Kingston Symphony Beat Beethoven

Every spring, the Kingston symphony gives about 900 participants the opportunity to try and beat Beethoven. The goal is to complete a foot race through downtown Kingston before symphony musicians finish playing a 50-minute arrangement of Beethoven’s most famous concert music. Heading into its 2 4th year, the event is a fundraiser for the symphony.

Robby Breadner has worked as the symphony’s race director for the last four years, and he says it’s a great event for those who have never raced before. “We get a lot of beginners,” he says. Two of Kingston’s local running shops organize learn-to-run clinics specifically for new runners who want to try Beat Beethoven, and Breadner attends to give talks and offer encouragement.

There’s also plenty for experienced runners, too. This race is part of the Kingston Road Runners race series and worth the most amount of points. Breadner has also started an entry swap with other running events across Ontario. “I have a race [entry] prize board. People who win in their age category can pull an entry off the board.

There’s probably 25 races there that they can pick from,” he says.

Beat Beethoven attracts some fast runners. A few years ago, organizers invited Canadian Olympian and long distance runner Dylan Wykes to participate. “He ran it in 2 4:50, headed back out and ran it twice and came in under 50 minutes,” Breadner says. “Every year, it’s a very competitive race because it’s the biggest one in Kingston, and so we get some pretty fast people to come to town.”