Richmond Is Built to Move: How Sports Backers Shaped RVA's Active Lifestyle #042

The Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k presented by Kroger is RVA’s favorite spring tradition! Since 2000, people from around the Richmond region and beyond have gathered to share in the journey of crossing the 10k finish line, sign up now:

https://www.sportsbackers.org/event/ukrops-monument-avenue-10k

Learn more about Sports Backers: 

https://www.sportsbackers.org

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https://www.instagram.com/sportsbackers

Richmond is a city where being active isn’t something you have to think about — it’s just part of how we live.

Between the river, the trails, the parks, and the constant flow of events happening across RVA, movement feels built into the culture here. But a lot of that didn’t happen by accident.

In this episode, we sit down with the brand behind some of Richmond’s biggest and most recognizable events — Sports Backers.

We chat with Will Dixon, Executive Director who’s been with the organization for nearly 20 years and now leads the vision of the organization into 2026 and beyond…

And Nan Callahan, who leads PR and communications and helps bring all of these killer events and initiatives to life.

If you’ve ever experienced the Richmond Marathon, River City Half, Dominion Riverrock, or the Monument Avenue 10K, you’ve already seen their impact. But what most people don’t realize is how much goes on behind the scenes — and how deeply their work has shaped the way this city moves, connects, and shows up for one another.

We talk about why Richmond has become such an active city, how these events come together, and why they matter far beyond race day.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why Richmond is such a uniquely active city
• The hidden mental and social benefits of movement
• What Sports Backers actually does beyond events
• How major events like the Monument Avenue 10K come together
• The rise of run clubs and community-driven fitness in Richmond
• Making movement accessible for all experience levels
• Youth programs, Fitness Warriors, and local impact
• The role of volunteers in powering these events
• The Fall Line Trail and the future of active living in RVA
• Why you should run/walk the Monument 10K with your community

Quick interjection to invite you to Vera House Studios. If you are a local Richmond business, entrepreneur, brand owner, or service provider—and you know you need to create better content to get your products and services in front of the right people—we can help.

