PEI Marathon 15th Anniversary Edition

Transcription

1 Tuesday, October 9, 2018 PEI Marathon 15th Anniversary Edition October 12 th -14 th,

2 2 OCTOBER 2018 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA P.E.I. Marathon Weekend Event Schedule Please note that the Healthy Lifestyle Expo & Registration will be held in our NEW Headquarters Location at the Delta Prince Edward Hotel, 18 Queen St, Charlottetown FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12 12:00 PM 6:00 PM PEI Marathon Healthy Lifestyle DELTA PRINCE EDWARD 12:00 PM 6:00 PM Race Kit Pick DELTA PRINCE EDWARD 12:00 PM 6:00 PM On-Site DELTA PRINCE EDWARD SATURDAY, OCTOBER 13 9:00 AM 7:00 PM Marathon DELTA PRINCE EDWARD 9:00 AM 7:00 PM Race Kit Pick DELTA PRINCE EDWARD 9:00 AM 7:00 PM On-Site DELTA PRINCE EDWARD 9:30 AM Running Room 3K Friendship RUNNING ROOM CHARLOTTETOWN 10:00 AM 10:45 AM Kids Fox Trot presented by Sobeys Extra and The Guardian, On-Site ALUMNI CANADA GAMES PLACE, UPEI :45 AM 11:00 AM Kids Fox Trot presented by Sobeys Extra and The Guardian warm up with Ocean 100 s Kirk MacKinnon 11:00 AM First heat, kids ages 6 14, 2 laps 11:15 AM Second heat, kids ages 5 and under, 1 lap SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14 * Please note the NEW start times for the Half Marathon, 10k, 5k and Wheelchair events* 7:00 AM Buses for the Grant Thornton Full Marathon Depart for National Park Start Line, Confederation Center Queen St Entrance 7:00 AM Buses for Subaru of Charlottetown Corporate Relay (1st leg) Depart for Brackley Beach, PEI National Park Start Line, Confederation Center Entrance Queen St 8:00 AM Grant Thornton Full Marathon, Brackley Beach, PEI National Park 8:00 AM Subaru of Charlottetown Corporate/Team Relay (1st Leg) Brackley Beach, PEI National Park 9:00 AM Dairy Farmers of Canada Half Marathon Run, Corner of Queen & Grafton St 9:00 AM Bell Let s Talk Half Marathon Walk for Mental Health, Corner of Queen & Grafton St 9:10 AM Pursuit 10K Run, Corner of Queen & Grafton St 9:10 AM Bell Let s Talk 10K Walk for Mental Health, Corner of Queen & Grafton St 9:20 AM Goodlife Fitness 5K Run, Corner of Queen & Grafton St 9:20 AM Bell Let s Talk 5K Walk for Mental Health, Corner of Queen & Grafton St 9:30 AM Spinal Cord Injury PEI 2K Wheelchair, NEW Start line at Corner of Queen & Grafton St 10:45 AM 2:15 PM Participant Massage presented by Downtown Charlottetown Inc, The Mack, Corner of Great George and Grafton St 2:30 PM PEI Marathon Awards Ceremony presented by Murphy Hospitality Group, The Mack, Corner of Great George and Grafton St

3 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA OCTOBER Welcome to the P.E.I. Marathon MYRTLE JENKINS-SMITH I welcome all participants to the 15th anniversary of the Prince Edward Island Marathon (P.E.I. Marathon) taking place October Thank you for choosing to celebrate with us. P.E.I. has had a strong running history going back many, many years. As Race Director, looking back over the past 14 years, I think how fortunate we are to have such strong support in helping to grow this wonderful P.E.I. Marathon weekend. Thank you to the event s board, directors, manager, committee, sponsors and 300+ volunteers that help to pull off this massive weekend. We could not do this without you! Some marathon weekend highlights from over the past 14 years include: The P.E.I. Marathon is the second largest marathon in Atlantic Canada and has attracted more than 27,000 participants in the various event categories since More than 640 P.E.I. Marathon participants have qualified for the Boston Marathon. More than 4,600 volunteers helped to ensure Marathon Weekend runs smoothly. The event has consistently attracted participants from every Province in Canada, the USA, and internationally to P.E.I. each year. In 2017, we partnered with Canadian Mental Health P.E.I. Division to raise awareness of the relationship of being active and having a healthy mindset. We are very proud of our popular free kids event the Kids Fox Trot attracting more than 500 kids each year Creation of a youth rate to help get more youth active. The Marathon presented a new race in 2016, The Georgetown 5K and 10K. Through various