Island Race Series, the Harriers Pioneer 8 km

Barb, Jill, Maggie & Kari at the start

The first run of the Island Race Series, the Harriers Pioneer, took place January 11. This is always a fun race and a chance to get our post holiday cobwebs out of our systems. The course changed this year (or rather, returned to its former route) and was a nice flat route through the Saanich countryside, in the area of the Saanich Fairgrounds.

The route allowed for some very fast paces – the run leaders could be seen way off in the distance looping around as those of us closer to the back of the pack were either inspired by the speedsters, too busy breathing and putting one foot in front of the other to care, or just taking in the scenery.  The winner of this year’s race, Jaxon Kuchar, finished in 23.34 (mindblowing)!

During my run I always like to focus on the scenery, the dogs on the sidelines and for this run, a pony in a coat being walked by his handlers!

Leslie Ann Bent, another STARR runner who took part said of the new route “I really loved this year's Pioneer 8k course - the farms, old country roads and the lack of traffic - plus a new-to-us course made it interesting as I'd never been on the route before.  What was also exciting was there large group of very fast runners which always impresses and inspires me. It was fantastic to see Natasha Wodack run in this local race too. I enjoy seeing familiar faces before and after the race”. 

As always, the Island Race Series is a great way to get out of the house, spend time with friends, pet some dogs, eat some food…oh, and enjoy a run.

STARR had an impressive 11 runners this year, with the following results:

Andy Smith 34.39

Barbara Cina 38.43

Stephanie Croft 39.02

Emily Mann 40.38

Melanie Eskildsen 43.31

Jill Potter Hellman 47.44

Maggie Curtis 48.23

Kari Toovey 50.02

Pauline Nielsen 52.13

Erin Nielsen 52.15

Joldene Lee 1:04

Great jobs STARRs!

January Blues Athens to Cortina Week 3 Review

We set off NW from Sarajevo and Paul was carrying the torch through Banja Luka famous for the ‘Banja Luka Incident’, this being the first ever NATO combat engagement in the skies above in February 1994.  https://youtu.be/WevXTsed_oc this link tells the story.  Paul wins a blue Tely 10 long sleeved shirt for his modern history knowledge.  At Kostajnica we crossed the border from Bosnia in to our 6th country, Croatia.  Georgia was our torch bearer here.  Georgia wins a Valley Harvest long sleeve orange shirt for her efforts.

The Balkans, aside from Sarajevo, are somewhat short on Olympic history so we pressed ahead to Harmika and crossed into Slovenia.  Rick suggested we stop a while by the spellbindingly beautiful Lake Bled and enjoy a well earned coffee and vanilijevi kifeljčki (crescent cookies).  Rick was so taken by the cookies that he grabbed the recipe https://sloveniankitchen.com/blogs/desserts/slovenian-vanilla-crescent-cookies and Rick is likely to bring some to a future STARRs event!  This is certainly worthy of a prize of a(nother) Valley Harvest long sleeve orange shirt. (Courtesy of yaska.si and sloveniaalps.com for the photos.)

From here our path becomes much more Winter-Olympic-like, as we begin the steady climb into the Julian Alps.  Kari suggested we stop a while in the ski resort of Kranjska Gora, which is on the World Cup circuit for slalom, giant slalom, ski jump and the Nordic events.  What a beautiful place, and also the hometown of the LA Kings Captain and Centre Anže Kopitar.  Kari wins a prize of her choice of book.

Just a short distance from here we climbed Mount Dreiländerec/ Peč/ Forno which is the border tripoint between Austria, Slovenia and Italy (hence the 3 names).  Here we need to make a decision to go straight to Cortina or head off on an Olympic themed Alps detour.  We checked in with Sid our driver and he was very relaxed about the schedule as, after all, the 3 foot short Olympic hockey rink isn’t even finished yet!  So it was Leslie Ann, who wins a prize of a Paris Olympics 2024 tote bag for suggesting we head to Innsbruck, home of the 1964 & 1976 Winter Olympics.  Why twice, why so close?  Originally, Denver won the 1970 bidding for the 1976 Winter Olympics, but the Citizens of Colorado voted 60/40 in a 1972 State referendum to decline (for environmental and cost reasons)!  The IOC then asked Whistler to fill the slot but the looming 1972 Federal election prevented Canada from committing.  Ultimately, Innsbruck agreed to step in.

