Recycling Old Running Shoes

I love the feeling of slipping on a new pair of running shoes. Nothing beats the cushioned support and comfort on my feet. And that first run with new shoes is always terrific. What I don’t like is collecting a closet full of old running shoes. Fortunately, I’ve come across a variety of sources for recycling running shoes:

Big Peach Running Co.
This local retailer offers a 5% discount off the purchase of new running shoes when you give them your old pair. The old shoes are donated to local charities that assist the homeless.

RecycledRunners.com
As noted by its title, this site is dedicated to encouraging runners to contribute old shoes to recycling programs. It features information on programs in the U.S. and select countries. As an additional bonus, purchase a new pair of shoes from Running.Zappos.com and the web retailer will donate 50% of the proceeds to RecycledRunner.com’s Charity of the Month.

Reuse-A-Shoe
Nike offers a very cool program to donate your shoes. The material from old running shoes is grinded and manufactured into soft play surfaces for tennis courts, running tracks and playgrounds. You can donate your shoes at the NikeTown store at Phipps Plaza or by mailing them directly to Nike at this address:

Nike Recycling Center
c/o Reuse-A-Shoe
26755 SW 95th Ave.
Wilsonville, OR 97070

I found a new source for Atlanta running routes this week at Run.com. The route listed below was originally posted by Kelly S. at Run.com. While Run.com does provide a map, I find the map feature at Map My Run is easier to follow. You can access a map of the route at Run.com and at Map My Run under my group Atlanta Running.

Buckhead West Loop – 3 Miles (from Kelly S. at Run.com)

· Park in the Cross Creek Clubhouse lot (free parking).
· From parking lot, go back to main road and turn right on Bohler.
· Turn left onto Hanover Drive before the bridge.
· Turn left at dead end.
· Turn right at next dead end onto Defoors Ferry Road.
· Go about a 1/2 mile, and turn right onto Warren Road immediately after the baseball field.
· Turn right onto Moore's Mill Road. You will cross a bridge and go up a hill.
· Turn right at the first light onto Peachtree Battle Road.
· At the top of the last hill, turn right at the stop sign onto Bohler Road. This will take you back to the Cross Creek entrance.

This loop is easily extended. You can pass Warren Road and instead turn right onto Moore's Mill later- this will tack on about an extra half mile. You can also turn left onto Bohler at the beginning (instead of right) and then go right onto Defoors Ferry - this will eliminate the Hanover leg and tack on almost 2 miles. However, this also adds a steep 3/4-mile hill at the start.