I’m not much of a thrill seeker. I’ve never gone skydiving or bungee jumping or surfing or even skiing. I don’t book spontaneous trips, and moving 2.5 hours from my hometown to Philadelphia was my biggest leap of independence. Thus, my opportunities to feel truly badass are relatively scant.
And so I run.
Each day that I lace up my cushiony Hoka Cliftons and press my thumb to the traffic light green “start workout” button on Map My Run, adrenaline hits like a Skrillex bass drop. It’s familiar unpredictability—the comfort of knowing I have this thing that I do so habitually juxtaposed with the gripping uncertainty of how I’ll feel on the trail, or what kind of pace I’ll maintain.
Authority rules the contemporary exercise space. The peppy, blonde SoulCycle instructor. The tatted vegan yoga teacher who studied in India. Swipe your card for a month’s supply of endorphins from a trained expert; your workout comes in a shiny, gold package wrapped by the towel folders at Equinox.
But running’s more democratic. Old school and unrestrained. A community of self-sufficient freaks bound by tales of dehydration and plantar fasciitis. A lot of cool, creative people lead this lifestyle. Why not have a cool, creative online presence to inspire it?
Enter my new side ting: @coolgirlrunclub.
Cool Girl Run Club is where I’ll document my ‘fits & splits. Vintage running ads. Short, personal stories in captions. Anything even vaguely related to my identity as a runner and how this activity feeds my life beyond the pavement. I’ll seek submissions from other #coolgirls (and boys! And non-binary folks!) to build this community around running. And if it pops off, maybe some group runs? Merch? Let’s go the distance.
Keep all your jewelry on. I’ll see you at the finish line.