| Winston-Salem Two-Day International Walk | |
The second Winston-Salem Two-Day International Walk, Oct, 10-12 brought many international walkers to enjoy the lovely trails of North Carolina. The American Volkssport Association sponsored the event. The walks begin with a Friendship 5K/10K Walk on Friday. The mayor kicked off this walk from Corpening Plaza. A thundershower made for a soggy event, especially for the contingent of English bobbies who were walking in their wool jackets.
I arrived from Oregon on Friday evening, too late for the first walk but in time to begin socializing with the foreign visitors and my American walking friends. We listened to the rock band provided at the Millennium Center, then went out to a local restaurant for some excellent food.
Saturday and Sunday the walkers again had a choice of distances - a full marathon of 42K was provided, as well as 30K, 20K, 10K, and 5K trails. I chose to do a 20K trail each day, the minimum needed to earn International Marching League credit. I headed out on the trail with two gals from Virginia and a gal from Canada who carried a Canadian flag. The Virginia walkers were repeat customers. At home they generally walk a couple of miles each day, so the 20K (12 mile) route was going to be a challenge. The Canadian walker was more experienced, having participated in the Nijmegen Vierdaagse walk and the Wellingborough, England Two-Day Walk.
We soon caught up with a group of Japanese walkers who carried their club flag, and a group of Dutch walkers who were quite experienced. I finally felt the need for speed and took off at a more aerobic pace. I caught up with local club president Paul Chasteen and we walked and talked for a stretch. The walk passed through several local parks, including Reynolda Village with a stop where the walkers could buy food and drink. The trail was mostly along quiet streets and greenways, past lovely homes in nice neighborhoods. The longer trails also went through historic Bethabara park, which is heavily wooded. We passed through the college and Tanglewood. Checkpoints every 5 kilometers or less provided water and some food items for sale.
I returned back to the start in 3 hrs, 45 minutes. I bought a sandwich at the concession stand and enjoyed the entertainment for the afternoon - two different singers who performed country-western and were marvelous. My afternoon duty was on the finish table, handing out awards and stamping IVV credit books. I chatted with walkers from Japan, Canada, Belgium, England, Netherlands, Germany, Austria. I also greeted my walking friends from Oregon, Maryland, Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Texas, and other areas. In the evening we had an Italian buffet, and later went out for dessert. I had never experienced Krispy Kreme donuts fresh out of the fryer and found them to be a real taste sensation.
On Sunday the trail went down the strollway and out to the lake. This is a lovely trail, especially as the fall foliage is beginning to brighten. I again staffed the finish table and learned to redeem the International Marching League books as well as the IVV books I am familiar with. This will come in handy if our Vancouver Discovery Walk is approved as an IML event. IVV grants credit for every event and distance. With the IML you must walk at least 20K at least 2 days. If you do, you can receive a stamp in the IML Record Book. After three events, each in a different country, you receive a bronze medal award. You may also purchase the token naming the countries you have walked in. We had a good and surprisingly easy time communicating with the international walkers as they told us what color (bronze, silver, gold) medal and country token they needed. Many of them had walked dozens of International Marching League events around the world and were up in the gold and silver categories.
To finish we had short speeches by a city alderman, IVV VicePresident Lynn Clark, AVA President Ted Ballman, and I. I invited them all to the Vancouver Discovery Walk in April.
Full Disclosure: At the time of this article, Wendy Bumgardner was a volunteer national officer of the American Volkssport Association, which hosted the event. Her expenses in attending were funded by the AVA.
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