After noticing a missing demographic at race start lines, Stephen Love-Wade launched the 6RUN5 run club in Nashville to encourage and support people of color to get involved in the sport of running.

(Feature photo courtesy of 6RUN5)

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A fitness challenge to run 30 miles in a month evolved into a five-month running stint for Stephen Love-Wade, who increased his running to more than 100 miles per month. After the challenge, Love-Wade was hooked. “I really loved the sport and just wanted to do more,” he says.

He started running local Nashville road races and noticed a demographic missing from the start lines: people of color. In July 2019, Love-Wade launched 6RUN5 to provide a weekly opportunity for Black runners to get into the sport and train with a supportive community.

In Nashville’s burgeoning running scene, the 5-year-old 6RUN5 run club is now considered a mainstay. Love-Wade says the run club found a home at The Running Exchange Collective for its weekly runs, and members training for destination races regularly travel together to support one another. So far, this year’s trips included marathons in Boston, Los Angeles, and Houston.

As 6RUN5 has evolved over the years, so too has its branding. The run club’s designs capture a clean retro-bold aesthetic: professionally styled photos, often in black and white, with complementing sans serif and typewriter-style fonts.

“The design was in my mind but I couldn’t bring it to life,” says Love-Wade. “The branding is a mix of my ideas with Kyle Cochran’s, who has been with 6RUN5 for years. He’s a literal genius with graphic design and helps us have a very distinct visual identity.”

Below, Love-Wade shares more about his inspiration to start 6RUN5, his hopes for the future of Nashville’s running community, and a running recommendation for the next time you’re in town.

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What inspired you to start the 6RUN5 run club in Nashville, and how did it grow?

After doing races locally, I saw that there were not many people who looked like me, so I decided to create a space to cater to that demographic that was missing in the city.

The basis is to encourage people of color to run and expose them to the world of running. Whether it’s leisurely, whether they decide to race and grow in that space, I just want Black people to enjoy running. I saw what it did for me and my life, so I just want to give that experience to someone else.

We honestly had a decent-sized turnout when we started back in 2019. Post-COVID though, [it] was hard to get people back motivated, but I really focused on creating a fun and inviting culture on our Tuesday runs.

In mid-2023, I was like, ‘This is the feeling I’ve been chasing.’ I just saw the look of people running and enjoying it. It’s difficult to be happy doing a hard thing, and we were able to make that happen.

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In what ways has 6RUN5 partnered with other run clubs, brands, or running stores?

We’ve partnered with a few run clubs in our city, and with being 5 years old, we’ve been around longer than the average run club. With brands, we’ve had collabs with just about every shoe brand under the sun. We have a good relationship with ASICS and Nike, so we’ve been able to make magic happen over the past couple of years and that’s always fun. The cool part is, even when it’s not a shoe brand, working to create activations that align both parties.

Our biggest partnership, though, has been with The Exchange Running Collective. It honestly just came about through keeping in touch, and it works out perfectly for both of us. It feels like family. They host our group runs and we’re sort of the ‘in-house run club’ for the store as we help with a lot of the events.

Read more about The Exchange Running Collective in this Q&A with co-owner Lauren Osborne.

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How has the running community in Nashville evolved over the years, and what excites you about the future?

The amount of run clubs has easily doubled, if not tripled, in the last five years. There are definitely more people running on all sides of town. Typically, the east side was where you’d see a lot of running, but you can see running anytime you leave the house in some capacity.

In the upcoming years, I’m getting excited for more local races. The run club travels a lot, but I’d love to see more stuff in the city.

In terms of 6RUN5, just creating more half marathoners. I feel like once you pass that barrier, you’re really sold into the sport and it’s cool to see.

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What makes Nashville a great destination to run in?

I’m an architecture guy. I don’t consider myself an artist, but I know cool things when I see them. There’s a lot to see on a run here compared to other cities. You have to run through the downtown area and stop by Centennial Park to do a loop and see the Parthenon.

Looking for more places to run in Nashville?
Check out the Nashville City Guide.

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Where can runners find the 6RUN5 run club in Nashville?

Tuesday at 6 p.m. at The Exchange Running Collective. We have 2- and 4-mile options with pacing available for any runner.

Follow @6run5_ on Instagram for more details and announcements.

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