If someone had told me seven years ago that I’d be VP of a track club and writing an article about how much I love running, I would have told you that was crazy. I never ran until January, 2018 – running was a necessary evil of ‘real’ sports like soccer and tennis. My two younger boys ran. Even my twin girls, who were still in their single digit years, started going to this new summer running program with Coach David Yon and a summer camp with Coach Angie Milford. My wife Kristin had been running for years – a couple marathons and a bunch of half marathons to raise money for Leukemia research in honor of her sister. My oldest son Jackson and I thought they all were crazy. So I was incredibly reluctant when Kristin signed me up for a ‘free week’ at Orange Theory. I can assure you that I did nothing but complain on those treadmills that old man legs aren’t made to go at the speeds they said was running. I preferred what they called power walking speeds, but without the inclines, which also were just plain mean. 

I enjoyed the people at Orange Theory, so I agreed (was forced?) to continue on for one more month. Somehow, my competitive nature kicked in and even though I hated running, I kept going every day and pushing myself to try to be as fast as this guy who usually was next to me in class. I even ran a 5k with my kids – the Trent Trot. My goal was to beat 30 minutes and I did. Barely, but I did. Each month, I just kept going. Now to the real point of this column. Everything changed for me sometime in the early summer of 2018. David Yon, who was running with my girls and their friends, invited me to join him at a Sunday morning run at Forest Meadows. I had never run a trail, or even outside other than that one 5k – my experience was entirely about six months on treadmills. I was nervous about it, but decided to go. I met Felton Wright and Jane Johnson that Sunday, and a bunch of other runners. You are never going to meet three better people than David, Felton and Jane. They made me feel welcome and I completely fell in love with the trails. I think I went five miles that morning, the longest I had ever run. It went very fast – not the pace, but the time. I have no idea what speed we ran because I didn’t have a watch or a running app, which is probably why I liked it so much. I was hooked, and it wasn’t because of the running. It was because of the people.

David, Felton and Jane mean so much to not only me, but to a huge number of runners in Tallahassee. Pretty much the entire Chiles girls XC team and a smattering of Lincoln and Leon boys learned to love running with David. David, Felton and their equally awesome spouses MJ and Bonnie have furthered the sport of running through their volunteering efforts, directing huge and challenging races, and supporting youth running through the development and support of programs in Tallahassee. Jane is always looking for ways to make sure everyone has the opportunity to run. I see the tradition of volunteering and building up community continuing. David’s SMIRFs program has continued to grow, encouraging kids to grow to love running. People like Emily Webster and Ashlee Blake are building up the GWTC group runs community with their positive energy. Tallahassee has something really special, and it’s not just our trails. Seven years after I ran for the first time, my oldest son Jackson – the one who made fun of the rest of my running family with me – joins me on our Sunday morning runs. So next time you hit the road or the trails, grab a friend who doesn’t run and invite them to join you. Like the new GWTC t-shirt says, every runner, every pace.