We didn’t quite get to Innsbruck this week so stopped at the tiny Italian mountain ski town of Sesto Sexten.  This is the hometown of the of the Italian 2008 Giant Slalom aged 7 and under ski champion, who went on to have a promising youth career as a soccer player, and eventually swapped sports again and became…… the world’s number 1 tennis player, Jannick Sinner!

17 days in Sid, our chauffer advised us the odometer read an impressive 726 km for the week and 1,892 km overall.  Well done team, already we have visited 4 Olympic sites and 9 countries!

January Blues Athens to Cortina Week 2 Review

Leaving Trikala we headed north west for the Albanian border at Trestenik. Jill was carrying the torch as we crossed and earned a prize of a ‘hat/buff thing’ courtesy of Sarah.  From there we took a short detour to bag another country, North Macedonia and rest by Lake Ohrid.  It is way better than it sounds and locally known as the Pearl of the Balkans!  Thanks to Barb for suggesting we stop by the lake, you win a prize of one of the books.

Lake Ohrid courtesy of tourtirana.com

From Ohrid, we headed back across into Albania and some km’s later at Hani i Hotit were back on track with Kim holding the torch as we crossed into Montenegro for which Kim wins a prize of one of the books.  Next we crossed into Bosnia & Herzegovina at Bobotovo Groblje!  Danny was our torch bearer there and picked up a prize of a light, courtesy again of Sarah.

Mel was concerned about the lack of Olympic sites we had visited and suggested we veer direct north and head to Sarjevo, the host of the 1984 Winter Olympics.  For this Mel wins a prize of a book. Here the Canadians had their best Olympic results since 1960 and won 4 medals with speed skater Gaetan Boucher picking up 3 of them; two golds and a bronze.  Sarajevo was also GB’s Torvill and Dean Golden Olympics with the pair receiving the first ever perfect set of scores for their figure skating free programme to the music of Ravel’s Bolero.

Gaetan Boucher on the Podium in Sarajevo

It is difficult to believe that just six years after the Olympics Sarajevo was held at siege during the Balkan conflict.  Lasting just short of four years the siege is amongst the longest endured in modern history.  Little of the Olympic infrastructure survived but we did climb the hills to visit the derelict bobsleigh and luge track and athletes village and take a moment to reflect on the Balkan tragedy. See photos below from laughingsquid.com and Feel Bosnia.

There is a recently released critically acclaimed Canadian movie documenting over 5 years 3 young Bosinan wannabe lugists and their inspirational coach as they attempt to meet the Olympic standard by practising on this track on wheeled sleds. The movie is called The Track and is highly recommended viewing https://www.imdb.com/title/tt35699183/. Its been a recent film festival favourite and look out for it on streaming services soon.

10 days in Sid, our chauffer in the support car advised us the odometer read an impressive 816 km for the week and 1,166 km overall.  Well done team, already we have visited 4 Olympic sites and 5 countries!

January Blues Athens to Cortina Week 1 Review

As promised we started our Journey on the 1st of Jan leaving the Acropolis in central Athens at sun rise, descending the hill to the Panathenaic Stadium used in 1896.  Buoyed by the sense of adventure we made an early detour to Athens 2004 Olympic Stadium 11km in and Ian was carrying the torch as we entered the Olympic Stadium and he won a prize of an Italian yellow race shirt. 