Transcript

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Welcome back to the Vera House Podcast. If you live here in Richmond, you know that. It's one of those cities where being active and outside is just simply part of living here and part of our culture. Between the river, the trails, the parks, and how walkable so much of the city is, there's always something going on. Whether it's running, cycling, hiking, or just getting outside, it feels like everyone we know participates in it to some degree. A big part of that energy comes from all of the amazing events that happen here throughout the year, which bring people together. If you've ever heard of the Richmond Marathon, River City Half Marathon, Dominion Energy River Rock, or the upcoming Ucrops Monument Avenue 10K, then you've likely been impacted in some way by an organization called Sportsbackers, a Richmond-based nonprofit focused on getting people more active and more connected through movement. They've been doing exactly that for decades already, and whether you've realized it or not, they've played a huge role in shaping what an active life in Richmond really means. Today, we're fortunate and grateful to be joined by two of the many amazing Sportsbackers team members behind some of the biggest events that happen here in Richmond. Here with us today is Will Dixon, Executive Director of Sportsbackers, who's been with the organization for nearly 20 years and now leads the vision of the organization moving forward into 2026 and beyond. We also have Nan Callahan, who leads the PR and communications and helps bring all of these killer events and initiatives to life. Today, we're going to be talking about what makes Richmond such an active city and how you can get the absolute most out of living in the River City, and why fun events like the U-Crops Monument Avenue 10K have become such a core part of Richmond culture. So, welcome to the Vera House Podcast. Thank you for being with us today. Thanks for having us. Yeah, yeah. Really appreciate it. It's a conversation that I know we've been looking forward to. Yeah. I think everybody in this room is active to some degree, and what a great place to be active and to live. So, let's maybe start there. Let's talk about why is Richmond such a cool place to live if you're somebody who's either already active, somebody who's aspiring to be more active, or maybe you're just moving here and wondering, how can I be active in a city like this? Yeah, I mean, I think the short answer is there's tons of options, right? And I always say this about Richmond as a whole is that if you're bored, you're not even trying, right? And so, if you're looking for a way to get active, whether that's through CrossFit or Cycle Studio or Row Studio or running or cycling or rock climbing, swimming, Richmond has it, right? So, I think just the variety of options that really caters to any level of fitness, no matter where you are on your kind of active living journey, we have something for you here. Yeah. One I know before we started recording, you said that you've ran before, ran a marathon. What's your sport of choice? Is it running? It depends on the season. Okay. And that's just the way that I operate. I was, just a handful of weeks ago, I was doing a lot of calisthenic type work. Before that, I was back in the pool swimming a little bit. Before that, I was on my bike. Before that, I was running. It changes with the seasons. Yeah. How about you, Nan? I'm an exercise class girl. I love the camaraderie of being in a class. I like the accountability of being in a class also. And then I really love walking. That makes me, in my older age, I'm like, just love a walk. I love being outside. I also think Richmond just has so much cool architecture, cool streets, everything to see that it, that really is just a really fun way for me to get out there. And then also love running. So I also find that the variation is important for me to kind of keep motivated and keep being excited about doing it. Yeah. How about Perry? We're walkers. Yeah. Big walkers. Love that walk in life. Daily walk. That's how I start my day. Nice. Gets the blood pumping, gets the brain working a little better, but that's about it. I'm a gym guy. So I like going to the gym, lifting weights, doing that a little bit of cardio here and there. And I know that's probably counterintuitive. I think maybe to the way that Mike likes to kind of approach being active, but in the gym or walking is where you'll find me occasionally on a bike. But you know, we have a funny story about the bike ride. Yeah, we definitely do. I like the gym. I just don't go, you know, put me in some mud, you know, like put me in some mud or like, I'll figure it out. I'll be lifting rocks or stairs. I'd rather do that. Yeah. Is that like the Ironman type challenge where you're just, you're, you're trudging through the mud and crawling under barbed wire and then you're, and then you're rowing a boat. Like you're, you know, you're crossing the James in a rowboat. Oh, I don't know. I'm making it up. What's it called? Tough Mudder, I think. Yeah. Mudders are big. Yeah. Or like Spartan Race. Spartan Race. There's a couple that where, yeah, they do some army crawls and the crazy stuff. Yeah. I have no desire to be like hurt in my workout. So I stayed away from those. I like the controlled environment of the gym, you know, and then on a walk, you can see the city, you'll get some fresh air. It's really, it's a really good way to like clear your mind. I think that's a big part of being physically active. Like that's, in my personal opinion, that's like the biggest, you call it like a side effect of doing anything physical for long enough is it clears your mind. You get to focus in on just the one thing that you're doing. Or like, if you're on a walk, you can just let your mind like run wild and you kind of process things as you're walking. And then when you're done, you feel like the, just the endorphins and like a little bit of that adrenaline boost. And for me, it's like, that's the best way to start the day. Like most people like a cup of coffee. I'll just go for a walk. You're speaking my language. Like that, that to me is like the, all the hidden benefits of physical activity that people think, you know, that you think about weight loss, you think about maybe, you know, running a race or hitting a certain goal. But to me, it's all those intangibles. It's the mental health, the mental clarity, the social connections that you're able to make through it. Like there's, there's a lot of hidden benefit to physical activity that I think is good for society as a whole. That is not just the, the benchmark, you know, how fast can I do a thing? How, you know, how much weight can I lose? Whatever it may be. Yeah. It's just regulating. It feels like it keeps me on track. Like I think even when we have busy times, like if it's event season or things like that, if I'm prioritizing my own physical activity and like getting out there, even if it's just for a 15 minute walk or something around, I'm much better in every other facet of my life. Yeah. Yeah. Any day that I don't start the day with a walk, the entire day, it feels like a little off kilter. And I like, I have to make it up by going to the gym that evening, which I don't prefer. And it kind of just this, the calendar shifts a little bit. So it is a big part. And like you mentioned, like if you have it apart as a part of your normal, like daily activities, and then maybe it's, you don't do it as much or you miss a day, it just kind of throws things off a little bit. But the mental health benefits, I think they used the term, the runner's high was coined a while back. And I think people think that that's like pseudoscience or it's like you, I didn't get the runner's high when I went on a run or what have you, but it's real and it's tangible. And it's like, it's the secret hidden benefit to being active for sure. Yeah. Well, I think like our body is pretty capable of solving most of our problems, you know, like of course, and not to get too philosophical too quickly. Will then. Yeah. I think cycling pulled me out of depression. Like, I don't want to be too drastic by saying like, oh, it saved my life. But like, yeah, like our, when you're stationary, you can get stuck. Like you can get stuck in this trap and like start ruminating and you feel down about yourself. And it's hard to like break that pattern. And so walking is a great way to just like get started. And I do the same thing. I walk like two to five miles like every day and it does. There's something about walking and trying not to like fill your mind with music or podcasts. Like I love that stuff, but just go on a walk, like no headphones, just go on a walk. And you'd be surprised at the end of your five mile walk. You're like, wow, I feel so much better. I wonder why. And yeah, being active is like, it is the antidote to like, uh, antidote the right word. Like, yeah, it's, it's the solution. Yes. It's like, it does so many great things for you. So I'm sure most people listening would hopefully agree with that, but let's say somebody is new here. Let's say they just moved to Richmond. Obviously everybody's different, but do you have any recommendations on maybe where someone would start? If there are someone who is in the process of making friends, getting out into the community, trying to be a little bit more social, where's like a good place to start to just say, let me get out of my comfort zone, get a little more active, be outside. What are some things that they should go and check out or look into? There's so many different neighborhoods in Richmond. I would just encourage them to get out and see those on foot. Maybe, um, you know, obviously everybody's fitness level and what they're comfortable with is going to be different, but I think that's a great way to get familiar with a, your new home. And then you never know who you're going to see. We have so many great parks. Um, the James river park system, obviously all our great trail networks, the James river. Um, when we're talking about mental health, I think that also makes a huge difference to get out and not be in your normal environment. Um, and a lot of people just aren't aware of what great resources like that, that we have steps away from a city. Um, and then outside of that, I think once you kind of get a little bit more comfortability, we have so many great walking clubs, running clubs, local studios, um, meetup groups that like meet up on Facebook to do various types of activities. And I just think it's a great way to meet people in something that's relatively low intimidation factor. Um, and you're doing something positive, you're doing something and it's also always easier. I find to talk to people and be, um, more distracted, maybe even more authentic when you're doing something else. Like whether that's walking or running with somebody, there's something about that. Like, you're not looking them right in the eye while you're like talking. It's a great way to kind of remove that first nerves about meeting people and Richmonders are friendly. So I think doing that and getting out there and there's like meetup groups, walking groups, running groups, literally, I think now it's amazing. Like every night of the week in every neighborhood at every coffee shop, every brewery all over. Yeah. Who was it that just put together a really awesome list of all the run clubs and walking clubs? I haven't seen it. Gosh. Now I'm intrigued. Now I'm going to go look. I shouldn't have even brought it up. Damn. We'll find it. No, it was really impressive. But to Nan's point, I mean, there's something for everybody. Right. And, and if you're new to Richmond, go around your neighborhood, there's probably a niche, you know, fitness studio of some sort there. If you're into orange theory, if you're into cycling or if you're into getting rowing, whatever it may be, stop somebody walking down the street, just like, it's one of the things that I, um, I really appreciate about Richmond and our active community as a whole is that if you're on your bike or if you're going for a run, you can wave to people and they generally will wave back. You know, like when was the last time you were driving in your car and you just happened to wave to some stranger and they waved back? Like that doesn't, you don't have that human connection there. So like, you know, stop somebody say, Hey, where, you know, where do you like to walk around here? Where do you like to run around here? Um, and then I'll give a plug, you know, pick up the phone and call sports backers. Like, we'd be happy to just talk to you about what you like to do. And we love being the connectors of, of, you know, people to their passion. So yeah. Um, happy to help however we can. Well, so let's talk about that because that's an amazing resource to think like, you know, you think about how you could call other hotlines for certain things, but to learn about your city and how to get more active, to know that there's almost a hotline where you could call or get information. Or of course, I'm sure a sports backers, social media is a great outlet as well. So let's talk about sports backers. Like what is the mission of sports backers and how does it play into everything we've been talking about? Yeah. Yeah. Our mission is pretty straightforward. It's to inspire active living. Um, so we do that in a number of ways. Uh, our events are probably the ways that, that people know of us the most. So the Allianz Richmond marathon, the U crops monument Avenue, 10 K dominion energy river rock, the list goes on and on the car max, tacky light run, the Markell corporate run, the Virginia credit union, river city, half and five K shout out to all the sponsors. Um, but we own and operate about 12 or 13 different events throughout the year, mainly in the cardiovascular running space. Um, river rock being kind of the big exception there on the riverfront, um, that we partnered with venture Richmond on, uh, for kind of the outdoor sports and music festival. So the events are, are big and they're kind of the, the reason for the active community to come together and celebrate. And, you know, everybody has their own individual personal goals, but then you almost have this kind of spiritual experience of going through a thing with other people, um, that are kind of on the same course as you are. Uh, but outside of that, we operate fitness clubs in about 70 different schools throughout the region, uh, primarily in title one schools, totally free of charge before and after school, about 3,500 kids that participate in those clubs on an annual basis. Um, we have a program called fitness warriors that trains up individuals generally from low income communities to be group fitness instructors. And then in exchange for that training, they provide a free weekly group fitness class in their community. So we have about 60 free fitness classes happening every week and churches, libraries, community centers throughout the region. Um, we had about 20,000 class visits to those classes last year. Um, and then we have an advocacy, uh, arm around bike and pedestrian infrastructure. Um, so really working on the policy front funding front, um, to protect our more vulnerable road users. Um, so as I was saying before, we really view that as kind of pieces of the active living puzzle. How can we reduce barriers and expand access to physical activity, whether you want to run a marathon or if you're just trying to get to get to your job? