Runners right at home in Carson City

Of all the places he's lived in and out of the United States, Sean Lehmann says Carson City is the best when it comes to places to get out and run.

And he wants everyone to know.

He recently submitted an application to the Road Runners Club of America to have Carson City recognized as a Runner Friendly Community, a national designation that would bring attention to the area.

"It's published in a national magazine," Lehmann said. "It's something we could tout as a tourist destination for folks interested in running. Everyone around the country would know about Carson City and what we have to offer."

Communities are judged in three areas: Infrastructure, local government support and community involvement.

Lehmann, a podiatrist and member of the Carson City Parks and Recreation Commission, created a video to document a portion of the 30 miles of paved, maintained trails in the city. He shows images of some trails including the Long Ranch Trail, Linear Park Trail, the trail along the new freeway, the V&T Trail and the Silver Oak Trail in addition to the bike and running trails along surface streets.

And it gets better.

"What truly sets us apart is the hundreds of miles of trails and unimproved roads in the surrounding public lands," he said in the application. "These lands include a portion of the Sierra Nevada and Lake Tahoe."

Those included Silver Saddle Ranch, Ash Canyon Road, Canyon Creek Trail, Vicee Trail, Waterfall Trail and more.

"The best part is how accessible these trails are," he explained.

He didn't just ask the runners club to take his word for it. He included testimonials from other leaders and running enthusiasts.

"Although I am getting older and slower, I have been fortunate to be able to run in many locations throughout the United States as well as places such as the beautiful Drakensberg Mountains of Southern Africa, but there is simply no comparison to the running conditions found in Carson City," wrote Mayor Bob Crowell. "As I related to an international company thinking about locating to Carson City, we are the only community I know where in one moment you can be in the mix (of) urban life and in the next at the top of one of our trails where noise is totally absent.

"It doesn't get any better than that."

Tom Wion, president of the joint running club Sagebrush Stompers and Tahoe Mountain Milers, said weekly runs and regular races to raise money for local organizations keeps the group unified.

In the last year, he said, the group raised more than $25,000 for charitable organizations.

"As the Sagebrush Stompers and Tahoe Mountain Milers head into the future, it is our goal to aid in the success of the running community by focusing on the interests of our members, building healthy relationships with local government agencies, providing generous donations to community-minded organizations and aiding in the economic growth of our running-friendly local businesses," he wrote.

The deadline for submitting applications to be considered a Runner Friendly Community is Aug. 1. Lehmann expects the results to be available a few weeks after that.

"I'm fairly hopeful we'll make it," he said