Parkrun. The fun, free, growing community. -Zoe Neal, The Weald School

Six years ago, my Dad introduced me to Cranleigh parkrun; a 15-minute drive from home, to encourage me round a muddy field, for 5km, at 9am, on a Saturday morning. I already had a basic understanding of the parkrun concept, as I had previously volunteered a couple of times, whilst watching Dad race around the course: you turned up to some sort of park, to run round it with a bunch of strangers, and a few hours later received a time of how fast you ran- and to actually be part of it sounded cool. I would have never believed it if he’d told me that following that very Saturday morning, I would fall in love with running, and a few years down the line I would be regularly arriving at different parkruns all over the country, for the pure enjoyment it brings me. However, here we are. The parkrun community is so special; one of the main reasons that I find parkrun extremely enjoyable is that everyone is very supportive, and it feels great when you see familiar faces at different events. Since its humble beginnings back in 2004, Saturday parkrun has become a global event, with over 350,000 people participating in the free, timed 5km parkrun, every week, hoping to reap the extensive list of physical, mental and social health benefits. The parkrun community blossomed on the 2nd of October 2004, in Bushy park, Teddington, UK, where 13 enthusiastic individuals decided to gather for a 5km run. The first parkrun.