Powerful women

Every participant a winner in Wellington running event

Cheryl Tezuka travelled from the Turks and Caicos to Wellington to participate in the second annual Wellington Women’s Half Marathon and Half-a-Half on Saturday morning.

“I came up for the run. I did it last year and it was the best run I’ve ever had, the most fun I’ve ever had so I said I’ve got to do that one again so here I am.

Ashley Harnden of Belleville gets a big hug from her mom Janet Harnden after she crosses the finish line completing her first half marathon.

“I like the fact that it’s not crowded and it’s through the country. In Turks and Caicos there’s no forest so I really like that stretch through the forest. It’s just like doing a Sunday training run, there’s no pressure, I just love it so much fun and it’s so beautiful and I love the si

gns, especially the last one. It says ‘WTF – where’s the finish?’ There’s amazing finishing necklaces too. They did an awesome job organizing it and I want to do it every year.”

Her testimony is just a sample of the enthusiasm and energy that has come to exemplify the latest running event organized by Race Director Lisa Lindsay with Paula Rideout.

The run dedicated to and for women featured 600 participants in just its second year—selling out every spot available in the event.

“The race was really great,” said Lindsay. “The feedback from the participants is all positive, they really enjoyed their time on the course and that’s because our volunteers are superb. I’ve already had inquiries about next year’s race.”

Key to the success this year was the participation of the Wellington volunteer firefighters— members of the Prince Edward County Fire Department. Sixteen members of the local force assembled—many with their own ATVs to man the route, direct traffic and ensure the safety of the participants.

“It’s all about safety,” said Lee Knight, Wellington fire chief. “And Lisa does such a great job of organizing these events—it was an easy decision to help out. I am proud of my guys for giving part of their weekend to help make this a success.”

Indeed, one firefighter, Roger Corbin, was set to retire last week but put off the date to ensure he could help out with the event.

Lindsay was nearly speechless.

“I could not have done this without them,” said Lindsay. “They took the security of this event and looked after all the planning to make the race safe. I am really proud of these guys.”

The first participant over the finish line was Michelle Pothier of Picton who ran the Half-a- Half in 51:00 minutes. Pothier is the co-race director for the County Kids of Steel and she said that she needed to finish quickly to get to Picton to help set up for her event on Sunday.

Volunteer firefighters help out at the Wellington Women’s Half and Half-a-Half Marathon. They are (front row, left to right): Brent Insley, Marice Miller, Roger Corbin, Lee Knight, and Lee Demille; (back row, left to right) Patrick Howe, Greg Elliott, Dan Spriggings, Chris Morris, Bill Kristalyn, Jason Courneyea, Curtis Baitley, and Bob Downey.

The first runner to complete the half marathon was Erin Gregory of Napanee. She completed the distance with a personal best time of 1:26:39 and attributes taking more than 5 minutes off her pace to event volunteer Rick Van Vlack who was the bike escort for the lead runner and who encouraged and coached her through the 21-kilometre course.