Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 57, April 2014 | Page 40

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parkrun SA
Join the friendly, free 8am Saturday
morning 5km in your area!
your area
parkruns in

Q&A
parkrunner

TATS
parkrun SA S
Number of parkruns: 26
Number of events: 1146
Number of active runners: 38 124
Number of individual runs: 172 683
Total distance covered: 863 415km
Total run time: 12 years, 342 days, 14
hours, 9 minutes, 55 seconds
*Last updated 18 March

North Beach, Durban
Twitter: @NBparkrun
Facebook: NorthBeachparkrun

Peter Hawthorne
Ebotse parkrun, Benoni

How did you get into parkruns?

“Ebotse was the third SA event started back in 2012. I
saw a note in the local newspaper and thought it would
be interesting. I was running essentially the same course
already, but doing it alone. I must be the luckiest parkrunner
in SA, as the start is only 500m from my house.”

Have you run any other parkruns besides
Ebotse?
Images: Courtesy Gill Fordyce, Peter Hawthorne & Rox Lewis

“Yes, I’ve run two in the UK and 22 in South Africa so far,
and to date I’ve done 77 in total. I’ve been running regularly
since 1985, but I can’t remember the other things I used
to do on Saturday mornings that were so important before
I started parkrun! The reason I have done so many of
the parkruns in SA is that we have a motor home, bought
originally to spend days overlooking waterholes in Kruger
and other parks, but one winter we ran away to the coast
to avoid the Highveld cold. Then along came parkrun, which
gave us another reason to spend time at the coast, and I
started to ‘collect’ runs.”

What do you think of the sense of
community at parkruns?

“It’s fun to meet different people at different events – they’re
all there for the same purpose, to enjoy the running, the
surroundings and each other’s company.”

Every Saturday morning, hundreds of enthusiastic
parkrunners gather outside the Suncoast Casino for their
weekly 5km alongside the pristine Durban coast. The
course takes you down the promenade alongside the
ocean, past the smiling faces of our resident sand artists
with their beautiful works of beach art, then on past
bustling restaurants and paddling pools until you reach
a familiar face waiting at halfway with a smile and word
of encouragement. The last kay greets you with some
welcomed shade provided by rows of exotic bush and palm
trees until cheering volunteers bring you into the finish.
Durban humidity is not for the faint-hearted, but the
views and friendly faces on the promenade make up for it!
Durban’s warm winters also make it easy to get up and put
your running shoes on. There are ample drinking taps along
the route, and plenty of restaurants and cafés for a postparkrun coffee and breakfast.
With free parking offered to parkrunners in the Suncoast
Casino parking lot, finding a safe place for your car is a
breeze. The course is flat and unchallenging, serving as
the perfect time trial for the more competitive runner, or an
enjoyable stroll for those out to enjoy some sun and a chat
with friends. So join us! – Rox Lewis

Her