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's incredible. Like this, this sounds very well rounded when it comes to the community aspect of it. And you know, this kind of just makes me think of someone being new to Richmond and yes, there are lots of resources and yes, you can ask someone someone on the street, but maybe that's not how they go about finding out what to do. They usually take to the internet, take the Facebook, take the Instagram master friends or connections. What I found is like Reddit is a really good resource there. The Richmond RVA Reddits are really good for things like that, but the community involvement and then the arm of it, where you take someone from underprivileged communities and then train them to be instructors and then give that class away for free. That's just, it's incredible. It's like heart emoji, right? That's just one of those things that just warms the heart. When you think about what the potential impact it is on, you know, on that community, on the people that become instructors, giving them a purpose and then giving the class away for free. You know, we see a lot of philanthropic philanthropic, I should say, you know operations in Richmond, but I don't think I see personally just the direct one-to-one impact on the community. Something like that is a very visible representation of what that looks like. And we don't want to be the ones telling other people how to be active, right? Like I don't, I don't, you know, I grew up in the suburbs out in the Western Henrico. Like, I don't know what it's like growing up in a housing project with, you know, no access to green space or very limited access to green space or the resources, not having the resources to be able to just choose how I spend my time. So for us, finding individuals from those communities that can actually shape what, you know, they could, they raise their hand and say, I want to get my community moving. And all we're saying is, all right, we're here to help, right? And so for the Fitness Warriors classes in particular, those instructors actually decide what kind of class they're going to offer. So we don't say, oh, you're going to do a weightlifting class, or you're going to go do a running, you're going to start up a run club. Like that might not be what the community is looking for. And so, you know, we have everything from Aqua Zumba to dance classes to, you know, some high intensity interval training, but the instructor themselves get to dictate what that class looks like. So we just wanted, you know, it's, it's kind of a, it's a handout, not a handout, right? Aqua Zumba. Yeah. I interviewed somebody who teaches the Aqua Zumba class and the zest she was giving in person. I was like, I might not make it through this Aqua Zumba class. You're hardcore. That's like the spin. Yeah. That's like the spin classes where like you're on the bike, like dying. And then the instructor's like just having a ball. They're talking the whole time. Oh man. Yeah. I know how that goes. So, um, how long has Sports Backers been around? They've been around for a while, right? Yeah. So we were, we were formed in 1991. Um, and I don't want to spend too much time on a history lesson, but we were set up as a sports commission and there's sports commissions like Sports Backers in, at least at the time in pretty much every mid-major city around, around the country. And what those sports commissions do is they bid on events to come to their city. So the easiest thing for somebody to think about NCAA tournaments going on right now. Right. So, um, rounds one and two, I think were, there was down in Greenville, South Carolina, there was some route first round, second round games. Well, there's a sports commission in Greenville that said, Hey, NCAA bring the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament to our city. Right. And so there's usually a bid fee. So you pay the NCAA and they come in and you, the reason you do that is to generate economic activity. Right. Right. So you're getting the tax revenue from the visitation and, and all the good stuff. And so that's what Sports Backers was set up to do, not necessarily at that scale, but we did have some success with, um, the men's, uh, final four soccer championships in the early nineties. Um, we hosted some figure skating and some fencing and some field hockey, some various kind of bid on events. And the biggest inflection point that we had was in 1998. The Richmond marathon was owned by the Richmond newspapers by the time dispatch, but it was the Richmond newspapers marathon. And, uh, it wasn't doing so hot. Um, love the times of spatch, uh, turns out they don't know how to operate a running race, you know, to like, like some professionals. So Sports Backers, seeing it as an economic development opportunity, stepped in to take over ownership of the Richmond marathon in 1998. And that was really like light bulb goes off, you know, here, here's the new, the new path that we're going to go down. Started the U crops in Monument Avenue, 10 K a couple of years later, and then kind of the rest is history. Right? So we, we really started owning and operating our own events so that we could be in control of our destiny a little bit and build something within. Right. So instead of having to go out to all these other groups and say, Hey, you, you should come to Richmond. We're going to say, no, we're going to just make Richmond something that, you know, a place where these types of events thrive. Yeah. Yeah. What's have you seen like some really big changes like since, cause you've been involved for 20 plus years. Yeah. 18 years. I'm making it make me feel old, but yeah. Oh man. Well, sorry about it. Yeah. Too bad, too bad. But it's the way it goes. Yeah. I mean, does it seem significantly different than when you first started with Sports Backers? I think the, the, the fitness industry as a whole has changed a ton. Right. So, you know, again, I keep on talking about, but like these niche fitness studios, like they didn't exist 20 years ago. Yeah. At least not nearly at the scale that they do now. I think Richmond, we've had a long history and been really blessed to have a strong network of YMCAs. We have a, you know, again, Sports Backers haven't been around for as long as we have with the training teams that have been around since the late nineties, early two thousands. Like we've, we've had this culture of doing, um, and, and of active living that I think has been around for a long time, but what's been really fun to see has, is particularly post pandemic, all these run clubs have just been popping up all over the place. And, and to be honest, like we, we did, we wrestled internally with like, what's our relationship with these run clubs, right? Like we have our own training teams. We, you know, that's, that's part of our revenue model. It's part of our business models that we need people doing the marathon training team, 10k training team. But at the end of the day, like we're all, we're all paddling in the same direction, right? Like we are missions to inspire active living. And so how can we lift up others or shine the spotlight on others that are kind of participating in that mission with us? Yeah. So that's been the, the big thing in recent years has been the, the, these just new run clubs and walking clubs and hiking clubs across all different demographics, younger people, you know, just all, all over the region. It's just, it's really cool to see. Yeah. And all different like fitness abilities, like there's plenty that are all about, you know, not leaving any runner behind. And we have a walking, I mean, there's even walking groups now too, that meet up and are just doing like walks together. But then there's also, if you wanted to find those people that want to do like a sub eight minute mile and really care about that and want to get up at 5am, they're there too. So I think that just also makes it, we can't be everywhere at one time is another great thing that this has just improved upon. And then also another huge part of our mission is like accessibility for everyone. And similar to kind of what we were talking about with Fitness Warriors, you know, we do realize not everyone may be a hundred percent comfortable when they first start running, showing up at marathon training team. Like that might not be where they're at right then. So, you know, we don't want to discourage anybody from, they're more comfortable going to the coffee shop around the corner from their house that has a run club that meets up and they know that, you know, five people go their pace. Like that's, we're all working towards the same thing. So it's been really great and it does not seem like it's slowing down and we certainly don't want it to. Yeah. Do you think that that has had an impact on the types of people that you see coming to the events now, like with the creation or the formation of all of these different groups, which makes it more inclusive for people probably makes it more accessible as something maybe they wanted to do, but didn't feel like they had a community, the community kind of created the community for itself. Yeah. But then maybe that's the gateway for people to then go and sign up for an event. Like, have you seen that there are more first timers, more walkers or more people that got into a run club and now want to run a marathon? I think so. Definitely. I also think because so many of them do the event together, like that's huge too. If you're going to sign up, you know, you might be comfortable running with your run club, but then when six other people at run clubs say, we're going to run the Ucreps Monument Avenue 10K. Do you want to do it? We're going to meet at the start line, you know, do our normal run together. I think that's huge. I also think while it's been, you know, all ages still at all these run clubs, it's been a huge increase in younger participants that we've noticed, which is really cool to see. I mean, for some reason, running is the cool thing to do right now and we're not going to question it. Very excited about it. But yeah, I think it also just when people are comfortable and then they see themselves represented in an event, they understand that that space is for them. And that's huge. That's a huge thing about Richmond in general that I love is I think Richmond is open to everyone and really wants to have that community spirit and love that, you know, we're prideful about being a good community. And so that's something that these clubs have just continued to foster that then trickles into our events, which is awesome. Yeah, that's great. I would just add that. I think that there is some intentionality on our, on our part to, to make sure that what we are offering is as accessible as we intend it to be. So through partnerships with like sportable on the adaptive athletic side of things, like we're not the adaptive athletics professionals and experts that they are. And so we sit down with them to say, okay, how, how, what do we need to do to make sure that your athletes can participate in this event? And then even groups like we off the couch, which is really targeted more towards the black community. Like, you know, we want to make sure that, are there any barriers here that, that we just don't know about that we need to make sure that we're addressing in how we operate our events or how we promote our events? Like, how do we make sure that, that we're again, kind of removing those barriers to, to make sure everybody feels like they got a spot. Yeah. We off the couch. Yeah. I've not heard of that. Oh, here we go. That's a real thing. If they've ever run in your neighborhood, you will have heard of it. Cause they yell we off the couch pretty frequently. It's pretty hype. I haven't, I don't even think I've seen like the group running, but that's just such a funny name, like we off the couch. I love it. Yeah. I love it. It sounds