Photo Credit: Jack Salen
While the main events of the Tobermory Trail Race Weekend (TTRW) – the Full, Half and Relay Trail Marathon on Sept 24th and the 5km Flowerpot Island run on Sept 25th are for runners there will be other events that weekend for those less interested in testing their endurance skills against the Bruce Trail.
The weekend will start off on Friday night with a Pasta Dinner at the Tobermory Community Centre from 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm. The dinner is being provided by the Ferndale/Lions Head District Lioness Club and is open to the public so come out and join the 150 racers participating in Saturdays runs who get a meal ticket in their race bag. Tickets will be limited so come early! Race registration will also be taking place on Friday night at the Community Centre and there will be a guest speaker. The Tobermory Primary Place will also be hosting a Silent Auction which will open for biding on Friday at 5:00 pm and items will being closing Saturday evening, starting at 6:00 pm.
At 7 am Saturday morning all of the racers participating in the Full, Half and Relay Trail Marathon will gather at the Community Centre for their race briefing and then they will be piped down to the start line at the Tobermory Cenotaph. The Full and Relay categories will take off from Tobermory down the trail at 730 am and the ½ Marathon runners will be bused to Cyprus Lake Campground in Bruce Peninsula National Park and start north on the trail at 830 am. We welcome anyone wanting to cheer racers on to join us at the start line in Town or as the race mostly follows the Bruce Trail those willing to hike can walk out at Cyprus Lake or Little Cove and cheer racers on as they tackle the trail.
The Finish Line for all of Saturday’s races is at the Bruce Trail Cairn on Bay St. This means Bay St will be closed from the Cenotaph to the intersection with Brock St until between 2-3pm on Saturday Sept 24 th . Runners love to finish with a cheering crowd so to draw attention to that area the Library will be putting on a book sale, so if you have any donations they would love to have them. There will also be a bouncy castle, information booths and you can wet your whistle as you are cheering at the Primary Place Lemonade Stand.
Saturday ends with the Awards Ceremony at 4 pm, a Silent Auction, a Fish Fry 5 pm – 8 pm and Dance 8 pm – 1 am at the Community Centre all of which are open to the public. The Snowmobile Club is providing the Fish Dinner. The Silent Auction and Dance are to support the Tobermory Primary Place Daycare. The Daycare will be looking for items for the Silent Auction, if you have a donation please contact Sarah Peacock at 226 668 7707.
On Sunday morning, anyone who wishes to wake up super-early can come to the Blue Heron dock at 5:45am to wish the Flowerpot Island 5K racers well as they board the boat. The race is not open to spectators due to the limited transport options but the racers would love to be greeted at the dock on return to Tobermory around 9 am.
The goal of this weekend is for racers and their families to enjoy a weekend in Tobermory and support outdoor adventures on the Bruce Peninsula. In return for everyone’s generosity that weekend, they will be assisting the Tobermory Primary Place Daycare with their winter program.
Tobermory Trail Race Weekend 