Brehm: An ode to group running

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This past January, like so many Minnesotans, I found myself with a severe case of the winter doldrums.

This isn’t the easiest state to live in as a single guy, and I found myself complaining to one of my best friends, Chuck, about my seemingly stagnant social life and sense of isolation during the tundra season.

“You should join a running club,” he said to me. “I think it’d serve you well. And I’ll try it with you.”

The suggestion confused me at first. Spring was a way off. What good would joining a jogging group in a few months do for me now? “No, Andy,” Chuck responded. “These groups run all year long. We can try it this Saturday.”

The idea sounded awful. The high that weekend was barely above 0. The thought of meeting a bunch of strangers to go running at 8 a.m. in the dark and freezing cold was beyond unappealing.

There I was, all bundled up, at Saint City Running in St. Paul, at 7:50 a.m. in January ready to run — and ready to hate it.

I was struck first by how many people showed up. Close to a hundred. And that almost all of them were smiling and seemed excited to hit the frigid trail. As we started to run across the Ford Parkway Bridge, I started to smile, too. This was cool. Fresh air, new friends and challenging my body to do the impossible. There was something empowering about being out and about exercising in what otherwise would be dangerously cold conditions.

And so began my love affair with group running. Running itself is fun and good for you. But doing it with others, I have found, makes it really special.

I now do most of my group runs with Mill City Running, which organizes free jogging excursions out of its northeast Minneapolis and St. Paul stores. At the peak of the summer season, the size of the group seemed to get into the hundreds. It’s not hard to understand the attraction. It’s a fantastic crew.

There is no more positive place on the planet than a Mill City run. It’s a happy and encouraging and inclusive squad. People of all shapes and sizes and ages and abilities are welcome — from advanced championship marathoners to slow, plodding joggers like me. Some people have recent race victories to celebrate, while others just appreciate the health benefits running has brought them. And there’s the newcomers who just finished their first run.

It also is, refreshingly, a politics-free zone. I have no clue how my fellow runners vote and guess most may do differently than me — and don’t care. Doron Clark, a Democratic state senator from Minneapolis and a marathoner, occasionally handles announcements for the group, but I’ve never heard him utter a partisan word through the megaphone. It’s all about wellness and community. Nothing divisive.

As readers of this column know, I am in recovery from alcoholism. It’s a disease that, even when one has been sober for years as I have been, can still bring about strong melancholic and anxious dispositions from time to time. Running and the sense of community that has come with it has enhanced my recovery and emotional sobriety. The exercise, fresh air and conversation with a friendly stranger that comes with a group run can lift a bad mood when nothing else can.

This past weekend, I finished the Medtronic TC 10 Mile race. At a time when we are so divided, it’s a touching event when the Twin Cities come together to encourage family, friends and complete strangers. For one day, we cheer for each other unconditionally.

I bumped into a few of my fellow group runners on the course from U.S. Bank Stadium to the State Capitol. They were quick to shoot me a smile and give a boosting word or thumbs up. And I tried to return the favor. I sure didn’t have any of this on my bingo card for 2025. But I am grateful for it as Minnesota’s running community is a wonderful thing to be a part of.