The 2013 Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k presented by MARTIN’S is gearing up for its second annual T-shirt design contest. Artists and designers of all ages are encouraged to enter. The winner will receive a cash prize of $1,000 and the honor of having his/her design on 45,000+ race T-shirts.

From the Sports Backers: Since 2001, the 10k has grown to include over 40,000 participants and tons of partying spectators. It has become a legendary Richmond institution. Add costumes, spirit groups, and bands to the historic beauty of Monument Avenue, and you’ve got an amazing community event! The winning T-shirt should capture the all-around atmosphere of the event.

The winning design will be printed on a cotton T-shirt. Guidelines for contest are as follows: Maximum of four (4) colors in design – no gradients or transparent layers allowed; Incorporate the words “Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10K presented by MARTIN’S” into design; Keep design off seams of the shirt; Must transfer well during the screen-printing process.

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“This weekend, the sky will be ablaze with thousands of magnificent white streaks of light in what is known as the Perseids meteor shower,” reports Outdoorhub.com. “Although the annual shower has been active for some time now, late night on Saturday, August 11 or early morning on Sunday, August 12 will be the best times to view it.”

The meteor shower is a result of the debris left behind by the Swift-Tuttle comet. The comet was discovered 150 years ago by Americans Lewis Swift and Horace Tuttle, but it wasn’t until 1867 that Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli noticed that the Persied meteor shower was a result of Earth passing through the comet’s orbit.

The meteor shower is visible within most of the constellation Perseus, therefore it is called the Perseid meteor shower. Look toward the northeast part of the sky for a constellation that looks like an inverted “Y.” Lucky for you outdoorsmen and women, the moon will be in its waning crescent phase and should not inhibit your view.

The best place to see the meteor shower is away from city lights. A vantage point in Shenandoah National Park, for instance, would really do the meteor shower justice. Pocahontas State Park won’t offer quite as much darkness but could be a more realistic option for most Central Virginians.

I’m not saying Richmond definitely won Outside Magazine’s “Best Town Ever” contest — the winner will be featured on the front of the October issue — but I know this: The world’s leading outdoor lifestyle mag sent a writer and a photographer here for three and four days each a couple of weeks ago. That seems like a lot of effort and money to put in to featuring a city that didn’t win the big prize. We won’t know for sure until some time in September, when the winning city will be notified, but if I had to bet, I’d put my money on the RVA.

In the meantime, there’s another contest outdoor lovers in the area need to gear up for. Blue Ridge Outdoors Magazine has opened voting in three categories: “Best Small Mountain Town,” “Best Mid-Size Mountain Town,” and “Best Outdoor City.” Richmond is currently in second behind Chattanooga in the last category, but we have a lot of ground to make up. Richmond currently has 640 votes to Chattanooga’s 1,826. That’s okay, though. There’s plenty of time to make up the shortfall. Tell your friends and neighbors and get voting!

Earlier this week, three conservation groups released their review of Virginia’s county and municipal ordinances to assess the use of sustainable development practices. The report, Promoting Low Impact Development in Virginia: A Review and Assessment of Nontidal County Codes and Ordinances, is intended to help achieve needed ordinance changes to protect water quality from impacts caused by land development.

The James River Association, Potomac Conservancy and Friends of the Rappahannock conducted an analysis of local development codes and ordinances in 41 Virginia localities to determine the local barriers to employing Low Impact Development (LID) principles. LID principles use design practices that filter and store rainfall runoff, instead of allowing that runoff to directly travel into local streams.

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Pedestrian bridge east of Gunn's Run on the Virginia Capital Trail

In a recent e-newsletter, Beth Weisbrod, Executive Director of the Virginia Capital Trail Foundation, addresses a question I’ve often wondered about regarding the Jamestown-to-Williamsburg-to-Richmond greenway: Who will oversee it/maintain it/safeguard it once it’s completed in 2014?

In these days of tight budgets for all levels of government — local, state and federal — it would be a shame if all the money and effort spent building the trail went to waste because the powers that be decided it was too expensive to keep it up. Here’s what Weisbrod has to say:

The Virginia Capital Trail Foundation plays an important role in this question (of who will maintain the trail). Many of the maintenance needs are decided on between V-DOT and the locality. For example, in James City County, the county cuts the grass, and V-DOT takes care of repairs to the asphalt, bridges and railings. The VCTF installs signage and amenities, and repairs or replaces these as needed.

