Solstice Runs benefit Glen Arbor Park Commission, Ethiopian schools
From staff reports
Endurance Evolution, the local marathon facilitator spearheaded by high school buddies Joel Gaff and Eric Houghton, will hold two races in Leelanau County this month to benefit good causes.
On Saturday, June 15, athletes can run the Glen Arbor Solstice Half Marathon and 5K before the town’s BBQ and Brew festival, to benefit the Glen Arbor Park Commission. The distance around the Glen Lakes is, conveniently, 13.1 miles, or half the distance of a marathon. Along this route, runners will ascend Inspiration Point on the south side of Big Glen Lake, which offers one of the most spectacular views of Leelanau County. Visit EnduranceEvolution.com for more information.
Endurance Evolution and the Traverse City-based nonprofit, On The Ground, have also teamed up to raise funds to build a library in a remote village in Ethiopia. On Thursday, June 20, local harriers are invited to join a Solstice Run, which will travel from the northern tip of the Leelanau Peninsula to the beaches of West Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City. Runners can choose the full 40 miles, 20 miles, or a four-person relay (roughly 10 miles per runner).
The Solstice Run will begin at sunset at the Leelanau State Park Lighthouse. Runners will continue south through the night, ending approximately 40 miles later with a view of the sunrise over West Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City. This run is about fun and adventure — it’s not a race.
The Solstice Run has occurred during both summer and winter solstices, ranging from 30-40 miles during the shortest days and nights of the year with a group of running friends, many of whom participated in On The Ground’s Run Across Ethiopia (2011) and Run Across Palestine (2012).
Participating runners are asked to solicit pledges to support a library project in Hase Gola, in Ethiopia’s coffee-growing Yirgacheffe region, using the same model of solidarity as the 250-mile Run Across Ethiopia which On the Ground organized two and a half years ago. Funds raised will directly support the completion of the library. For more information and to register, visit OnTheGroundGlobal.org or EnduranceEvolution.com.
