Great and Getting Better: Trail Marathon Weekend 2018 Sustainability Report

Despite lousy weather in 2017, Zero Waste at Trail Marathon Weekend improved significantly from 2016, cutting landfill waste in half and improving diversion from 90 percent to 95 percent. Could we improve even more on this in 2018? We did indeed! Read on to find out how we did it.

Wind, Water, and Waste: Martian Invasion of Races 2018 Sustainability Report

There are some events where the Zero Waste effort goes exactly as planned. The day is beautiful, the volunteers are engaged and enthusiastic, and you achieve more than you thought possible. This year’s Martian Invasion of Races was not one of them.

Dirty Racers, Clean Race: Waterloo G&G Bike Race Sustainability Report

Epic Races kicks off their 2018 bike season and second year of their Zero Waste program. How “clean and green” could we make a race notorious for getting people dirty? Read on to find out!

A Green Race Indeed! Shamrocks & Shenanigans 5K Sustainability Report

A big, fast race on a cold day downtown, and two volunteers had to manage the entire Zero Waste effort. It would be hard to beat last year’s 96.7 percent landfill diversion with under six pounds of trash. Would they be flying it, or would it be a scundered bollox job? See below!

Recyclable Cups? A New Hope

Runners love their coffee, and during races they need water and other hydration drinks. The most popular method for delivering the drinks continues to be paper cups. And why not? They’re inexpensive, lightweight, and do their job well. And they’re often provided free to races by sponsors such as Absopure. But the standard cup isContinue reading “Recyclable Cups? A New Hope”

Could You Cover Your Glass, Please? Super 5K Sustainability Report

A snowy Sunday morning in Michigan, but over 1,000 runners came out to get in a 5K before the Big Game. And all of them would want to grab hot dogs, cookies, pint glasses and awards, and be on their way soon afterward. In past years the rush has been very challenging for the ZeroContinue reading “Could You Cover Your Glass, Please? Super 5K Sustainability Report”

HPR Accepts Environmental Excellence Award

What’s more fun than getting an award? An award plus getting to promote sustainability at running events! Happy Planet Running has been given a 2018 Eunice L. Burns Environmental Awareness Award from the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors (AAABoR). I accepted the award at their annual meeting on January 10. I was nominated for theContinue reading “HPR Accepts Environmental Excellence Award”

Brrr! Holiday Hustle Sustainability Report

It was Holiday Hustle time in Dexter, where several thousand diehard runners showed up, hustled their way through a mile or three, and then hustled out of there. And supporting them was over a hundred diehard staff and volunteers determined to help them enjoy the experience. The Zero Waste team was fired up to finishContinue reading “Brrr! Holiday Hustle Sustainability Report”

Happy Planet Running Receives Environmental Awareness Award!

From the Totally Unexpected News desk: I’ve won an award! The Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors (AAABoR) has selected HPR to receive its Eunice L. Burns Environmental Awareness Award for 2018. The award recognizes HPR for developing Zero Waste programs for local running events such as the Ann Arbor Marathon and the Dexter andContinue reading “Happy Planet Running Receives Environmental Awareness Award!”

Cold Turkey, Hot Chocolate, Zero Waste

A cold, blustery morning didn’t stop thousands of people from packing downtown Ann Arbor for the annual Turkey Trot. With a hot chocolate and coffee station for the runners, we promised to be awash in cups, as well as bananas, cookies, and cardboard from all the boxes. We learned last year that making the raceContinue reading “Cold Turkey, Hot Chocolate, Zero Waste”