 The VCTF also engages volunteers to take on tasks that will keep the trail pristine. This could be anything from periodic trail cleanups to removing debris or litter, or actually building an amenity to place along the trail. It might also include weed whacking, planting trees or cleaning up a specific area, like a trailhead or access point. In James City County, the YEPs (Young Emerging Professionals) have adopted the Greensprings portion of the trail, and the employees of Anheuser-Busch InBev have adopted the Chickahominy portion. They’ve committed to quarterly cleanups and making sure to communicate anything needing additional attention.

 We’ve had a lot of inquiries about adopting the downtown Richmond portion and will be awarding that one shortly. There are so many ways to improve the trail, and keep it well maintained through volunteer labor. The below mural along a Wyoming trail was done as a Brownie troupe project.

 As construction progresses and new phases open, there will be a lot of opportunities to lend a hand and keep the Virginia Capital Trail sparkling. Based on conversations, emails and phone calls, it seems there is no shortage of people ready to take this on.

A view of the canal at Great Shiplock Park

This notice comes from Beth Weisbrod, Executive Director of the Virginia Capital Trail Foundation. If you’ve got time before work Thursday, this seems like a great way to spend it:

I wanted to let you all know about an opportunity to show some disabled vets a lot of love this Thursday morning (7/26) at 7:30 at Great Shiplock Park. A group of wounded warriors have been cycling across the country since Memorial Day, having started in San Francisco. Some of them are physically disabled, some have suffered traumatic brain injuries. There are even two blind soldiers on the trip. 

The Sports Backers certainly don’t let much moss grow, do they? A couple of weeks ago it was the new bike race, now they’ve announced a new kids-only running race. From the press release:

The Sports Backers announced today that the first-ever Call Federal Credit Union Marathon Junior will be held on Saturday, October 27, 2012. This kids-only running event will be held at Byrd Park and will offer three different distance options: 0.5-mile, 1-mile, and 2-miles.

Although it will be held two weeks prior, the Marathon Junior is part of the Anthem Richmond Marathon weekend, which includes the full marathon, the American Family Fitness Half Marathon, and the HCA Virginia 8k. All participating children will receive a special Marathon Junior T-shirt, a finisher medal, and post-race food.

“The Marathon Junior is the perfect way to promote physical activity to a young audience,” said Megan Schultz, event director. “If we can provide a fun atmosphere for the kids, they are more likely to continue being active into adulthood.”

The registration fee is currently $10.

This happened Sunday, but I just saw it on Outside Magazine’s Facebook page. Two girls were attacked by a rabid beaver in the water at Lake Anna. According to Fredericksburg.com:

It’s just the fourth time in the past decade that a beaver in Virginia has been confirmed to have rabies, said Stuart Hutter, an epidemiologist with the Virginia Department of Health. Foxes, raccoons and skunks are the most common carriers, he said.

The girls, sisters Annabella and Alyssa Radnovich were bitten while swimming in Lake Anna around 11 a.m. Sunday. They were taken to Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center where Allysa, 11, received 15 stitches on her upper thigh. Annabella, 8, had wounds deeper than her sister’s just above her knee.

As of June 30, there had been 286 confirmed cases of animal rabies statewide this year, according to the Virginia Department of Health. This is the first confirmed case of a beaver with rabies in 2012.

Pretty amazing stuff. I’m not really sure what a parent is supposed to do in this situation. Beavers are rarely rabid, and I’m sure no one saw it before it attacked. Just a crazy, freak accident. And according to the story, the beaver was found and killed. It is (probably) safe to go back in the water.

There’ll be over 400 participants toeing the line (I guess it would be the water line) at Sunday’s Rocketts Landing Triathlon and Duathlon. And all those swim-bike-runners on and around the James mean there’s a great need for volunteers. Sheri Crowell, of Richmond Multisports, tells me they could really use volunteers to help out along the run and bike courses, as well as safety kayakers for the swim in the James River. All volunteers, she said, will receive a crew t-shirt and post-race food and beverages. If you’re a triathlete, and you’re not racing this weekend, or you just think it would be cool to have a front-row seat to a giant triathlon, why not lend a hand? Register to volunteer at www.richmondmultisports.com.