programs the P.E.I. Marathon has helped local organizations and teams raise more than $100,000 to date. On behalf of the entire P.E.I. Marathon team, we wish all participants a fun and safe weekend! Many thanks, Myrtle Jenkins-Smith Race Director, PEI Marathon Thanks to our Amazing Partners The P.E.I. Marathon is a Boston Qualifier and in 2016 was voted one of the Top 5 Boston qualifiers in Canada. It has achieved continuous growth each year, reaching 2,361 participants in The Marathon s goal has always been to make the weekend a family friendly event and has grown to include 10 running, walking and wheeling categories Something for Everyone!

4 4 OCTOBER 2018 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA Sixteen years ago, Myrtle Jenkins- Smith was considering the idea of a marathon weekend on P.E.I. which had hosted lots of Saturday-morning marathons, but never a full weekend of events. Every other province in Canada had a full race weekend, so we wanted to try doing the same thing, says Jenkins- Smith, who remains at the helm as Race Director. That first year, we had 173 runners which felt like a huge success considering it was brand new. By last year, the P.E.I. Marathon was up to 2,375 runners organized into 10 different categories. A legacy of racing Our goal from the very beginning was to offer an inclusive weekend something for the entire family, says Jenkins- Smith. So we have the full marathon, the half marathon (running or walking), the 10K and the 5K (running or walking), the Corporate relay, the kids event and the wheelchair event. The P.E.I. Marathon is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, and Jenkins- Smith says last year s visiting runners came from every province in Canada, 18 different U.S. states, Mexico, Japan and Australia giving the province a huge tourism boost during the slower shoulder season. Part of the reason it s so popular is that the P.E.I. Marathon has been a qualifying race for the Boston Marathon since its second year. Jenkins-Smith says runners come from all over the world for the relatively flat course and comfortable autumn weather. Being a Boston qualifier has opened a lot of doors to people coming from away, says Jenkins-Smith. We ve been voted one of the Top 5 Boston Qualifiers in Canada, which is not an easy thing for us to have achieved! To celebrate 15 years of the P.E.I. Marathon, they started giving away a weekly prize 15 weeks before the big weekend. During the final race day, Jenkins-Smith says they ll be giving away $1,500 cash. Even though the 15th P.E.I. Marathon has yet to begin officially, Jenkins-Smith says she and the other organizers are already well into preparations for Year 16. They re adding another category which they ll be announcing around Christmas. She says they re so fortunate to have a great management team and supportive sponsors, as well as a team of more than 300 loyal volunteers many of whom have been there since the beginning. Although this is the 15th year for the P.E.I. Marathon, it s by no means the 15th year of marathon running on Prince Edward Island. The PEI Roadrunners Club has been operating since the 70s and organized its first marathon in Their long-running annual events include the Wally Rodd 5K and 10K, the Fulton Campbell half marathon, the Desmond Baglole 15K, the Freeze Your Gizzard half marathon (held every February), the Bunny Hop 5K and 10K, the Dunk River 11.6K and the Harvest Festival 25K which has been running for 45 years. Kevin McCarville, president of the PEI Roadrunners Club, says they don t organize races per se, rather they provide support to the individual race directors. This year they re overseeing more than 70 race events, and the club averages 250 members annually. McCarville says the Roadrunners website lists all of the races and posts the results including name, age, time and pace. One of our members, Janet Bain, stands at the finish line and takes photos of every finisher and puts the photos on the website, says Mc- Carville. There are tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of pictures of tired, happy, wet, cold, hot and sore runners on the site mostly tired and happy. On behalf of council and the City of Charlottetown, I d like to thank the PEIMarathon organizers and volunteers for their dedication to the event for the past 15 years. Events of this magnitude couldn t happen without the people working behindthe scenes. We are proud to be the host city for this event and wish you continued success this year and into the future. Best of luck to all of the participants! Mayor Clifford Lee City of Charlottetown

