Joe Shayne Built the Race Brooklyn Was Missing — The Juneteenth 5K Returns on June 20th

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New York, NY – Joe Shayne didn't set out to change the running world. He set out to find a community that took performance seriously and felt like home. When he couldn't find it, he built it. In this conversation, the Hell's Kitchen native and Brooklyn-rooted coach, race director, and community builder opens up about co-founding TeamWRK, creating the Juneteenth 5K at Brooklyn Bridge Park, surviving a pandemic, pausing, doubting, and coming back stronger. Now in its fourth year, the Juneteenth 5K is more than a race — it's a declaration. And Joe Shayne is just getting started.

For those just discovering you, can you introduce yourself and share a bit about your background?

My name is Joe Shayne. I'm a runner, a coach, a race director, and a community builder. Born and raised in Hell's Kitchen, with deep connections in Brooklyn, which is ultimately where everything I do comes back to.

I didn't grow up thinking I'd build a running company. My connection to running was always through sport. I played high school varsity basketball and baseball and was always considered fast in shorter distances, but never thought of long distance running as a viable sport. Then, when I got closer to my 30th birthday (with some encouragement from my best friend), running became the thread that pulled it all together. Not just as a sport, but as a discipline, a community, and eventually a calling.

In 2016, my wife Jennifer and I co-founded TeamWRK, what we call a performance running and fitness community. The idea was simple but urgent: create a space where people who were serious about improving could train together, be accountable to each other, and actually get results. Not a casual jog club. A real training environment, built with real structure.

Shortly after, we recognized a need for race events that were accessible and produced by people who looked like the communities they were built for. We partnered with one of our members, Mike Coates, and created PACE Runs. Since then, we've trained over a thousand athletes, produced close to 30 race events, and built partnerships that reflect what we believe: that fitness, culture, and community belong together. That belief has been affirmed through long-standing relationships with Style x Strength Performance Studio, The Brooklyn Circus, Brooklyn Bridge Park, and more recently with brands like The Marathon Clothing, NYU, Puma, and New Balance.

I also run myself. 29 marathons, a 2:51 PR, and I'm still out there almost every morning. I think it matters that the coach is in the work with you.

What led me here? Honestly, I kept looking for a community that took performance seriously and felt like home. When I couldn't find it, we built it.

What inspired you to create the Juneteenth 5K?

The Juneteenth 5K was never just a race. It was a statement. When we started producing this particular race, the question we were asking ourselves was: why aren't there more races that feel like us? Races that center Black joy, Black excellence, Black community, not only as a theme, but as the foundation. Running has a participation problem and a representation problem, and we wanted to put something in the world that addressed both at the same time.

Brooklyn Bridge Park on Juneteenth isn't an accident. Brooklyn Bridge Park are outstanding partners. They really care about the space and have been great at welcoming us to the space and making it feel like a true partnership. If you look at that backdrop, that view of the bridge, that open sky over the water. It's intentional. We wanted runners to show up and feel something they don't always feel at races...moreso like this was made for them.

What makes this year different? Year 4 feels like arrival. The first year you're proving the concept. Year two you're building the muscle. Year three you're finding your rhythm. Year four? You have receipts. You have a community that comes back, brings people with them, and tells you this event changed something for them. That's when it stops being an event and starts being a tradition.

And this year we're doing it as part of a full series of four races, in partnership with The Brooklyn Circus. Ouigi and The BKc family have been part of the DNA of what we're building for years. Having that partnership formalized for this series means the culture piece isn't just adjacent to the race. It is the race.

We didn't create the Juneteenth 5K to fill a calendar. We created it to fill a need. And four years in, the community has made it clear, this one belongs to them.

Why was it important for you to connect fitness, community, and Juneteenth?

It's important for me to connect fitness, community, and Juneteenth because they were never separate things to begin with.

In Black culture, gathering has always been about more than the occasion. A cookout isn't just food. A block party isn't just music. There's always something deeper happening: people checking on each other, celebrating each other, holding each other accountable. That's community. That's also what a great training environment looks like.

Fitness saved my life in ways I'm still unpacking. Not just physically. It gave me discipline, identity, and a sense of what I was capable of. I've watched it do the same thing for hundreds, if not thousands, of people in this community. And when I look at chronic disease rates, mental health disparities, access gaps in health and wellness, those aren't random. They follow lines of race and economics almost exactly.

So connecting fitness to Juneteenth felt less like a creative decision and more like an honest one. If we're celebrating freedom, let's talk about what freedom actually looks like in the body. The ability to move, to be strong, to take up space on a race course and cross a finish line. That's not a small thing for a lot of people in this community.

