Community Running Stores: The Best Small Businesses

Today was the Tryptophan Run, sponsored by Vertical Runner in Hudson, Ohio.  It is a free social running event in which runners have two hours to run a two-mile loop as many times as they wish.  For each loop, the runner drops a number in a hat, and at the end of the two hours there is a drawing with lots of free prizes.

Post by Vertical Runner.

I wanted to walk a few loops this year, but I was afraid of damaging my broken foot.  Last year I ran five loops, and then I took a break for coffee in one of the local coffee shops.  After the running, we all gathered in the store for the drawing, and while I didn't win anything, many of my friends did.  It was a great time.

Runners are a close-knit community.  Many of us know each other from running groups, races, or just passes on the road or trail.  There are many runners I recognize on Facebook whom I would never recognize face to face (well, maybe with running gear on).  We know about each others' injuries, race victories, and digestive problems.

Runners are weird, right?

A good running store is a part of the local running community.  Vertical Runner is a chain, but the owners are all local runners who encourage the community.  Vince Rucci, owner of Vertical Runner Hudson, has no idea who I am, but he makes sure to invite me to every Vertical Runner event.  I have seen Vince on the Pine Run trail, I have seen him among groups of runners, and I have seen his back-end as he blew by me numerous times on the Tryptophan Run last year.  He has provided water, Gu, and Gatorade on practice race runs, and he gives out awesome prizes in the Tryptophan drawing.

When you see this truck, you know something fun is going on.

Sure, I can go online and order Saucony Guide 6s (not anymore) for a small discount, but the question is, why would I?  Vertical Runner gives a ten percent discount to my running club (The Ohio Runners Network), and I can get great service there.

American Express started a tradition of supporting small businesses the Saturday after Thanksgiving, called Small Business Saturday.  While I don't own an American Express card, and I rarely step out of my house for at least two days after Thanksgiving, I would suggest that we can support small businesses at any time of the year.  Running stores like Vertical Runner (and Second Sole) invest in the community, so I would like to return the favor.

Thank you, community businesses.  Thank you, Vertical Runner!  I'll be running with you at the Tryptophan Run in 2014!

New Kicks!

It was well-past time to buy new shoes.  I bought my last pair of shoes in NOVEMBER 2012, people.  Just since January I have put over 550 miles on them.  Wrong, wrong, wrong.  Some runners will tell you that you should change every 500 miles; some say 300.  Either way, I screwed up.

Yesterday I set out to rectify my mistake.  My store of choice is Second Sole because it is closest to my house and I have had wonderful, spiritual experiences every time I've gone there--no joke.  This time I brought my old shoes with me (my last rookie mistake was NOT bringing my old shoes), but I didn't bring my running socks to try on a new pair.  Duh.  I guess I thought that I would be getting the same shoes, just newer.  So, Dear Readers, you now have learned two lessons so far from my rookie shoe-buying mistakes: bring your shoes, and bring your socks.

Anyway, the store has a bin where you can borrow socks that approximate the thickness of your own socks, so it wasn't that big of a deal.  The "borrowing socks" were much better than my own socks, by the way.

The salesman asked me how many miles I'm putting in a week, and when told him 20-30, he responded, "Wow, that's a lot!"  Extra points for making me feel like a badass!  He took my shoes to the back and came back with these:

Saucony Guide 6

These were a size 10--a half-size larger than my regular Saucony size (which is still a half-size larger than some of my other shoes).  The salesman said, "I looked at the wear on your shoes, and I think they are too small for you in the toe box, especially for the amount of miles you are putting in.  Try these on, and we'll see if they are better for you."  Be still, my beating heart!  Did he actually analyze my old shoes?

Ok, here is a reality check.  When I looked at the Guide 6 reviews on Saucony's website, I noticed that the number one comment was that everyone had to go up a half-size.  I'm pretty sure the salesguy automatically brings everyone a half-size larger, but because I am a narcissist and an optimist, I am going to believe that he DID look at the wear on my shoes and think about my needs.  I love you, Second Sole.

I took my beautiful, bright shoes on the running path this morning for four hilly miles.  I was a little worried about the size because I felt that my old shoes would sometimes rub in the heel.  Notice the special ankle-lock tie on the left shoe.  The shoes felt lighter (the website says they are lighter), and they felt more cushiony and less stiff than my previous shoes.  They felt like I had already broken them in.  I didn't have any blisters or soreness during or after the run, so I'm going to tentatively say the Guide 6 is a win.  The real test will be the long run on Sunday.

What do you think of Saucony?  Have you tried the Guide 6?  Do you notice a difference from the Guide 5?

Shoes

Runners are weird.  They are a mysterious tribe with their own customs, language, and traditional clothing.  I've wanted to join this tribe ever since, ten years ago, I started cheering on the runners who passed my house during the Akron Marathon.  I've learned from the experience of living three years in France that complete immersion is the way to go when one wants to experience a new culture.

If you dress like this guy while in Paris,
French people will mock you.

In other words, you want to be a runner?  Dress like a runner.  It all starts with the shoes.

The first piece of advice I received from tribal elders was to go to a real running store to buy shoes.  The mall will not do.  DSW will not do.  It must be a store that caters to runners.  Considering I wore the same pair of New Balance running shoes for over five years, I found this advice puzzling, but I ran with it (see what I did there?).  My store of choice is Second Sole Akron.  Vertical Runner is another good store, but it's too far away for me.

When I visited Second Sole for the first time, I was apprehensive.  My mind flashed back to the days of mall record stores where cooler-than-thou kids with multiple piercings would sneer at me when I tried to find the newest Duran Duran album.  Not so here.  The owner of the store was very welcoming, and when I told him that I wasn't really a runner yet, his reply was, "Nonsense.  Of course you are a runner."

The twenty minutes it took for me to find a pair of shoes was incredibly therapeutic.  I have never learned so much about my feet as I did that evening.  I had to take off my socks, walk, run, and grip with my toes.  Each time I performed one of these actions, the gentleman would give me a new piece of information about my feet and walking/running styles.  At the end of our session, he brought me a pair of  Women's Guide 5 | Saucony.

I've never looked back since!