My Second New Running Club

I'm still running on Tuesday nights with the Columbus Westside Running Club and I'm happy to be part of that community. And now I've added Thursday night runs with Short North Running Club (SNRC). This club has a different vibe. It's a little bit of a younger crowd and they meet at a different bar and run a different route each week.

Last week was my first run with the Short North Running Club. The Short North was my neighborhood before I moved to the DC area. I don't live there now, and the area has changed a LOT since I left Columbus. But I'm happy to return to my old 'hood for some runs and beers. The SNRC doesn't run exclusively in the Short North, but they stick to centrally located Columbus neighborhoods.

The run last week set out from Brew-Stirs Clintonville Tavern. It was warm, but began raining before we started. Still, we headed south on High Street with a route that would take us along the Ohio State campus, then east to Indianola Ave, back north to Tulane and with a finish back at BrewStir's. The sky opened up and started pouring shortly after we started, but that's not all - there was thunder and lightning too! Less than a mile into the 4 mile route I was questioning the sanity of running in a thunderstorm with visible lightning. But it didn't seem to stop the other runners (almost everyone was faster than me, so I could see them keep running ahead). With a "what the hell" attitude, I kept going.


The route I ran in the thunderstorm

It didn't take long for my clothes and shoes to become completely soaked. There was so much rain that there was flooding on the sidewalks. But after I accepted the fact that I was going to be wet, I just went with it. Another runner and I did decide to cut east early on Lane Ave rather than on 12th as planned. The excuse was to get out of the storm sooner. But I still got 3.5 miles done that day, and I had fun doing it! The SNRC sometimes has "beer checks" along their routes, and there was one this night at Dan's house, toward the end of the route. We stood in his yard drinking Old Milwaukee and socializing, as the rain had mostly stopped by then. After the beer check the bar was only a short run away, and soaking wet, we all hung out in the bar enjoying some beer and chatting. It was a fun group of people.

Group photo on Dan's porch at the beer check

Last night I ran with the SNRC for the second time. This time we met at Knotty Pine Brewing in Grandview. The route was set at just over 5 miles. It had snowed earlier, and at the time of the run the temperatures were in the low 30Fs. I deemed it too cold and dark for 5 miles, and I wasn't the only one to shorten my route to 3.5 miles. Knotty Pine was a great venue with their own beer, as well as several other local and regional craft beers. I'd actually been there before, so I knew what to expect. After my run I sat at the bar and chatted for a while with Brian, the founder of the club.

The planned route on the cold, dark night
And the route I actually ran

Enjoying a smoked porter at Knotty Pine

I have really enjoyed my first two runs with the Short North Running Club, in spite of less-than-perfect weather both times. I like the idea of running a different route each time to see more of the city. And I really like the part about enjoying good beer with good people after the runs. The club is planning for their St. Patrick's Day run coming up in two weeks. It sounds like there will be a little less running and a little more drinking, but that will be just about right for St. Patty's.

I'll keep running with both of my new running clubs. There are good things about each of them, and good people in both clubs. Of course, most runners are pretty good peeps, so that's really no surprise.


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