Nearly 50 runners, undeterred by rain, gathered at Lake Padden on Wednesday, June 26 for the annual Greater Bellingham Running Club members picnic and “prediction run,” in celebration of the nearly 50-year-old nonprofit club.
Before the run, each member predicted how long they would take to finish the 2.6-mile loop around the lake, and then endeavored to hit that time without the assistance of the now-ubiquitous smartwatch. The club’s volunteer track coach and manager of Fairhaven Runners & Walkers, Craig Bartlett, led everyone in a warm up and told them they should be “running by feel” rather than relying on their devices.
Bartlett, who had coached middle and high school runners in the past, moved to Bellingham in 1996 and got to know Gale Pfueller, one of the founders of GBRC, which has existed since 1976. Pfueller recruited Bartlett to start leading the weekly Wednesday night track workouts (now held at the WWU track) and he’s done it ever since. Runners do laps in the snow, rain, smoke, wind, in the dark, in the heat, almost every week of the year. Even when the group couldn’t assemble during COVID, Bartlett sent everyone workouts to be done alone.
“It’s such a good example of a homegrown community running club,” he said about GBRC.
Each week around 30 participants attend the track workouts, with a core group of 15 or so runners who are very consistent, but Bartlett estimated that if everyone who participates showed up on the same night, the total would be 300 runners. And it’s an all-ages affair — parents come with their kids, there’s a healthy contingent of senior runners, and at one point the biggest age gap was 70 years — a 14-year-old and an 84-year-old were out on the track together doing the same workout.
Sally Hileman is in her mid-70s and joined GBRC in 1984 to help with her asthma. (“My lungs are darn good for an old lady,” she said.) She’s a strong sprinter who prefers short-distance efforts, and is proud to still be hitting a “golden 300” — she can run the 300-meter in fewer seconds than her age. Hileman said that runners are sometimes intimidated by the idea of track workouts, but that the GBRC nights are inclusive and suited for all ages and ability levels.
“These people are just outstanding humans,” she said about her fellow club members. “The track workouts are really important these days to keep my spirits up.”
Board member and community outreach coordinator Lindsey Boldrin wholeheartedly agrees. In Bellingham it’s possible to do a scheduled group run almost every day of the week, with GBRC’s Monday trail run and Wednesday track workout, the Fairhaven Runners All-Paces R un on Tuesdays, the Thursday evening BBay Running pub run, and events or races nearly every weekend.
When Boldrin moved to Bellingham and joined GBRC a decade ago, she found a warm and welcoming group of people. For her, running is 90% socializing and 10% hard work.
“I’ve gotten so much out of it,” she said. “I know hundreds of people in town because of running. It makes Bellingham really special.”
In addition to weekly group runs, the club hosts 10 races throughout the year, such as the upcoming Chuckanut Foot Race on July 7. (The Chuckanut Foot Race, a 7-mile trail run on the Inter Urban, started in 1968.)
GBRC also partners with youth groups like Girls on the Run and the YMCA Trail Blazers, operates a shoe voucher program through BBay Running and Fairhaven Runners & Walkers for students who have financial need, and gives out scholarships, with support from Haggen, to high school seniors. This year’s recipients are Caleb Guthrie of Bellingham High, Marcella Leita of Sehome High and Chase Bartlett of Squalicum High.
Ethan Hunger, the real estate agent who performs feats of athleticism to fundraise for the Bellingham Food Bank, is formally partnering with GBRC to reach more runners and help expand his Hunger vs. Hunger fundraising efforts.
“Philanthropy is a big deal for GBRC and I love that aspect,” Boldrin said.
At Wednesday evening’s drizzly prediction run, a few runners finished the loop within 10 seconds of their guesses, while others were further off the mark. Most underestimated their speed, running the forested path at a faster pace than they gave themselves credit for.
“With such a supportive atmosphere, where everyone cheers each other on, we all work harder as a result,” Boldrin said.
To learn more about the club and its events, visit gbrc.net.
Julia Tellman writes about civic issues and anything else that happens to cross her desk; contact her at juliatellman@cascadiadaily.com.
