The 500th Knocknacarra parkrun will take place on Saturday, November 29. Everyone is welcome and it is free.
It is where 7,051 people have turned up over the years to be part of an amazing community of friends that walk, run, volunteer or go for a coffee and a chat.
Everyone is welcome to the 500th time that Knocknacarra parkrun will take place since it started in May 2014. Knocknacarra parkrun was the first parkrun in County Galway and the eleventh one in Ireland. Fast forward to 2025, there are 11 parkruns in the county and 142 nationwide.
Knocknacarra parkrun started out as a 5km run every Saturday morning at 9.30am in Cappagh Park. Since then, it has become a lot more than a run. There are people who would like to walk or volunteer instead of run, so organisers have listened. The first sign you see at Knocknacarra parkrun is 'Walk at parkrun meeting point'. People doing the parkrun will be given a first timers welcome and briefing before setting off on their 5km walk or run.
The volunteers are there to give you encouragement along the way and you can even have a chat with the Tail Walker or Park Walker Volunteers along the way. Nobody will ask you to go faster because there is no time limit to how long it takes you to do the 5km.
The simple goal of parkrun is to help people become healthy and happy. Knocknacarra parkrun has become a way of life for some people and it has also saved the lives of many people. Organisers have heard stories of people giving up smoking, losing weight, lowering blood pressure, and recovering after heart surgery because of the parkrun.
You can register for free at www.parkrun.ie/register and bring along the barcode that is created for you. You can also just turn up and check it out. The tea, coffee, and chat is also free.