5 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA OCTOBER things you need to know about the P.E.I. Marathon Even if it s your first time visiting P.E.I., there s some stuff you ve already figured out. You know the local potatoes, the seafood and the COWS ice cream is all going to be delicious. You know the people are going to be super friendly. You know you re going to have MANY opportunities to drink raspberry cordial and buy Anne of Green Gables souvenirs. But you likely don t know it all... at least not yet. So from pasta dinner hotspots and the limited-edition racing token you re going to want to buy, here are five things you might not know about P.E.I. Marathon weekend You don t have to run the whole marathon yourself. Race director Myrtle Jenkins-Smith says there s space for 50 corporate teams who work together to complete the marathon, relay-style. But you don t need co-workers to be on board for it! A corporate team can be made up of eight people who work together, or just eight friends, says Jenkins-Smith. You might not be able to run a whole marathon by yourself, but if your section is just 7.2km or 2.7km, it s achievable. She says it s a wonderful morale booster for a group, and everyone is treated just like all other participants -- shirts, medals, the works. Pretty cool to be able to wear a marathon medal without having run the whole thing, right? 2. There s something for everyone. Whether you walk, run or roll, there s a race for you -- no matter what your age or athletic ability. Youngsters under five have a race all of their own, and so do kids up to age 14. If you sign up early online ( your child is guaranteed a goodie bag, racing bib, T-shirt and a medal at the end. Runners aged can run the half marathon (with parental consent) and 16- and 17-year-olds can run the full marathon (with parental consent). There s a special youth rate this year, too. This year the free wheelchair event has been extended to a 2K because participants requested a longer route. They ll start at the corner of Queen and Grafton the same start line as the half marathon and follow a 2km looped course through downtown Charlottetown to the marathon finish line. Just be sure to check the schedule closely. Marathon manager Jennifer Hanus says they ve decided to stagger some of the start times this year, so the half marathon will start at 9 a.m., the 10K will start at 9:10 a.m., the 5K will start at 9:20 a.m. and the wheelchair event will start at 9:30 a.m. 3. There s a custom medal rack for sale. The Healthy Living Expo at the Delta Prince Edward will include vendors to help people discover new ways to maintain or begin a healthy, active lifestyle. It runs Friday (Oct. 12) from noon to 6 p.m. and Saturday (Oct. 13) from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. One of the biggest requests from runners during previous years was to have a vendor selling racks to hang racing medals, so there will be a custom metal P.E.I. Marathon rack available for sale with five per cent of the profits benefiting the Canadian Mental Health Association of Prince Edward Island. 4. You can save $$$ in lots of unexpected places. Most racers like to enjoy a big pasta dinner the night before their race, and Hanus says now it s going to be easier than ever to tuck into a great meal thanks to their ReCharge, ReFuel, Re- Ward program. You can go to different restaurants around town, show your race bib and get per cent off signature pasta dishes all weekend long, says Hanus. Participating restaurants include Water s Edge, Redwater Rustic Grille, The Gahan House, Sims Corner Steakhouse & Oyster Bar, Merchant Man, The Brickhouse, Boston Pizza, Hunter s Ale House and The Factory. The ReCharge, ReFuel, ReWard program also includes a racer discount at participating shops and accommodations, including the Holman Grand Hotel, The Delta Prince Edward, Fairholm Properties, The Holiday Inn Express and The Hotel on Pownal. 