2nd LUNA 

Powering Healthy Communities Through Nature Driven Athletics and Forest Bathing.

Our 2nd Latino Ultra Nature Adventure (LUNA) is a culturally relevant and equity driven new kind of Ultra powering the physical and mental health that comes from the mix of athletics, awe inspiring nature, and forest bathing. LUNA promotes human-nature connections and self realization through running and hiking for communities historically excluded from exclusive outdoor sports. 

Ultras have traditionally been curated for athletes and have been anchored in competition and driven by an exclusive sports culture.  LUNA reframes the Ultra athletics experience to inspire participants to engage in the sport for the first time AND to invite established athletes to join a more inclusive and culture driven ultra challenge.

LUNA is an initiative of Americas for Conservation + the Arts (AFC+A) and the program United Cultures of Athletics and Nature (UCAN). AFC+A 

DESCRIPTION

The Americas Latino Eco Festival XIII (ALEF),  a flagship program of AFC+A,  has teamed up with Colorado's Human Potential Running Series to offer this unique Latino Ultra Nature Experience. Join us on Saturday, June 1, 2024 and kick off your ALEF experience with a unique adventure in the mountains of Golden, CO.

The experience features distances of 5km, 8-Mile, a Half Marathon (13.1 miles), and 50km (32 miles). On your journey you'll explore the incredibly gorgeous Golden Gate Canyon State Park. We'll explore the intersection between urban development and population growth with its lasting effects on the surrounding landscape and ecosystems and We'll share stunning views of Colorado's Continental Divide.

LUNA is a nonprofit event intent on bridging inclusion gaps in the outdoor recreation and sports workspace. For this reason we are requiring only a nominal sign up fee. Youth 16 and under pay no fees but must still register. All participants are encouraged to make a tax deductible DONATION to support the inclusive mandate of our program and the efforts of our staff and volunteers. Donate Additional Here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=DKNQHA5C428QW

If you have any questions about this race, ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

FACTS
• According to the United Nations Population Division, 75% of the world’s people live in cities.
• The average urban dweller in the US spends 93% of the time indoors, and some ten hours a day on social media—more than they spend asleep- resulting in a nature deficit.
• Science based studies proof the human costs of alienation from nature negatively impacts our health,
• Research has shown that people do better physically and emotionally when they are in green spaces, benefiting from stress reduction and the attention restoration nature engenders
• Forest bathing is the practice of immersing yourself in nature in a mindful way, using your senses to derive a whole range of benefits for your physical, mental, emotional and social health. It is also known as Shinrin-yoku. ‘Shinrin’ means forest and ‘Yoku’ stands for bathing. The idea took birth in Japan.
• Forest Bathing is proven to positively impact our health through contact with phytoncides which are chemicals emitted by trees and which help reduce stress hormone production, lower heart rate and blood pressure, boost the immune system as well as improve feelings of happiness.
• Evergreens—pine, cedar, spruce, and conifers—are the largest producers of phytoncides, so walking in an evergreen forest seems to have the greatest health benefits.
• When we breathe in phytocides, our bodies respond by increasing the number and activity of a type of white blood cell called natural killer cells or NK which fight infections, cancers and tumors. 
• 20 to 30 minutes of relaxed time among trees provides you with multiple health benefits. 3 hours a week of nature exposure allows our body to function at its optimum, sustaining health benefits for up to a week after. Spending a long weekend in a forest, connecting to nature extends health benefits  to a month 

RESOURCES

Forest Bathing Research Spotlight
Medical empirical research on forest bathing (Shinrin-yoku): a systematic review
Can forest therapy enhance health and well-being?
New research compares forest bathing and mindfulness
A Review of the Benefits of Nature Experiences: More Than Meets the Eye
Prescribed time in nature linked to improvements in anxiety, depression and blood pressure
Nature and Neurodevelopment: Differences in Brain Volume by Residential Exposure to Greenness
Visiting green spaces deters mental health drug use
Prescribing nature: the restorative power of a simple dose of outdoors
A comparative study of the physiological and psychological effects of forest bathing (Shinrin-yoku) on working age people with and without depressive tendencies