Mapping project will help Chadron walkers
People in Chadron who walk for fitness will soon have a new resource to help them with their endeavor. The Chadron Lifespan Wellness Team is spearheading a project to publish brochures that contain detailed maps of Chadron’s popular walking routes. Insurance provider Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska announced in June that the Chadron program was one of its nine recipients of Blue Health and Wellness grants awarded outside Omaha and Lincoln. The award is $10,000.
Jay Sutliffe, the team’s chairman who is an assistant professor of applied sciences at CSC, said the grant will allow the group to complete the second phase of the mapping project. That phase includes the installation of outdoor fitness equipment and signage along the routes.
In order to determine which walking routes are most popular in Chadron, members of the Lifespan Wellness Team surveyed walkers in the community.
“Most of them walk 10th Street, Ridgeview, Sixth Street and Maple,” said team member Ann Dockweiler, who is CSC’s college nurse. “But, there were quite a few different routes that are popular. There are some routes in north Chadron, and, of course, walkers use the Heritage Trail south of the campus quite a bit.”
Dockweiler said people who are looking to walk certain distances will be able to identify a route by looking at the new maps.
“We wanted to get the routes down on paper to be placed in motels and other places around the community to help walkers in the area,” she said.
In order to measure the routes, the team called upon students of Chadron High School’s algebra and geometry classes that are taught by Curt Holmquist. The students used a measuring wheel and global positioning system units to figure distances this spring. This fall, members of CSC’s graphics design class, taught by associate art professor Mary Donahue, will design the brochure.
In the future, Sutliffe said team members hope to incorporate the trails project with a cross country trail that is being planned south of the CSC campus.
The Lifespan Wellness Team, which is part of the Chadron Community Recreation program, is composed of about 15 members from a wide range of Chadron business, services and institutions. The team meets monthly and is open to anyone who is interested in joining.
Category: Campus News