On a warm, sunny evening in April, more than 40 women gathered at Fleet Feet in Athens for their Thursday night ritual: Slow Girl Run Club. Dressed in colorful running gear, some stretched while others checked their Garmin watches, preparing for the mile-long run ahead. It was a perfect night to move.
In 2023, then-27-year-old Victoria Redmon VanLinden, an academic adviser at the University of Georgia, founded Slow Girl Run Club with a simple goal: to find new running buddies in Athens. She took to social media, posting a couple graphics advertising the group, and was surprised by how quickly the community showed up for her. Though running was the vessel, it was never the goal.
“It was really a shot in the dark for connection and community,” said Redmon VanLinden. “I didn’t think it was going to work. I just wanted that so badly.”
Why It’s Newsworthy: Many women in Athens like to stay active by running outside, but it can be dangerous to run alone. Slow Girl Run Club was created as a safe space for women to connect with others and have fun running together.
But it did work, and the Slow Girl Run Club Instagram account has amassed over 4,000 followers since Redmon VanLinden’s first post. Women of all ages and backgrounds now meet to be part of the community she created.
“That’s another thing that makes Slow Girl so special,” said Redmon VanLinden. “It’s not one type of woman. It’s every age, it’s every face, it’s every pace, everybody. It’s such a positive thing to have women of multi-generations in a space.”
More Than a Run Club
In its early days, Slow Girl Run Club’s membership included mainly women in their late 20s and 30s. But in the past year, membership has surged. College students, drawn by the welcoming atmosphere and online presence, now make up a significant part of the community.
“I saw it on Instagram, like, two years ago,” said Victoria Garay, a third-year student at UGA and new member of Slow Girl. “I feel like it’s cute. There’s other people that want to do the same thing you do. You feel included.”
In addition to regular weekly runs, Slow Girl hosts special events for holidays and fundraisers. One of the group’s biggest events is their Galentine’s Day run, hosted each year on Feb. 13. This year, more than 200 women attended.
“We went to the Galentine’s run, and that was a lot of fun,” said Olivia Grieger, a third-year student at UGA. “[It makes me feel] like I’m part of a community outside of school.”
Every Face, Every Pace
While Slow Girl Run Club may be a female-centered running group, it’s all about inclusivity. Redmon VanLinden called it a “come-as-you-are environment,” where women are welcome to join no matter how fast they run. There’s no sign-up requirements, no fees — all you have to do is show up.
“You just have to put yourself out there; you just have to do it,” said Grieger. “Even if it’s slow, just taking it one step at a time.”
There’s no pressure to attend every run, but Redmon VanLinden wants one message to be clear: once you’re part of Slow Girl, you will never be alone.
“I hope people who come to Slow Girl, who invest in the community, who keep showing up for themselves feel that love reciprocated back to them,” she said. “Once you’re in, you’re in forever.”
Hannah Freeman is a fourth-year student majoring in journalism.
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