This article was originally published in the July/August 2023 issue of UltraRunning Magazine. Subscribe today for similar features on ultra training, racing and more.
On December 15, 2022, the Pro Trail Runners Association (PTRA) was formed. The organization is headquartered in Switzerland but operates internationally, with a mission focused on: “Athletes Rights, Competitions, Antidoping, and the Environment.”(1)
Prior to the formation of PTRA, a US-based organization, “Runners for Public Lands” was established, with a mission statement of: “Inspiring and organizing all runners for climate action, sustainability practices, the protection of public lands and equitable access to nature.”(2)
A friend termed PTRA, which is only open to elites, a “labor union for runners.” We discussed how Runners for Public Lands is very different, emphasizing public land advocacy and stewardship. It dawned on me that PTRA, being founded in Europe, naturally is focused on European issues, while the US organization, by necessity, is focused on the public accessing public land, an issue that Europe does not struggle with.
This is the elephant in our North American room which you might not have even thought of: there’s a good chance you’ve recently run on public land. For almost every trail run or trail race, our sport is reliant on public land. Do we take it for granted?
Public land is a crucial factor in our sport, yet it is rarely discussed. The two most famous ultra races in North America are the Western States 100 and Hardrock 100 and have 369 and 140 runners, respectively—about the same as your local turkey trot. Meanwhile, about 10,000 runners enter races during the week at UTMB. There are events you’ve never heard of, from Thailand to Slovenia, that dwarf our marquee events in North America.
Perhaps this is how we prefer it. Nevertheless, it is apparent why the sport’s emphasis has shifted toward Europe.
Professional runners would like to be well compensated, the media would like a story on the best athletes competing at the same race and every runner would like to enter a race without having to survive an irritating lottery six months in advance. But all of that is a pipe dream—it will never happen—when the premier events on this continent are restricted to the same participation numbers as the 5k fundraiser for your local school, and part of the reason is because of restricted access to public lands.
At my first race in the Alps, those of us on the podium were handed medals by the mayor. Last summer at the Marathon du Mont Blanc (10,000 runners total), the district governor gave a welcoming speech. Meanwhile, in Boulder, CO, vaunted as one of the running capitals of the world, the city council voted to make any competitive event in open space and mountain parks illegal. Boulder County banned any competitive event in Boulder County parks and open space. Even the Boulder District of Roosevelt National Forest made competitive events illegal.
Why? Because Europe and America have vastly different approaches to public land and recreation. While our conservation policies are outstanding and very appreciated, we should also be aware of the significant impact a restrictionist mindset has on our sport and how, rather than protecting our environment, restrictionism might actually be limiting our overall environmental efforts.
Sierraclub.org states: “The Sierra Club was founded by John Muir, in California in 1892. The stated goals were to explore, enjoy, and render accessible the mountain regions of the Pacific Coast; to publish authentic information concerning them; and to enlist the support and cooperation of the people and government in preserving the forest and other natural resources of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.” Exploring, enjoying and accessing our public lands were—and still are—the essential first step in protecting them. Europe promotes people going outside and recreating, which has resulted in their citizens voting for much better environmental protection than we see in the US.
There is a weird one-liner that has somehow found its way into our lexicon: “Love it to death.” Applied often to trail usage, this is a crippling descriptor that, besides being an oxymoron, lacks supporting evidence. We are great at setting aside a terrific number of public lands, but then are unwilling to take care of them. Trails are like the streets in your town: maintain them regularly or they will fall apart. When a street gets potholes, do we ban cars because the cars “loved the roads to death”? No, we simply fix them. The same is true of trail maintenance. It is incorrect and insulting for land managers to blame resource degradation on people who recreate, when they are not doing their job of maintaining our public lands.
What is our role in this as runners?
In 2019, Marc Peruzzi wrote an infamous article for Outside titled, “Trail Runners Are Lazy Parasites,” and doubled down on that insult with a sub-head of, “They’re exploding in numbers and having a massive impact on our favorite trails, yet the short-shorts crowd almost never pitches in when it comes to trail work.”
The outcry was predictable and immediate, including canceled subscriptions, with the editor writing, “This column generated an enormous reaction,” and then printed a rebuttal by ultrarunner Stephanie Case. (3)
In a personal email, Peruzzi told me he wasn’t just going for clickbait; he sincerely felt he raised valid points. Setting aside the inflammatory language, a quick look supports his assertion: trail runners are generally non-participants in trail work. We draft in the slipstream of other outdoor groups doing the heavy lifting.
Climbers formed the Access Fund in 1991, stating: “We are climbing advocates, and we are a powerful force for protecting the places and the sport we love.” They have developed an annual budget of $3.7 million, constructed over 65,000 feet of trails and helped purchase or protect 90 climbing areas.(4)
Mountain bikers formed the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) in 1988 to fight widespread trail closures.(5) They have constructed over 5,000 trails and taught responsible trail riding worldwide, with a budget of $7 million. It’s worth noting that climbers and bikers are fighting to access public land, while runners usually do have access; it’s the races and their permits that are our pinch point.
There are countless examples of advocacy and conservancy work by every other sport using public land. One example is the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy which has parlayed a million supporters into an annual budget of $11 million and is working on the incredible goal of constructing the “Great American Rail Trail” which will cross the United States, coast-to-coast.(6)
Fishermen and hunters seem to have priority access to public lands, and for a good reason: they pay for it. Around $1 billion a year in fees, licenses and taxes go from the hook and bullet groups to state wildlife and conservation. That’s almost $1 billion more than we pay.
Ultrarunner Mike Foote said much of the same thing five years ago in an opinion piece titled, “No Free Lunch: Trail Running and the Public Lands Debate.”(7) In this highly recommended article, Foote cites HB621 which proposed to sell off some of our public land and asked, “Will we organize and fully leverage our 8.1 million members to stand up for public lands protection and access? Or will we wait until we are forced to react to a threat that limits our ability to explore the places we love like so many others before us?”
Trail runners outnumber all the groups mentioned above. So maybe we should show up? Let’s start with greater awareness:
- Trail running is dependent on public land.
- Protecting our sport really means protecting our natural ecosystem and our access to it.
Then, along with increasing our DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) efforts, we can join with other outdoor groups to:
- Volunteer for trail days and stewardship projects, whether related to a race or not
- Become informed about our public lands and actively participate in politics and advocacy.
Hey, if Deb Haaland, a 35th generation New Mexican, card-carrying member of Laguna Pueblo, Native American single mother—and a marathon and trail runner—can become the first Native American Cabinet Secretary in history, heading up the entire Department of Interior, maybe each of us can and should step up too.
References
- Pro Trail Runners Association: trailrunners.run
- Runners for Public Lands: runnersforpubliclands.org
- outsideonline.com/culture/opinion/trail-runners-are-lazy-parasites
- accessfund.org
- imba.com
- railstotrails.org
- trailrunnermag.com/people/culture-people/trail-running-public-lands