Run briefings are similar worldwide, but at Jubilee Way koala sightings are included.
Koala spotting is one of the jobs for the volunteer who chalks and cones the course.
As you run you might also spot ibis and even Tawny Frogmouths.
Jubilee Way parkrun, known to locals as JWay, is a great community meeting point, co-Event Director Phil Blake says.
“Everyone is very friendly and being a new-ish area, there is a fantastic mix of families with young children, couples – young and mature, keen runners, run/walkers and others that walk the whole course. And a few friendly dogs as well.
“People gather on the beautiful lawn area beside the red gum lined Dry Creek.”
The course
The course is a “generously wide” concrete path for about half the distance and the other half is a smooth gravel trail.
“Some participants love the challenge of the hill towards the end of the first kilometre, and others tolerate it!
“After climbing the hill the course goes around the Wynn Vale Lake past an island that is an Ibis (or Bin Chicken) rookery and a horse agistment.
“JWay is a great place for volunteers as the course is out and back. It’s shaped a bit like an elongated horseshoe and the turnaround is just on the other side of the creek from the start/finish line.
“So from around 10 minutes we see all the parkrunners heading towards the turnaround and coming back to the finish.”
How it began
Jubilee Way is in the Wynn Vale suburb on Adelaide’s east.
It launched on May 19, 2018 with 350 finishers and 10 volunteers. It has an average of 170 finishers a week and an average finish time of 37:01.
“parkrun has boomed in South Australia in the last few years.
“New parkruns were popping up all across Adelaide and the state. Three started in a year in northern Adelaide: Mawson Lakes, Carisbrooke and in May 2018 Jubilee Way.
“Co-ED Debbie Allen and, now Event Ambassador, Cherie Rothery got things going with great support from the City of Tea Tree Gully.
“With the other two neighbouring parkruns up and running, the idea of one in the Tea Tree Gully Council area became possible when council formed up the gravel trail on the eastern side of Dry Creek in late 2017.
“This made the 5km course viable without crossing a road or using an underpass that occasionally floods.
“The council has provided publicity in its newsletters, signs at the start, finish and turnaround, and kilometre posts.
Beauty
“When visitors and first timers come to Jubilee Way they leave having experienced the beauty of the parklands, the creek valley with its multitude of river red gums, the lake, the koalas, birds, and of course the friendly regulars.”
The parkrun was almost named Wynn Vale parkrun, but as there was Wyndham Vale parkrun in Victoria it was thought they were too similar.
Jubilee Way was the second choice.
“So how lucky were we that that happened because we ended up with one of only three Js in Australia for parkrunners to visit for their alphabet challenge.”
The other two are Jells in Victoria and Jindabyne in New South Wales.
Phil says first timers often are surprised by the number of people participating and reassured to see the variety of paces and that many parkrunners don’t run the whole thing.
“That allays any concerns that parkrun is only for runners.”
Enthusiasm
Phil says he learned of parkrun when Mawson Lakes was in the process of starting.
“I got enthused quickly and went to the two trials and saw many running friends there. My wife Dawn and I ran the first event and we both volunteered at Event #2.”
Co-ED Debbie says she was a “latecomer” to parkrun.
“I honestly don’t know how I missed it for so long! Like Phil and Dawn I started at Mawson Lakes, ran a couple of times and volunteered as well.
“One day I got talking to Cherie and as they say, the rest is history.
“We shared a wonderful experience getting JWay to come alive from that first chat.
“Every Saturday is a day of joy for me. I love the people I have met and the stories I have been told.”
The current cafe venue is Milk and Honey, which is about five minutes away.
“They are very kindly providing vouchers for a free coffee for each of our volunteers and we are promoting their business to our parkrunners,” says Phil.
He says there are so many choices but visitors should try the Smashed Avo, with feta and dukkah.
While at Jubilee Way…
While in the north-east, consider visiting Anstey Hill Recreation Park, which has the ruins of the original Newmans Nursery within.
Nearby is the current Newmans Nursery with a lovely café/restaurant.
We are not too far from the famous Barossa Valley wine region, and there is the city centre of Adelaide, beaches such as Glenelg, Henley and Semaphore, and the museums at historic Port Adelaide.
-Phil Blake
What’s in a name…
The name Jubilee Way is from the street that runs alongside the park.
Jubilee Reserve is the name of the park and the Jubilee Community Centre kindly lets parkrun use the building’s facilities.
Part of the Golden Grove development started in the 1980s.
The street, reserve and building were named Jubilee for the sesquicentenary year of 1986 when South Australia marked 150 years of European Settlement.