By the time online registration had wrapped up, more than 600 people had signed up for the Fort Langley Historic Half Marathon that will take place on Sunday Feb. 19, along with 10K and 5K events.
TryEvents race director Mitchell Hudson said that represented a return to pre-pandemic levels, and a big improvement over the 2022 event, which drew 342 runners during a time when news of the Omicron COVID variant was breaking.
“It seems like we’re back to where we were,” Hudson told the Langley Advance Times.
Hudson reported seeing the same return to pre-pandemic numbers at other running events so far in 2023.
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While online registration for the Fort Langley event has ended, people can still sign up in-person, on the two days that race packages are distributed – Friday (3-6 p.m.) and Saturday (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) at Innovative Fitness in Walnut Grove, 111-9525 201 street – or on the morning of the races, which begin at Bedford Plaza in Fort Langley, 23285 Billy Brown Road, with half marathon runners departing at 9 a.m., followed by the 10K walkers and runners, then the 5K participants. Arrive early to register.
People who do in-person sign ups will be running as “charity bib” runners to support the event’s charitable partner, the Langley Senior Resources Society.
Last year, with the reduced turnout, the society didn’t raise as much as Hudson would have liked for their first year as a partner, but he was cautiously optimistic the higher numbers will make a difference this year.
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The Historic Half Marathon route follows the Fort to Fort trail along the Fraser River through Derby Reach Provincial Park.
Have a story tip? Email: dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
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