Pioneer 8km 2016

The 35th running of the 2016 Frontrunners Island Race Series was off and running on Sunday 10 Jan. The conditions were perfect…partly cloudy and calm with temperature hovering around 5 degrees which made for some fast running times.

There were 524 finishers completing the undulating course compared to 2015 when there were 606 finishers.

The overall winner was Rob Watson (30-34) from Vancouver in a time of 23:47. From the Harriers the top woman was 2015 Island Series winner Natasha Wodak (35-39) with a 26:31 and 12th OA. The top Male Master finisher, also from Vancouver, was Kevin O’Connor (45-49) in a time of 25:43 and 7th OA. The top Female Master was Lucy Smith (45-49)from PIH in a time of 28:27 and 28th OA.

Seven runners were entered in six age categories running for STARR which captured 4 ribbons. Well done guys and gals.

• Our 1st runner back to the line was Jonathan Dvorak (40-44) in an excellent PB time of 33:55. He finished 16th in a large field 31 and 112th OA.
• Next in was Claude LaForce (55-59) in a PB of 35:35. In his 1st year in this age category, Claude had a 10th in field of 30 and was 145th OA.  
• Next in was Mark Ziegler (60-64) with a 36:32 and 4th in a field 24 and 166th OA.
• Next in was Lemmie Adam (M30-34) with a 38:05 and was 18th in a field of 22 and 215th OA.
• Next in was Stephanie Croft (40-44). Stephanie hit the mat with a 38:29 and was 5th in a field of 25 and 216th OA.
• Following her was series ironman Bruce Hawkes (70-74). Bruce came in with a 43:44. He was 9th in a field of 20 and 340th OA.
• Closing out the STARR’s was Vince Trahan (70-74). He lumbered in with a 56:45 and 19th in the field and 494th OA.

Well done to all the runners and see you all in Cobble Hill - 24 Jan.

Kusam Klimb 2015

The 11th Annual 2015 Kusam Klimb was held 20 Jun. The weather was perfect for the "Grussam Kusam". The skies were overcast at the start but cleared up as the day went on.

There were 529 finishers from 600+ registered which was up from the 2014 458 finishers. There were 316 ladies and 213 men completing the endurance event which climbed up Mt. H'Kusam and down through the Stowe Creek watershed. This was one of the few years that there was no snow to slide down on which really made the downhill feel different.

The overall winner was 2013 and 2014 winner Nick Elson (30-39) from Squamish in a CR time of 2:07:10. Incidentally his father John Elson (60-99) finished 1st in the division with a 3:17:11 and 33rd OA. The top woman was Wendy Simms (40-49) from Nanaimo. She was in with a 2:52:06 and 7th OA.

STARR had 5 runners registered in the event and all finished relatively unscathed after some wipeouts on the technical descent.

• Running In his 5th Klimb, our first STARR to cross the finish line was Mark Ziegler (60-99) in a time of 3:34:30. He was 2nd in the field of 27 and 49th OA.
• Next under the finish banner was Claude Laforce (50-59) completing his 2nd go at the Klimb. He was in with a 4:05:38 and was 14th in a large field of 45 and 101st OA.
• Our next finisher and our only lady was Jackie Eddy (60-99) In her 9th year in the event, she was in a with a 5:01:22 and was 4th in a field of 16 and 226th OA.
• Also in his 9th running of the event was Dan Eddy (60-99). Danny finished with a time of 5:35:16 and was 11th in the field and 275th OA. 
• Closing out the STARR field was Vince Trahan (60-99). In his 10th Klimb, he came in with a 6: 39:09 and was 16th in the field and 375th OA.

On completion we all returned to our home for the weekend, the Elk Haven Cottages and enjoyed much camaraderie with the other climbers staying in other cottages.  Later in the evening, the Klimb banquet was held in the Sayward hall. It is a must attend as the food is excellent and abundant... no one goes home hungry. It was another tough Kussam Klimb but we were definitely "TOUGH ENOUGH" to finish. See you all in 2016…maybe.

TC 10km 2015

The 26th Annual TC 10K (run, walk, visually impaired, wheelchair)/ Half Marathon race was held 26 Apr. The weather was perfect…overcast, cool with a light breeze.

