The municipal election might have come and gone, but thanks to Lisa Helps, another mayoral race is in the works.
The Victoria mayor is taking part the 30th annual Times Colonist 10K on April 28, and is challenging all 12 other mayors around the region to do the same.
It’s all in good fun, said Helps, who takes a non-competitive approach to the event. She has participated a number of times and has a personal best time of about 52 minutes. (Last year’s winner finished in just under 30 minutes.)
Helps, who has also run a few half-marathons, said she has already issued a challenge to Saanich Mayor Fred Haynes and Oak Bay Mayor Kevin Murdoch via Twitter, and is now calling on the rest to step forward.
“It’s my official challenge to any mayor in the region,” she said. “The good thing about the Times Colonist 10K is it’s a friendly run — it’s not a marathon or half-marathon. You can walk it. You can do it with your family.”
Haynes said he had already planned to join the event and is looking forward to it.
“[I’m] weighing whether to join the walkers and have a conversation as we go, or join the runners and puff my way around,” she said.
Murdoch said he will be there, but likely not as a full-on runner due to knee issues.
“I’ll sort of run/walk it as best I can,” he said.
There will be no mayoral entourage around Helps as she makes her way along the route, but the City of Victoria has a team known as the City Slickers that could provide some company.
As far she knows, no one else on council has signed up.
“Just me and some staff,” said Helps, adding she hasn’t had time lately for a lot of training.
“I’ll hope for the best,” she said. “I’m going to take my running shoes with me everywhere and get some runs in.”
Also a big part of the Times Colonist 10K is the Thrifty Foods Family Run, which covers 1.5 kilometres.
Everyone taking part — organizers are hoping for a field of 10,000 — can support one of the seven charities designated for the event, either as an individual or part of a team.
The charities are the B.C. Cancer Agency (the Carol Lalonde/ Marlene Palmer Ovarian Cancer Research Fund), Every Step Counts, Help Fill A Dream, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, the Victoria Hospitals Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Canada and the Times Colonist Literacy Society.
• For more details or to register for the April 28 event, go to tc10k.ca.
