Upcoming Race Celebrates The History And Future Of The Belmont Plateau
By Ray Boyd
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Fairmount Park Conservancy and Philadelphia Parks and Recreation are coming together to restore an area of land in Philadelphia with a storied past and renewed hope for a bright future.
The cross county trails known as the Belmont Plateau in Fairmount Park have been restored recently. The land has been run on by young athletes, collegiate champions and Olympians.
Every step on the trails served as a marker in history, but also wore down the land to a point below adequate. The restoration also included the addition of improved signage along the trail. In addition to fresh signage, a fund has been created to account for future upkeep that the course will need.
"This is something that was desperately needed for many years," Kathryn Ott Lovell, the Executive Director of the Fairmount Park Conservancy told CBS Philly on Monday.
"Folks that would use the course, coaches and runners, would have to sign the course themselves before races."
On Sunday, August 30, a race will be held on the land to celebrate the newly restored brilliance of the Belmont Plateau. The first annual Belmont Plateau Hall of Fame Classic will be held on Sunday at 7:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
The event will include a 5k race and a 1-mile run/walk open to all ages. Some area track stars such as 2008 Olympic distance runner Erin Donahue and 1984 Olympic marathoner Gary Fanelli will take part.
"We think the runners are really going to be thrilled with the improvements that we made," Lovell said. "It's going to be a so much more attractive course. It's going to be so much easier to navigate."
The race is not the only new feature to celebrate the restoration of the Belmont Plateau. The Belmont Plateau Cross Country Hall of Fame was also founded to pay homage to those whose footsteps adorned the land.
Dave Thomas, the head track coach at Philadelphia University, desire to restore the Belmont Plateau and with his vision came action. The Fairmount Park Conservancy and Philadelphia Parks and Recreation began to raise funds to restore the land.
Lovell called Sunday's race and the Hall of Fame the brainchild of Thomas. She is expecting over 100 runners to test out all the new improvements the course has to offer. Proceeds from the race will continue to benefit the trail.
The fundraising began with the Park Conservancy starting a group and having charity bibs in the Broad Street Run. The proceeds benefited the restoration of this historic trail.
$150,000 was raised to begin the restoration of the land and to start up the Hall of Fame.
The restoration of the historical course ties in with the historical significance of Fairmount Park as a whole. "It's all about the history of this amazing park," Lovell said. "The Belmont Plateau trail is such a critical part of that history and has such wonderful memories for people who have run on the course."