Image from Olympic.org

Next we headed out east to visit the Marathon battle site where the Athenians defeated the invading Persians.  Sarah carried the torch on to the battle site in Marathon, where we learned the real story of Pheidippides and his famous run.  Herodotus informs us that he was nowhere near Marathon that day.   He ran the entirely opposite direction, hot footing it from Athens to Sparta, 120 miles, to raise the Spartan army to help.  The Spartans were full-on partying during a festival and declined, so he ran back on his own.   Clearly, Pheidippides is father of the Ultra…. not the Marathon.  So who can claim the Marathon?  Herodotus recalls that the retreating Persians jumped back in their boats and set sail down the coast to sack Athens (after all their army was in Marathon).  It’s the Athenian army that jogged the 42.2km lightening fast back to Athens just in time.   The Athenian army are the true fathers of the Marathon.  Thanks to Sarah for the detour and the history lesson for which you win a prize of a book about running!

Image from Etsy.co.uk

After the detour we set off north on the long march to the Alps. Three days of pretty impressive mileage by the team, has us camped at Trikala. Sid, our chauffer in the support car advised us the odometer read 350km for our effort so far. Unfortunately, Trikala has no rich Olympic heritage to share, however, it is the birth place of Asclepius, the Greek God of Medicine & Healing. The perfect place to be to get us patched up for week 2! Jackie carried the torch through the city walls and won a prize of an original Vancouver 2010 Olympics beanie for her efforts.

Asclepius God of Medicine from Wiki

Breaking News......STARRs to Save 2026 Winter Olympics

The unusually wet rain of the last few months has extinguished the Olympic torch flame being carried to Cortina.  Sooke as the Volunteer Capital of Canada has been asked by the IOC to get the flame from the Olympic Stadium in Athens to Cortina, Italy asap.  Sooke of course has enlisted its premier (and only) run club STARR to simply make this happen.

We have now raised the STARR team (of 18 runners and walkers) to travel the distance by foot from Athens to Cortina c. 1,711km minimum, to carry the Olympic torch as this year’s January Blues Challenge for 2026.  As a token of their appreciation, the IOC has arranged a Team Canada support car, naturally a red Cortina and a chauffer named Sid.  Join us on this important journey.  Expect weekly progress updates, via the website, throughout the month.

The planned route is attached below.

2025 Island Race Series by Maggie Curtis

Registration is now open for individual races in the Vancouver Island Race Series, and the first one is coming up on January 11th. I have been meaning to write a report about the series for a while, because it is so awesome to do.  I am heading into my fifth consecutive season, and I highly recommend it to all.

The Island Race series is a series of 8 races that take place roughly every two weeks on Sundays (11-1130 start) all over Vancouver Island.  I posted the dates and locations for the 2026 races at the bottom of the article.  The distances range from 5km to a half marathon and there are usually between 300 and 700 participants, depending on the race.  It is a great way to get in the racing experience without fighting the large crowds and the early mornings of the TC10K or the RVM.  It is also relatively cheap, with each race costing around $40 and with a further discount if you sign up for them all.

Why do I keep going back year after year?  I sure as heck am not winning.  My strategy is to keep doing it until I reach my eighties, and then I will get a first place ribbon for my age category.   Bruce Hawkes, a longtime STARR member, won an award for the most consecutive seasons a few years ago (in his eighties).  He also has had many first and second place age category ribbons in the past few years..

The series is a good way to keep one’s energy up through the bleak and dreary late winter and early spring.   There is going to be at least one race that is terribly wet, windy and generally unpleasant.    Some of the races have long drives to get to them too.  It seems like such a silly thing to do--but is it really?  Persevering through crappy conditions does positive things to our brains—it makes us feel unstoppable and super bad-ass.  It also means a good story to share afterwards.  And there are 500 other silly people doing the same thing, so you feel like you are in it together. 

On the last race of last season, a friendly woman in my age category came up to me and said that we had finished within a minute or two of each other the whole season.  We had a good laugh, saying we would keep an eye on each other next year.  Then I realized I was turning 55 in 2026 and would be going into a new category—but so was she!  So I have a rival for the next few months.  If you keep doing the races year after year, you get to know the people, the courses and, most importantly, the food that each club provides.

