Devon Deer Run Club

We tried to prove we're Atlantic Canada's most thriving morning run club. It didn't go the way we expected.

Turns out nobody counts run clubs. There's no ranking, no census, no trophy. So we put everything we could actually prove on the website and we'll let you decide.

What we know for sure: we leave Picaroons Roundhouse Mondays and Wednesdays at 6:15 a.m., trails go Thursday at 5:30 p.m. from Odell Park, it's free, there's no sign-up, and a sweeper always stays behind so nobody runs alone.

The rest is at devondeer.ca, link in bio. Come once next week and count yourself in.

The form closed Tuesday night. Twenty-four of you filled it out, and I've read every answer twice.

Stacey's said this: "Our first DD run! Just three peeps. Now look at how it's grown!"

Thank you. All of you.

There's a new group called The Antler Shed. Rosters, weather calls, event plans, photos, and every question you weren't sure who to ask. If you filled out the form there's an invitation waiting for you. If you didn't, come in anyway, whether you want to take a shift someday or just want to see pictures of the sunrise you slept through.

bit.ly/antlershed

A lot of you offered to grab a coffee. There are more of you than there are mornings, so instead of fifteen coffees we're doing two, in the place the coffee already happens:

Tomorrow Deer in the Park in O'Dell at 5:30 pm

Monday, August 24, after the 6:15 run, Grain and Grind, around 7:15

Wednesday, August 26, same again

Come to which ever. You don't have to run first. We'll sort out who's carrying what, and I'll bring the passwords.

Friday, August 28, Devon Deer turns two. Fire at my place, all deer and their people are welcome. That's the night I introduce the people running year three. Details and address are in the Shed, and bring a chair if you've got one.

Every Devon Deer run has a fronty and a sweeper.
Behind the scenes, almost everything else has had one person.

Wednesday morning, 42 of us left the lot at 6:15. Sunrise was 6:22, so the first seven minutes were grey. When the sun came up over the bridge, one of us stopped just to take a picture of it. Six and a half kilometres later everyone was back, and most of us ended up at Grain and Grind.

Devon Deer turns two on August 28. I am stepping away from organizing it, and I want it to keep going. That takes several people holding clear pieces with a named backup each, instead of one person holding all of it.

You do not need to be fast, experienced, or there every week. Reliability, kindness, sound judgment and a willingness to ask for help matter more.

Four minutes. It starts a conversation, and no role gets handed to anyone without a real discussion first. Link in bio, or bit.ly/devondeer

Closes Tuesday, August 18 at 8:00 p.m. Atlantic.

Monday: 6:15 a.m. sharp, Picaroons Roundhouse, 6.5km, all paces, free.

The five minutes before a first run can feel harder than the run itself.

That is why we built devondeer.ca

You can see exactly where to meet, what to expect, what to wear, how our regroup stops work, and why the person at the back never runs alone.

Devon Deer is a free, friendly Fredericton running community. There is no membership, no sign-up and no need to use Strava. You can simply show up.

☀️ Monday and Wednesday
6:15 a.m. sharp
Picaroons Roundhouse, 912 Union Street
Usually about 6.5 km with two regroup stops

🌲 Thursday trails
5:30 p.m.
Lower parking lot at Odell Park

All running paces are welcome. Our road run is best suited to people who can run most of the route, but you do not have to be fast. A sweeper stays with the final runner, and nobody runs alone.

New to Fredericton? Visiting for work? Returning to running? Curious about trails? Or simply looking for people who will know your name next week?

Come once.

👉 devondeer.ca

If Devon Deer has helped Fredericton feel more like home, please share this so the next person can find us.

And if one person came to mind while reading this, send it directly to them with three words:

“I’ll go with you.”

Turns out Monday has a pretty good side. You just have to meet it at 6:15 a.m

Everybody in this photo had a first Monday.

This one's a good one to pick. The sun clears the horizon at 6:20 and we're gone by 6:15, which makes it the first Monday since April that starts ahead
of the sunrise.

Here's exactly what happens if you're new.

You get to the Picaroons Roundhouse lot around 6:10. You find anyone in running shoes and say "first time." That person walks you over, introduces you to a few people, and you start the run beside somebody who's expecting you.

The back of the pack runs a bit, walks a bit, and talks the whole way around. Our sweeper finishes when the last person finishes. We stop before and after the Westmorland Bridge, so the group keeps gathering itself back up.

You don't have to run the whole 6.5. You don't have to be fast. You don't have to know a soul, and you don't have to call yourself a runner yet. Most people come to that part later.

This Monday, August 10
We leave the parking lot at 6:15 AM sharp
6.5km along the Wolastoq and over the walking bridge
Coffee after

The Fredericton Fall Classic Road Race is seven weeks out if you want something to point at. If you don't, Monday's still a good morning.

Put your shoes by the door tonight.

Hoofs forward 🦌

Photo: Maureen O'Brien Daigle / Maureen O'Brien Daigle