5. The weather is a question mark. Be prepared for any kind of weather because Jennifer Hanus says you just never know what mid-october might bring. It could be warm and sunny and in the 20s, or it could be raining and sleeting and hailing or all of that in the same day, says Hanus. If it s a cold day, a lot of runners like to dress in layers and discard items along the route as they heat up. Just make sure it s something you don t particularly want back! All items along the route will be discarded. WELCOME TO Charlottetown! GOOD LUCK! Share your marathon memories at #DiscoverCharlottetown

6 6 OCTOBER 2018 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA Let s hear it for the kids! Introducing the Kids Fox Trot A crowd of very excited racers will be giggling and bouncing around as they prepare to race in front of hundreds of spectators. This is their time to shine, and there s even chocolate milk waiting for them at the finish line. Kirk MacDonald, director of marketing and sponsorship with the P.E.I. Marathon, says the annual kids race is the organizers favourite event of the whole weekend. As with anything, you want to start them early and get them excited about staying active, says MacDonald. Getting a child interested in running means they might get involved with track in junior high or high school. It s something they can enjoy for years. Between 500 and 600 kids run the free race each year, which takes place on the track of the UPEI Alumni Canada Games Place. Although the run is in its 14th year, it recently got a brand-new name. P.EI. Marathon organizers invited children to suggest a new name for the youth race formerly called the Spud Run and even design a new logo. Two winners were selected, and now the youth run will be known as the Kids Fox Trot. There s also an adorable fox-themed logo to go with it. We wanted to let the kids choose since it s their race, says MacDonald. It was nice to get the community involved and have some fun with it. The race is free for kids up to age 14, and the first 500 kids who register will Congratulations to the PEI Marathon on your 15th Anniversary! To all the runners It is never easy for anyone to step out of their comfort zone and take such a challenge which requires commitment and perseverance. There is nothing more exciting than accomplishing a goal that you set for yourself and at the same time inspiring others around you. receive an official race bib, a goodie bag, a T-shirt and a medal. Everyone will get to enjoy a nice cold chocolate milk after their race. Kids can register online in advance and pick up their shirt on Friday (Oct. 12) between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the Delta Prince Edward. Or they can register at the Alumni Canada Games Place, UPEI on Saturday morning (Oct. 13) from 10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. and pick up their shirt then. There s a fun warm-up for everyone with Kirk MacKinnon from Ocean 100 (100.3FM) at 10:45 a.m. The race is divided into two heats to help keep it safe for all. Kids aged 6-14 will start at 11 a.m. and run two laps. Kids five and under will start at 11:15 a.m. and run a single lap, while accompanied by an adult. We encourages parents to sign up their children online in the days leading up to the race so they have the best chance of getting the right T-shirt size. If your child feels ready for a longer race, MacDonald says there s a brandnew option this year to sign them up for either the 5K or 10K at a reduced youth rate of $25 for the 5K and $35 for the 10K. He says the youth rate is open to anyone under 17, but runners under 12 must be running with an adult. It s a great next step for older kids who are really getting interested in running and want to see what they can do, says MacDonald. IF YOU GO WHAT: Free Kids Fox Trot WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 13 at 11:00am (warm up starts at 10:45am) WHERE: UPEI Alumni Canada Games Place COST: Free!

