Tour de Lafayette: More Than a Run Club
- Bayou State Media
- Aug 16
- 7 min read
Photo By: Bayou State Media Staff
What started as late-night bike rides between family and friends has grown into a Lafayette community bringing more than 100 people together each week through movement, connection and a shared belief that staying active should be fun.
For Aidan Meche, founder of Tour de Lafayette, none of it started with plans to build a run club.
From Late-Night Bike Rides to Tour de Lafayette
The name “Tour de Lafayette” began as a play on the Tour de France.
Aidan, her now-husband Conner Meche, siblings, cousins and friends would bike around Lafayette and jokingly call their rides the “Tour de Lafayette.” As fans of the famous cycling event, the name became their own version of it.
Then, around 2 a.m. one night in March 2020, Aidan and Conner turned the joke into something more.
“I can remember just giggling with Conner because I was so excited to make it,” Aidan said. “I had zero clue what it would lead to six years later.”
Tour de Lafayette originally had little to do with organized running. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Aidan enjoyed seeing people outside — biking, walking, exercising or finding any reason to move.
“The entire point of the page was to capture the fun people were having outside on their bikes during COVID, or really doing any activity at all,” Aidan said. “I just loved the fact that people were outside. And I wanted to capture it.”
What began as an Instagram page celebrating people getting outside would eventually become the foundation for something much larger.
A 30-Day Challenge That Changed Everything
In February 2022, Aidan was sitting at Whole Foods with Conner when she told him she wasn't happy with where she was in life.
“I don’t like where I’m at in my life, and I feel so unhealthy. I don’t know what to do,” she recalled telling him.
Conner's response was ambitious: run the Zydeco Half Marathon.
Aidan had about 30 days to prepare for 13.1 miles.
She had a sports background from playing club soccer, but she hadn't consistently run or worked out in years. Conner offered to create a training plan, and Aidan decided to give it a shot.
Tour de Lafayette's Instagram page became her accountability tool. After every run, she took a picture and posted it. At the time, few people were watching. The posts were simply a way to hold herself accountable and stay consistent.
Thirty days later, she completed the Zydeco Half Marathon.
The experience left her wanting more. Aidan immediately signed up for the Houston Marathon in January 2023.
But as she began preparing for 26.2 miles, she discovered something else.
Training alone wasn't much fun.
Two Runners, One Run Club
“Doing marathon training alone, I thought, ‘This SUCKS!’” Aidan said. “There’s got to be someone out there who can run with me.”
She turned to the Tour de Lafayette Instagram page once again and invited anyone interested in walking or running to meet her at Moncus Park.
On Dec. 3, 2022, Tour de Lafayette held its first group run.
Two people showed up.
Both were Aidan's friends.
She kept showing up anyway.
Week after week, Aidan returned, making small adjustments and slowly creating the kind of running community she had been searching for herself.
“I was sick and tired of running alone and not feeling like I belonged to a run club because I’m not fast,” Aidan said. “I’m a very average runner, and I was just looking for friends who also wanted to run with me.”
Those first two runners eventually became dozens.
Today, Tour de Lafayette brings together more than 100 runners each week.
A Place for Every Pace
As Tour de Lafayette grew, Aidan remained intentional about the kind of community she wanted it to become.
Tour wasn't going to be a place reserved for experienced or fast runners.
“You’ll find babies, 12-year-olds, 20-year-olds, 50-plus-year-olds,” Aidan said. “I want my run club to be a place the whole family can come and enjoy together.”
Since having her first child, Aidan said family has become an even greater focus. She hopes to see more parents and children moving together and creating memories through Tour.
But the run itself isn't necessarily what keeps everyone coming back.
“The run is a bonus piece,” Aidan said. “People come for the connection and social aspect, and they get the run thrown in there.”
That focus on connection can be found in one of the things members frequently notice about Aidan: she remembers their names.
For her, learning someone's name is a small gesture that can have a much larger meaning.
“I think taking the time to meet someone and learn their name is personal, and it shows them that they matter and I’m excited to have them,” Aidan said. “I think it’s important to care about others. More so now than ever.”
No One Gets Left Behind
Perhaps the clearest example of Tour de Lafayette's culture is what its founder does once everyone starts moving.
Aidan doesn't lead from the front.
She walks.
“I never run at run club because I knew when I started this, it was not about me anymore,” Aidan said. “It’s about the people showing up.”
