Setting off in a new direction: Manitoba Marathon changing course

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This article was published 17/06/2016 (3558 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

You’d think after 37 consecutive Manitoba Marathons, Len Rolfson would have seen it all by now.

But as he prepares for his 38th, Rolfson, the only person to compete in every marathon since its inception, will be a part of the biggest change to the Manitoba Marathon’s course in more than 30 years.

It may not seem like much, but a reversal of the famed 26.2-mile course will present runners with a different viewpoint and a few more comforts they’re not used to seeing during the run, namely having some much-needed shade on the home stretch — one of the biggest proponents of the change in direction of the course.

“It’s like a marathon you’ve never run before,” said Rolfson, who turned 68 earlier this spring. “I don’t know if it will be more or less challenging, but it’s going to be different.”

The course change has been the brainchild of Manitoba Marathon executive director Rachel Munday since she took over the position prior to last year’s rendition.

Munday was on hand at Thursday’s race-week kickoff event at McPhillips Street Station Casino, where awards were handed out to last year’s winners.

Munday admits she didn’t run much growing up, but took part in her first Manitoba Marathon in 2005. From there, she joined the Running Room, working part-time before eventually parlaying it into a full-time job overseeing each Running Room location in Manitoba.

The 2015 Manitoba Marathon saw little in the way of changes, but given a year now at the helm, Munday has implemented what she hopes will help grow the event.

This year’s race will be the first time friends and family can track where their loved ones are on the course. A new app called RTRT can be downloaded to smartphones and used to track individual runners.

Live results will also be available in real-time on the RTRT website.

Changes, especially to the course, might seem simple on the outside, but it’s taken a fair bit of time to put things in order.

“While changing the course might seem like such a simple thing, it’s taken us 14 or 15 months to make it happen,” Munday said. “We’re very aware of the impact we have on the community. We’re very aware of the impact we have on traffic in the city and, of course, we have emergency plans for every area of the city. It affects everything. We’re all about change, but we’re about manageable change and being responsible with it.”

As of Thursday afternoon, the marathon had 10,700 registered participants, with the goal being in the 12,000 range. Last year’s marathon finished with 10,265 runners.

The Manitoba Marathon peaked in terms of registered participants in the 1990s when Munday says the marathon was the only game in town.

“Now, certainly there are more competitions and more options for people and people are travelling to other races,” she said. “The landscape of this sport has changed.”

Meanwhile, a new award for the top Manitoban for both men and women aged 19 to 29 in the full marathon was announced Thursday in memory of Bob Walker.

Walker, who set the record in 1981 as the fastest Manitoban to ever run the Manitoba Marathon with a time of 2:19:06 — a mark that still stands — died last year at the age of 65.

Two of his three children — Adam and Erin — were on hand Thursday to unveil the Bob Walker Award. Along with Bob’s other son, Sean, his three kids will participate in this year’s marathon in his honour.

“The Manitoba Marathon was important to my dad, he got excited about it every year,” Erin said. “I’ve never run in it. It’s going to be emotional but exciting.”

Bob’s nephew Brian Walker claimed the top spot in the full marathon in 2014.

scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @ScottBilleck