Quote Originally Posted by Keswick_Krumble View Post
why pay an extortionate fee to run an organised road race when you can have a jolly good run around the local park for free with like minded people though?

you surely cannot have it both ways-either you want people to enjoy running and get fit for the goodness of their health or you want to put your own event above that.

a friend of mine was heavily overweight and started doing park runs and has lost 4 stone. she's never going to want to run 10km races but is happy to do park runs. where's the harm? why should she feel bad about it?

im glad to be out on the hills away from the Nova internationals charging rip off fees for road races who fill their events by bringing charities on board? a minister once told me that you shouldnt pay for anything in this day and age. he obviously didnt mean it literally but his words were echoed by a south african visitor who said "there is no limit to the good we can do if we dont mind who gets the credit". we should be doing things for the good of people and for the love of doing it in the first place not out of obligation or due to tradition

im so glad to be out of the rat race.

kk
Nova / Park Run - there is a linkage there. They are usually the same type of runner. Look at a typical Nova event or the FLM and the presence of club runners makes almost no difference to them, it is just a token presence to legitimise a mass jog as being part of the sport.

The points you raise are fine - why not run for free if you can?

However, if you are a club member, often your club races bring in much needed funds that goes back in to the sport. Supporting coach and athlete development. Yet your race is "taxed" by the NGO by requiring it to be permitted. Some of the proceeds therefore go to the NGO.

In order to avoid this, ARC has been set up mainly for clubs specifically involved in road running and offered a cheaper system of insuring your races.

Our NGO then puts pressure on clubs not to use ARC by advising that all those races will be blocked from the rankings.

Park Run receives free insurance from our NGO and so the club races are actually paying for these Park Runs to be set up.

It isn't right.