Monday, October 20, 2008

Great Event for PEI...keep it running..

Great work there Myrtle... these are the type of events the Province's Tourism Department can continue to support as it reinforces our healthy PEI lifestyles and brings real visitors here. Much better than rock concerts..... Seems this event grows every year but I see that a couple of my buddies "the two sisters" haven't run since 2004 and I'm pretty sure the heavy weights have figured out that one of their wives would beat "the snot out of them" so this is probably why they have given up.... she has continued to perform every year with a very impressive record... in fact I had a little $20. on her against my Premier and after filling her up with a little pasta dinner Saturday night I'm now able to collect.... in defence of the Premier, his time was great and I didn't see any other politicians even close to his time... an unnamed Ch'town stock broker said, “at least the Premier was brave enough to give it a try much more than I can say for his much "heavier" friends...” Great job there to everyone who was involved…. great race Liz and maybe the "boys" could take up bowling...
Islanders, visitors nurse aches after biggest P.E.I. Marathon
STEPHEN BRUN
The Guardian
Ice packs and sore legs may be in store for many Islanders and some visitors today. Over 1,600 runners converged on P.E.I. over the weekend to take part in the BMO Nesbitt Burns P.E.I. Marathon, with many more on hand to cheer them on. Event co-ordinator Myrtle Jenkins-Smith said she plans on taking a bit of time before thinking about what next year’s event will hold, but is pleased every year with how far the marathon has come. “It’s amazing to see the growth. To go from 173 to over 1,600 is massive growth and we couldn’t do it without the many sponsors that we have and the volunteers are all amazing. We have over 275 volunteers on the course today,’’ she said. Five years ago, local businessmen Danny Murphy and George Fisher revamped the marathon that had been run on the Island for a couple of decades, hoping to make it a world-class event. Organizers saw double the expected amount of 400 participants for the first year. The numbers — both in participation and in economic spin-offs — have grown every year since. “We had several restaurants tell us they didn’t have any seats available (Saturday) night, so that’s a good thing. People were asking us all day what was open, and there are a lot of people here,’’ said Jenkins-Smith. “When you look at every province, 12 states and international participants from as a far away as Amsterdam and Great Britain — they’re here for a holiday. It’s really terrific that they’re coming here and spending time and staying in hotels.’’ The weekend kicked off on Saturday with the Kids Spud Run at the Charlottetown Driving Park and Entertainment Centre. Over 300 children and their parents came out to run a lap around the CDPEC racetrack, for the free, safe and fun family event. “It was a lot of fun and I got some prizes,’’ said nine-year-old Payton Brown at the Spud Run. She and her parents, Eric and Karen, moved to P.E.I. from Texas two years ago. Brown bettered her time of about 12 minutes from last year, she said. “I run cross-country and sometimes I go for a jog with my dad. I beat my time by eight minutes.’’ The Spud Run is sponsored by the P.E.I. Potato Board, with the goal of mixing the Island’s best-known product with a day of exercise, said the board’s general manager Bob Harding. “It’s an awesome turnout,’’ said Harding. “What better way to start off the marathon weekend. It’s great for us to tie in potatoes with another healthy activity for kids.’’ Sunday’s marathon began at 9 a.m., with full marathon runners and corporate teams starting at the P.E.I. National Park in Brackley before winding 42.2 kilometres into Charlottetown by way of the Confederation Trail. Corporate and eight-member teams participating on Sunday included runners from Parks Canada, BMO Nesbitt Burns, Ocean 100 and K-Rock, and the UPEI school of business. Crossfit P.E.I.’s corporate team entry was the first to cross the finish line in that event, but team member Dave Whitty said a marathon isn’t the type of running the training centre normally does. “We never run. We do a lot of weight training and cardio, but the most we ever run is probably 400 metres,’’ he laughed. “We’re a training group and some of us have been training together since January and (a) few others have joined along the way.’’ The fastest runner of the day was Mike MacKinnon of Miscouche, who ran the full marathon in 2:39:28, a personal best. Jen Nicholson of Cornwall was the fastest female runner, finishing at 2:56:35. In addition to the full marathon, participants could also run a 21-km half-marathon and walk or run a 10-km track which all started at Province House in Charlottetown. Thousands of spectators also followed the runners’ progress, along with several musical acts to energize the marathoners along the way. “I couldn’t believe how many people were out there, it was really incredible,’’ said Jenkins-Smith. “I think it’s really great that we have a lot of people from off-Island to bring in a fan base and we have our corporate team which brought out a lot of people along the route. Every category was up in terms of participants, and where people are coming from really is amazing.’’

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