10/04/2026
what a year.
as the page turns to october,
the sun starts setting a little earlier,
the air gets a little colder,
and the weather becomes a little less forgiving.
and i can’t help but look back.
because this was the year
the city tried to tell us
what pavement we could occupy.
the year where something as simple as
meeting your friends,
tying your shoes,
and going for a run
somehow became complicated.
there were permits.
meetings.
questions we never thought we’d have to answer.
but somewhere in all of that,
something beautiful happened.
people showed up.
not just for us,
but for running.
for community.
for the idea that there should always be room
for people to find each other.
i watched run club leaders stand beside one another
when it would’ve been easy to stay in our own lanes.
and i think there’s something special about that.
because running is usually a sport
where the person you’re trying to beat
is yourself.
your time.
your doubt.
your last mile.
but this year,
we ran together.
we watched strangers become friends.
we watched people choose a few miles outside
instead of another night inside doomscrolling.
we watched people show up alone
and leave knowing somebody’s name.
and when we found ourselves
in unfamiliar territory,
this community reminded us
why we started doing this in the first place.
to move.
to connect.
to belong somewhere.
so thank you.
to everyone who ran with us.
to everyone who shared our story.
to the other run clubs who stood beside us.
to everyone who spoke up
so that we could keep doing something
as simple as running with our friends.
years from now,
i’m sure we’ll laugh and say,
remember that year
they almost shut down run club?
but i hope we remember the rest of it too.
because somehow,
in trying to put out our little flame,
they only helped us see
how many people were carrying one of their own.
and together,
we lit a pretty beautiful torch.
one that carried us
all the way to the finish line.
what a year.
love y’all.
thank you for running with us.
we’ll see ya in the spring.
