The recently held KRRA Annual General Meeting, included a unique award given to a very special retiring board member PJ Marshall who we presented with the first KRRA LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD. We celebrate PJ’s tireless efforts not only in his personal running career, but the hard work and dedication he has shown volunteering for the KRRA, since its inception.
Let’s celebrate our kids’ year of running. The Kids Series has closed and it’s time for a party. We are heading to Conquer Training, this Saturday December 7th from 12:30pm sharp, to 2pm. Directions here.
We will be playing games and giving awards for the hardworking young runners who finished 6 or more running events in 2024. You don’t have to be an awardee to attend. Any runner under 12 is invited. Please RSVP to robby via text at 613.876.3220 or email at publisher@365ontario.info.
The 2024 KRRA Annual General Meeting (AGM) is fast approaching.
It all begins on Thursday November 28th, 2024 at The Tir Nan Og (200 Ontario St.) Doors open at 5:30 pm for social hour, followed by munchies at 6:30pm.
Meeting will commence at 7pm. Some of the highlight include: AGM business, presentation of this year’s age graded and 2024 race series awards, guest speaker Ironman competitor Nick Cosman.
The KRRA board looks forward to hosting the evening and would encourage members and non-members to attend.
The KRRA board is also recruiting for the 2025 race series. We are seeking some fresh ideas and new personnel. Current vacancies : President, Secretary, members at large and race director(s). The next KRRA board meeting is December 9th at 7pm at 24 Barrie St.
Click here to register for the 2025 KRRA Membership. The first 100 members* to register will receive a gift the night of the AGM. (*1 gift per family membership.)
The Resolution Run was the first of the 2024 KRRA Series, and the first race directed by Scott Farmer, after the retirement of former race director, Casey Kidson.
The event was very well attended despite a respectable amount of snow covering the course just days before the race. Shirts were part of the signup and Scott’s charity of choice was Lionhearts Inc.
Lionhearts provides a long list of services from rescuing food and household goods, to operating warming shelters, to retraining people to help rebuild their lives, Lionhearts restores dignity and hope. Click to learn more.
Not only did Scott manage to buy a generator and the coolest pylon costume you will ever see, he and his team’s efforts generated a total of $1,858.79 as a donation for Lionhearts Inc. Well done Scott, and kudos goes out to everyone who volunteered, raced, and cheered on the event.
Scott and crew are looking forward to next year’s Resolution Run with big plans to expand the Race.
Learn more about the Resolution Run, here. Enjoy photos from the Race, here.
This is year TWO, for the KKRS – also known as the KINGSTON KIDS RACE SERIES, celebration. Everyone is invited to attend this fun celebration where we reward our young KRRA members who took on the Kids Series and ran at least SIX of the KRRA Kids races in 2023.
We will be having games and prizes and a special award for each of the members who achieve the SIX RACE participation in the Series. This year’s event will be at Conquer Training, Fitness Centre as generously donated by owner Rodney Wilson. It will be taking place Saturday November 25th from 2pm – 4pm.
Please RSVP at PUBLISHER@365ONTARIO.INFO with # of attendees. Please note the name of the participant who completed the six races, so we know they are attending.
You don’t have to be a Series winner to attend. Siblings (and parents) are welcome. Wear thick socks (we go shoeless) and comfortable clothes as we will be doing activities.
Conquer Training’s address: 7C – 785 Sir John A MacDonald Blvd, Kingston ON, K7L 1H3
Enjoy photos from last year’s Annual Celebration.
The Kingston Road Runners is looking to recruit. We are seeking some fresh ideas and new personnel. The following positions are available.
With Lana Saunders’ upcoming retirement as President (10 years at the helm), the KRRA is looking for a new President to head the KRRA Board of Directors. Lana has done a stellar job for the past decade and she looks forward stepping back to allow this opportunity for someone new.
The President oversees the Treasurer’s responsibilities, chairs KRRA Board Meetings, liaises with race directors, and corresponds with outside organizations on behalf of the club. The KRRA is looking for someone who is knowledgeable about the Kingston running community, a good leader, and someone who can commit approximately 25-30 hours a month to these efforts. The President is supported by a solid Board of Directors, and an excellent team of Race Directors.
The Club Presidency would commence in 2024.
The Board of Directors meet on a monthly basis, requiring a well-organized individual to attend, and document these meetings. The Secretary would generate meeting minutes, meeting agendas, for Board members and the members. Some light administrative tasks are occasionally tasked to the Secretary. This position is not a big commitment and you don’t have to be a runner to apply.
This position is available immediately.
