While scrolling through Facebook on the weekend, Krista came upon a fantastic group called Saint John Trail Running. She reached out to Mark McColgan, the founder of the group, to find out all the “deets”.
The Beginning
Saint John Trail Running is an avid group of runners here in the city of Saint John. Krista asked Mark how the group got started. Mark explained that it was kind of a selfish endeavor. He started running back in 2016 and, at the time, there was a group of trail runners were called River and Trail Runners and it was organized by Sean Creary, who owns the River and Trails in Rothesay. It was a great group, with great people and Mark ran with them quite a bit. There were 10 to 12 runners each week and they would go out and try out the trails all around the city.
Then COVID hit and they weren’t running at all anymore. In 2021, because there was no runs going on, Mark reached out to Sean and said, “Hey, I’m thinking of doing my own group and calling it Saint John Trail Running, what do you think?” Sean agreed with the idea and that’s how it started! Mark wanted some running friends and nobody was running during COVID, so he started it up and the rest is history.
Today
Krista asked Mark how many “members” are in the group now and what is the age range? Mark explained that they don’t really have a “membership” per say. When the group started there were about 600 members on their Facebook page; now there are over 5,500. It’s definitely grown by leaps and bounds. As for an age range, Mark said they have members as young as 11-12 years old and members in their late seventies.
Nobody Left Behind
The group’s slogan is Noboby Left Behind. ( I just LOVE that!). Mark said it’s pretty self-explanatory. The group wants to be as welcoming as possible and thought that was a great phrase. It feels welcoming and that’s truly what this group is all about. Nobody is ever left behind in their runs and the group always puts it into practice. They have a caboose at all of their group runs make sure that nobody gets lost and everybody gets back to the parking lot.
Ongoing Activities
Saint John Trail Running (Co-Ed Group) meets every Wednesday at 6.30pm. Everyone is welcome and they meet at various locations in the city. The meetings are free and happen all year round.
Saint John Trail Running (Woman’s Only Group) meets every Monday, also at 6:30 pm. Sarah Lameth leads the Woman’s Only Group.
Both groups run for 500 meters to a kilometer, let everybody catch up, take a break and do that until they reach seven to eight kilometers each week
One of the biggest things and one of the things that’s the most popular their Intro Group, which Saint John Trail Running does every spring. It started in April so they are currently on week three. This year, 108 people have joined the Intro Group. Mark says it is really popular and it’s really cool how they’ve structured it – the program is eight weeks long and at the end of the eight weeks, the participants actually do a race designed for them by the team, transitioning nicely into their race scene.
Annual BIG Events
Krista asked Mark about the “Big 5” events happening for Saint John Trail running this year. I must say in advance that I absolutely LOVE the names of these events. Mark does get credit for these names except for the first which has been around for about 9 years.
They have 5 races on their schedule – all part of a serious called the Saint John Trail Series.
- ROMPIN’ ROCKWOOD – May 23 at Rockwood Park. Runners can choose to do an 11K, 26K or 52K. It is a four day event which draws about 400 participants, one of their biggest races
- EAST COAST BEAST COAST – June 27 Rockwood Park. This is geared towards the Intro Group but all are welcome. 200-300 participants are expected and there is one distance in this one – 8K. Mark told Krista this is “hands down the most inspiring day you would ever go to. You’ve got a hundred plus newish runners coming out doing their first race and it is, it’s just magical”
- Loonie Loops – September 12 Glenn Carpenter Center. Participants can choose 6 hours, 12 hours of 24 hours on a 3.1 kilometre loop. Mark explained that it is a really fun atmosphere. Last year, they had a 20 piece Congo Band! Mark refers to this even as a “big trail party” and says that it is just a blast!
- Poley Peak Pursuit – October 10 Sussex. Partipants can choose between a 5K or a 13K. This event is part of the Harvest Fest in October at Poley – they have their chair lift running, families join in and there is a market going on at the same time. This event is another fun one that brings out 200 – 250 runners.
- Bootstrap Boogie (Mark knew Krista would love THIS title especially, to which she started to sing Bootstrapping Boogie!) –October 31 Irving Nature Park. Participants can choose between at 9K or 17K. This is a coastal run. The cool part about this race is that it is a COSTUME PARTY! Mark says that people show up with the best costumes! This year it is held right on Halloween Eve so it will be a lot of fun. Mark said one year they had a Charmin Bear who ran the entire 17K with a 12 pack of toilet paper strapped to his back. LOVE IT!
Find Out More
If you would like to get involve with this amazing group, you can find them all over social media.
Website: https://www.saintjohntrailrunning.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sjtrailrunning
Email: saintjohntrailrunning@gmail.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@saintjohntrailrunning/featured
Instagram: Co-Ed Group: https://www.instagram.com/saintjohntrailrunning
Instagram: Women’s Only Group: https://www.instagram.com/sjtrailwomen/