The 5K is joyful. It's supposed to be. You can race it hard, leave everything on the course, and still have the whole day ahead of you to celebrate. That's intentional. Liberation isn't supposed to be exhausting. And underneath the joy is a real belief that access to performance, access to health, access to spaces like Brooklyn Bridge Park on a Saturday morning. That is what liberation looks like today.

What does Juneteenth personally mean to you, and how does that meaning shape this event?

Juneteenth means freedom to me. And what's more freeing than running? So running and Juneteenth go hand in hand. But when I think a bit further, Juneteenth is also a great time for reflection. It's an opportunity to take a beat, look at how far I've come as an individual, and sit with what that means in the grander scheme of things.

When I think even more about it, I keep coming back to the story within the story. Emancipation was declared in 1863, but there was a whole group of people who didn't know they were free. They needed a second announcement in 1865, over two years later. A reminder that their liberation had already arrived. Fast forward over 150 years, and many of us were still learning that this day existed at all. Juneteenth wasn't nationally recognized until 2021. Think about that. The holiday celebrating the announcement of freedom needed its own announcement.

There's something both ironic and symbolic in that. And for me, it's a reminder that freedom isn't always delivered. It has to be sought, shared, and declared over and over again by the people it belongs to.

That's what shapes this event. Every year we produce this race, we're making an announcement of our own. This space is ours, this day is ours, this finish line is ours. That's what freedom looks like on a Saturday morning in Brooklyn.

Starting something meaningful often comes with challenges—what were some of the biggest obstacles you faced in bringing the Juneteenth 5K to life?

The biggest obstacle from day one has been funding. We are still fully self-funded. Every race we've produced, every permit, every medal, every timing chip has come out of our own pockets and the support of this community. We've been in conversations with potential sponsors and we haven't stopped looking, but we haven't compromised the event waiting for one either.

That's actually one of the things I'm most proud of. This race doesn't exist because a brand wrote us a check. It exists because we believed in it enough to bet on ourselves, year after year.

We paused the event in 2023 and 2024. A lot was changing personally and professionally and we made the decision to pause rather than compromise what we'd built. When we decided to bring it back last year, we were even advised against it. People we respected told us to wait. We found a way to make it work anyway, and it was one of our most successful events to date.

That's part of why year four feels so significant. We could have folded. We could have forced it. Instead we were patient, we were intentional, and when the time was right we came back stronger. That's the same thing we ask of our athletes every day.

What has been the most rewarding part of building this event so far?

Without question, the most rewarding part is watching what happens after the finish line.

We've had people run their very first 5K at this event. And then you find out six months later that they signed up for another race. Then they're training for a half marathon. Then they've got their sister running with them, their college roommate, their coworker. 

That ripple effect is something you can't manufacture. You can't put it in a marketing plan. It just happens when you create the right environment and give people a reason to believe they belong in this sport.

That's what this race was always meant to do. Not just celebrate Juneteenth, not just put on a well-produced event, but actually change someone's relationship with running. When I hear those stories, it confirms everything. The self-funding, the pauses, the early mornings, the logistics. All of it is worth it for that.

Running has a way of expanding people's sense of what's possible. Watching this event be the starting point for that journey, for person after person, year after year. That's the reward.

How has the Juneteenth 5K evolved since its original vision?

The growth has been organic and that's what makes it meaningful.

We started as a vendor at Brooklyn Bridge Park. That was the entry point. We showed up, we delivered, and we built trust over time. Now the Juneteenth 5K is an integral part of their June programming initiative. Brooklyn Bridge Park isn't just hosting us, they're partnering with us. That distinction matters. It means the event has earned its place in the fabric of what happens in that park every summer.

From there the vision has expanded. This year we're updating the route, adding a marching band at the turnaround of the course, upgrading the medal, and bringing in more wellness partners including a cold plunge, vendors and food trucks to create a fuller experience around the race. We want people to show up for the 5K and stay for the celebration. The race is the anchor but the experience around it is just as intentional.

We've also been more deliberate about reaching out to Brooklyn's media partners and getting this event in front of the audiences it deserves to reach. Year one you're just trying to get people to show up. Year four you're building something that the city recognizes.

The original vision was always about more than a race. What's evolved is the infrastructure around that vision. The partners, the platform, the reach. The core of it has never changed.

What makes this year’s event on June 20th special or different from previous years?

June 20th isn't a significant date on its own. We intentionally host this event on the Saturday of Juneteenth weekend, which gives the community a chance to celebrate in a way that fits into the flow of the holiday. People have Friday, they have the weekend. We want this race to feel like the kickoff to that celebration, not a disruption to it. This year that falls on the 20th and it works out perfectly.

Year four is special because we've earned it. Every decision we've made, including the decision to pause and come back on our own terms, has led to this being the most complete version of this event we've ever produced.

