Runner with a cause.
Nova Scotia man to run non-stop around Cabot Trail in support of Make-A-Wish Foundation
SYDNEY — Jodi Isenor prefers to do his running on undulating nature trails that usually offer extra challenges such as loose or jagged rocks, sudden twists and turns and gnarly tree roots.
But the 45-year-old trail runner is temporarily giving up his favourite recreational activity to hit the highway for a leisurely run around Cape Breton’s Cabot Trail.
And Isenor’s doing it nonstop, or as close to non-stop as can be reasonably expected.
He’s also doing the scenic 298-km run for a good cause. He’ll be raising money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation to assist the organization in helping children with lifethreatening illnesses realize their dreams.
Isenor said the idea to marry his extreme endeavour to a charitable cause came after he completed a virtual race that was streamed online.
“The young fellow asked me why I ran so much and I told him I did it because I can and that because maybe some day I won’t be able to anymore,” recalled the resident of Seabright, a small community located on St. Margaret’s Bay on the road to Peggy’s Cove.
“But what struck me was how excited and surprised he was that I took the time to answer his question — I noticed the joy he derived from having his question answered. My wife and I don’t have any kids ourselves and something resonated with us and that’s when she suggested I do a run to raise money for the MakeA-Wish Foundation.”
Isenor contacted the national organization’s Nova Scotia office. He was told about a six-year-old Port Hawkesbury girl who has been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow that necessitates intensive chemotherapy sessions. His run is for Ione Joy and other children like her.
According to Kathy Sutherland, development co-ordinator with the foundation’s Cape Breton branch, Ione has become the poster child for all children in Nova Scotia with similar ailments.
“Ione was supposed to go to Disney World in Florida to meet her favourite princesses. That was supposed to happen in the second week in April but it was postponed due to the COVID,” she said.
“It is still going to happen, she won’t lose out, she will still get to go.”
Sutherland added that initiatives like Isenor’s Cabot Trail run are really helpful to a foundation that, like most other charities, has seen its fundraising diminished since the coronavirus outbreak.
Isenor will be accompanied on his run by a support team and will occasionally be joined by some running companions. However, for the most part he will be on his own as he attempts to complete the Cabot Trail circuit in under 40 hours.
He will head out from the Red Barn at the junction of the Trans-Canada Highway and the Middle River Road at 2 a.m. on Friday, June 26 and will do the run in a counterclockwise direction.
“I’m sure I’m going to have some extremely sleepy periods — we have a camper van in support and I am sure I might have a short half-hour nap or so along the way,” he acknowledged.
Isenor has been trail running for half his life. He said he doesn’t lack for motivation as he loves the sport he has helped pioneer in Nova Scotia.
But he admits he’ll be thinking of little Ione and others like her as he makes his way up, down, over and around the challenges of the Cabot Trail.