Last April after the inaugural Magic Island Mayhem 4-mile trail race on Sylvan Island, race director, Brandon Bartz was hoping that the money raised from his race would help fund a pavilion on the island. Despite a few delays, his wish will soon come to fruition. “All the pavilion stuff is paid for and ready to go,” explained Bartz. “We are just waiting on weather to break to pour the concrete.”
So, it’s no surprise that Bartz is back this month hosting the Magic Island Mayhem event again on Sylvan Island, but this time wanting to help River Action with their project to link the Sylvan Island bike path to the Floreciente neighborhood. “We are 90% there,” said River Action Director, Executive Director, Kathy Wine. “I hope to get it within a few weeks so I can get the engineering and permitting and design all done. All the final things like that.”
Being both a runner and bicyclist, Bartz wants to bring as much exposure to Sylvan Island and thought having it in the winter as opposed to the spring would bring an added challenge to the day. “Originally we wanted to do a snow race because it the only spot you can guarantee to run on,” said Bartz. “We were like, ‘let’s mess with some dicey weather and see what happens.’”
And if running around the icey terrain is not for you, a fat bike option is new this year to cruise the course that way. “Me and some guys were out riding, and we were sitting there chatting and everyone kept saying, ‘we should have a fat bike race.” said Bartz. “There’s really no reason why we can’t do both. It’s a fundraiser, just for fun and we’re always trying to get more people to check the island out.”
With River Action’s goal being so close, the money raised from this event could be the last needed to fund this bike path connecting the historic island to the neighborhood that help keep it alive. And with Bartz being a mainstay on the island, bringing both running and biking and the island and neighborhood together is a dream come true. “My whole thing is just getting more people to enjoy the trails we have,” explained Bartz. “So, if we can get 70-80 people out there instead of 40 than that’s awesome. It’s also a good opportunity for the biking community and the running community to cross paths and to hang out too.”
For more information or to register for this event visit, https://secure.getmeregistered.com/get_information.php?event_id=136494
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