Will Warne, CEO and founder of KidRunner shows a top view of the running stroller at a retail space in Bend. 

When Bend resident Will Warne became a father, he wanted to combine the two passions of his life: running and parenting.

But every jogging stroller on the market required him to forgo his form, hunch over a stroller and push. So he did what every good entrepreneur does. He went into the garage and began to MacGyver a stroller he could tow using duck tape, a windsurfing harness and a toilet plunger.

The result was a stroller, designed for children six months to 5 years of age, that attaches to a runner’s waist and rolls behind the runner.

“I took apart our stroller and started fabricating these crazy contraptions,” said Warne, company CEO. “Now, we are using an advanced composite material that offers comfort and performance.”

Since then he’s refined his product and used composite materials that include thermoplastic carbon, Kevlar and wood core in a partnership with the Colorado-based company Oribi. He also obtained a patent on the dampening solution the team design to keep the stroller stable.

And along the way, he found a market for what he calls the KidRunner.

Since 2021, the company has sold more than 1,000 strollers. The stroller industry generated $141 million worldwide in revenues, according to ResearchAnd-Market.com’s report on the global jogging stroller market in 2021.

The company earned a place at the Bend Outdoor Worx venture conference in 2018 and received assistance from local outdoor entrepreneurs.

But Warne needed the patent. A quick search showed Warne that Mauricio Mejia, a biomedical engineer, held the patent for the concept but didn’t have a prototype. So Warne formed a partnership with Mejia. Through design tweaks, a new prototype emerged, a new patent and KidRunner was born in 2016.

Warne, a former global supply chain executive, used his skills to source components for the stroller that helped the company in 2021 make Bend an e-commerce fulfillment hub, where workers assemble and ship direct to consumers. Since then, the 19-pound strollers are also sold at RoadRunnerSports, a national retailer.

“A big part of the story comes from this region,” Warne said. “KidRunner is about making sure that parents can stay connected to what they love after they have kids. There just weren’t any products designed for parents who want to run with their kids.”

Pushing a stroller just isn’t natural for a runner who needs arm movements to gain momentum. Pushing strollers can also lead to injuries, Warne said.

“We discovered the upper body produces 30% of your running energy,” Warne said.

As a member of the 2018 Bend Outdoor Worx fifth cohort, KidRunner received advice on building market strategy and development, said Gary Bracelin, founder of Bend Outdoor Worx, an accelerator that supports startups.

“With support from our network of mentors and investors, they were able to finance their first production run and ship their first orders,” Bracelin said. “They engaged with our accelerator. BOW continues to give KidRunner ongoing support.”

KidRunner brand ambassador Lyndy Davis, a 32-year-old Eugene runner, said the stroller was a game changer for her. In 2019, she earned the distinction of setting a Guinness World Record for running with a stroller in a half marathon. She completed the July 4, 2019 Foot Traffic Flat half marathon on Sauvie Island in 1:21:38, placing sixth overall. Davis also is a two time Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier.

She found the stroller by seeing someone else use it in a race and decided to try it because she realized she missed running after having her son.

“I did it pulling a kid,” Davis said. “Immediately, it felt better for my runner’s body. It felt like the right fit when I started pulling. I could running longer without as many kid stops.”

Another runner, Kristen Little, a 36-year-old Portland resident, said running de-stresses her, but when she looked into jogging strollers in 2020 in preparation of the birth of her daughter, they made running difficult and stressful.

“When I saw KidRunner online, I was instantly drawn to it because it allows you to maintain a natural form while running with your kid,” Little said. “And it is founded in Oregon.

“So far, it’s easily the best piece of baby gear that I’ve purchased. She loves being in it and likes seeing me. She’ll be babbling at me and I’m

chatting with her back and forth.”

Little and her daughter recently drove across the mountains to attend the Bend Marathon kid’s race on April 10 that was sponsored by KidRunner. They ran the 10k together.

She brought her daughter and her KidRunner with her.