Earth Day – Go Green

“It’s not easy being green” – Kermit the Frog

Happy Earth Day!  This important day has prompted Monumental Effort to offer hints and tips to runners on how we could be more environmentally conscious.  We are not suggesting that we are perfect when it comes to thinking about our planet, but we are hoping this post will serve us and others as a reminder that we all have a role to play.

1. Carry your own bottle: I co-Race Direct the Iroquoia Trail Test 32K race near Burlington, Ontario.  We have a strict limit of 175 runners, but usually get fewer than that on race day.  We have five aid stations on the course, some of which are visited twice by the runners.  Every year I am amazed at the amount of trash we generate.  Even with such a small field, we collect several bags of garbage.  Now imagine how many cups are discarded at bigger road events.  Some of the biggest marathons in North America have tens of thousands of runners and likely a dozen aid-stations.  What if each runner uses two or three cups per aid station?  I’m no mathematician, but that’s a lot of cups.  How many races in the U.S. and Canada each year?  How many finishers?  I carry a bottle at all my races and try not to use any cups.  Sure this costs me a few additional seconds at each aid-station but let’s face it, I’m not setting any speed records and certainly not contending for the win.  Some races (notably trail ultra marathons) have started requiring that runners carry a bottle and have altogether eliminated cups at aid-stations.
2. Goodie bags: Are these really necessary?  With all the information we could possibly need available in just the click of a mouse, are race flyers and pamphlets even relevant these days?  Most races have online registration and I assume a high percentage of entries are submitted via this medium, so the registration form and waiver are also obsolete.
3. Recycle your shoes: There are so many places that recycle shoes.  Check your local running stores as they often have boxes near the door to donate used shoes.  Other popular foundations include: Soles4Souls; Sole Responsibility, and Nike Reuse a Shoe.  Furthermore, some shoe companies have even designed shoes from biodegradable material…if the shoe fits….
   

   My pile of (slow) shoes which I recently donated to Haïti relief.

4. Travel or carpool with someone: When travelling to a race try to share a ride with other runners who live nearby.  Some events have limited parking space and reserve the prime spots to vehicles that have more than one rider.  If you are going out of town for an overnighter, many races have email forums which allow runners to get in touch and possibly make travel arrangements with others.
5. Eco-friendly tees: If you are a Race Director and absolutely want to give entrants a t-shirt, consider purchasing from a supplier with eco-friendly fabric.  More and more apparel companies are using organic cotton or bamboo to make their shirts.  One such company is Axis Gear Company in Toronto.  A percentage of sales is also donated to the David Suzuki Foundation.
6. Do trail work: Interestingly, more and more events are requiring runners to provide proof of volunteer trail work in order to be permitted to run the race.  This has sparked some debate, but if runners continually use local trail systems for training and leisure, shouldn’t they want to help preserve and maintain these trails?  This is certainly an area that I would like to improve upon.  Sure I donate regularly to the Bruce Trail Association, but I think it is high time I call the volunteer hot-line, dig out my work boots and gloves and join a team of volunteers for some trail maintenance work.
   

   "Heigh-ho, heigh-ho..."

7. Bring back trash: On your next trail training run, bring some trash back home.  If you see an empty can or bottle, pick it up and carry it back to your car and then properly discard it with your recycling at home.  Better yet, armed with garbage bags and your training buddies, organize a cleaning session on a section of trail.
8. Support Green Races: According to Runner’s World (by Kelly Bastone, from the November 2008 issue), below is the top-10 Greenest Races.  When preparing your next racing schedule, consider these:

1.  Austin Marathon, Tex.
As if solar generators, a finish-line farmers’ market, organic race tees, and bio-diesel vehicles weren’t enough, the event recycles 14,375 pounds of trash.
2. Nature’s Path Whidbey Island Marathon, Wash.
The event features an organic prerace dinner, goodie bags made of 100 percent postconsumer recycled paper, and finishers’ medallions made of recycled glass.
3. Manitoba Marathon, Canada
This Winnipeg event uses only compostable food-service items and diverts 1,723 pounds of plastic, cardboard, and aluminum from the landfill.
4. Canmore Rocky Mountain Half-Marathon, Canada
The start and finish areas are “waste-free zones,” where everything used must be reusable or recyclable. All proceeds from the 2007 event went to environmental causes.
5. City of Portland Triathlon, Ore.
Organizers use solar power and buy carbon credits to offset participant travel. Runners get local organic food, bamboo shirts, and age-group trophies made of recycled bike parts.
6. ING Hartford Marathon, Conn.
An innovative 2,000-gallon water fountain lets 40 runners drink at once, eliminating the use of 10,000 plastic bottles. Runners can enjoy a postrace feast of local and organic foods.
7. JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge Series
Participants get to races via shuttles or are urged to use a Web-based carpool coordinator. Other initiatives have saved five tons of paper, six tons of plastic, and 5,000 gallons of crude oil.
8. Portland Marathon, Ore.
Since 1993, more than 100,000 finishers have received a tree seedling. Also, aid stations are situated near hose connections, and bicycles are used for race-day course management.
9. Great Lakes Endurance, Mich.
This trail-running series serves mostly organic, locally grown food. Runners must carry their own water, and they receive organic cotton tees and prizes made by local artists.

Start of Green Lakes Endurance 50K & 100K

10. Eugene Marathon, Ore.
Volunteer “master recyclers” sort all garbage, collecting 70 percent of material for recycling. A solar generator powers the finish-line stage and vendor area.

Vince

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