Episode 391 - The Rookie

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HostsMelissa Ellis Simon Mackley

Roving reportersAli Sheppard Ruth Perkins

Show notes

From the Facebook post

Simon and Mel were back at the standup desks to discuss the Olympics, Singapore's extra day and where they popped up on parkrunday ( Lota (opens in a new tab) parkrun & Peppertree). There were two UK roving reports, with Ruth reporting in from Rotherham (opens in a new tab) parkrun and Ali at Thames Path (opens in a new tab) parkrun, Woolwich. Mail was received about Matilda, two launches discussed, talk of (legal) Budgie smuggling and Rachel gave us some more regional challenges.

Do you feel lucky punk?

From the podcast feed

Simon and Mel were back at the standup desks to discuss the Olympics, Singapore's extra day and where they popped up on parkrunday (Lota & Peppertree). There were two UK roving reports, with Ruth reporting in from Rotherham (opens in a new tab) parkrun and Ali at Thames Path Woolwich parkrun. Mail was received about Matilda, two launches discussed, talk of (legal) budgie smuggling and Rachel gave us some more regional challenges. Do you feel lucky punk?

Roving reports

1Rotherham2Thames Path, Woolwich

In this episode

• Welcome starts at 0:24

  Simon Mackley on Quandamooka Country and Melissa Ellis on Wurundjeri Country, with Simon nervous about his Backyard Ultra next weekend. Simon's Dexes put Mel top on eight, TOC and Ollie on six and Sarah on five, though his highest overall is Dorota on 124. He ran Lota (61 finishers, a wet southern end after the tide) with Peter Pohlman and his sister Jeanette; Mel ran Peppertree event 167, her sixth visit and fastest time there, with Adrian Hillyer, Emma Toll, Donna Markwick, Kylie Cooper and David Johnston. Richard wrote in adding Olympic triathletes Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde to the international parkrunners list.

• parkrun news bulletin starts at 4:36

  Olympics-flavoured news and discussion: listener Richard writes in adding triathlon gold medallist Alex Yee (England) and silver medallist Hayden Wilde (New Zealand) to the list of Olympic parkrunners; the hosts' favourite Paris events; and Singapore's extra parkrun day for National Day (independence from Malaysia in 1965), with Bishan the only event declared so far and 40mm of rain forecast. Janet Reid and Eric Banner are both heading over for it.

• Roving reports & the Channel 5 News crew starts at 8:52

  Two UK roving reports back to back: Ruth Perkins at Rotherham parkrun (with an interview with co-founder Kim Phillips) and Ali Sheppard at Thames Path parkrun, Woolwich (with an interview with Run Director Lawrence Wong). On the return Simon notes Ruth has run 143 parkruns at 143 different locations and volunteered 75 times at 74 different locations.

• Dazza's starts at 25:23

  The week's Dazza's challenge was to work the word 'jumpy' into a post, on an International Clown Week theme. Posts read out from Rex Gream (Renton, USA), Andy Airey (Medina, Isle of Wight, by hovercraft), Adrian Homburg (Birdsland Reserve), Chloe Bravos (Jarrahdale Heritage), Eric Banner (Kate Reed, Tasmania), Sherry Brandtman (Panania, for Abby Brantman's v100), Ian Thompson (Salisbury), Ali Sheppard (Orpington, completing stopwatch bingo on her 238th parkrun), TOC (Trebeck Reserve) and Calum Burrell (Lyme Park).

• the Obi Award — Ian Thompson starts at 33:36

  The Obi is presented from the 'Obilope' and goes to Ian Thompson for his very brightly coloured attire, matching shorts worn with 'the dude' at Salisbury parkrun, on the week's clown/bright-clothes theme. Ali Sheppard is named a very close second for her sunflower hat and skirt at Orpington.

• Emails starts at 34:24

  Greg Garner answers last week's question about the kangaroo mascot Matilda: she was the mascot of the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, famous for winking her way around the stadium, and still stands at a service station near Traveston south of Gympie. A second email was held over and read inside the launches segment.

• Club Corner starts at 36:20

  Rachel covers the New England Highway club (14 events over two states, Yarraman QLD to Hexham NSW), the 5K club (21 Australian events beginning with K) and the All Saints club (St George, St Lucia and St Peters), named for the Channel 7 drama, closing with the reminder that all non-milestone clubs are unofficial and unsupported by parkrun.

• Consolidated Club Report starts at 41:08

  For Saturday 3 August 2024: of 669 members, 510 took part, a first time over 500, across 258 locations in nine countries. Queensland led with 58 events, Victoria 45 (tying with the UK), NSW 43, WA 13, SA 11, Tasmania 10, ACT 6, North Island 5, NT 2, South Island 1. Nobody at Bushy this week. A special mention for Ross-on-Wye's fifth birthday, where an after-the-fact correction confirms Monty Slade's post marked his 500th parkrun.

• the Frond starts at 42:16

  Largest Australian frond was 12 adventurers at Pirrama parkrun, the newest event in Sydney (Ingrid Botha, Laura Amos, Helen and Steve Davis, Renata Koch, Sheila Sharma, Rosie Aloe, Sam and Luke Schroder, Roberta Winters, Stephen Cox and Kevin Pickup). Largest international frond was seven at Medina, Isle of Wight, the Airey Airways hovercraft outing.

• Launches and anniversaries starts at 44:30"Where is the cake?"

  Two launches. Ashburton Domain parkrun in New Zealand, New Zealand's 50th launch, covered by a held-over email from Brett and Tanya, who caravanned down for a minus-five-degree frost and an inaugural of 185 finishers, 68 parkrun first-timers and 29 volunteers under the snow-capped Southern Alps. And Coal Creek Trail parkrun in Cedar City, Utah: an out-and-back up Cedar Canyon to 1,850m, with 30 finishers, 10 volunteers and 22 (73%) first-timers.

• parkrun adventure challenge starts at 48:59listener challenge

  In the spirit of the Olympics, adventurers are asked to strike a pose in their parkrun photo this week, 'do a bolt', the Usain Bolt archer pose, hands up and pointing off at an angle.

• Sign-off starts at 49:58

  Simon said he would miss parkrun day for a good reason - his first backyard ultra, the Clint Eastwood at Oxley Creek Common, starting Friday at 9am with his wife crewing for him - and Mel said she would be at the Ponds parkrun, carrying Budgie, the little Jetstar aeroplane baton she had had engraved with his name and the podcast email, packed in a blue pencil case with rules that he must be handed on at a parkrun event, travel with an adventurer, visit every Australian state and territory and then find his way to Danny or Nicola from With Me Now in England, with a barcode made by Sarah Jefferson linking to the Facebook page. She noted Budgie had already been to Balclutha parkrun in New Zealand and that Ollie would be at Rex Jackson. Mel wished Simon luck, said she would be hearing the ultra aftermath when she edited his next episode with Sarah from the West Side, and closed with the Facebook and email contacts and 'that's it for another week'.