Episode 235 - Hi-Vis Heroes

Welcome

00:00:23Oliver Spake: Welcome to episode 235 of the parkrun adventurers. I am Ollie Spake and I'm joined by one of parkrun's high-vis heroes with 21 volley spots already performed this year alone, Melissa Ellis. Happy National Volunteer Week, Mel, and thank you for volunteering.

00:00:42Melissa Ellis: Thank you, Ollie. I didn't even know I'd done that many so far.

00:00:45Oliver Spake: Yep, trawl the stats and you're at 105% of volunteer roles for parkrun Weeks so far this year. So, nice work.

00:00:55Melissa Ellis: Thank you. Thank you very much. How was your parkrun day, Ollie?

00:00:59Oliver Spake: Ah, look, it was the way I like to spend it, really. Early morning sunlight, coffee, favourite spot and, you know, surrounded by a more intimate number of parkrunners but a great bunch all the same and what a way to kick off the weekend. That's good.

00:01:15Melissa Ellis: You had some high-profile visitors there at Shellharbour from what I saw.

00:01:20Oliver Spake: Sure did. So many that I didn't really keep an adequate tab on them all, really. But yeah, I was Run Director and I was then able to enjoy the meet and greet side of things. And I was fortunate enough to see friend of the pod, Errol.

00:01:36Melissa Ellis: He gets around, Errol.

00:01:38Oliver Spake: He does. He does. And I had no idea he was coming this week. So I'm glad, Errol, that I was able to be there the week you picked.

00:01:44Melissa Ellis: Oh, okay. So he didn't make you guarantee you were going to be there before he visited, like apparently got a guarantee that I will be at Toolern Creek if he's to come to my event.

00:01:55Oliver Spake: Maybe you're a little harder to predict, Mel. Just maybe.

00:02:00Melissa Ellis: Oh, well, there's a point.

00:02:01Oliver Spake: Yeah, yeah. I think maybe it was a fairly safe bet.

00:02:04Melissa Ellis: Safe bet that you'll be at Shellharbour. Yeah.

00:02:07Oliver Spake: But it was wonderful to see her all catch up, have a coffee. And yeah, as I said, there were other visitors as well. I met Scott from Tuggeranong and didn't even really get the chance to have a chat. So apologies, Scotty. Hopefully next time.

00:02:22Melissa Ellis: And you were back in the pink wig, Ollie.

00:02:25Oliver Spake: Yes. Yeah, we have a tradition at Shellharbour. Tradition founded, obviously, on a dearly loved and missed member of our Shellharbour parkrun community, a lady named Kiralee. And Kiralee was one of the individuals that really made me feel most welcome at Shellharbour in the early days. And we sadly lost her to breast cancer five years ago. So every year, We throw on some pink around this time of the year. Usually it coincides with Mother's Day, but this year it was like we were just a little out of step, but nice to pay tribute, obviously, to Kiralee and other members of the parkrun community that we do love, we do miss, and we always carry in our hearts.

00:03:05Melissa Ellis: And I saw photos of Brendan and the lovely Em in their pink as well. So they were obviously there supporting in their volunteer capacity.

00:03:14Oliver Spake: Don't they scrub up well? They do. On the finish line, once again, they make a pretty tight duo. Yes. It was nice. It was muddy. It was rather cold.

00:03:23Melissa Ellis: I keep hearing reports of this mud. Whereabouts is it? So what's the issue with the course?

00:03:29Oliver Spake: I suppose it's been raining recently.

00:03:33Melissa Ellis: I know, but where's the mud? Is it like, okay, clearly you've got a beach and so it's not there.

00:03:40Oliver Spake: Yeah, no mud on the beach. No mud on the beach, Mel. We have alongside our lagoon when you do actually get to enjoy the low parts of the course there. It's more so a week, two weeks after the rainfall, it really builds up and that's when the puddles form because they're all drained down the hill and you really get a good opportunity to get nice and wet.

00:04:05Melissa Ellis: Okay. Because I've been waiting and waiting and waiting on my junior's course. I've got this area where I know from previous years that the puddle fills up and I've been waiting for my puddle to fill up. So the puddle marshal actually has a puddle to direct children around. And I turn up every week and the event course check volunteer goes out and he comes back and he's like, there's no water in the puddle mill. Because, Ollie, I've got this grand plan. I've got these little rubber ducks that I'm going to stick in the puddle to give the kids a little surprise when they come running back.

00:04:41Oliver Spake: Oh, very nice. Yes.

00:04:43Melissa Ellis: But it's a dry dock at the moment.

00:04:46Oliver Spake: Oh, poor duckies. Yeah. Surely that'll fill up. I mean, haven't you, you've had some rain periods.

00:04:53Melissa Ellis: We have, but not enough.

00:04:55Oliver Spake: Wow.

00:04:56Melissa Ellis: Not enough. And yeah, which is quite unusual because, well, look, to be honest, Melton is known for its low rainfall in Victoria. And we can grow a lot of plants here in our Botanic gardens that are West Australian or South African plants because of our low rainfall, quite hardy to yeah to those drier conditions whereas where I grew up over in the southeast suburbs at the foot of the Dandenongs that we were in a rain belt and we had a high rainfall so yeah it's quite different for me but it's also quite good because when I see all my friends complaining about the rain and I look out the window, go nice and dry here in Meltown okay noted it's really good when you're a runner too well yeah that'd be far less excuses for me so yes

00:05:43Oliver Spake: Well, you obviously didn't have a puddle to enjoy, Mel, but tracking back to the Saturday version of parkrun Day for you, how was parkrun Day? How was parkrun Weekend?

00:05:52Melissa Ellis: Oh, it was really good. Thank you for asking. I went to event number 142 of Sunbury parkrun. Now... The disappointing thing about it being event number 142 was I had multiple 142s. I needed 141 and I needed 143, but never mind.

00:06:14Oliver Spake: You're clearly playing the very long game.

00:06:17Melissa Ellis: I am. I just can't take a trick at the moment with these challenges. But anyway, that's another story. But Sunbury parkrun really is the best kept secret in the West. So to put it in context, Sunbury is 39 kilometres northwest of Melbourne and the parkrun averages about 95 finishes a week. So it's not a huge event. It's modest numbers. But Sunbury, Ollie, you might be interested to know, is known as the birthplace of the Ashes. Is that right? It is. Is that right? It exactly is. So Sunbury was settled in 1836 and named after Sunbury-on-Thames in Middlesex, England. And in 1874, an estate called Rupertswood was built by William Clark, who also happened to be the president of the Melbourne Cricket Club, which is how the English cricket team came to spend Christmas 1882 at Rupertswood. Wow. I've done my homework. Are you impressed?

00:07:17Oliver Spake: That's some impressive context there. And what an influential place. I had no idea.

00:07:22Melissa Ellis: So it continues. On Christmas Eve that year, the English team played a social game of cricket against a local team where it is widely accepted that the bails from the game were taken and burnt and placed in a small urn, which was to go on to become a perpetual trophy for matches between Australia and England, the Rupertswood estate still exists. It's still there. Drove past it. It's very proud. Got a sign saying Home of the Ashes. The family sold it to the Salesian Catholic Order and it still exists, both as the Salesian College School and also the mansion's been restored and it's used as a wedding venue. Sunbury is also known for, in the 1970s, it was the site for an annual pop festival, staged on the Australia Day long weekend in January and hosting bands such as Queen, Deep Purple, ACDC and our very own Skyhooks.

00:08:15Oliver Spake: I've certainly heard of some. Yes, absolutely.

00:08:18Melissa Ellis: Have you heard of Queen?

00:08:20Oliver Spake: Yes, I have heard of Queen.

00:08:21Melissa Ellis: Queen played at Sunbury. How cool is that?

00:08:24Oliver Spake: That would have been quite a line-up.

00:08:26Melissa Ellis: I know, right?

00:08:27Oliver Spake: I would sign up any day to go back to that one. Yes.

00:08:29Melissa Ellis: Yes. Well, Sunbury parkrun is an event I have done before, but because it has Happy Hill, which Strava tells me has an elevation gain of about 77 metres with a maximum elevation of 222 metres, 2-2-2. 2-2-2.

00:08:44Oliver Spake: Fits right in with the cricket theme. It was meant to be.

00:08:51Melissa Ellis: And it's only 30 minutes from my home, so I thought I'm going to start running this for my training for Panorama Punish.

00:08:58Oliver Spake: Ah, you found a hill.

