Spring brings a new 'Challenge' to local trails
Black Mountain Greenway Challenge heads south for 2022 return
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
March 30, 2022
The Oaks Trail will be featured as part of the course, April 9, when the Black Mountain Greenway Challenge returns for its 14th year. The event will raise money to support the local trail system. Photo by Fred McCormick
Every year, spring’s return to the Swannanoa Valley brings sunshine, warmth and a colorful display of fresh blooms, along with an opportunity for runners to test their endurance while supporting local trails in the middle of it all.
The tradition returns for its 14th year, beginning at 2 p.m., Saturday, April 9, when the Black Mountain Greenway Challenge 5K & 10K settles into a new location at the Town of Black Mountain Recreation & Parks facility on 304 Black Mountain Avenue.
The fundraiser, hosted by local nonprofit organization, the Black Mountain Greenways and Trails Committee and the recreation and parks department, was last held as an in-person event in 2019, at the former Pisgah Brewing Co. location on Eastside Drive. The Challenge was canceled in 2020 before returning with a “do-it-yourself course” a year ago.
Its return, which will raise money to support the construction of a trail connecting the recently completed pathway at Cragmont Park to nearby Cragmont Avenue, re-establishes an important annual tradition, according to Nathan West.
“This event is great for community-building,” said West, one of the 12 members of the committee coordinating the race. “A big part of the focus is to bring people together, bring businesses together and create that sense of community again.”
Dozens of local businesses are sponsoring the upcoming Challenge, including presenting sponsor, WNC Outdoor Collective, which will host packet pick-up and registration events, from 4:30 - 6:30 p.m., Friday, April 8 and from 12 - 1:45 p.m. on the day of the race. The Black Mountain Avenue outdoor retail business will also donate all tips and 10% of sales in its courtyard, March 30, to the Black Mountain Greenways and Trails Committee.
“The sponsors really stepped up this year,” West said. “We’ve raised more money through sponsorships this year than we have in any other in the race’s history.”
The course will take runners down Terry Estate Drive to Vance Avenue, where they will head west on The Oaks Trail. As they enter Veterans Park, participants will travel along the River Trail Loop and Dr. John Wilson Community Garden Trail. The final stretch will come back through The Oaks Trail, with the 5K ending at the recreation and parks building. The 10K will repeat the course.
Three existing trails in the greenway system will be part of the course, April 9, when the Black Mountain Greenway Challenge gets underway. The race will support the construction of a trail that will connect Cragmont Park to Cragmont Avenue. Photo by Fred McCormick
Race services will be provided by Event Mercenaries.
“Highlighting these trails was important, in making sure we promote what we already have with our greenway system,” West said. “It also brings attention to what we’d like to see in the future.”
The Black Mountain Greenway system currently includes seven trails, several of which are connected by sidewalks. Once complete, the network of greenways will allow walkers, runners and cyclists to travel safely throughout town.
The Challenge will offer six options for participants this year. Runners and walkers who would like to participate in the in-person 5K and 10K can register for $30, while a $25 option will allow participants to run the course between 12 p.m., Friday, April 1 to 12 p.m., Sunday, April 10. Another $25 option offers an opportunity to run either race at any location.
For more information about the 2022 Black Mountain Greenway Challenge, or to register, visit the race page at runsignup.com.