By Petra Expats & Students 7 December 2022

Five Reasons to participate in Sonsbeek parkrun

What is ‘Parkrun’?

What is ‘Parkrun’ you might wonder? Parkrun is an incredibly popular 5 kilometer event in 22 countries around the globe, held every Saturday morning. In 2020 the Netherlands became the 21st country to join parkrun events and currently has 14 events to choose from in Dutch cities, including in Arnhem at Sonsbeek park! We will give you five reasons to participate in Sonsbeek parkrun in Arnhem.

Because parkrun is global, registering for parkrun means you can participate anywhere in the world. On holiday in Rome and feel like a 5KM run, walk or jog on Saturday? Parkrun! Visiting family in Poland and have an opportunity to join more than 80+ parkruns? Go for it! Want to run, walk or jog in other parks in the Netherlands but don’t want to be alone? You are welcome!

My personal experience with parkrun is as a “parkrun tourist”. As a member of an online running community on Facebook, for years every Saturday dozens of members would post about their parkrun that morning. Finally in 2016 I decided to check it out myself; my husband and I were spending a long weekend in Glasgow Scotland and it seemed a perfect opportunity to see for ourselves what everyone seemed to be raving about. Victoria parkrun did not disappoint! Of course, there were no parkruns in the Netherlands so we only participated occasionally when we were in another country.

Parkrun launches in the Netherlands

Sometime in late summer 2019, parkrun reached out in the Facebook community to ask if there were people interested in starting a parktun in their city. Of course, I jumped at the chance! In October it was decided that Sonsbeek should indeed be included, I reached out on social media and was lucky to find another person who wanted to organize this event with me.

On February 29th, 2020 parkrun launched in several cities in the Netherlands, including our neighbours in Nijmengen. It was finally happening! However, Sonsbeek was only due to launch in April, and of course In March everything was stopped due to the corona virus.

Eventually we were able to start in August 2021 and have successfully had events every Saturday (that we were allowed) since. Something that we are really proud of!

Why participate in parkrun? Herewith I give you Five Reasons:

1) It’s FREE. Really. It costs nothing. – There is a one-time registration and that is your registration for life/. You can use this registration number at all parkruns across the globe.

2) It’s for EVERYONE. – At parkrun you can run, walk or jog, whatever your pace, age, size or capability (we even have wheelchair users at our event). It’s for all levels of fitness. You don’t have to wait to be “fit enough” to participate, come as you are! Worried you’ll be the last person to cross the finish line? Don’t be! We have a volunteer for that – the tail walker – so you’ll never be last.

3) Community – parkrun is the perfect place to meet new people. Each week there are new participants, regulars. Tourists and volunteers/. After the event we head over to A Beautiful Mess to have coffee and chat. Since Sonsbeek parkrun launched many friendships have formed, expats and immigrants have been able to find a group in which they are immediately welcomed.

4) A Weekly Date with Yourself – parkrun happens rain or shine and for some of us in the darker months we need that little nudge to get outside and moving. We all know that fresh air and movement can really do wonders for mental and physical health. Saturday morning at 9:00 is a guaranteed time to visit the park and get that movement in.

5) It’s in Sonsbeek park – This one is obvious, really. Is there a more beautiful park to run, walk or jog in? According to visiting parkrunners, the answer is “no!” We’ve got it all in Sonsbeek; huge trees, a waterfall, the farmhouse, the Witte Villa, even a hill!

Volunteer Opportunities Parkrun Arnhem

Don’t want to run, walk or jog 5km every week, but want to be a part of the community? Parkrun relies on volunteers to run the event each week. Depending on the role, volunteers are needed for a maximum of 2 hours, usually much less. Registration is still necessary and an email sent to sonsbeek@parkrun.com to let the weekly organizer know would be super appreciated.