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RUNNING CLUB UPDATE

Running Club Pre Matt Riffle

Our first Waterfront Hall Run Club “Runner of the Month” winner is Chris Burns! I told Chris he had to answer a few questions to receive his Waterfront Hall gift card. He mistakenly believed I actually have the power and authority to withhold his well-earned prize. Here’s our conversation:

Riff: How long have you been running and what got you into it?

Chris: I have been running for 5-6 years. I got into it because I realized I was getting old and needed to be active before I couldn’t anymore. I didn’t feel like trying to keep up with a competitive team sport. Running it was.

Riff: How long have you been a member of the Waterfront Hall Run Club and what is your favorite part about it? And don’t you effing dare say winning the gift card for winning Runner of the Month.

Chris: I have been with the run club since it started - whenever that was. My favorite part is being able to socialize with others who share this interest and fortunately, there are no assholes. At least while with the run club. In their personal lives, who knows.

Riff: In what ways do you expect winning the first ever “Runner of the Month” award to go to your head?

Chris: Winning the award brings up mixed feelings. It’s always nice to win something but how sad is it that socially, I have nothing else going on to where I can show up so frequently? Regardless, I plan to lord this over the others. Potentially ask everyone in the club to refer to me as “The Award Winning Chris” Maybe even make a case to become the club president.

Riff: Heavy is the head that wears the crown, Chris. You think it’s easy to tell people what time we run and to write 5-6 silly sentences filled with typos for a newsletter every week?

Note: I added that response after the interview. I am not filled with the confidence or character to say it to his face.

Riff: This newsletter goes out to a lot of people and I don’t think Dan is proofreading my section anymore. Want to take this opportunity to go on a political rant? Or to say something generally unforgivable?

Chris was either too kind or too aware of social norms to comment on this one. Stay tuned to next week’s newsletter as I’ve got a lot of opinions on tariffs to get off my chest!

Riff: How many beers do you think you could drink and still beat a 3rd grader in a 5k?

Chris: 2 beers is a solid estimate. Any more and I’ll probably think it’s funny to trip the kid just to win. Then I would feel bad later.

Riff: If you’re willing to show mercy to a 3rd grade child how do you expect to overtake me, a man with the strength of a 6th grader, as Club President??

Riff: Tell the people of our community who have not listened to me so far why they should join the Waterfront Hall Run Club.

Chris: I never thought of myself as a runner. Just someone who dabbles hoping to prolong my life by getting healthier. When I saw there was a local run club, I thought it would be fun but there was no way I could keep up with “real” runners. I pushed down my doubts and decided to give it a go anyways. It turns out that the group was made up of casuals and serious runners. Fortunately, the serious runners weren’t there to show off or leave the rest of us behind- they were there for the same reason as everyone else. To enjoy this relatively solitary activity with others and have a good time. The runs are filled with talking/joking (talking while running is hard but I can squeeze out a few words sometimes) and end with talking/joking. If you are on the fence, take the leap and join in. I am glad I did.

Thanks to Chris for tolerating my stupid questions and giving genuinely thoughtful responses to the normal ones. Chris was wrong to come for my title of Club President, but he was very right on why you should join us. The Waterfront Hall Run Club has room for runner’s of all skill levels, and has a strict no assholes allowed policy. It’s about getting off the screens, touching some grass, sharing some beers & laughs, and building community. If you like that stuff then prove it by showing up on Wednesdays at 5:45 p.m. & Saturdays at 10:00 a.m.

From Dan

The Wheeling Intelligencer recently published an editorial that was titled:

"Discussions Needed on Region's Future"

....which is as obvious as reading "Portajohns Needed For Local Festival." Yeah, you bet!

The article goes on to highlight Wheeling population levels as compared to 140 years ago and to point out that our "local leaders" need to lead us in discussions which can/will then lead us to a place where we're growing and thriving.

As a matter of comparison the article mentions three similarly-sized places that have been growing since 1990. I found this interesting. They are:

• Farmington, Utah (+17,135 population growth since 1990)
• Auburn Hills, Michigan (+8,971 population growth since 1990)
• Fairfax, Virginia (+6,718 population growth since 1990)

It made me want to jump in and find out if there were any commonalities among these small towns growing greater.

Farmington, Utah has grown primarily because it's region has grown. Many communities on the Wasatch Front have benefitted from an increased participation in ski culture and outdoor culture - there's a military base nearby - which also helps dramatically. New transit lines have been built called "The FrontRunner" and TRAX.

Auburn Hills, Michigan is a suburban area 35 minutes North of Detroit - which is just close enough to benefit from the revitalization of Detroit's city center. You might recognize this name because of the Palace of Auburn Hills, a famed basketball arena for the Detroit Pistons. Wheeling is about 1 hour from downtown Pittsburgh by comparison. Auburn Hills credits its growth to its diversity and shaping of itself to attract technology companies.

Fairfax, Virginia has benefitted from its proximity to Washington, DC and the technology boom that has taken place in that part of the country. It has outstanding public schools, which of course attract families, and it's transportation system is so popular that it had to change zoning laws to allow more people to live near the transit system. Immigration has been a key driver in the last decade.

So what is common across these three communities? Investments in:

T R A N S P O R T A T I O N

T E C H N O L O G Y

D I V E R S I T Y

The Intelligencer article calls for "Real Ideas" and "Real Economic Policies" and there are three.

Transportation: Safe, reliable, consistent transportation. Has anyone checked on OVRTA recently? Read the board minutes? Is there a 5 or 10 year plan? Has city government studied the positive impact of IC Cab and thought about ways to help them grow? Has anyone considered a tax breaks for Uber or Lyft drivers that could incentivize a denser network of potential drivers, making our roads safer and our businesses stronger? Has anyone dared to pitch big ideas like I don't know, a tramway across the Ohio River, now that we've lost the suspension bridge to vehicular traffic for four years and probably premanently. (Half-kidding about this one)

Technology: This is where the Mayor and City Council and economic development agencies have to take the lead. They're in the rooms with these entrepreneurs and technologists at various conferences and events. What technology dovetails with our existing industry? With our geographic footprint? With our river? Personally, I look at Form Energy in Weirton, WV and I think WOW, let's do that again - or maybe spend all of our energy trying to find other components on this supply chain and bring them here. (Often these efforts are bound by NDAs so, who knows, something could be in the works)

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Diversity: One of the first places this shows up is in food culture - where is Wheeling's Thai restaurant? I know there's great Indian cuisine in town. But that's not the only way these other towns are experiencing a high degree of diversity - it's also the impression the city and city's residents give to it's visitors and newcomers. If you were considering moving to a new town, I'm sure you would do a ton of research - well, when doing that research on Wheeling, if you land on the "What's Going on in Wheeling" page or the "Memories of Wheeling" page - you're going to get some feedback that sounds like it's coming from scorn lovers and traumatized citizens who knew what this town was like in 1940. Diversity starts with living up to the name "Friendly City" regardless of your brainwashed political position. Just exemplifying kindness in government and in public life and as a community. Welcome people better! Diversity makes life richer!

​Wheeling was at its most prosperous when it had its most diverse culture. ​

Have a great week everybody!

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