Episode 397 - The Grate Return

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HostsSarah Jefferson Simon Mackley

Roving reportersAlison Fraser (King) Janet Reid Lyndell Murray

Show notes

From the Facebook post

Simon and Sarah are reunited to discuss their latest adventures to Samford Parklands (opens in a new tab) and Dolls Point (opens in a new tab) parkruns. There are roving reports from Alison visiting Ōrākei Bay (opens in a new tab) parkrun , Lyndell at Riemer (opens in a new tab) and Janet at Yeldulknie Weir Trail (opens in a new tab). Lithuania is welcomed to the parkrun family, updates to the Bingoe card are discussed & Pippa has more insight into Streaky Septmeber. The Birthday Boy shares all things to celebrate in October and Mel still has all the power with the edit

Dean Wirrick and Asher at Gainsborough Greens (opens in a new tab) parkrun for event 300.

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From the podcast feed

Simon and Sarah are reunited to discuss their latest adventures to Samford Parklands (opens in a new tab) and Dolls Point (opens in a new tab) parkruns. There are roving reports from Alison visiting Orakei Bay (opens in a new tab), Lyndell at Riemer (opens in a new tab) and Janet at Yeldulknie Weir Trail (opens in a new tab). Lithuania is welcomed to the parkrun family, updates to the Bingoe card are discussed & Pippa has more insight into Streaky Septmeber. The Birthday Boy shares all things to celebrate in October and Mel still has all the power with the edit

Roving reports

1Riemer2Ōrākei Bay3Yeldulknie Weir Trail

In this episode

• Welcome starts at 0:23

  Simon Mackley on Quandamooka Country and Sarah Jefferson on Noongar Country, back together after five weeks. Budgie is with Karen Hamilton after a long plane ride. Sarah, in Sydney for family reasons, took her mum and nephews to Dolls Point on Bidjigal land, where event 288 set an attendance record of 382 with Cam Kerr on his first RD, then breakfast at Kiss the Barista with Sherry Brandtman, Abby, Ingrid Botha and Jazz; Simon did Samford Parklands event two on Yuggera land, with an infectious RD Tricia, about 20 friendly cows he recommends for a 50th-different-event photo, and a QR code at the finish to pre-order coffee at the Long Yard Larder.

• parkrun news bulletin starts at 9:12

  Sarah opens with "I guess moving on to some news and discussions then, Simon": congratulations to Ryan Stoddart, the latest parkrunner to complete his Tasmanian statesman, finished at Kingston Park parkrun, with the hosts speculating on which state or territory he tackles next (Sarah backs WA, Simon the ACT); then the theft of a Run Director's car and all the parkrun gear at Bibra Lake parkrun in WA, forcing a cancellation, with his own thank-you message read out and the car, phone, wallet and gear all recovered.

• Roving reports & the Channel 5 News crew starts at 13:46

  Sarah hands over, "before we get cut off the air, Simon, and Mel edits this right back, I think we should throw to some roving reports", into three back-to-back reports: Lyndell Murray at Riemer parkrun in Munich, Alison at Ōrākei Bay parkrun in Auckland, and Janet at Yeldulknie Weir Trail parkrun at Cleve, South Australia. Simon recaps all three and notes two were held over from last week.

• Dazza's starts at 34:48

  World Gratitude Day theme, "I am grateful for a park to run, walk or volunteer in, a community to adventure with and a coffee afterwards." Posts read from Mark Walls (Albert Melbourne), Dean (Gainsborough Greens event 300, green theme, with son Asher), Eric Banner (North Wollongong, final Compass Club location for Martine and Andrew), Nick Graney (Singapore, Bay East Garden), Vicky Smith (Claisebrook Cove, WA), Hendo Stew (all 81 parkruns in the south-west of England, finishing at Three Brooks) and Alison Fraser-King (Puringa parkrun, New Zealand).

• the Obi Award — Dean Wirrick starts at 38:04

  Sarah asks whether Simon has "the Obilope or Obi-post-it"; the Obi goes to Dean, who decked himself out head to toe in green attire, hat, socks, shorts, green on the shirt, the pram cover and the toy dragon, to attend Gainsborough Greens parkrun's event number 300, matching his outfit to the parkrun's name.

• the Birthday Boy starts at 38:51

  October 2024 rundown: German Unity Day on Thursday 3 October with most German events hosting a bonus day; Bushy parkrun's 20th anniversary on the first parkrun day of October, with the event team and parkrun HQ both asking people to stay local rather than travel to Bushy; Australian events sharing that anniversary (Champion Lakes, Charleston, Coober Pedy Oval, Hamilton Island, Horseshoe Bay Reserve, Nathan Road Sports Ground, Nolen's Park, Petrie, Portarlington, Railway Park, Werrington Lakes Reserve); around 40 further events celebrating later in the month; first birthdays for Two Rivers Wines and Goulburn River Trail, Seymour; 12th birthdays for Kingscliff, North Lakes and Kawana; Orange turning eight for anyone chasing the letter O; and the usual reminder to check the cancellations page.

• Consolidated Club Report starts at 43:55

  Adventurers Consolidated Club report for Saturday 21 September 2024: of 690 members, 517 took part in 13 countries across 264 locations, 58 UK events, four South Africa, three USA, two each Italy and the Netherlands, one each Austria, Denmark, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Singapore; locally 48 NSW, 47 Victoria, 40 Queensland, 18 WA, 14 SA, six each ACT and North Island, five Tasmania, two each Northern Territory and South Island. Largest international frond four at Epworth Equestrian (UK) and four at Hopkins Land (South Africa); zero pilgrims at Bushy; largest frond 18 at Old Esk Railway Station; highlighted frond of 10 at Pirrama parkrun, including Melissa Ellis.

• Launches and anniversaries starts at 46:40"Where is the cake?"

  Three launches: Old Esk Railway Station in Queensland (two-lap out and back on the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail with a loop into Esk Showgrounds, 166 participants, 17 volunteers); Vingis parkrun in Vilnius, taking parkrun to Lithuania as its 23rd country, 223 participants and 21 volunteers, with a description of Vingis Park on the bend of the Neris River; and Five Wells in the UK, the second closed facility to launch there in as many weeks, 20 participants and eight volunteers.

• Streaky September starts at 48:37

  Pippa's recorded piece for her own 10-year parkrun anniversary, recorded on 20 September: how her first Streaky September began 23 days before she fell and cracked her back, how streaking became part of her recovery and then a habit, and a mental-health tip, the 5-4-3-2-1 senses walk or run (name five things you see, four you hear, three you touch, two you smell, one you taste) as a way to ground yourself. Sarah and Simon reflect on it afterwards.

• BINGOE starts at 52:46

  Simon runs through new releases on the Bingoe card, highlighting the "letterbox numbers" level-up carried over from a previous card, photographing a letterbox number matching the date during your streak, stressing that all the level-ups are open to interpretation. Sarah follows with a reminder that ugly shirt orders close on Sunday 29 September.

• Sign-off starts at 53:51

  Simon asked where Sarah was going on her next parkrun day: she was adventuring across the ditch to Invercargill parkrun at the bottom of New Zealand's South Island, hoping to find warm clothes that still fitted given the chilly forecast. Simon was handing out tokens at Redland Bay parkrun, volunteering for the first time in a while and close enough to run there and back for his 5k. He trailed the following week's blue moon episode with Mel and Ollie, said it had been great having Sarah on the pod and that he would see her in a month, and Sarah closed with the Facebook and email contacts and 'that's it for another week'.