Who is this event for, and what kind of impact do you hope participants walk away with?

This event is for every Black and Brown person that can possibly make it out, and for our allies who show up in support. We want the experience to feel joyful, communal, and well taken care of from start to finish.

Beyond the race itself, we're raising money for four official charity partners this year: Active Plus, The Brooklyn Children's Museum, The Neighborhood Nip Foundation, and PS 11 Brooklyn. Each of those organizations does meaningful work in the communities they serve and we're proud to use this platform to support them.

We want people to leave feeling full. Full of joy, full of community, and clear on why this event exists.

Beyond the race itself, what larger message or movement are you hoping to build?

TeamWRK has always been bigger than running. The race is the entry point but the movement is about access, representation, and what becomes possible when Black and Brown communities are given a real seat at the table in spaces like health, fitness, and performance.

We want people to show up and show out. We want them to cross that finish line having channeled their inner champion. And we operate by a simple standard. Plan A is to crush everything. There is no Plan B.

The larger movement we're building is a community of wellness professionals and everyday athletes who are serious about elevating their experience. Not just on race day. Every day. The Juneteenth 5K is one expression of that. The race series is another. But the infrastructure we're building, the coaching, the memberships, the corporate wellness programming, all of it points in the same direction.

We're not just producing events. We're building something that this community deserves.

How do you hope this event contributes to the local community or culture?

I hope this event encourages our community to get active and weave running into the fabric of their everyday lives. We live in a time where a sedentary lifestyle has become the norm and the consequences of that are real. We want people to see movement as accessible, attainable, and worth pursuing.

But beyond participation, we want to shift perception. Events like this aren't reserved for someone else. They're ours. And we want our community to see us not as staff at these events but as the operators and owners of them. That distinction matters more than people realize.

We are actively building a pipeline of ownership within the running industry. The Juneteenth 5K is part of that. Every time we produce a well-run, well-loved event, we're making the case that we belong in these rooms, at these tables, and at the front of this industry.

Why do you believe events like this matter right now?

I want to push back on the premise a little. Events like this don't matter right now. They have always mattered.

This isn't a response to a moment or a movement. From the very beginning we recognized the importance of producing our own race events, developing real relationships with parks and institutions, and creating spaces where our community could experience fitness on their own terms. That clarity didn't come from a headline. It came from lived experience.

Fitness and movement have always been a priority for me personally. And what I've learned over years of coaching is that these events plant seeds. Seeds that change health outcomes. Seeds that shift someone's relationship with their body and what they believe they're capable of. Seeds that can change the trajectory of wellbeing for an entire family, for generations.

That's not a right now conversation. That's a forever conversation. We just happen to be having it loudly, in Brooklyn, on Juneteenth.

Entrepreneurship and community leadership can be demanding—how do you stay motivated?

Entrepreneurship is not for the motivated. It's for the committed.

I am not always motivated. Just like establishing a fitness routine, motivation comes in waves. It will show up and it will disappear. You cannot build something lasting on motivation alone.

When I told my family I was going to leave my nine to five and pursue this full time, their reaction wasn't concern or hesitation. It was, "What took you so long?" That meant something to me. Part of this feels like a calling. And when something feels like a calling, you don't wait to feel motivated. You follow your north star, commit to the goal, and push yourself forward every day, every week.

Staying connected to why you started helps when the motivation dips. But more importantly, you have to stop relying on motivation to keep you going altogether.

Now, are there days I want to quit and find a job and tuck myself behind a desk? Absolutely. But if I did that, who's going to encourage the next person to get out there and move? Is it risky to pour my resources into events that aren't guaranteed to be successful? Sure. But when someone crosses the finish line and says "this was a wonderful experience," or "I can't believe I just ran my first 5K, when are you hosting another one," every bit of that risk makes sense.

That's what keeps me going. Not motivation. Commitment.

That last line is the perfect button. Ready for the next question.

Was there ever a moment you doubted whether this would work? If so, what kept you going?

Yes. Absolutely.

Before COVID we had hosted 10 races. In 2020 we had secured seven locations and were planning five more events that year. Then the pandemic hit. Everyone asked for refunds. For a self-funded organization, you can imagine what that did to us.

Then, our partner had to go back to work full time to support his family. Jenn and I were starting our family. We paused race production and honestly, during those two years, we weren't sure we could pull it off without our third partner. The doubt was real.

What kept us going was the people. Every time we'd run into someone from the community they'd ask when the races were coming back. That consistent pull from the people we built this for made it impossible to walk away permanently.

Last year, we made the decision to come back, but differently. Instead of trying to host ten races, the goal was simple: produce one great race. Get that right first. Since then we've grown that vision into the race series we're producing this year.