7 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA OCTOBER 2018 David Boyce needs to run the half marathon in one hour and 55 minutes. If he can run it faster than that, well, too bad. He ll need to slow himself down. Boyce has been running the P.E.I. half marathon as a Pace Bunny for the last few years, which means he volunteers to finish within a specific amount of time so other racers can use him as a guide. People who have a goal of finishing in just under two hours will use me as a gauge of how they re doing, says Boyce, who lives in Poverty Beach, P.E.I. It s my objective to try to run every kilometer the same as the one before, so I ll be averaging five minutes and 27 seconds for each. It might sound stressful to have other racers relying on you to hit a precise finishing time, but Boyce says he actually finds running as a Pace Bunny comes with less pressure than if he was running solo. If I was running by myself, I d be racing myself and have expectations and Somebunny to follow Pace Bunnies are there to help you on the course different goals I d like to hit -- an A goal, a B goal if such-and-such happens, and a C goal just to finish, says Boyce. But being a Pace Bunny means I don t have that luxury. I just have to think about one goal, but I ve got to hit it. Boyce will be wearing a running wristband that will update him with notifications on his speed. He ll also have a GPS watch to make sure he s hitting the proper distances as he moves along the course as he follows the 10:1 system: run for 10 minutes, walk for one minute. Pace Bunny volunteers are organized by the Running Room, so they re easily identified in Running Room T-shirts and a hat with bunny ears. Boyce will be carrying a sign with his predicted finishing time -- 1 hour, 55 minutes -- and holding it high above everyone s heads so racers can decide if they d like to keep him in sight. He had the same time goal last year and finished in one hour, 54 minutes and 57 seconds -- just three seconds from the target. Boyce says many half-marathoners have a goal of breaking two hours, just like people running the full marathon often try to break four hours. It s rewarding to help people meet their running goals, and get better than they were the day before, says Boyce. One year I had an older gentleman come up behind me after the race and say Thank you very much. I ve never gone that fast before. He d come to P.E.I. all the way from Columbia. He says it s nice to give back to the sport of running he loves so much, and he often volunteers at other running events -- working water stops or doing anything else that s needed. He s also the race director of the Freeze Your Gizzard race every February, where participants race in below-freezing temperatures. Boyce says Pace Bunnies are useful for getting a good finish time, but they also serve as helpful reminders not to use up too much energy at the beginning of the race when you re raring to go. These runners spent 12, 16 or 18 weeks in a training program and then they ve tapered off in the last few weeks, so the challenge is making sure they don t burn out too fast, says Boyce. Pace Bunnies are there to set an example of running nice and steady through the race. He says people will often run near him for most of the race, and there s always a point near the end -- usually about 1km before the finish line -- when they decide to break away. I have to hold the same pace, but once we re far enough along the route you ll see them start to take off, says Boyce. They know they re close to the end, and they don t need to pace themselves anymore. They want to see how well they can finish, so it s time to leave me in their dust. (902) Blueshank Rd. Kensington 7 Proud supporter of the PEI Marathon for 15 years

8 8 OCTOBER 2018 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA Living with mental illness is still living Racers fundraising for CMHA-P.E.I. As thousands of runners lace up their sneakers and tackle the P.E.I. Marathon, they ll be doing wonders for their cardiovascular health as well as giving their mental health a nice boost. Reid Burke, executive director of the Canadian Mental Health Association Prince Edward Island (CMHA P.E.I.), says physical activity is great for a person s body, mind and spirit. support staff, offering a number of individual and community programs to support islanders with mental health issues. Nearly everything is free so there s no barrier to accessing support. Any money we re able to raise just increases our capacity to provide support for people struggling with mental health and addiction, as well as do mental health promotion work, says Burke. A lot of folks can t afford to pay to participate in programming, so the more money we can raise, the more free support we can provide the community. MAKE A DIFFERENCE Here are four different ways you can support the Canadian Mental Health Association (P.E.I.) leading up to the P.E.I. Marathon: 1. Make a donation online when you register for a race 2. When you register, click the Round to Raise option to bump your fee to the nearest $5 increment automatically donating the proceeds to CMHA-P.E.I. 3. Sign up to collect donations, and your registration fee will be refunded after you hit your fundraising goal 4. Donate directly to CMHA-P.E.I. whether you re participating or not: raceroster.com/events/2018/15575/15th-annual-prince-edward-islandmarathon/charity/donate/11402 