Episode 321 - GO!

Welcome

00:00:23Melissa Ellis: Welcome to episode 321 of the parkrun adventurers podcast. My name is Melissa Ellis and I am back home on Wurundjeri Country.

00:00:33Oliver Spake: And I am Ollie Spake, joining once again from Dharawal Country. And welcome home, Mel.

00:00:39Melissa Ellis: Thank you very much. Glad to be home, back in my own bed, Ollie.

00:00:44Oliver Spake: Yes. You enjoyed the junket?

00:00:46Melissa Ellis: I did. Yeah. I missed my car and I missed my bed.

00:00:51Unidentified speaker: Yeah.

00:00:51Oliver Spake: Yeah, the home comforts.

00:00:53Melissa Ellis: Yes, exactly. But, no, it was a good break over there in SA. Oh, that's good. Very good break. That's good.

00:01:01Oliver Spake: And so Episode 321, that just occurred to me, 321, it's the Go episode.

00:01:06Melissa Ellis: Oh, there's our pod title.

00:01:10Oliver Spake: sorted excellent that's going to save the conversation I mean is that is that how parkruns often start is it three two one go uh I have heard some strong views on this and some great creative alternatives but uh you are more recently travelled than me how do parkruns actually start

00:01:30Melissa Ellis: Ollie, I'm not up that end. I'm not up the business end that gets to hear them say, ready, set, go. I'm down the end. I'm partying at the back.

00:01:39Unidentified speaker: Partying at the back, yeah.

00:01:41Melissa Ellis: And I can't hear those things. I just go, oh, everybody's moving, and off I trot.

00:01:46Oliver Spake: Noted, noted.

00:01:48Melissa Ellis: So you're going to have to be the one. But I know at juniors we usually say, ready, set, go to the kids.

00:01:53Oliver Spake: Uh-huh, uh-huh.

00:01:55Melissa Ellis: Or sometimes they say on the count of three.

00:01:57Oliver Spake: Yep. So the reverse. So we've missed that opportunity. There's no one, two, three we can get to.

00:02:04Kevin: So, yeah, all right.

00:02:06Oliver Spake: Noted. I actually, yeah, I guess I don't often start a parkrun myself. I just talk for far too long a period beforehand, but someone else would generally start it.

00:02:16Melissa Ellis: Do you think it's the Timekeeper that says that? Yes.

00:02:20Oliver Spake: Yeah, I like to give it to the Timekeeper.

00:02:22Melissa Ellis: I think at juniors we usually have the RD calling the start and the Timekeeper, you say, is the Timekeeper ready? And they go, yes. And then you go, okay, kids, ready, set, go. Oh, that makes sense. Because they're always busting to start the kids. Goodness me, you've got to hold them back.

00:02:40Oliver Spake: Well, I mean, cut straight to the point, Mel. I didn't travel, you did. How was your parkrun weekend? Yeah.

00:02:47Melissa Ellis: Well, after spending a lovely week in Goolwa, the girls and I checked out on Friday morning and headed approximately one hour north to a motel in Morphettville where we joined up with Sarah Jefferson who had flown in from WA. The motel was only six minutes away from our parkrun target and for anyone interested in touristing, it sits alongside the Glenelg tram line and beside the Junction Bistro where we enjoyed dinner away from the heat. Oaklands Estate Reserve is in the South Australian suburb of Oaklands Park on the lands of the Kaurna people. The six hectare reserve forms part of a larger 12 hectare site, which is bounded by Oaklands Road to the north, Oaklands Estate Reserve to the east, Adelaide to Noarlunga Rail Line to the south and the Sturt River to the west. It was event number 55 and the first anniversary for Oaklands Estate Reserve parkrun, which celebrated with a colourful theme and an attendance record of 274, eclipsing their previous record of 234, which was set on their launch. I was pleased to meet up again with fellow adventurer Anne Fry, who I'd met at Juniors the previous week, and event ambassador Melissa Cox, who was happy to pose for a Melfi. Sarah and I ran the course, Alicia walked, while Zoe decided to sit it out on the playground. I was happy to shave another 23 seconds off my post-injury PB in the warm conditions. I'm not quite sure why I run better in the heat, but I'm noticing a theme this week with that occurring. The course itself is flat on concrete with three turnaround points, which you do twice each. It's also quite a shady course with bubblers along the way if needed. Adventurer Michelle Dezago was also there crossing the line between Sarah and I, so shout out also to Michelle. After the run, Sarah grabbed a few words with RD and ED Kevin, the local member for Gibson, Sarah Andrews, and the South Australian Minister for Sport, Katrine Hildyard. So we'll hear from them shortly. Afterwards, we joined in briefly with a group of visiting RMAs at Strappers Cafe, which was only a short drive away and is filled with horse paraphernalia due to the close proximity of the Morphettville Racecourse. Then it was time for us to bid farewell to Sarah and South Australia and head home again after a very enjoyable summer beach holiday.

00:05:15Oliver Spake: Well, I'm glad you had a nice warm one. It feels very summery and very appropriate for the holiday period. Well done.

00:05:23Melissa Ellis: Yes, and we'll look forward to hearing more from Sarah in our roving reports coming up.

00:05:27Oliver Spake: Yes.

00:05:28Melissa Ellis: But what about you, Ollie? You had a different activity through the week.

00:05:33Oliver Spake: Well, that's right. That's right. I did get out for a run. I had been contemplating entering an event that is held in Wollongong on the 26th, on Australia Day, which is a regular aquathon. And it's only recently reintroduced a fun run event, which Hannah and her boyfriend, James, were all keen to enter. So I had planned to join in on that, but I was, let's say, peer pressured by... by my motivation buddy, Bec, who very helpfully suggested that we compete as an aquathon duo, which fortunately for me kept me out of the water, although it was very, very hot. But, yeah, it meant that Bec would do the swim leg and myself the run. So whilst Hannah and James and Mum and several other Shellharbour parkrunners and adventurers were out in the run and other events, yeah, we took on the long aqua course. So Bec did... 900 metres swim and then I got to run seven k's so who got to do the finish line me I did get to to do my my zoomie and and scream into the finish line so that was good fun and how do you do the tag after the swim like is is the swim in a pool or on the beach It's in Wollongong Harbour, so it is just an open water harbour that consisted of two laps, 450 metres each for those checking me on the maths, and just out from the beach around some buoys and back before then Bec had to jump out onto the sand, run across the sand up some steps, which I'm sure felt great after the swim, and hand me an anklet or an ankle Velcro thing. LAUGHTER timing thing okay uh yeah like a baton sort of situation that shouldn't be a problem for a surf life-saving chick like Bec well that's right uh spoiler alert she's a good swimmer um so she set us up well it was of course my first ever aquathon experience and she informed me in the the days leading up to it that she hadn't had a swim like that this year so she survived and yeah it was good fun

00:07:19[laughter]

00:07:50Melissa Ellis: And tell everybody how you did.

