After a another successful race season in Timmins, this past Sunday saw the final race of the season with the 15th Annual Gold Rush Run.
With just under two hundred runners coming out to enjoy the 2 kilometre or 8 kilometre races on Thanksgiving weekend, it was a good opportunity to raise funds to help the local sporting community and to “get everyone together to do something that is fun, that is good for the body and soul,” explained Guy Chenier of Northern Sports, one of the main sponsors of the event.
“All funds are given back to the community & local sporting groups,” said Joel Ruel, Race Director for the Gold Rush Run, “This year the main beneficiary is the Timmins Porcupine Track and Field Club. We’ve also included the Timmins Wrestling Club because they are giving us a lot of help. We’re sharing the wealth.”
Even though there are prizes for the top three runners of $400, $200 and $100 in both the Male and Female categories, it’s not all about the prizes and awards.
The Gold Rush Run is also the last race of the season in Timmins and has a more social atmosphere for the runners and volunteers alike.
“There’s the family and community aspect of the event,” says Ruel, “where the runners come out to socialize with everyone else. Some of the runners aren’t here for awards.”
Many of the runners who participated in the event were experienced athletes, with some travelling long distances to race when not attending local events.
“I think Timmins nails it in the way they put on an event,” says Logan McMeekin, an accomplished runner who ran both the Golden Trails half marathon this summer in addition to joining her son for the Terry Fox Run.
From the perspective on an experienced runner and athlete, “I’d do the local runs first, they’re so well organized,” said McMeekin, “I try to do all the local races for sure and do the ones out of town when I can.”
“I think we have a lot of great volunteers and a lot of great people who are putting a lot of time into developing local athletes and I think we’re on the right path,” she continued, “I think we’re getting some great events, the facilities that we have; the soccer field at Theriault High School, that’s used a lot now and I only see things going up from here. I think everyone is doing a great job.”
With all the positive feedback from the 2014 race season, it’s not hard to see why the runners and volunteers are already looking forward to next year’s lineup of events.
As for the 2014 Gold Rush Run, congratulations to everyone who ran the races.
The results of the 5km race are listed below.
Overall Top 3 Winners- Male
Eric Leishman (15:52.1)
Ryan Banks (17:02.8)
Marc Charlebois (17:59.7)
Overall Top 3 Winners- Female
Karin Lucas (20:39.4)
Jessica Demers (21:02.4)
Julie Maisonneuve (21:44.1)
Male 14 and under
Isaac Rondeau-McNair (18:56.8)
Harry Clark (20:10.9)
Brandon Bertrand (21:27.4)
Frederick Girard (21:29.2)
Owen Salvador (22:59.3)
Christian Lefebvre (24:10.2)
Mathieu Delli Qaudri (25:18.9)
Caleb Rondeau-McNair (31:33.1)
Female 14 and under
Macy Turcotte (24:24.3)
Alexandria Burke (24:24.8)
Ava Fregonese (25:35.8)
Mallory Turcotte (26:04.6)
Jadyn Weltz (26:05.4)
Cyan Lavigne (26:37.1)
Male 15-19
Phil Johns (18:19.6)
Jordan Gelinas (19:27.2)
Christian Smith (20:32.7)
Samuel Delage (21:26.5)
Jeremy Lamothe (21:54.4)
Nicholas Smith (26:26.7)
Female 15-19
Martine Fecteau (29:49.1)
Amelie Fecteau (29:49.3)
Male 20-29
Tim Leishman (23:13.7)
Danny Girard (24:05.6)
Female 20-29
Sabrina Sullivan (23:18.6)
Caitlyn O’Sullivan (23:36.4)
Samantha Demers (23:54.2)
Pamela Layte (25:10.0)
Josee Belanger (25:24.8)
Suzie Larocque (25:49.6)
Cynthia St-Amant (26:41.9)
Christine Girard (26:43.6)
Celine Lemire (29:10.1)
Veronique Rodrigue (29:12.6)
Jessica Ferrigan (30:38.3)
Heather Brouwer (31:05.7)
Kimberly Levesque (39:16.2)
Male 30-39
Russell Wood (19:22.7)
Kevin Layte (20:00.2)
Steve Black (24:54.8)
Ryan Braden (25:32.3)
Derrick Cremin (27:04.8)
Richard Lambert (33:54.1)
Female 30-39
Brianne Charlebois (22:27.1)
Logan McMeekin (23:26.7)
Lisa Banerjee-Wood (23:59.9)
Lisa Collin (24:14.1)
Jennifer Mercier (24:27.2)
Justyna Mittelstaedt (24:40.2)
Lori Smith (24:40.2)
Sonal Zilka (30:26.1)
Jennifer Paul (31:15.0)
Meagan James (35:04.7)
Dominique Gagne (44:19.7)
Male 40-49
Guy Chenier (18:22.5)
Sylvain Gauthier (18:27.1)
Louis Bordeleau (19:15.7)
Geg Watson (19:42.9)
Alain Labelle (20:03.7)
George Lajeunesse (20:16.8)
Frank Louvelle (20:20.0)
Robert Coderre (20:58.8)
Neal McNair (22:37.1)
Raphael Delli Quadri (25:21.9)
Marty James (28:48.9)
Marc Rodigue (29:13.7)
Bill Belanger (37:45.7)
Female 40-49
Amanda Louvelle (25:34.8)
Jodie Horihan (25:46.3)
Cheryl Allard (25:51.2)
Natalie Poitras (26:13.2)
Sarah Campbell (26:23.3)
Tania Stewart (27:06.3)
Sue Turcotte (27:43.0)
Jackie Dagenais (30:09.8)
Maryse Bednarz (30:20.7)
Kathie G. Girarde (32:44.1)
Angele Caporicci (34:16.8)
Lynne Belanger (37:45.6)
Male 50 and over
Marcel Boudreau (20:09.1)
Daniel Bourdeau (23:18.8)
Richard Allard (23:34.5)
Pierre Renault (27:20.0)
Andre Paradis (27:41.7)
Charlie Warner (27:47.5)
Ralph McKinnon (35:13.3)
John Shaw (57:05.6)
(Photo: Dave Kramer for TimminsToday.)
