Last Monday afternoon, I was running on the Packer dome track, as I had been doing since the dome opened to the public. I was abruptly stopped by a staff member, who made it very clear to me that running was not allowed on the dome track. I was very surprised, as there were no signs or previous media to indicate that running was prohibited. I quickly left and finished my work out at the YMCA indoor track.

When I first heard word that our community was getting a dome with an indoor track, I was very supportive of the idea. I was also very excited, as Austin only has a very limited number of places to workout in the colder months. Before the dome opened, I spoke to many other community members that were also excited to run on the new indoor track.  I was very disappointed when I learned that runners and joggers are not welcome on the dome track. The idea of a fitness track that you cannot run on is very unusual.

I have since reached out to the school board members and the Vision 2020 Director to advocate for running and jogging in the dome. Overall, the response that I have received has been very positive. There have been some safety concerns raised surrounding the size of the track, amount of foot traffic and potentially hazardous objects along the path. I’ve also been told that the “repetitive motion” of running could damage the turf surface.

I’ve logged hundreds of running miles on indoor tracks, namely the YMCA track here in town. The YMCA track is half the size, with arguably a narrower running path. It’s not uncommon to have 10 or more people walking and running on the YMCA track at any given time without any issues. The “hazards” are certainly not an issue and any concerns could quite easily be rectified with some caution markings and signage. Objectively speaking, the dome track has no more hazards than any indoor track or even a typical street or sidewalk. The idea that an athletic turf isn’t meant for repetitive motions contradicts the very purpose of the facility.

In closing, if the citizens of Austin are not allowed use the dome track for running and jogging, I think that is a real missed opportunity for our community’s health initiatives and fitness goals. That facility is an excellent addition to our community and I would love to see it used to the full potential.  I encourage members of the community to reach out to the school board and respectfully ask that runners and joggers be allowed to use the dome track.

Dustin Wollenburg, Austin