00:08:59Melissa Ellis: I did. Happy hill.

00:09:01Oliver Spake: Happy hill.

00:09:01Melissa Ellis: So I first ran Sunbury on its launch in November 2017. Yep. And then again as the first event in the longest run in June 2018, which is where I recorded my best and sadly unofficial time. Okay. So this week was my third visit.

00:09:17Oliver Spake: Yep.

00:09:18Melissa Ellis: But that's okay because I'm going to use that as a gauge for how my fitness is improving over the coming months.

00:09:23Oliver Spake: Yeah.

00:09:23Melissa Ellis: And overnight on Friday, we actually had torrential rain. So as I lay in bed hearing the rain, thinking that I was going to get very wet and it was going to be awfully unpleasant. And Paul, who had been planning to venture east to pick up a new event for himself, he'd made the decision to abandon all plans and he just crawled into bed. Yeah.

00:09:44Oliver Spake: Well, based on your comparison there, he would have needed a boat if he's headed east.

00:09:48Melissa Ellis: Yeah, I know. But however, I'm much more stubborn and less likely to be dissuaded. So anyway, I ran the course along with 50 others in my multiple layers, which included beanie gloves, thermal top, windproof jacket and puffer vest. Ah, yes, yes. So you can imagine how I looked as I was running along.

00:10:09Unidentified speaker: Yeah.

00:10:11Melissa Ellis: And the Sunbury course is an out and back, which begins at Apex Park, where there is parking, toilets, playground, a small shelter utilised by the event team. The course winds along a concrete path next to the Jackson's Creek before heading up along a gravel surface known as the skyline to the turnaround point. So obviously the skyline, that's up the hill. Yeah. On the way out, there is a small diversion around a section known as the Nook. The Nook is a small natural lake on Jackson's Creek, believed to have been home to the local swimming club and hosted the Sunbury Swimming Carnival every Easter in the early 20th century. And this section was looking absolutely amazing because there was autumn colours, you know, fallen leaves. You know how I'm really big on autumn colours.

00:10:58Oliver Spake: Yeah, I mean, I was claiming you'd found the autumn belt or you'd obviously drawn my attention to the autumn belt. I take it the entire stage is the autumn belt and I'm just off track. Yeah, I think so. Yeah, okay.

00:11:08Melissa Ellis: Because the nook was looking absolutely stunning and the gardens are just really well kept. Beautiful little lake and there was geese and... And, yeah, all went well on my run up until the last few hundred metres where I did take a wrong turn up the wrong path. Oh. Sadly. Sadly for me because I was chasing – well, I wasn't chasing it, but you know how you kind of have a rough idea of your time as you're running, Ollie? Yes, yeah. And I've got one bingo number left, one bingo number, and it's double zero. And I'm like, oh, oh, I might be coming in ballpark for double zero. And I was a bit excited. And there's only 50 people and I had nobody in my sight in front of me. So I wasn't following anybody. But I've done the course a couple of times before. In my defence, one of those was in pitch black with a headlamp.

00:11:57Oliver Spake: Okay.

00:11:58Melissa Ellis: So, yeah, I took a wrong turn. I took a wrong turn. I knew at the finish of Sunbury that you have to go up the hill and back up onto the bridge to finish. So as I approached a bridge, I turned to run up to it and I actually popped out at the top and realised, whoops, wrong bridge. Oh, God. I had to turn around and go back down under the bridge to the next bridge and then I'd lost all my oomph. I'd expended all my energy in my excitement and, yeah.

00:12:30Oliver Spake: Oh, Mel.

00:12:32Melissa Ellis: I had to walk a little bit. I came in, you know, 34, 24 and I was all sad. That 24 seconds probably was my wrong turn.

00:12:45Oliver Spake: Oh, yeah, 24 seconds is not a bad wrong turn. And you got a bonus bridge, so I'll still take that as a win.

00:12:52Unidentified speaker: I did.

00:12:54Melissa Ellis: Oh, dear.

00:12:54Oliver Spake: Anyway. No one followed you then, obviously.

00:12:58Melissa Ellis: But the good thing is, Ollie, I can go back next time and I can run a post-COVID PB.

00:13:04Oliver Spake: Yes. Okay, so you were just setting yourself up.

00:13:11Melissa Ellis: Whoops.

00:13:12Oliver Spake: Yeah.

00:13:12Melissa Ellis: Whoops, I know. Only me. Anyway, but no, Sunbury, really nice little event and a lot of history in that little place.

00:13:20Oliver Spake: Absolutely. Oh, look, I never realised the connection. Obviously, commiserations to our UK listeners. The Ashes might be a sore topic given the overall record there and I think current holders as well. Who's the current holders? Australia, I think.

00:13:36Melissa Ellis: Okay. Yeah. Are you sure?

00:13:37Oliver Spake: That's... That's my last recollection. Tap, tap, tap. No, no, pretty confident. I mean, I remember it from that fairly dominant period in the late 90s, early noughties. But yeah, I can confidently say it's tight. But yes, it is commiserations.

00:13:55Melissa Ellis: Bring it back to Sunbury, I say.

00:13:56Oliver Spake: That'd be all right.

00:13:59Melissa Ellis: Yeah, so anyway, that was my set day and it didn't rain.

00:14:03Oliver Spake: No. So, I mean, you just described torrential rain and yet there was still no puddle. No. Okay. Are you sure it's a puddle, Mel?

00:14:12Melissa Ellis: Yes, I am because I've ran there in the last couple of years. I've ran in Sunbury. Okay. And there's been like week after week water in this puddle.

00:14:22Tracy: Yeah.

00:14:23Melissa Ellis: And I can't understand why it's not filling up. I'm going to go down with a bucket next week, I think.

00:14:28Oliver Spake: Oh, dear. Anyway, I digress. Great work. Great work. And, yeah, look forward to hearing how you're tracking. I mean, was it Happy Hill? Yes. Happy Hill sounds like the perfect preparation for Panorama Punish.

00:14:42Melissa Ellis: Disclaimer, I couldn't run all the way up Happy Hill, and I can't remember if I've ever been able to. I think maybe at my peak fitness I did in my longest run attempt. But my goal, to get up there, to run up it all the way.

00:14:58Oliver Spake: Keep us informed how you go, please.

00:15:00Melissa Ellis: Well, the next description of Sunbury efforts will be not quite as exciting because I've told you all there is to know about Sunbury now. But never mind. All there will be to report on is the efforts up Happy Hill.

00:15:13Oliver Spake: Good. That's right. I love a good hill.

00:15:14Melissa Ellis: Might be able to entice you to come to that one when you visit, Ollie.

00:15:17Oliver Spake: Yeah, I think that'd be a good one to visit. And a good Sunday.

00:15:20Melissa Ellis: Always a good Sunday when you go to juniors and see those little happy, smiling faces. Numbers were primarily down, Ollie. There was a lot of big running events on this last weekend gone.

00:15:30Oliver Spake: There certainly have been a lot of running events. Our part of the, our neck of the woods too.

00:15:34Melissa Ellis: Yeah. So UTA was last weekend. Also the Down Under 135. That's a local event down here, which attracts a lot of ultra runners. And there was the Great Ocean Road Running Festival.

00:15:48Oliver Spake: Yeah, that one's always amazed me. Love to give that one a try sometime. But there were a lot of parkrunners at UTA. Well done, everyone, by the way. I think we've heard a few snippets from UTA, the cafe there, but some amazing efforts.

00:16:05Melissa Ellis: Yeah, definitely. And we had members of our community that were there. One of our event team was away competing. So we were actually just happy to fill our roster. Yes.

00:16:16Oliver Spake: Yes. And again, it's great to still have such good support to be able to fill the roster and have people step away and fulfill their hopes and dreams of crazy events like that.

00:16:28Melissa Ellis: Yes, but Ollie, we have some roving reports that have come in, I believe, so perhaps we should listen to those.

00:16:36Unidentified speaker: Yes.

00:16:36[13 seconds of audio that could not be transcribed]

Roving reports & the Channel 5 News crew

Roving report Cameron Drake — Shelley parkrun

00:16:49Cameron Drake: Good morning everyone, it's Cam here reporting in for the Channel 5 parkrun adventurers and today I'm at the beautiful looking Shelley parkrun right along the Shelley foreshore on the banks of the Canning River. Looks lovely, slightly windy so you're going to have to bear with me. I'm not really sure where to go but I've seen a few people in purple volunteer shirts milling around the general area so I think that might be the start. Okay everyone, I'm here with Ken. Ken and Ken, what are you doing today?

