For most people, a Saturday morning parkrun means turning up, completing 5km and perhaps stopping for coffee. For Neil Munro, it has meant nine years of chasing letters across four countries.
The 82-year-old Inyoni Creek resident completed his parkrun alphabet on October 3 at the York Timbers parkrun in Sabie, finally collecting the elusive letter Y.
The parkrun alphabet challenge requires participants to complete events beginning with every letter of the alphabet except X – 25 letters in all. Some are easy to collect, while others require considerably more planning.
Neil has now completed 310 parkruns at 139 locations, including 122 in South Africa, 15 in the UK and two in Namibia.
The missing Y had been particularly stubborn. “There was no Y in South Africa until York Timbers launched in Sabie on August 22,” he says.
York Timbers was a fitting place to complete the challenge, with its scenic setting making it one of Neil’s most memorable parkruns. Others have taken him much further afield. For his 80th birthday, he skipped the traditional party and flew to Namibia with friends to complete the Walvis Bay and Swakopmund parkruns. Trips to visit his daughter in England have also doubled as opportunities to fill gaps in his alphabet, including the Queen Elizabeth parkrun for the elusive Q and Bushy Park in London, where parkrun began 22 years ago.
“Saturday parkrun is like a ritual,” he says.
The man now clocking up parkruns once struggled to walk. He had both knees replaced in 2010 after years of pain, poor mobility and a crooked leg.
“The surgery was a success and I am fully mobile again,” he says.
When Neil registered for parkrun in 2017, his barcode number was in the three millions. Today, newly registered barcodes worldwide have reached more than 12 million, he says, a growth he believes demonstrates just how far the movement has come.
“I doubt if Paul Sinton-Hewitt [parkrun founder] realised what he created 22 years ago,” he says. “I salute the man.”
With the alphabet now complete, there is little chance Neil will be hanging up his parkrun barcode. He appreciates that the events are free and inclusive, welcoming everyone from young families and runners with prams to people bringing dogs on leads.
“With the many challenges, you will never be bored,” he says. “It’s fun to see how many you can achieve.”
