For those who are passionate about running and wine, registration is now open for the 2014 Kelowna Wine Country Half Marathon, to be held in Kelowna on Saturday, Sept. 6.
Produced by Destination Races of Sonoma, California, the Kelowna race is Canada’s exclusive wine-country half marathon.
Runners commence the spectacular 21.1-kilometer (13.1-mile) course at The Vibrant Vine Winery, which offers breathtaking views of Okanagan Lake, downtown Kelowna and the surrounding mountains. The course meanders past vineyards, farms and apple orchards along the East Bench of Kelowna, before entering onto the Mission Creek Greenway. The final six kilometers of the course take runners along Okanagan Lake to the finish at Waterfront Park for the post-race Wine & Music Festival.
“With the tremendous support of our partners at Tourism Kelowna and the City of Kelowna, last year’s inaugural Kelowna race was very well received and out-of-town participants also enjoyed of many of Kelowna’s tourism offerings,” comments Matt Dockstader, CEO of Destination Races. “Kelowna’s East Bench, Mission Creek Greenway and the lakefront route, plus the beautiful finish and festival at Waterfront Park, are what make this course so special.”
In addition to the joy of running in one of Canada’s most scenic destinations and sipping on fine Okanagan wines, all half marathon and relay finishers (19+) also receive a shirt, finisher’s medal, and Riedel wine glass with entry into the post-race festival. Cash and other prizes are awarded to the top three overall winners, and the top three finishers in each age group receive a bottle of Okanagan wine. Kelowna’s 2013 race winners were Sergio Reyes from California, with a time of 1:06:19 and Kimberly Doerksen of Illinois whose winning time was 1:18:04. Kelowna residents Hans Aabye and Christy Lovig finished third in the men’s and women’s division respectively.
The Race Expo will be held on Friday, Sept. 5 at The Delta Grand Okanagan Resort located adjacent to the race finish along Waterfront Park. The expo features packet pickup, product sampling, demonstrations and seminars. The Race Expo runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is open to the public.
Registrations completed before Feb. 1 receive early bird pricing of $90 for the half marathon and $160 for the 2-person relay. For those running the half marathon in a group of six or more, registering as a team will save an additional $10.
For more information on the event, visit www.raceinfo@destinationraces.com/runbc
The Kelowna race will benefit YMCA’s Strong Kids Foundation and the University of British Columbia’s Cross Country Team, which won the 2014 NAIA Overall Team Championship. Last year’s event raised more than $10,000 for its non-profit partners. Businesses interested in becoming a sponsor, exhibitor or participating as a winery may contact Destination Races at raceinfo@destinationraces.com or reach out to local coordinator Malindi Elmore through the same email address.