The 10K winner was Kelly Wiebe (25-29) in a time of 29:08. The CR time was 28:47 set in 1995. The female winner was also 2013 and 2014 winner Kenyan Jane Murage (25-29) in a time of 33:07 and 17th OA. She missed the CR time of 32:56 set in 2011 by 11 seconds.

In the Half-Marathon and with a course record was mountain running champion Kris Swanson (25-29) in a time of 1:12:11. Top Female in the Half was triathlete Karen Thibodeau (35-39) with a time of 1:23:35 and 8th OA.  

Of the 10,527 registered, 8,973 were for the 10K, 538 for the Half and 1,016 for the kids run. There were 111 finishers in the 10km walk, 7,724 in the 10km run, 2 in the Visually Impaired 10km, 3 in the Wheelchair 10km, 455 in the Half-Marathon.

Sooke was well represented in all three disciplines… Five in the walk, one in the Half_Marathon and ninety plus in the 10K. Starr had some runners and their families entered in the 10K, 1/2 Marathon and Walk.

In the 10K, our first STARR in was:

• Sara-Mae Adam (25-29) in a time of 41:20. She was 7th in large field of 608 and 206th OA.
• Tom Burgess. Tom was in with 1:01:42 and was 15th in a field of 70 and 3,348th OA.
• Vince Trahan (65-69) in a time of 1:11:05. He was 58th in a field of 113 and 4,711 OA.
• Sharon Cormier (55-59) in a time of 2:07:27 and 338th in a field of 343 and 7,597th OA.

In the 10km Competitive Walk was the LaForce family!

• Claude was in with a 1:51:36
• Joanne: 1:43:20
• Alyssa: 1:43:18 
• Matthew: 1:43:20

In the Half-Marathon:

• Ken Pungente (70-74) finished with a 2:15:02 and was 2nd in a field of 2 and 393rd OA.

Well done to all who competed in this annual event. Hope to see you all next year!

Merville 15km 2015

The 7th race of the FR Island Race Series, the Merville 15K, was held 12 Apr under cool and calm conditions…ideal weather again. The weather gods stayed with us after some dire predictions the night before.

There were 275 runners crossing the line with an average time of 1:21:30. The overall winner and with his 2nd win of the Series was Derek Vinge (30-34) from the Comox Valley Road Runners in a time of 50:07. The top Female was Sonja Futehally (25-29) from the Mercury Rising Tri Club in a time of 58:53 and 12th OA. The top Male Master was Mark Cryderman (40-44) in a time of 50:30 and 3rd OA. The top Female Master was Sandra Jensen (40-44) coming in with a 1:02:59 and 34th OA. The top 100M sprinter was Jerry Loeb (40-44) in a time of 13:40 and finished 5th OA in the race.

STARR had 5 runners in the mix covering five age groups who captured 1 medal and 3 ribbons. Well done to all.

• Our 1st STARR to cross the line was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) with an impressive 1:01:26. She was 2nd in her field of 9 and 27th OA. She was also our top 100M sprinter with a time of 22:07 and finished 70th OA in the 100M sprint. Well done Sarah-Mae.
• Our next runner in was Claude Laforce (50-54) with a PB of 1:09:14. He was 10th in a field of 25 and 62nd OA. Way to go Claude.
• Next to cross was Mark Ziegler (60-64). Mark had a 1:15:41 and was 9th in a field of 16 and 102nd OA.
• Next in was the Series Ironman, Bruce Hawkes. Running his 167th consecutive Island Series race, he came in with a 1:25:48 and finished 6th in a field of 6 and 178th OA.
• Closing out the STARR field was Vince Trahan in the 65-69 age group. Vince was in with a 1:44:31 and was 11th in a field of 12 and 254th OA.

Congratulations to all the STARR's who competed last weekend.

The next and last Series race will be the Sooke River 10K on 19 Apr. The Series Awards will also be handed out on the conclusion of the race.  

Comox Valley Half Marathon 2015

The 6th race of the 2015 FR Island Race Series, the Comox Valley RV Half Marathon was away on 22 Mar.

