Niketown Running Club

Talked with Junior at Niketown this morning to order soccer cleats for my son. He was fabulous! I live in Georgia but I will deff check with Junior in the future if I need anything! He was very kind, patient, smart and genuine! Love Him! THANKS JUNIOR!

This review needs to be updated because they revamped the Nike Run Club July 2014. Now, on Sundays at 3pm, you log onto
and sign up for the workouts you want to participate in. So Wednesdays are now the runs where they offer 3, 5, 7 mile options with pacers. You meet at Niketown for what they call the «Home Runs» and at ~6:30pm they lead you out the store and up to E. 65^th Street. You can choose which distance you want to run and which pace group you want to join.
On Mondays, they typically offer NTC Hit, which is a bootcamp-​style workout held on a rooftop area at Niketown.
There are also other workouts during the week (speed run at their E. 67^th St. store on Thursdays, etc.) — so check out the schedule at their website and sign up. See you there!

Nike, you have made me love running, and for that I owe you a lot. Nike Run Club is a weekly free run club that happens everyday of the week from each of their stores in NYC. The weekly schedule goes live on Sunday’s at 3pm so make sure to check it out.
Run with pacers while you train for a 5k, 10k, half marathon or marathon. The pacers are great and so are the coaches (Coach Julia you are so inspiring!). The runs provide you with a team united to become bigger and better by challenging yourself on a daily basis. Nike provides water and gatorade.

Favorite events: Home Run and Training Club.
Home Run: I always stick with «Sexy Pace». I’ve never really been a runner but I sure love to try. The pacers are motivating and will even stick with you if you start to fall behind. They try to get you out of your mind and strike up random conversations to distract you from thinking you’re tired — because guess what? You’re not! They push you as hard as you can go.
Training Club: they pair up the hour long workout with the new app Nike just launched. Good music and motivation. People of all levels here so have no fear if you’re not a hardcore athlete.
They take pictures of you throughout these events — so be sure to give it your best!
Extra extra perk — - ITS FREE

I signed up on Monday for a Wednesday night run in Central Park. You have the option to choose a 3, 5, or 7 mile run at various paces, but you don’t have to stick to the distance/​pace you sign up for. I get the feeling they have you pick one just so they have an idea of how many people are going to show up.
I got there to Niketown at 6:00 for a 6:30 run. I spent a few minutes in line getting a t-​shirt and checking my bag, and was ready to go pretty quickly. By the time we got to Central Park, stretched, and got organized, we didn’t end up starting our run until 7:15. That would be my only complaint-​I felt like it took a while to get things going.
Everything else about the experience was positive. I loved the high energy pacers, the fact that they had water bottles and fruit on hand for after your run, and how easy it was to store and retrieve your bags.

This is for the business decision surrounding the Penn State Relay trip, in addition to other internal politics.
Unanimously agreed by other runners who were either on the Black Blus or knew about the issue with the excursion. There was the Bolt Bus v. Black Bus. Why did they have to call it «black bus?» Not a good way to discriminate one group from another, but as a minority, you just get used to that kind of treatment, that’s why I have thick skin.
The run club serves as product promotion — runners get access to free training while Nike builds brand awareness while we’re running the NYC streets. As a runner, if you have a nice «special» relationship with the training staff there (coaches & pacers) and are very big on the social media (with many followers) promoting the product, then they’ll take lots of photos of you and you may have access to special treatment. It’s about learning to drink the Kool-​Aid.
Historically, they have always sided with the wrongdoer and they don’t vet their information.
It’s good to just go there, get your workout and leave asap (as most of us have a busy schedule).

