I've never been a huge fan of parkrun but its undoubtedly one of the biggest changes in the running scene for many years. I want to get feel for members parkrun experiences good or bad, excellent or indifferent.

Having said i'm not a great fan, mainly because of the early start, I have mangaged to run 25 parkruns since 2004 and in 6 different locations, and (mostly) enjoyed them.

Blow the trumpet for your local parkrun. What is your local parkrun like? Which is your favourite? Like or loathe I'd love to know! Maybe the next newletter can supply a list of the best, flattest, friendliest, most pictureseque or fastest, most laps, most twisty, most muddy or hilliest?

What about your personal experiences? Is it pb friendly....i could go on but i'll stop here. Over to you!

I have run 10 x Basingstoke parkrun and reduced my time from 24 mins + in July last year to 20:36 in May 2011. I have also volunteered 3 x.

The 2-and-a-bit lap course is an undulating mixture of tarmac path 75% and grassy playing field 25%. The undulations are challenging but not impossible as the "elite" runners can still finish in 17 mins or so. In dry conditions there would be faster parkrun tracks for sure.......

Atmosphere good and now c 150+ attendance each week.

I've run 30 parkruns - 28 at my local, Braunstone (Leicester), and 2 elsewhere.  I really enjoy the challenge of running parkrun most weeks.  For me it's a great opportunity to work consistently on my running - time, tactics and mental attitude - especially as I don't race elsewhere very often.  I like the fact that it is open to all ages and abilities and can be a great motivator to so many people in different ways.  Braunstone is a pleasant run round quite a nice park.  It's quite fast as the run is nearly all on tarmac paths, although they are not as smooth as those of Brighton & Hove parkrun! There is an uphill middle and finish, which is a challenge!  Braunstone only started in September 2010 but we already have over 150 runners each week (record 223), so it's very popular.  I've also met some nice people, several of whom have become new friends.

Kate - might see you in Andover as I travel to Basingstoke from Highclere each time. So Andover may just be closer for me too....I'll watch the parkrun website for details of the venue unless you know them already?

It hadn't occurred to me that 9am was early - I often get a lift, but even on public transport I'm only half an hour from my nearest parkrun, Cannon Hill, and slightly less to Brueton parkrun, even though it's slightly further away.

I guess I'm spoiled, though I'd looked enviously at London parkrunners with so much choice. I'd assumed everyone in 'that London' had at least one parkrun within easy travelling distance.

I got involved with Cannon Hill parkrun right at the start, nearly a year ago. My first actual parkrun experiences were marshalling at Brueton's first event on 24 July then running there on 14 August, and then running at Coventry on 21 August - largely to see how those guys did it and to see if I could learn anything from them to put into use at CHp.

Cannon Hill started on 28 August last year and I operated the timer for events 1, 3, 5 & 7, also taking the time to run in event 6!

The following weekend I was visiting family in York so I took the opportunity to take in Leeds parkrun.

All in all, since 24 July last year I've volunteered 21 times and run 20 times, at five venues. It would have been 21 at six, but I got lost on the way to Hull's birthday event and missed the start!

parkrun is such a fantastic concept. I've become a tad evangelistic about it (GRG-er Derek has called me the Billy Graham of parkrun!), but for me it's been such a great experience and there's a real community built up. Oh, and my 5km times have tumbled! If I don't have a race on a particular weekend, you'll almost certainly find me running a parkrun somewhere (often running home after). If I have a race on the Sunday, I'll probably be timing, marshalling, handing out the finish numbers or helping out in some other way.

The courses:
Cannon Hill
Virtually flat, very fast. Really nice park, just two miles south of the city centre. Very well organised (but then I would say that as I'm involved!)

Brueton
Virtually flat, very fast. Really nice parks (it actually uses two parks, Brueton and Malvern), about half a mile out of Solihull. Also very well organised - the Event Director Nick is incredibly keen and puts so much into it.

Coventry
Slightly more undulating and therefore not quite so fast. Guess what? Really nice park! Just over a mile south of the city centre.

Leeds
Fairly flat but there's also a corner which gets muddy and slippy. Has been going for over 3½ years now and gets big numbers, but is superbly organised. Right by the university and easy to get to from the city centre.

Roundhay
Leeds' second parkrun started in April in a beautiful park, but it's very hilly (for me, about a minute slower than Cannon Hill or Brueton). Take a camera. Spend the day!

Hull
Stunning city park (East Park, on Holderness Rd). Pancake flat but takes in a lovely lake and the East Park Animal Education Centre. Don't ask me why the animals need educating. I spotted wallabies, deer, alpaca, peacocks, rhea and cranes as well as the usual park wildlife.

You're probably aware that parkruns are organised entirely by volunteers, yet all round the country (correction - all over the world!) parkruns seem to be superbly organised. parkrun Head Office provide the infrastructure, the technology which gets results up within hours, and does much of the negotiation with local councils, land owners, authorities and of course sponsors. Our sponsors are currently Nike, Lucozade, Sweatshop (who provide monthly prizes of a pair of shoes for EVERY UK parkrun), London Marathon and 3.

parkrun. Love it! If you find yourself in Birmingham some weekend, come along to CHp and look me up! I'll have tea and a toasted teacake in the Garden Tea Rooms after!

Tut, tut, tut, Andy....It's been 11 hours since your first post and Dave Johnson the Billy Graham of parkruns has not been on to vent fire and brimstone that you spelt parkrun with a capital P, I done it once and never lived it down. Dave now makes it his mission to beat me at every parkrun I attend.

All I can think of is that Dave must be ill or something.

Apart from that it's an excellent and free way to supplement your training with a very friendly crowd, I attend the Cannon Hill Park and Brueton Park parkruns and also got into the volunteering thing when I have a race on Sundays.

By the way this weekend Brueton Park is doing something extra special as being the top parkrun of the 70 currently going they are having lots of freebees from sponsors, a special guest national marathon runner (forget her name), dancing girls and a run round the park with the olympic torch (might have made the last two up) but you get the picture.  

Damn he beat me to it whilst I was typing !!!!

It took me 11 hours to write... and I hadn't noticed the 'P'!

Actually.. what 'P'?

Brueton parkrun PLUS... Liz Yelling!

I was going to run at Cannon Hill parkrun, but Liz Yelling! See you there Derek!

I daren't spell parkrun with a capital P again, it's akin to coming into the house wearing dirty trainers just after the missus has mopped the floor...you only do it once.

That's the girl, I am seriously considering running even though that is my rest day as I have 4 races in two weeks starting off next tuesday night with the Midsummer 10k in Shobnall. Whichever, its an event too good to miss....just leave the roller skates at home.