Donna, one of STARR’s newest members, crosses the line at the TC 10K.
By Leslie Ann Bent
Leslie Ann completes the TC 10K.
The 30th annual TC 10k race took place yesterday morning under a welcoming sunny sky and cool ocean breeze. It was a perfect day for nearly 9,000 runners and walkers taking part. STARR members came out in full force – 11 including our honorary STARRette, Georgia Wark. Four of our runners were also coaches in the SEAPARC’s RunSport TC10k clinic. We had lots of people to cheer for.
The race starts on Government Street near the legislature and is a loop in the downtown core and along Dallas Rd. The first few kilometers have some small climbs including on Yates, Vancouver and Richardson streets. Not long after the 4km marker, the route turns onto Dallas Rd, hugging the beautiful shoreline with a back drop to snow-capped mountains, welcoming runners to the area with a cool, gentle breeze. The route then wound back along Dallas and by km 9, it is off Erie street and following the short streets, mostly down hill into the finish line. It is a great race course for new runners, seasoned runners getting back into racing, runners who enjoy the views, those who enjoy the stimulation of a larger field, and anyone looking for a faster course.
I started near the back and got to take in the sights of the pre-race activities. Elvis in his white lightning attire was showing off his moves as the warm up crew got the runners dancing to the beats. Not far ahead of me was a guy wearing a full banana costume, perhaps for charity. I never did see him again after the start. At the very front of the race start-line, was Jonathan in his STARR singlet vying for position ahead of the 9,000 deep start-line. A quick start of the wheelchair division and visually impaired launched the race. Then the rest of the crowd were off into the bright sun. The first part of a large race always feels like it is your time to jostle for your position and pace as you try to pass slower runners, faster runners weave around to get into their position, and baby joggers try to find sufficient space to avoid unplanned casualties such plowing over other runners. Jackie and I both felt that Vancouver Street is where you can start to comfortably run in a fairly straight line without watching the foot and wheel traffic around you.
Jonathan excited to get started.
I am one of those older runners who had never carried a cellphone while running. This time around, I brought mine to ensure I captured the photos of the two walkers in my 10k clinic group as they crossed the finish line. Where to carry it I asked myself? The answer was my running vest. It was hardly needed for warmth, and so I worked up a sweat quite quickly but couldn’t ditch the vest with the camera inside. So, when I turned onto Dallas Street and was hit by such a cool breeze, I almost let out a sigh of relief. Comments and sighs of relief echoed my own appreciation for the cool wind at the moment in the race. A number of music stations were set up along the route – drummers and a few radio stations are the most memorable. Lots of spectators were cheering us on as we ran through various neighbourhoods and one particular seniors’ home were out in full colours with noisemakers and signs to help keep us going. As I neared the finish-line I picked up the pace and sprinted across to the appropriate old BTO tune, “Takin’ Care of Business,” blasting on the race sound system. I was happy to have completed it in a faster time than the Sooke River 10k, shaving off close to 4 minutes. I stuck around to cheer on 4 SEAPARC runners who were behind me, and was so proud having an opportunity to witness their achievements, and honestly honoured to be part of the team with Megen, Jackie, and Kari who all had a part in helping them succeed. I feel like a proud parent when I say that my two walkers shaved off at least 10 minutes from their test race times earlier this month. Everyone had great stories from the race and I’ve captured a bit of that further on.
It was a great day for the women’s field. The course record was broken by Sarah Inglis from Langley with a gun time of 32:24. The 27- year-old is originally from Scotland and is a hopeful for Great Britain’s 2020 Olympic team. In the men’s field, for the second year in a row, the first runner was Haron Sirma of Kenya clocking 29:38.
STARR members all had remarkable performances. In typical form, Jonathan was our first runner across the finish line, clocking 38:54, earning him 7th place in the M40-44 in a field of 341. Jackie was our second runner to cross the line for STARR. She had an amazing time of 51:27, earning her a 4th age-group finish in a field of 166. I asked her what she had to say about the race and here is what she said. “ … a real dodging jig jag all the way to Vancouver St!! Actually - kind of fun even though it slows down your time. So much fun stuff along the way but no time to check it out unless you don’t care at about time, and I think no matter what anyone says, we do care!! It is a race after all:)” I asked her if this race gave her the bug to go back to racing. “It kind of put the race bug back in my near conscious mind…” Maybe we will see Jackie in future races? Jackie was on hand to witness Georgia take off and out sprint a surprised Robin to the finish line. Well done to both! It was Georgia’s first 10k after having done some shorter races including 5ks and elementary and junior high track and field. She said her favourite part of the race was all of the cheering and crowds. Kari started running last year in the 10k clinic. This was her second TC 10k. Not only did she shave off 5 minutes from last year’s time, she felt great after the race. “The best part of the race was running along Dallas Road – the views are amazing, the sun was shining and I was running. It was perfect,” Kari said.
STARR results based on chip time:
M40-44 – Jonathan Dvorak 38:54, Robin Wark 1:08:23
F40-44 – Kari Toovey 1:05:39, Megen Seysener 1:14:39
Georgia and Robin head for the finish.
F45-49 – Holly Sneddon 1:39:02
F50-54 – Leslie Ann Bent 1:20:30
M55-59 – Allan Walker 1:07:07
F55-59 – Donna Bonin (new member and walker) 1:33:08
F65-69 – Jackie Eddy 51:27
M75-79 - Ken Pungente 1:05.21
F-19 and under - Georgia Wark 1:08:23
Congratulations to all of the STARR runners and walkers. We hope to see more of you there next year.
The SEAPARC’s RunSport TC10K clinic featuring coaches Megen, Kari, Jackie, and Leslie Ann (not pictured) and STARRs Al and Donna. Courtesy of Armando Turo Photography.