Oh yes, the post-race spread is often wonderful—beer, chili, pizza, sandwiches, coffee, cookies, fruit, and even pancakes.  For the last three years, I have run with my good STARR pals, and we have occasionally stopped and had a lunch for the up Island races, or made an overnight trip of the Comox half marathon.  There is a lot of research that suggests linking exercise with little moments of fun (like our post-run coffees) will keep us coming back, and I feel like the food at the race is a way to achieve this.

The food is definitely second the companionship and the camaraderie though.  A few of us STARRs traveled together to all the races over the past couple of years.  We saw lots of familiar faces.  The Sooke race is especially well attended by STARRs.  There are some very competitive runners, with huge teams like the Prairie Inn Harriers and Speedfarm, and competitors from all over the island.  The vibe is very friendly and encouraging and it is inspiring to see such strong runners.

The courses are also pleasant.  There are some hilly ones (Royal Roads and Sooke), some flat ones (Bazan Bay) and some really pretty ones.  Personally I like McLean Mill and Cobble Hill quite a bit.  Most of the running is on roads, except Royal Roads, which has some trail.   The series gets you out to different places around the island.  And, if you like prizes and tracking, each race has medals/ribbons for the top ten in five-year categories and at the end there are overall medals/ribbons for individuals and teams who did the whole series.  Quite a few STARRs got ribbons last year, in individual races and for the series.

So, if you are looking for a pick-me-up to get you through the winter and early spring, I recommend the series.  There are usually a few STARRS who sign up for one or two races and some who do the whole thing.  If time is tight or you don’t want the big commitment, it may be worthwhile to try one!  Maybe you will wind up planning to keep running them all into your eighties too. 

January 11 — Harriers Pioneer 8K – 11:30 am

January 25 – Cobble Hill 10K – 11:00 am

February 8 – Hatley Castle 8K – 11:00 am

February 22 –Bastion 12K – 11:00 am

March 8 – Westcoast Running Sooke 10K + 1K Kid’s super days $5 ages 0-12 – 10:45 am kids/ 11:00 am main race

March 22 – Comox Valley RV Half Marathon – 11:00 am

March 29 – McLean Mill 10K – 11:00 am

April 12 – Saanich Physio + Bazan Bay 5K – 11:00 am

Thetis Lake 20km Relay – November 11, 2025

By Leslie Ann Bent

Our Super-STARR Thetis Lake Relay Teams (6 in all!)

This year was a special year for our annual Thetis Lake relay. The rain gods took the day off and with the warm temperature, it sure didn’t feel like a typical Thetis Lake relay.  The annual event, organized by the Prairie Inn Harriers, attracts well over 100 teams each year rain or shine, and is a great fall event for clubs across Vancouver Island.  The vibe on site couldn’t be better. Lots of music and comradery are evident along the beach and staging area.  Leslie Ann and Andy brought the tent, while Sarah brought her portable heater. We had a comfortable STARR team spot to gather.  

The relay is a hilly nearly 5km course around Thetis Lake. Teams have up to four members and each team completes four laps around the loop.  The route has some gentle moments over the first half of the race, hugging the lake’s shoreline and providing nice forested terrain on wide trail.  As runners’ legs get somewhat comfortable, finding a good rhythm, the short, steep hills appear and the race gets more challenging over the last section. Pacing is important at least for the older folks like me. We didn’t call our team “Huffin, Puffin, Gaspin,’ Wheezin’ for nothing.

This year STARR had six teams competing.  It was a great venue for catching up with club members and cheer everyone on. Andy and I were unable to stay for the awards ceremony but we know STARR took home some hardware. The race results haven’t been reported as of the race recap. Congrats to all of our team members who came out and a special “whoot whoot” to the teams who placed. 

STARR Teams

Huffin', Puffin', Gaspin', Wheezin': Leslie Ann, Andy, Joldine, Barb

Hustling Mamas (and a Dad): Brianna, Steve, Alex, Karla

Defibrillators: Jackie, Danny, Steve Kent, Mark Ziegler

The Young and Breathless: Sarah, Emily (2 laps each!!)

