Run Game Help

Meeting a wingman from the Map: etiquette and safety

6 min read

To find a wingman on Run Game, open the Map, tap "Near you" at the bottom, and look through live sessions and plans from people within 50 miles, closest first. Message someone who's out now, or ask to join a plan. Then treat the first meetup like any meeting with a stranger: a public spot, a friend who knows where you are, your own way home, and a plain way for either of you to say no.

Where to look

The Map has a "Near you" button at the bottom. It opens a panel with two tabs, and a line under them reads "50 mi · closest first":

Until the app knows where you are, the panel offers Use my location or Use a ZIP code instead. It says others only see how far away you are. The spot you name for your own session or plan is shown, though.

If nothing is posted near you, the panel says "No one's live near you right now" or "No plans near you yet". How to find someone to go out with on Run Game covers the other places to look.

If you're asking to join

Tap the person's name first. Their profile opens, so you can see what they've shared before you write.

Then send your message. On a live session, the Message button opens a box where you write to the host. On a plan, Ask to join does the same, and your message goes with a request. The row then reads "Request sent" until the host approves. You can Cancel it.

A message that works is short and specific: who you are, what you want from the night, a spot. For example: "Hey, I'm nearby and new to this. I'd like to practice daytime openers for an hour around the market. Where should we meet?"

Two things the app does that are worth knowing. Live sessions turn off after two hours. And a live session can show "Not taking messages" instead of a Message button. That isn't personal. Move on to the next one.

If you're posting your own

The lit word at the top of the Map, "Go live", starts a live session where you are. Or tap a spot on the map and choose Go live here (a live session) or Plan here (a plan). A plan needs you to have shared your location first. A live session asks Where and "What are you looking for?", up to 280 characters. A plan takes two steps: a day and time, then the spot's name, what's planned, how long (30 minutes to 4 hours) and how many can join, from 1 to 6 or Anyone.

A few habits help:

On a plan, you decide who comes. People who ask appear under "Asking to join" with Approve and Decline. Anyone approved shows under "Going", and you can Remove them. When you have enough, switch on "Done. No more people needed", or Take down the plan. You can decline anyone without explaining. A live session has a "Live" switch that turns it off. To hear about requests and messages when the app is closed, see Run Game notifications.

Before you meet

The sources below give similar advice for meeting someone you only know online. The FTC's guidance is to meet in a public place and tell a friend or family member where you'll be. Tinder's safety page adds to control how you get there and back, only accept drinks served directly by staff, and use a phone or video call to screen the person first. The Suzy Lamplugh Trust, a UK personal safety charity, advises checking in with someone before, during and after.

Applied to a Map meetup:

  1. Tell a friend. Send the name, the place and when you'll text afterward.
  2. Meet at the spot, not somewhere new. If the person suggests a different, private place, you can say no. Tinder's page says to end the date if someone pushes for a private location.
  3. Travel on your own. Arrive and leave separately.
  4. Keep it short. An hour is enough. Say the end time up front: "I've got until 4."
  5. Hold back personal details like your address, workplace and full schedule until you know the person.

These steps cost a little spontaneity, and they can feel formal between two people who are about to go and talk to strangers.

Etiquette for both sides

If something feels off

Leave. You don't owe a reason. If someone's behavior bothers you, you can use the tools on their profile: Report, with reasons that include "Harassment or bullying", "Feels unsafe or threatening" and "Spam or scam", and Block. Blocking means you won't see each other's profiles, plans or posts and any friendship ends. They aren't told, and you can unblock in Settings.

A 2020 YouGov survey published by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, funded by the dating service Match, found about a third of online daters had safety concerns and over half of those were never reported. It was about dating apps, not Run Game, so read it as a sign that reporting is worth doing, not as a rate of harm.

What to do next

  1. Open the Map and tap Near you. Look at Live now and Plans. Note how many are near you.
  2. Open one person's profile before you write to them.
  3. Send one message with who you are, what you want and a proposed spot.
  4. Tell a friend the name, place and time before you go, and text them when you're done.
  5. Meet for an hour at a public spot you chose or agreed on. Say the end time.
  6. If it went well, add them as a friend and plan the next one. How to find a wingman covers what to look for.

Run Game has the Map, plans and a place to log how the night went. For the wider safety basics see first date safety and meeting someone from online safely. To compare doing it with a partner and alone, read going out alone vs with a wingman.

Sources