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Hinton's Run in the Rockies offers three distances, five, 10 and 21 kilometres. All proceeds go to the Hinton Food Bank and the Yellowhead Emergency Shelter.
Photo courtesy of Tourism Hinton.
Run in the Rockies not about finishing first, but having fun
BOB COVEY
HINTON, AB - A community that runs together, stays together. Until the leaders pull away and leave the rest of the pack panting behind, that is.
Luckily that’s unlikely to happen at Hinton’s third annual Run in the Rockies on Aug. 17.
“It’s a fun race. It’s not about finishing first,” says Neil Davis.
He’s a Hinton runner and third-time participant in the event. Davis is also the district manager of Investor’s Group, the race’s title sponsor. He says he’s excited to get back on the trail with his fellow community members to raise a bit of money for charity.
“I love the trail,” he said. “There’s roots, rocks, elevation changes. It’s never boring.”
This year’s beneficiaries are the Hinton Food Bank and the Yellowhead Emergency Shelter. Every year the Run in the Rockies gives back to a community organization of choice.
“It’s a great opportunity to help out,” Davis said.
The event is accessible to all levels of runners. Routes are either 5 km, 10 km or 21 km in distance.
“There are a lot of first time racers,” Davis said.
The Run in the Rockies is a great way to introduce people to the sport. Davis expects, like last year, runners who previously ran the 5-km route will choose to try the 10 km course and 10 km veterans will take the next step to the half-marathon.
“Once somebody does a 5-k they say ‘that wasn’t so bad, maybe I can do the 10,’” he said.
Davis himself is running the 21 km route. With the majority of the course winding its way through the forest, eventually linking up with the Happy Creek Trail system, Davis is simply looking to spend some quality time surrounded by nature and friends.
“It’s just a great trail, a great event,” he said.
The event does contain a friendly competition in the corporate challenge. Teams of five compete for a trophy and bragging rights for bagging the 10 km the fastest. Davis said this year the corporate challenge is “really taking off.”
Kiddies can participate too: the Run in the Rockies has a one-km route for junior joggers.
“It’s a great way to introduce young people to healthy activities they can carry with them into adulthood,” Davis said.
This year the Town of Hinton chipped in with a $5,000 grant. The funds were used to purchase a new, digital chip-based timing system.
Participating in the fundraising event costs $35 (5, 10 km event) or $55 (21 km). The kids fun run is $10.
Registration is taking place now. See www.hintonrunintherockies.com for details
Check out more events around Hinton at the Tourism Hinton website.
Check out more sports festivals in Western Canada on our FestivalSeekers calendar.
Photo courtesy, Laura Ann Eccleston (LazaPhotography)
