HMBIM Extends its Focus on Greening Events through Roaming Packet Pickups
Organization takes packet pickup process to the athletes at 3 additional Bay Area locations
Half Moon Bay, CA - Leaders of the Half Moon Bay International Marathon (HMBIM) announced an innovation to the traditional race procedure of packet pickup which improves the Green aspects of their event. For the 2012 event, the HMBIM team will provide roaming packet pickup at 4 different locations in the San Francisco Bay Area where many of the registered athletes reside. The organization will provide 2 pickup days in a Bay Area Peninsula location, 2 pickup days in downtown San Francisco, and 1 in the East Bay, concluding with 2 pickup days in Half Moon Bay.
"We founded this event with firm principles of greening every process we could," said Jennifer Dill, Chief Green Officer. "After analyzing the registration statistics we decided to experiment this year with distributed packet pickup in an effort to save hundreds of athletes from traveling to Half Moon Bay. It's an investment in both time and money, but we felt it was an innovative approach."
The HMBIM developed partnerships to host the Packet Pickups at stores in each location which also served the running community. This includes Fleet Feet Menlo Park for the September 7th and 8th dates, the Sports Basement Presidio location on September 14th and 15th, and Sports Basement Walnut Creek for September 16th.
In 2011, the HMBIM worked with Athletes for a Fit Planet to help the process of applying for Green certification from the non-profit Council for Responsible Sport. The effort was rewarded with the coveted Gold level certification for the event, one of only 2 awarded in 2011.
“Athletes for a Fit Planet applauds HMBIM’s adoption of ‘roving’ packet pickup as it will significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the race," said Bruce Rayner, founder and Chief Green Officer. "That’s because every mile you drive in the average 20-mile-per-gallon car produces about a pound of CO2. So by having packet pickup in multiple Bay Area locations, driving is dramatically reduced and so is the amount of CO2 produced. Hats off to HMBIM. This is just another example of how the race organizers are setting the standard for eco-friendly running events.”
The effort concludes with two final packet pickups in Half Moon Bay during race weekend, September 21st and 22nd. The 2nd running of the HMBIM will feature athletes from 35 states and 6 countries, with a high concentration of California and Bay Area athletes.
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About the Half Moon Bay International Marathon:
Featuring "26.2 Miles of Running Heaven", the Half Moon Bay International Marathon (HMBIM) was founded in 2011 to showcase the unique beauty of the California coast along with some of the best weather a marathon athlete could ever hope for. The inaugural event in 2011 featured athletes from 25 states and 4 countries and sold out in two months despite very little promotion. An official Boston Qualifier event sanctioned by the USA Track and Field organization, the HMBIM also focused on creating an eco-friendly event to consider the precious coastal community and worked to attain official status with the Council for Responsible Sport, receiving the coveted Gold Certification from this organization in the Event's very first year. The HMBIM features a full and half marathon and 10k and 5k events all on the same day.