Vancouver Frontrunners provides a safe and friendly environment for the LGBTQ2+ community and their friends to enjoy running and walking. We welcome runners and walkers of all bodies, sex, gender, race, ethnic, or financial background. We welcome runners and walkers of all levels and experiences to our regular Wednesday evening and Saturday morning run and walks.
In the past, VFR has primarily consisted of lesbian and gay, cis-gender members. However, VFR is actively pursuing to become a space for more trans and gender-variant members. We continuously expand our understanding and competencies with issues facing transgender and gender-variant runners and walkers.
Our actions
Sharing our pronouns: We encourage all members to share their personal gender pronouns if they feel comfortable doing so. We can’t assume a person’s pronoun by looking at them. Sharing our pronouns thus helps us to use a person’s correct pronoun making everyone feel welcome, comfortable, and included.
- Letting everyone identify as who they are: VFR actively supports trans and gender-variant runners and walkers. For that reason, VFR expanded gender options in the member registration and introduced a third race category in the annual Pride Run & Walk. Moreover, VFR aims to provide all members with safe showers and changing facilities. Please find details in our Shower Policy & Availability.
- Using inclusive language: Each Frontrunner contributes to VFR’s mission of a safe, inclusive, and friendly environment for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community through their actions, behaviour, and language. All members are asked to use inclusive, nonviolent language. Hurtful, misogynist, sexist, racist, or classist language is unacceptable.
- Providing financial help through the VFR Bursary Program: Many minorities experience financial hardship. Vancouver Frontrunners aims to be an inclusive club where everyone can participate, regardless of their financial situation. For that reason, we keep our annual membership fee low. In addition, VFR runs a Bursary Program to support any member who needs financial assistance to participate in our runs and walks. This funding might cover the annual membership fee, club t-shirts, running gear, or registration costs for a race.
- Listening to the needs of our members: We want all of our members to be and feel safe. But this might mean different things for different groups.
Our Shower Policy provides information on our shower and change room facilities to provide all members a safe and comfortable environment.
If you want to run with us on Saturdays but do not feel comfortable walking from downtown Vancouver to the Brockton Oval through Stanley Park alone in the morning, we’ve established a meet-up location just outside the park at Alberni & Chilco – we leave there on foot promptly at 8:40 am Saturday mornings, rain or shine.
Please let us know how we can make VFR a safer space for you; contact us! We always appreciate feedback.