PORT ANGELES — It won’t be quite the same as past marathons, but the North Olympic Discovery Marathon still expects more than 1,500 competitors to hit the trails both Saturday and Sunday.
The marathon is returning as a live event this weekend after it had to be converted to a purely virtual race in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Race Director Victoria Jones said the Run the Peninsula group has already held a couple of live races so far this year — The Elwha River Bridge 5K/10K in February and the Railroad Bridge Run 5K/10K in April — and has learned a lot about how to conduct races safely in the time of COVID-19.
“Those two runs helped us make a lot of changes,” Jones said. “We’re particularly excited to be back to a live race.”
Run the Peninsula is sponsored by the Peninsula Daily News and the Sequim Gazette.
The biggest alteration is the lack of a mass marathon start as in past years, and races will be spread out over two days.
The 5K and 10K out-and-back races from the Port Angeles City Pier will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday. The kids’ marathon, as usual, will be held at 1:30 p.m. Saturday.
On Sunday, the marathon and marathon relays will begin at 7:30 a.m. from 7 Cedars Casino in Blyn, and the half-marathon will begin at 8:30 a.m. at the Storm King Soccer Fields.
An early walking start for marathoners will begin at 6 a.m. at 7 Cedars.
Unfortunately, the large crowd of well-wishers accustomed to welcoming runners to the finish line at City Pier with live music and a beer garden will have to return in 2022 as the pandemic is lingering, and large crowds are still not a good idea.
Jones said she has been working closely with Clallam County Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry on protocols for keeping this year’s event safe.
Jones said participants can still receive a free beer post-race at either The Barhop or The Rail.
Jones said registration numbers are down a bit this year, which is understandable because no one knew until a couple of months ago whether or not there could be a race.
“People were hesitant to register. They weren’t sure it was going to happen,” Jones said.
The NODM is popular with Vancouver Island residents, so another change this year is few Canadians are expected because the border is still not open. However, Jones said people from 48 states have registered to run in the various races. The only states missing are Rhode Island and West Virginia.
Numbers are pretty solid for every race, except for one — the popular half-marathon. Jones said that in past years, as many as 1,100 people registered to run this specific race. This year, only 662 have registered so far.
Other numbers are solid — 132 children are registered to run in the kids’ race, 257 runners in the 5K, 273 in the 10K, 261 in the full marathon, 20 teams in the marathon relay and 40 people in the marathon walk.
The virtual races also are being held just like last year. Jones said 463 people have registered in the virtual races, and registration for these races will be ongoing until the end of the year. People can go to www.nodm.com to register for a virtual race at their leisure.
After the marathon, the next Run the Peninsula event will be the Larry Scott Trail 5K/10K in October in Port Townsend.
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Sports Editor Pierre LaBossiere can be contacted at plabossiere@peninsuladaily news.com.