00:17:22Ken: I'm the photographer. Most inept, but that's what I'm trying to do. The proof of the pudding will be on the hard disk.

00:17:30Cameron Drake: Everyone worries about their photos, but I think it's pretty hard to go wrong unless you point in the wrong direction. So how's volunteering going for you today? Yeah, so far so good.

00:17:40Ken: The battery is starting to flash, so I'm I'm a little bit apprehensive from now on, but I'll pull my phone out and finish it off doing it with the phone if I have to. So everyone better start running a little quicker today. Yes, that's it. So what other volunteer roles do you like doing? I've been the Marshal, barcode scanning, tail end walk is good. Everyone loves the tail end walker. So what do you think you get out of volunteering at parkrun? You've got to give back to everything you do. So I think that's my biggest reward is that I'm helping to keep parkrun going for people who want to come down and do it. So that's my little kick for volunteering.

00:18:21Cameron Drake: That's fantastic. Well, thanks for the chat and I hope you have a great day. No problem. All right, I'm here with the Run Director today, Roshanti. How's it going today?

00:18:29Roshanti: Yeah, it's pretty good. Thank you, Cameron.

00:18:31Cameron Drake: Yeah, it's a lovely spot here right next to the river.

00:18:35Roshanti: Actually, we have a good turn up. So and the river, we have dolphins every now and then. So it's actually a very scenic parkrun we have here. And we have a very friendly team. So we see the numbers always being somewhere around the hundred and twenty. Oh, that's great.

00:18:54Cameron Drake: So you never have any trouble getting volunteers onto the roster?

00:18:57Roshanti: We get free coffee from the Tribute Cafe, so that's...

00:19:01Cameron Drake: Wait, wait, wait. Volunteers get free coffee at the Tribute Cafe if you come to Shelley parkrun. That's correct. That is brilliant.

00:19:09Roshanti: Yeah, of course. And we love the Tribute, so they've been great supporters for us. Wow. Yeah, it's pretty good.

00:19:16Cameron Drake: Oh, lucky. Yeah. So what do you think people get out of volunteering at parkrun?

00:19:20Roshanti: I think it's mainly you give back to the community, like, you know, and then because parkrun is run by volunteers. If not for the volunteers, this wouldn't happen. So it's like, you know, you help someone get their run in because sometimes this could be their only day in the week that they get out and get some socialising, get some sort of achievement in their life. So I suppose for you it's a feeling of accomplishment and helping someone else achieve their goal sort of thing. And I think I read somewhere it stimulates your endorphins as well.

00:19:54Cameron Drake: Oh, you do good, you feel good, hey?

00:19:57Roshanti: Yeah, that's right.

00:19:58Cameron Drake: I love it. Well, thanks for the chat, Roshanti. You've got a lovely event here. It's been very nice today and hopefully I'll see you around.

00:20:04Roshanti: Thanks for coming, Cameron. It was a pleasure having you. Thank you. Thank you.

00:20:09Cameron Drake: All right, everyone, I'm here with... Greg Tower. Greg. And, Greg, what are you doing today?

00:20:13Greg: I am volunteering. I'm a Barcode Scanner for parkrun. Have you done this before? This is my first time doing this role. Cool.

00:20:22Unidentified speaker: It's easy, isn't it?

00:20:23Greg: Yeah. Basically, yes, it is. Have you done other roles? Yeah, I was generally a Marshal at the halfway point, which is cheery because you see them at their painful point.

00:20:33Cameron Drake: Ah, you give them the old G up instead of... I do. Yeah, it's good. Oh, that's cool.

00:20:37Greg: So what do you think you get out of volunteering at parkrun? Great sense of community. It's just fabulous, cheery, get to know people in the local area. It's very positive. Oh, that's fantastic. I'm running. I'm not volunteering next week. I alternate.

00:20:51Cameron Drake: Oh, that's a good way of doing it.

00:20:52Greg: It's a little bit more run-to-volunteer ratio, but I try to volunteer whenever possible.

00:20:57Cameron Drake: Oh, that's great. Very true. Thanks very much, and I'll see you around. Sounds great.

00:21:03Greg: Thanks for talking.

00:21:04Cameron Drake: Hello, I'm here with...

00:21:06Madeline: Madeline.

00:21:07Cameron Drake: Madeline. And what are you doing today, Madeline?

00:21:09Madeline: I'm handing out the finishing tokens.

00:21:11Cameron Drake: You like this job?

00:21:12Madeline: Yeah.

00:21:13Cameron Drake: It's fun?

00:21:14Madeline: It's good. You get to see everyone. It's easy? It's pretty easy, provided not everyone comes in all at once. But yeah, it's pretty much easy.

00:21:22Cameron Drake: Then you have to be rapid fire on the tokens.

00:21:23Madeline: You have to make sure everyone takes one as they go by, yeah.

00:21:27Cameron Drake: Some people don't take their token.

00:21:28Madeline: Correct. They're so focused on their time on their stopwatch, you see.

00:21:32Cameron Drake: So is this your favourite role?

00:21:35Madeline: I like this one and most roles I enjoy anyway, so it's good. Yeah, it's easy, I suppose.

00:21:43Cameron Drake: Well, lovely chatting with you, Madeleine.

Roving report Alison King — Pegasus parkrun

00:21:44Cameron Drake: I hope you have a great day.

00:21:45Alison Fraser (King): All right, Cameron. Good morning parkrun adventurers, it's Alison King here reporting in for the Channel 5 News crew. Now this parkrun day I have travelled overseas. That's right listeners, I have travelled to the South Island. So I'm coming to you from Pegasus parkrun which is in North Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. And if you're looking at some parkrun adventures over to New Zealand, Pegasus is a 20 minute drive north of Christchurch and Christchurch is an international airport. So book those tickets and come on over. Now to celebrate National Volunteer Week in Australia, I'm coming to find some volunteers. So let's see who's volunteering today. So I'm with Jill, who is this week's Barcode Scanner at Pegasus. So do you barcode scan quite a lot, Jill? Every now and then, yeah. I've done about five times. And what do you like about barcode scanning?

00:22:47Jill: Oh, it's like any volunteer job. It's just getting the job done, really.

00:22:51Alison Fraser (King): So you've done quite a bit of volunteering here?

00:22:53Jill: Yeah. What's your preferred job? Do you have a favourite? Not always we have a barcode scanning as it's a results pin on it. So yeah, it's a bit of added stress. And what's your parkrun story? How did you get into parkrun? We started in Hagley Park, so I just wanted to get fit, so I started it. And then my husband came along with me, and we did it together. But since Pegasus started up, we were here for the foundation parkrun. Yeah, so we've done a lot of Pegasus parkruns, but we've also done quite a few around the country and overseas. So we try and parkrun when we're away somewhere. In which case, do you have a top three, not including your home parkrun? Actually, we did Whangarei the other weekend, so That was really great. Good weber. It was, yeah, great. Really good course. For the variety of the course. And, of course, here. You don't have to be up top.

00:23:52Alison Fraser (King): Even though it's your home parkrun. Well, no place like home, I suppose. No, exactly. Thank you so much for your time. You're welcome. So I'm here with Lee Hamilton, who is currently armed with her virtual volunteer app and is timing at Pegasus parkrun. So thanks for coming on the show, Lee. No problem. So you're timekeeping today. Have you timekept quite a lot?

00:24:13Lee Hamilton: A bit.

00:24:14Alison Fraser (King): I've been doing it for the last year and a half, so I've done up to about 22 now. What do you like about timekeeping?

00:24:20Lee Hamilton: It's pretty straightforward, it's easy to do, it's not too difficult and you get to encourage one as they come across so it's good. You got any top tips for anyone who's never time kept before? It's very simple, all you have to do is tap on the screen of your phone so don't be scared of it and you can't really get it wrong. They can fix it. And do you prefer to volunteer or to run? A bit of both. When you can't run or you're not motivated it's really motivating to watch other people finish and particularly people who find it hard. So it's really inspiring. Cool. I see we've got some more finishers coming. We have got a few more. I'll let you get back to it. Thank you. Thank you.

00:24:55Alison Fraser (King): I'm with Trudy Diggs, today's Run Director at Pegasus. Thanks for an awesome run, Trudy. Oh, you're welcome. It was a perfect day for it today. Yeah. Better than last week when it was raining. I'll take sunshine any day.

