Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (March 1, 2002)
march 1 ,2002 » SPORTS implicity. It’s a mixJem conundrum that we have to work to find a little piece of it. We have to leave projects undone, say “no,” turn the phone off, stand still, escape traffic and silence the constancy of our internal monologues. At best, we are able to eke out pockets or serendipitously stumble across moments that inspire calm, that don’t cost anything and that feel good. For some, that sense of simplicity is found running. “It’s an inexpensive, entry-level sport. Anyone can do it. All it’ll cast you is a pair of shoes,” says June Kansopon, outreach cixirdinator for Portland Frontmnners. President Don Robinson explains: “Run ning is kind of an inward thing. You get the heartbeat pumping, and you’re so connected to what’s around.” But it’s not always connection to the scenery or thoughts within that keep many runners going. Sometimes, collecting the will to step out the front dair is the hardest piece of the puzzle to find. Anyone from the seasoned run ner to the novice has stared out at the drizzling rain and dark skies and wondered, “Do 1 have to?’ As club member Eileen O ’Connor puts it, “When 1 saw people ninning I wondered what they were ninning from.” And both Kansopon and Robinson have lamented the difficulty of ninning alone. “When a person trains it can get monotonous and being with people can break that up,” Robinson says. And that’s where this club steps in. “Front- ninners is a good stx:ial outlet, and I like hav ing that incentive. That’s what life is all about: sharing your time and experiences with other people,” Kansopon says. SCHMIDT rontmnners is an international running club for sexual minorities that began 28 years ago in San Francisco. Since then it has rituals— like not being able to turn around until you touch a specific piece of pavement at the end of a certain path or the ever-popular avoidance of step ping on sidewalk seams. These are the necessary habits that help runners stay focused and honest, keeping them from quitting too easily or cutting comers. Also, all of this intimate sharing of idiosyncrasies allows people to forge a community with other lez-hi-gay-trans people with interests outside the bar Portland scene. Frontrunners As Kansopon puts it: “I ran with gear up for running every Frontrunners because it was the first gay organization I finally found on campus Tuesday, that I could relate with and express my Saturday and identity. Because...One: I have to be k Sunday A myself— runner and now triathlete— not softball.player, not barfly, not poker play er. Two: lesbian. 1 needed to get out and make more gay friends. Three: to feel connected with where I live. Running, and meeting people through it, gives me a sense of community.” choose from branched trail runs, dis out with affili Not surprisingly, many of the Portland BY MELISSA S a YLER ates in most major tance runs, short Frontrunners are recent transplants— from runs (ending with California, Pittsburgh, Chicago and Texas, to U .S. cities as well as Europe, brunch!), trips to San Francisco for the “Lit name a few. Most of them were familiar with Canada, Australia and South Africa. tle Black Dress” run or adventurous outings the organization as a way to meet new people. Portland Frontrunners began in the early that require beer drinking or clawing one’s “I’m happy to say that my first and best friends '80s and enjoyed several years of popularity in Portland have come from this group,” way up the muddy face of Ski Bowl on a before membership began to dwindle and the summer afternoon. Schmidt says. club disbanded. When Robinson returned to Portland from Boston in 1999, he joined with Schmidt recalls his journal entry from the Travelers also look for Frontrunners when “Kevin’s Cup X” adventure race last Novem they visit new cities. The international Web the Adventure Group to make running one site lists clubs around the world. Robinson says of its Saturday morning activities. Last Sep ber: “This nasty lil’ trailfest served up a variety the Boston group offers housing to out-of-town of challenges: mud, creeks, trails, brutal ankle tember, Robinson, Kansopon, Damon Frontrunners who come in for races like the twisting switchbacks, hone-jarring downhills, Schmidt and Brian Craig of the Saturday Boston Marathon. lung-searing uphills and more. This was no morning running group spun off to resurrect Craig says he’s run with various Frontrunner Portland Frontrunners. cutesy downtown commercial road race! The groups—Orlando, Gainesville and Tampa, Fla.; real fun came later during the hot-dog half- Since then, the group has tried to focus Washington, D.C. “Everyone has always been mile and the ultimate beer mile!” on making running accessible for all levels Kansopon has her own adventurous war sto very accepting and friendly to the new guy who and interests. Experienced marathoners, shows up for a run." ries: “A group of friends and I did this race triathletes, walkers, trotters or “newbies” can And there’s always someone to run with called the Ski Bowl Scramble.... A hunch of us for every level. For all those who started run ran and crawled up and down the mountain. It ning marathons at 15 or who want to keep was a horrible climb marked with stunning heating their personal bests, there is someone views of Mount Hood from the top. My thighs who won’t run faster than she can carry on a and lungs were burning, I couldn’t think conversation or who is more interested in straight, there were times when I wanted to cry. what’s on the breakfast menu at Compass But when we all cheered for each other into Cafe. JF] the finish line, we were elated and celebrated with cold microhrew from the kegs.” P o rtla n d F r o n tr u n n er s head out every Tuesday evening and every Saturday and Sunday mommg. ontrast those races with the laid-back, Contact them at 503-239-7705 or visit three- to six-mile Saturday morning mns wuv.’.portlaridfrontrunners .org. along the Portland waterfront. The international site is uwu>. frontrunners.org. After taking a count o f who’s going to brunch after the run, faster people take off, |||p r io n n a H y they take their running MELISSA S ayler is the Production Assistant and leaving the rest to their occasionally breath- very seriously— we swear go-to sports uniter at Just Out. challenged conversations and running ....... ¿ ....... * ' s' v Ó Í- Portland Frontrunners find peace in a pair of running shoes C StatScript Pharmacy is proud to be serving the community of Portland! We provide specialized pharmacy services to people with chronic health conditions such as: HIV/AIDS, organ transplant , hepatitis and more. Free Parking • Coordination and filing of insurance benefits 1215 NW 23rd Avenue, Portland, 503.525.9094 STATSCRIPT PHARMACY C H R O N IM E D l i l t « P h a r m a c y S p a c l a l t y S a l u t i 35
