The Gazelle Girl has done it again! Not only does this annual women’s race get more popular each year, they find new and better ways to make it more environmentally friendly. This was the event (2015) that sparked my involvement in Zero Waste at races, and led to the creation of Happy Planet Running. IContinue reading “Gazelle Girl Race Achieves 98% Diversion and Saves 2,000 lbs. From Landfill”
Tag Archives: Recycling
Mars Shows Earth How to Go Green!
GREETINGS, EARTHLINGS. Now that we have successfully invaded and occupied Earth, we will show you that we love it more than you do. Case in point: we came to Dearborn last Saturday – Earth Day – and ran one of the “greenest” marathons on the planet.
Recycling Marathon Heat Blankets: There Are Ways!
When I crossed the finish line of my first marathon back in 2011, I was handed a thin, light foil blanket. A runner’s body temperature begins to drop rapidly after stopping, and this was to retain some body heat until things stabilized. It was over eighty degrees and sunny that day, so there was noContinue reading “Recycling Marathon Heat Blankets: There Are Ways!”
2017 Ann Arbor Marathon Achieves 96% Landfill Diversion
Date: March 26, 2017 Event company: Epic Races, Ann Arbor MI Location: Downtown Ann Arbor, MI # Attendees: 2,500 runners + staff + spectators Zero Waste Team volunteers: 4 Race Overview The Ann Arbor Marathon is a 5K, 10K, half marathon, and full marathon that takes place in downtown Ann Arbor and surrounding neighborhoods. DespiteContinue reading “2017 Ann Arbor Marathon Achieves 96% Landfill Diversion”
Sustainability Report: Pi Day 5K 2017
Date: March 14, 2017 Event company: Epic Races, Ann Arbor MI Location: Hudson Mills Metropark, Dexter, MI # Attendees: 300 runners + staff + spectators Zero Waste Team volunteers: 4 Race Overview The Pi Run is an annual event held on 3/14. Its name celebrates both pi, the number, and pie, the food. About 250Continue reading “Sustainability Report: Pi Day 5K 2017”
Sustainability Report: RF Events Shamrocks & Shenanigans 5K 2017
Date: March 12, 2017 Event company: RF Events, Ann Arbor MI Location: Downtown Ann Arbor, MI # Attendees: 1,500 runners Zero Waste Team volunteers: 6 Race Overview Shamrocks & Shenanigans is one of a myriad of St. Patrick’s Day races (but of course the RF Events one is the best). Some people run it seriously;Continue reading “Sustainability Report: RF Events Shamrocks & Shenanigans 5K 2017”
Sustainability Report: RF Events Super 5K 2017
Date: February 5, 2017 Event company: RF Events, Ann Arbor MI Location: Novi High School, Novi MI # Attendees: 2,000 runners Zero Waste Team volunteers: 5 (plus 3 more at takedown/cleanup) Race Overview The Super 5K is held every year on the morning of Super Bowl Sunday. As it’s usually cold, runners gather inside NoviContinue reading “Sustainability Report: RF Events Super 5K 2017”
Sustainability Report: Bigfoot Snowshoe 5K/10K 2017
Date: Saturday, January 21, 2017 Event company: RF Events, Ann Arbor MI Location: Timber Ridge Resort, Traverse City MI # Attendees: 480 runners, about 100 spectators Zero Waste Team volunteers: 4 Race Overview The Bigfoot Snowshoe 5K/10K is one of two RF Events races held in the Traverse City area. It’s a popular race, inContinue reading “Sustainability Report: Bigfoot Snowshoe 5K/10K 2017”
Sustainability Report: Run Woodstock 2016
Date: Sept. 9-11, 2016 Event company: RF Events, Ann Arbor MI Location: Hell Creek Ranch, Pinckney MI # Attendees: approx. 2,000 Zero Waste Team volunteers: Varied Race Overview Run Woodstock is the largest RF Events race of the year, with distances from 5 miles to 100 miles and everything in between. It’s also a weekendContinue reading “Sustainability Report: Run Woodstock 2016”
Paper Cups at Events: Recycle, Compost, or Trash?
Ah, paper cups. You see them at every running event, being handed out at aid stations to perspiring runners, who slug down the contents and then toss them down, sometimes in a waste bin, but often just in the road, or wherever. What happens to them afterward? Your average runner has no idea. Trash collection isContinue reading “Paper Cups at Events: Recycle, Compost, or Trash?”
Happy Planet Running 