00:25:06Trudy Diggs: Oh, yeah. Couldn't pick a better day today at Pegasus. How long have you been a Run Director here? I've volunteered about, I think, someone did a count 230 times. I've volunteered in different roles, but I do Volunteer Coordinator and help Chris so we've got definite roles here.

00:25:22Alison Fraser (King): So big kudos for you then as a volunteer. Oh thank you. It's a good way to meet everybody.

00:25:28Trudy Diggs: It's really social. So what got you into parkrun? I was actually looking at doing the Milford track and decided I needed to get fit so I started running and then found out parkrun was on and joined it just to keep my fitness up and that was fantastic. Four years ago, so coming up to nearly my 200th parkrun, all done at Pegasus. Wow, so you're a passionista as well. Yeah, and it's local, so I can't be bothered going into Christchurch.

00:25:51Alison Fraser (King): How far do you have to, like, do you walk or you drive to Pegasus?

00:25:55Trudy Diggs: No, I drive to Pegasus, so yeah. But as Run Director, I just do my run first thing in the morning before it's then set up and I'm done for the day.

00:26:05Alison Fraser (King): So anyone considering becoming a Run Director, what tips would you give them?

00:26:10Trudy Diggs: Ask questions. Most of the parkruns are really social. There's always someone there to help you if there's a problem. Someone will just support you. The Event Director is always usually there as well if you need a hand. Don't be afraid to put your hand up to be a Run Director. We have a script that everybody follows and reads, so you can't really go wrong. Yeah, awesome. And everybody will support you. Yeah. Well, thanks for an amazing time here at Pegasus. Oh, you're welcome. Did not disappoint. Hope to see you back soon. Yeah, thank you so much. Okay, thanks.

00:26:40Alison Fraser (King): A bit windy here at Pegasus, as you probably heard in the recording, so I'm in the car for this one. I hope you've enjoyed hearing from our Pegasus volunteers. It was an awesome visit for me. This was my 30th different event in New Zealand. Pegasus is normally a couple of laps around Pegasus Lake, but before the winter course the bridge apparently gets a bit slippy so we did an out and back and it was absolutely stunning so the sunrise this morning was beautiful and the lake was serene and everyone was just so happy and smiley and the volunteers were awesome and let's I'm just about to head off for coffee the obligatory coffee and scone down at the Flat White Cafe

00:27:23Oliver Spake: and looking forward to another parkrun adventure so see you the next time wow that was wonderful to hear from uh yeah very common theme across the weekend Mel and it is of course a week that we did want to acknowledge and just give a shout out so thank you to our roving reporters allison and Cam great to hear some very diverse parkrun adventures and lovely to hear from so many volunteers this weekend

00:27:49Melissa Ellis: All our high-vis heroes, Ollie, racking up their volunteer points for their future milestone shirts.

00:27:56Oliver Spake: And isn't that wonderful news? It's only a few months away. We'll get to see more opportunities for those milestone shirts. And I know that it's not necessarily the driver for everyone, but it is nice. I couldn't find my purple shirt, so it would probably help me to have multiple volunteer shirts on a parkrun morning for someone as disorganised as me. I just need one in a bigger size, Ollie. They need to change and evolve with us. I'm thinking of the kids. Someone's got to think of the kids, those kids that volunteer at a young age and they earn their purple shirt and then they're going to need replacements. So I think it's obviously well after the fact that parkrun announced this a few months ago now. sharing the opportunity for more volunteer milestones and to purchase a replacement.

00:28:45Melissa Ellis: Yeah, but Ollie, in the previous life, you couldn't order volunteer shirts and 50 and 100 shirts in kids' sizes. So all the kids have got adult-sized dresses.

00:28:56Oliver Spake: Ah, yes, yes.

00:28:58Melissa Ellis: And if you're anything like me, you go, oh, well, Zoe might need a size medium so it fits her forever.

00:29:06Oliver Spake: Yeah, okay. Yeah, there was actually a bit of foresight there, intended or not.

00:29:10Melissa Ellis: And in another 10 years, it might fit it.

00:29:13Oliver Spake: Yeah. But look, special shout out. Nice work, Alison. Got to take a bit of a trip there.

00:29:19Melissa Ellis: And well done, Alison, on reaching your 30th unique event in New Zealand.

00:29:23Oliver Spake: Yeah, that's fantastic. And thanks for sharing in the Australian Volunteer Week fun. Certainly hope to throw a bit of appreciation back at you when it's New Zealand's time. And great to hear also Cam. Technically, Cam, I believe, did interview every volunteer at Shelley parkrun. Unfortunately, we couldn't necessarily carry them all through. It was pretty cold sounding there. Hmm.

00:29:46Melissa Ellis: Oh, gee, who knew that the weather in West Australia wouldn't be as nice as the eastern seaboard.

00:29:52Oliver Spake: That's it. But thank you to all of our roving reporters.

Emails

00:29:55Melissa Ellis: But, Ollie, we've got some exciting news.

00:29:58Oliver Spake: What's that, Mel? You've got mail.

00:30:00Melissa Ellis: We've got mail.

00:30:01Oliver Spake: Yeah. How incredible is this? We actually got emails. We did. Plural. I know. Plural. Again, thank you to, can I say everyone? Yeah, yeah. Thank you to everyone that wrote to us. It was lovely to hear from you all. I'm glad you could pick up on our subtle hints. We try not to make these things obvious, but it was nice to hear. And amongst those emails, we heard from Eman from the South Toowoomba team, Mel. Yes. Would you like to read it out, Ollie? I would love to. Hi, Ollie and Mel. I hope you two are doing well. Thanks for the quick shout out on your Post palm21 episode. I thought I'd reach out to you by email, as I don't have Facebook, and you wanted someone to email you. I was listening to your latest episode where you mentioned that you haven't done South Bank parkrun. As an alternative to completing a South for your Compass Challenge, may I suggest visiting our lovely city of Toowoomba and doing South Toowoomba parkrun. Our parkrun community, Robbie and I, will certainly make you more than welcome and you get to be featured in the post-parkrun interview. I'd be happy to be your tour guide and show you some of Toowoomba's highlights. And yes, we've also put in our touristing list to visit Shellharbour parkrun sometime this year.

00:31:16Melissa Ellis: Wow. That's awesome. Thanks, Eman, for the lovely invitation. And definitely hadn't even considered South Toowoomba, hadn't drawn the conclusion.

00:31:27Oliver Spake: I have to say, the South Toowoomba team are excellent ambassadors for their region and their parkrun. It's definitely on the list. Don't know when.

00:31:35Melissa Ellis: Help me out geographically, Ollie. Where is South Toowoomba located?

00:31:42Oliver Spake: So it is a little more inland in South Queensland there. I'm struggling with the distance from Brisbane, but it's... What is it? It's due west. That's right. It's due west.

00:31:55Melissa Ellis: Okay.

00:31:55Oliver Spake: So, yeah, a bit of a drive from Brisbane. But, you know, I think as the team and their hospitality suggest, definitely worth it. There we are, about 130km west of Brisbane.

00:32:07Melissa Ellis: I always prefer to go somewhere where I know people.

00:32:09Oliver Spake: Yeah. You know, an invitation like that, getting to explore the city and see the surroundings, I think would be a pretty nice way to spend a parkrun day.

00:32:17Melissa Ellis: Sounds like another palm frond to me.

00:32:19Oliver Spake: I think so. Eman, you have to leave it with us. It takes a bit of planning sometimes, but... Well, to be honest, I'm a lot more flexible.

00:32:28Melissa Ellis: It's getting Ollie away from Shellharbour that's going to be the problem. And they're going to come and visit you too.

00:32:34Oliver Spake: Hopefully. Yeah, come on down. You're always welcome. Please let me know. I'd like to make sure I'm there. I know it's usually a safe bet, but I'll do my best. And look, thank you so much for writing in. Thank you, Eamon and everyone else.

Dazza's

00:32:46Oliver Spake: Look, Mel, we also had plenty of updates and tales from the day at Dazza's.

00:32:53Melissa Ellis: We did. Yeah. We did.

00:32:56Oliver Spake: So, yeah, interesting theme this week at Dazza's because there was actually no parkrun going on for a few. One of them was the Channel 5 News crew's own Mark Scarborough. No parkrun for me today as I am support crew for our ED who is doing the 100Ks for the UTA.

00:33:15Melissa Ellis: Wow.

00:33:16Oliver Spake: So shout out there to Ian. Ian Shaw there out at Wagi Bridge. Yeah.

