PETRIE PARKRUN REVIEW
GETTING THERE
Today I took a trip up to Petrie, situated 30kms
north of Brisbane City. I typed Sweeney Reserve into my trusty GPS and it took
me right there. From the Gateway motorway, you take the Dohles Rocks turnoff,
the event is about 6.5kms off the highway.
PARKING
Sweeney Reserve is an expansive facility that extends along the North Pine River. It merges with
Mungarra Reserve further along the River. Needless to say, parking is not an
issue. There are multiple designated parking spots that can be found once you
enter Sweeney Reserve.
TOILETS
As you enter the reserve,
the first car park is flanked by a relatively new toilet block which has 4
designated toilets. They are modern and well-resourced although after what
looked like a busy Friday evening, they were eagerly anticipating a good clean.
THE COURSE
On the map, this course looks incredible. Other than
the full loop that I ran at Berrinba, an out and back course has to be one of
my favourites. After the briefing, we made our way to the start and I
positioned myself somewhat near the front. We were soon on our way and I quickly encountered the first of a few gradual, yet persistent inclines.
I wasn’t quite anticipating it to be so hilly, seeing
the course runs along a river, but be that as it may, it is certainly a
picturesque run. The pathways are concreted the entire way and are wide enough
to handle two-way traffic. Some of the slabs have been lifted by random tree
roots so I had to make sure of my footing in a couple of places, but it was not
really an issue. What was really cool was the distance markers that were
painted onto the path. I took note of the first couple of markers and was able
to judge my pace because of them. A volunteer had also written encouraging
comments along the route which were really quite cute.
One of the sections along the course had some beautifully
majestic Moreton Bay fig trees quite close to the path which I am sure would
provide some welcome shade in the summer months.
When I arrived at the start, one of the things that
stood out to me were the number of dogs on leashes. I must have seen 12 or so
dogs of various sizes. The dog owners were instructed to keep the dogs on a
short tether and a couple were very excited before the start. This area is so
dog friendly that it encourages families to take their pets out for a run which
is fantastic. On the return leg, I noticed that a pet owner had left a plastic
poop packet for collection on his return. Well done for that and thank you.
Nothing worse than taking a shoe full of dog poop back in the car for the journey home.
Despite this being an obviously popular public
reserve, the pathways are wide and I only noticed one person walking the paths
who was not participating in the event. This means that congestion on the course
is non-existent, which is good for participants. I tend to judge the speed of a
5km course by the number of times the 17 minute mark has been broken. In this
particular case, this has been done only 4 times, indicating the difficulty of
this event.
VOLUNTEERS
The entire vibe of this
event is fantastic. The run director had a PA system at her disposal which was
just as well because the folks certainly kept their distance during the
announcements. People celebrating their Parkrun milestones were celebrated and
she obviously knew them. The gazebo was donated by a local sponsor as was the
table with cordial and water.
Community spirit is
certainly very high here. The volunteers were amazing. I loved the family
atmosphere that was so evident here. When I did a quick flick through the Facebook
page, I saw that the volunteers are celebrated and there were hardly any calls
for urgent help. They even have a unique nickname called the ‘vollies’ (Only in
Australia haha)
Only two marshals were
needed on the course because it is an out and back and there was no way I could
have got lost.
PHOTOS
The Facebook page is
well-organized with plenty of photos for you to plough through. I noticed a
number of people along the route taking pictures but only one has uploaded them
onto the site so far, but that may still change.
THE ALL IMPORTANT COFFEE AFTERWARDS
The run director advertised
the Wheelhouse Café at the briefing. The shop is only 6 minutes away from the
event and reflects the community spirit of the area. It was homely, comfortable and the prices were good.
OVERALL
Well done Petrie. I loved the course, even though
there were a couple more inclines than I had anticipated. The community spirit
was lovely and the ‘vollies’ were amazing. If you are looking for a fast
course, I don’t think this would be one of them, but this certainly is one of
the best Parkruns in South East Queensland. The Gary rating for this event is 9.5/10.
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