00:07:51Oliver Spake: We came third in the mixed teams, so in our segment, but quite stoked with that result. And I'm told that I was only a minute or so behind Olympian Jess Hull, so I'll take that. Really? Not quite sure when she started and what event she was in, but, hey, you know, a minute behind an Olympian, that's my claim.

00:08:13Melissa Ellis: It must work. That sounds fun.

00:08:15Oliver Spake: Yeah. So, yeah, a very, very hot one and great to see a lot of familiar faces and good fun for a run. So it was nice to have a bit of motivation there. And, yeah, look, like I said, I was run directing back at Shellharbour at the weekend. It was still very hot. North Wollongong was cancelled because of an influx of music festivals over the weekend. And so we had a lot of parkrun refugees from our neighbouring events and visitors, including the co-ED of Bourke Racecourse, Erna Taylor, who we have heard on the pod before in a roving report. So, yeah, a lot of visitors and a nice sunny day for parkrun day, and um look it was it was hottest 100 weekend it was a pirate party for me on Sunday so it was there was lots lots of fun a pirate party a pirate party that's right yeah so my father-in-law's birthday and the family decided it would be a pirate party so um I had to dress up again oh you hate that don't you yeah I do

00:09:21Melissa Ellis: You get good use out of that pirate costume.

00:09:23Oliver Spake: Yes, that's right. That was a good investment, Ollie. That eye shadow is running low. Oh, dear.

00:09:30Melissa Ellis: I have to remember that when it's your birthday. I'll stock you up again.

00:09:33Oliver Spake: Oh, thank you.

00:09:36Melissa Ellis: Goodness.

00:09:36Oliver Spake: I really do need a different theme. I mean, it's been pirates consistently. I'm going to need a different theme. But anyway, moving along. Look, I meant to ask as well, you made it back for juniors, I trust.

00:09:47Unidentified speaker: No.

00:09:51Melissa Ellis: That's okay. No, I actually didn't.

00:09:53Oliver Spake: No, of course you didn't.

00:09:54Melissa Ellis: I didn't. I was home in time. We drove home on Saturday and we were home probably around 7 p.m. But I did have a lot of unpacking and washing and general, you know, post-holiday chores to get done. So I had a full roster at juniors. I left my team to it.

00:10:15Oliver Spake: Go team.

00:10:16Melissa Ellis: They didn't need me.

00:10:18Oliver Spake: Well... Yeah, hopefully gave you a chance to settle in and enjoy those home comforts. Mel, I believe we have some feedback from the last episode.

00:10:27Melissa Ellis: Well, we did. After I made my reference to how many South Australian events there are, which I think I claimed... 1946, if I'm not mistaken. And I also claimed that South Australia had never had an event close. Well, turns out I was right. Our friend Peter Pohlman commented on our published post last week saying... that he checked the closed non-custodial events. And in Australia so far to date, there have been 14 events that have closed, that being seven in New South Wales, three in Queensland, three in Victoria, and one in WA. So, yes, there is a few states missing from that list, nothing from ACT or Tassie or South Australia. Yeah. Oh, no, Queensland's there.

00:11:25Oliver Spake: That's right. That's right. And our territory event's still continuing there. No, well, thank you, Peter. And do I claim that New South Wales is winning that particular... I'm going to leave that one alone. But... Speaking of winning, I suppose on the news and discussion side, Mel, everyone's winning.

00:11:44Melissa Ellis: Yes, Ollie, there was a post just today, or was it today? I believe it was, from parkrun Australia saying that last weekend 68,160 of you joined us at parkrun, an all-time Australian parkrun participation record, which includes all-time records for volunteers being 5,267 in Junior parkrun with 533. Huge. So everybody was out on the unofficial Australia Day long weekend.

00:12:14Oliver Spake: Yes, that's right. It was a rather extended long weekend for some. But yeah, well done, everyone. Yeah, well, I'm not sure we've really followed the news-wise aside from that. So I suppose it's time to let others do the talking. And you did mention that we were looking forward to a roving report from Sarah at your aforementioned Oaklands Estate Reserve.

Roving reports & the Channel 5 News crew

00:12:37Oliver Spake: So let's have a listen to Sarah and also Lyndell with some roving reports now.

Roving report Sarah Jefferson — Oaklands Estate Reserve

00:12:49Sarah Jefferson: Good morning, parkrun adventurers. I'm here with Kevin this morning at Oaklands Estate Reserve for their first birthday. Happy birthday.

00:12:56Kevin: Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you.

00:12:58Sarah Jefferson: Lots of lollipops being passed around.

00:13:00Kevin: There is lollipops. Yeah, we've got lots of lollipops. And most of the parents are actually taking them. The kids aren't.

00:13:06Sarah Jefferson: Oh, there you go. That's actually good. Yeah, it is.

00:13:08Kevin: Pretty sugar.

00:13:09Sarah Jefferson: So congratulations on the first birthday. How's the first year been for you?

00:13:14Kevin: The first year's been great. We've built a really good community and we've got a lot of families that come with us every single week. We've had a fantastic crew of volunteers behind us. When Denise and I first set this up, I don't think we could have dreamt of what we've got. It's just a year down, absolutely brilliant, kind of goose bumpy.

00:13:35Sarah Jefferson: Yeah, which is great. Great to hear. And I'm definitely feeling the community vibe today. Lots of tutus, lots of party hats and bright colours. Now, I also hear there's a congratulations for something else this week. Could you fill the listeners in about that, please?

