Every week, clients are amazed at the scenery they experience on an Always Running Group Run.  Whether you’ve just moved to Seattle or lived here all of your life, we guarantee you will experience a neighborhood, a view or a trail you’ve never seen before or never knew existed.  From Lake stevens to Tacoma and from Ocean Shores to Snoqualmie pass and everywhere in between – you will cover the Pacific Northwest on foot – even if you’re just running a short distance. 

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Some client favorites include running by Kerry Park on top of Queen Anne and taking in its Space Needle and the downtown waterfront view.  There are surprising views of Mt Rainier from the little-known Maple Leaf Park and UW campus loop course along with seeing the cherry blossoms in bloom.  And waterfront runs along Alki Beach and Lake Washington, along with trails like Cougar and Tiger mountain, just to name a few.  You will never be bored on our group run.  We don’t repeat a single course in a calendar year and we’re always adding new courses.  And if that’s not enough, ask us about our travel Adventure Runs like Grand Canyon, Haleakela and Stehekin.

Coach Tony began the staggered start back in 1992 and it’s really what allows runners and even walkers of all ages and activity levels to participate in our group runs.  The slowest group of runners start first and every 2-3 minutes another group of runners start.  The faster runners catch up to the runners who started earlier, which provides motivation and camaraderie among the group.  It’s also a safety measure since it means that you 're always catching up to someone and someone is always catching up to you.

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Coach Tony also provides support along the way.  You will never have to run with a water bottle since you will see Coach Tony every 2-3 miles to provide hydration, asses your pace, possible injuries and determine if you should extend your distance or cut your run short.

There is no such thing as first place at an Always Running Group run, everyone finishes around the same time due to the staggered start. And while it’s not a race, you might finish first one week and third the next week – but you won’t always be last, we can promise that. 

Safety is paramount and always top of mind for Coach Tony.  Before you even get started, Tony will help each runner setup the Garmin watch to ensure that you can view the course and access the details of your performance.  The staggered start was created with safety in mind and Coach Tony tracks the sunrise and sunset to schedule the optimal start time. 

The Always Running support vehicle (a 12 passenger Sprinter van) is out on the course with every safety and first aid item needed for the entire group.  For trail runs, you will also find the team mascot dog, who on occasion carries the first aid kit and extra water.  At Always Running, we have safety covered.

Utilizing Garmin GPS watches, Coach Tony has a live view of every single runner on the course, at all times.  Not only is this important for runner safety, but it also gives him a glimpse of the runners’ performance including pace and heart rate.  This makes the checkpoints along the run even more valuable for assessing each participant’s individual run.  This is also how you know where you’re going!  The course is downloaded onto the watch, giving you turn by turn directions and even alerting you if you go off course.  The watch is also an excellent tool to help you stay on pace and know where you are on the course and how close you are to the finish line.