T.S.A.V. Parcival

This week we talked to the T.S.A.V. Parcival. This is the running club of Tilburg! There is a place for everyone here: from the fanatic to the pleasure runner. In addition, the language of instruction is English, so really everyone is welcome here. The association is characterised by a nice combination of sporty and informal activities. Curious about what a week looks like? And what we do? Then read on!

Who are you, what is your position at Parcival and what does it entail?

"Hello, my name is Tsjerk and I am the secretary of T.S.A.V. Parcival. I am responsible for the administrative part of the club. That mainly consists of managing the mail and doing the membership administration. Apart from this, we do several things together with the board. For instance, we often organise our several and varied events together. There is then little question of a very fixed division of roles. That makes it a lot of fun!"

Basically, what is Parcival?

"Parcival is Tilburg's student running association. There are four training sessions every week. Our training sessions are suitable for both beginners and advanced runners. Besides our training sessions, Parcival organises many fun activities and we regularly compete as a team in different races. Parcival is open to everyone. That is what we want to show! You can see that in our members. In fact, Parcival is a very diverse group where everyone feels welcome!"

What typifies Parcival?

English is our working language. For that reason, the association consists of members from different cultural backgrounds. I think this is one of the building blocks of Parcival. We have a diverse and open group of people. Another reason for the open atmosphere is the approachability of our training sessions. Parcival consists of runners of very different levels and because of this, new members will always find someone they can run with during training sessions and races.

This also applies to the events we organise. These are very varied and by no means always related to running. For instance, we have already gone bowling, paintballing, organised a cocktail evening and a cantus and there is the annual club weekend. This is usually attended by much less fanatical runners."

What typifies an average member? 

"An average member is obviously typified by his or her interest in running. Another characteristic of an average Parcival member is that they are social, open to others and, above all, can be themselves during activities with the club."

What does an average week look like?

"Training sessions for runners of all levels are organised on Mondays, Thursdays from 19:00 to 20:30 and Saturdays from 10:10 to 11:40. On Tuesdays, training for advanced runners starts at 6:45pm and ends at 8:15pm."

"All training sessions start from the entrance of the university's Sports Centre and are free to both members and non-members of T.S.A.V. Parcival. However, you need to register via the Sport Centre app. Apart from this, T.S.A.V. Parcival organises a few social events for its members every month. Becoming a member of the association is quite cheap. In fact, you pay 15 euros per year. It brings you many fun activities and many new friends."

What are the highlights in a year?

"Of course, the answer to this question is not the same for everyone. There are some big 'happenings', though, that take place every year. For instance, we have our own Snertcross, which will take place again next autumn in the Warande forest. We participate in the Batavierenrace every year. And, we have a Club Weekend every year at the end of the year. A few other annual events are our cantus, New Year's Dinner, and Beer Run."

What do you need to do if you want to become a member?

"If you are a member of the Sport Centre, all you have to do is register via the registration form on our website. Definitely a must if you ask me!"