.Blast from the past…some of the group of runners at the Halloween Fancy Dress Park Run back in 2015. Photo by Dermot Crean
IT’S the time of year for spooky fun and the folks over at Tralee Parkrun are getting in on the action again.
Pre-COVID times, a great effort was made by them during the Halloween weekend to get into the spirit of things and their fancy dress run returns after a two year break this Saturday at the usual time of 9.30am.
Everyone is invited to dress up for the 5k around the Town Park and a good crowd is expected. It’s also expected to be a dry, crisp morning which is a bonus.
HUNDREDS of people take part in the Tralee one every week and now new research has revealed participating in parkruns has significant physical and mental health benefits.
Parkrun in partnership with Vhi has unveiled major study into the health and wellbeing benefits of participating in free, weekly, timed, 5k events.
More than 90% of parkrunners report a sense of personal achievement and improvements in physical health.
Those who also volunteer, as well as walk or run, reported the greatest improvements to their happiness with 88% feeling happier due to parkrun.
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90% of those that reported experiencing depression said that participating in parkrun improved their ability to manage their health condition
This is according to the detailed study among more than 4,000 respondents who take part in the 93 weekly 5k adult parkrun events in Ireland.
Undertaken by Sheffield Hallam University’s Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC), the research was commissioned to assess the health and wellbeing benefits of participating in the free, weekly, timed 5k events. The research marks parkrun’s seventh anniversary in Ireland, and Vhi’s fourth year as presenting partner of parkrun Ireland.
The study found that after participating at parkruns;
• 92% of those surveyed reported a sense of personal achievement
• 91% reported improvements to their fitness
• 90% reported improvements to their physical health
• 83% reported improvements to their mental health
• 85% reported improvements to their happiness
• More than 33% of those surveyed reported to experience anxiety or depression however the majority of those said that parkrun had improved their ability to manage their condition
Commenting on the research Matt Shields, parkrun Ireland Country Manager said; “The findings of this research validate our assumptions about the wide-ranging physical, emotional and social health benefits of participating in parkrun.
Volunteering is an incredibly positive activity in its own right, with the greatest health and wellbeing gains being seen by the thousands of people who volunteer at parkrun. parkrun has grown from strength to strength in Ireland.
This month we are celebrating our seventh anniversary and more than 170,000 walkers and runners have participated in parkrun events nationwide, supported by a coalition of partners including Vhi and the Healthy Ireland who are dedicated to supporting the parkrun movement.”
.Pat Sheehy received his Parkrun Hero award recently at the Town Park.
A TRALEE man has been named a VHI Parkrun Hero as he picked up the award for November.
Pat Sheehy is a core member of the Tralee parkrun team and has volunteered 250+ times for both parkrun and junior parkruns that take place on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
The monthly award recognises and rewards inspirational, hardworking and dedicated members of the parkrun community who embody the ethos of parkrun or have made an outstanding contribution – be they participants or volunteers.
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If you think someone from your local parkrun deserves to be celebrated as a Vhi parkrun Heronominate them using the online application form. Winners will be announced monthly and will receive a €250 One4All voucher and plaque courtesy of Vhi.
The Tralee Parkrun is a hugely popular weekly event in the Town Park on Saturday mornings at 9.30am which regularly attracts participants in their hundreds. The Junior Parkrun is on Sundays at the same time.
Originally launched in the UK in 2004, parkrun is the single biggest participation running event globally with nearly three million registered participants and an average of 165,000 weekly participants.
Nominate your Vhi parkrun Hero at www.vhi.ie/running or register for a parkrun near you at www.parkrun.ie. New registrants should select their chosen event as their home location. You will then receive a personal barcode which acts as your free entry to any parkrun event worldwide.
.Participants at the Park Run back in January 2017.
NEXT Saturday sees another milestone reached in the history of Parkrun in Tralee.
It will be the 200th Parkrun since it began in the Town Park back in January 2015. Since then it has become a fantastic weekly 5k event with hundreds availing of the fantastic facility that is our Town Park, while a great community spirit is always in evidence.
This Saturday people are invited to come and wear a milestone or an apricot top if you have one, to help them mark this special occasion.
The volunteer team will be made up entirely of University Hospital Kerry staff with Tony Higgins at the helm. The run, as usual, begins at 9.30am sharp.
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Of course if you have never taken part before, this is a great time to start and the weather is supposed to be kind too.
You must register first though so click on this link to sign up and print out your barcode and bring it on the day http://www.parkrun.ie/tralee/.
The Parkrun is for all ages from 4 upwards and all levels of fitness and walkers are welcome. There is also the Junior Parkrun every Sunday morning at 9.30am
IT’S become a part of the weekend for many people around town and on Saturday, the Parkrun family will celebrate the third birthday of the Tralee event.
Everyone is welcome to come down to the Town Park on Saturday morning at 9.30am to celebrate the milestone.
It doesn’t matter if you’ve never been there before or if you’ve never missed a run in the past three years, the organisers would love to see you.
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And to celebrate the third birthday you’re invited back to The Brandon Hotel for a cuppa and some cake.
People are asked to wear their Parkrun t shirts if they have them. It should be a fun morning and well done to all involved on providing a healthy social outlet for hundreds of people over the past three years.
TRALEE women are encouraged to prepare for the VHI Women’s Mini Marathon by getting down to their local parkrun and kick start their training on April 22.
Parkrun, in partnership with VHI, are extending a warm welcome to women training for the Vhi Women’s Mini Marathon with just over six weeks to go until the biggest all-female event of its kind in the world.
Parkrun supports local communities in organising free, weekly, timed 5km runs every Saturday morning at 60 venues all over Ireland, with around 5,000 people of every age and ability taking part each week. In Tralee it takes place at 9.30am in the Town Park.
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Almost 80,000 registered participants have run more than 2.5 million kilometres at parkrun events since it started here in November 2012 and the Tralee Parkrun is a huge success.
To register for a parkrun in Kerry visit www.parkrun.ie. New registrants should select their chosen event as their home location. You will then receive a personal barcode which acts as your free entry to any parkrun event worldwide.
Women who want to enter the “jogger” and “fast jogger” categories in the Vhi Women’s Mini Marathon can also achieve their qualification time at any one of sixty parkrun events nationwide.
The qualification time for the ‘jogger’ category is a sub 40 minute 5km while the ‘fast jogger’ category requires a sub 30 minute 5km.
Entries for the Vhi Women’s Mini Marathon are filling up fast and close on April 28. To register online, visit www.VhiWomensMiniMarathon.ie or if you want to register by post, application forms will be available in The Herald newspaper every Wednesday and Saturday.
HUNDREDS of people take part in the Tralee one every week and now new research has revealed participating in parkruns has significant physical and mental health benefits.
