Perseverance Post Race Report!

Fastest women of the day on the 10k course, 1stp place female Kathy Rung (right) and 2nd place Mary Bridges.

Fastest 2 people on the 10k course! Miguel Laroche-first place (left) and James Rolfe in second.

Ready...Set...Persevere!

Mother Nature was kind to the 214 trail racers who tackled the Perseverance Trail Run this past Sunday, October 31st. The sun was shining in a blue sky and the trails held freshly filled puddles from recent rains making the perfect conditions for a fall trail race! The race was a huge success with all proceeds going directly to the Cumberland Community Forest Society to assist them in working towards their goal of purchasing and protecting additional forest lands in the Cumberland area.

The competition on the 10k course was fierce with 154 racers and many competitive runners toeing the start line. Racers came from all over Vancouver Island for this years event and there were some great battles on the challenging 10.7k mountain run.

Top overall results in the 10k mountain run:
Males
50:44 Miguel Laroche
54:34 James Rolfe
54:42 James Powsey

Females
1:03:36 Kathy Rung
1:04:11 Mary Bridges
1:07:05 Genevieve Burdett

60 racers, young and old, tackled the 3k cross-country run through the Cumberland Community Forest. This years race included more hill climbing than previous years but that didn't slow down the racers!

Top overall results for the 3k cross-country run were as follows:
Males
14:05 Berend Henckel
14:30 Austin Long
15:40 Tim McGrady

Females
15:07 Emily Keyes
16:52Seqoia Bridges
17:00 Patricia Johnson

Extreme Runners and Equilibrium Lifestyle Management (ELM) co-organized the fundraising event but it could not have happened without the fantastic support from Comox Valley volunteers and sponsors. A huge thank you goes out to over 50 wonderful and enthusiastic volunteers who donated their time and energy before and during this years race. Special thanks to Terry Lewis and John Wall for setting up and managing the race courses, to Arran Kerrigan for co-ordinating race registration for all 215 racers and to David Kassekoff for travelling up island to take care of timing and results. A huge thank you also goes to the Comox Valley Search and Rescue and St. John Ambulance teams who spent the day watching over each and every racer on the course.

This years race, held on Halloween, brought out great costumes from a herd of cows to batman and a 'running tree'. Dozens of fantastic draw prizes were awarded including fresh baked apple pies for the best costumes. With close to 40 draw prizes from local business' and hundreds of free give-a-ways from Brooks, many racers left with big smiles. A very big thank you to this years prize sponsors: Valhalla Pure, Riding Fool Hostel, Darkside Chocolates, Seeds Grocery, Zen Zero, Island Pilates, Lotuswear, Comox Valley Acupuncture, Ascent Physiotherapy, Active Comox Valley, HiTech, Norwex, Jim Smiley of Remax, Extreme Runners and ELM.

The following community sponsors generously supported the race and helped to make this years event a great success: Thrifty Foods, Tim Hortons, Mudsharks Coffee, FiestaQuest, ABC Printing, Hi Tech, nrichmedia, Odlum Brown, Robhannah and the Comox Valley Record. Landowners including the Village of Cumberland & Recreation, CCFS, Timberwest and Hancock.

A few Perseverance Race T-Shirts are still available at a discounted rate of $10 for the next 10 days with all proceeds going to the CCFS. Be sure to head down to Extreme Runners on 5th st to pick one up before they are gone!

A complete list of results as well as race day photos are posted at www.perseverancetrailrun.com . Overall the race was a huge success so mark your calendars for next year October 30th 2011!