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Suncoast Sandpipers

A Volkssport walking club in Tampa Bay, Florida

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About Suncoast Sandpipers

Suncoast Sandpiper walkers in Hyde ParkThe Suncoast Sandpipers have about 150 members and offer several types of memberships. The club offers a variety of Year-Round Events, which can be walked at any time and traditional events, which draw large numbers of walkers. We also offer organized group walks which attract dozens of members. We have two general membership meetings a year. The club president is Alice Lawrence. If you would like to join the Sandpipers, follow the instructions on our Join us page.

As you might guess, Volksmarches or “people's walks” originated in Germany. The number of events held throughout Europe are incredible and include almost every country. People there will routinely do several 20K walks a day each weekend day. American service members brought the sport home with them and, while we do not have quite the scope of European events, there are plenty of activities throughout the U.S. and Canada.

U.S. events are most often walks, non-competitive, leisurely, on a pre-planned, circuitous route, usually 6.2 miles (10K) or 3.1 miles (5K), through a scenic or historic area. Most are held on weekends. Volkssports also include biking, cross-country skiing, and swimming events. Some routes are accessible to wheelchair users.

The AVA organization
The American Volkssport Association (AVA) is headquartered in Texas and is the parent organization for about 200 clubs throughout the U.S. The AVA is a member of the IVV - the Internationaler Volkssportverband e.V. (the International Federation of Popular Sports) - the founding organization that began in Germany in the 1960s.

Current Newsletter
Download our current newsletter The Sandpiper.

Officers
President
Alice Lawrence
727-595-2173
pipers at tampabay dot rr dot com

Vice president
Robin Kelly
727-786-6694
ekelly1.2 at verizon dot net

Secretary
Wilma Shively
910-273-8257
wjshively at aol dot com

Treasurer
Diantha Schear
727-595-1298
rf7dmst at gmail dot com

Member at large
Michelle Devlin
813-406-9507
mjdev7 at verizon dot net