The first race of the KRRA Series is seeking an energetic Race Director to manage this event, which takes place the first Sunday in January. This position will organize the event prior to and on Race day. Tasks include securing a Parade Permit, online race registration, organizing volunteers, booking timing company, bibs, race swag, medals, light food and drink, sponsors and prizes, event communications and marketing, booking event venue for bib pickup and post-event awards ceremony. It sounds like a lot of work but there is lots of support for this position, including the past Director providing plenty of help to make light work of the position.
This position is available immediately for the upcoming 2024 event, and the commitment would be for at least two years.
If you, or anyone you know may be interested in any of these positions, please contact President Lana Saunders for more information. Email: lanaonhowe@gmail.com
The Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship is a community-based education scholarship fund in honor of the legacy of Kevin Dunbar. Kevin had a huge impact in the running community as a mentor, coach, volunteer, and athlete. He was a passionate lawyer who worked tirelessly to help others. This scholarship fund will give back to the community by supporting track and endurance runners and individuals in need as they pursue post-secondary education.
The Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship fund will provide two annual scholarship grants in the amount of $2500.00 each to individuals from the Leeds & Grenville, Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox and Addington areas. Scholarships will be presented annually at the Kingston Road Runners Association (KRRA) Limestone Mile on July 1, in Kingston, Ontario.
The deadline to submit applications for the scholarship will be April 30th each year, beginning in 2024.
The Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship is administered in partnership with the Kingston Road Runners Association (KRRA). The KRRA is a non-profit, independent athletic organization, which embraces runners of all ages and all ability levels.
All donations made to the Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship fund are overseen and invested by Pam Mundell of CI Assante Wealth Management.
Anyone may donate to support the Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship Fund.
Donations may be made directly, by e-transfer to kevindunbarmemorialscholarship@gmail.com.
Donations are also collected at the KRRA Limestone Mile event.
All contributions made to the Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship fund equal to or exceeding $1000 MAY be advertised as “Special Contributions”:
The Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship Fund (KD Fund) will help to support secondary students who wish to pursue post-secondary education.
The annual Limestone Mile will be an opportunity for Kevin’s family, and the Kingston and Area community to gather and remember Kevin and also as an opportunity to raise funds for the Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship Fund.
The Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship Fund is an investment account set up by the Kington Road Runners Association (KRRA) with Assante Financial Management. This investment fund will be used solely for the purpose of accumulating funds to support the Kevin Dunbar Memorial Scholarship Fund. Any individual or group/association including running groups, biking organization or anyone in the legal community could contribute to this investment fund by way of online contributions.
The KRRA is a non-profit organization with a long history in Kingston within our local running community. The KRRA has a board of directors and bank account. The signing authority for the bank account is held with the president (Lana Saunders), treasurer (Paul Cehan) and one other board of directors (Al Cantlay) The investment account will be in the KRRA’s name and linked to the KRRA bank. The investment account will have the same signed authority as the bank account.
Pam Mundell, of Assante Financial Management, will be responsible for keeping track of the contributions into the investment fund.
The money in the investment fund will be invested in a combination of short-term and longer-term Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs). Funds that are contributed will be invested into GIC companies that are members of the Canadian Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) which means 100% guaranteed principal and 100% guaranteed interest. Current GIC rates as of today, April 20, 2023, range from 4.25% for a short term 30 day to 4.78% for a 1-year GIC and 4.51% for a 5-year GIC. The GICs will be staggered into GIC terms to mature June of each year to provide the needed funds for the presentation of the scholarship funds on July 1st of each year at the Limestone Mile.
The committee of Liz Stewart Shaver, Doug Wark, Al Cantlay and Pam Mundell will be responsible for the planning and implementation of KD Fund. Pam Mundell will have authorization and the responsibilities to share and discuss the contributions made into the investment fund, to report back updates on market values of the investment fund to the committee in order to allow the committee to successfully plan to for 2 annual scholarships of $2,500 to be awarded each year. The committee has the authorization to change the annual amounts awarded each year.
The first scholarship funds will be paid out at the Limestone Mile on July 1, 2023. Investment funds in the investment account will be deposited back into the KRRA bank account so that a KRRA cheque is presented to each recipient.
Kingston is blessed with a pool of talented running athletes. They come all ages, and they focus on a variety of distances and disciplines. From track running through to ultra marathons, Kingston represents. We are fortunate enough to celebrate two hardworking runners who are reaching an amazing milestone.
Tammy Pigion and Nancy Ball are approaching the date of an important marathon. This upcoming marathon for each of these ladies completes a prestigious Series known as the Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star Challenge. Discover their experiences in their own words, with this series of Q&A’s.
Q1 WHAT CITIES DO YOU NEED TO RUN IN AS PART OF THIS SERIES??
The international races include New York, Chicago, Boston, Berlin, London, and Tokyo.
Q2: WHEN AND WHERE IS YOUR FINAL MARATHON TAKING PLACE?