Under cloudy and cool conditions in the Comox valley, 459 runners/walkers crossed the line in an ave time of 1:55:15. The overall winner was Craig Odermatt (45-49) with his 1st series win in a time of 1:12:04. This was also his 4th win in the Master division. The overall woman's winner was Claire Morgan (40-44) also with her 1st win of the series. She hit the mat with a 1:22:53 and was 18th OA. This was also her 4th win in the Masters Division.

STARR had 5 finishers in 5 age groups and captured 1 medal and 3 ribbons in the event.

• First in was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) in an excellent time of 1:33:58 and was 3rd in her age group (out of 27) and 80th OA.

• Claude LaForce (50-54) clocked in at 1:41:37 and was 15th in the field of 30 and 132nd OA.

• Stephanie Croft (40-44)  hit the mat with a 1:49:34. She was 12th in another large field of 45 and finished 206th OA.
• Bruce Hawkes (70-74) was in with a 2:11:32. He was 5th in a field of 5 and 367th OA.
• Closing out the STARR field was Vince Trahan (65-69). He crossed the line with a 2:30:46 and was 9th in a field of 11 and 426th OA.

Click Here to view the full race results.

Our congratulations go out to the Comox Valley Road Runners (CVRR) who hosted the race. The door prizes were outstanding along with the food. You can always count on that. This years top prize was unique... a posterpedic mattress. No word on how they got it home. There was also a marriage proposal and she did say yes which drew a loud cheer and hand clapping. Congratulations to the STARR's who competed this weekend. A good time was had by all.

The next race is the Merville 15K on 12 Apr.

Bazan Bay 5km 2015

The 5th race of the 2015 Island Race Series, the Bazan Bay 5K, was held along the Sidney waterfront on 8 March. There were 618 runners crossing the line under ideal running conditions...sunny with a light breeze. This was awesome March weather to say the least.

The overall winner was Stefan Daniel (16-19) from the University of Calgary in a fast time of 15:11. The top woman was Hillary Stellingwerff (30-34) in a time of 16:26 and 21st OA. The top Male Master and with his 3rd series win was Craig Oddermat (45-49) with a 15:43 and 7th OA. The top Female Master and with her 2nd series victory was Marilyn Arsenault (45-49) in a 17:19 and 40th OA.

There were 19 runners from the Sooke area competing in the race. STARR had 7 runners in 6 age groups and captured 3 ribbons in this highly competitive field. There were 137 sub 20 finishes so it shows how competitive the field was.

• Our 1st STARR in was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) with a sub 20…19:22. She was 5th in a field 24 and 114th OA.
• Our first man to cross the mat was Claude LaForce  (50-54) with a PB of 21:14. He was 12th in a large field of 36 and 167th OA.
• Mark Ziegler (60-64). Mark with a 21:58 and was 8th in a field of 20 and 202nd OA. Mark was also our top 100M finisher with a 21:07 edging out Sarah-Mae's 21:20.
• Stephanie Croft (40-44). Stephanie was in with a 22:25 and was 233rd OA.
• Next came the seniors led by Bruce Hawkes (70-74). Bruce came in with a 26:54 and 14th in a field of 20 and 419th OA.
• Tom Burgess, also in the 70-74 age division. Tom hit the mat with a 29:50 and was 15th in the field and 491st OA.
• Vince Trahan (65-69). He finished 13th in a field 17 and 528th OA.

Go to racedaytiming.ca for full results. 

Job well done by all the STARRS's! The next race will be the Comox Valley Half-Marathon on 22 Mar.

Hatley Castle 8km 2015

The 4th race of the 2015 Island Race Series, the Hatley Park 8K, was held 22 Feb under calm and cool sunny conditions. Another perfect weather day. There were 478 runners, up from 312 in 2014, covering the hilly Royal Roads course.

The overall winner was Andrew McCartenay (25-29) in a fast time of 26:39. The top woman was Alison Hooper in a CR time of 29:43 and 11th OA. The top Male Master was Hugh Trenchard (45-49) in a time of 29:11 and 7th OA. He edged out Jerry Loeb (40-44) by 1 sec. Claire Morgan (40-44) was top Female Master in a time of 30:52 and 22nd OA. A course record was also set in the F65-69 by Roslyn Smith from CVRR with a time of 38:54.

