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Fizz :-) Sep 2017 2:30pm, 9 Sep 2017 2,352 posts	Quote Pin Fizz :-) It's their fourth birthday, ER, good timing I've currently got a haircut booked for 10am that day, not realising it was their birthday but you've just reminded me I need to call and try to change it. I'll let you know.
Eynsham Red Sep 2017 2:34pm, 9 Sep 2017 1,949 posts	Quote Pin Eynsham Red Will there be cake?
LazyDaisy Sep 2017 5:03pm, 9 Sep 2017 19,625 posts	Quote Pin LazyDaisy Stressful time RDing today...a runner collapsed (but was ok, phew), complaints from a madwoman (ok she's not really, just a member of the public) that 'the runners are stressing out the swans and the adult male will probably kill one of the cygnets now' (I really don't think so), a funnel ducker (haven't had one of those for years!)...and then the internet was down at the cafe and the laptop was playing up so we couldn't get the results done (all sorted eventually, luckily I'm married to a geek ;-)) My 40th time of being RD, and by far the most stressful
TomahawkMike Sep 2017 6:53pm, 9 Sep 2017 926 posts	Quote Pin TomahawkMike I found this by accident which is useful when planning trips to other parkruns... parkrun.org.uk
Fizz :-) Sep 2017 7:32pm, 9 Sep 2017 2,353 posts	Quote Pin Fizz :-) Yes, ER, there will be cake (I double-checked :-)) I'll probably do a lemon drizzle
Pothunter Sep 2017 7:34pm, 9 Sep 2017 222 posts	Quote Pin Pothunter TMW
bonners Sep 2017 12:15am, 10 Sep 2017 299 posts	Quote Pin bonners So, marshalling this morning at 'the crossroads' at Conwy. Bit short this morning of volunteers, but all regulars so we're good to go. I get a walkie talkie message from the marshal at the far end of the course at Deganwy, he is not in place, he is stuck at a level crossing and cant get to his marshal point on the other side. I relay the message to the run director to ask him to stall the start, but due to the horrible wind and rain he has released them dead on time. No problem thinks I, the crossing will soon open and the Deganwy turn is the far end of the course, so roughly ten minutes still before there is a problem. No train can hold the crossing for that long. It turns out they can, the train was broken down in the station and for some reason they werent opening the crossing until it went!!! By this time the first fifty or so runners have already come back past me and I'm frantically trying to relay the message to regulars to point out the turning point as best they can to any visitors. The marshal finally made it thru the crossing for the last fifty or so runners and I'm apologising profusely to everyone as they come back to me on the homeward leg. Unfortunately all of our really fast regulars werent there and the guy in first hasnt done it for some time, so everybody was taking a best guess at where to turn, apparently some were cutting the course quite short! I think we've just about got away with it though, the numbers were down on the record numbers we've had the last few weeks and we got an apology up on the facebook page pretty quickly explaining the problem. Also, due to the wind and rain, even though people were going short, there was a real lack of PBs this week. Been going about two and a half years and that is the first time we've had a problem on that turn. The trouble is, it is the same marshal every week, but he also helps with car parking and then drives down to his marshalling point at the far end. We reckon it is our punishment for getting a bit too complacent and we need to up our communications at the start to ensure we're all ready.
LazyDaisy Sep 2017 8:37am, 10 Sep 2017 19,634 posts	Quote Pin LazyDaisy I wouldn't lose too much sleep over that bonners. We always say 'best endeavours' is what we provide and sometimes, stuff happens that we just can't control. It's a free event put on by volunteers after all. We have walkie-talkie radios too. We did get an old mobile phone for the RD at one stage, but it turned out to be a bit of a faff making sure all the marshals put this number in their phones every week, and the radios work ok so it's not used any longer. Are your marshals in sight of each other? Perhaps an old-fashioned and low tech system of flags or arm signals would be a back-up to the radios? Exeter Riverside was cancelled at the last minute yesterday, there was some sort of problem beyond their control, but a lot of the runners did the run as a freedom run and many volunteers were marshalling the route anyway. It's disappointing when things go awry but I think most people understand about the 'free and voluntary' aspect of the event.
bonners Sep 2017 11:47am, 10 Sep 2017 301 posts	Quote Pin bonners It's an out and back course with bends, so unfortunately no one can see anyone else
CharlieP Sep 2017 12:25pm, 10 Sep 2017 863 posts	Quote Pin CharlieP Not ideal, but in a way it's a good job there wasn't a flurry of PBs...