cool. Anthony Clary runs it. He actually, Anthony had come through our fitness warrior program and has kind of spun off or stood up this separate nonprofit that called we off the couch. They they're doing great work. Yeah. That's awesome. I've actually ran with them before, like, yeah, but it wasn't even like intentional. I just ended up being because they run up and down a pump house drive. And I was, and I was running one time and I was just like, all right, I got a whole squad now. Like we're, we're ready to go. Yeah. I was going to say similarly with the run clubs. I just remembered this and wanted to plug it. Cause it's getting ready to come up. In the fall for the first time ever, we did our own run club grants. So like little mini grants. I think it was up to $500 that you could apply for if you were a local run club with us. And it's just a quick application online. I think it was a really cool way for us to get more knowledge about the clubs that we might not even know about that Richmond has. And then also we want to help these clubs in like an authentic way. Like, I don't want to make you feel like you have to sign up. We'd love you to sign up for our events, but like, if you see us and become familiar with us, I don't want you to think that's the only reason that we're like bought into what you're doing. So it was a really cool way to kind of hear what they actually needed. Like, we also have a huge warehouse with a lot of old event apparel and supplies that, you know, selfishly we're always looking to clean out a little bit. So we had a warehouse like sale day for anybody that was applied through the run club grant also. So that'll be coming up again in the spring and we'll have that on our social media. So if you're involved with a run club, definitely encourage you to apply because it was a nice way to be able to provide some of the needs for the clubs. Yeah. That's a good plug. It's also just in the sustainable sphere. So you're not just, you know, you're not just tossing it, you're, you're upcycling it, as we like to say, you know, kind of returning it back to the community for somebody else to use. That's really cool. Yeah. And nothing wrong with, you know, Amazon target, Nike, Adidas, whatever. But it's like, if you can work with a local organization, much better, you know, and especially if you already have gear, equipment, resources, grants, it's like, why, why wouldn't you, why wouldn't you do that? So, yeah, I think that's amazing. You even mentioned this term adaptive athletics, I think you said, and I know maybe that's sportables thing, but what does, what does that mean? So that's for people that have disabilities or maybe like couldn't participate in a standard sport in a normal way, or what does that mean? Yeah. So it, it would be, you know, a wheelchair user that wanted to participate in one of the running races or somebody that has vision impairment that wants to, wants to participate. So sportable offers all sorts of programs. I'm giving, giving plugs, but sportable offers all different types of programs, rock climbing, paddling, running, cycling, volleyball. I'm going to rugby. I mean, they have, they have all sorts of different sports. Well, it speaks to Richmond. It's what we've been saying, right? Which is how the community all works together. And so knowing that these different organizations are all friendly and work together, even what we're doing right here right now, it's like, yeah, it's a Richmond thing. And it's like, we're all working towards one goal. Yeah. Rising tide lifts all boats. Yeah, yeah, exactly. You know, by no means are we a sports podcast. I don't think we're the right people, but, um, but we do care about like being healthy and just living. Like I sound so cliche, like live your best life, but you know, yeah, it's like, you want to, I think so many people have this desire to like leave somewhere because they think what they're looking for is somewhere else. And then once you go somewhere else, you realize that that's not the case. And I've traveled all over the world and I end up coming back to Richmond because all of the stuff that I thought I was looking for when I was in my early twenties, I went and searched for, and then it's like, oh, actually it's right here, you know? And we have the river, we have the trails, we have all these events and like, uh, rock climbing and I'm not a rock climber, but if I wanted to give it a shot, it's here. And if I wanted to do, you know, try out these other things, you even mentioned like fencing and stuff like that. Like this stuff exists here. Not that it doesn't exist elsewhere either, but why not do it in a place that has elevation, has the river, has a great community, has cool restaurants. So like we love Richmond, so we're an advocate for it. And we love to see like all these organizations work together for a common goal. We get feedback all the time on our events. The larger ones in particular, the marathon and the 10K that our events have that big city feel, but kind of small town accessibility. Um, so it's, it has everything from a, from an energy and an experience standpoint that a, that a major city marathon or race would have, but it's a heck of a lot easier and a heck of a lot cheaper, um, to, you know, run the Richmond marathon than I won't call it any others, but you know, New York, right? Like, you know, a larger marathon. So we kind of got the best of both worlds a little bit. That's kind of like, that's the charm of Richmond. And I believe that oftentimes you do have to like be away from a, from Richmond for a while, go on your search for the things that maybe Richmond doesn't have. I also did the same thing that Mike did. I didn't travel the world, but I took a one-way flight to California because I was just over it. And then, yeah, I've traveled numerous cities and countries since then. And I realized basically the same thing as I've gotten older, that Richmond has all of the things that you are looking for in other places, oftentimes in a much more realistic fashion and an accessible way that bigger cities have a hard time keeping up with, which is why Richmond is unique because it is the big city with the small town accessibility. Like that's the kind of the charm that is hard to translate and it's really hard for you to put your finger on it, especially when you're coming up. I think the other part of it is we're, we're not showy offy with it. We're not putting it out on, you know, cable television that, you know, Richmond has all of these things. We kind of just tell each other and kind of keep the circle tight, which is maybe the problem. Because when you turn on, you turn on the YouTube or you turn on TV, you see the New York marathon, you see what's going on in California. You see what's happening in Chicago. You don't see what's happening in Richmond unless you're in part, unless you're involved in it. Yeah. Or unless it's the UCI race. Did you, were you guys involved in that? Like the 2015? Kind of. Yeah. We, we did organize a community ride on the actual championship course that took place before the, um, before the kind of the big race. Uh, unfortunately we had just terrible weather. I forgot I've blocked this out. It just rained the whole time and amateur cyclists and cobblestones and hills and rain. Don't don't miss. It was called conquer the cobbles. So the name took on new meaning. We're really glad we did it. And obviously 2015 was a, you know, a big year for us and for cycling. So it was, uh, we're, we're proud to be involved. Um, but you know, you, you work, you work at an organization that puts on outdoor events for long enough. You're going to have some stories of weather and of course. Yeah. Well, let's talk about them. So what, what are some of the biggest like challenges have been? Right. Cause of course we have the monument 10 K coming up, like, you know, what, 20,000 plus people. Like, I'm sure that's a challenge in itself. When you think about the time that you've spent at sports backers, are there any monumental, no pun intended pun intended? Are there any monumental challenges that like stick out from your experience or your time at sports backers? I mean, I think River Rock is always a unique one just because it's over three days and it's, it's spring it's may. So, you know, it can go, we can have it be like, we've had heat advisories at that one, obviously. And then every year we're hitting some sort of rain. We've had years where that's like all that it's done. And it's a rain or shine event. So still making it enticing while also like protecting the integrity of the trails. You know, we've, that's one where I think it's very rare if we have a year where we're not scrambling to figure out some sort of tweak or reroute that has to happen because of, and, you know, then also wanting that to be worth a participant's time or similar to the event that they signed up for as similar as possible while still being good stewards of the outdoors. But that's one that always comes to mind because we're outside. So like, if it is pouring, there was a night I remember coming home from that and taking off my rain boots and literally like pouring water out of them. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's there's all sorts of, I mean, it's the last year's 10 K I think it was last year's maybe it was two years ago. They start to run together. Um, the, the weather held out like perfectly for the day. Yeah. All the runners, they, they got out there and the walkers, they walked, I think the last walk across the finish line, got their white house roll, moved on to whatever, wherever they were going. And then the skies just opened up and it downpoured for what, two, three hours. I mean, every single thing that we were loading on the truck, every single piece of part of breakdown was just in this torrential downpour, but it's part of the fun a little bit. Like it's one of the reasons that working at sports backers is so much fun because you, you have these shared experiences that like, you're not going to volunteer to go out and do that necessarily though. Shout out to some volunteers that do come out. Um, but it really does create this kind of camaraderie that, um, is, is, you know, something I'm really proud of. Yeah, no, I definitely think that's what makes us close and feel bonded. I was just thinking about, um, a couple of years ago at the, I think it was the 10 K expo that we had a tornado warning or tornado and we had to like make everybody stay in their cars. It was a Richmond or national race. So I make everybody stay in their cars. We were in the infield. So the problem is like it's indoor outdoor. So we had to like make people huddle in that tunnel, make them stay inside. And like, people don't want to do that. Like they, I mean, they hear that and they're like, I want to get back to my car. I want it. So yeah, you definitely, I think it's always nice because it's an exercise in quick thinking too. Um, it really makes you feel like you have to be comfortable making decisions, um, with thinking through every Avenue. And then those decision-making processes bond us as a team as well, for sure. Yeah. And the expo is the, is that the day before where you go pick up like your bib and all that? And then you, yeah, they've got all the gels and all that attire and everything. A lot of vendors out there. Yeah. Yeah. Very cool. What would be thinking, like just hearing about the tornado scenario? I know that that's not the only story. Is there a moment that stands out as like both an incredibly like challenging part of running and organizing the event, but also like it was a bonding experience. It's a memorable moment. Like it, everything turned out good in the end, but you have like this crazy story to tell afterwards. Yeah. I mean, uh, gosh, the only, the only one I can think of is actually, it actually predates me. And so it's not my story to tell, but there was a fire on broad street the morning of, I think it was the, the U crops monument avenue 10 K and we had to move the start location. I think like that morning, again, it predated me. So we'd have to ask, uh, we'd have to ask John lug bill about that one. Um, but again, like those things happen, right. And our team, I mean, we go to the marathon safety and security conference every year. We sit down with local law enforcement, Richmond, you know, Richmond fire, ambulance, police, the health systems, the road closure folks. I mean, there is a orchestrated coordinated response team to address any sort of fire that might pop up. Um, again, no pun intended on that front, but, um, so there was a plan, right? So like part of the putting on events is just minimizing the chaos, um, and organizing the chaos as much as you can. Yeah. Corralling the chaos because it's there, which is part of the fun and the excitement, but you know, making sure that everyone's safe and contingency plans are in place and the event goes on without a hitch or if need be, it's relocated. Yeah. Our job is for the participant to not know any of that's going on. Right. They can go out there and they can have their fun. Yeah. So for the 10 K there's, I mean, it's what, 20,000, I mean, it's a lot of people. Yeah. I think last year we were just under, we were in between like 23, 500 and like 25,000. It'll be 25,000 this year. It'll be, cause we're a little over 20,000 currently. Yeah. Yeah. Which is very, it's ahead for us for sure. Okay. Well, and most people sign up for things like last minute. Yeah. Um, so, and I know this from my own personal experience, um, I've ran the 10 K before I ran your recent half marathon, like it's easy to accidentally show up late because it's like, you, you, you'd be surprised. Like the, the