00:13:49Kevin: Well, the event was awarded the Community Event of the Year from Marion Council. So that goes to all the runners. It goes to all the volunteers. It goes to everybody who's ever helped us. It goes to the people who do the background stuff. It goes to everybody. And it's a fantastic achievement for us, the event and to get that in their first in our first year it's just yeah another spine yeah so many things yeah you've ticked off in the first year alone yeah but we've got a great ea in Mel um and mel's been fantastic for us yep so that's great and it wasn't as smooth to start as you had hoped is that right COVID caused problems and nothing else was really not surmountable. It just took time. Just time was taken for it. And we just needed to make sure all the ducks were in a row before we jump in. But then when COVID hit, it just, yeah, it took away from everybody. And especially every new event that was opening, it just stalled everything.

00:14:52Sarah Jefferson: Maybe that pulled you all together a bit stronger and, you know, you got through that.

00:14:56Kevin: Yeah, and she gave us probably more time to really cement what we wanted. Yep. The event that you ran today is probably about the... Yeah, of course you can. Thank you. No worries. And it's the tracks we've had previously were never actually used because... This is probably incarnation number seven of different tracks that we could have had.

00:15:20Sarah Jefferson: Okay.

00:15:21Kevin: Well done, matey.

00:15:21Sarah Jefferson: Lollipops are flying out there.

00:15:24Kevin: And we like this one. This is kind of like a H when you look at it.

00:15:28Sarah Jefferson: I was thinking that. On one side it's kind of a H and then I was like, it's kind of a J, but yeah, let's go capital H. And it could be a Y. Yeah.

00:15:33Kevin: Okay. Yep.

00:15:35Sarah Jefferson: That's what it's about, though, I guess, isn't it? Yeah. Kind of finding what works and troubleshooting.

00:15:40Kevin: And one of our original incarnations had like 16 turnarounds.

00:15:44Sarah Jefferson: Oh, my goodness. Yeah, exactly.

00:15:45Kevin: And so as a parkrunner, after we sort of looked at that, we thought, no, I don't want to do that.

00:15:50Sarah Jefferson: Yeah.

00:15:50Kevin: As a parkrunner, I don't want to do an event that's got 16 turnarounds. No. Yeah, fair enough. So we canned that and we've ended up with this one. Yep.

00:15:58Sarah Jefferson: Yeah, great.

00:15:58Kevin: The crowd love it. Yeah.

00:16:00Sarah Jefferson: It's good you're actually running past people a few times.

00:16:02Kevin: Yeah.

00:16:03Sarah Jefferson: Don't love to run past the finish line near the end. I think that's mentally a bit tough.

00:16:07Kevin: Well, we've had a couple of people hook in instead of going down to that third turnaround point. Yeah. And they hooked in early, but, you know, that's, you know, yeah.

00:16:16Sarah Jefferson: Do you get many adventurers being an O, like a parkrun that starts with O and early numbers if people are chasing event numbers? Yeah.

00:16:21Kevin: We do, yeah, and especially the O part. Yes. Being the only O in South Australia, we've had a lot of people come in, come in and do the event and tick off their O's. And then exactly like you mentioned, the... Fibonacci.

00:16:37Sarah Jefferson: Fibonacci.

00:16:37Kevin: Yeah, those sort of things as well.

00:16:40Sarah Jefferson: Yeah, or the Wilson Index. The Wilson Index, yeah. Yeah, awesome.

00:16:43Kevin: Words that get quite often mentioned.

00:16:45Sarah Jefferson: Yes, yeah, awesome. Well, thank you for everything that you do for parkrun. It was a really great event this morning. Thank you. And congratulations and happy birthday. No worries.

00:16:52Unidentified speaker: Thank you very much. Thanks.

00:16:54Sarah Jefferson: All right, this morning I'm here with Sarah and this is Sarah's local event. Can you tell me a little bit about what this means to you, Sarah? Yeah.

00:17:02Sarah Andrews: Yeah, Sarah, thank you. I'm the local Member of Parliament, the Member for Gibson, and I've been doing this event since the second week it started. As soon as I heard it was on, I wanted to be a part of something in our local community that accepted everybody, that gave everybody a chance to get out and support each other, look after their health and fitness, and also just, you know, care for each other in a welcoming environment.

00:17:25Sarah Jefferson: Well, I've definitely got those vibes today. It's certainly a really welcoming environment here.

00:17:31Katrine Hildyard: And Katrine, what does parkrun mean to you? Thank you, Sarah. It's great to be here with Sarah Andrews and all of these people for the first birthday here. parkrun means so much to me. I go regularly at Christies Beach and from the very first one and often visit other parkruns and I think about the thing that is similar about each of them. And even though each one has, you know, a different space, different beautiful space, it's absolutely always an event about bringing people together. It unifies people. Everybody here, I think, makes just this beautiful community family. Everyone feels like they belong. And whether you do it in... 14 or 15 minutes, which I will never do, or whether you're just strolling along, everybody is welcome. Everyone's included. And that is a beautiful, beautiful thing. And I just absolutely love it.

00:18:24Sarah Jefferson: And being the Minister for Sport, it's great to see that you're out walking the walk or running the run, so to speak.

00:18:30Katrine Hildyard: Yeah, absolutely. And I think the more ways that we can find for people to feel comfortable to be active in a way that works for them. That is really important because we know that participating in things like this improves people's physical, mental and emotional health and wellbeing. So the more we can encourage people, the better. And even though I'm pretty slow, I think just being here encourages other people to be here.

00:18:55Sarah Jefferson: Definitely. And we know that with parkrun worldwide, the numbers are still down post-COVID. So it's really great to get that community element, you know, and really encouraging of people. Yeah, it connects people. Yeah, yeah. Definitely. I'm putting you on the spot. If you were to pick your top maybe two parkruns? Or have you only done two? No, no, no.

00:19:14Katrine Hildyard: I've done quite a few. And I'd have to say, well, my home parkrun. Of course. Of course. Absolutely. Christies Beach, which is just at the end of our street. It's just beautiful. And I actually would have to say here. And the reason I say that is it's excellent being here with Sarah. But also it just, I came, I think, on that second one as well. And I've just seen it's just continued to grow and to keep people together. It's a really friendly atmosphere. I like that there's kind of little milestones along the way as well. Yeah, it's just lovely.

