The Bristol run club doing things differently

A community spirit descends onto the banks of Bristol’s harbour every Tuesday evening as the drum of trainers hitting the ground echoes across the water and the panting of breaths throws hazy steam clouds into the frosty night.

These are the rhythmic movements of the Left Handed Giant Run Club, a group of runners that has grown exponentially in the last three years, attracting amateurs and professionals alike. Every Tuesday evening they gather at the Left Handed Giant, creating a hustle and bustle in the busy bar as they prepare for the run ahead.

The running club was set up by Jay Medway over four years ago, an-ex footballer who found running after her dad died. She now take part in trail runs, and regularly run 50-mile races across rural landscapes.

Her instagram feed (@jaytotheski) is a runner’s paradise of picturesque mountains, beaches and moores, and an always smiling Jay in the foreground, arms spread proudly, the stance of a champion.

Jay didn’t find it easy to get into running straight away. Her experiences of grief and mental health changed her perspective on running, to one where community was everything. That’s how the Left Handed Giant running club was founded.

The final stretch: a left handed giant run club tradition sees runners sprint across the bride towards the finish line

Tired of having to be athletic or a professional runner, and finding ultra marathons increasingly lonely, Jay decided to set up a club that was inclusive and empowering for all.

“I went to a run club and no one would talk to me. I wanted the social side of it,” explained Jay on a cold winter evening when I cautiously decided to give it a go.

There were other reasons too: “I run and I like beer, and I want to make a run cub,” Jay told the owner of LHG when she proposed the idea. And the rest is history.

The running club can have over 50 odd members on any given week, and the community spirit is infectious. Jay’s positive presence dominates the room when she hops onto the table to give the rundown of this week’s route in an ironic fight-club-esque scene.

“First rule of run club: don’t get run over,” she shouts, as the crowd laughs.

“Second rule of run club: There are no egos here. It doesn’t matter how fast you are or how slow you are.”

This is a club that practises what it preaches. No one gets left behind, there is a front runner and back runner, and the group is split into those that would rather do an 8.5k or a 6k.

“It’s less about the pace and more about the story of you getting into running,” explains Jay.

There are sickly sweet moments, yes – like the rule that you have to clap everyone who arrives at the breakspot (the Pump House) and then at the end of the race. It’s a wonderfully awkward moment as runners trickle in with sweaty faces and embarrassed laughs as dozens of runners waiting in the cold cheer them on.

Jay has said she’ll be opening up more sessions as numbers grows week on week

But after the first clap, the second feels less contrived, and it’s hard not to feel like you are being welcomed by a family with open arms.

When the race is finished, the weekly photograph is taken.

“I can’t believe how many of you there are!” Jay shouts, as the runners huddle together, giggling and teeth chattering.

The bar is packed out once more, as pints are handed round, pizzas are devoured and old and new friends catch up. One group brings cupcakes, and another runs towards an old friend in the crowd they didn’t know had joined. I asked one runner why they joined the club.

“There’s nothing super-hardcore or elitist about it. When it’s at a pub, it completely changes the feel of it,” they responded.

Are these guerrilla run clubs the way forward? They’re free, safe, and completely relaxed. That’s why they were able to continue, and indeed gain popularity, throughout the pandemic, when many sports clubs had to close. Today there are dozens of these informal run clubs popping up around Bristol, from surfer run clubs to university staff run clubs.

But nothing speaks to the heart of Bristol more than a run club that combines the carefree spirit of the sport with our city’s thriving independent brewery industry. And that’s something Jay and her motley community can proudly say they have created.

Left Handed Giant Run Club takes place every Tuesday at 6pm from the Left Handed Giant brewpub in Finzels Reach.

All photos: Mia Vines Booth

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