Conception Bay Centre runners start their own club
By Mark Squibb
A new running club in Conception Bay Centre is welcoming runners of all ages and experiences, and best of all, it’s free.
“All we ask in this group is that you show up for yourself,” said organizer Jennifer Ryan. “You’re never going to be asked for money or registration… We’re incredibly welcoming, encouraging, and supportive. We have a very diverse group. We have people that are seasoned runners, we have an ultra runner, we have walk-runners, and we have beginners.”
Ryan reached out to friend and fellow runner Lindsay Oates last fall and bounced the idea of a local running club off her. Oates agreed it would be a great idea, and during Christmas, Ryan made a social media post inquiring whether there might be any interest from others.
Ryan said she was overwhelmed by the immediate show of hands, and on January 3 contacted everyone who interacted with the post.
The club held it’s very first run the next day, on January 4, and has been meeting weekly ever since, which is especially impressive given the winter we’ve had. The club has only missed one week due to poor weather.
Twelve people participated in that first run. Nowadays, the club averages about 20 a run.
“Every week we’re seeing at least one new member,” said Ryan. “We’ll always have our core group of recurring members, but every week we’ll have at least one new member, and that’s really encouraging.”
Although winter may not be an ideal season for running, the decision to start the club in January was intentional.
“It was so important to me to get this off the ground in the new year because it’s such a hard time for people dealing with loneliness and isolation,” said Ryan.
And true to its name, all of Conception Bay Centre is the club’s playground.
“We’ve ran in Holyrood, Chapels Cove, Lake View, Avondale, Conception Harbour, and Colliers,” said Ryan. “And the ‘funnest’ part of all this is we’re all finding new routes and trails together. And I ask for help in finding new locations every week because we definitely don’t want to be on the main road, because if there’s a large group we have to worry about safety issues and traffic and what not, so we try to keep it to side roads.”
Ryan said that aside from the obvious physical benefits, running and walking have many mental and social benefits.
“We’ve had members that have literally quit smoking by joining our group and moving their bodies, so it’s been really beautiful to see people open up and come into their own and really embrace this community,” she said.
The members typically run between five and eight kilometres on average, although there is no set distance. A number of members recently competed in their first ever organized race, the Shamrock 5 KM, and many are training for their first Tely 10.
For anyone just starting out, Ryan suggests intervals of walking and running.
“So, you warm up with five minutes of walking and then you can introduce, even 30 seconds or a minute of jogging, and then you continue with your intervals, according to your comfort,” she explained.