00:19:51Sarah Jefferson: Yeah, fabulous. Well done on your parkrun journey. Thank you. Thanks for your work.

00:19:55Katrine Hildyard: Thanks to everyone who volunteers. It's amazing.

Roving report Lyndell Murray — Kirra parkrun

00:20:00Lyndell Murray: hmm okay there's a parkrun flag but there are no people all righty parkrun adventurers I hope this is not a misadventure um I've got to be close I've found the flag let me keep going see if I can find this parkrun All righty parkrun adventurers, success. I'm at the start of a parkrun. I'm coming to you this morning from the lands of the Yugambeh people on the Gold Coast. I'm at Kirra parkrun. It's busy, it's warm. Let's see how I go. There's lots of people here. Looks like there's lots of locals and probably some tourists being the Gold Coast in summer. I'm gonna get running or at least walking or something and I'll see you at the other end. Alrighty, guys. I have found Stella. Stella is today's Run Director. She knows Em, friend of the podcast, who is the Event Director here. Em's not here, though. Stella, how are you going today? Very good. Thank you so much.

00:21:06Stella: Nice to meet you. And how did it go today? Today was super busy. They got thrown a few curveballs this morning. Didn't know there was a few events on in the area. The Bilinga Surf Club had a major event on. So I had to make a quick decision as to whether I change the course or keep it as it is and warn everyone of the obstacles ahead. But it seems to be okay. It worked out okay. And I've been told the turnaround was okay at the two kilometre mark. So.

00:21:36Lyndell Murray: Well, I missed the briefing because I was running a bit late. It was fine from my perspective, so thumbs up from me.

00:21:43Stella: Now, Kirra's been going for a little while, is that right? Yes, we have our birthday coming up. I believe our 11th birthday coming up in two weeks on the 18th of February, so that'll be fun. That could be in three weeks' time, sorry. Three weeks' time. Three weeks' time. Have you got it? theme is there going to be a you know party cake yeah definitely a cake um Emma always organises a cake um and I believe the theme is going to be superheroes um is what we're tossing up so um so it'll be yeah superheroes sort of theme for everyone to come but I don't know if that's been posted yet on Facebook

00:22:15Lyndell Murray: You heard it here first, parkrun adventurers. So 11th birthday, you've been going on for a while here. What about you? How long have you been involved with Kirra? What's your parkrun story?

00:22:27Stella: Yeah, well, I actually, I've had friends doing parkrun for years before I started to do it. I moved to the area 14 years ago and I knew there was a parkrun here. But I've never been a runner, always been a bit nervous to join events like this. And one day I decided to join, and believe it or not, it was the sixth birthday of Kirra parkrun. So the 11th birthday will be my fifth anniversary for me. So, yeah, I started volunteering probably... Oh, I'd say a few months into it, maybe three or four months in, once I'd done a few parkruns and then I thought, I've always done volunteering in other organisations, so I just thought I'll start and I started with, I might have started with Timekeeper, which is a... huge job to start with a bit nerve-wracking um but yeah that's pretty much so I just make a commitment to volunteer once a month so but yeah because I was meant to volunteer last week and someone actually covered for me when I did an interstate trip um I'm volunteering the next two weeks as well to make up for it so well done it sounds like you've got a nice community here at Kirra anyway

00:23:33Lyndell Murray: And look, how fantastic. You turn up for parkrun, there's cake. Of course you're going to come back.

00:23:37Stella: Yeah. Well, I've been really good. I've been to, this will be my fifth parkrun birthday, and I think I've only had cake once, and that was last year. So I do stay away from the cake because I definitely don't need it. But, yeah, it's always fun. And I think we always have Zooper Doopers as well, so they cool everyone down, especially on a day like today when it's super hot. Yeah. We'll have the icy poles out. Yeah.

00:23:59Lyndell Murray: And now the course here is an out and back and then a short out and back. There's not a lot of shade in the summer, but there are lots of water bubbles along the way.

00:24:08Stella: Yeah, lots of water bubbles, lots of showers, and there's a shower at the end. And you can always strip off and go for a swim in the ocean, so that's always a good thing. That's my plan. And the other good thing about here is every hour we've got the parachuters dropping in too. So we've just had them about 10 minutes ago, so that was fun. It's always nice to see the parachuters coming down on a nice day. Fantastic.

00:24:30Lyndell Murray: Well, thank you so much, Stella, for talking to me. Thank you so much for all the work that you do for parkrun and the commitment that you make. Once a month, that's fantastic. And you get out and run. So definitely part of the parkrun family here. So thanks for talking to me today. Thank you so much. Thanks for having me.

00:24:46Unidentified speaker: Thank you.

00:24:48Lyndell Murray: Okay, now I'm standing here with Karina. She is my hero today. She stepped in at the last minute to time keep. And it's your first time time keeping, is that correct?

00:24:57Karina: Yes, it is my first time time keeping. I was very scared about doing it. But now that I've done it, it's actually fun cheering everyone on at the end and seeing them finish and, you know, feeling really proud of themselves. So I would... suggest that anyone who has never given it a go before just do it excellent excellent but you've volunteered in other roles yes yes I've done a Tail Walker and I've done photographer and um with the park walk um promotion I've done park walk I've just got to do a few times yeah let's just jump in welcome back to Kirra parkrun well done

Roving reports & the Channel 5 News crew

00:25:39Lyndell Murray: Alrighty, parkrun adventurers, that is it from me, Lyndell. I am reporting in from Kirra parkrun for the Channel 5 News crew. I've found the parkrun flags and now I'm off to find some yellow and red flags for a bit of a dip to cool off. See you next time on the parkrun adventurers.

00:26:07Melissa Ellis: Another two wonderful roving reports coming to us from Lyndell at Kirra and Sarah at Oaklands Estate Reserve. So some interesting things to note from Oaklands Estate Reserve, Ollie, is they actually won the City of Marion's Community Event of the Year, which was just announced in the week prior to our visit in the Australia, I suppose it was the Australia Day Awards event. So they were very excited about that. So well done to that parkrun for their honour.

