The summer season is up and running and so to will be the tourists themselves this weekend as the West Coast is sprinting towards another Edge to Edge event in Ucluelet.
This year’s event will be held on June 11 and feature a half-marathon as well as a 10-kilometre race, with both routes boasting treks along the Wild Pacific Trail.
Edge-to-Edge is organized by the Ucluelet chamber of commerce and recently hired chamber manager Erin MacDonald is thrilled to take her first crack at hosting the event.
“The Edge to Edge has been a long standing tradition in our local community,” MacDonald told the Westerly News. “This is the 18th year that we have been putting on this event, and while it has changed and evolved over the years, it has always been a big source of community pride, bringing volunteers and businesses together to help showcase the best of the west coast to our guests.”
She acknowledged the biggest change this year is the axing of the full 42-kilometre marathon and said it was a tough event to let go of in 2017.
“It was not an easy decision to cancel the full-marathon this year, but due to ongoing maintenance in the [Pacific Rim National Park Reserve], we felt that it would be better to scale back our efforts this year so that our racers could run the proper route and not have to double up on some sections,” she said. “There were some complaints about doubling up on some areas of the route last year, so we want to ensure the experience for our racers is as positive as possible. This is only a temporary switch and we look forward to offering the full marathon again in future years.”
She touted the Edge-to-Edge event as a valuable boost to local businesses.
“The Edge to Edge has always been a big economic driver for our community,” she said.
“We are thrilled to be welcoming close to 350 racers and their families to the West Coast for this event, and have been encouraging racers to stay and explore Ucluelet once the race is wrapped up. We have racers joining us from across the country and around the world, so it is a great opportunity for local business owners to connect and engage with our guests.”