Tammy: I was supposed to run Tokyo in 2020 but it was cancelled because of COVID. Tokyo 2023 is now allowing international runners to run again, so 2023 will be my 6th and final star.
Nancy: My final race to complete the series of 6 races is in Tokyo on March 5th.
Q3: WHO DO YOU TRAIN WITH? DO YOU HAVE A COACH? ARE YOU SELF TRAINED?
Nancy: I’ve been running marathons since 1999. Tokyo will be my 22nd marathon. I originally trained through Running Room in Toronto. I’ve been self coached for many years now. I have a good friend who runs a portion of my long runs with me. This helps to mentally break up the tedium of the long runs.
Tammy: Kevin Coffey from M2M (Mile2Marathon) has been my coach since 2015. I have a training schedule from him and mainly run solo but on Wednesdays I often do speedwork with other M2M members. I run with a few Napanee friends where I live, sometimes with KRRA members, at Runner’s Choice with Al Cantlay and crew. I used to attend KRRA workouts when I lived in Kingston. I now Live in Napanee, so most of my running is here.
Q4: WHEN DID YOU FIRST DECIDE TO TAKE ON THIS CHALLENGE? WHEN WAS YOUR FIRST IN THE SERIES?
Tammy: I did not know about the World marathon majors challenge until after I ran Boston in 2017. Right after the race I was in my hotel elevator when I saw a man with this unique medal. I asked what it was and he told me about the Six Star Challenge. After I researched it, I realized I had a qualifying time for Chicago, so that is how it all started.
Nancy: Not until I was able to qualify and then gain entry to Boston in 2022 did I ever think it possible to complete this series. My first race of this series was Chicago back in 2006. Then there were only 5 races in the series. Tokyo was added in 2013 and the coveted Six Star medal was introduced in 2016. Of note, is that I trained twice for the New York City marathon as I was scheduled to run it in 2012 when it was cancelled because of Hurricane Sandy. I officially ran it in 2013.
Q5: WHICH OF THE MARATHONS TO DATE WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING?
Nancy: Boston! I am not a speedy runner. Boston comes with a time qualification just to enter. Then entry is determined based on your standing of the entire entry pool, fastest to less fast. When the 30,000 places are filled, they cut the remaining entries.
Tammy: All of them were challenging: The courses, the weather, running with crowds the entire time, cramping at the end, getting tripped by another runner. Marathons are just so challenging, that’s probably why I love it so much! It’s very rewarding when you complete a marathon, regardless if you hit your goal or not. I’ve had some successful ones that went exactly how I wanted them to, and others that didn’t go as planned, but I always try to find positives in each marathon and reflect on the areas I can improve on.
Q6: DO YOU HAVE A GOAL TIME FOR THIS RACE? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BEST / BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT?
Tammy: I hope to qualify for Boston again in Tokyo. I would like to go to Boston more than once and this is a great opportunity for me. Next year I age up to the 50-54 category, so 3:55 is the cut-off. I’m aiming to go 3:50 or a bit quicker. My marathons range from a 3:39 to a 4:01. Tokyo will be my 9th marathon total.
Nancy: No time goal. Time goals are behind me. Getting to the start and finishing healthy and happy is my goal. Biggest achievement was again Boston.
Q7: DO YOU HAVE ANY DIET SECRETS YOU WISH TO SHARE? ANY TRAINING FOODS THAT WORKS WELL FOR YOU?
Nancy: I’m a plant-based eater. I eat very healthy and probably healthier than when I started marathons back before becoming plant-based.
Tammy: No diet secrets from me. Lol! I am not much of an expert in this area but I just try to eat everything in moderation. I try to have some sort of protein though after a workout to help with the recovery process. I do take some vitamins and minerals daily and try to drink lots of water.
Q8: WHAT IS YOUR CHOICE RACE FUEL ON MARATHON DAY?
Tammy: For Tokyo, I am using Endurance Tap gels for fueling and Pocari Sweat (which tokyo is using on course… I ordered it online to train with it) for my electrolytes.
Nancy: I’ve been using Huma gels. 100% natural. I’m pretty tired of gels by the end of training but these have been very tolerable.
Q9: WHAT SHOES DO YOU TRAIN IN? AND WHAT SHOES WILL YOU RUN YOUR MARATHON IN?
Nancy: New Balance.
Tammy: Saucony Endorphin Speed 2s were my go-to for training but will be racing in the Saucony Endorphin Pro 3s…My first time racing a marathon in carbon plated shoes. I’ve tried them out a couple of times and so far I really like them.
Q10: DO YOU HAVE ANY RITUAL (SUPERSTITIOUS OR OTHERWISE) YOU STICK TO FOR MARATHON RACING?
