FITNESS AUTHOR
Emily Effren
RUNNING WITH TRAIL ROOTS n Austin’s trail-based running group that focuses on more than just running.
E
rik Stanley’s affinity for running first began in elementary school when he would visit his mother in Las Vegas and accompany her during her runs. The duo would play 90s country music and run near the mountainside. “It was just kind of a fun thing that we did together,” Stanley recalls. This tradition sparked Stanley’s passion for running which would later guide his entire life. “Running has just been a part of my life,” Stanley says. “I’ve run since I was a kid; I’ve run most days in my life, and it’s just like eating—I’m gonna wake up and go for a run.” As Stanley’s love for the sport grew, so did his talent. In the seventh grade, Stanley broke a five minute mile, and later went on to become one of the fastest high schoolers in the country going into college at the University of Texas at Austin. Stanley says he used the sport as an outlet and it ended up helping him gain confidence while navigating the stresses of becoming an adult. “I think for me, I thought life was gonna be easy. I was kind of smooth sailing until I hit college,” Stanley says. “I started struggling when I started college, and after [is] when I started having panic attacks.” Even after running at the collegiate level, Stanley continued to work in the fitness industry before wanting to split off and begin his own organization—dedicated to
SEPTEMBER 2020
the trail and to helping people, just as running had helped him. “I realized though that if I didn’t do this, I was doing it because I was afraid of something. And I needed to overcome that,” Stanley says. Not long after, Trail Roots was born. If someone is expecting to join Trail Roots, get their run in, and leave, they can—but that isn’t the goal of Trail Roots. “There’s some people that are showing up to get their kind of community connection, while getting a workout. That’s probably like 20 percent, but the majority of the people are showing up because they have their friends
66
