The Epic Races Battle of Waterloo is a combo of swims, bikes, and runs, through the Waterloo Recreation Area. It’s the only event of this kind I’m aware of, and it’s only held every two years. Athletes can choose the “full battle” of ten stages over 42 miles, or “half the battle” of six. Either way there’s a lot of food options awaiting the finishers, so Happy Planet Running was there to keep the event environmentally friendly, as befits this beautiful nature area.
Cole and Jen battling the evil forces that would trash our planet.
We set up the Zero Waste Station across from the food tent and put All Waste boxes at the finish line, adult beverage area, and in transition. Due to the nature of the race, finish times tend to spread out so we had more of a steady trickle of business throughout the day, rather than a big rush, a nice change from the big races we serve.
After the races start there’s not much to do for a while, so I went for a run. The amount of roadside litter was pretty depressing, so I picked some up and dropped it off at a water stop for recycling. Why do people think it’s okay to throw stuff out of their car window, especially when it saves money to recycle it? I do have to thank whoever tossed a half-full bottle of water onto the road, because soaking my head and shirt felt really good on this hot day.
The egg wraps were popular, as was the ice cream cart. They were responsible for most of the landfill, as the foil and plastics are too contaminated to recycle, along with wet wipes and bags that held mac & cheese. But as usual, all that was tiny compared to the amount of waste we composted or recycled, thanks to their use of compostable plates and utensils. And using cups for water instead of disposable bottles cuts down on plastic use and the amount of work it takes us to process them. Much appreciated.
The biggest volume of waste came from the nine water stops, the bags arriving throughout the event as they closed. But thanks to my sister Jen and intern Cole, we got through them, with just a couple last-minute bags I sorted the next day. But one item in particular that showed up at our station (NOT from Epic Races) gets my nomination for Most Wasteful Packaging Ever. Check this out – a coconut wrapped in plastic.
Apparently the husk isn’t enough to protect the coconut. Now I’m thinking we should wrap bananas in plastic, too.
But once again we had less than four pounds of landfill, so even with those coconuts (which were composted), we won the battle.
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P.S. As I’m sure my sister will ask, “Jeff, did you REALLY wash out those mac & cheese bags?” Well, someone did. I think it was the elves.
Happy Planet Running 