Free timed 5K runs, supportive atmosphere, every Saturday morning with Parkrun – KelownaNow

The last time PentictonNow saw Tony Buckingham, he was busy running nearly 90 kilometers in a single day. The day before that, he biked 276 kilometers. And the day before that, he swam ten kilometers and biked an extra 150.

If those sound like ungodly distances, that’s because they are. But they’re also what you need to do to complete the body beatdown called the Ultraman520K Canada. It’s held in the south Okanagan every summer – in fact, the 2019 iteration runs next weekend – and Buckingham finished a solid third in 2018 at a time of 24:25:39.

But this morning, Buckingham had a slightly more leisurely time of it. He was one of several volunteers for the July 27th version of the Penticton “parkrun.” And instead of prepping for pain, he was overseeing the show – helping participants get ready for the day’s event, keeping tabs on things, and briefing us on the parkrun concept.

Boiled down to its basics, parkrun is a weekly timed run, held at 8 a.m. every Saturday morning, that unfolds along the scenic Okanagan Lake promenade. It begins at the Peach, takes participants to the miniature peninsula that runs between the SS Sicamous and Tugboat #6, then returns to the Peach. Then you do the exact same route once more. Total distance: five kilometers. Cost: Free.

Yes, it’s free. And no, you don’t need to be a world-class athlete to do it. Today we saw fast people, slow people, young kids, older folks, a guy pushing a tandem baby stroller, and a woman who opted to walk it. You do whatever feels comfy, and you have volunteers and other runners cheering you on. And, it’s timed. And it costs nothing.

“Parkrun’s a global event, said Buckingham. “There’s over 500 of them around the world. It started in England approximately ten years ago.”

It’s become so popular, said Buckingham, that it’s spawned something called a “parkrun tourist” – essentially people who modify, add to, or create vacations based on nearby parkruns.

“The thing with parkrun is that it’s not just about movement. It’s good because it gets people off the couch, but it’s also a mood. It’s a community. People make friends here. We go for coffee afterwards. So it’s not just about running. Although if you want it to be, it can.”

And it’s so darned easy to get involved.

“You just register at parkrun.ca,” said Buckingham, “and you can use your token at any of the 500 parkruns around the world. It costs nothing, there are no entry fees. And you can come when you like. We get between 20 and 75 people in Penticton every week.”

And at the end of each event, the results are logged online. It’s a great way to keep track of your progress.

According to Buckingham, the freebie nature of the run is a product of good sponsors. Locally, those sponsors include the City of Penticton, Peach City Runners, Nutrition 360, Big Bear Software, and Connect OK Telephone. Nationally, big-time athletic shoe manufacturer Saucony takes the reins.

Today’s fastest runner – by a long shot – was 16-year-old Grade 11 student Keegan Ingram of Summerland. Long and lean and built for running, Ingram is no newbie. He finished second at this year’s provincials in the 3-kilometer distance.

Today he clocked in at 17:16, not that far from the local record. But this was only his second time running the course. His first was last week and he said he’ll be doing it more often in the future as his “Saturday run.”

So, watch out.

Ingram indicated he likely wouldn’t stick around for post-run coffee. “Yeah, I’ll go home and wait for my friends to wake up,” he said with a laugh.

A few years older than Ingram but no less determined was Leeds, England’s Ralph Mills. At 70-something years of age, Mills says that parkrun has become an “obsession.”

“You have this competition with yourself. First, to get over the mental block of getting up early, then to just run a few seconds faster every time.”

This was Mills’ 114th parkrun. That’s right – one hundred and fourteen. One hundred and ten of them have been in England, and the other four have been here in Penticton. Indeed, he says he’s the local age category record holder for the 65 to 69 bracket. But now that he’s aged himself out of that bracket, he’d hoped today to set a record for the 70 to 74 crowd.

His time today was 25:02.

Mills, an obvious “parkrun tourist,” said he likes the Penticton course because it’s “beautiful and its flat.” And he knows it so well because his partner, Lenore Ogilvy, who also ran today, is originally from Osoyoos. And whenever they visit her family, he makes sure to trek to Penticton. This vacation is a long one, so he’ll be back for the next two Saturdays.

One other thing. Mills went vegan a couple decades ago, and he now runs for the “Vegan Runners” club. He says they’re the second biggest parkrun club around. And he’s proud of it.

As for the dude pushing the tandem buggy, that was Penticton High School teacher Patrick Belbin. He says his whole family is into endurance sports, including his triathlete wife.

His buggy-pushing time today was in the 23-minute range, which is pretty good in anyone’s books, though he freely admits that, “Ironically, I’m not much quicker without the buggy.”

Helping Buckingham this morning was Neil MacDonald of the aforementioned Peach City Runners. An avid runner who does a minimum of 50 kilometers a week, MacDonald said he’s only done parkrun a couple of times. And that’s because he acts as a volunteer all the other weeks.

That’s not surprising. MacDonald volunteers for a ton of running events around town, and is the driving force behind the Peach City Half Marathon. He’s just one more reason why anyone with a hankering for Saturday morning fitness should look closely at the Penticton parkrun.

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