Assault Survivor Creates App To Keep Women Runners Safe
After surviving two assaults while running, Dena Lewis created an ‘Uber for runners’ that pairs women with verified running or walking partners
In an ideal world, women wouldn’t need an app to run safely or to protect them from verbal harassment or worse. But in reality, they do—and now there’s one designed just for that: Running Mate, a “RunShare” app that connects women with verified running and walking partners who have passed a background check.
The Florida-based “Uber for Runners” concept was created by Dena Lewis, a medical device sales rep and triathlete, marathon and ultra-marathon runner who developed the app after being physically assaulted twice while out on a run.
“2010 was actually my first assault,” Lewis told WFLA News Channel 8 last month. “I was doing everything right, according to the standards: I was running in the middle of the day, my husband knew where I was, my kids were at school, I was in a crowded area, and it still occurred. About three days later, after my assault, this man showed up at my home, so he apparently had been watching me, knew where I lived, and I became part of the 21% statistic that actually stopped the activity for quite some time.”
After Lewis felt brave enough to return to running, a second assault occurred.
“[After that] I realized there needs to be something else, there needs to be more,” she said. “I was carrying a personal protection item and again, I was running in the daytime—it wasn’t early in the morning and it still occurred, as it does to a lot of women. The statistic is pretty high. 92% of women actually report that they don’t feel safe when they’re exercising outdoors, and 60% of women report being harassed while they’re running. That’s just the number that report–that doesn’t include the number that don’t report. So it’s a pretty high number.”
The app, now available for download, is open to both runners and “mates,” who are paid to accompany women on their runs. The process is straightforward: Runners can open the app and schedule a run in advance or request a run in real time, with the app connecting them to a verified mate. Everyone has a profile on the platform, so individuals can choose who they want to run with.
Running Mate is currently live in Boston, Austin, Tampa, Atlanta, West Palm Beach and Salt Lake City, with plans to launch soon in Nashville, Charleston, Denver and Los Angeles.
Runners pay $25 for 1-5 mile runs and $35 for 5+ miles. Mates, on the other hand, earn $10 for runs between 1-5 miles and $15 for runs over 5 miles. The platform welcomes mates of all paces—including walkers.
Running Mate is also ideal for travelers, allowing users to connect with a mate who can guide them along safe routes or even provide a running tour of the area.
To spread the word about Running Mate, the startup has been traveling around the U.S. hosting activation events, partnering with local run clubs and running-related brands for 5K runs with fun themes, such as a glow-in-the-dark run. Several events are planned for this year.
Running Mate has also created a female Runner Safety Summit.
“It’s a coalition of different companies that all have female runner safety as their mission or their priority,” Lewis told the outlet. “We’re better in numbers. So rather than us trying to make a change individually, we’ve partnered with all of these companies where we can actually come together as a resource to runners and help keep women safe.”
Running Mate will be at The Boston Run Show this weekend at booth I92.