Course Measurement

The governing body for running and athletics in general used to be Amateur Athletics Association- now it is UK Athletics (of which England Athletics is a part)

All races these days have to have a licence from UK Athletics (in order to have insurance cover, in particular).
Clifton Park Runs are not in fact in that category- they are not races but a normal part of Rotherham Harriers & AC activity. They do not need a licence. But they are covered by UK Athletics insurance.
That's why we like you to join us as temporary members for the runs. It's free, and you can subsequently join us (we hope) or not, as you see fit.

Road Races

If you advertise a road race as "a 10k" or "a 5k" etc it has to be officially measured. That is done by a "Jones Counter".
A Jones Counter is a cycle accessory like a mileometer, it is attached to a strictly set-up bike and calibrated against a known distance- a kilometer I think.
Many races nowadays are advertised as "approximately 10k" etc or "10k by GPS" to avoid this complication- there aren't many people around with the equipment and experience to measure for you

Clifton Park Runs

Clifton Park Runs have been assessed as 5.24k and times for runs 1,2,and 3 (November 08-January 09) have been scaled to a 5k time.
Starting February, we have decided to go to an exact 5k distance (exact by gps, not Jones counter). This seems to have met with general approval.

As there are frequent minor alterations to route due to ongoing work in the park, we have simply measured 5k on the route we have been using, which means two full laps and part of a third. (see accompanying map)