Hey Atlanta … Hit the Trail with The North Face® Endurance Challenge

Last year, The North Face Endurance Challenge made its debut at Georgia’s F.D. Roosevelt State Park. The event was blessed with fine weather and robust participation. My friend and colleague, Kevin Coffey, ran the 10K race and loved the experience. He’ll be back on the trail this year running the half-marathon distance.

The following video gives an overview of the fun and thrills runners can expect:



This year’s event promises to offer the same exhilarating scenery and challenging terrain. Here’s what you can expect:

• A range of seven races suited for runners of varying abilities … from the 5K to the Gore-Tex® 50-Mile run.
• Single-track trails with lots of natural obstacles (e.g. tree roots, rocks, bushes, branches).
• An environmentally-conscience event. On-site efforts include recycling bins, complimentary water bottles, filling stations and sustainable practices in keeping with Leave No Trace. Runners also get a redemption code to receive a virtual race bag.
• Pre-Race Panel discussion featuring legendary trail running champion Dean Karnazes.

The participant’s guide offers plenty of details, including course maps and descriptions of the terrain for each race event. With registrations outpacing last year’s inaugural event, you can expect a good crowd.

Not up for a trail race? Consider volunteering. According to organizers, volunteer help is essential to the event’s success. As you can imagine with an event of this magnitude, there is a wide range of volunteer jobs … everything from parking to food tents and aid stations.

Green Ideas for Sweetwater 420 Fest 5K: Candler Park N. O. and Sweetwater Weigh In

Last month, I provided a recap of the Sweetwater 420 Fest 5K with a few ideas for making it a greener event. Well, I heard back from both the Candler Park Neighborhood Organization (which manages the 5K) and from Sweetwater Brewery (which hosts the Fest). Both offered some interesting feedback on my suggestions – enough to warrant a separate blog post.

Here’s what I learned:

No water stations: With an April race date, I questioned whether water stations were really necessary. The weather was mild for this year’s race, but that wasn’t the case in 2010 when temperatures were much warmer. According to Dave Aynes with the Candler Park Neighborhood Organization (CPNO), the group was criticized in 2010 for not having enough water stations. As Dave shared with me, CPNO is interested in ideas to make the race greener. One way runners can do their part is to bring their own water bottles.

Reduce trash - Sell beer in commemorative mugs: When I suggested this idea, I thought it was a “no brainer.” Boy, was I wrong. Per Steve Farace with Sweetwater, “We did that the first year and it turned into a nightmare game of twister trying to refill specific cups.” Understood – trying to keep track of which beer cup belongs to which person when there are dozens of people in line is a logistical mess. Dave with CPNO also mentioned that “some health departments don’t technically allow it (think new buffet plate).”

Offer a compost bin for banana peels: With 2,000 participants at the race, I suggested offering a compost bin to collect the peels instead of trash cans. This appears to be the only idea I offered that may be easy to implement. If you’re running the race next year, be on the look-out for compost bins.

I’d like to thank both Dave Aynes and Steve Farace for sharing feedback on my blog post. There are a multitude of factors involved with operating an event – particularly one as large as the Sweetwater 420 Fest and 5K. While the hosts of these events strive to be green, it has to be balanced with the needs to make sure the event is also safe and enjoyable.

Sweetwater 420 5K: Fun Beer Run Could Be Greener

The Sweetwater 420 5K had three features that I love in a race:

1.) Late morning start time (11 a.m.)

2.) Great intown route (which I could bike to)

3.) Beer after the race (who doesn’t love beer?)

And it was a fun race. The weather was sunny and slightly warm and the route was enjoyable. The Sweetwater 420 Fest bills itself as an eco-conscience event with the tag line “We’re here for a good time. She’s here for a long time.” wrapped around an image of planet earth. Like a lot of people these days, I strive to be environmentally responsible. However, I felt certain aspects of the race could have been more eco-friendly.

Here are my ideas on making the Sweetwater 420 5K a greener event:

No water stations Waxed-coated water cups littered the street at the two water stations along the route. For a 5K, there’s really no need for hydration stations – especially for a race hosted in April where heat is not an issue. Wax-coated cups cannot be recycled. Instead, hand out plastic water bottles at the finish line.

Reduce trash - Sell beer in commemorative mugs While music is a big part of the fest, the real star is Sweetwater’s beer. And lots of it is sold at the event in plastic cups. The recyclable cups proudly promote being made from plant-based plastics, yet I saw a lot of them dumped in waste bins designated for trash instead of the recycling bins. Let’s face it -- people under the influence of beer don’t always make the best decisions. Instead of serving each beer in a new plastic cup, sell the first beer in a commemorative mug (for $2 or $3 more) and refills for $6 each. The result will raise more money for community organizations and reduce festival trash.

Offer a compost bin for banana peels At the end of the race, runners were offered bananas and bagels while they waited to get their festival wrist bands. With 2,000 runners, that produces a lot of banana peels. Instead of throwing food trash in a waste bin, why not offer the option of a compost bin? The compost could be used to fertilize the landscape around Candler Park.

Overall, this is a fun event and I’m glad a local company like Sweetwater is an advocate for conservation. I plan to share my ideas with the folks at Sweetwater and I’ll let you know what I hear back from them.

UPDATE 5/9/2011: Both the Candler Park Neighborhood Organization and Sweetwater provided feedback on my ideas which I shared in a new blog post.

Here’s the 5K route from yesterday’s race:

• Start on McClendon Avenue (by Epworth United Methodist Church)

• Head west, running past Candler Park

• Turn right on Euclid Terrace

• Veer right onto Euclid Avenue

• Turn left on Fairview Avenue

• Turn right on S. Ponce de Leon Avenue

• Turn right on Fairview Avenue

• Turn left on Oakdale Road

• Turn left on North Avenue

• Turn right on Candler Park Drive

• Turn right on Benning Place

• Turn left on Oakdale Road

• Turn left on McClendon Avenue

• Turn left on Candler Park Drive

• Finish at the corner of Miller Avenue and Candler Park Drive