Coming back also gave us clarity. We are more intentional now about which events we choose to produce and how we develop them. The pause was painful but it made us better operators. Sometimes you have to lose the thing to understand how much it matters and how to protect it going forward.

What lessons has this journey taught you about leadership, purpose, or resilience?

This whole journey has been a process of self-development and self-discovery. Every year teaches me something new about myself and about what it actually means to lead.

Leadership, I've learned, is more about listening and providing than it is about activating what you think something should be. The moment you start building for yourself instead of for the people you serve, you've lost the plot.

Purpose doesn't come with a guarantee. Having a clear sense of why you're doing something doesn't mean the work will be easy or that success is automatic. Purpose just means you have a reason to keep going when it gets hard. But you still have to put in the work it deserves.

And resilience. I used to think resilience was about looking within. Digging deep, finding the strength, pushing through alone. This journey has taught me that real resilience means leaning into your family and your community. It means being honest about what you don't have and allowing the people around you to help fill that gap. The best answer isn't always the one you arrive at alone.

Jenn has been my partner in every sense of the word through all of this. The community has shown up for us in ways we didn't always expect. That's not a small thing. That's everything.

What’s your bigger vision for the Juneteenth 5K over the next 3–5 years?

I'd love to see this event grow. New York deserves it. Brooklyn deserves it.

I don't want to outgrow Brooklyn Bridge Park, but I can absolutely see this event growing to thousands of participants and expanding in distance. Whether that looks like a 5K on Saturday and a 10 miler on Sunday, or a 5K and 10K on the same day, I haven't locked in the exact format yet. But the direction is clear. More people, more distance, more impact.

The bigger goal over the next three to five years is to grow this event in a way that allows it to serve more people and recruit more people into the running community. Every person we bring through that start line is a potential lifelong runner. That's the opportunity we're sitting on and we intend to build it the right way.

Are there any future projects, partnerships, or expansions you’re excited about?

Honestly, I'm pretty focused right now. My vision is short term and intentional: serve this community as well as possible and do it consistently.

That said, there's a lot happening. We are currently working with Movement for All, an initiative that is part of a three year partnership between On and the Running Industry Diversity Coalition. It gives women across the country six months of fully funded coaching or fitness training at no cost. Being part of that work aligns directly with everything we believe about access and representation in this sport.

We are also training hundreds of runners for fall marathons and looking forward to year four of preparing Neighborhood Nip Foundation runners to complete the LA Marathon.

Beyond that, we remain open to partnerships that help us serve more people more efficiently. The right partnership isn't about the name attached to it. It's about whether it moves the mission forward.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to create a purpose-driven community event of their own?

Start small, partner intentionally, and make room for growth.

Large impact starts in small rooms. Be mindful of who you surround yourself with early because those relationships will shape everything that follows. I'd also encourage anyone building something purposeful to reach out to people they wouldn't ordinarily connect with. Share your ideas with people who can help you execute them. You'd be surprised who is willing to show up for a vision that is clear and genuine.

And once the event is approved and ready to go, talk to everyone. Invite people. Recruit people. Do whatever it takes to get in front of as many people as possible. The best event in the world means nothing if nobody shows up. Getting people through the door the first time is its own full time job and you have to take it seriously.

And once your event is on, focus on who showed up. Don't think about who isn't there, who didn't support, or what else is happening at the same time. There are a bunch of events happening on Juneteenth weekend. I'm focused on who's showing up for the Juneteenth 5K at Brooklyn Bridge Park. That's it. Nothing else.

If people take away one thing from your story, what do you hope it is?

Failure is part of the process. There is time to make mistakes and try again. Don't let anyone rush you out of your season of growth.

People will often forget what you said but they will always remember how you made them feel. That's true in life and it's especially true in community building. Show up with intention and people will feel it.

But if there's one thing I hope people take away from this story it's that you can go back and reclaim what's yours. We paused. We doubted. We wondered if we'd lost the moment. And then we came back. What is meant for you will be there when you are ready to do what you need to do with it. Don't count yourself out. The finish line doesn't disappear just because you slowed down.

For anyone considering joining the Juneteenth 5K on June 20th, what would you want them to know?

First, register and support the cause. The investment is small. The return is significant.

The mission is simple: build a community of people who care about each other and care about improving. Show up for yourself and for the people who don't always believe that the running space was meant for them. Your presence encourages others to show up and show out. That matters more than you know.

I also want people to know that this event is not politically motivated. Our very presence is the activism. Us coming together in this way, taking up space, crossing finish lines, investing in our health and our community, that is something more powerfully done than said.

Come out on June 20th to Brooklyn Bridge Park. 

Register at runsignup.com/Race/NY/Brooklyn/Juneteenth5K. 

We'll see you at the start line.

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