Newsletter July – October 2005
Off and Running...
To accompany the images from the OFR Photo Album, we've asked Shawn to describe OFR's early days, including the people and guiding principles that helped the club grow.
The latest incarnation of Ottawa Frontrunners (OFR) made its humble debut on a frigid January day in 2003 when four or five brave souls gathered for the first group run.
The idea to form a running a group came to me when I traveled to Sydney, Australia in November 2002 to participate in the Gay Games marathon event. Thrown together with a group of other running and track athletes from Ottawa, I realized I didn't really know anyone except for one or two people who had been part of a previous OFR group that existed in the mid- to late-1990s. When I asked my new acquaintances if they would consider running as a club when we returned to Ottawa, they were enthusiastic. I figured it would be good for me and maybe good for the community, too.
It's easy to forget how cold Ottawa is in winter when you're enjoying summer conditions down under. I wasn't sure how keen the group would still be when we got back to Ottawa. But when that first e-mail reminder went out, the folks who said they'd join kept their word.
Since those early days, the group has grown beyond what anyone could have imagined. Today, we have a strong base of runners of all ages and fitness levels. We're also established well enough now to have participated in this year's Pride celebrations – a testament to how far we've come as a club. It's a real pleasure to see Ottawa Frontrunners take a confident place in the community.
My own small contribution in the first couple of years was pretty simple. I tried to build awareness in the community by marketing the group in local newspapers and Web sites. I also wanted to meet a couple of basic objectives: to make sure runners started and finished together; and, to make sure nobody ran alone. If I didn't do one other thing, I figured those things alone would keep the group together.
OFR has been a joint effort since day one. There have been a lot of capable hands nurturing the club. In the first year, everyone was involved in some small way. José organized us to participate in charity races and other activities. Other folks had good ideas about where to meet, where to eat breakfast on Saturday morning (that's important!), and how to keep us together. Most importantly, runners stuck with us by coming back week after week.
Today, Ottawa Frontrunners is part of the International Frontrunners organization. I believe we represent them well here in Canada's capital. And I believe we are a welcome and welcoming club for our community.
Copyright 2006 - 2008 Ottawa Frontrunners. E-mail ofr@ottawafrontrunners.org.
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