STARR had 9 runners in 6 age divisions on the course. Our band of merry men and women picked up 1 medal and 5 ribbons. Well done everyone.

• Our 1st STARR in was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) in a super time of 33:22. Sarah-Mae was 3rd in a field 23 and 60th OA.
• Our 1st man in was Claude Laforce (50-54). He crossed the mat with a 36:34 bettering his 2013 time of 37:56. Claude was 10th in a field of 28 and 110th OA. He was also our top STARR in the 100M dash with a 20:89. He was also 10th in the sprint in his age division. 
• Mark Ziegler (60-64) with a time of 38:18. He was 8th in a field 19 and 144th OA.
• Stephanie Croft (40-44). She hit the mat in 40:05 which bettered her 2002 Hatley 8K time of 40:32. She was 9th in a field of 30 and 198th OA. 
• Bruce Hawkes was in with a 44:57 and was 6th and 353rd OA.
• Maggie Curtis (40-44) in a time of 46:26. She finished 16th in a large field of 30 and 314th OA.
• Ken Pungente with a 48:26 bettering his 2014 time of 49 flat. He was 9th and 353rd OA. 
• Tom Burgess was in with a 49:57 bettering his 2014 time of 52:03. He was 12th and 378th OA. 
• Vince Trahan (65-69) with a 54:07 and was 12th in a field of 14 and 427th OA.

Go to racedaytiming.ca for full results. 

Congratulations to all our STARR's in todays race. The next Island series race will be the Bazan Bay 5K on 8 Mar.

Cedar 12km 2015

The 3rd race of the FR Island Race Series, the Cedar 12K, was held 8 Feb. under calm, cool and overcast conditions…a runners delight.

There were 382 runners ( 2014 419 runners) crossing the line with an average time of 1:04:30.

STARR had 7 runners in the field in 6 age groups and captured 1 medal and 5 ribbons.  

The overall winner from Bastion Running Club in Nanaimo was Jeremy Clegg (35-39) in a time of 39:57. The top OA woman was Kimberley Doerksen (20-24) in a time of 44:51 and 14th OA. The Male Master winner was PIH Craig Odermatt (45-49) in a course record time of 40:20 and 2nd Overall (OA). The top Female Master was PIH Claire Morgan (40-44) in a time of 45:08 and 16th OA.

• Our 1st STARR in was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) in a PB time of 49:30 and was 1st in a field of 15 and 45th OA. Her 2012 time was 52:37.
• Claude Laforce (50-54). Cracking the top ten in his age group and receiving his 1st ever series ribbon, he finished with a 54:59 PB and was 8th in a field 22 and 92nd OA. His 2013 time was 56:57.
• Mark Ziegler (60-64). Mark came in with a 58:18 and was 7th in a field of 20 and 131st OA. He was also our top 100M winner in a time of 21:27 just edging out Sarah-Mae with a 21:29. He also placed 5th in the 100M in his age group.
• Stephanie Croft (40-44). Steph finished with a consistent time of 59:23. She was 6th in a large field of 29 and 145th OA. She has not lost her touch as she hit 59:13 in the 2005 Cedar 12K. 
•  Bruce Hawkes (70-74) was in with a 1:09:27 and was 6th in a field of 12 and 265th OA. 
• Tom Burgess (70-74) was in with a 1:16:54 and was 10th and 322nd OA.
• Vince Trahan (65-69) in a time of 1:22:24 and was 11th in a field of 11 and 350th OA.

Congratulations to all the STARR's for their excellent performance!

Cobble Hill 10km 2015

The 2nd race of the 2015 FR Island Race Series, the 8th Annual Cobble Hill 10K was held 25 Jan. The weather again was perfect..overcast and calm with a temp about 10 degrees.

There were 503 finishers which was down from the 576 in 2014. This years ave. time was 51:43.

The overall winner and setting a course record (CR) was Derek Vinge (30-34) from the Comox Valley Club in a blistering time of 32:46. This bettered the 2014 time of 33:29. Top woman was Alison Hooper (20-24) in a time of 36:43 and 22nd overall (OA). Top Male Master was was PIH Craig Odermat (45-49) and also with a CR of 32:57 and good for 2nd OA. The top Female Master was PIH Claire Morgan (40-44) in a time of 37:13 and 28th OA.

