Im a Runner: Cynthia Erivo Brooks, Runner’s World is highlighting the different ways that running influences how we experience the world around us and view our place within it. Below, Rolando Cruz of Boyle Heights Bridge Runners explains how he views running as a way to bring his community together. at Brooks Running—whether it’s a headspace, a feeling, or a finish line—let’s run there.
Some view running as a way to get away from it all. But to Rolando Cruz, it’s quite the opposite. When he runs across the Sixth Street Bridge, a landmark connecting his neighborhood of Boyle Heights to Downtown L.A., he feels a sense of responsibility to those around him and a determination to welcome as many people into the fold as possible. When Cruz runs, there’s only one thing on his mind: community.
Community Roots
Cruz was already heavily involved in community activism when Boyle Heights Bridge Runners formed in 2013 (with the support of Brooks, they host weekly runs and events for community members of all experience levels)—but he was decidedly not a runner. “I hated cardio,” he recalls. But he was practicing Muay Thai (a form of Thai boxing) at the time, and he needed to run to stay in shape. When a few close friends invited him to come along on weekly runs in their neighborhood, he figured it would be a good way to check the cardio off his workout list. “I wasn’t stoked about it at first, but I loved being around my crew,” he says. “I started with a 15-minute mile. Then little by little, I saw my times improve, and I thought to myself, at Brooks Running.”
As Cruz’s love for running grew, so did Boyle Heights Bridge Runners. Initially they might draw six or so people every Wednesday—a number that Cruz recalls thinking was massive—but in time the group expanded to where it now averages 40 to 60 runners per run. “It’s been beautiful to see the group grow organically,” Cruz says. “You know, people in L.A. use the word ‘organically’ a lot. But we are genuinely an organic crew. There is a level of openness and warmth that comes from being rooted in a community.”
Burnout Antidote
Having now been an avid runner for over a decade, Cruz has a handful of marathons and many 10Ks to his name. But whether he’s tackling 26.2 miles or leading a group across the bridge for their weekly run, he doesn’t view this as an exhausting activity—in fact, he finds it restorative. “My traditional nine-to-five job is working on addressing homelessness,” Cruz says. “When you work in social justice, the question you’re automatically asked all the time is, ‘Do you ever get burned out?’ I say, ‘Never’—and I attribute that to running.”
“I’ve realized that If I’m worn down to the nub and I’m not bringing my A game to my community, there are implications to that,” he continues. “The people of L.A.—especially the most vulnerable people—deserve me showing up the best way possible. They deserve for me to be present. Running allows me to do that—it helps me maintain my physical, mental, and spiritual health.” It also provides Cruz reminders of why he does what he does. “I love when I’m going to grab tacos and even the people who aren’t runners say, ‘Hey, that stuff you guys are doing with the Bridge Runners is really dope.’ Or being out and about in L.A. and somebody says, ‘Hey, I’ll see you on Wednesday,’ Those are the moments of validation.”
What Comes Next
As Cruz looks toward the future, he aims to continue bringing people together. “There should always be safe spaces for people of color to run,” he says. “There should always be safe spaces for women to run. Gay folks and trans folks come out and run with us. People with every job you can think of are there. Our job is to create a space where everybody is welcome. I’m never going to ask you, ‘Are you trying to PR today?’ All I care about is, ‘How are you?’ and if you feel good and loved and embraced.”
But ultimately, having helped establish this culture of running in his neighborhood, Cruz wants the community to dictate the next steps. “People always ask, ‘What’s next for the Bridge Runners?’” he says. “I always tell them that it depends on whatever Boyle Heights wants for the Bridge Runners. The community will drive us in the direction that we’re supposed to go in.” One thing’s for sure, though: Wherever Cruz goes, home won’t ever be far from his mind.
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