If you needed some extra motivation to squeeze in more time for exercise, the city of Granbury's hoping a good cause will do the trick.
The city is hosting a virtual Lake Fest 5k between now and midnight, Oct. 2, 2021. The proceeds will go toward supplying the free loner stand at Granbury City Beach with life jackets and for maintenance of the facility. The stand allows those who do not have a life jacket, or maybe those that forgot their life jacket that day, to borrow one. Drowning is sudden, and it is silent. So, always taking advantage of every precaution around bodies of water is vital to ensuring everyone has a good time. Life jacket use is vitally important for youth and adults alike.
So how do you run virtually to support providing a life-saving device?
By finding a place you and your friends would enjoy running, walking, or jogging 3.1 miles.
Whether that's around the neighborhood, through a park, or along the lake, the virtual event allows participants to move at their own pace, in their own space. Participants will record their time and send it in to officials to receive a shirt and a medal. According to the city's website, participants can even run the original route across the beach, around the pier, behind the conference center, and along the boardwalk. The route continues through Hewlett Park and down Bridge Street, where it connects to the hike and bike trail. Stay on the trail until reaching Shanley Park and then turn around to travel the same path back to the finish line.
The registration fee is $30.
City Beach, on Pearl Street, is owned and operated by the city of Granbury. If you're looking for another place to log those 3.1 miles, the Brazos River Authority has five other public use amenities on the reservoir. View those parks and amenities here.
The BRA started construction on Lake Granbury and the DeCordova Bend Dam in 1966, and it was completed in late 1969 with a formal dedication attended by hundreds during the spring of 1970.
There's no excuse not to wear a life jacket.
Every day, about ten people die from unintentional drowning, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of these, two are children aged 14 or younger. The main factors that affect drowning risk are lack of swimming ability, lack of barriers to prevent unsupervised water access, lack of close supervision while swimming, location, failure to wear life jackets, alcohol use, and seizure disorders, according to the CDC.
The best life jacket is the one you wear.
To register for the event, go here.