00:33:23Melissa Ellis: I just noticed how fast you say that word now.

00:33:26Oliver Spake: I think that was triple speed there.

00:33:28Melissa Ellis: Yes.

00:33:29Oliver Spake: But what an amazing effort, the 100Ks. Ian's been on his own road to recovery there as well. So I trust from the posts that I have seen that he's now recovering and feeling pretty spectacular for completing that 100Ks.

00:33:44Melissa Ellis: Excellent. Well done, Ian. And well done, Mark. Marvellous Mark.

00:33:48Oliver Spake: Yeah, great support.

00:33:49Melissa Ellis: Support crew. These ultra runners rely heavily on their support crew and it's a brilliant thing to do, to take on that role. Yes. And we had Rebecca Bailey. Take away, please. Listened to the pod on my way to work this morning. First run I've missed since COVID, but I'll be supporting Shellharbour with my pink bandana while working in Kangaroo Valley this weekend.

00:34:11Oliver Spake: We also heard from Greg Garner, weekend away in Brisbane for the NRL. So an adventure to Mitchelton parkrun. The coffee and bacon and egg burger hit the spot after my run.

00:34:22Melissa Ellis: And Alison King. It was an orange and date scone day at Pegasus parkrun. The cafe is called Flat White. The scone was delicious. We all did the stuff quiz and scored 11 out of 15.

00:34:34Oliver Spake: Very respectable score.

00:34:36Melissa Ellis: It is.

00:34:36Oliver Spake: Jackie Hancock, cheese and carrot scone for me at Flat White Pegasus. No picture because I forgot.

00:34:45Melissa Ellis: I think Alison mentioned that there was maybe a little sneak peek of Jackie in her own photo.

00:34:51Oliver Spake: That's it. She was present. She was captured. And it looks like Pegasus was a good place to be and Flat White by the looks of things.

00:34:58Melissa Ellis: Tracey Wood, morning team, cup of tea please after my long run at Sandgate, which included parkrun to finish.

00:35:06Oliver Spake: Nice work, Tracy. Well coordinated. Bernadette Bennett, seeing we're in Katoomba for UTA, we've left the son-in-law out in the middle of his 50 kilometres to tourist at Lithgow. Friendly crew, undulating trails and a slight nip in the air. Hot chocolate and second breakfast. We'll be back at Blackheath.

00:35:24Melissa Ellis: Wow.

00:35:25Oliver Spake: And we did note the follow-on conversation there. So Lithgow had a bit of an attendance at the weekend because we also heard from Karen there, Karen Hamilton, also at Lithgow too, did UTA 22 yesterday and she wished good luck to Bernadette's son. Lithgow was a lovely cross-country course, 80 metres elevation. Didn't really feel like it because the hills were nice and gentle. Breakfast was a stopover at the Lollibug for coffee while stocking up on goodies and a pumpkin quiche at the Hydro Majestic Pavilion in Medlow Bath.

00:35:57Melissa Ellis: That's a cool name, the Lollibug. Yeah.

00:36:01Oliver Spake: Nice to hear from another Shellharbour parkrunner.

00:36:05Melissa Ellis: Karen's from Shellharbour, is she? Karen's part of the team. Oh, okay.

00:36:09Oliver Spake: Yes, and well done also, Karen, on UTA.

00:36:11Melissa Ellis: Claire Stutchbury, event number 82 and 19th Queensland at Surfers Paradise, following up with a morning at SeaWorld.

00:36:21Oliver Spake: You guys really know how to do southeast Queensland. 19 so far. Well done. How long is this holiday going for? I think it's permanent.

00:36:29Melissa Ellis: Oh, okay.

00:36:30Oliver Spake: They've got the whole relocation thing down.

00:36:32Melissa Ellis: Oh, that's right. Yes. I remember now. Yep.

00:36:34Oliver Spake: Yep. And also Mandy Oliver grabbed my soy chai with my son and his girlfriend after Main Beach parkrun, their first official parkrun. They got confused at Paradise Point a couple of weeks ago and did not finish.

00:36:49Melissa Ellis: Oh, well, well done for finishing this one. And Main Beach of all, the number one in Australia. Fitting. Bruce Purdy. My two most local parkruns shared the same coffee shop today and it was awesome. Hashtag Ballarat parkrun. Hashtag Wallaby Track parkrun. And happy birthday, Bruce.

00:37:08Oliver Spake: Happy birthday, Bruce.

00:37:09Melissa Ellis: He had a milestone this week as well, Ollie. And from all accounts, he got a lot of love from parkrunners. And I do believe there may have even been a happy birthday rendition in Wallaby Track's famous tunnel of, I don't know if they call it a tunnel of love. They definitely have a tunnel of love.

00:37:27Oliver Spake: I think I have heard of that tunnel. Yes. Oh, that's fantastic. What a way to celebrate.

00:37:33Melissa Ellis: Oh, I've got two in a row. Yes. Brendan Scholarly. Em and I shared our pink parkrun passion at Shellharbour in support of and in memory of those who have lost their lives to breast cancer.

00:37:46Oliver Spake: And spectacular pink passion it was. Chris Fraser. So just before I say this, we have checked with Chris and I believe Chris did find an acceptable one in the end, but I'll read on. I'm not normally one who would name and shame, but do not buy a sausage roll from... Zero stars. Sorry, Mel, we can't handle the litigation. Zero stars. Hard to comment without expletives. Expletives. Sorry. Expletives? Expletives. That's it. See, I don't even know how to say it. It was full on mush. I spat out my first and only bite going in search of alternative.

00:38:26Melissa Ellis: Oh, dear. Bad day for the stat man.

00:38:29Oliver Spake: We feel for you, Chris. Just know there's a five-star around the corner there somewhere. You've just got to believe. Also, Sam Schroder, skim flat white and a sort of shared big breakfast for us after Luke walked and I handed out tokens at Chipping Norton parkrun. And the volunteeristing continues. Good work, Sam.

00:38:49Melissa Ellis: Ingrid Botha set out with the aim of keeping a steady pace rather than my usual run-walk style. Maintained it for most of the way to the turnaround, but then dropped into a run-walk pattern and was lucky enough to be on the spot to help out a runner who was feeling unwell. Once the ambos had him in good care, I managed to get back just in time to catch the Tail Walkers. Wow. Good work, Ingrid, for helping out a fellow parkrunner that was unwell, unwell enough that it required ambulance.

00:39:18Oliver Spake: Yeah, obviously not fantastic situation, but fantastic to hear that care. Tracy Leiper, whilst a cool morning at Ipswich parkrun this morning, I had a lovely walk with my running mum, Kay. And yes, the matching outfits were planned.

00:39:32Melissa Ellis: Oh, yes. I remember seeing this one, Ollie. They had lovely matching tops and bottoms, if that's the right way to phrase it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But I was curious as to why, if there was an event.

00:39:45Oliver Spake: What was the occasion?

00:39:46Melissa Ellis: Yeah, what was the occasion?

00:39:48Oliver Spake: We hope to hear more.

00:39:50Melissa Ellis: Tony O'Connell, latte with one to match the sunny day at Kate Reed parkrun. What a cracker.

00:39:57Oliver Spake: Fantastic.

00:39:58Melissa Ellis: The sun is following TOC, isn't it?

00:40:00Oliver Spake: Yes. Yeah. Yeah, he's got a mortgage on that sun.

00:40:04Melissa Ellis: From all accounts, it rained at Inverloch, so I think the sun went on holidays to Tassie.

00:40:09Oliver Spake: It looked like it needs it down in parts of Tassie. It looks pretty cold. Cameron Drake. Sorry, dripped egg all down my shirt after just one bite of my Sanger. Well earned after a brisk trot at the lovely Shelley parkrun this morning.

00:40:24Melissa Ellis: Lucky those parkrun shirts are wash and wear.

00:40:27Oliver Spake: That's right.

00:40:29Melissa Ellis: Louise Minty. Ticked off a Y for my alphabet by tail walking at my NENDY. The lovely Yokine parkrun. Followed up with a Garmin Coach Run, then a massive Almond Croissant and LMTU. I don't know what that is, Ollie.

00:40:44Oliver Spake: Long Mac Topped Up.

00:40:46Melissa Ellis: Oh, that's what it says in brackets. But what's a long mac topped up?

00:40:50Oliver Spake: Now, I'm absolutely hoping it's a long macchiato.

00:40:55Melissa Ellis: Oh, excuse my coffee ignorance. Anyway, the best way to start the weekend.