getting there and getting set up is like, it takes longer than you anticipate. Right. So, um, for anybody who's thinking about participating in these events, getting more active, what are sort of the, you know, rules of thumb that people should know or should be planning for, you know, cause people get nervous about this stuff and they're like, Oh, should I do it? I mean, you know, if someone gets in contact with sports backers and say, Hey, what do I need to know about the upcoming U crops monument 10 K, where do you send them? What's kind of the first piece of advice that you would normally give them? Yeah. I would say just what you're saying, which is trying to prep ahead as much as possible. Um, I would also say if you haven't done it, I'm sure there's somebody in your life that has, that can offer some like great firsthand advice to you about it. Uh, we have a wonderful customer engagement, uh, representative named Noel, who is just the nicest and knows all of the information about almost everything. Um, and she answers all of our general emails and phone calls. Um, so she like really has it down the website and our social media. We always try to, especially with our big events, put like a pinned little guide thing on our Instagram account. That's kind of got like all the FAQs for the weekend of what you need. Um, also at some of the bigger start lines, we try to have people that we all now wear safety vest. So we all have orange safety vest on. And we just, sometimes I even carry a question Mark on a stick at the marathon now, but in those people, like, we're happy to answer your questions. Like if you see us come find us, that goes for the expo too. At the expo, we have volunteers that do this, like have done this for like 10 years, that literally like sit at a desk and know every in and out question that you might have. We have a race information booth. Um, but I would say the website is really a great place to start. And then giving yourself time, researching where to park, um, you know, making sure that you know your wave time and that you think wherever you're going to park, give yourself like 10 more minutes for traffic and then Ted more minutes for your walk over there. Um, and it really is also event by event, obviously your, your river city half morning, a little bit more time imperative than at least the 10 K we've got more time spread out for your waves. Um, but I would say just like, don't be afraid to ask either. We also really try on social media to get to everybody that's asking us a question. We try to do podcasts before our big events with FAQs and our event director. Um, so we really do want you to feel like you have as much of the information as needed ahead of time. Yeah. And so the website is sportsbackers.org. Yep. Right. And tell us about the podcast really quick. Like where can people find that? They can find that, uh, anywhere that you listen to podcasts. So it's called on the move with Nan and cam with myself and Cameron Lanier, who is our social media strategist. She's great. She's a beautiful voice, voice for radio. Um, and we just kind of pal around town and interview people that have, you know, really great active living stories in the community. Some that are affiliated with sports backers, events, um, some of our sponsors, some of our partners, and some of those other groups that we've talked about that we work with. Um, like this coming week, we're filming with Jonathan, the juggler, because he ran, uh, the river city half while juggling. He's running the 10 K while juggling. That's all that. Yeah. I want you to be sure. We'll be big fan, big fan. I requested he'd do some tricks, Jonathan Austin played my, I think it was my eighth birthday party. Wow. And then, and then played my son's eighth birthday party. So like, I mean, talk about a Richmond legend. Yeah. He's going to teach me to juggle allegedly. So I'm very excited about that. Good luck to Jonathan. It sounds like you're in good hands. Yeah. You've got an uncoordinated student, so good luck to him. But yeah, so it's really fun. It's been great. We've had it for a little over a year. We celebrated our a hundredth episode last year. It comes out every Thursday. It's also on our sports backers, YouTube channel as well. All right. Yeah. Yeah. So let's talk about the quirky side of the 10 K. Right. So there's people juggling people where like floaties, like it's not like the typical 10 K that you would maybe find in another city. Right. Um, and I think that brings up the point of why it could be the perfect event for somebody to participate in if they've never done anything like this before. So for someone who's somehow never heard of the 10 K or they just recently moved here or they just don't participate in this world very much, how would you explain the 10 K and can you kind of just tell us a little bit about it? Yeah, I would, I would describe it as a 6.2 mile party really. Um, it's yeah, it's like a talking point. Um, it honestly, like if you think that it's not for you, you're just wrong. Um, and I don't know how else to say it, but if you want to go out there and you want to race it and you want to hammer home a 35 minute 10 K, you can do that. It's a relative, it's a very flat course, you know, out and back. Um, if you want to stroll it with some friends and you've never done anything like it before, you can go out and do that too. Um, we have an incredibly generous kind of course cutoff limit. You can come out there and walk basically a, basically a 30 minute mile, um, I think. Um, and just have, have yourself a day. Um, and so, you know, when we talk about the 10 K and what makes it really special, it's, it really is the community and it's not just the runners, right. It is, it's the volunteers that are out there handing out the water or the bands along the course or the people that live on monument or have come out to monument Avenue just to cheer and party and have, have a good time. Um, it really is this kind of just this hours long, just force of energy of positive energy in Richmond that everybody can kind of just come do their thing. Yeah. Um, yeah, it's a, it's a ton of fun. And if you think you can't do it, you're wrong. Yeah, I totally agree. You're selling me on it. I mean, I'm not a, I'm not a runner. I'm not a marathon runner. I got the walking down, but that's the thing though, is that like so many people self identify as that, right? Like I am not a whatever. And it's like, yeah, but you can be a 10 K or like, I guarantee you that you can come out there and you can do this 10 K and you'll enjoy it. Like, which is the hard part for, I think a lot of people to recognize or to wrap their head around. Yeah. Is it true that most people walk it like, like more people walk it than run it. It's probably a mix. Um, you know, you, you definitely, we start the fastest people first. So you get the runners and then you get the runners and then some slower runners and then some people that might jog and then some people that might jog and then walk a little bit. So, you know, it, and then you get to your kind of pure wall. You have the caboose party. That's right. With the streamers and boombox and yeah, all the good stuff. But let's say like our biggest, like walking event for sure. Yeah. And then also the CarMax techie late run close second. Like that is one, I mean, the nature of that, you don't want to sprint by Christmas lights. So the nature of that is kind of walking and enjoying the experience, but yeah, that's, I mean, my favorite part of the 10 K is that it is truly like, no, it is for everybody. Yeah. It's fun. So let's say, you know, I, I identified is not a runner, but you've sold me on signing up for the 10 K I've committed. I can't back out. I'm in, what should I know as like a first timer? I've never run a 10 K. I don't, maybe I don't think I'm up to the challenge, but I'm going to do it anyway. What, what should I know? Are there any resources, resources I need to, to really just get down or things that I should be aware of if I'm getting into it for the first time? Yeah. So we do offer a 10 K training team. I think registration is closed at this point as we get closer to the race, but that, that program is in partnership with the YMCA. It's a 10 week program that meets every Saturday or Sunday. Some locations meet Sundays at every single YMCA location throughout the region. So it's led by a volunteer coach. You're going to be training with people that are similar in a similar boat as you are, whether you're a beginner or a walker or a runner. And so that, that program can take you really from couch to 10 K over the course of 10 weeks. Now that we're a little bit closer, if you're kind of in your shoes now, you know, tomorrow's the day you lace up, you lace up the shoes and you get out your door and you, and you start walking or you start running. And you know, this, this day and age in particular, you can hop on chat GPT, say, Hey, I have three weeks to until the 10 K here's how many miles I do now and how fast I go or whatever, you know, whatever you want to do. And it'll map out a plan for you. You can get there and then- Start chugging the eggs in the morning, get my protein shake. I think you'll be surprised on the lack of change you actually have to make, but you just have to, you have to take the action, right? You got to get out of the bed. You gotta, you gotta step out the door. As an amateur runner, I'll, I'll share a tip. People like protein doesn't really help you run. Like it's mostly like carbs, right? It's like carbs the night before it's not protein. It's not, you know, it's not all that stuff. And I actually, when I did the 10 K the first time, not as a walker, but when I actually like ran it for the first time, um, I did actually kind of make a mistake, which is, and this might be helpful to somebody. I think particularly if you're running, I wasn't really thinking, but I was running on like the edge of monument where it's like sort of sloped and it didn't really, I didn't really think about it at the time, but I think especially if you're running and you're running on that, like uneven pavement on the side, I would recommend don't do that. Right. So if you are going to run it or jog it, even at a light pace, I think it's best as a runner to maybe stay towards the center of the Avenue, the best that you can to try to stay on level pavement. And I paid the price for that. Cause I was fine while I was running. And then like a couple hours after, I was like, I think I have a broken leg, but it was killing me after that. So I think, yeah, do your best to try to stay in the middle, particularly if you're running probably. Right. So yeah. Hopefully you'll survive, man. I think I'll survive. Yeah. If not, it'll be a solo podcast and we'll bring, we'll bring on Nan. I hope you survive. I would also just say like, you're going to be entertained. It's going to fly by. I think when we hear feedback about courses or when you talk to people that run or walk and you'll be like, oh, how was that race you did? And they'll say, well, it was great. You know, there was kind of like this quiet section around mile, whatever that doesn't happen at the 10 K that doesn't exist. There's no quiet section. By the time you were getting out of something, you were entering a whole other like theme party, theme porch party, spirit group that's out there, band, that's playing volunteers that have decided they're going to wear some crazy get up to hand out water. Um, so it's just awesome. And I think that that level of distraction and then that distraction coming from like all these unique quirky things that our community is into is just like the ultimate, it just makes it one of the most ultimate like Richmond esque events. Yeah. I love that. Yeah. I did grow up like my first apartment in Richmond was on monument Avenue and I didn't know anything about the 10 K or the marathon. And I think I woke up Saturday morning at like 8 AM to people screaming on the porch next to me and I didn't know what was happening. And then I just, I saw out my window, just everyone was running down monument Avenue. What is going on? And then every year since there's porch parties, there's bands. Like you mentioned that the people that are dressed up on them on the route to hand out water, that's pretty cool. It's, it's, it's one of those things that I think if you're new to Richmond, that's on the list of stuff that you have to participate in, or at least observe and kind of be a, a, you know, like a sideline participant. Come out. I mean, honestly, we, we kind of always, we say there's three ways to participate, right. You can actually run it or walk it. You can cheer, just come out and cheer or volunteer with us. It takes thousands of volunteers to put on an event that the scale of the 10 K. So, you know, we need the kind of whole community to rally around it in some form or fashion. So you can come out and be a part of it, even if you're not going to run or walk it. You know, we'd love to have people out there. I've got a, I've got a, the perfect costume for just being on the sidelines. It's a big claim. Very excited. Yeah. I also used to live on Monument. Yeah. Same thing. And we, we would be one of the people that celebrate like me and my brother get some mimosas. We'd sit on the front porch and there'd be a band right out there and they would play that song. I would walk 500 miles over and over and over again. And yeah, we just hang out and listen to that song and watch the 10 K. It's a great morning. Yeah. So 10 K is 6.2, 6.1. So about six miles. Yeah. You walk that every day. Perry's too humble. He won't tell you that he was a track star in high school. I was, I ran track in high school, but it was