Did my first run with them last Wednesday & it was great! I started off with the 3mi at sexy pace (10+ min) and I felt motivated. We stretched together before & after. The pacers were great, making sure we didn’t get lost. Great people running also that helped me keep running until the end. I definitely loved it & will return every week

I did the «Rookie Run» clinic with Nike and had a great experience.
Sign up for your selected class online, meet at the store and coaches guide you. I am not a runner at all. I’ve tried many times to get into it only to give up. The coaches and the pacers here are incredibly fit and gifted athletes who are inspiring and keep you motivated. I went from only running to the subway to running 3 miles on my own in no time.
The group was about 50 people but I still feel like I received individual assistance from multiple pacers. The coaches that lead the course were basically a comedy duo which really lightened the mood.
I can’t wait for my next session and I can’t wait to improve more so I can try the advanced classes.

Nike Town Running Club is probably one of the best experiences of my life athletically. They have several different clubs that they run every week. My favorite one is track night. After my first time going I was totally hooked and have been going ever since. We meet at the Nike store on the Upper East Side and get bused to Randall’s Island Ichan Stadium to run. We have the track all to ourselves and we rock out to Coach Bennett’s tunes over the load speaker as we run. Nike provides towels, beverages, and snacks. There are 5 different pace groups but even the «slowest» group is challenging. Its an amazing work out and best of all its FREE, you just have to sign up weekly which is competitive. I’ve met some really cool people along the way and have a new found respect for the Nike Company. The employees are really great and supportive and most importantly they seem HAPPY. Typically happy employees means good management. Love Nike!

This club has saved my life. I was suffering from stress and having a coordinated place to go to as an adult is fun.

9÷2÷14: As a few recent reviewers wrote, Nike corporate recently changed the format and the changes were met with much criticism. As a long time participant (going back 10 years), I was disappointed to see the drastic changes made and there were tons of issues and poor communication at the time of the switchover. It’s been about 6 weeks and things have started to improve slowly in my opinion. Be sure to call the store or check online for details about the latest programs, times (which have changed) and how to register (yes, registration is required for certain workout sessions). On the positive side, I am better seeing the vision Nike corporate had in mind for the format and I appreciate the touches they added like more formal bag watching, and water and Gatorade provided along the course of some of the recent runs I have attended. And one thing that has been consistent is the friendliness and dedication of the pacers. I will update my review in a few months to keep the Unilocaling community informed of progress.

I would give 5 stars to the «Niketown Running Club», because I been running there for almost 8 year and the «Nike pacers» has been very excellent to the runner for beginner and advance. Now Nike corp has started to change and trying to remove the pacers and added this online training that is caped.

I’ve just recently heard about changes to the NYC Run Club at Niketown. Instead of just showing up to the weekly runs as you wish, you have to now RSVP and sign-​up for specific work outs that will occur throughout the week at various Nike stores in the city, which includes Niketown 57TH st, Flatiron and UES locations. You can find more details at
but you will notice many spots have already been filled up. As expected, this decision made by Corporate Nike was met with much criticism because not only there won’t be any more weekly runs, but I think it also impacted the relationships that many of the runners had with their Nike pacers, especially for those who have been consistently attending them. The 2 stars isn’t for the run club itself, but it’s for whoever made the decision to turn this into an exclusive program. Running should not be an exclusive sport but I feel that over the years, its rising popularity has made it so (a.k.a the gentrification of running).

If I could make time to run with them every week, I would. No matter how long of a gap you have had training with them, you feel right at home everytime you arrive at Niketown. Kudos to Nike for creating this club. Even though its free, you get a first class treatment, which is beyond amazing. Also, there is no hidden agenda, you don’t need to purchase anything from Nike.
You get to run with experienced runners, who are not only good at what they do, but they train you, pace you, mentally push you and even drive great stretches before an after the runs. Also, you don’t have to be a pro to run with them. They have various groups based on distance. On your lazy day you can go for a 3.2 mile, when you are in for a challenge you can go for a 5 miler or longer. If you are a beginner, they also have run, walk group.
Running in the central park after work has always been a little tricky for me cause first, I don’t know what to do with my belongings after work since I live in queens. Its very time consuming to go home, drop off your stuff and then get out to run again. The free bag check ins in Niketown is a great relief. Second, I am never able to push myself as hard as I want when I am running alone. Running with a group of runners who are highly determined is a great motivation.
Now that my work schedule is more flexible, I plan to run with them more often.

