Runners make social strides

For Santa Barbara's regular runners, breaking a sweat doubles as a social hour. While running is a sport that can be done anywhere, the views between the picturesque mountains and coastline make it that much easier to lace up and get out — especially when there are friends waiting at the starting line and cheering at the finish.

Run clubs have garnered increasing popularity globally. According to a 2024 global trend report from the fitness social networking app Strava, participation in running clubs have risen 59% in the last year.

The Santa Barbara Run Club post-run at Butterfly Beach in Montecito.

Locally, runners have been taking the city by storm with the Santa Barbara Run Club's growing presence and a booming hub of college students taking up the hobby. Running in an organized club allows people to mingle, often during the daytime, in an environment that encourages healthy habits like routine exercise. 

Saul Sosa, one of the co-founders of the Santa Barbara Run Club, said that the club grew from a weekly attendance of about one to two runners when it was first established in 2023 to having 20-25 members at the beginning of 2024. 

The club takes different routes weekly, some popular starting points include Dart Coffee Co in the Funk Zone, the Santa Barbara Mission, East Beach, and up and down State Street. 

“We started just finding that love for running, and then that passion to show everyone else the beautiful parts of Santa Barbara. Because the backdrop here is just remarkable,” said Sosa. “You could go run on the beach on a super flat surface. You can go run up in the hills. You could go running in Goleta. You could run just about anywhere.” 

Pressures for young adults to sustain a social life can inspire expensive and unhealthy habits like excessive alcohol consumption, eating out often, and staying up late. Joining a run club can combat these unhealthy attempts at maintaining a social presence, allowing people to bond with each other over their shared experience and healthy hobby. And, running together offers run club members a balance of both activity and community.

“I think deep down, everyone wants to be a part of something,” said Sosa. “When you find people who are inviting and welcoming in a social setting where alcohol isn't involved, it's so much easier. You feel like you can open up.”

Sosa said that running in a group has formed a community within Santa Barbara that uplifts each other and inspires a healthy lifestyle centered around being both active and social.

“It's remarkable, because it's like it came from a little club, and now friendships are starting to spawn, relationships are starting to spawn,” Sosa said. “You're gonna go out there and run a 5K. And when you do that, and you meet someone else, and you get to learn to chat with them and run with them at the same time, you're building endurance and you're building relationships.”

It is difficult to consider anything social without being able to share it online, so logically, there is a social media platform specific to runners.

Strava is a mobile app where users can share their physical activities online with other users and join online communities — like a run club — to stay in the loop and share routes, events, and see what their friends are up to.

“It’s an Instagram for runners,” said Sosa. “We use Strava as a way to reach out to people. [When] we post the runs, we'll normally pinpoint a location and we'll include the map so that if you're looking for a community run, you can actually find it on Strava.”

 Rosalia D’Acquisto, a fourth-year environmental studies major at UC Santa Barbara, said that Strava has been a way to make her runs feel social. 

“I originally started with the Nike Run app, but then Strava, I think, is more fun and rewarding, because people give you kudos, and people can comment on your runs, and it's more of a social media app,” said D’Acquisto.

Running is very popular amongst students, with some taking on the hobby as an outlet away from academic stressors and social pressures, and making it a daily ritual to share with friends.

Rosalia D'Acquisto (left) and her friend Josette Lewis (right) after running a 5K in Goleta together.

“I run with two of my really good friends, Josette and Eryn. We always run together. Josette and I just ran a 5K actually, like a month ago,” said D’Acquisto. “It was just really a big achievement. And now we're planning on running a 10k together, and that’s probably where I'll stop. I don't think I'll ever be a half-marathon person, but we're definitely working our way up.” 

Santa Barbara’s views give it a unique allure to go for a run, says D’Acquisto. The scenic location is something that inspires her to go outside and run daily, a habit she formed after moving here from Poway, in the greater San Diego area.

“Trail running is definitely motivating, because I don't run at home, like in my hometown, even though it's still natural, it's not as scenic, so it's just more difficult to run. I think definitely our location has helped,” said D’Acquisto.

D’Acquisto said that although she will be leaving Santa Barbara in the fall to attend graduate school out of state, the running hobby she has picked up in Santa Barbara won't stop once she crosses state lines.

“I will be joining a run club in DC, for sure. I think it'd be a good way to meet people,” said D’Acquisto. “I think the good thing with run clubs is that you kind of find your group within it, like your base group. And it's not like someone's judging you, like no one there is doing anything like school, professional, or super competitive.”

Finding friendship through fitness, Santa Barbara's young adults have a lasting healthy hobby on their hands.