Large Okanagan contingent in Vancouver ‘Sun Run’
The “Sun Run” is the biggest 10K run in Canada with 39,769 runners competing this year! The Okanagan was very well represented with 240 runners of which 195 were from Kelowna and West Kelowna!
As usual, our runners came home with several good results. The fastest Kelowna runner was Brad Bickley. His time of 33:31 placed him 44th overall and 7th in the super competitive M25-29 age class. Penticton also had a quick male runner, David Matheson who finished 3rd in M45-49 in a time of 36:32.
The stars of the show were two of our world class senior woman runners, Cindy Rhodes and Liz Borrett!
Liz has won her age class in the Boston Marathon twice and has also a New York Marathon victory on her impressive resume.
Cindy is a five-time first overall woman at the Victoria marathon, which is B.C.’s premier marathon. Cindy was facing a huge field of 520 competitors in her F60-64 age class, but she won handily, her time of 44:47 being almost four minutes faster than the second place woman!
Liz was in a slightly different position. This would be her first race for a while because of a nagging foot injury that just won’t go away. It still bothers her and has forced her to cut back on her training, so she didn’t know what to expect in Vancouver. She had 66 competitors in her F75-79 age class and she had to work hard, but still managed to win in a time of 1:00:37. She won by just under 30 seconds, but I know that an uninjured Liz could have cut at least 3 minutes off her Sun Run time.
Kelowna Running Club executive member, Al Gillespie, has been training a group of runners for the Vancouver Marathon on May 7. They call themselves Team Willow Park and their ages range from the twenties to the sixties. They are partnering with World Vision to provide clean water for children in Africa. Four months ago not many of them were runners.
Coach Al has been guiding them through winter training and is amazed at how they have progressed in such a short time.
“These athletes have shown incredible perseverance week after week,” Gillespie said. “There have been aches and pains along the way, but their determination and strong sense of purpose will get them to the finish line.”
Their main goal is to raise funds so that African children, through World Vision, can have access to clean water.
Donations to Team Willow Park can be made at teamworldvision.ca/vancouver, or by calling Al at 250-801-6578. I’ll have a follow up on how the team does at the marathon in my next column.
The Nimble Bear 50/25/10k trail race was held April 22 at the trails in Rose Valley. These are beautiful but tough and hilly trails that will challenge the most ardent trail runners. The race sold out, for the second year in a row, well before it’s starting date.
In the 50K race Kelowna’s Tim Dickinson was the fastest Okanagan runner, and 4th overall in 5:46 and 3rd in the M40-49 age class.
Kelowna’s Melissa Gosse was the fastest Okanagan woman finishing 4th overall and winning the 20-29 class, she was closely followed by Danielle Weill, also from Kelowna, who finished just three second back. Peter Findlay the amazing 57 year old runner/x-c skier/mountain biker from Kamloops came in 2nd overall in5:39!
In the 25K event Kelowna runners took 1st and 2nd overall. Peter Watson 1st in 2:24 and Alex Hansen close behind in 2:25. Other Okanagan runners who did well include – Kevin Siggers (2nd M30-39, Kelowna), Chris Brunet (3rd M30-39, Kelowna), David Larsen (3rd M40-49, Penticton), Markus Heinrichs (4th M50-59, Kelowna), Manda Watt (3rd F3039, Kelowna), Cynthia Araujo (3rd F50-59, Kelowna), Janice Bradshaw (4th F50-59, W. Kelowna), Judy Richardson (1st F60-69, Kelowna).
A special shout out to Janice Bradshaw, a person I have run many races with over the years. Janice has been very active in the last few weeks. She ran the Gopher Attack Half Marathon in Regina on April 14, taking first place in the F50-59 class. Then just a week later the Nimble Bear 25K, and this weekend she will run the Dirty Feet trail race at Kal Park in Vernon!
The Okanagan College Half Marathon was held on April 9. Disappointingly only 97 runners attempted the 21.1K distance. Kelowna’s Brad Bickley led all the way to finish in 1:13 and Tracy Dayman of Kelowna was the first female finisher in 1:33.
Age-class winners, all from greater Kelowna, were — Patrick Schryburt M40-49, Jeff Vogt M30-39, Bruce Brydon M50-59, Heather Greig F30-39, Gordon Michel M60+, Carolyn Hawes F50-59, Megan Seidller F2029, and Charlotte Heidt F60+.
MALINDI ELMORE COMPETES IN HER FIRST IRONMAN
Kelowna’s newest pro triathlete attempted her first Ironman race at the Texas Triathlon on April 22. Malindi, as you may know, was previously one of Canada’s elite runners, competing in the Pan Am and Olympic games in the 1500 meters. Now she has turned her athletic abilities to the Triathlon. In a recent column I reported on her race at a Half Ironman in California. The full Ironman distances, 3.8K swim, 180K cycle and a 42.2K marathon are a huge step up from the half distance race. Malindi performed superbly. Almost last out of the water, (swimming is the weakness of most runners), she gained ground with a decent bike ride, and then — zoom!
She ran the marathon at a pace that most average runners cannot come close to, even though she had already been racing for over six hours! One of only two women to break the 3 hour mark in the run, her time of 2:59:10 propelled her past several of her competitors to finish in 8th. Having done an Ironman myself several years ago, I know what she means when she writes, “Fought for every inch out there yesterday and of that I am very proud. 140.6K of ‘never quit’!”
Cyclists are starting to come out in force now that the weather is, hopefully, starting to warm up. I’ve been enjoying the Saturday group rides from Fresh Air Concept The ride start at 9:00AM, is usually about 40K and is a no drop ride. That means that the group stops often, usually at the top of a hill, for the slower riders to catch back up. Come and join us, it is a nice group of riders, men and women from 15- 75.
The next race in the Canadian Tire Running series is the Blossom 10 Miler in Penticton on May 14, followed by the EK Grills 5K in Kelowna on May 22. More information on the series runs can be found at www.interiorrunningassociation.com.