Seattle Frontrunners Thaws the Seattle Freeze, by Tyler Kenji Wong

I’m writing this post in a car, on the drive back to Seattle from Jasper Mountain, listening to Gabe and Grant play a car game I was sadly not as good at and was eliminated early on, relegated to listening to them spell obscure words. This weekend at Jasper Mountain is the epitome of why I joined Frontrunners. But I’ll start from my beginnings with the group.

I started running with Frontrunners in Boston in Spring 2017, after my sister said she wanted to run a 10k and half marathon with me. Besides the occasional run on my own, I hadn’t seriously run since high school, so I wanted to get into shape for the race. But more importantly I wanted to meet new people. After going to school in Boston and graduating in 2016, I started realizing my social circle was contracting, with college friends moving away one after another.

So I searched Facebook for running groups and joined one. The group was nice but I felt a little like an outsider. Someone there mentioned Frontrunners, so I moseyed my way over to the group. When I got there I realized the group was a lot more diverse, both in age and race, and because of that it felt more warm and welcoming. I found it easier to talk to people and looked forward to the runs and after run picnics.

In 2018, I moved to Austin and the first thing I made sure to do was join Frontrunners. I landed Saturday and by Sunday I was going to a run. Over my two years there the people in the group became some of my closest friends. When the pandemic happened, runs were a constant: a way to stay on a schedule and to see friends in a safe space.

I decided to move to Seattle in the middle of the pandemic, and again connecting with Frontrunners was a priority. And thankfully runs were going on in the fall. Frontrunners helped me build connections in another new city, while continuing to be a light in the monotony of lockdowns and working from home. As things opened up, and more people started coming, it also became a great way to continue meeting new people and building connections. It’s also been awesome to see attendance numbers grow from the pandemic low of two or three people to up to 70+ people per run.

Through it all, Frontrunners has continued to fill that gap that I was looking for when I first searched Facebook: a place to meet people and hang out, a place to keep me accountable to working out, and a place to push me towards my goals.  Frontrunners has allowed me to try new things, like this weekend at Jasper Mountain, and to have unique and memorable experiences, including running up and down a mountain (or rather walking), doing a 24-hour relay across Texas, or training for marathons and the long runs leading up to them with a great group of friends. For the past five years, through two cross country moves, one pandemic, and many other life changes through my 20’s, Frontrunners has been the constant that gets me off my butt, even despite 100-degree heat waves or snowstorms, and I hope it continues to be that for many more.

Tyler Kenji Wong

He/Him

On occasion, my dog Nori will join me for a run. She likes running up hills, and she likes the courses and distances of the Wednesday runs.