00:41:00Oliver Spake: Now, we've also heard from Janet Reid. RD duties for me at Lochiel Park today. Our Timekeeper was volunteering in this role for the first time. Beautiful Charlie Adam is in his 70s. There he was with his smartphone at 7.15am eagerly learning how to use the app. I would be telling porkies if I said I wasn't a wee bit nervous. Needless to say, he nailed it. No red lines. Just goes to show that you are never too old to give volunteering a go and that the virtual volunteer app is super easy to use. Go, Charlie. Then I had coffee.

00:41:38Melissa Ellis: Excellent, Charlie. Well done. Well done on trying something new.

00:41:42Unidentified speaker: Yeah.

00:41:42Melissa Ellis: Simon Mackley, a very quiet Mosman parkrun at 44. We did have a wonderful bunch of participants and volunteers and a special guest gaining their M for the alphabet challenge. Do we know who that special guest was? No. I wanted to say it was Bruce, but he was there the week before.

00:42:03Oliver Spake: Yeah, that's right. I'm curious. I've clearly missed it. I'll have to go and research. Sorry, Simon. Didn't do my homework.

00:42:10Melissa Ellis: I could do the tappy, tappy, tappy thing while you read the next one.

00:42:15Oliver Spake: We also heard from Val, Val Warwick. Woke to a very cold morning and watched the sun climb over the bank of clouds out in the straight as Stephen Warwick drove down to the bluff where I was timekeeping today. I was dressed in layers but had to take off the gloves to make sure this 70-plus... speech marks here, old lady could touch the virtual app. Amazingly, the two of us timekeeping kept in sync. And when one of even older parkrunners asked his time, we discovered we were only 0.03 different. One of us had slightly faster reflexes than the other, but our RD was amazed at how close we were. Mind you, my pointer finger only just regained colour and feel by the time I finished my coffee with the gang at Drift. The photo below taken at 7.40 when I arrived and the sun did feel warm through layers by the time the runners were finishing. That was quite a nice photo too.

00:43:10Melissa Ellis: That was a stunning photo.

00:43:12Oliver Spake: Love the morning light photos. Yeah, that sounds remarkably fresh.

00:43:17Melissa Ellis: Now, Ollie, you've given me this really long one to read. Is it a rhyme? Is it supposed to be read like, I'm thinking it's looking like it's supposed to be there was movement at the station?

00:43:28Oliver Spake: Yes.

00:43:29Melissa Ellis: Oh, I don't think I can do it justice.

00:43:32Oliver Spake: May I have a go?

00:43:32Melissa Ellis: I think you better.

00:43:34Oliver Spake: All right.

00:43:35Melissa Ellis: If you feel more confident with the flow of the rhyme.

00:43:39Oliver Spake: I'll do my very best, Stephen. I apologise in advance.

Poem Zone

00:43:43Oliver Spake: But we also heard from Stephen Warwick, parkrun adventurers, a rumour. It was spreading all up and down the coast that a new parkrun is due to start that will take your breath away. If you're looking for a 5k PB, then you'll need to stay away for the ups and downs of this new run will take the seconds away. But if you love a course that has it all, then this one is for you. With beauty in reflections and birds to cheer you on, you'll be amazed at what's on offer for those who choose to come. Those trees that lift their arms up high will shield you from the sun. And on a wintry day, you'll need to run just to keep warm. So now that I've intrigued you, surely you'll return for palm22. And then I'll lead you on a merry run along the Long Northwest parkrun. And no, I won't tell Ollie that it's better than Shell Harbor. I'll just leave that up to you. Of course, I had to stumble on that. Sorry, Stephen.

00:44:53Melissa Ellis: Why is there always a reference to Shellharbour? I mean, nothing against Shellharbour. Shellharbour, Shellharbour, Shellharbour. It's like Marsha, Marsha, Marsha.

00:45:05Oliver Spake: I wasn't going to call you Jan, but look, and it sounds intriguing is a very apt word for that one.

00:45:14Melissa Ellis: Stephen, we have to check this one out. Well done, Stephen, for that lovely verse. So thank you for sending that in and thank you for reading it, Ollie. Good work. And it's almost reminiscent of The Poem Zone.

00:45:26Oliver Spake: Yes.

00:45:27Melissa Ellis: There's one from The Vault.

00:45:28Oliver Spake: Yeah, we should have cracked out the sound effects.

00:45:30Melissa Ellis: For The Poem Zone? Yeah. Did we have a...

00:45:32Oliver Spake: There was. Was there? There was an introductory piece to The Poem Zone. I always enjoyed it. Always being probably maybe not the right terminology, but I enjoyed it when I heard it. Yes.

00:45:42Melissa Ellis: Okay. I'm making a note. I'll see if I can track it down.

00:45:46Oliver Spake: No. No. No. No? We just appreciate it for what it is. That's fine.

00:45:51Unidentified speaker: Okay.

00:45:53Melissa Ellis: All righty. And last but not least, Parth Bomber Candy. Warringal Parklands with Irene Sherrill and Mark enjoyed brunch at Trainyard Cafe up the road. Loved the potato rosti.

00:46:05Oliver Spake: Yum. Well, I'm hungry, Mel, talking about all this coffee and cake and rostis yeah but wasn't it great to hear of such a diverse range of experiences again loved hearing of all of the support and volunteering themes and hey let's just continue that we'd see you on the B-side too Mel

00:46:29Melissa Ellis: Yes, Tracy has sent in a rundown of volley roles while she was out and about at Bunyaville parkrun. This wasn't this week. This was the week before, but we thought we would hold on to it because Tracy's come up with a list of volunteer roles, which aren't your typical volunteer spots, Ollie.

00:46:47Oliver Spake: Yeah, that's it. That's it. And what a better week to discuss volunteering roles.

00:46:52Melissa Ellis: And another voice that you might be glad to hear again.

00:46:55Oliver Spake: Yes. Let's have a listen.

00:46:57[16 seconds of audio that could not be transcribed]

Tracey's Top 10

Roving report Tracy — Bunyaville parkrun

00:47:13Tracy: Good morning, parkrunners. It's Tracey in a Tutu beating about the bush in Bunyaville this morning. This week, I'm getting my volunteer vest on by photographing parkrun participants. Do I have an affinity for alliteration? Absolutely, I do. Now, last week I talked about tail walking and how it's the most favourite of all volunteer roles out there. But that led me thinking out how else you can help out your local parkrun community. So I've thought of some other jobs that you can do, help out parkrun just by lending them a hand and helping other people in the process. You may not get a volunteer credit for these, but you get the satisfaction of helping other people do their job as well. So without further ado, let's start Tracey's top 10 of other volunteer roles or other jobs that you could do at parkrun. Number one, Zooper Dooper hander-outer. This is a fantastic role. Okay, any Queensland runner who has done a parkrun on a hot and sweaty summer's day and crossed the finish line to be greeted by a smiling person who has already cut the tops of a Zooper Dooper and handing you one that has been kindly donated by someone celebrating a milestone or just some kind member of the community knows that this is absolutely fantastic. Many thanks for those people who do this. Number two, plogger. Now I've seen a gentleman at Sandgate, for instance, who does the course wearing a pair of gloves and carrying a plastic bag and he picks up rubbish along the way. So kudos to you, my friend. This is awesome. Number three, cheer squad. Now, check with your local parkrun. This could be a role that you get a volunteer credit for. Who doesn't love a cheer squad at parkrun? I mean, how awesome is it when you're running around the course or running up a hill and someone gives you a big cheer and has an awesome sign that says, yay, go you. Number four, token washer. In these times of COVID, I believe that all the finished tokens now have to be taken home and washed with disinfectant or washing up liquid or whatever it is they use before they're resorted into numerical order. I have seen that some kids have been roped into this who have quite enjoying this role. So, you know, you could always help out your local parkrun by doing this job for them and giving them a break. Okay, number five, vest washerer. All the volunteer vests that are worn at parkrun have to be washed every week. And for those RDs that have to do this as well, it adds to the list of things to do in preparation for the next week. But if you're lucky enough to have a family like mine who, when I've come home from parkrun and dumped all the stuff downstairs, they go and throw them in the machine and then hang them up in the sun. And that's just fantastic. So thank you to them for helping me out. Number six, baby hoarder or cuddler. Now, I'm very guilty of this because I tend to just grab babies and cuddle them. Yes, I do ask first. But it does give the mum a hand when they're trying to reach for their barcode in their purse or they're trying to do something else. So give a mum a break, especially how is Mother's Day tomorrow. Give them a free hand while they drink their coffee maybe. Oh, that leads me on to the next one. A pram pusher. How about giving a mum runner a break by pushing the pram or stroller for her next time she goes to parkrun? She might like a hit out and go for a pee pee on one occasion. Or might just like to do her own thing without the constant, Mum, are we there yet? Are we there yet? Anyway, certainly do ask before you go steal someone else's child. Number eight, Warm-up Leaders assistant. Now I like to help out at my local junior parkrun as Warm-up Leader. I have a great voice for yelling out instructions, but I don't quite have the flexibility to do the moves. And that's where my very lovely assistant comes in who has the agility and flexibility to demonstrate things a lot better for me. So thank you, Connie. Number nine, photo uploader. Okay. This isn't so bad if you've got a volunteer who takes a few photos here and there or just of every people or you've got a small parkrun contingent. I have helped out before. I think I got my other role for this by uploading photos on a day when we had three photographers on duty. So this is certainly a role that can help out your RD. Last guide dog walker. Okay. At my local parkrun, we have some lovely boys down there who rely on guides to take them around the course. They've also asked that when they're being guided around by human, could someone take their doggy for a walk? The dog gets a lovely walk when it's got its harness off and therefore not in working mode. And everyone has a great run. So as I said, you may not get a volunteer role for any of these jobs. Do check with your local parkrun. Certainly do ask them if there is something else that you could help out that I haven't thought of and you may get a credit for. If you're interested in volunteering, check in with your local event. They'd love to see you. Right, I'd like to give a shout out this week to Joshua Snowy. He got 25 volunteer roles last week at Whitemark Wharf, at Ararat parkrun. They'd like to give a shout out to Angela who is an absolute legend there and she got her 100 volunteer. And the Warwick's are touring around Tasmania still. Love seeing their adventures. Alright, that's all from me this week. Until next week, see you on the B-side. Bye!