STARR had 7 runners on the course covering 5 age groups. We won a silver medal and 3 ribbons. Congrats folks! 

• Leading the STARR's was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) in a fast time of 40:33. She was 2nd in a field of 17 and 70th OA. She was also our top 100M finisher with a 19:22 and 140th OA. 
• Our next runner in was Claude LaForce (50-54) in a time of 45:41 bettering his 2013 time of 45:55. He was 15th in a large field of 34 and 147th OA. 
• Stephanie Croft (40-44) with a time of 49:18 and 9th in another large field of 37 and 237th OA.
• Bruce Hawkes (70-74) with a 55:48. Bruce was 6th in a field of 12 and 341st OA.
• Maggie Curtis (40-44) in a time of 56:24. She was 20th in a field 37 and 347th OA.
• Tom Burgess (70-74) with a 59:08 bettering his 2014 time of 59:20. He was 9th in the field of 12 and 391st OA. 
• Vince Trahan (65-69) in a time of 1:06:53. He placed 16th in a field of 16 and 469th OA.

Congratulations to all the STARR's who came out and gave it their all. Also congratulations to the CEEVAC's club from Duncan who hosted the top shelf race.

The 3rd race of the series will be the Cedar 12K on 8 Feb. See you all out there. Complete results @ www.racedaytiming.ca.

Pioneer 8km 2015

The 1st race of the 2015 Vancouver Island Race Series, the Pioneer 8K, was held 11 Jan. The weather was ideal…foggy, calm and cool.

There were 606 at the Saanich Fairgrounds start line to launch the series off. After a short delay due to the large number of "at the line" registrations, they were off. The overall winner from Vancouver was Theo Hunt (25-29) in a time of 24:59. The top female was PIH Natasha Wodak (30-34) with a 26:37 and 10th OA. Our top Male Master was PIH Jim Finlayson (40-44) in a time of 25:47 and 30th OA. The top Female Master was PIH Marilyn Arsenault (45-49) in a time of 28:19 and 25th OA.

STARR had 11 runners in the mix covering 8 age divisions and capturing one silver medal and two ribbons.

• Our 1st STARR (and first Starr female runner) to cross the line was Sarah-Mae Adam (25-29) with a 33:37. Sarah-Mae was 2nd in a field of 16 and 124th OA. Good job Sarah-Mae!
• Our 1st male runner in was Jonathan Dvorak (40-44). The STARR master crossed with a 34:23. He was 21st in a field of 35 and 144th OA.
• Claude LaForce (50-54) in time of 36:09. He was 14th in a field of 33 and 192nd OA.
• Stephanie Croft (40-44) with a 37:28 and was 8th in a field of 38 and 238th OA.
• STARR legend and ironman Bruce Hawkes (70-74). With his 161st consecutive race in the series, Bruce crossed with a 43:34 and was 10th in a field of 15 and 408th OA. Congrats to Bruce for sure.
• Maggie Curtis (40-44) in a time of 45:21 and Maggie was 21st in a field of 38 and 446th OA.
• Charmaine Munro (50-54) with a time of 47:18. Charmaine was 26th in a field of 31 and 479th OA.
• Tom Burgess (70-74). Tom was in with a 48:03 and was 12th in a field 15 and 491st OA.
• in the NO AGE ? division was Don Brown. Don was in with a 51:52 and 554th OA.
• Not far behind was Vince Trahan (65-69). Vince came in with a 52:06 and dead last in a field of 23 and 559th OA.
• Closing our STARR field was our youngest runner Matthew Thomson (16-19) who fell ill during the race. He finished with a 53:54 and was 13th in the field of 13 and 570th OA. It appears he recovered since his STARR sprint time was 2nd best with a 22:75. Well done Matt.
• Our STARR overall 100M sprint winner was Jonathan with a fast 21:33.

On completion of the awards, a tribute was paid to long time Prairie Inn Harrier runner and Canadian Record Holder Maurice Tarrant who was running in the 85-89 division which he incidentally won in a time of 49:54. We should all hope to reach that age and still be running. Congratulations to all our runners who flew the STARR flag.

The next series race is the Cobble Hill 10K in 2 weeks. See you there!