Staying true to its name, the Country Roads Marathon is retuning after a hiatus, taking runners through a rural scenic source offering runners spectacular views of farmland, the Comox Glacier and the Beaufort Mountain range.
"I am very excited to bring back the marathon," says race director Steven Royer. "I raced it several years and it was one of my favourites with the scenic route, the themed water stops and the excitement from the local people and volunteers."
The marathon, which began in 2000 and was last run in 2004, is a looped course beginning and ending at the Comox Valley Sports Centre, offering both marathon, half marathon and relay (teams of four) distances.
This year's race is set for Father's Day - June 14 at 7 a.m. - with all funds raised to support the Vancouver Island Crisis Society suicide prevention programs.
"We decided to use the funds raised by the Country Roads Marathon for suicide awareness, after the running community lost a good friend in 2013 to depression resulting in suicide," notes Keith Wakelin, treasurer of the event.
"Upon doing the research, we were astounded by the sheer volume of victims of suicide and wish to bring awareness to help prevent future tragic events," he added.
The course will be re-certified in February as a Boston Marathon qualifying race.
The race will support runners with aid stations located approximately every two miles along the course, along with porta potties located at each relay transition. Band-aids and petroleum jelly will be available at all water stations and finish lines.
Refreshments will be available at the start and finish, and awards will be presented to the first, second and third place finishers in each category.
All marathon and relay teams will receive a commemorative souvenir, and results and certificates will be available on-site at the conclusion of the awards ceremony.
Early bird pricing is available until March 7, 2015.
For more information, visit www.countryroadsmarathon.com, or visit Country Roads Marathon on Facebook or follow them on Twitter @CRoadsMarathon.
– Country Roads Marathon