Fit for new year

Thousands of Summerlin residents are taking advantage of the community's award-winning recreational amenities to meet health and fitness goals for the new year.

The 150-plus mile Summerlin trail system is the community's most valued outdoor amenity by many runners, walkers and cyclists. The trail system connects neighborhoods to other major community amenities, such as parks, schools and retail centers.

Summerlin's 150 parks provide diverse recreational offerings designed to accommodate the varied athletic interests of the community's 100,000 residents.

Popular park amenities include playgrounds; tennis, basketball and volleyball courts; baseball/softball, soccer and football fields; open play areas and pools.

The parks also support the community's robust sports programming and athletic leagues for soccer, baseball, softball, T-ball and football.

Many of Summerlin's events in 2012 will highlight the community's active lifestyle and recreational offerings.

The Summerlin Half Marathon is set for April 14 with Tour de Summerlin, an annual noncompetitive cycling event, scheduled for April 21. Both events are open to the public.

Additional activities, including 5K runs, a variety of sports leagues and other athletic competitions are coordinated exclusively for Summerlin residents by The Summerlin Council, the nonprofit arm of the Summerlin Community Association that oversees the community's social, recreational, cultural and educational programming.

"Summerlin's outdoor recreational amenities are a hallmark of the community that set it apart from others in the valley," said Julie Cleaver, vice president of planning and design for The Howard Hughes Corp., developer of Summerlin. "Summerlin parks, trails and sports fields create the very lifestyle for which Summerlin is known and it's a big reason why the community remains one of the most popular in Southern Nevada."

Summerlin is also home to fitness facilities and sporting clubs for those seeking indoor recreational offerings. Nevada's first Lifetime Fitness and 24-Hour Agassi Super Sport Club are located in THE master-planned community.

For a complete list of Summerlin's recreational offerings, visit summerlin.com.

Summerlin began to take shape in 1990. Research firms have ranked it in the country's top 10 best-selling master-planned communities for nearly two decades.

Located along the western rim of the Las Vegas Valley, Summerlin encompasses 22,500 acres with about 7,500 acres still remaining to accommodate future growth within the master plan.

The community is currently home to nearly 100,000 residents. Amenities include more than 150 neighborhood and village parks, more than 150 completed miles of the Summerlin Trail System, 26 public and private schools, 14 houses of worship, nine golf courses, shopping centers, medical and cultural facilities, business parks and more than three dozen actively selling floor plans.

For more information, visit summerlin.com or facebook.com/summerlinlv.