The sidewalks of Downtown Cary get more social on Tuesdays after 6 p.m. Members of longstanding Bond Brothers Run Club take off on 3- or 5-mile routes, usually in groups, and at varying speeds.
Downtown Cary has grown since the first 30 runners met in front of the big garage door of Bond Brothers Beer Company that faces Cedar Street. The brewery was still under construction when the club’s first leader, Andy Schnitzer, gathered the runners in November 2015.
And it was the runners who got the first pulls from Bond Brothers’ taps on March 1, 2016, said current Run Club Director Angel Bond, who runs the club with Jeremy Bond.
“We have some members who have only missed two Tuesdays since then,” she said.
Bond Brothers Run Club, sponsored by Bond Brothers Beer Company and Fleet Feet Sports of Morrisville, has since grown to more than 3,000 members. About 100-130 check in each week, Bond said, an almost equal mix of men and women with a median age of 38.
She describes the environment as “very supportive” for all paces, something she learned when she first started with the group.
“I was a new runner, so I didn’t know what the environment would be. I’ve been to run clubs where it’s the fast kids,” Bond said. “Everyone is welcome, if you have a stroller, if you have a dog… It’s a very open and supportive environment.”
On the first Tuesday of the month, anyone who has reached 100 runs is added to a plaque on the wall at the brewery and given a century hat. That hat can’t be bought, Bond said, only earned.
The club also supports members at different races; there’s usually a bus from Cary to Rocky Mount for the Mill Chill four-miler in Rocky Mount, and members cheer on each other at the Richmond Marathon. Closer to home, Bond Brothers Beer Co. sponsors the beer at the Tobacco Road Marathon and Half Marathon.
There’s a community for runners at every pace, Bond said. For newer runners, registration is free, and runners can start to earn run club swag the more they check in. Bond usually pairs newcomers with veteran members of the club.
If you go: There’s always a food truck for post-run dinner, and groups of runners (like the 5-mile crew) gather at tables inside or in the beer garden.
What’s next: The run club hopes to revive the 5K in the fall in Downtown Cary.
Find it: 202 E. Cedar Street, Cary. Runners gather for announcements at 6 p.m. Tuesdays outside before starting the group run on 3- or 5-mile routes.