Episode 154: Building a Bigger Trail Running Community with Vivek Gowri

This week, Corrine Malcolm sits down with Vivek Gowri, owner of San Francisco Running Company, for a conversation about community, representation, and what it means to help more people feel like trail running is a place where they belong. Vivek shares how he found his own running community in the Bay Area, what SFRC meant to him long before he took over the business, and how he’s approached evolving such an iconic local institution without losing what made it special in the first place.

They also dig into the barriers that can make trail running feel inaccessible, why simply inviting people in is different from creating a genuine sense of belonging, and how running stores, races, and community leaders can help grow the sport rather than fight over the same existing audience. Vivek also shares the thinking behind SFRC’s women’s trail half marathon and the Get Her Over the Bridge initiative, including training support, postpartum and pregnancy deferrals, childcare grants, and a substantial prize purse designed to support both first-time participants and elite women racing at the front.

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