a sprints, multiple sprints. And that's the difference. I've told him this a couple of times. When you run sprints, 200 meters, 100 meters, you're running for 12 seconds, 20 seconds at a time. Yeah. So just times that by like, yeah, that's what I was going to say. Two hours. So I'm going to sprint for two hours. Gotcha. Yeah. Um, yeah, the first one I did, I think I ran it like 58 minutes or something. And that was, those, I don't know, five years ago or something. Um, but I think it's a blast. I think it's a lot of fun. I think we should encourage people to do it. So what we'll do is we'll put the link to sign up for the 10 K in the description below. Um, we'd love to see everybody there. Right. And look for Nan with the question. Yeah. Luckily I'm not question marking at the 10 K that is only the marathon, but I am, I'm at the finish line. So I am right front center to all the action, which is great. It's a wonderful view of race day. Yeah. So look for me there. I'll still be in an orange vest. Okay. Okay. Can you talk about some of the, you know, you work with a lot of local influencers, creators, organizations, run clubs and stuff. Um, when did that start? And, um, do you have any thoughts on, um, an ambassador program or like, how can people get involved? You know, if they, if they want to be a part of like creating content and helping promote sports backers, like where do you normally, how do those relationships happen? Um, I think they honestly happen just kind of organically and the way that they would happen with you looking at your own social media on your phone, you know, Cameron, our social media manager, she is locked in to our social media at all times. And so she is going in there during events, post events, leading up to events and like liking all this content that she sees that people are tagging us in. And she'll comment like, it's always wild after an event. We all like to go look at it cause you're still riding that high. And I think like almost everyone I see, it'll say like sports backers commented. And I'm like, wow, Cameron, you're just on it over there today. But, um, and then a lot of times, like she knows the people that she's seeing over and over again, that are doing that. And so she just really DMs them and kind of ask, you know, would you want to do a partnership with us when we talk about, and that's another great thing about Richmond is it's filled with really creative minds and content creators. And so it's been really fun to see, you know, a lot to be said where people in the digital age think that that's kind of ridiculous or don't like that. But I mean, I think it's a really fun way for people to be able to share their enthusiasm around active living, our events and their passion for Richmond. So she definitely reaches out to people. Um, we re I reach out to people, uh, slide into the DMs of people all the time. Um, we do have an ambassador program, so we've had one for a while now and, um, the application period actually just closed sadly, but it's about a year long program. So definitely look for it to reopen. And we kind of just give those people some special volunteer opportunities. We have a couple of meetups throughout the year. We're trying to get them some more swag so they can be out, you know, wearing some sports backers stuff in the community when they're on their runs. Um, and then they do get, you know, an event discount code to share with friends, um, around the community. And that's great. And that's like just really awesome. Also, we found volunteers. We have a lot of volunteers that end up playing even more key roles that do these, uh, volunteer roles like year after year, like there'll be on our event committee, we call it, which is kind of like a tier up from a normal volunteer. And we find a lot of those people through creators that we work with and through ambassadors also. And so that's really great. And it's fun to get different perspective on our events. Like, you know, how one person views it is not the same as somebody else. So don't hesitate to reach out to us. We are always looking to work with new people. Um, we have a, I don't know when this will air, so I might not say this, maybe shouldn't say this date, but on the 29th, we are having March 29th and Brian Park, a collab with Alex who goes out and makes tiramisu for, uh, Richmonders and pops up in parks. He's making a 10 K Masu and we got to interview him on the podcast last night. And I was like, I would never be sitting down with a tiramisu guy doing pop-up if not for the 10 K. And this is great. And, you know, so we, the crazier the idea, the better. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, we talk about the creator economy all the time. I mean, I don't think it's something that really existed very strongly in Richmond until the past several years, you know, definitely like post COVID. Um, and the truth is like, it's fun to document your experiences and your journey, even not even for anybody else for yourself. Like, you know, I mean, it's obviously it's different than home videos and stuff. Like, you know, maybe in the early nineties, you wouldn't be running a 10 K with a camcorder, but we have an opportunity to where you can do that and you can document that and look back on it. And it is cool to get a little memory and say, Oh yeah, I ran the 10 K last year. And although, you know, you mentioned like the 10 K training team, you mentioned the ambassador program and some of these other things, even though maybe they can't join those right this moment, it's always an opportunity to start planning and looking ahead to next year. Right. Because I even think about myself and I had never ran a half marathon before. And I kind of did the off the couch program where I was like, well, I mean, I ride my bike all the time. I think I'm in good enough shape to run a half marathon. So I just gave it a shot and I did have a couple of goals, but I was like, I'm just going to see what happens. And then I felt really good about it. So then this year I took it more serious and I, you know, did some planning. I did the chat GPT thing. So it's never too late. Right. And especially the fact that people can rely on sports backers and this is an annual thing. It happens all the time. Maybe not this event, but maybe the next event. And it's, yeah, it's nice to know that there's always the option to do something. Um, and there's all kinds of different things. So it might be a good moment to just do a little speed run through all the different events. Right. So we've talked about the 10 K, um, like there's very wildly different types of events. There's the Markel corporate run, there's river rock. So maybe let's, uh, let's start with your favorite. No, we can't do that because then people will know you're famous. We're used to picking, I think we've probably said our favorites. Yeah, that's probably true. Well, can you give us a rundown of the different events and what each one is and kind of who it's for or what it, what it entails? Yeah. So I'll, I'll throw out, um, start with the 10 K monument, 10 K talked about it a ton. There's also a one mile kids run the Atlantic union bank, 10 K mini, um, that really a lot of our run clubs and, uh, for ages, I think it's four to 12 and come out and do this one mile, uh, race. They finish under the same finish line as the, as the 10 K, um, right there next to Monroe park. So that, you know, even on 10 K day, there's very, you know, various options fast forward to river rock, right? So dominion energy river rock, you have a 5k, 10 K half marathon trail runs. We have mountain biking events. We have paddling events. We have rock climbing though. That's more for the professional level. We had, I think we've had maybe four Olympic climbers that have climbed at dominion energy river rock in the past. Um, so everything from, you know, again, that 5k that you can actually do with your dog out on the trails, um, at river rock, then you get into the Ashland half marathon and 5k in early August, obviously up in the hottest half. Um, I skipped over the Markel corporate run, which is about 200 companies out in Innsbruck office park. Uh, you just need a team captain to sign up. Um, and you recruit your team members. There's team tents out there. It's a 5k course. You come back and you're partying under a tent with a keg and live music. And it's just a ton of fun. Um, I have a DJ now, but anyway, ton of fun. Um, fast forward to September. We do run Richmond 1619, which is in partnership with the diamond Hansu foundation, um, which has a goal of hosting a, a kind of a reconciliation run in all three corners of the slave trade triangle, um, of which obviously Richmond is one. So we partner with them to do the operations and logistics of that race. I'm going to keep on moving. Um, and in November we have the, uh, an 8k half marathon full marathon. That's kind of the big race day in mid November. Um, so again, 8k half marathon, full marathon, we have training teams associated with all three of those distances that'll get you, you know, get you across the finish line. Um, those kick off in the summer. So now would be a great time to start thinking about those if you're interested in those, because we also had record-breaking registration last year. So those are definitely going to fill up faster than before. Yep. And then you have the CarMax tacky light run, um, down in Midlothian mines park, uh, that goes through the Walton park neighborhood in Midlothian. It's about 5,000 people. It is a ton of fun. Um, very holiday themed. I don't know if you've ever been through Walton park, but there's several homes on the kind of the official tacky light tour, um, in Walton park. So we shut down the streets and really take them over on foot. Um, and, uh, can I get to parade through? It's like a 6k course, but nobody's really running it. It's a, it's a stroll. Yeah. It's not timed. So yeah, it's definitely more casual. Another party. That's right. Yeah. The neighborhood brings it. And then that brings you back around to the river city half and 5k in early March. Yeah. And 10 K training team kicks off usually in February. So 10 weeks prior to 10 K day. Cool. Okay. Great job. Are you exhausted? Yeah. You need to take a break. Yeah. You got a packed calendar though. Especially spring, spring and fall get busy for us for sure. But I want to mention, cause Nan, Nan, you didn't mention the event committees and they are volunteers. We had, we have volunteers that have been, have been their volunteer leadership roles that have been, you know, so everything from the water stops to the start line, the finish line, there's, you know, there's staff involved, but it takes volunteer leadership to really make this stuff happen. Um, and then when you start talking about our training teams and all the volunteer coaches, I mean, it's hundreds and hundreds of coaches that are for the marathon training team. They're getting up 24 weekends of the year at 6 0 AM and going to meet in a sports back or stadium and, you know, just giving up their time and energy to get these people from start to finish line. So when you talk about what makes Richmond special, like it is that community. Yeah. I mean, we have something along the lines of 2200 kind of trained volunteers that, that really make the mission. They move the mission forward, right? We're 25 staff people. Like it takes an army of community members that actually believe in the power of active living and want to give back in this way. That that really is what kind of makes the impact possible. So when you have me run through these events, like I'm thinking like we have thousands and thousands of volunteers that actually make this stuff happen. So that's, that's just worth noting. And it's also crazy because some of these people, like, it's not like they do this one volunteer job and that's it. Like there's so much overlap. Um, somebody that's a training team coach with us is normally not like only a marathon training team coach. They're probably also a 10 K training team coach or a winter training team coach that we have for the river city half. Um, so that's, or they're an ambassador or they've been volunteer of the year before. Um, so it's just crazy when you, I was, I'm nominating one of our volunteers for an award coming up and I like sat down with our volunteer coordinator to go through like all these stats about her. And we got like that she's been volunteering with sports backers for over 15 years. And when we were listing out, like she's a kids on the move coach, she's was, um, you know, has helped us do course marshaling at different events. She helps with packet mailing, like the touch points that she had in the organization. It is very much like they are like part of our staff and part of our family. Um, and it makes you excited to get to see them every at all events. You know, um, we also have two longstanding volunteers that were in our 27th running of the Ucrops Monument Avenue 10 K this year. And they've been with it the entire time, all 27 years. So we, you know, when we had the 25th anniversary, we interviewed them and it's so cool. Like they're been a part of it. And a lot of staff members can't say that. So it's amazing. I, you know, I don't know if volunteerism is this big other places, but we are very lucky that we are here. That's right. You gotta be a pretty incredible foundation or like, you know, organization in itself and the mission itself to attract that type of dedicated volunteer. I would imagine. Um, I know that there are lots of people that volunteering is something that they thoroughly enjoy doing and they do it often than to do it with different organizations. But I imagine if somebody is committing every