The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 84

2015 SOURCEBOOK

Roanoke Rec:

THE BEAT GOES ON, THE BOUNTY BUILDS
New trails and greenways, new events, more
participation in them and a community that
is increasingly aware of its amazing inventory
have combined not only to get more people active,
but also to build national awareness of the
Roanoke Valley as an outdoor destination.
BY GENE MARRANO

FOR A DIRECTORY
of area recreation assets,
facilities and organizations, as well as a guide to
area golf courses, please
go to theroanoker.com/
newcomer

The annual Go Outside
Festival (October) has
come to exist at least in
part because of increased
community and visitor
awareness and use of area
resources such as our own
city mountain full of trails
and the ever-growing miles
of trails at Carvins Cove.

84 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS a number of national magazines and websites that track such things
have identified the Roanoke Valley as one of the best
places to live, work and play. At the top of every list?
The bounty of outdoor amenities - and it just keeps
getting better.
The Go Outside Festival - GoFest for short - drew
more people than ever in its fourth year last October (an estimated 20,000) and the five-year-old Blue
Ridge Marathon (every April) has welcomed a larger
field every time out. It's tougher too - changes to the
course since its inception have made the full and half
marathon more challenging than ever; the new Star
10K brought hundreds more into the fold at the event
for the first time last year. In 2014 there were 1,930
registered runners overall (up from 1,734 in 2013).
Roanoke City has responded to that focus by adding employees who target outdoor branding and a
growing trail system. Renee Lavin was hired several
years ago by Roanoke City Parks and Recreation as a
trails specialist, targeting the natural trails (unpaved):
"We're just seeing more people taking advantage of the
great resources that the trails are in the area."
In 2014 Lavin and company introduced the On
the Trails duathlon (mountain biking-running) at
Carvins Cove, and the Off the Rails mini-triathlon
at Fallon Park. Lavin calls Carvins Cove "a great resource for the valley. We really wanted to showcase the
trails out there." More than five miles of new natural
surface trails have been built during Lavin's tenure.
Joe Hanning was also hired by the city to promote
the great outdoors - and local activities like the WazUpWidis Urban Race (February) that is run through
parking garages and Roanoke's only 20-story office
building downtown. The marketing and outreach

coordinator for Roanoke City parks and rec oversees
the now four-year-old "Roanoke 100-Miler," which
encourages people to walk, run or bike that many
miles or more during the winter months.
"Each year, our 100 Miler Team has excelled by
averaging more than 200 miles per person," says
Hanning, who has also launched similar efforts (7
Summits mountain hikes, Great Greenway Tour) that
encourage group participation. Hanning now manages May's Gallop for the Greenways 5K race, created
almost a decade ago as a fundraiser for the greenway
system.
"All of these events share our [ongoing] goal - to
get people off the couch, to create an active lifestyle
and community using all of the amenities that Roanoke has to offer," says Hanning.
There are more new wrinkles ahead for those who
love the outdoors - or are just now dipping their toes
in the water. Speaking of water, plans for a "blueway"
centered on the Roanoke River are just beginning to
take shape. (Botetourt County has already turned
parts of the James River into a successful blueway,
with launch ramps for kayaks and canoes, including
one in downtown Buchanan (that's Buck-hannon, not
Bue- cannon for you newcomers.)
Aaron Ewert, one of the developers behind The
Bridges mixed-use projects along South Jefferson
Street and Walnut Avenue, is working on an access
point along the Roanoke River that he plans to have
operational in 2015.
"We hope to get ours up and running, as one of the
first to get the momentum started [for the Roanoke
River Blueway]. It's for kayaks, canoes, tubes, paddle
boards, etc.," says Ewert, a former soccer goalkeeper
for Roanoke College.
THE

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The Roanoker - January/February 2015

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