REID BURKE executive director of the CMHA P.E.I. Burke says it can take a lot of effort to change the public s beliefs about what mental illness looks like, so CMHA P.E.I. organized a popular radio campaign where people told their own stories. It was really powerful to hear from someone who has bipolar disorder but still coaches his kid s team and holds a great job, says Burke. It helped to show mental illness in a different light, and show people that living with mental illness is still living. Burke says an estimated 1 in 5 Canadians are dealing with mental health challenges, and at least 60 per cent of people with mental health issues don t ask for help so it s an ongoing challenge to encourage them to speak up. Pretty much everybody you talk to will know somebody, says Burke. Mental health issues and addiction issues are the leading cause of disability in the workplace, so it s important for us to teach people strategies on how to achieve and maintain good mental health. CMHA P.E.I. has generated Safe Talk a free three-hour alertness training program that prepares anyone 16 or older to become a suicide-alert helper. They also work with people across the island to get them safe spaces to sleep, and operates nearly 200 units of housing. Burke says their partnership with the P.E.I. Marathon is helping CMHA P.E.I. reach a wider audience to share the important connection between physical health and mental health. If you re not a runner and can t imagine tackling a marathon, he says even a gentle walk around your neighbourhood breathing in the fresh air can be incredibly helpful. It s all about giving yourself a break in your routine and taking time for yourself, says Burke. When you do something for yourself, you often feel a lot better. Lots of runners say they run not just for their physical health, but for their mental health, says Burke. It gets your endorphins fired up in your system and it can be a great boost for your mental health. This is the second year the P.E.I. Marathon is supporting CMHA P.E.I. Last year s marathon raised an impressive $15,000 for CMHA P.E.I., and Burke is hopeful they ll do even better this year. We ve met with the corporate team captains and introduced the ability for teams to fundraise as a team and got them set up with fundraising kits, says Burke. Everyone s very excited to see what they can fundraise. CMHA P.E.I. is a non-profit mental health agency comprised of more than 100 volunteers and more than 40

9 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA OCTOBER 2018 I like the challenge Why Francis Fagan, 68, runs the P.E.I. Marathon every year 9 Francis Fagan didn t start running marathons until he was 42 years old. Now he s 68 and showing no signs of slowing down. I used to play softball but I got too long in the tooth for it, chuckles Fagan. I broke my leg when I was 41 and when I was rehabbing, someone mentioned running so I decided to try it. He liked running well enough, so when someone suggested he try doing a marathon, he agreed. I like the challenge of marathons, says Fagan, who is originally from Newfoundland but has called Charlottetown home for the last 50 years. No two marathons are the same, even if you re doing the same course. Sometimes you re tired at this point and not that point. It s always different. He s run 122 marathons including ones in Scotland and Dublin -- which gets close to 20,000 runners -- as well as the Boston Marathon quite a few times. He s run marathons in every province except for three, but his favourite remains the P.E.I. Marathon -- which he s run consistently for the last 14 years. The P.E.I. Marathon was the first one I ever did, and I ve done it every year, says Fagan. There are other marathons on the same weekend, but I d always rather do this one here at home. He s gearing up for his 15th P.E.I. Marathon, where his wife will be cheering for him on the sidelines, along with one of his daughters. (His other daughter will be sending positive vibes from her home in Fort McMurray.) He says he likes meeting so many new people at marathons, and has grown many friendships with fellow runners. After he finishes, Fagan plans to hit up the Old Triangle with some of his running buddies. We usually get together there after the marathon, and have a meal and a few soda pops. As he creeps closer to his 70s, Fagan says running regularly has been an important way to maintain good health. There have been a few times I ve been injured and couldn t run for 2-3 weeks, and I packed on the pounds pretty quick, says Fagan. If I didn t run, I d be heavier and not in the best shape. He says he typically runs 30 miles a week (48km) but bumps it up to miles (80-96km) leading up to a marathon before tapering down again. He averages 5-6 marathons per year, and regularly encourages other retirees to give it a try. I ve read stories about 80-year-olds getting into running, so it s never too late to start, says Fagan. You don t have to start with a marathon. Just run around the block, and next time try to get to a block and a half -- that s how I started. His advice for first-timer marathoners is to relax and take everything in because it s a special experience. Don t get too concerned about your time, says Fagan. The idea of your first marathon is to run and enjoy it. You can always work on getting faster in the next one.