Tammy: I don’t think I have a set ritual but I do take a long time waking up and getting ready to go for a run or race. I can get up early but my body just needs that time to wake up. Coffee is very important. Lol!
Nancy: Nope.
Q11: HOW MANY KMS DO YOU RUN AT YOUR PEAK? AND HOW MANY DAYS BEFORE DO YOU TAPER?
Nancy: I will peak at approximately 75k for the week, with my longest run being 35k. I taper for two weeks.
Tammy: For this training block I have been very consistent and have been running around 60-70km per week for the last month. 72km I think was my highest for Tokyo training. I’m tapering right now so the mileage is declining until the race.
Q12: DO YOU DO ANY CROSS TRAINING? WHAT’S YOUR STRENGTH TRAINING REGIMEN? YOGA? PILATES?
Tammy: Yes I cross train. Twice a week in the beginning of my training block, and once a week when my mileage gets higher. I attend a zoom Bootcamp that my friend, Erin Gregory who is a personal trainer, a runner, and Bootcamp instructor, teaches. I love it because I can focus on strength, core, and flexibility. It’s a very well rounded class. Erin teaches each exercise in several modifications for all abilities.
Nancy: Lots of cross training with cycling and walking being the main ones. I strength train 3X per week with a trainer. And loads of stretching and rolling.
Q13: DO YOU HAVE A CREW YOU MOST OFTEN RUN WITH? WHO ARE YOUR RUNNING BUDDIES?
Tammy: I have a couple of crews: M2M, KRRA, Napanee Coffee Gang. It’s fun to run with friends.
Q14: ARE THERE FOLKS WHO HAVE BEEN YOUR ROCK AND MOTIVATION?
Nancy: My husband. He has always been encouraging and patient with all the time I train.
Tammy: Matthew Richardson (my spouse) is #1 supporter! My kids Amber and Joshua are super supportive too as well, as the rest of my family and my close friends, but Matt is often out there with me on his bike keeping me company or if the weather is not the greatest for the bike, he will check on me if I am running solo, to make sure I am ok and if I need anything. He is definitely my rock and I love him so much that he is there for me, and is my biggest cheerleader!
Q15: WHEN YOU ARE DONE THIS BIG CHALLENGE, DO YOU HAVE ANOTHER YOU ARE CONSIDERING?
Tammy: I will keep my next races this season local and I probably won’t do anything long until the fall; likely a half marathon. I’ve done two marathons now (London and now Tokyo) back-to-back so it will be nice to do some shorter distances. If things go well in Tokyo, I will be starting training for Boston 2024 at the end of the year. Nancy: Possibly a spring half with a friend and looking forward to long distance road cycling and adding gravel biking this year. A new gravel bike awaits me in the garage!
Thank you for sharing your stories. All the best to you both Tammy and Nancy. May the wind be at your back.
The Kingston Kids Race Series was launched with the goal to encourage Kingston’s youngest runners to participate in as many races as they can, over the entire year. And participate, they did. Because of the Kids Series, registrations for all the Kids’ races were up. Sometimes signup for race events was triple the historic numbers.
The KKRS offered an end-of-year prize to any runner 5-12 yrs old, who ran at least six of the Series races. There were about a dozen kids who took on that challenge and succeeded. So many young runners achieved this goal, we decided to separate the Kids awards from the KRRA AGM. The decision turned out to be the best idea.
Coach Che Elija volunteered his time to give the attendees a good workout and some fun games. This was followed by a talk by organizer Robby Breadner. The event finale was the presentation of prizes and framed photos of each of the Champion runners.
Click here to enjoy photos taken at the event. Thanks goes out to Willow Breadner, the event’s volunteer photographer.
As the event wrapped up, parents and athletes gave their thanks for putting on the Series and the Awards celebration; sharing their enthusiasm for participation in 2023.
If you would like to assist in the 2023 KKRS, please contact Robby at publisher@365ontario.info
The KRRA has been supporting the Start2Finish (S2F) Running & Reading Program for many years. Start2Finish is an amazing community Program that has been in operation since 2000, and now that COVID restrictions have been lifted, the organization is back and ready to help young people, once again.
Start2Finish needs your help, as a volunteer. The organization is also seeking Club Directors for the different locations within Kingston.
Resolution Run 8K
Twosome Run 5K
LRW Waterfront 10k Race
LRW Tommy Compton Memorial 2K
LRW 5k Race
LRW Historic Half
Howe Island Hustle 8K
Beat Beethoven 8k
Napanee Heritage 5K
Canada Day Limestone Mile
Wolfe Island Classic 5K/10K
Wooly Bully 5K/10K
Glen Tay Block Race
Fort Henry 5KXC
PEC Half Marathon
Anniversary Run 10K
about the KRRA
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instagram: @KRRA.ygk
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external links
Runners’ Choice
sportstats.ca
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