the Informant

00:52:45Unidentified speaker: This is The Informant. These are unofficial stats. They are only current to the time they are collected and may differ from the stats you read elsewhere. Yes folks, I am back, and the stats are back, to a no-nonsense, quick, neat, clean, basic format. At the time of recording, 530 events worldwide had submitted results. Of these, 398 events were in Australia, 33 in New Zealand and the rest taking place in Japan, Russia and remote UK territories. No event launches took place. Participant numbers are dropping. My two leading theories are the onset of colder weather, plus the commencement of junior sporting codes. In Australia and New Zealand, we had 40,156 runners out of 45,080 worldwide. We had 5,958 PBs, while 1,525 people participated for the first time. 87 juniors reached their Junior 10 milestone, 199 people reached their 50 milestone,

00:53:39[15 seconds of audio that could not be transcribed]

00:53:54Unidentified speaker: 124 people reached their 100 milestone and 19 people reached their 250 milestone. 13 people called bingo. Bronte Smith was the quickest with 166 events. Nicole Schultz was the slowest with 348 events.

Statesmen update

00:54:12Unidentified speaker: We have eight new Territorians in the ACT with Kate Potter, Debbie Ho, Oscar Lindenmayer, Melanie Cooper, Joey Lindenmayer, John Poyton, Saranki Kargil, David Hughes, completing all seven events. Up north, Fritz Radha, Shea Hattie and Mitch Wilson completed all three Northern Territory events. South Australia has one new statesman in Peter Perry who completed the set at Port Lincoln. In New Zealand, Sarah Ganser became the 47th South Islander and 22nd Countryman after running in Invercargill. Not quite the bottom of the world, but you can see it from there on a clear day. On the most Aussie New Zealand events list, Peter Peralia, Michelle Koller, Matthew Allen, Claire Stutchbury and Tom Gallagher are the biggest winners, moving up 10 places from 202 to 192. In the top 20, Errol Poole moves up 1 to 9th place, running at Shellharbour. Jan Biggan moves up 1 to 19th place after running at Narromine Wetlands. Biggest Wilson mover of the week is Jason Vela, who has boosted his index from 14 to 33. To see these stats in full, visit my blog at theinformant.me. That's the informant, or one word, dot M-E. This has been The Informant, and my spreadsheet is bigger than yours.

00:55:39Melissa Ellis: Welcome back to our very favourite informant. Nice to hear the dulcet tones again.

00:55:46Oliver Spake: Yeah, didn't you miss it, Mel? I mean, we were very fortunate to have the agency casual. Always good to get good help. Thank you very much. And look, certainly I can only legally and honestly say that I'm excited to have the informant back.

00:56:02Melissa Ellis: Yes, we won't mention any of the confidentiality agreement that we've entered into. And moving swiftly on, we need to have a little discussion about the volunteer roles that Tracey reported on, Ollie.

00:56:17Oliver Spake: Yes, and look, thank you so much, Tracey. Love how parkrun presents so many opportunities for people to volunteer and give their time. And of course, people give their time in so many other ways outside of parkrun too, it must be said.

00:56:31Melissa Ellis: They do, and some people volunteer purely on an unofficial level. Not everybody volunteers to get a volunteer credit. They do things that aren't necessarily always recognised.

00:56:43Oliver Spake: Yeah, and I think one of the things that I notice going from parkrun to parkrun is that, yeah, look, everyone is working within the same framework. A good example of that is, you know, we're all out there supporting the restrictions and the different controls we have to in relation to COVID and things like the Zooper Dooper hander-outer that we all miss, love to have back, really love to have back. We know and understand some of the reasons there. But there are different things that I think different parkrun teams and and individuals come up with that can really add a lot to parkrun and as you say Mel you know they're not always something that people get credit for and certainly Tracy is as you say as well but I could honestly say there are some roles in there that I would hands down without a pause give a volunteer credit to and that might be personal view more so than official view but um yeah I think that There are some great examples of how people do and have contributed in those.

00:57:44Melissa Ellis: And I particularly like the Warm-up Leader assistant, Ollie, because that's a great way to get kids engaged and allowing them the opportunity to volunteer alongside an adult.

00:57:55Oliver Spake: Yeah. And that's, you know, that's that form of participation. You know, we want everyone to enjoy this, you know, this, as parkrun says, this hugely positive experience. And everyone, everyone's different. They all do it in different ways. And if a junior can enjoy that, and if someone can enjoy that in a slightly more unique way, but still, you know, that sense of inclusion, that's fantastic. I know even, even cheer squad, one of my best parkrun memories is a group of people that used to come along and volunteer. And whilst we did put them in marshal spots generally, when we were full of marshals, we always welcomed our cheer squad. And it was such a nice feature of parkrun Morning for a couple of months running there where we had this group of four that were volunteering their time as part of their church. And you could hear their cheering across the valley, across the lagoon. And it just drove so many people on to have, you know, that support. No one asked them to do it. In fact, we spent countless weeks trying to convince them to have a parkrun, give that a go, and they did eventually. But we miss them.

00:59:03Melissa Ellis: makes me think of Elizabeth Ollie uh at is it Bushy Park the famous Elizabeth corner yes when she comes out and just cheers the parkrunners exactly every week and I also have to give a shout out to a Highlands parkrun I'm pretty sure it's holds yeah it's definitely Highlands uh they have a point on their course where there's always multiple I would say it's a Marshal spot but there's always more than one person and they're always cheering and I think they're call it bill's hill pretty sure it's multiple laps at Highlands and it's great to come around knowing that they're going to be there in the little the little lift you get from the cheer squad and I know that parkrun is always open for anybody who wants to to help out on the day yeah there's always a role to be found and cheer squad is one of those roles

00:59:54Oliver Spake: Yeah, and I think that's what I really like about what Tracey's highlighted is that even when we do fill the roster, it is great to see people finding these ways to help and help make that parkrun experience just a little bit extra special.

01:00:09Melissa Ellis: I also liked that Tracy mentioned the plogging. And I thought I would expand a little bit on that for people that might not understand what the plogging is. And it's a combination of jogging with picking up litter. And it started as an organised activity in Sweden around 2016. And from there, it spread to other countries. But following the increased concern of

01:00:30Oliver Spake: plastic pollution so that is probably something that people would even you know go out on not parkrun day on their local parkrun course if they felt so inclined to just you know maintain their their local community yeah look and what a great initiative I had no idea it was that recent I suppose I'd only become familiar with the terminology recently but yeah it's a fantastic trend and hey if someone wants to combine it with their parkrun that's that's great

01:00:59Melissa Ellis: I was thinking about this the other day as I was just out on one of my (not)parkruns and I feel compelled to shove like a plastic bag or a garbage bag and probably a glove because you wouldn't want to be going along, especially with the COVID climate. You wouldn't want to be going along picking up rubbish with your bare hands. You'd want to be nice and safe in that respect. But it did occur to me it would be easier to stick a plastic bag in your pocket and and a couple of gloves. And then even after your parkrun, run back out and do an extra lap if you needed to get your steps up. And that would be when you went out and cleaned up anything you might've noticed on your first sweep of parkrun.

