Have fun, and don’t drink all the beer before everybody gets back. That’s the acquired mantra for the “Thirsty Thursday” group run, a weekly summer event started by the Amity Island Running Club, a group of Martha’s Vineyard running enthusiasts.
The club began in May 2013 after several Islanders ran the Cape Cod Ragnar Relay together. “Those members decided that more people needed to experience this same type of torture,” according to the club website. “After a few months of scouting, recruiting, and meeting, the AIRC was officially founded.” The name was inspired by the movie “Jaws.” Amity Island is the fictional town menaced by a giant white shark.
The next step, a group run, seemed obvious to club leaders.“We had so many people asking about the club, and T shirts and where they could get them, and when they could run,” Kara Shemeth, the club’s founder, said Friday in a phone call. “So we decided to start a group run.”
A group of five to 20 runners meets at 5:30 pm every Thursday at Bad Martha’s Brewery in Edgartown to go for a run along the ocean on Beach Road. Afterward, they stretch out, relax, socialize, and drink some Bad Martha’s brews.“We approached the then manager at Bad Martha’s, and asked if we could use that as a meeting spot,” Ms. Shemeth said. “And it kind of just took off from there. We started in June, and we’ve met every week since.”
Early in the summer, Ms. Shemeth and some of the other runners went out and measured from the Brewery down Beach Road, and marked off every mile up to 3.5.
Runners go their own pace and distance, some as individuals, others in groups. She said the group this summer has been mainly Islanders, there’s a core group of “regulars,” but they encourage everyone to show up and participate.
“I would say if you’re even thinking about starting running, it’s a step in the right direction,” she said. “This is a group to start off a new life goal, or if you’re just looking to get moving, come join us. We’ve got people who run 7-minute miles to 15-minute miles.”
The group run will end when Bad Martha’s closes in October, but the club is already considering ways to extend the Thursday tradition. They’re also finding ways to expand the group and get more involved in the community.“We always try to have a few of our runners representing at some of the Island races. We help out with those when we can,” Ms. Shemeth said. “We did a ‘Jingle Jog’ last year, right around the morning of Christmas in Edgartown. We might try to do that again.”
They also will be taking over the reins of the Scoops 5k next year. “And that will be an interesting adventure,” she said.
But for now, she’s just pleased with the success of the first summer of “Thirsty Thursdays.”
“I really am happy with the way it turned out this summer,” Ms. Shemeth said. “Our main goal is really to get people moving. We’re not a competitive group. We just want to get people out running or walking and having a blast.”
Thirsty Thursday
On a recent Thursday, about nine runners showed up to take a run along Beach Road in the hot, 85° sun.
John Wilson of Edgartown, who has attended every Thirsty Thursday since the second week, said that was a pretty typical showing for the group.
“There’s probably a core of about 10 people, and other people come and go, but there’s a pretty solid group that comes every Thursday,” he said.
Chris Edwards of Edgartown, deemed the “rabbit” of the group by Mr. Wilson for his quick pace, said the group dynamic varied from week to week.
“It’s been a mix of Islanders and vacationers,” he said. “We get people who see it in the newspaper. They look up running activities, and they come check it out.”
Mr. Wilson said the biggest group, about 20 to 25 people, was on July 2. He had a guess about why there were some members missing on Thursday.
“A lot of the regulars are teachers, and I think that they are probably enjoying their last few days of non-teaching, which is why I think they’re not here,” he said.
The exception was Justine DeOliveira, who changed in the Brewery bathroom in order to be there on time after spending the day getting her classroom ready. She was there with her husband, Paulo, her two kids in a jogging stroller, and two friends visiting from Boston.
“It’s been a ripple effect,” she said. “Kara started, then my husband joined in, then I was like, ‘Well, if everyone else is doing it …’”
“And the kids have no choice,” Mr. DeOliveira joked.
“We go back and forth pushing the stroller,” she said. “And Mateo actually runs the bridge when we get there. He hops out and crosses the bridge to Oak Bluffs.”
Ms. DeOliveira’s friend from Boston, Alicia Agnoli, said she would be looking for the 1-mile mark.
“Justine was like, ‘Why don’t you come for a run and beer?’” she said. “I was like, ‘Well, I like the beer.’”
Mr. Wilson said that’s what it’s all about.
“Just show up, grab a beer, look for people wearing running shoes, and you’re good to go,” he said.
And with that, a few clicks of running watches, and a quick motivational speech, they were off, running down Beach Road in the blaring sun to earn a Thursday-evening beer.