There’s a double meaning to the term “running the TC 10K” as dozens of guests noticed during Thursday evening’s VIP Partner Celebration at Yates Street Taphouse honouring volunteers and sponsors.
While lacing up and hitting the Belleville Street pavement this morning for the big race is a significant feat for thousands of runners, rollers and walkers, running the 26th annual event itself is equally impressive.
“We have a huge team that works on it, and that includes 35 people on the volunteer committee,” said Cathy Noel, race director of the event hosted by the non-profit Victoria International Running Society.
“The sponsors are hugely important, for both financial support and promotion,” said Noel, who also spearheaded the event last year and from 2005 through 2008. “They’re the ones making this happen.”
Society president Shannon Kowalko concurred, adding the reception was an ideal way to also acknowledge partners including the Times Colonist, City of Victoria, The District of Oak Bay, teams, charities and 800 volunteers.
Charities include the Heart & Stroke Foundation of B.C. and Yukon, returning for its 20th year, with more than $750,000 raised so far, B.C. Cancer Foundation, Every Step Counts, Help Fill A Dream, the Times Colonist’s Raise-a-Reader program and, new this year, Victoria Hospitals Foundation and the Victoria chapter of Cystic Fibrosis Canada.
“It takes a lot of moving parts to pull it all together, and this kick-starts the whole event, said Kowalko, who, with Times Colonist columnist Jack Knox, asked trivia questions for a TC 10K bingo game.
Volunteers and other guests were given bingo cards and invited to compete for the chance to win a print featuring renowned artist Richard Hunt’s dancing heron design for this year’s TC 10K.
“This truly would not be possible without all those dedicated volunteers,” Kowalko said. “They really are the nuts and bolts of this organization.”
Familiar faces in the crowd included Oak Bay Mayor Nils Jensen, Times Colonist advertising sales manager Jason Scriven and editor-in-chief Dave Obee, SportHost Victoria executive director Hugh MacDonald, Thrifty Foods community relations manager Vivian Chenard, and Heart & Stroke Foundation of B.C. and Yukon’s regional manager Janice Krall.
Elite athletes on hand included Kenya’s Benard Ngeno, Leonard Kipkoech and Jane Murage.
“Because I was the champion I wanted to defend my title again,” said Murage, 28, who came in third at last weekend’s Sun Run in Vancouver, and was woman’s champion at the 2013 and 2014 10K races.
“I’m predicting I will break the record this year. That’s my goal.”
Asked why she wins so often, the Nairobi native said: “I train hard, and I also hold the pain. There’s a saying that if you hold the pain more, you’ll be the champion.”
Many runners in the crowd had their own reasons for participating in yet another TC 10K, apart from the fact it’s such a highly regarded and inclusive community event.
“I got into running because I had a father I lost when I was six who was a life insurance salesman, but he couldn’t have life insurance because he had a heart condition,” said Victoria businessman and running guru Rob Reid.
“He was 38 when he passed away on the operating table in Toronto, so there are a lot of things that motivate us to stay fit and healthy.”
Reid, whose family is billeting Murage, said another objective for himself and fellow runners is to hopefully be great mentors for youths following in their footsteps.
“That’s why it’s so great to have shorter races for kids and have them meet Jane,” he said. “To have kids meet a Kenyan who is a full-time runner and what that means to children in Kenya is pretty special. “