00:26:38Oliver Spake: Some wonderful recognition.

00:26:39Melissa Ellis: Absolutely.

00:26:40Oliver Spake: Yeah, well deserved. Great work, everyone.

00:26:43Melissa Ellis: And Sarah talking to RD, who is also the co-ED Kevin. And the local member for Gibson, Sarah Andrews. Now, interesting thing about Sarah Andrews, she recently did a speech in Parliament about parkrun. So that was back in October last year.

00:27:03Oliver Spake: Yes, which again, fantastic acknowledgement and recognition and great to see that at that level.

00:27:10Melissa Ellis: Yeah, Sarah's a relatively new convert to parkrun, but very enthusiastic. But more of a seasoned parkrunner was the Minister for Sport, who is Katrine Hildyard. She is a Christies Beach regular parkrunner. She's done 92. So approaching her 100.

00:27:31Oliver Spake: Yes.

00:27:31Melissa Ellis: I met both ladies as well on the morning, both very enthusiastic and very supportive of the parkrun community. So- Thank you for talking to them, interviewing them, Sarah. And Ollie, Lyndell out at Kirra eventually found the start line and had a catch-up with RD Stella, who let slip that Kirra will shortly be celebrating their 11th birthday. Yes. Coming up on the 18th of February. And they have a theme of superheroes.

00:28:03Oliver Spake: That's right. What's that? The Independence birthday. Yes.

00:28:07Melissa Ellis: Oh, yes. Yes, as the birthday boy proclaimed last week. Last week. In his inaugural segment.

00:28:15Oliver Spake: So very exciting and thank you both for the roving report.

Dazza's

00:28:19Oliver Spake: Well, Mel, I think it's time to catch up at Dazza's. So at Dazza's this week he said, it's International Lego Day. Shout out to all the Lego lovers amongst our listeners, or AFOLs to be more accurate. Can you click together a block of a story filled with the colour of a parkrun day?

00:28:41Melissa Ellis: Do we first have to say what AFOL stands for?

00:28:47Oliver Spake: Would you like to enlighten us?

00:28:50Melissa Ellis: You don't know, do you?

00:28:51Oliver Spake: I don't know.

00:28:53Melissa Ellis: Adult fans of Lego, I believe.

00:28:55Oliver Spake: Well, I'm definitely an AFOL fan. I'm very pleased to see my Lego outside my bedroom in circulation.

00:29:04Melissa Ellis: Oh, really?

00:29:05Oliver Spake: As scrunchy as it looks, yes. Yeah.

00:29:08Melissa Ellis: Are you the sort of person that like creates something and then it has to sit on the shelf made or does it all get jumbled up back in a big box of pieces never to be put together again? No.

00:29:17Oliver Spake: occasionally I try and reconstruct things I mean it's with the girls these days but I was never one to keep it as is it was always recreate you know change is good Mel and just come up with something new so I've got a big tub of lego pieces in my toy cupboard that I'm saving for my grandchildren excellent

00:29:36Melissa Ellis: But I'll give you a peel back the curtain. I've also got a filing cabinet with a manila folder full of old Lego instructions. Ah, yes, yes. I'm one of those people that keeps the instruction books.

00:29:50Oliver Spake: Well, I do have some instruction books. Some may be missing pages, which just adds to the excitement. But nonetheless, I must admit to having some instruction books still from the girls' Lego, not from my original stuff.

00:30:04Melissa Ellis: Makes me want to go and look now. I'm pretty sure I would probably have some 1970s version Lego instructions. They might be worth money.

00:30:12Oliver Spake: They might be. They might be. I mean, just think there might be someone out there actually looking for that specific set of instructions too.

00:30:19Melissa Ellis: I almost feel like we need to get that old. There was a photo that was used once for one of the pod posts that had Lego people in it.

00:30:30Oliver Spake: Ah, yes. Do you remember? Was it for the pod post? I remember the ugly Christmas one, yes.

00:30:35Melissa Ellis: Oh, well, either either I don't remember.

00:30:38Oliver Spake: Ah, but yeah, no, did enjoy the Lego theme. In any case... Catching up with us at Dazza's was Catherine Pirotta, who was volunteering and said, Good morning. Happy parkrun Day, everyone. Enjoy running, walking or volunteering as I am heading to Warrington Lakes Reserve to volunteer as Timekeeper. And Catherine shared a photo of herself in the new red vest.

00:31:04Melissa Ellis: She did. And whilst we're talking about Catherine, we should also give a thank you to Johan who offered to send Catherine a transcription of one of our recent episodes. And I believe he did. Yes. He cc'd us in on that email. So that was very kind of you, Johan. I do believe that Catherine enjoyed seeing a transcription. Ollie, is that something that we can do in the settings?

00:31:27Oliver Spake: It would be nice to do because it casts the memory back to when we actually did a live, multiple lives perhaps. I can't remember. I mean, back in those COVID days, that distant memory. Yeah.

00:31:40Melissa Ellis: Trying to block it out.

00:31:41Oliver Spake: And there was that live transcript. And I remember at the time Catherine, you know, gave us feedback and said, oh, it would be great, you know, do more lives because, yeah, it did provide that transcription. Short answer, no idea. I'd really love to know.

00:31:55Melissa Ellis: Okay, we'll look into it. Yeah, let's look into it. I don't know if Podbean potentially has that option somewhere. Yeah.

00:32:04Oliver Spake: I mean, if anyone would like to volunteer to put together the transcription on a regular basis, that would be welcome. But yeah, special thanks to Johan there. And if anyone potentially could volunteer any technical knowledge to be more than welcome.

00:32:20Melissa Ellis: Yeah. Anyway, we also had Mark Scarborough, who had the most likes, and he said in late breaking news, James from the Channel 2 News crew completed his 100th parkrun. The Wagi Bridge Troll was even there to celebrate. And we had a lovely photo of James with the Troll in the selfie frame.

00:32:42Oliver Spake: Well done, James. Congratulations on the big 100.

00:32:45Melissa Ellis: He's doing well. That boy's getting fast too.

