Arete: The Rapid Rise of Santa Cruz's Women's Running Club

Maleta Wright and McConville
 in their high school days
 https://runarete.com/about/

Mary Maleta Wright and Melissa McConville, a couple of self-described dorks who loved to run, met on the Soquel High School track team. Fast forward 15 years and they've recreated that love of running and community as adults by founding the Arete running club. Running has been at the core of the strong bond they’ve maintained through moves to college, pregnancies and various jobs. Maleta Wright ran on Division 1 teams at UCLA and Cornell University and McConville continues to compete in marathons and is the creator of the popular she.is.beautiful race series that takes place in both Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara. They hatched an idea to start an all-women’s running club. Gathering feedback from other runners, they launched the team, which they called Arete, in 2016 with 20 members. The team has already grown to 70 members in Santa Cruz, with other chapters in the Bay Area and beyond having sprung up since, bringing the total number of Arete women up to close to 150.


So what’s the secret that led this particular running club to take off so rapidly? Some clues lie in the name Arete—a Greek word and virtue pronounced ahr-i-tey—that means excellence and encompasses a certain philosophy. The group’s core belief is that competitors must develop mind, body, and soul in order to achieve “arete,” It’s a balance that many women who have joined Arete believe they have come closer to since becoming a part of the team.

“I look forward to every Wednesday night track practice because regardless of the other externalities happening around me, our team’s compassion and positivity is contagious,” explains team member Charissa Rujanavech. “I always felt better after running sprints with my teammates.”

McConville and Maleta Wright finishing
the Wharf to Wharf as expectant
 mothers. https://runarete.com/about/

Arete’s model of an all-women’s team for experienced and intermediate runners is a unique one. Wright says that the current national atmosphere—with sexual harassment grabbing headlines, for instance–may have fuelled interest in build and seeking community. Women on the team who must run in the dark of early mornings to fit it in their schedules run in a group of five or six and feel safer in the streets together.

More than 60 members competed in the recent California International Marathon held in Sacramento, in either relays or the full marathon, with the top ten Arete members all finishing in under three hours and 20 minutes, a 7:37-per-mile pace. Included in that group was 62-year old Karen Kunz, from the Sacramento chapter, who set an age group course record of 3:15:06. Becky Lavelle, 43, a former reserve on the U.S. Olympic triathlon team, returning to competition for the first time since retiring, ran a time of 2:56:55.

The club has grown even when members reluctantly let go of the community they’ve discovered at Arete and move away. These women have spawned Arete teams in other locations. Other supporters found the club online, mostly through Instagram, and there are chapters opening up in Santa Barbara, Oakland, Sacramento and Chico. The team is upfront about the fact it’s not for just any rank beginner. “Must be able to run six miles continuously” is the requirement on the website and there are race time levels, “Open,” “Intermediate” and “Advanced” for the athletes to aspire to. That allows women who have competitive goals to run and socialize together without feeling like they’re leaving anyone behind.

While none of the women are professional runners, Wright and McConville are both from competitive running backgrounds. Wright, a certified running coach, leads practices on Wednesdays and Sundays.

Arete has redefined some women’s personal relationship with running. Santa Cruz member Monique Davila summed it up by writing “Running is no longer a task, but a privilege. When I lace up my shoes I no longer think, ‘I have to run today.’ I now think, ‘I GET to run today. How lucky am I?’”

Arete Women's Running Club is holding its 2018 Season Launch Party 8 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018 at New Brighton Middle School. There will be a fun run, complementary coffee, brunch and and an information session. For more information, visit runarete.com.