11 September 2018
Brian Blevins
At the end of this week, runners, walkers, joggers, fitness fanatics and first-time adventurers will flock to the Austin Bluffs Open Space for the fifth annual Trek the Trail Homecoming 5k Fun Run/Walk.
The event, hosted by UCCS Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences, will kick off this Saturday, down at UCCS lot 580, at the intersection of North Nevada Avenue and North Campus Heights Road.
The trail route includes a trip up North Campus Heights Road to the Heller Center for the Arts and a tour of the Austin Bluffs Open Space, which lies behind the bluffs of UCCS. From there, participants will make a full circuit through the Open Space and Pulpit Rock Park back to Lot 580.
As in previous years, Trek the Trail is being hosted in partnership with four student organizations: Exercise is Medicine, the Beth-El Student Nurses Association, the Nutrition Club, and the Local Food Club.
All proceeds will contribute to student scholarship funds, adding to the current $8,800 raised in the past four years. Last year’s 5k raised over $1,300 in scholarship funds.
According to Jessica Kirby via email, co-director of the Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences, the Trek the Trail 5k “is a fantastic way to get involved on campus while also giving back. In addition to raising money for scholarships, participants can also get active during homecoming week on our beautiful campus trails system, support campus wide efforts of sustainability by supporting an event that promotes leave-no-trace ethics, and enjoy delicious and freshly prepared local food from our nutrition students.”
Trek the Trail began said Kirby in an email, when “faculty, staff and students from the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences wanted to find a way to bring our campus and local community together in an event where students could gain experience in planning and implementing an event that both promotes multiple dimensions of wellness and gives back to the campus at the same time (by raising funds for scholarships).”
“We are very proud,” Kirby added in her email, “to now also be an annual homecoming event as well.”
Registration is open now, and won’t close until the starting gun goes off. For those who pre-register online, the cost is $20 for students and $25 for everyone else (faculty, staff, alumni, and the general public). Day-of registration is $30 for everyone. The registration must be filled out online, and day-of registrants are expected to use their own electronic devices to do so.
Hopeful attendees can register online through the UCCS Event Calendar, and direct questions to Renee Rudolph at [email protected].