Going Green

Reach the Beach runners travel through some of the most beautiful and pristine countryside on their 200-mile trek to “the Beach.” And we are committed to ensuring the race leaves the smallest footprint possible on the environment. Since 2008 we have partnered with Athletes for a Fit Planet to make the race as green as possible.

Here are some of the green initiatives we are taking at all three of this year’s Reach the Beach Relays:

PLEDGE OF SUSTAINABILITY
We’ve taken the FitPlanet Pledge of Sustainability to reduce the waste and carbon footprints of our races. Check out the FitPlanet Green Events Calendar for details on what each Reach the Beach Relay has pledging to do to be environmentally responsible.

RECYCLING FROM START TO FINISH
FitPlanet provides recycling bins at the start and finish that are managed by our Green Team of volunteers. In addition, each team receives two large, re-usable bags at check-in to use on the course for the collection of recyclables including plastic bottles, aluminum cans, glass, cardboard, and paper. We’ll have recycling bins set up at Transition Areas (TA) 6, 12, 18, 24 and 30 for you to empty your bags as you move down the course. Look for the recycling signs as you enter the TAs and please do your part. With the help and support of our teams, we’ve steadily increased the amount of recycling we’ve kept out of landfills over the years.

GREEN PORTABLE TOILETS
Our Massachusetts and New Hampshire races use certified green portable toilets supplied by Dave’s Septic. We will be partnering with a NJ based provider who will do the same. All of these units use non-toxic chemicals and recycled paper.

REDUCE OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT
We estimate that the hundreds of athlete passenger vans and staff vehicles traveling the course produce about 125 tons of CO2 emissions for each race. And that doesn’t include travel to and from the race. To reduce our carbon footprint, we encourage athletes and their families to…

1. Carpool to and from the race.
2. Utilize the bus for transportation back that is available.
3. Offset the carbon emissions for your team’s travel by purchasing FitPlanet/NativeEnergy Green Tags. Each Green Tag costs $3 and offsets 300 lbs of CO2, which is the equivalent of about 150 miles of driving in the average 10-15 mpg passenger van. Four Green Tags would offset the emissions of both vehicles driving the course, which is $12 per team or $1 per runner. NativeEnergy uses the money to help finance wind, biogas, solar and other carbon-reducing projects across the country.

USE A REUSABLE WATER BOTTLE
We encourage all our teams to use bulk water and reusable water bottles to minimize the use of single-use plastic bottles. We will have a couple of water bottle options for sale at the start, finish, and on our website.