10 10 OCTOBER 2018 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA Marathon boosts tourism across P.E.I. Everyone flocks to Prince Edward Island during the summer months to play on its beaches and explore its seaside towns. But when the air turns crisp and the leaves start to change, it no longer means tourist season is finished for the year. This is the 15th year the P.E.I. Marathon has been drawing thousands to the island in the middle of October. The marathon falls on the weekend after Thanksgiving, which used to be a very quiet time across the province, so now there s something nice and big on the calendar, says Cheryl Paynter, CEO of Tourism PEI. Around half of the participants are from off the island, so organizers have done a stellar job of attracting them to our province during the off-season. Paynter says all of these visitors are providing a healthy boost to the province s tourism during a time of year when business would ordinarily be slow. They ve got to travel to the island, they re renting hotel rooms or B&Bs on the island -- and most of them aren t just coming in the night before the race, says Paynter. They re eating in restaurants and checking out retail establishments and filling up their vehicles with gas and generally adding to the economy of the island. Paynter says the whole island is alive with energy during marathon weekend, and everyone can feel the excitement leading up to the big day. There s a lot of checking the weather forecast and folks getting to know the island from a runner s perspective, says Paynter. They love that they re getting to explore so much of the province. During the full marathon, Paynter says runners start on the beautiful north shore and run by beaches, lighthouses and wharves. Then they re off to the rolling farmlands and onto Confederation Trail, where the autumn leaves will be in dazzling shades of orange and red. They get to finish by running down University Avenue into the heart of the city and finish up in front of the Cenotaph with everyone cheering. From a marathoner s perspective, they really get to see it all, says Paynter. We hear all the time that P.E.I. hospitality is second to none, and it s true. Wayne Long, events development officer with the City of Charlottetown, says the P.E.I. Marathon is a great example of sport tourism -- and a very prosperous market for the city. It has such a positive impact on the area as we move into our shoulder season. It s a time of year when we really need that injection of people, says Long. He says sport tourism brings $43M to Charlottetown s economy each year and a staggering $6.5B to the Canadian economy. Charlottetown has won many national awards for sport tourism -- more than any other city our size in the country, says Long. Global Sport Index recently ranked Charlottetown the 15th city overall in Canada for hosting sporting events, and we re the CHERYL PAYNTER CEO of Tourism P.E.I. top city in Canada (with a population under 50,000) for hosting sporting events. Long says P.E.I. may be Canada s smallest province, but Charlottetown s status as a capital city and the birthplace of Confederation has made it a booming tourism destination. The P.E.I. Marathon organizing committee has done a fantastic job over the last 15 years, making our marathon one of the top in the region and beyond, says Long. It s become a can t-miss event that people around the world are talking about. Hit the road this Fall

11 THEGUARDIAN.PE.CA OCTOBER 2018 On the road to Boston Scott Clark is about to run his 70th marathon. It s a milestone he never imagined back when he started running just to lose a few pounds. The Summerside resident of one of many runners from around the world who use the P.E.I. Marathon to qualify for the famed Boston Marathon. In fact, the P.E.I. Marathon is one of Canada s Top 5 Boston qualifiers. The Boston Marathon is like the Masters in golf, explains Clark. If you re really into running, you want to get to Boston. Clark says marathoners love the P.E.I. course because it s relatively flat -- other than a few speed bumps near the end -- and the cool fall weather is comfortable for a long run, making it easier to finish with a good qualifying time. Although the course is relatively comfortable, race director Myrtle