New Libertyville Resident Aiming to Form Running Club

When Mike Brunette formed a running club in Flossmoor, the club became not only a great way for people to get some exercise, but also a means for residents to meet each other and socialize. 

The participants would complete their run and then often gather for drinks or, on weekends, end the run at Dairy Queen. 

"I saw the positive effect it had on the people and the community," said Brunette. "The whole idea was having people getting to know their neighbors around the common theme of running. It's more of like a community get-together kind of thing and through that, they support local businesses."

Now that Brunette is living in Libertyville, he wants to form a similar running club here in town. 

"It's just a 'show up' kind of thing. There's no commitment, no sign-ups," said Brunette.

The Libertyville Running Club is still in its planning stages, he said. Brunette is planning to officially launch the club sometime in the spring, but he welcomes interested individuals to "like" the Libertyville Running Club Facebook page he set up.

The plan, he said, is for runners to meet in downtown Libertyville one night a week, run a couple of miles and then end at Mickey Finn's for a drink or two. The club will then do a longer run on Saturday mornings. 

He said both new and experienced runners are welcome to participate; runners will be paired-up based on ability level.

"We don't want to have the appearance of an elitist running club," said Brunette.