season or multiple seasons of a year, year over year for over 20 years that they're, they're doing it because the organization means something to them. And it's the mission and what you all do for the community, that's driving their dedication, which says a lot. Yeah. It also just makes us want to put on better events and better things for them to be a part of, because it's amazing that people are willing to give their time like that. Yeah. I'll, I'll give credit to the, the mission as a whole, that it's just kind of an easy, you know, it's an easy thing to relate to. Um, you know, we've talked about kind of all the benefits of physical activity. Pretty much everybody has their own story of what it's meant to them along the way. And then, uh, I'll give a shout out to Mary Marshall Graber, who's our volunteer coordinator. She's been in sports backers for over 20 years and she, you know, she cares, right? I mean, she wants these volunteers that she recognizes that they're given of their time and their energy, and she wants to make sure that they're taken care of. And I've, I've often said that I don't think there's a person on this earth that could do her job better than what the way that she does it. She is just, she was born to do this and she just always has a smile on her face and, you know, really appreciates what the volunteers do and wants to make sure that they know that. So. Yeah, clearly it's working. Right. I mentioned record breaking for a lot of these events, you know, like already ahead of schedule for the 10 K and yeah, none of that would be possible without volunteers and people participating. So we've talked a lot about the events that sports backers has put on. What about outside of events? Right. We, before we started recording, we briefly mentioned the fall line trail, you know, other advocacy, how do you decide on what to invest money into? Obviously sports backers is a nonprofit. So let's maybe start with the fall line trail. What are your thoughts? Is there an update there? What's your involvement? You know, how does sports backers participate in whatever's happening with the fall line trail? Yeah. Yeah. And then let's dive into some other like advocacy stuff. Yeah. So the fall line is a 43 mile long multi-use trail going from Ashland to Petersburg. So it goes across seven jurisdictions and is, has just recently this past fall opened about four and a half miles from Carter Park in Ashland down to the Henrico Hanover line at Woodman road. So those four and a half miles are open. You can go ride them, run them, roll them now. And then the Southern most 10 miles from Petersburg to Chester village should be under construction later this year. Then the chunk from Woodman road and Henrico to Brian park in the city of Richmond should be under construction later this year. So then you have the chunk in the city to still to be determined. So that's all kind of being worked out. We've about 300 of the $400 million estimated cost of the, of the project has been secured, largely transportation grants, state, federal, regional type funding, largely through the central Virginia transportation authority. Our role is a little unique. We're not, we're not the owners of the trail. I'm not building the trail. We're not building the trail. We're really this convening force and this coordinator across the seven jurisdictions and with VDOT to make sure that everybody's in alignment with what the possibility of this, what the potential of this trail is, which from a fiscal activity standpoint is obvious, right? You can go out and run and ride on it, but from an economic development standpoint, all the different businesses and homes that can pop up along this trail is going to be incredibly important. And then from a transportation standpoint and really transportation equity, so that people that first mile final mile type of any sort of trip, you know, to and from a bus stop, to and from a grocery store, to and from your place of worship, to and from your job, this trail will really be the spine of this network that will ultimately make it a lot easier for everybody to move around town. Yeah. I think it's super exciting. Obviously as a cyclist, I'm looking forward to it, but I completely agree. Cause if we look at what the Capitol trail has done, you know, obviously we wouldn't know if it didn't exist, but we can assume that it has helped you think of businesses like Celeste farms that have popped up and like, maybe that wouldn't be there if the Capitol trail wasn't around, you know, and you look at the development of like Verona and just like headed out that way. You can tell that it's definitely made a difference. And I think people definitely enjoy the Capitol trail. So if we assume that, yeah, we're going to do something similar in the, you know, what is that perpendicular? Yeah. That's exciting. It's cool. So yeah. So when, you know, when is the fall, I'm sorry, but the fall line will connect to the Virginia Capitol trail in downtown Richmond. Okay. It will connect to the Appomattox river trail down in Petersburg. So then all of a sudden you have this network of three kind of signature trails that really would allow you to get anywhere throughout central Virginia if you wanted to dedicate the time and the energy to it. So, so when is like the dream vision of that expected to be complete? Is that like 2028, 2029? Do we not know? 2031, 2032, probably 2034. I mean, if you think about it, like when was the last time you drove to Virginia beach and there wasn't a widening project on 64, right? Like, and it's kind of that type of project. It's not an interstate and it's not, you know, but it is transportation funding. There's a ton of planning that goes into it and we want to make sure that it's done right. You know, this, this definitely needs to be something that is done for and with the community, not, not to it. So there's a lot of community engagement that goes behind it, a lot of planning, and then obviously the funding and the actual construction itself just takes time. Yeah. Sounds like a massive project. Yeah, it is, but it's, it's awesome. It's a ton of fun. I just imagine, sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off. No, please. I just, you mentioned that they will connect to these two other trails and I just imagine people meeting up at those intersections and that becoming a thing. Yeah. Like let's meet me at the connection of this trail, have one group of people from Ashland and another group of people from Williamsburg and they'll meet up and then they'll both come to Richmond and then maybe they'll all go to Petersburg. I just, I can see that like being a really cool sub network or an addition to the network of trails and places where people ride and how you build a community like that. You don't think that sounds super cool? Yeah. And that, that my son plays soccer with Richmond United. He had a, he had a practice up at Glover Park last week and I was able to drop him off or park at Glover Park. He went to practice and I was able to run from Glover Park totally on a separate trail, on a separate path, separate from vehicles from Glover Park over to the fall line, up to the fall line and then back during his practice. So like the ability for me just to like, otherwise that area is a really tough area to actually get a, get a workout in or to get a run in. And now I can do it totally car-free and I'm passing, you know, young couples pushing strollers and a dude in his spandex that's, you know, hammering his miles out. And you know, there's an old couple that's holding hands with a cane. Like it's just like, it's for everybody. And it's, it's just the potential because of where the fall line will go from a, you know, small town in Ashland to, to, you know, up and coming town in Petersburg that has a lot going forward as well. And everything in between suburban and urban there's just the potential for all sorts of benefits to the regions. Massive. Yeah. Which is fitting for like all this stuff happening here in Richmond. It's just like growing like crazy. So outside of the events, outside of the fall line trail, how do you, you know, sports backers is a nonprofit. You have a board, all that fun stuff. So how do you decide where to like invest or how do you decide to launch a new event? Like what is the decision-making process behind all the things? Cause you can only do so much, right? So how do you decide where the effort goes and are there any new things, you know, in the future that you're looking forward to? Yeah. It's a, it's a great question. I summarize it with impact, right? So we're always looking at where can we actually move the mission forward? Where can we actually have, have an impact in the community? The reality is that we, it'd be pretty easy to operate a little event here, there all, you know, on any given weekend, but if, is it actually changing the way that people live their lives is actually putting Richmond on some sort of map or, you know, to travel to, or to attract a new person to want to live here. If the answer is no, then like, it's just really not something that, that we're interested in doing generally. So if we're not improving people's lives through what we do, then it's not worth really the time and the time and effort. You know, we, we are a nonprofit. We rely on both our own earned revenue from, you know, the events or various things, but also the philanthropy of the local community to make things happen. So, you know, we do have to be really intentional with where we put our money and where we spend those resources. We want to be good stewards for our donors. So at the end of the day, if it's not, if it's not making an impact in how people are living more active, healthier lives, then we really don't put any resources behind it. And as far as the, you know, the next thing, the fall line is a, is a next thing, right? It is going to be a long-term thing. I mentioned the Fitness Warriors program earlier. We're always looking at how we can grow the impact and really reduce the barriers to physical activity. And I think the Fitness Warriors program does just a phenomenal job of that. So we do five-year strategic plans. We're going to be doing a new one this coming year. So we'll be excited to see kind of what comes out of that and where we can continue to create this culture of active living throughout the Richmond region. Yeah. It's incredible. Clearly what you're doing is working, I think, because yeah, with all these core like staple events, you know, I think people have probably heard of all of them. Maybe if they're not in like office culture, maybe they haven't heard of the corporate run. But aside from that, it's like, we know of all these things, even obviously prior to this and even prior to the podcast, it's like, you always know about the 10K, the Tacky Light Run, like all that stuff. So. It's an institution. Totally. Totally. Yeah. That's a great way to put it. Yeah. So when we think about the 10K, people can go sign up for that through the description, the link that we'll put in the description. Quickly tell us, you mentioned your donors. So how can people donate? How can they get involved in the philanthropy piece? Yeah. So sportsbackers.org, if you just want to, if you're so inclined to go and make a donation, you can do that right now. But honestly, I'd much rather get a phone call or an email from somebody and sit down and grab a cup of coffee or grab lunch with them and hear what their story is and what their affiliation or affinity might be for the organization and make sure that we plug them in in a way that's meaningful for them, whether it's a financial gift or a volunteer effort. You know, we like having conversations with people. We like getting to know people that want to be a part of kind of this, this journey with us. So, you know, you can also put my cell phone number in the description if you want to, I'm happy for, I'm happy for people to give me a shout. We'll do it. You can tell us what happens, you know. I once did that by accident at CBS 6 on an end screen instead of the office phone number. My cell phone number went up and I was like, Oh, okay. Well, we'll, we'll see if you still like it after all you get those text messages. I mean, that's a, that's a really, that's a really open way to approach it. You know, it's pivoting from just saying, Hey, yeah, send me an email. You know, we'll, we'll get to your message when we get to it. Instead of saying, well, let's have a conversation that this is like something of serious interest. And we would love to talk to you and like have a phone call or better yet meet up in person over a cup of coffee, have a face to face. I think that's, that's a huge, like just bringing down of the perceived barrier to a lot of these things that maybe would prohibit somebody from even trying to be a part of it. So like opening that initial doorway, taking the first step and saying, Hey, maybe this is something that's very new for you. Maybe this is a little uncomfortable. Maybe you're not sure how to approach it. Well, let's just start there and like, see where we go and see where we can meet minds on it. And you know, we're just a couple of people trying to do some cool stuff. You obviously want to be involved. So we're happy to talk about it. I like that approach. Yeah. Yeah. That's one of my favorite things about working at sports backers is we've all worked together. It has a very high retention rate. So a lot of us have all worked together for a really long time, but I think we like people, like we like having that face-to-face interaction. We like helping people. We like hearing people's stories and motivations for why they want to live active, you know, how that can