Jenkins- Smith says it undergoes rigorous testing to ensure it meets Boston Marathon standards. Someone from Boston runs the course each year, and a team travelled to P.E.I. two years ago to measure and approve minor changes after some road construction. Clark has run the Boston Marathon nine times so far, and says while there s a lot of hype, it s certainly exciting to be running in a crowd of 25,000 people. He first ran the Boston Marathon back in 2003, after qualifying at a race in Columbus, Ohio the previous fall. But he says it was really nice to be able to qualify for the Boston Marathon by running the P.E.I. Marathon in You always want to be able to do the marathon that s in your own backyard. Clark has participated in the P.E.I. Marathon every year, either in the 10K (once, due to injury), the half marathon or the full marathon. He s run the full marathon 12 times consecutively, and says it s amazing because of the unique scenery you get to enjoy. You ve got the surf crashing in from the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the sand dunes, and then you head into rural P.E.I. -- which is road running at its finest, on a nice quiet Sunday morning, says Clark. Then you re on the Confederation Trail, which is very forgiving for sore knees or feet or hips. He says it sometimes starts to drag around the time you exit the trail, and luckily that s exactly when you meet up with runners doing the half. You re feeling tired and lonely and then suddenly you re meeting these other runners. It s really uplifting, says Clark. Then you re hitting the city and there are all these people cheering you on, and you can see the finish. It s a great ending. When it s all over, Clark says he ll be heading straight for a large Tim Hortons coffee -- which he ll sip while cheering on the rest of the runners. He s already registered for this spring s Boston Marathon, after running the Johnny Miles race back in June. But if he improves his time running the P.E.I. Marathon, he can use it to bump up his starting position in Boston. They place you in corrals according to your qualifying time, and each corral holds about 1,000 runners, says Clark. Last year I was in Coral 2, so there were already 1,000 people ahead of me. You always want to get as close to the front as you can, to see the pros and the elites. His time was three hours and 10 seconds, so he s hoping to finish in less than three hours this time. You have until January to improve your position, so this is a great opportunity, says Clark. I m feeling really fit these days, so we ll see. In the last few weeks leading up to any marathon, Clark says his training is mostly finished and it s all about careful preparation. He watches what he eats, stays hydrated, decides what he s going to wear and tries to prevent injuries. The night before the P.E.I. Marathon, he ll eat a nice meal and try to go to sleep early. When he wakes up, he ll eat very little so he doesn t risk feeling bloated and overfull. He says rookie marathoners often make the mistake of starting out too fast, either from excitement or to show off their speed right out of the gate. To all PEI Marathon Weekend participants Whether youwalk or yourun, make sure to have fun! Sean Casey MP Charlottetown Phone: sean.casey@parl.gc.ca 11 You ve got to run 42km so you re not winning it in the first few kilometres, but you can definitely lose it then -- or cause trouble for yourself, says Clark. Patience is key

12 You ve worked for this, you ve trained for this, and finally it s time n e e w o HNiaghlts of Fear! Visit the Haunted Mansion for Halloween fun! On Saturdays & Sundays we will be open 2-4pm with a family friendly haunt. Dr. Jack will even have the rides running for the kids! Nights, from 6-9pm, all of the ghouls will be here to grasp onto your darkest fears and terrify you! Haunted H a ll o w e e n Mansion N ig h ts o f F ear!? e v i v r u s u iw ll yo You ll have to run for your life! Runners wear your marathon medal for opening weekend, October 13th & 14th, and get 40% off your admission 81 Victoria Street West, Kensington, PE Canada Open October (on the following dates & times) Oct 13 & pm & 6-9pm Oct pm Oct 20 & pm & 6-9m Oct 25 & pm Oct 27 & pm & 6-9pm Oct 29 & pm Prices 2-4pm pm - $17.00 info@hauntedmansionpei.ca