Firebelly Endurance to Lead 50-Mile Run for Suicide Awareness
Out of the Darkness 50-mile run will take runners along U.S. Route 60 overnight to raise awareness and support mental health resources.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Beginning tonight at midnight, Sept. 26, runners will set out from the West Virginia State Capitol on a 50-mile journey to Huntington as part of Firebelly Endurance’s Out of the Darkness 50 Mile Run, an effort to raise awareness of suicide, honor lives lost and remind those struggling that they are not alone.
The event grew from a vision by Firebelly Endurance founder and race director Jordan Garrett, alongside founding partner and running partner Cody Ferrell. What began as a 50-mile endurance challenge has grown to include several runners, volunteers, aid stations, local police escorts and supporters along the route.
Runners will begin in darkness and continue through sunrise before finishing at Marshall University, a deliberate representation of the event’s message that even through darkness, there is light.
Funds raised through the event will benefit Bigger Than The Trail, an organization dedicated to mental health awareness, community support and access to counseling.
WHAT: Out of the Darkness 50-mile Run, a 50-mile suicide-awareness run benefiting Bigger Than The Trail.
WHEN: Midnight through late morning, Sept. 26
Anticipated checkpoints include:
Midnight: West Virginia State Capitol — Start
2:48-3:16 a.m.: Port of Saint Albans — Mile 14
5-5:50 a.m.: Speedway on U.S. Route 60 — Mile 25
6:24-7:28 a.m.: April Dawn Park — Mile 32
8:18-9:14 a.m.: Sheetz near Tanyard Station — Mile 41.5
10:05-11:45 a.m.: Memorial Student Center fountain, Marshall University — Finish, mile 50.4
Times are estimates and may change based on pace and conditions along the route.
WHERE:
Start: West Virginia State Capitol Complex, Charleston
Route: U.S. Route 60 from Charleston to Huntington
Finish: Memorial Student Center fountain, Marshall University, Huntington
WHO:
Jordan Garrett, founder, Firebelly Endurance and race director
Cody Ferrell, founding partner, Firebelly Endurance
Additional runners and supporters participating throughout the 50-mile journey
MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES:
Media are invited to cover the midnight start, runners at checkpoints along U.S. Route 60, the sunrise portion of the run and the anticipated late-morning finish at Marshall University. Garrett, Ferrell and participating runners are available for interviews about the mission behind Out of the Darkness and the community support surrounding the effort.
SUPPORT THE MISSION:
Donations benefit Bigger Than The Trail and its work supporting mental health awareness and access to resources.
Donate to Out of the Darkness – 50MILER
Updates will be shared throughout the event on the Firebelly Endurance Facebook page.
Follow Firebelly Endurance on Facebook
MEDIA CONTACT:
Jordan Garrett
firebelly.endurance@gmail.com | 304-419-2734
Jordan Ferrell
jordan@3pswv.com | 304-692-5982