left in after the outro, "I was laughing along with her at the attempt to remember which episode number it was. Please continue this." Signed "Thanks so much, Tracey. Sometimes in a tutu." Prompts a discussion between the hosts about why the old post-outro "spoilers" bit was dropped (weekly pressure to come up with a special feature) and whether an outtake works better because it is spontaneous rather than canned.

• Club Corner starts at 34:49

  Rachel's pre-recorded piece on restricted parkruns, events inside custodial or military facilities, which cannot be attended without being a member of that community or being vouched for by one, and where vouching is not open to anyone who asks ("please don't just ping off and start asking restricted events if you can pop along on a Saturday"). Australia has at least seven restricted events on the books and has had a further eight open at various times; worldwide there are nearly 50 active custodial events; the longest-running Australian one has passed 150 events and a UK one has passed 250. Closes with her standing line that all non-milestone clubs are unofficial and unsupported by parkrun. Simon thanks her afterwards and notes Puckapunyal as the one listeners will already have heard of.

• Consolidated Club Report starts at 36:57

  For Saturday 17 February 2024: of 558 members, 422 took part, in six countries across 202 locations. Overseas, 31 events in the UK, four in South Africa, two in the USA, one in the Netherlands. Domestically, 45 events in Victoria, 43 in New South Wales, 30 in Queensland, 13 in Western Australia, 11 in South Australia, 9 in Tasmania, 6 on the North Island, 5 in the ACT, 2 on the South Island and none in the Northern Territory. Talking point of the week: the UK came third, pipping Queensland by one, prompting a discussion of adventurer growth in the UK (also flagged in the show notes).

• the Frond starts at 38:48

  International Frond at Clarence parkrun in the UK, a group of four, Phil Corker, Pippa White, Christine Imbert and Calum Burrell, after Christine and Pippa turned up unannounced to turn "a mini frond into a fully formed frond"; Lindsay Burrell volunteered so did not count. Largest Australian Frond at Shellharbour with ten adventurers; Moree had a Frond of eight (Brett and Kathy Crispin, Amy Miller, John Pointon, Jan Yates, Sherry Brandtman, Debbie Ho and Joanne Lowe), with Kathy Crispin's Dazza's post read out describing the train trip up from Sydney and Jan Yates ticking off her Cow.

• Sign-off starts at 43:36

  Mel said she had had to ask Sarah from the West Side where she was going, and was heading west to South Australia to be with Sarah Jefferson for Reynella East, possibly a Wilson number for both of them, staying two nights and taking in Thornton Juniors as well; Simon said his choice of Greenbank, Kedron or Paradise Point - his NENDY - was weather dependent with more rain forecast in Brisbane, having said earlier he was trying for the fourth time to get to Queen Elizabeth Casino in two or three weeks. They finished with Simon showing off an Adidas 50 shirt sent over by Mark Brocklehurst, then Mel gave the Facebook and email contacts, thanked Simon for joining her and said she would see him in a month.