Locally Owned and Operated
Reno Running Company is the local source for all your running and walking needs. Matt and Aimee Balzer opened RRC in 2011 with the mission of helping people achieve their active lifestyle goals. Each member of our expert staff has a diverse and extensive background to help answer any questions you may have.
Community Giving
Reno Running Company has given over $100,000 to local nonprofit organizations. Including a few hundred pair of free shoes via scholarships to local HS athletes and cash donations to organizations including the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail (formerly the Tahoe-Pyramid Bikeway), Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation (formerly Angel Kiss Foundation), Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum, Girls on the Run -Sierras, Truckee Meadows Parks Foundation, Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows, Step 2, Reno High School’s We The People and Junior ROTC programs and Galena High School’s Leadership and Girls Varsity Soccer programs. We contributed proceeds from our races. We donated entries to our races. We helped in many other ways including providing race equipment, shirts or race bibs.
In addition, Reno Running Company had its own scholarship called the Ku Stevens Legacy Scholarship by which it awarded a $500 scholarship annually to two high school seniors heading off to college.
Meet The Team
Matt and Aimee Balzer
Owners of Reno Running Company
Matt and Aimee Balzer started Reno Running Company in 2011 with the mission of helping people achieve their active lifestyle goals. They have expanded their impact by acquiring Race178 and Reno Races, elevating the standard for race organization and community involvement. Their passion for running and community engagement doesn’t stop in Reno; they have recently become co-owners of Gold Country Run and Sport, further broadening their reach and influence in the running community. Known for their expertise in both retail and event management, the Balzers continue to inspire and connect runners across regions, fostering a vibrant and inclusive running culture.
Joseph Nichols
Training Manager
I don’t know. It was fall 2012.
Favorite Brand:
Depends on the runner – be your unique you!What is one fun or quirky fact about you?
Julie Fontani
Marketing Manager
Why do you enjoy being on the Race178 team?
Race178’s goal is happy runners and fun, safe events. Who doesn’t love to be surrounded by all that joy? I’m honored to be a part of this amazing team!
What is your favorite sports team?
Cheesehead forever! I’m a Green Bay Packers fan and any sports team one of my kids is on.
Hugger or not?
I’m a big hugger!
What is your favorite way to be active?
In my free time I enjoy doing anything outside. If the weather is bad I love to stay inside and snuggle with my dogs.
Leland Peterman
Race Director
When did you start working for Reno Running Company?
April 2023
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
I’ve got three key sports I pursue regularly: climbing, motocross, and running. I also coach a kids skateboarding program in the spring, summer and fall. My goals are to stay healthy and to always keep training fun!
Whats your best tip for runners?
Appreciate the hard days, learn to enjoy them!
What is one fun or quirky fact about you?
I’ve crossed the USA three times on my motorcycle for a total of 16,000 miles of amazing travels.
Chris Winter
General Manager
When did you start working for Reno Running Company?
July 2020
What is your favorite running brand?
One of my main goals is to be able to stay active an healthy for my entire life. But more specifically, I want to run a sub 4 hour 50k trail race and possibly finish a 100 mile trail race one day.
Maritza Perez
Lakeside Supervisor
When did your start working for Reno Running Company?
June 2023
What is your favorite brand?
Asics!
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
Henry Weisberg
Inventory Manager
When did you start working for Reno Running Company?
October 2018
What is your favorite brand?
Asics!
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
Stick to a schedule and be consistent.
Laura Pine
Sparks Supervisor
When did you start working at Reno Running Company?
November of 2023!
What is your favorite brand?
Saucony
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
Running is my calm place where I can gather my thoughts before I start my day. I don’t personally have a goal myself but I do try my best to share my experiences with others and hope that I can make a difference in someone else’s active lifestyle to help them achieve amazing opportunities in the future.
Joni Taylor
Community Manager
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When did you start working for Reno Running Company?
Officially in 2024. I’ve been hoping for this job for about a decade and I am over the moon!
What is your favorite running brand?
YES. (If I were a woman a few words, I would leave it there. But I am the queen of rescuing all the shoes which are trapped inside Reno Running Company since 2011 and I LOVE to talk about it)
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
My Mom told me to pick a sport, or she’d pick it for me. I did NOT pick running. She made me run (eventually after I chose a bunch of stuff and quit just to get her off my back) and I would cry & pout around the track with her while she ran. Her words: “ there are harder days and easier days, but there are no days off”. She inspired (inspires really, even though she’s gone) me to scare myself, and not get too comfortable, or rather to get comfortable being uncomfortable. So I like to choose things that I don’t know for sure I can do. I ran through her cancer and my own. I honor her daily with something active outside, preferable in the mountains in Northern Nevada.
Whats your best tip for runners?
I came up in an era of running a marathon on water and a banana…maybe some flat coke. I have learned to eat before during and after, and I wish I had started that decades ago. Give yourself grace and don’t compare notes. Also, don’t say “just” before your distance. (No “just a mile” or “just a 5K” or “just a 50K”)
What is one fun or quirky fact about you? & Hugger or Not Hugger?
I am 100% quirky. 100% Hugger.
Alden Crowe
Store Manager
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When did your start working for Reno Running Company?
May 2023
What is your favorite brand?
Asics!
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
All of my pastimes involve being outside and active. I try to encourage people to achieve their active lifestyle goals both at-and outside-of work. I have found solace by being active and find it allows me to think clearer and feel great.
I would love to qualify for the Ironman World Championships in Kona in my age group.
Whats your best tip for runners?
Slow down and enjoy yourself. It doesn’t need to be hard.
What is one fun or quirky fact about you?
I used to spend most of my time outside of school and work Mountain Unicycling.
Naomi Gentle
Director of Race Operations
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Where were you born/grow up?
Born in Osaka, Japan but grew up in San Diego, CA
Why do you enjoy being on the Reno Running Company Races team?
I get to work with an amazing team who are some of the kindest, most dedicated, and hardworking people I know. Even when things get hectic, we still have a great time. It’s also incredibly rewarding to be part of our race participants’ fitness journeys and cheer them on along the way.
What do you do in your free time?
Run, continue running, run some more, swim, bike, hangout with family & friends, and cook!
What was your favorite TV show as a kid and why?
One of my favorite shows was an anime called Nippon Mukashibanashi, a Japanese folktale series. I loved how it used fairytales and fables to teach meaningful life lessons and encourage a strong moral compass.
Paige Webster
Buyer
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When did I start working at RRC:
December 2023
How do you embody an active lifestyle? What are your active lifestyle goals?
I stay active by training for triathlons and enjoying the outdoors with my family. My current goals is to complete Ironman California fall of 2025. My future goals are to be injury free and continue to be active in swim, bike, run.
Whats your best tip for runners?
Keep a positive attitude and remember that running is a gift.
What is one fun or quirky fact about you?
I love a home renovation project.
Reno Running Company is the local source for all your running and walking needs. Matt and Aimee Balzer opened RRC in 2011 with the mission of helping people achieve their active lifestyle goals. Each member of our expert staff has a diverse and extensive background to help answer any questions you may have.