Resting Pace Face: Maggie, Vanessa, Jill, Kari 

Three Thorns and a Rose: Pauline, David White, Claude (2 laps for Claude!)

2025 Edition of the Predict Your Time Event

By Leslie Ann Bent (with photos courtesy of Bri)

We had a decent day for STARR”s annual “Predict Your Time” event on Saturday, October 18, held at the Potholes Park. Last year runners were challenged with an atmospheric river while this year a light drizzle didn’t seem to keep members away. This event is fun for a number of reasons.  Everyone is on equal footing regardless of age, gender and ability.  The goal is to predict your time over either the long course (9.4km) or the short course (5.3km) and complete the course without a watch or other timing devise.  It means the feel of your pace is most important and the fastest doesn’t necessarily mean a win. There were ribbons and some swag as well as cookies and water. Steve and Rose came out to cheer on the runners. Of course, there was also a chance to socialize after the event.

Ten participants came out for the event, trying their hand at pacing.  Everyone did amazing. It was great to have so many people come out. Congratulations to all of the runners. Thanks to Bri for the photos!

Results:

5.3km                          Predicted time            Actual time                 Difference

Bri (gold)                                 28:42              22:34                           6:08

Melanie (silver)                       40                    31:46                           8:14

 

9.4km

Emily (gold)                             55                    54:44                           44 seconds

Kari (silver)                              64                    63:03                           57 seconds

Maggie (bronze)                    62                    63:03                           1:03

Sarah                                       50                    48:41                           1:19

Jill                                            60:35              63:03                           2:28

Andy                                        50:36              53:10                           2:34

David D                                    46                    43:18                           2:42

Claude                                     48                    53:10                           5:10

Sooke Hills 25 & 50 KM

Thanks to Maggie Curtis for the article & Jonathan Behnke for the photos.

As far as weather goes, it was a bleak morning for the second annual Sooke Hills 25 and 50 K race this year.  On Saturday, May 31st, after days of sunshine, the skies opened and it was still pretty soggy when the 25km race started at 9.  The 50km race started at 8, so I know they faced some good showers early in the race.  But people were smiling and we were all certain it would lighten up–and we were correct!  By the time I finished (albeit I was closer to the back of 25K-ers), the sun was peeking back out.  

The race has a small community feel to it–like a gathering of friends rather than an intense competitive event–and the terrain is truly breathtaking (in all ways).  It was amazing to do an organized run in the area that I love so much.

The top three female finishers in the 25K race were Niki Chapman (3:15), Shelley Donovan (3:25) and Kristen Livingstone (3:33) The top three male finishers for 25K route were Christopher Sundby (2:26) from Vancouver, and Glenn Jasechko (2:31) and Jacob Haas (2:32) from Victoria.  In the 50K, the top three females were Rianna Burnham (7:08), Sara Hong Li (7:32) from Victoria and Sarah Cousineau (7:37) from Saanichton.  The top males the 50K were Charles Perin from Victoria (5:34), Cameron McInnes from Vancouver (5:34) and Cole Hetherington from Victoria (5:41).  Sooke Trail and Road Runners had 6 participants and many volunteers.

The 25K race starts with a steady climb from the potholes up to Peden lake, which you then run alongside. After a right turn, you follow a sometimes flat and sometimes rocky climb on the Lakes Connector trail to Sheilds lake.  At Sheilds lake (6.7 KM), there is a lovely aid station and our very own Sarah McWhirter was offering up Coca Cola and snacks to the runners along with other friendly volunteers.  You then proceed around the Sheilds lake trail until you hit Sooke Mountain Park Road and you follow a wide, flat downhill trail that you can speed along for around 7KM.  I got to see my friends Jackie and Danny helping out on their bikes during this stretch.   Then you turn onto Charters Trail (which is smaller than an access road, but wider than a single track trail) for a couple of KMs.  And then things start to get interesting…