be approved for them, why they participate in our events and programs. Um, and I think like trying to keep that natural curiosity about it too helps us improve upon things. Um, so we're always just very anxious to hear any feedback that anybody has. Yeah. I love it. And quickly tell us about fitness warriors. So I know we've like brought it up, but what is it and how can people get involved? Yeah. So that's the program where we train individuals to be group fitness instructors and, um, they go through a six month training program and, uh, that pro training generally ends with them getting their national certification, uh, in group fitness. And so, uh, after they're done with their training, they then lead a free group fitness class in their community. Um, so these are taking place at libraries, churches, community centers. Um, we have about 60 free classes a week. Um, and the modalities or the type of class changes based on, you know, who the instructor is. They get to decide what that looks like. Um, we just wrapped up our training for our current class of recruits, but again, sportsbackers.org would get you all the information, both the class schedule. If you're interested in taking a class, we have a map there of, you know, uh, classes North of the river in the city, South of the river. Um, we do a lot of work down in the tri cities, but in a lot of work in the city of Richmond as well. Um, it's a phenomenal, it, it, I think people when they hear free, they think crappy or cheap. It's not that like it is a legit workout, um, based on, you know, find the modality you want to do. If you want to go throw some weights around, there's a class for you. If you want to do some aqua Zumba, there's class for you. Right. So, um, fitness words is just a phenomenal kind of train the trainer model. Um, where that community impact really is that ripple effect from community, just regular community members saying, I want to make a difference. And, you know, we provide them the tools and then they go out and do it. Yeah. Yeah. And they're all like good with modifications too. You know, they are serving all types of people with all types of abilities. And some are kid friendly. Um, we try to as a staff, go visit a class every so often. Uh, we do that with our kids on the move clubs as well, just so us that are not involved in the day-to-day of it, you know, don't lose sight of the work that our employees and our coworkers are doing. Um, and I did a chair fitness class and kind of had the same idea that will was like, I was like, this is going to be easy. Like, this is no problem. Like chair fitness, I'm going to be fine. I was sore. Like it was wild. The amount of work that she could still do. And it was great. Cause it was a lot of seniors that might have mobility issues, but it's just reinforcing that. Like it's for everybody just because you're of a certain age, doesn't mean that, you know, this isn't for you anymore or we don't want you here. Um, so it was great. Yeah. It's inspiring to go to for sure. Chair fitness. Yeah. That's I'm so curious about that now. I actually did one too. Yeah. I did it with my grandmother and I was like, dang, this is actually pretty hard. Yeah. I got like called out on form or something. One time I was like, I'm sitting, what is that? Oh, that's funny. Um, okay. So for everybody listening, if they're, you know, if somebody is thinking about getting involved in one of these events, I think potentially in the back of their mind, they're wondering, well, why wouldn't, why would I pay to go be involved in event? Why wouldn't I just go like run by myself? And I know what I think about like getting out and being social and being around other people and why it's so important. But I think maybe if you could share some departing wisdom of why should someone get out of their comfort zone and participate in any of the events that we've spoken about today, um, from, from maybe even your personal point of view, you know, like, what has it done in your own life? Maybe for, for each of you, whoever wants to go first, you know, can you remember a time where you stepped out of your comfort zone for the first time and really like got around people you didn't know, participated in some sort of group active activity? Um, what was that like for you and what would you pass on to somebody who hasn't yet taken that step? Yeah. Uh, how philosophical do you want to get here? Oh, let's go. We'll finish off with the growth. Growth only comes from discomfort, right? It only comes from getting outside of your comfort zone. And so I don't care what your goal is. It's going to require some level of discomfort for you to achieve it. And whether that's a physical activity goal or something with related to your relationships or your job or whatever, um, it's going to require some level of discomfort. And I think it's one of the most powerful things about, about exercise or physical activity as a whole is that it teaches you that being uncomfortable is okay and necessary to, to achieving your goal. It doesn't mean you have not painful. I'm not talking about pain, right? I'm talking about just some level of discomfort where you're outside of your routine, you're outside of your comfort zone. And that's where, that's where growth happens. Um, and you never know where, where that can lead. Um, and I'll, I'll give you a bit of an example. I, I, um, I had been running quite a bit during the pandemic and still run every now and then, but not nearly as much as I was, um, in 2020 and 2021. And I was turning 36 years old on March 5th, like 2001. Um, and I had been running and I decided to do a fundraiser for a fundraising run for sports backers. Cause I was like, what the heck not. And I'd never run more than 10 miles in my life. And, uh, you know, I'd run six miles a bunch of times here and there. And I just thought I was going to run 36 miles for my 36th birthday. I had no idea if I could do that. I had never run more than 10 miles in my life and went out there that day and was able to raise, you know, several thousand dollars for sports backers and learned a hell of a lot about myself and what I'm capable of. And, um, you know, have a greater appreciation for both the discipline that it takes to get to something like that, but also kind of an awareness of like, even if I wasn't training for, to get, to do this 36 mile ultra marathon, I was just running six miles, but I had no idea that I'd actually conditioned myself to do 36 miles just by the repetition of the six miles here, six miles there, six miles here. And so you, you don't know what you're capable of until you put yourself out there. And that requires discomfort. So that's, that's my philosophical answer for you. I don't want to follow that. Um, yeah, I hate being uncomfortable. So that is, that is something that always scares me, but Will's a hundred percent correct. Um, my example, I, I was not like even super huge into working out when I first started working at sports backers. Um, I started as an intern and just kind of, it was contagious to be in this environment where, and like everyone on our staff is very active, but it is not in a way where they're like, I've got to go get my 16 miles in before the sun's up and like do this. And if you're not doing that, like what's wrong with you? It's very much like what we've been discussing where it's just people that are looking to like better themselves, but like that's contagious. Um, and so I was just like, you know, I've worked at these events. And then when I wasn't interning, um, I interned twice and then was hired. And when I was in the interim, it lined up with 10 K a YMCA 10 K training team. So I convinced my roommate at the time, I think I was 22, maybe convinced my roommate at the time to do the YMCA 10 K training team with me at the downtown Y lived off of monument Avenue. So I could train right on the race course in my, um, off days from the Y. And I remember being like, like as much as I believe in myself, there was a voice of course, that was like, you can't do this. Like you can't run six miles. I don't even think I really realized that was there until I realized how excited I would get when I would run like one more mile every week. Um, and I remember like telling my parents, like, I just ran four miles. Like I've never run four miles. That's awesome. And I think it just like unlocked a, not even from a physical standpoint, but like, what else can you do? Like this really scared you. And now this has been like pulled apart into like small chunks of like something that is very doable. And even outside of physical activity that what else can you do? Um, and then really like the event was the celebration. Like the event was the celebration. That's when you felt so confident in my training. Cause I'd done it with the training team. I'd already run six miles. Um, so, you know, you're showing up on race day and it's not that like terrible nerves. You're like, I prepared for this. I did that so that now I can like really enjoy this day. Um, and I think that's something that like never goes away for me witnessing a race day. And I never want it to go away for me is just like the high, you get off a shared experience with that many other people that are all a lot of them doing something. I mean, tons of them obviously do it every year and know that they're going to, you know, be fine, but it doesn't matter. You're going to see at least a handful of people as you're watching a finish line that you can tell by on their face when they cross the finish line, like a part of me didn't think I could do this. And that's amazing. And it's amazing. I mean, a lot of people don't think that what they do for work, they don't get the pleasure of seeing something like that. Um, so that's a huge reason. And you can see that not as a sports back or staff member, you can see that in person out on a course. And I think that's just a huge reason to do it. And a huge thing that makes you appreciate living in this community. Um, and not many communities have support like this. You know, the 10 K is 90% locals and that's amazing. Like you go there, you see the impact, you see how loud it is, how positive it is. And that's Richmonders. So that's definitely my favorite thing. And so get out there, do it. Yeah. Get out there, get uncomfortable, break some preconceived notions, shake off a little bit of fear, come out on the other side, a little stronger, maybe a little beat up, a little banged up. You know, you've accomplished something that maybe you didn't think you, you could, I'm also talking to myself. Cause I also, I hate being uncomfortable, but I am fully aware that when you do something that you are uncomfortable doing, and then you do it and you finish it, or you get as close to the finish or the goal that you had set out for yourself, there isn't a really a word or a way to describe that feeling. And what you get out of it is like, well, if I can do that, and I didn't even think I could do that. And I did that relatively easily. What else could I do? You know, the quote that I like, and I think I've shared this with you before as a fear is like a Lake that's a mile wide, but only an inch deep. And you won't know until you take the first step. So doing something, pushing yourself beyond your limits, and then realizing that they weren't limits at all in the first place, they were just kind of, you know, these things that maybe you had are holding onto and you push through them. And now the rest is just at your leisure, take your pick of the next challenging thing that you could potentially just ace with no problem. Yeah. And it doesn't have to be the marathon. It doesn't have to be this huge, you know, you don't have to compare yourself to anybody else. You just got to take that first step. You got to meet your, you know, be honest with where you are and then commit to getting somewhere else and you can make it happen. Yeah. You know, make some friends in the meantime, you'll, you know, and maybe you'll wear a cool, funny costume. Maybe you're handing out some, some, some drinks at the next one. Maybe you're, you're in this community. Now you've got, you know, a group of people that you probably would have never met. And maybe you meet some really cool long-term relationships and friends that way. So it's, it's just a really well-rounded, you know, I can say wholesome like way to engage with people in your community. Yeah. Well, I think, um, in spirit of everything we've talked about, I think like doing hard things makes other things easier, you know? So it's like, yeah, maybe a tough day at work isn't so hard because, you know, in the back of your mind, well, oh, I can do hard things because I've done things way harder than this, you know? Um, so it's a nice way to sort of like recalibrate what's difficult and just remind yourself that you can do hard things. So, um, and speaking of long-term friends and relationships, it's so great to meet you both and to partner with you to have you here on the show. Did we forget anything? Did we forget anybody? Did we forget any topics? Is there anything that we should run through real quick before we wrap up? I don't think so. No, this has been awesome. Yeah, this has been great. Very fun. Thank you. Likewise. Well, we are very grateful for the both of you, the amazing team at Sportsbackers, all the events that you put on. We're excited to be part of them moving forward. We're excited to do the 10K and, uh, yeah, it's been a great conversation. It's been a great time. Thanks so much for being on the Vera House podcast. Yeah. Thanks for having us. Of course. This podcast was recorded at Vera House Studios in Richmond, Virginia and produced by Perry Young and Mike Metzger.