A bride-to-be was sweating on the morning of her wedding after organizing a surprise run for her and her guests.
Good weddings should be enjoyed by all while reflecting the happy couple’s personalities. A survey of 9,318 American couples who got married in 2023, conducted by the wedding planning website The Knot, found that 62 percent of these newlyweds ranked personalization among the most important considerations on their big day.
When Cloé Etienne Verlaguet married her now-husband Romain Etienne on September 28, they both wanted to incorporate their own shared identity and interests. The couple lives and works in New York City but is from France, so they planned a full weekend event, with guests staying on-site at Le Domaine de la Fauconnie, close to Bergerac.
That setup allowed the happy couple to incorporate another of their interests into the big day: a surprise 7K morning run for them and their guests around this idyllic setting.
Verlaguet told Newsweek there was a time when she “hated” running but now considers it a “passion” of hers.
“I met Romain who was already a runner and I accompanied him on this recovery runs and really enjoyed it,” she said. “Now, it’s my ‘me’ time, time to think of the week and listen to podcasts. I also love to see how I improved year on year.”
“I’ve been into running for two years now, and I’m preparing for the New York City Marathon which is on November 3,” she said.
Therefore, having a run on the morning of her wedding provided an opportunity to not only continue her training for the big event but also blow the cobwebs away before getting hitched. She and Romain thought their guests might appreciate the opportunity, too.
“We wanted to organize a run the morning of the wedding for people to meet before the day and to take away the stress,” she said. “We had 135 guests for the wedding, and 45 people came for the run as they were super excited to do it! We surprised them with matching t-shirts, which they loved.”
Cloé Etienne Verlaguet led guests on a wedding day run. Some completed their first 7k that day.
TikTok/clo_says_hi
The run itself went perfectly to plan and might have even inspired some participants to try running more regularly.
“Going on the run really set the mood for a fun wedding and got me energized for the day,” Verlaguet said. “We had first-time runners in the group, and the more experienced one coached them to finish their first 7K.”
Those who took part were rewarded at the finish with a breakfast of croissants and coffee. It was a core memory of the day for Verlaguet, one she was able to chronicle and share in a video posted to TikTok under the handle @clo_says_hi.
Verlaguet said she shared the clip in part to “give ideas to other future brides.”
The responses were decidedly mixed among those watching on social media, though.
“This is my worst nightmare,” one viewer wrote. “I’d pack my bags and go home on the spot,” another said. A third commented: “And that’s where our friendship would be over.”
Though it might not be to everyone’s taste, Verlaguet said the reactions online have been “super funny” to read.
“It created a lot of conversations, and I think it’s definitely not for everyone,” she said. “But my guests loved it. Obviously, no one was forced to participate, and everyone had a lot of fun!”
Verlaguet had some advice for anyone looking to do similar to what they did.
“Check the weather,” she said. “Have someone who create the path and lead the run and have someone who close it just to be sure that everyone is okay! As the bride and groom, go from guest to guest to catch up with them but also run just the two of you to take it all in.”