01:01:40Oliver Spake: It's fantastic to see the number of people that have the desire and that do get out there and do that. It makes such a positive difference. And I suppose coming back to the notion of getting a volunteer credit, I love seeing people get volunteer credits and I suppose I'm always mindful that we are a large group of individuals and there will be different interpretations and sometimes people will see that differently. But more than anything, I think we appreciate what they're doing. And I do hope that where people step up and volunteer through the official channel, of course, in whatever capacity to help make the parkrun course, day, parkrunners, you know, all of that special. Yeah, I do hope that they get that credit.

01:02:24Melissa Ellis: Ollie, can you hear that?

01:02:26[other]

01:02:26Unidentified speaker: Yes.

01:02:26Oliver Spake: Yes.

01:02:30Melissa Ellis: It's been so long. They've been so good and they haven't done it for a while.

01:02:33Oliver Spake: You know, for a moment there I was actually wondering, was it tap, tap or tweet, tweet?

01:02:40Melissa Ellis: That was Bambi. He just randomly walked in, came in, stood there, looked at me, turned around, and off he went again. Meanwhile, Chico's in the dog bed next to me, happily snoring his head off. I'm not quite sure if that's coming through the microphone.

01:02:53Oliver Spake: Oh, no, no, not at all. Big day, Chico?

01:02:56Melissa Ellis: It's his birthday today.

01:02:58Oliver Spake: Happy birthday, Chico.

01:02:59Melissa Ellis: He's 12. Oh, that is a big day. He's an old man. Yeah. He's had plenty of love from everybody today, so it's worn him out.

01:03:08Oliver Spake: Yeah. Speaking of some milestones, Mel. Yes. I suppose it's not lost on us that there are some more developments across the globe when it comes to parkrun.

01:03:18Melissa Ellis: There is, Ollie. USA is coming back this coming Saturday. Not every event, I'm led to believe. Absolutely. And from the 11th of May COVID update, it did state we are on track to resume a number of events in the USA on May the 22nd, 2-2. So, yeah, that's exciting. Really happy for the USA to have their restart happening and I looked up to see how many events they've got there in the USA because I don't know an awful lot about them. I really, to be honest, only really heard about that one that's got the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.

01:04:02Oliver Spake: Oh, naturally, yeah.

01:04:04Melissa Ellis: It's probably the most well-known of all the events but they do have 47 events over there.

01:04:09Oliver Spake: Yeah, it's grown and it has been nice to hear over the years on the pod a few snippets and journeys through, well, not just the USA, but I suppose North America. But you're right, then from from the USA and we're definitely thinking of everyone there and wishing all the event teams the best for that startup and hopefully we can we can see and hear a bit more of that and and share a bit of the excitement yes let's try and learn a little bit more about that that's what I'm thinking yes and there is more exciting announcements there's announcements are plenty this week yes would you like to do the honours with the next one Oh, if I can do it justice, Mel. But look, bear with me because things are going to get ugly.

01:04:57Melissa Ellis: How long did you practice that?

01:04:58Oliver Spake: Well, let's just say it comes naturally to me. we have some exciting news that we have been provided to share. As we all know and love, and look, for those of you that may not have been listening for a very long time and don't know and love.

01:05:08[other]

01:05:18Melissa Ellis: You're going off the track here.

01:05:20Oliver Spake: Yeah, yeah, okay, back on track. I'll get to it. Bear with me.

International Ugly Christmas Singlet Day

01:05:24Oliver Spake: We have an ugly Christmas announcement. So previously we have mentioned that there will be a Christmas in July for our ugly theme. So at the time of recording, Mel, there are only 68 more sleeps until the inaugural Ugly Christmas in July, which is going to be held on Saturday, the 24th of July.

01:05:48Melissa Ellis: I'm sorry, I'm not listening. I'm looking at my sound effects to find something suitable. Keep going.

01:05:55Oliver Spake: Okay. So to celebrate this momentous occasion and to offer people an opportunity to add some warm layers to their ugly festive ensembles, bear in mind many of us have Ugly Christmas Singlets here. Not all of us bought the shirts. Santa's little helpers have been knitting up an ugly storm and this week we'll be releasing designs for not one, not two, but three ugly Christmas buffs, or as some people know them, neck warmers. So, Mel, if people are fans of any of the official designs from the last three years of international ugly Christmas buffs, singlet or shirt day, I asked, then you may be excited to hear that the three new buff designs have been adapted from these.

01:06:44Melissa Ellis: That just means I've got to buy three. This is just going to be expensive because I'm not going to be able to choose.

01:06:51Oliver Spake: It's going to get ugly. So this is to match in or clash in tremendously ugly fashion if you choose to pick a different year's design.

01:07:01Melissa Ellis: Are you reading this from the script or have you gone rogue?

01:07:05Oliver Spake: Let's just say I'm trying to read, trying. Operative word. And not only will the buffs be spreading warmth and ugly joy wherever they're worn, they will also be helping others. As $1 from every sale, or sorry, from the sale of every buff will be donated to Beyond Blue to support the work they do, in improving the lives of all people in Australia affected by mental health conditions. So a fantastic cause there.

01:07:30Melissa Ellis: It is, Ollie, yes.

01:07:32Oliver Spake: Tremendous effort from the heart and soul behind the Ugly Christmas Singlet or shirt or buff, as it were.

01:07:41Melissa Ellis: And orders are going to open on Thursday the 20th of May and will close two weeks later on Thursday the 3rd of June.

01:07:49Oliver Spake: Yeah, odds are it's out. Yeah.

01:07:52Melissa Ellis: Well, it depends how good I go with the edit this week, but most likely. So no doubt we will have the link for everybody. Or you just go to the International Ugly Christmas Singlet and Shirt Day page to find the details.

01:08:05Oliver Spake: That's right. We'll have to share that frequently over this period. So, look, it may seem early. However, closing orders at the beginning of June will mean that there's plenty of time for people both nationwide and overseas because we want to share the love, guys, even if it is hot and you're not quite in need of a neck warmer. But, yeah, both nationwide and overseas to receive the delivery of your goodies in time, for Ugly Christmas in July. So, yeah, those Ugly Christmas buffs will be available via the usual Adventurers online portal with supplier Aventu. And, Mel, as you were saying, yeah, head over and like the International Ugly Christmas Singlet or Shirt Day Facebook page for the link and all the other ugly details.

01:08:50Melissa Ellis: Save the date for the inaugural Ugly Christmas in July, Saturday the 24th of July. There's going to be a bunch of ugly fun, Ollie.

01:08:59Oliver Spake: Can't wait.

01:09:00Melissa Ellis: And I found the sound effect. You're welcome.

01:09:09Oliver Spake: Well done, Mel. And we hope that's brought everyone to attention because we don't want to miss it. We know people have missed those designs in recent years. This is your opportunity. And yeah, if you like them and you want to support, you want to get some, jump on and grab them now.

01:09:27Melissa Ellis: Have we covered everything? I think we just about have, except for the thing that we always forget to tell everybody, which is you can contact us via our Facebook or our email address, which is parkrunadventurers at gmail.com. We might get another email, Ollie.

01:09:42Oliver Spake: Wouldn't that be lovely?

01:09:44Melissa Ellis: It does give us a surprise when we get one.

01:09:47Oliver Spake: I think you can see how genuine our surprise is. We really appreciate it. We scour that inbox constantly and But it was fantastic. And speaking of forgetting things, the other thing that I frequently forget is the budgies. Please don't forget to bring in the budgies, Mel.

Sign-off

01:10:05Melissa Ellis: Thank you for remembering. Okay, that's it for another week.

01:10:10Oliver Spake: We'll see you next week, Mel. And again, thank you for volunteering. Thank you.

01:11:08Unidentified speaker: Hi Mel and Ollie.

01:11:11Unidentified speaker: I came 15 today and mum was Run Director and she went and she made the kids smile. Bye.