Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 131, June 2020 June 2020 | Page 25

Gavin and Ingrid playing tourist
note to realise that I wanted to be a “different-Gavin,”
foremost for me and also for those around me.
Changing Goals
When I began to run parkruns, I felt very competitive
about my times. I no longer feel that way. I do have
a goal for 2020, to improve my PB three times, but
this is no longer my raison d’etre for doing parkruns.
Instead, being a “Tourist” is one, and the enjoyment
of the collective is another. Also, time with Ingrid is
another, as is persuading my three awesome kids to
walk along, while the opportunity to spend time with a
friend doing something active instead of sitting eating
in a restaurant is yet another reason. There are many.
On one run we saw a lady with the parkrun logo
tattooed on her ankle. For her, parkrun has ‘bitten’
very deeply indeed. For some it is their only form of
weekly socialisation, for others it’s a friends or family
get-together. For us, it has become a vital part of
our lives, and it is an initiative for which I believe the
founder, Paul Sinton-Hewitt should receive many more
accolades. Of course, he didn’t know what it would
turn out to be, but he had the initiative to create what
has become a world-wide movement for health and
wellbeing. A movement that has motivated tens of
thousands of people to get moving. I would not be on
this journey if not for easily accessible activities like
parkrun.
Each day I wake up to my fitness tracker having
reset yesterday’s activities to zero. It’s a metaphor
and a reminder that, although I will benefit from what
I did yesterday, because it will make this week’s
runs, cycles and swims more beneficial, I need to
put in new effort each and every day to sustain
my momentum. So thank you, parkrun, for being a
significant part of my journey. I talk about you often.
I am proud of what you add to people’s lives, and
unashamedly preach your many benefits. In short, you
are awesome.
Gavin and
Ingrid doing
volunteer duty
parkrunning in my seventies
I’m 74 years old and a regular at the Hobie Beach parkrun in Port Elizabeth. – BY ELAINE VERREYNNE
As a young schoolgirl I was naturally athletic
and loved participating in sporting activities.
However, as happens with many of us, the
demands of raising a family and the busy-ness of life
curtailed any sporting endeavours for many years.
Then at age 62, I realised my ‘life-clock’ was ticking
down and time was running out for me in terms of
pursuing any sport again.
The trigger that got me ‘moving’ was a diagnosis
of serious hypothyroidism. My doctor prescribed
chronic medication and advised me to assist my
body’s functionality with regular exercise, so I started
cycling, and went on to ride in several events over
100km events. A year later I heard about parkrun
from a friend, so I decided to add that to my exercise
regime. For the first three parkruns I participated in, I
would run/walk/run/walk, but since then I have run the
whole 5km.
Elaine Verreynne
After another year, I decided to add swimming to my
regime, setting myself a goal to do triathlons, and
I’ve now successfully completed eight short distance
triathlons. As running was my weakest discipline, I
doubt I would ever have attempted a triathlon if it
hadn’t been for parkrun as my introduction into the
world of running. Regular parkruns play a vital role in
my triathlon training. I have also completed at least 30
10km runs, as well as five half marathons.
I’m a Huge Fan
To date, I’ve run 216 parkruns, including eight in
Australia. I’ve heard of so many people whose quality
of life has been improved by parkrun, not to mention
my own. As a result, I fairly frequently support parkrun
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