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Keepin’ it 100 – Bridge Runners NYC

Mike Saes and Cedric Hernandez are two of the nicest guys in the BTG movement, they showed us nothing but warmth and hospitality on a recent trip to NYC.  To many, they are the true founding fathers of the BTG movement. Forming NYCs Bridge Runners Crew back in 2004 was a genesis moment for modern running culture.

Spending time in their company it’s  clear that as much love as they have for running (which is a lot) they have more for the unique city they’ve always called home (they’re both OG True Yorkers) and the food and drink that amazing metropolis has to offer.

They are also both 100% committed to being the antidote to what they call “Run Nerds”, by looking at how they can elevate running culture to make it more fun and not too serious.

By way of simplifying this message they have 10 clear commandments for anyone that want’s to break running bread with them.

Never run alone.
Go hard, or go home.
Run. Party. Repeat.
Run your city.
Fashion First, safety second.
Smile for the camera.
Finish STRONG.
Expect the unexpected.
Can’t stop, won’t stop.
Have Kicks, will travel.

They’re constantly reinventing what running can (and should) be. From Mass Halloween Zombie runs through dense NYC traffic (check out the #RunningDead on Insta and some shots here), Pre marathon bike rides to Coney Island with the Outernational BTG crews,  and our personal favourite; their genius and innovative ‘Jump-In’ runs.

The idea of the ‘Jump-In’ is simple. Some people can run further than others, so during an ultra marathon crew members can jump in at whatever point they feel comfortable with (50km to go? 21km to go? 10km to go?) which means the newbies can add strength and support to the guys who have been running the full distance and that ALL the crew can finish strong together. No elitism. No pressure. Just good vibes. And then, eats.

But, don’t get it twisted. Saes and Cedric are real runners. Proper athletes who’ve earned their stripes multiple times over.

They set out to prove this again in November of 2013, as they teamed up to run 100 miles in 25 hours (after only 2 months of training), with the occasional stop for food, soda and beer of course. Food and vibes are at the centre of everything BR do. If you have to eat during an Ultra why not have some of the best street food the world has to offer?

The film above documents the last 10 miles of this 100 miles run through the 5 boroughs (the other tapes were somehow lost , so this is the only living proof). You can see the pain etched on both their faces, but not enough pain to stop them from popping out a few pull-ups off scaffolding outside their LES HQ shortly after they completed mile 100, hood gym style.

Spending any amount of time with these two legends is an inspirational  experience, and a big part of why we do what we do here at Pavement Bound…wether they know it or not, they’ve had a big impact on a lot of people’s lives (globally) just by being true to themselves and setting out to take away all BS from organised run clubs.

Infinite amounts of #Crewlove for Saes and Cedric. Keeping doing you.

#Lessgo