7.20 MRC Weekly Schedule + It Takes A Village
A wee thank you this week for being the best community ever!
Hey team,
I’m sure we’ve all heard the saying, “It takes a village,” but I don’t think I truly understood what that meant until I started building Mondays.
People who are curious about MRC will ask me what I’m most proud of, and they usually expect me to talk about the size of our runs, the events we host or the brands we’ve been lucky enough to work with.
And while all of those things are obviously worth being proud of, what I’m most proud of is the way people care about this community.
Last week reminded me of that in more ways than one.
For weeks, I had Summer Camp completely planned. The location was booked, the partners were sorted and everything was ready to go. Then, at Wednesday’s run, one of our runners came up to me and said, “Hey, so there’s a huge festival happening at the beach you picked for Summer Camp.”
I had no idea.
As much as I try to think of everything, things inevitably slip through the cracks. Had she not mentioned it, we would’ve shown up to hundreds of people, no parking and complete chaos. Instead, we had enough time to pivot, find a new location and pull off what ended up being one of my favourite events we’ve ever hosted.
I’ve thought about that conversation a lot since.
Not because I missed something, but because she cared enough to say something!!!
She wasn’t criticizing the plan or questioning my decisions. She simply wanted the event to be the best it could be because she cares about this community too.
Then came Friday…
If you looked at the weather forecast that morning, you probably would’ve thought Summer Camp wasn’t happening. Every time I refreshed my phone, the sunshine seemed to get pushed back another hour. We kept asking ourselves the same question: do we postpone, or do we trust it’ll clear???
Thankfully, we trusted it.
Halfway through the party, one of our runners came up to me and told me he’d actually left work early that afternoon to go home and power clean his house.
He lives about a block away from the park…
He said that if we had decided we couldn’t host the event outside because of the weather, he wanted us to know that everyone was welcome to have the party at his place instead. WHAT?!
One hundred people. In his house. LOL
I honestly laughed because I couldn’t believe someone would even think to offer something so generous!!!
Of course, we never needed to take him up on it, but that wasn’t really the point.
The point was that his first instinct was, “How can I help make sure this still happens?”
Moments like that stay with me.
Over the last five years, I’ve noticed so many little examples of people looking out for this community. Sometimes it’s someone introducing themselves to a runner who’s standing alone. Sometimes it’s a message offering feedback that makes the next event even better. Sometimes it’s someone quietly picking up a few empty cans before they leave or asking if there’s anything they can do before heading home.
None of those things are expected.
In fact, I hope most people show up, enjoy the event and head home with a full heart. That’s what these nights are for!!
But every now and then, someone chooses to do something kind simply because they care. Those moments remind me that Mondays has become something much bigger than a run club.
To me, that’s the real magic of Mondays.
It’s not just that people show up. It’s that people care.
They care about the person who’s nervous to come for the first time. They care about the experience we’re creating together. They care enough to speak up when they’ve spotted something I haven’t. They care enough to celebrate each other’s wins and offer a hand when someone needs one.
You can’t force that and you certainly can’t manufacture it.
It happens over time, through hundreds of conversations, shared experiences and small acts of kindness that slowly become part of the culture.
So this week, I just wanted to say thank you!
Not because you’ve stayed behind to clean up or offered to carry a table, but because you’ve helped create a place where people genuinely look out for one another.
As a wee founder, that’s the greatest gift I could ever ask for. :)
It really does take a village.
Four Ways to Run With Us This Week
1. Barbie Run at Mondays Run Club
Monday | 5:30 PM | Jonathan Rogers Park
Tonight’s run is one of our favourite traditions of the year: our annual Barbie Run to celebrate Zoe’s birthday.
Dust off your brightest pink, your most Barbie-coded outfit and come celebrate with us!!
Tonight’s pace groups:
The Ocho — 8K @ 5:30–5:40/km
Spicy 6 — 6K @ 5:10–5:15/km
Chill 6 — 6K @ 6:00/km
V-Chill — 4K @ 6:10–6:15/km
The Walking Club
A bag drop will be available!
We’ll also have our friends from Fresh Prep joining us with some post-run treats, and ProPop will be there handing out sparkling protein water after the run!
We’ll be hanging out in the park afterward, so feel free to bring a blanket, stick around and celebrate Zoe with us. I’ll have the speaker, and as always, it’s going to be a really fun summer night. :)
2. MRC x Tality Run Club
Wednesday | 5:30 PM | Tality Mount Pleasant
These sessions have been selling out quickly, so if you’ve been meaning to join us, book your spot sooner rather than later!!
We’ll head out for a social 5K run before returning for a private 90-minute sauna and cold plunge session at one of Vancouver’s coolest wellness spaces. This week we’ll be giving away samples from our friends at Magic Scoop!
BOOK YOUR SPOT HERE!
Between the rooftop patio overlooking the city, the recovery session and the conversations afterward, it’s become one of our favourite ways to spend a Wednesday evening
3. TurF Fridays
Friday | 7:30 am | TurF Kitsilano
If you’ve never started your Friday with us at TurF, this is your sign!!!
We head out for a relaxed 5–6K social run through Kits before settling in for coffee, smoothies and breakfast afterward. It’s low-key, easy to join and one of those runs where you somehow leave feeling like you’ve already won the weekend.
4. Trail Mix
Saturday | 9:30am | Locations Rotate
Looking to spend a little more time on the trails?
Trail Mix heads out every Saturday morning with route options for a variety of experience levels, whether you’re brand new to trail running or looking for a longer adventure.
If you’d like to join us, send the Mondays Run Club Instagram page a DM with the words “Trail Mix” and we’ll add you to the group chat where we share each week’s route, meeting location and all the details.
See you tonight!
XO V