Dallas is a running city. A home for many different running organizations. Sometimes there are friendly rivalries. But when something bad goes down, all the runners in Dallas tend to bond. Last year for example, two members of the running community were dealing with grave health issues and resultant financial issues, so members of the Dallas Running Club and the White Rock Running Co-op joined together and held a fundraiser, bringing in thousands for the sick, who had friends upon friends who they didn’t even know they had — just because they were runners.
So naturally the events at the Boston Marathon yesterday brought runners together. Last night a large crowd turned out at the Dallas Running Club clubhouse at White Rock Lake. The purpose? I heard a few different things, but mainly I think the reason was to be among friends and people who love what you love during a very very heartbreaking time.
Most of the runners who actually were at the marathon in Boston yesterday aren’t home yet, but those who ran at the lake Tuesday say it was a moving experience. Dallas Running Club member EW Walter says he was touched to see former members who had formed new groups, or ventured off on their own, all back together in one place. It was like a reunion of the old DRC, he noted. No politics, petty differences or rivalries. We just ran. It was wonderful.
Tonight, Wednesday, the White Rock Running Co-op will meet for its regular Wednesday night run at 7 p.m. Organizer Chris Stratton says he will sell club merchandise and donate all the cash, which normally goes back to group supplies and activities, to victims of the bombing. He notes, We can donate in the names of the fallen and hurt … in celebration of those who ran the race and returned to us unharmed. The run starts at 7 p.m. in the parking lot of Fuzzy’s at Mockingbird-Abrams White Rock Bath House and, as it always is, is open to all.