VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The North End Run Club (NERC) started nine years ago with a social media post by a Virginia Beach resident — over eight years later, and the club has tens of thousands of followers on social media.
“Welcome! Our mission is simple: get outside, be active, run at your own pace. We start together and we finish together.” said Virginia Beach resident Barry Clark, the founder of the NERC.
“3, 2, 1, let’s go!” he shouts through his megaphone.
Every Tuesday night for the past nine years, NERC members have met at various locations around Virginia Beach.
“Free! Just show up, no fees, no forms.” Clark said. “We’re an inclusive community just really trying to get everybody outside to be active and explore the city.” said Clark proudly.
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When Clark posted the first club run in 2016, he wasn’t sure who would show up.
“About nine to ten people — a couple of people I knew and a few strangers who saw it pop up on social media. Some still run with us today.” he said.
One of those first club members was Mike Rowland, who now helps organize the weekly runs.
“It became that outlet for me, and ever since then, I’ve been wanting to give back to the community.” Rowland said.
And it has grown into this: a community of people who just show up for themselves and each other.
“You have somebody that you’ve never met cheering you on; they’re giving you a high five.” said Rowland with a big grin.
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Whether you walk or run, there are no rules or special requirements.
“We always say, ‘Your race, your pace. We start together and we finish together,’” said Clark.
“I can wear my big headphones and not worry about looking over my shoulder. And it’s a great community. I love it!” said runner Michelle Goode.
“There’s no age limit, there’s no time limit, there’s no distance limit. Come out and do your thing; be social," said runner Kit Chope.
And social it is — It has more than 13,000 followers on Instagram.
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“Barry and Mike, they are just awesome. They have a great community here — they give back,” said Goode.
“We have an audience. It’s all these great people, and they love where we live. They love this area, so how do we use this for good?” said Clark.
NERC has positioned themselves as a key part of the Virginia Beach community. They run a food pantry yearly and have the single largest toy donation to CHKD every year. They’re here for the community and each other.
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“No matter what outside factors are happening in your life—good or bad—leave it all behind. You show up here, and we build this momentum of moving forward together,” explained Clark.
Barry, Mike, and the NERC are positively impacting Hampton Roads.
If you'd like to run with them, you can find out where they'll be on Facebook or Instagram. Regardless of the weather (except for lightning), they run every Tuesday at 6:15 p.m. and have dawn patrol on Fridays at 6:15 a.m. All levels of fitness are welcome.