You go up to the summit of Mt. Monument, a long climb with amazing views every time you turn around.  After the top of Monument, you take a winding trail down (this stretch caused me to start breaking mentally; I had pumped myself up to get up Monument, but I did not realize how long it would take me to get down) to Grass lake aid station.  After this station, (which had two of my colleagues from EMCS and their dog as volunteers) you begin to descend Harrison trail, which is steep and technical and also has some extremely lovely spots–large mossy rocks that rise on either side of a narrow path, a downed tree that makes a skeleton with its branches reaching over you, and a number of gullies covered in ferns.  Once done, you get on the galloping goose and eventually move down to the potholes to run a nice little trail to the finish line.  For the record, I was feeling finished with running by this point but I still managed a smile for my colleague and friend who was taking photographs a couple of kilometres from the finish line.  The 50K route has three summits– Empress, Monument, and Quimper.  If you want to know more, the maps are available on the website: https://www.sookehillsrunning.com/

The organizers had beans, tacos, homemade salsa and beverages for refueling afterwards at the finish line.  Everyone was very supportive and every single finisher was cheered over the line.  I got to see some of the early 50K finishers and they all looked amazing–the second female finisher is in her fifties (like me), so I found that especially inspiring.  There was a shuttle to take runners back to their cars every half hour or so (parking was at the park and ride by the soccer field).

I highly recommend this race to anyone who wants an enjoyable challenge.  Whether you walk, run, or do a combination, the Sooke Hills is a fantastic way to spend a morning.  They have unique shirts that they gather from thrift shops and put their cool logo on for all finishers.  The organizers will even put the logo on a shirt of your own if you wish.  Two STARRs hiked the whole race and finished well within the cutoff time, so don’t write this one off if you are not a big trail runner.  For me, I was proud to finish and I will try it again next year (I am thinking of working up to a 50K at some point).  While I enjoyed the route, the food and the T-shirt, the best part for me was all of the people–I saw so many familiar faces and even the unfamiliar people were warm and encouraging.  

STARR results:

Scott Renouf Sooke, BC 4 M38 3:53:55

Karla Sache Sooke, BC 203 F38 4:06:50

Brianna Fitzgerald Sooke, BC 171 F33 4:11:56

Maggie Curtis Sooke, BC 133 F53 5:35:25

Kari Toovey Sooke, BC 211 F51 7:03:12

Vanessa White Sooke, BC 213 F51 7:03:12

Saysutshun Ultra

Ultra-Terrific Event for STARR at Run Saysutshun

By Leslie Ann Bent

This year marked the 3rd annual Run Saysutshun races on Saysutshun Island off the coast of Nanaimo. This race is a very special one and has all of the elements that runners love about racing – high level of competition paired with comradery, a scenic course, a variety of distances, well run event and lots of food. The event is largely an ultra event offering a 24-hour option, 12-hour night or day time options, and a 6-hour event. They also throw in a half marathon and a 10k.  This year all events sold out, so when Andy tried to register, it was too late. (More on that later).

STARR runners included David D and Sarah who were both aiming for 100km accomplishments. Kari, Andy and Leslie Ann were comfortable with the 10km loop around the island. Friend of STARR, Gemma who camped by David and Sarah, was out to win. Sooke was well represented!

Runners in each event tackle the 10km loop course. The course starts out with a wide groomed trail, but eventually the path narrows, gets steeper and then roots and rocks make the course much more technical and more typical of an ultra course. Food, drinks and tents await the runners at the end of each loop. Volunteers ensure that the racers are well taken care of. Each event was opened with a land acknowledgement and welcome by a local elder and knowledge keeper.

David and Sarah started out at 5pm on Friday night. The mental challenge started later. They had until 5pm on Saturday to accomplish their goals. Both had up and down moments on the course – fatigue for sure, but I was awed by their mental strength and perseverance. Both completed 100km and looked no worse for the wear.  A big congrats to Dave and Sarah. Gemma did manage to win the women’s race completing 146km if anyone was wondering.