00:32:48Oliver Spake: Yes, he thinks he's going to continue to get faster. And on the touristing front, Mel, we heard from Sue Keane who said, I went to Southern Highlands Botanic Gardens parkrun where there was a colourful array of club runners to match the new vests. Walked with parkwalker Skip who was off to do his two-hour trail run. Nuts, it's hot out there. I managed first in my age group, 50 minutes best time in G, I don't know, obtained a date bingo and Fibonacci number 34. All the Lego pieces fell into place. Well done, Sue.

00:33:23Melissa Ellis: Well done. Yes. And we also heard from Sarah Jefferson who completed a challenge and she said, hi, Dazza, lots of bright colours today at Oaklands Estate Reserve parkrun for their first birthday. Lots of fun with Melissa Ellis.

00:33:38Katrine Hildyard: That's me. Alphabet status tick.

00:33:43Melissa Ellis: So well done, Sarah, travelling overnight all the way from WA to South Australia to complete her alphabet with an O. Well done.

00:33:53Oliver Spake: And, Mel, we also heard, also on the touristing front, Julie Doolin, who said, Charlie and I were Tail Walkers at Broken Hill Racecourse. And Julie shared a photo of herself with the pup in the selfie frame.

00:34:09Melissa Ellis: I assume that's Charlie. Didn't verify that. Mm-hmm. We heard from Johan coming to us from South Africa and he said, awesome day at Zolstrand Commons parkrun with some big blocks visiting us for event number two. Bruce and Gill Fordyce with Peter and Julie Fordham from the UK. Everything clicked together despite a power outage of more than 16 hours and brought colour to our lives once again. 18 brand-new first-timers, 23 new PBs at this event, plus a new male course record made it a day to remember, especially for Tumelo Fobain on his first stint as Run Director. And there was a group photo and a landscape shot and a close-up of Sharon.

00:34:56Oliver Spake: Johan always has the best photos. I do like the landscape shots in particular. And over in the UK side of things, we heard from Graeme Wilkinson, who said had a lovely time revisiting Springburn parkrun this morning. The volunteers did an awesome job ensuring 143 of us could complete the course this week. The conditions were perfect for running, cool, bright and still. And when my result email arrived, I found out I had run a course PB2. International Lego Day should really have been last week, though, when I was at Brickfield's parkrun, a more fittingly named parkrun for such a day, I think. Laughing face emoji.

00:35:40Melissa Ellis: And we should note that Springburn parkrun is actually in Glasgow, Ollie.

00:35:45Oliver Spake: That's right, up north.

00:35:46Melissa Ellis: Hmm.

00:35:47Oliver Spake: Yes.

00:35:47Melissa Ellis: Also touristing was William Ellis. Bill, he said, I made the trek from Goulburn to Newcastle and the Newy parkrun had it all. A sea of blue, 742 people...

00:36:04Oliver Spake: It was a big crowd, yes.

00:36:07Melissa Ellis: Oh, okay. 742 people. Very hot running conditions. However, the water was available at the end to jump into. The young lady Run Director provided us with a story of the history of Newy before the start. It was good. The crowd was very happy and the organisation and event was fantastic. And although it was a large crowd, my running time was good. Overall, fantastic 500th Newy parkrun. Good to hear from you, Bill. And a photo of Bill in the selfie frame.

00:36:35Oliver Spake: Yeah, and happy 500 to Newy and all of Team Newy. And over in Malaysia, we heard from Jonathan Morgan, who said, after spending the week in Thailand visiting my sister... Fitted in a stopover in Malaysia on my way back to Australia to make sure I didn't miss out on a parkrun weekend. Sad to hear that Taman Pudu Ulu parkrun isn't able to go ahead at the moment as they are waiting for the landowner to renew permission, but was given a very warm welcome by Precinct 18 parkrun Putrajaya, where I completed the course and was a roving photographer. Got to celebrate a number of people reaching milestones, 10, 25, 150, and 200, with cake and other food. A huge thank you to Hanish Pal, a parkrun regular who was celebrating his 200th run, for giving me a lick, a lick. I beg my pardon. For giving me a lift to the event. I apologise, Jonathan. And Jonathan shared a group shot including a friend of the pod, Harry, the aforementioned Harry, and his parents and brother. Well done on the 200, Harry. Great parkrun tourism, Jonathan. And huge apologies once again from me.

00:37:31[laughter]

00:37:58Melissa Ellis: have to leave that in now because all the laughter in our voices will sound funny if I cut out the bit that you said well it is what it is if I can't speak properly I really shouldn't be podcasting should I Oh, goodness.

00:38:14Oliver Spake: Wow. Thank you to everyone that joined us at Dazza's this week. It was wonderful to see a number of Lego references throughout and some great, great run reports and event reports.

00:38:28Melissa Ellis: And photos.

the Obi Award — Julie Doolin

00:38:29Melissa Ellis: That's right.

00:38:30Oliver Spake: But I suppose there can be only one Obi award winner, at least for this week. I don't know if you've checked whether you've got an envelope or I should check the desk here. Would you like me to check?

00:38:41Unidentified speaker: Mm-hmm.

00:38:42Oliver Spake: Mm-hmm.

00:38:43Unidentified speaker: Mm-hmm.

00:38:45Oliver Spake: Ah, good. Yes. No, it is here. It is here. And Mel, you'll be pleased to know I only have one post-it note on my desk at the moment.

00:38:52Melissa Ellis: Oh, what does it say?

00:38:54Oliver Spake: It's an IOU from my colleague who still owes me some traditional Turkish delight.

00:38:59Melissa Ellis: Oh.

00:39:00Oliver Spake: For Christmas. That was my secret Santa gift at work. Hopefully I'll get it by next Christmas. Okay. I digress. Okay. I have the envelope.

00:39:10Unidentified speaker: Mm-hmm.

00:39:11Oliver Spake: The Obi goes to... Julie Doolan.

00:39:23Melissa Ellis: Hooray! Well done, Julie. She is getting around at the moment. Just the other day she was at Christies Beach and now she's out in the middle of nowhere in the outback.

00:39:35Oliver Spake: That's right. It looks like she's been through Port Pirie too. Just notched up the 250 recently. So yeah, very impressive.

