(AB) Calgary Trail Running Mentorship: August – October 2024

Event Details

We would like to acknowledge that this event is taking place on the traditional and ancestral territory of many peoples, including the Treaty 6, 7, and 8 territories. Namely: the Blackfoot Confederacy – Kainai, Piikani, and Siksika – the Cree, Dene, Saulteaux, Nakota Sioux, Stoney Nakoda, and the Tsuut’ina Nation and the Métis People of Alberta, as well as the unceded territory of the Ktunaxa and Secwépemc.

Are you bored of running on pavement and want to combine your love of running and being in the mountains?

Does running on pavement cause all sorts of injuries to flare up? These are great reasons to sign up for the Trail Running Mentorship program with Colour the Trails, supported by On Running.

This Trail Running Mentorship Program is to support Black, Indigenous and Racialized folks to become confident trail runners by providing them with the knowledge and training required to get started and excel in the sport.

This program will be led by an experienced trail runner who likes running farther than you like driving. This program will set you up with the skills and experience you need to be confident in the trails and even sign up for your first trail race! Through a mixture of online learning sessions and group runs, you’ll develop a strong foundation in the sport, and the community members you meet will encourage you to keep going. The program will be 12 weeks in length, with six coach-led group runs and six online learning sessions. On off-weeks, participants will be provided with running routes designed for their goals/ability to complete with their peers. This will be a group mentorship, with multiple coaches working with you and up to 12 others over the course of 12 weeks.

We are currently offering this program for our Calgary Chapter.
Program In-Person Group Run Dates:

• August 8 @ 6PM to 9PM (First Run: 4-5KM) Calgary
• August 15 @ 6PM to 9PM (Run: 4-5KM) Calgary
• August 24 @ 9AM to 12PM (Run: 4-5KM) Kananaskis
• August 29 @ 7PM- 8PM (Online)
• September 7 @ 9AM-1PM (Run: 7-9KM) Kananaskis
• September 12 @ 6PM -7PM (Online)
• September 21 @9AM to 1PM (Run 7-9KM + Yoga/Stretch Session) Calgary
• September 26 @ 3PM – 6PM (Run 10-12km) Calgary

OPTIONAL! September 28 @ 830AM – Race Day Run or Volunteer at 5 Peaks- Weaselhead Flats

• October 5 @ 9AM to 1PM (Run 10-12km) Kananaskis
• October 10 @ 6PM to 7PM (Online)
• October 17 @ 9AM to 1PM (8-12KM Run/Hike) Calgary
• October 26 @ 9AM to 1PM (12-15KM Run/Hike) Kananaskis

Online learning will cover the following topics:

• Live and Learn with certified physiotherapist 
• Stretch Therapy
• Trail Nutrition

Transportation

Locations will be within Calgary and trails within Kananaskis.

Please note: each participant will be responsible for getting to this event. You can organize carpooling through our Private Facebook Group: Colour the Trails Alberta | Facebook. If you are carpooling with someone, please make sure to chip in for gas/parking.

Cost
$200 for 12-week program, includes all group runs and online learning, administration fee, one race fee choice. On Running will also sponsor some running gear.

All registration costs help support Colour the Trails to cover the overhead and administrative costs of running programs, including staff time, insurance, website, etc.

Application Info:

Open to BIPOC age 18+

There are 12 spots for this program. Depending on the volume of applications we receive, we may not be able to have you join this time, so we ask for patience and understanding as there’s a lot of work being done behind the scenes. We hope to see you at other events hosted by our community!

Please add [email protected] to your safe sender list. We will be contacting you from this email if you are selected, and if the email ends up in your spam folder you may miss the deadline to register. If a waitlist spot opens up there will be a deadline to accept that you won’t want to miss. Thank you!

Community Guidelines

Photo & Video Release Consent:

By purchasing a ticket you grant permission for Colour the Trails and sponsors to use any of the photos or videos from this event that have been taken by Colour the Trails videographers and photographers. They will be used for the purpose of sharing experiences with the community and encouraging future participation in events, which can include but is not limited to, print or digital versions, social media and websites without compensation or recognition given. Colour the Trails will not use the photographs in a manner that would exploit or cause malicious representation toward you. 

Photos will be shared at the discretion of the event organizers. Please be prepared to take your own photos and videos if you want to ensure that you capture memories of your experience. If you post or share photos, we ask and encourage participants to tag Colour the Trails so that others in the community can learn about our work and get the chance to participate. 

Please contact [email protected] BEFORE the event if you do not want to be photographed or on video during an event.

Content Creation Statement

We ask to respect our work and to not create content to promote any other brands or organizations using footage or images taken during our events. Our team is putting a lot of energy and time into creating community spaces with little support and unrelated organizations should not benefit from our hard labour. You are encouraged to share about Colour the Trails work as it shows the welcoming and safe space we are creating and word of mouth helps our community to grow!

Inclusion Policy

Colour the Trails is committed to creating a welcoming space for LGBTQIA2S+ individuals. Participants and organizers will introduce ourselves using our preferred pronouns at the start of each event to ensure participants are all feeling welcome and seen. Please ensure that you use other participants’ preferred pronouns. 

We reserve the right to restrict or deny registration to future events for any participants that intentionally disregard this policy and engage in racist, anti-Indigenous, homophobic, or transphobic behaviours. Thank you in advance for making CTT a welcoming community!

Cancellation Policies

We are a very small team that puts an incredible amount of time and energy into creating affordable and safe opportunities for the community. Short or last moment cancellations mean that it is a missed opportunity for other members of the community and our team. We have had cases when every spot matters, we have a waitlist of folks wanting to join, but we receive multiple last moment cancellations and no shows. This also means our partners and guides are losing trust in our ability to organize group attendance, and hinders our relationships and opportunities to partner on more events in future. We understand that circumstances may arise that lead to the need for event cancellations, but we want to make sure that opportunities and all participants have a fair chance to attend our events.

Mentorships Cancellation Policy

There will be no full or partial refunds once the participation in the program is confirmed. Most of our work is done during planning and preparation stages. If a mentee needs to withdraw from the mentoring program early, there will be no fee adjustments. This includes in the case of injury as we still need to pay the instructor and cover the cost of operating the program, without a replacement participant.

We understand that there might be exceptional circumstances that lead to last-minute cancellations or program withdrawals. If you believe your situation qualifies as an exceptional circumstance, please contact our team as soon as possible.

All of our community guidelines can be found here.