Park City Running Club has partnered with the Sundance Film Festival to host two running events during the 10-day affair

The celebrities and film fans are ready to descend upon Park City as the Sundance Film Festival begins on Thursday, Jan. 23 and ends on Sunday, Feb. 2. During that time period, thousands of people will arrive in the snowy mountain town to not only embrace the new wave of cinematic greats, but to mingle amongst the celebrities and enjoy everything Park City has to offer.

But apart from all the lavish parties, restaurants and bars available in Park City during the time of the festival, a new adventure is now being offered. A partnership between the Park City Running Club and the Sundance Film Festival has led to two wellness walk/jog/runs planned during the festival free to all of those in attendance.

“The University of Utah health department, who has a partnership with Sundance, reached out to us and asked if we wanted to partner with them and their ’10 days of wellness’ here in Park City,” said Rachel Taylor, founder and coach of Park City Running Club. “We agreed to commit to this wellness initiative for the next three years. … But with this being the first year, we thought to just start out small with two days of activities to just promote wellness as a whole. Sundance wants the run to be in and around town and be seen by everyone here, so that’s what we are going to do.”

The first run is set to take place on Sunday, Jan. 26 — beginning and ending at the Festival Co-Op (608 Main Street, Park City) from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. The second run is set for Wednesday, Jan. 29 — beginning and ending at the Festival Co-Op (608 Main Street, Park City) from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

According to Taylor, Sunday’s run is designed as a residential three-mile course, taking fellow runners by Park Avenue, the historic high school building while checking out old Miners’ homes that have been renovated. Wednesday’s run is a little bit longer at 4½ miles, and will take part along the Rail Trail, giving those participating a taste of life outside of Main Street.

“This will just be really nice for people who are from out of town to become well-acquainted with Park City, while also serving as a great connecting piece for the Park City Running Club families,” Taylor said. “We will have three pacers out there who are deeply rooted in our community and can speak for Park City. … They’ll be helping out as well. This is all about the wellness initiative and giving people another outlet for people to do something while they’re here, and also allowing them the opportunity to see Park City in a different way.”

There will be three levels to the event taking place, with participants able to either walk, jog or run the route that’s already been decided. Coach Nikki Dotter will be with the walking group as she’s recovering from surgery, while Taylor will be one of the people leading the running group.

Each run is intended to be about 30-45 minutes, with those participating in the walking or jogging portions the ability to turn back around so that everyone will be finishing up around the same time. According to Taylor, there will also be giveaways following the completion of the event, allowing the participants to mingle amongst one another and form connections.

For Taylor, she’s hoping for around 25 people showing up to participate on either day, but acknowledges the more the merrier and would love to see around 50 people show up for some fun.

The fact that the UofU health and Sundance Film Festival reached out to Taylor and the Park City Running Club to work together proves to Taylor that her and the club are on the right path after being in existence for just a few years.

“The biggest compliment is that somebody reached out to me and thought that we’ve been around for decades, which means that we are running things the correct way if we already have that sort of outreach,” Taylor said. “I just love that the Park City Running Club has already made a substantial impact on the community, and working together with the Sundance Film Festival just proves that even more. Our brand and group of runners are very strong, and more than anything just honored and really excited for the future of the running club.”