It's intentional.
By walking, Aidan can stay with someone attending their first run, someone who isn't comfortable running yet or anyone who simply wants to move at a slower pace.
“I walk every single run club, so if anyone would like to go slow or walk, they don’t have to feel like they were left behind,” she said.
For Aidan, creating a welcoming run club sometimes means sacrificing her own run to make sure someone else's first experience is a positive one.
“It’s about being selfless and accommodating to others so they feel comfortable and confident in doing something new or scary,” she said.
And if the size of the group makes a first-timer nervous?
Aidan has some simple advice.
“Please don’t be intimidated!” she said. “Find me! I’ll help you.”
Before each run, participants receive a rundown of how the group works and the route they'll be taking. Depending on the run, members may also stick around afterward for coffee or hydration.
There is no requirement to be fast. There isn't even a requirement to run.
“Tour is special because there’s no pressure and it’s purely fun,” Aidan said.
Movement, Community and Lafayette
Tour de Lafayette's community extends beyond the people who show up to run and walk.
Over the years, partnerships with local businesses have helped Tour introduce its members to new experiences. Aidan credits Dawn Delaune, owner of Tri Running, and the Tri Running team with helping many of those relationships begin.
“Over the years I’ve met so many incredible people and business owners, and I’m super thankful for the opportunities to partner with everyone that I’ve met,” Aidan said.
One of the results has been Tour's Demo Days.
Running brands such as ASICS, Nike and Hoka bring shoes — often recent releases — for participants to test during run club. Members can run, walk or move around in them for free, allowing them to experience a shoe before deciding whether to purchase it.
“I LOVE DEMO DAYS!” Aidan said.
But the partnerships and Demo Days point back to something larger.
“My entire mission isn’t just about running,” Aidan said. “It’s about movement and moving with comfort and joy.”
She wants Tour to encourage people to break out of what she describes as the “wake up, work, eat, sleep, repeat” cycle.
“You’re more than your job, and I want people to have a fun and engaging life through movement,” Aidan said. “You don’t have to stop having fun just because you’re getting older.”
Her philosophy is simple:
“Every day can be a party if you try hard enough.”
“You Are Tour”
Ask Aidan what she hopes people take away from Tour de Lafayette, and her answer has little to do with mile times, distance or personal records.
“I hope they take away the fact that you can still have fun no matter what,” she said. “That there is more to life than just working.”
She hopes people leave with new friendships, a reason to spend more time outside and a reminder that community still matters.
“That sunshine is a cure-all for almost everything,” Aidan said, “and that there are in fact incredible people in this world and it’s lovely.”
The Lafayette community, she says, is the reason Tour has been able to become what it is today.
“It’s everything,” Aidan said. “Without them, Tour doesn’t exist.”
It's why she often repeats a simple phrase to the people who show up:
“YOU are TOUR.”
“And I mean it every single time,” Aidan said. “Not a single day goes by where I don’t think about how much it means to me.”
What’s Next for Tour de Lafayette
Six years after Tour de Lafayette began as an Instagram page and nearly four years after two friends joined Aidan at Moncus Park for its first group run, the community continues to grow.
And Aidan is already planning what comes next.
“2027 is gonna be big,” she said. “I have some cool stuff planned!”
She isn't revealing those plans just yet, but her larger goal remains the same.
“I hope it continues to grow, and I hope I can bring even more exciting events to Lafayette and make movement fun for everyone,” Aidan said.
Tour de Lafayette has come a long way from the late-night bike rides that inspired its name and the two runners who showed up for its first group run.
But the idea at its center remains remarkably similar to where it began:
Get outside. Move. Have fun. And find people to enjoy it with.
Join Tour de Lafayette
Tour de Lafayette hosts weekly opportunities for runners and walkers throughout Lafayette, welcoming different ages, fitness levels and paces — including those who would rather walk than run.
The group meets Tuesdays at 6 a.m. starting at Rêve Coffee Roasters on Camellia Boulevard, Wednesdays at 6 p.m. at Tri Running and Fridays at 6 a.m. starting at Rêve Coffee Roasters on Camellia Boulevard. For the latest weekly schedule, locations, Demo Days, collaborations and special events, follow @tourdelafayette on Instagram.
Whether you're chasing a personal record, beginning your first mile or simply looking for a community to move with, Tour de Lafayette offers a place to show up without the pressure of having to be the fastest person there.
