About The Bad Runners
A home for every kind of runner — especially the ones who never thought they belonged in the picture.
Where Our Story Begins
The Bad Runners began with a quiet moment at the back of the Sydney Marathon. Our founder, Mari Walks, stood near the finish line late in the day, watching the runners who weren’t chasing podiums or race records but were simply determined to cross that line. Each person carried their own reason for being there — grief, joy, recovery, curiosity, stubbornness, and everything in between.
What moved Mari wasn’t the splits on a watch, but the stories on people’s faces: the small waves to friends, the shared jokes with strangers, the way tired bodies lit up when they realised they were actually going to do it. It felt like a different kind of victory — one that didn’t need to be fast to be meaningful.
In that moment, it became clear that the back of the pack held a kind of magic that performance-first running culture rarely celebrated. The Bad Runners was born from a desire to give that magic a home — a community where every pace, every finish time, and every reason for lacing up is not just accepted, but honoured.
Our Mission
The Bad Runners exists to celebrate the people and the wins that performance-first running culture often overlooks. We are here for the run-walkers, the new-to-this, the coming-back-after-a-long-break, the ones who finish in the dark, and the ones who measure success in courage rather than kilometres per hour.
We believe running is not a test you pass, but a practice you build. It can be soft, social, scrappy, inconsistent, joyful, and deeply personal. Our mission is to create space for that version of running — the one that makes room for every body, every pace, and every kind of day.
- Celebrate overlooked wins: from first 5-minute shuffle to finishing a marathon hours after the crowds have gone.
- Centre community over competition: connection, conversation, and care come before split times.
- Welcome every runner: no pace requirements, no “real runner” tests, no perfection needed.
- Tell the whole story: not just the highlight reel, but the wobbles, walk breaks, and quiet personal victories too.
An Invitation to Belong
If you’ve ever felt “too slow,” “too new,” or “not enough” to call yourself a runner, this space is for you. The Bad Runners is built on the belief that you don’t have to change to belong here. You can show up exactly as you are today — tired, excited, nervous, curious — and you will be met with warmth and welcome.
Whether you’re training for a race, hoping to run for one minute without stopping, or simply looking for people who understand why this all matters to you, we’re glad you found us. Come walk, jog, shuffle, or sprint alongside us. However you move, there is a place for you in The Bad Runners.
