More than 500 people have signed up to participate in Jasper’s inaugural half-marathon slated for April 16, the vast majority of which are from out of town—475 to be exact.
“As a first year event you never know what’s going to happen, but given the destination location that we have and the great partnerships with the Fairmont, Tourism Jasper and the chamber, it’s a good fit,” said Trevor Soll, of Multisport Canada, the event’s organizer.
“The running joke in Jasper is everyone signs up at the last minute, but I hope they won’t because if they do there is a good chance they won’t be able to participate,” he said, explaining the event is already 65 per cent sold out and there are only 300 spots left.
Both Tourism Jasper and the Jasper Park Chamber of Commerce warmly welcomed the news.
“Our vision at Tourism Jasper is to drive year-round visitation and obviously an event like this helps us to achieve this goal,” Myriam Bolduc, a product development specialist with Tourism Jasper, wrote in an email.
“I am happy to hear those numbers,” said Pattie Pavlov, general manager of the chamber, during a telephone interview.
“I see it as being a win-win for the runners as well as for the community.”
The Jasper Canadian Rockies Half-Marathon is a 21-km race. It also includes a one-km family run, a five-km run/walk, as well as a 10-km run.
According to the event’s website, the 21-km race will begin in front of the Jasper Visitor Information Centre and head out of town on Connaught Drive, before turning left onto Sleepy Hollow Road.
Runners will then turn right onto Hazel Avenue to Old Fort Point Road and follow that road past the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge until they reach Lake Annette Road.
From there, runners will follow Lake Annette Road, circle Lake Edith and return the way they came.
Once they hit Hazel Avenue they will cross Connaught Drive at the lights, before turning right onto Patricia Street. The finish line will be on the other side of the information centre lawn, in front of the post office.
To minimize disruption to traffic, organizers will briefly shut down Connaught Drive and one lane on Patricia Street.
To add to the race’s atmosphere, Soll said he is in the process of reaching out to venders to gauge interest in whether or not to hold an expo in front of the information centre, similar to what the Tour of Alberta did last September.
“We haven’t had a lot of response on that side of things yet, partly because most of the community is still in ski mode, but as we get closer to the event and as more people start to see the big influx of people coming in, I’m hoping it will be a better response,” said Soll.
On race day, he said he will also need at least 40 volunteers; Multisports Canada offers groups of 20 or more an honorarium for volunteering.
To register for the race or for more information, visit www.jaspercanadianrockieshalf.ca. Ten dollars from every entry goes to the Ronald McDonald House.
Paul Clarke
[email protected]
