Spring Break
Ecohusky 5K Race this Sunday
Michelle Firestone
Issue date: 4/3/09 Section: News
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The fourth annual Ecohusky 5K Road Race will be held Sunday on Horsebarn Hill starting at 11 a.m.
According to Richard Miller, the director of the Office of Environmental Policy, EcoHusky started the race in 2006 for a variety of reasons.
"EcoHusky, which was still a relatively new student organization at the time, decided that they wanted to establish an annual fundraising event that would also be outdoors, healthy and a fun way to get together," Miller said in an e-mail.
The race, which attracts local residents, UConn students and faculty, will raise money for the Green Campus fund and for the EcoHusky student group.
"It pretty much funds them all year," said Jonathan Piazza-Harper, a 10th-semester molecular and cell biology major, and intern at the Office of Environmental Policy who is in charge of the race.
According to Piazza-Harper, last year's race raised $2,700, half of which was donated by Willimantic Waste to the Green Campus fund.
"They were our biggest donors," Piazza-Harper said.
Some of the proceeds from the Green Campus fund and race were used to purchase several outdoor recycling bins for cans and bottles, Piazza-Harper and Miller said.
"They fill up pretty quickly, and UConn's overall bottle and can recycling was up last year over previous years, so the bins were needed," Miller said.
Piazza-Harper said that just over 140 people participated last year. They hope to have 200 runners this year.
According to statistics compiled by the Last Mile Race Management Company's website, participants competed in 6 different age groups: 18 and under, 19-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59 and over 60. Of the 112 runners listed on the website, the oldest was 74, and the youngest was 13.
Most of the participants in the race are UConn students, faculty and staff.
"Some are town residents or more serious runners from around the area who just like the course and see it as an early season tune-up," Miller said.
In collaboration with those involved with the sneaker recycling campaign, which ends on April 20 at the Mount Sneaker event, there will be a drop-off bin at the race for people to donate their shoes.
Those interested in running are strongly encouraged to pre-register through the Ecohusky Web site, www.ecohusky.uconn.edu, though most runners chose to register at the race.
"Typically we get a lot of people that show up on the day of," Piazza-Harper said.
Registration at the race will be from 9:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. The fee is $10 for students and $20 for non-students, and each runner will be given a T-shirt.
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