Runner Spotlight – Jay Childers
Jay’s (Boring) Story:
Howdy! My name is Jay and I am the current (as of 2024) BRC President. I take/make *TERRIBLE* photos :). I’ve been told that I have some serious “Dad” energy. That’s…accurate, I guess. I’m much funnier online than I am in person…I couldn’t carry a conversation if I had a bucket.
I grew up on the athletic side of the crowd in school. I played all the sports ending in ‘ball’ (and a few that didn’t) up through high school and lived on rec sports and the weight room while in college. Queue graduation, an IT job, and a lifestyle that I have always called ‘Former Athlete Syndrome’ where I kept my ‘young person’ appetite, but none of my athletic habits. 15 years of that and…yikes.
I began my 2nd athletic life in 2018 as most Americans do. Obese, out of breath, unhappy with my physical appearance, and needing a change. I started a typical CouchTo5k program and after 6 months of start/stop action, I was able to run an entire 5k without having to stop/walk. In 2019, I ran my 1st race of my ‘running era’…I crossed the line in 29 minutes and change…and I immediately knew I could do better. Thus began my years-long quest to become faster, fitter, and thinner. 2 out of 3 ain’t bad. I may never outrun my fork, but it is so fun trying :).
I have now run dozens of 5k & 10k races, 12 official half marathons, 4 full marathons, and the most ill-conceived 50k I could have possibly tried to do (I’m looking at you “Toughest little Trail Race in TX”). I run on the road, on trails (sometimes), in the summer heat, rains of spring and fall, and winter snow/ice. I’ve run myself into injury more times than I’d really like to admit, but I’m going to keep running until something (besides a toenail) falls off and I literally can’t anymore. I like being active now, and I LOVE running.
I spent a good 2 years running the streets of College Station alone before I ever even heard of BRC. I had horrible consistency and a very real lack of confidence when running. I would *try* to run when the streets were empty to avoid the embarrassment of being the ‘fat guy running’. When I took my first tentative run with BRC, I still hadn’t run longer than a 5k in a run. Thanks to the club, we did 8 miles on that Saturday long run.
The comradery, friendship, motivation, and constant positive energy I receive from BRC has literally pulled me out of terrible times and has gotten me to just show up and sweat with everybody. I don’t always run the same paces as everybody in the club, but I know we all start together, and we’ll all be there at the end when the run is done!