On the 10k front, Andy and Leslie Ann officially traded positions when the race organizer allowed Andy to take Leslie Ann’s bib to challenge his prior year win. Happily, he did not have to run as a 59 year-old woman as they made the registration change on the fly! Kari arrived ready to roll with her husband to cheer and take photos. We had lots of time to chat and catch up with STARR runners. Not having to repeat the loop, Kari took her time to enjoy the course. Andy, defending his title, took a nasty fall when he tripped on a root (resulting in blood, mud, & scrapes but still able to run).  Only one young runner crossed the finish line ahead of him this year.  I enjoyed running of the course at a leisurely pace without the pressure of competition.

I caught up with a few of the runners to hear what they had to say about the race:

Sarah: “I had a blast though, it was also my birthday and it was great to get in some laps with Dave, we both got 100km. GO STARR!  My stomach wasn't behaving most of this event but this kind of ultra running really needs a clear mind also. As you know Leslie it's more mental than physical.”

Kari: “It was great - it is a tricky course with lots of roots so it was slow for me but I loved it - it was so beautiful I kept stopping to take photos along the course. And yes, lots of great comradery.  Thank you so much for getting that registration as a prize - I am so glad I did it and not sure I would have done it without winning it. Now that I have done it once I might make it a yearly event as I enjoyed it so much. It was good to see you.”

Andy said that he loved the race.  The best thing about it is the vibe, referring to both years. It’s a competitive tough race but still remains to have a chill atmosphere. Volunteers are fantastic. The start and end of each loop is where the ultra runners set up their tents and gear. The food & drink station is right there. It lends itself to a gathering place for runners and support.

Although I ended up not racing, I still love the event and echo what everyone else from STARR has said.

Dave managed completing 50km before taking a 2.5 hour snooze. He got right back at it after that and finished the 100km really strong. No doubt he’ll race it again in 2026.

Congratulations to our runners. Thanks so much to Tommy and his team for organizing an amazing race once again. Photos were supplied by Kari, Sarah, the Run Saysutshun race and me.

The Oak Bay Half Marathon

By Jill Potter-Hellmann.

A beautiful course along the ocean, through the streets of Oak Bay, the Oak Bay Half marathon saw over 1100 participants on Sunday, May 25th. The weather was ideal, with a welcome breeze off the ocean on the return route.

For those wanting a shorter distance, over 500 runners ran the 10km route.  This event, in its 19th year, also offers a relay event, which saw 28 teams participating.

A great atmosphere at the start and along the route, with encouraging cheering “stations” at the top of the hills and along some difficult stretches.

I had checked out the route a couple of weeks prior, so was aware of an uphill around 16km, but was really challenged by the rolling route from 17-20 km. By this point, I was feeling the previous hills. The start of the race had all categories starting at once, so it was hard to not go out too fast. Maybe the last few k’s would not have been so hard if I had had a slower start.

Definitely recommend this event, just for the scenery alone.

STARRS at the Oak Bay Half

Name     Time.    Age Group

Claude  1:53:40   M60-64  5th

Jill         2:11:30   F60-64   8th

Oak Bay Half Marathon Report

By Jill Potter-Hellmann

A beautiful course along the ocean, through the streets of Oak Bay, the Oak Bay Half marathon saw over 1100 participants on Sunday, May 25th. The weather was ideal, with a welcome breeze off the ocean on the return route.

For those wanting a shorter distance, over 500 runners ran the 10km route.  This event, in its 19th year, also offers a relay event, which saw 28 teams participating.

A great atmosphere at the start and along the route, with encouraging cheering “stations” at the top of the hills and along some difficult stretches.

I had checked out the route a couple of weeks prior, so was aware of an uphill around 16km, but was really challenged by the rolling route from 17-20 km. By this point, I was feeling the previous hills. The start of the race had all categories starting at once, so it was hard to not go out too fast. Maybe the last few k’s would not have been so hard if I had had a slower start.

Definitely recommend this event, just for the scenery alone.

STARRS at the Oak Bay Half

Name     Time.    Age Group

Claude  1:53:40   M60-64  5th

Jill         2:11:30   F60-64   8th