The club shares a close relationship with Fleet Feet Montclair (603 Bloomfield Ave, Montclair) supporting the local running community and promoting good health and fitness. They sponsor our USATF racing team and we organize many events and group runs together. Click here to find out more about their running store and everything they have to offer.
SPECIAL Events:
Winter Warrior Challenge (Thu, Jan 1 - Sat, Feb 28): Sign up now for the 6th annual Winter Warrior Challenge, presented by Brooks! Whether you’re running, walking, stretching, or even building an igloo, it’s time to get moving this winter—and earn badges, swag, and serious bragging rights. New This Year: Take on the challenge with a Snow Squad! Rally friends, family, or coworkers to keep each other motivated, add some friendly competition, and celebrate wins together. Join the Essex Running Club snow squad / team during registration. Winter is better together—don’t wait! Click here to register.
New Year’s Resolution Run with Brooks (Sun, Jan 4 at 8:30am): Start off the new year on the right foot at our traditional Resolution Run! We’ll meet at Fleet Feet Montclair at 8:30am and head out for a scenic 4.7 mile route, up Snake Hill to the 9/11 Memorial Overlook in Eagle Rock Reservation—a perfect spot to reflect on 2025 and set your sights on an amazing 2026. This year, we’re thrilled to have Brooks supporting the event and to launch the Winter Warrior Challenge with our first in-person meet-up! Stick around after the run for coffee, breakfast bites, giveaways, and a whole lot of fun. All paces and people are welcome—walkers, runners, run/walkers… everyone’s invited. Let’s start the year together! Click here to register.
MLK Unity Run (Sun, Jan 18 at 8:00am): Join Fleet Feet Montclair, Black Men Run and Black Girls Run for a Unity Run/Walk in memory and celebration of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. & Coretta Scott King. Our 5k route will start at Nishuane Park near the black granite tear-drop shaped monument dedicated to the Kings. Post run we will head over to Sankofa Cafe for complimentary coffee and tea, courtesy of Brooks. In honor of MLK Day being a Day of Service, we will be collecting toiletries for Toni's Kitchen at Nishuane Park between 8 and 9am. You can also drop donations at Fleet Feet Montclair (603 Bloomfield Ave) between 1/17 and 1/19. Click here to register.
Training Programs:
Information is now available on our spring training programs.
Choose from one of our three programs.
Weekly Group Runs:
Thursday Night Fun Run / Walk: Meet up at Fleet Feet at 6pm. Friendly social group for walkers or runners and a great way to meet new friends. Bring family, friends, co-workers or come alone. All paces are welcome and you can run or walk as little or as much mileage as you want. Most people start out on a 3 mile route down Midland Ave with a loop around Edgemont Park but you can turn around sooner if you want a shorter walk / run. Some people also extend the run up to 6 miles with a second loop on North Mountain, Watching and Midland Ave. Route maps are available here.
Sunday Morning Group Run: People sometimes meet up at the store on Sunday mornings at 7am but these runs are not usually supported by Fleet Feet staff. All paces and distances welcome. Popular with people training for longer distance events especially during the summer and fall. Various distances and paces through the streets of Montclair to Edgemont Park, Anderson Park and Brookdale Park including popular routes of 3, 5, 7 and 8.5 miles. Route maps are available on the Running Routes page on the ERC web site. Fleet Feet does organize Supported Long Runs on some Sunday mornings in the spring, summer and fall with aid stations at Fleet Feet and Anderson Park.