00:39:44Melissa Ellis: So a big well done to you, Julie. Thanks for stopping into Dazza's and congratulations. Now you also get some of the Office Lady's classy challenge stickers. So if you want to drop us a line once you've listened to the pod and give us your address, we will make sure that that gets forwarded to you ASAP.

00:40:03Oliver Spake: Yes, but... Mel, I think it's time for another break. We skipped a week last week while we had the birthday boy, but I believe she is back. Rachel is back.

00:40:13[music]

00:40:13Katrine Hildyard: So should we pause and catch up with Rachel?

00:40:16[12 seconds of audio that could not be transcribed]

Club Corner

00:40:28Rachel: Welcome back. This is Rachel with Club Corner, where we talk about the what and why of parkrun clubs. Hey Rachel, what else are letters good for? We covered being an alphabeteer previously, and this week's club is a logical extension for many parkrunners. People use letters to spell things. A common thing that people did was to use their personal results page to spell words down the page, but the trick was to spell the word in reverse order. This is because your results page adds new event attendances at the top of the page, and older events move down one row. So to spell parkrun you needed to complete events in the order n-u-r-k-r-a-p. To spell a word on your personal page was very cool, at least until you did another event and ruined your word. The other main use of this method was namely, where you spelled your full name. But this challenge slash club is fraught for some, owing to limited availability of letters. These days, any of the many parkrun tracking apps make spelling words very easy, and you no longer need to do events in a specific order to spell words. In parkrun life, all non-milestone clubs are unofficial and unsupported by parkrun, so stay tuned for future club corners.

00:41:37Melissa Ellis: And thank you, Rachel, telling us all about the Namely Challenge. Ollie, I still need another I for my Namely, which I really should try and get onto this year. I think I need to go up and stay with Irene and Parth and see their new house and do, or what would it be near them, Ipswich?

00:41:56Oliver Spake: Ah, okay. Well, there's a nice simple solution, yeah.

00:41:59Melissa Ellis: Yeah.

00:42:00Oliver Spake: And that's all you've got.

00:42:01Melissa Ellis: Yeah, I just need another I. Ah. What about you? Ah.

00:42:06Oliver Spake: I do need an I also, but also need an O, a V and an E. I've got a bit of work to do. I mean, conveniently, I need three of those four letters for my alphabet as it is. So, yeah, that should be fairly achievable. I mean, I've been looking for some time to find a nice event, you know, preferably a warm or sunny one starting with I to visit one day. So, yeah. Yeah, I have to work something out.

00:42:34Melissa Ellis: I'm sure we can find one. I know some people.

00:42:39Oliver Spake: You do. You do. You just may. And incidentally, I believe in the background research for our Obi Award winner, Julie's done her namely challenge. So congratulations again, Julie Doolin. Yes.

00:42:50Melissa Ellis: I wonder if that's a challenge that a lot of people actively... Seek out, pursue.

00:42:55Oliver Spake: Seek out, yes. That's what I was looking for. Yeah. Yeah.

00:42:58Melissa Ellis: But, Ollie, the Consolidated Club report, are you ready to hear all about it?

Consolidated Club Report

00:43:03Oliver Spake: I certainly am.

00:43:04Melissa Ellis: Well, the report for this last Saturday, the 28th of January, 2023, saw out of a total of 377 Adventurers members, 310 took part on this date at 172 locations. There were adventurers at 21 events in the U.K., four in South Africa, and one in both the USA and Malaysia. Now, locally, we had adventurers at 39 events in New South Wales, 34 events in Victoria, 32 events in Queensland, 12 in WA, eight in South Australia, six in the ACT, five in Tassie, and four events each on the North and South Island, plus... Rolling strike again. There we go. Thanks to Roberta Winters, we had one event in the Northern Territory. Hooray.

00:44:06Oliver Spake: Yeah.

00:44:07Melissa Ellis: And we also have to insert a...

00:44:12Oliver Spake: Yes, we do. So good work, Roberta. And yeah, trust you're enjoying the travels there. But yeah, some solid representation there, Mel.

00:44:21Melissa Ellis: There was, and I did steal Roberta's very pretty photo from Nightcliff parkrun. She was at Nightcliff, wasn't she? Yes, that's what I've noted for the Consolidated Club Report Facebook post.

the Frond

00:44:33Melissa Ellis: But largest frond, Ollie, was at Shellharbour.

00:44:37Oliver Spake: It was indeed.

00:44:38Melissa Ellis: There was no disqualifications. It was a legitimate... Legitimate frond with nine people being housemate Lance, Rebecca Bailey, Blake and Julie Wells, Bruce Perry, Gordon and Julie Turner, Jason Green and Gaillyn Cooper.

00:44:53Oliver Spake: Yes.

00:44:54Melissa Ellis: AKA mum.

00:44:55Oliver Spake: That's right. That's right. Yeah. Got her to hang around. She helped with the garden and the painting and lots of other things.

00:45:01Melissa Ellis: Oh, she's such a good sport.

00:45:04Oliver Spake: Yes. Oh, and some honourable mentions for our Queensland and Victorian friends.

00:45:10Melissa Ellis: That's right. Seven adventurers ventured out to South Toowoomba, Ollie, in Queensland, and there was seven partying it up at Lake Wallace in Victoria. Ah.

00:45:21Oliver Spake: But, yeah, it feels like a very sky blue parkrun week, you could say. Mm.

00:45:28Melissa Ellis: Anyway, looking forward. Announcements. Announcements. Oh, my goodness. This is exciting. We are going to be announcing very, very soon, not today, but very soon, about some merchandise.

00:45:41Oliver Spake: Yes. Yes. I mean, can you shed any light whatsoever?

00:45:46Melissa Ellis: There's going to be a T-shirt and a singlet.

00:45:49Oliver Spake: Are we allowed to say that?

00:45:50Melissa Ellis: Why not? Why wouldn't we be allowed to say that?

00:45:53Oliver Spake: I don't know. I'm not the boss.

00:45:56Melissa Ellis: You are, actually. The Office Lady calls us bosses.

00:46:01Oliver Spake: Oh, that's a good point. That's a good point.

