By Tanya Steele
Avid runners may want to head to the Maroondah Dam in Healesville for a Parkrun event.
The globally renowned Parkrun has been announced to commence in Heasleville at the iconic and spectacular Maroondah Dam on Saturday 27 May at 8am.
Organiser and Healesville resident Stuart Rainbow is happy the well known recreational run will have a place in Healesville for the first time.
“No one will be getting a personal best from it, but the run with its amazing scenery will be spectacular,” he said.
“I think it is one of the most amazing spots to have a run.”
Mr Rainbow is a long time runner himself and thanks Eastern Health for contributing funding towards getting things going.
“We couldn’t have done it without them,” he said.
Lesley Grimes at the Belgravia Leisure Center was part of the collaboration with Mr Rainbow, Eastern Health and Yarra Ranges Council to get the event off the ground.
“We’re really excited that it’s happening, Parkrun is a real community and all volunteer based,” Ms Grimes.
Not just about running, Parkrun is an inclusive way to get your exercise done and also connect with people.
“You can go for a Saturday morning work and I think it will be a great way for people to come and connect,” Mr Rainbow said.
People can walk, jog or run and bring their children in a pram along as well, there is no time limit and nobody finishes last.
Parkrun was founded originally in 2004 in London, England by Paul Sinton-Hewitt and has grown to take place across over 2,000 locations in 22 countries across the globe.
Australia joined in the fun in 2011 and over 5 million runners had registered for it by 2018.
Mr Rainbow has been preparing to launch the Parkrun for over a year and looked at a few different sites before settling on Maroondah Dam.
“Maroondah Dam ticked all the boxes, it has all the amenities,” he said.
“It is such a magnificent run, it is just stunning,” he said.
Mr Rainbow hopes people locally and visiting will enjoy the location and the exercise and that it will benefit Healesville.
“I wanted to give something back to the community and generate something for Healesville that will last forever hopefully,” he said.
People can register on the Parkrun website now and change their location to Maroondah Dam in a few weeks when the site goes live officially.
Mr Rainbow encourages people who would like to volunteer to get in the register for a day or two.
The first run will take place on Saturday, May 27 and people need to bring their registered barcode along for the day.
“People are in for a treat,” Mr Rainbow said.