Nike run club is free and a great way to meet new people and get a good workout in. They have a run tues and thurs and also Saturday morning. When I was training for the nyc marathon, I trained w the Nike run club and it was great! There are many pacers so u get to run w ppl your pace and all the pacers are very friendly and they really want u to do well on your runs. Even tho I am done w my marathon I will definitely continue to drop in for a run when I get a chance!

Nike Town meets on Tuesdays & Thursdays at 6:30pm (try to land on time, they leave on the dot). We usually head to the Grand Army Statue if we do not get our routes in the store if you do miss them, go to 57^th & 5^th. Saturdays are for long runs @ 9am (8:00am during marathon training (July — November). These routes are usually all over the city. They hold your bags, have pacers & are the best. They also have a Run/​Walk program for those of you just starting out, injured or who just want to get outside. There are restrooms to change in on the 3^rd floor, get here early to get one as a lot of Nike women change here. Been running w/​them for a few years and I cannot say enough about my group. They also have a «leave no one behind policy» for safety reasons this is a huge bonus.

If you want to find out who the true runners are, look outside when mother nature decides to throw her next hissy fit. If it’s around 6:30 pm on a Tuesday or Thursday evening, or 9 am Saturday morning, you’ll without a doubt see the Nike Running club. Yes, we are that hardcore, and I love every minute of it.
I credit Nike for helping me become the runner I never thought I’d be. I did ok on my own, but I needed something that would push me to the next level. I tried a few run groups with different stores, yet I wasn’t being challenge. Enter my first day at Nike doing speed workouts with Tony and the rest is history. I was dead, but I was hooked. I found what I needed. I found the group of people who run in the middle of thunderstorms, who wake up at get to the store at 8 am to run 20 mi. in 30 something degree weather.
Don’t worry if you aren’t that crazy, there’s a pace and distance group for all levels. The club is full of great people as well. So come out and go the extra mile with us, it’s never too crowded.

This place is huge and has every Nike product available. You can get expert fittings and advice.

I was super tempted to not rate this out of fear that like all good things in NYC, it’d get way too popular. But the fact of the matter is, credit needs to be paid where credit is due. This is by far the most awesome running club ever. Aside the fact that it’s free, they lend you sneakers if you’d like to try out their nike free runners, you can leave your personal belongings safely in the Niketown Store, they stretch with you (properly) before and after the run, AND there’s gatorade/​water at the end of the run! Everyone is very encouraging, non-​judgemental, and there truly is a group for all speeds. The occasional «good job!» is absolutely needed when all I feel like doing is giving up at mile 4. I plan to get better at running and I feel like if I stick to their schedule… I just might get there.
Holler at the Nike Pacers! We Run NYC woot woot!

«Just so I’m clear, this is in fact a cult right?»
It seems that way, the Cult of Nike that is. Although it’s not really about Nike, it’s more so about running. Pretty much everyone here has a genuine unabashed affection for running. From the official Nike sponsored «Pacers» in yellow jackets, to the groups of regulars that joke and tease each other about their mile times.
It’s got a nice feel, everyone is friendly and most of all it’s just a heck of a lot of fun. In some ways it felt like gym class/​XC practice all over again. You do some stretches, in broad daylight mind you and you don’t feel self conscious about it because there’s 40 people also doing the same thing as you.
That and the fact that there are people leading you in shiny Nike jackets makes you seem less like a nutjob and more like part of an exclusive group of fitness nuts.
Thursdays is apparently a speed training day, and this Thursday was a hills day. I haven’t run regularly in almost a decade and the last race I ran was 2 years ago so I was happy just to finish the workout.