00:46:04Melissa Ellis: Yeah. But we do feel like she's really the boss, don't we?

00:46:09Oliver Spake: We're all bosses here. But that is very exciting. We look forward to being able to announce things a little further. Keep your ears peeled, everyone. Keep your eyes peeled. Keep everything peeled. And yeah, more will come.

00:46:24Melissa Ellis: It's very close. But that's not the only exciting announcement, Ollie. We're going to surprise our party planners by announcing the theme for the dress-up at palm23.

00:46:36Oliver Spake: Yes, yes. And that's because Palm is not that famous. far away. We're within the 80 days to go range. So for those of you that are still contemplating, that, that may be contemplating heading over to WA for Palm to join us on the weekend of World parkrun Day, Saturday the 15th of April and all the days around it. Because let's face it, Palm is not a one day thing.

00:47:02Melissa Ellis: The party theme. Yes. Would you like to announce? I'll leave you the honour.

00:47:06Oliver Spake: Well, I'm not going to try and sing that, but let's just say it's all about the direction. The theme is West.

00:47:14Melissa Ellis: Wild West. Wild West. Go West. Kanye West. Country and Western.

00:47:20Oliver Spake: That's right.

00:47:21Melissa Ellis: It's all about West.

00:47:22Oliver Spake: Yeah, that one's especially for Scotty. We think, you know, there could be something in that. He might find that appealing, but nonetheless.

00:47:30Melissa Ellis: Maybe it'll draw him across the Nullarbor.

00:47:33Oliver Spake: Oh. Wouldn't it be nice? But it will be a lot of fun. Nice to see some great Western themes but also some creativity, I'm sure.

00:47:41Melissa Ellis: That's the fun thing about the palm dress-ups is trying to guess how people's dress-up costumes relate to the theme. That's right. The more obscure, the better.

00:47:51Oliver Spake: The obscure ones are fantastic. Yeah, I'm very fond of the obscure ones. But yeah, I think that lends itself to some great costumes. So I'm sure we'll fit right in.

00:48:03Melissa Ellis: Good. You start putting your thinking cap on, Ollie. We have to lead the way with the costume point.

00:48:10Oliver Spake: Well, I know that you're not a round ball fan, Mel, but there happens to be a certain A-League football team just down the road from you called Western United. You just grab one of their jerseys. Easy. You're sorted.

00:48:22Melissa Ellis: Oh.

00:48:23Oliver Spake: Yeah.

00:48:24Melissa Ellis: Victoria's got a Western United team?

00:48:26Oliver Spake: Yeah, that's right. Western United.

00:48:28Melissa Ellis: Makes perfect sense. Oh. Oh, as much as me going west and north to South Australia, gosh.

00:48:35Oliver Spake: Yeah, you just go down the road to, oh, goodness, Tarneit, to Tarneit.

00:48:40Melissa Ellis: Oh, right. That's not far at all from me. No, that's right. Oh, well, I am in the western suburbs.

00:48:46Oliver Spake: Yeah, that's exactly right.

00:48:47Melissa Ellis: It's making more sense now.

Sign-off

00:48:50Oliver Spake: There we are. There's an announcement. Please stay tuned as the weeks continue. As we roll into February, we'll have to get some of the experts, some of the party planners to share a little more about Palm. So we know all the details. But of course, check out the Facebook events if you are on Facebook or email us for any questions. But speaking of directions, which direction are you heading next parkrun day, Mel?

00:49:15[other]

00:49:15Melissa Ellis: As my dogs start barking and complaining in the background.

00:49:18Oliver Spake: They want to come.

00:49:20Melissa Ellis: They do. Oh, yeah, maybe I could take a dog with me. But no, then I'd have to walk, so perhaps no. Next parkrun day I am heading out to the most recent Victorian launch at Calembeen. Excellent. So that will be roughly an hour's drive west. Funnily enough. Excellent.

00:49:39Oliver Spake: That'll be exciting.

00:49:40Melissa Ellis: Assuming I've got my car back, Ollie. So I was telling you earlier before we recorded that I didn't take my own car over to South Australia. I left it home safely with Paul, although maybe not so safe because it did a clutch. So my poor car's off the road. Hopefully it won't be too long before it's all fixed.

00:50:04Oliver Spake: Yeah.

00:50:05Melissa Ellis: But anyway, that's beside the point. What about yourself, Ollie? Where will you be this weekend?

00:50:11Oliver Spake: I don't know. Yeah, I'm not needed in the boss fest. I may have a run. My darling daughter has just started dance classes, not that long after parkrun, so I need to work out some logistics. But, yeah, it's a part of my brain. I haven't used much in a little while is the parkrun planning. Just go for it.

00:50:39Melissa Ellis: Go for a change of scenery. Just go somewhere else within reach. Just a different course, different people.

00:50:46Oliver Spake: Yeah.

00:50:47Melissa Ellis: Yeah, we'll see. Well, I look forward to hearing where you end up. Me too. Well, I won't have to hear because I'll stalk you on the 5K app because it's so easy to do that these days.

00:50:56Oliver Spake: Yes, that's very true.

00:50:57Melissa Ellis: Don't even have to wait for Strava.

00:50:59Oliver Spake: Yeah, it's hard to keep these things under wraps. Ah, but look, I think that's all the news. That's all the looking ahead. It's been wonderful to catch up. And yeah, just waiting in case if all the good friends have anything else to add.

00:51:16Melissa Ellis: They're saying, come and open the TV room. We want to watch the tennis.

00:51:20Oliver Spake: Okay. Sorry, guys. I thought the tennis was over.

00:51:22Melissa Ellis: Oh, is it? That's how much attention I paid to the tennis. Yeah. You have to break it to them.

00:51:28Oliver Spake: Oh, they're going to be upset.

00:51:30Melissa Ellis: They don't know. Maybe the cricket's on.

00:51:32Oliver Spake: Okay. There's something, hopefully. Anyway, as always, everyone, you can contact us via Facebook or our email, which is parkrunadventurers at gmail.com. That is it for another week, and we will see you all next week for more adventures.

00:51:44[music]

00:52:42Unidentified speaker: Bye.