© Copyright – 2020 – Athletics Illustrated
One race that may just go ahead is the fourth-annual Reckless Raven 50 Ultra and Relay, which is currently scheduled for June 28. And while it appears that despite the global race calendar being decimated by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Whitehorse, Yukon event that was originated by ultramarathon runner Virginia Sarrazin is still on tap, for now.
One of the last holdouts to the spring distance race calendar was the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend, which includes several events as well as the popular Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon. Until Sunday, March 29, the decision to run the event May 23-24 appeared to continue to be likely for the 17,000 people who already registered – not anymore – except, one can now run a virtual version of the marathon for a reduced rate.
By Monday, a statement on the website read, “The organizers of Canada’s largest running festival, the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend, today announced the event, planned for May 23-24, 2020, will be cancelled in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, Run Ottawa told registered participants today they will be holding a virtual Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend and Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon this spring.”
“Cancelling the event is a tremendous disappointment for all of us, but it is the right and only thing to do given the ongoing COVID-19 containment measures,” said Executive Director Ian Fraser.
Race details are available here: www.runottawa.ca/
For the Reckless Raven event, a letter went out to participants Monday from organizer Vincent Larochelle that read, “One thing we wish to make clear, our overriding concern will be to uphold and respect all public health measures that are in place. For this reason, it is possible that the race may be cancelled. That decision may be made closer to race day, or the format and rules could be significantly altered to ensure the safety of our community.”
The 80.46K run offers countless elevation changes throughout. See map and elevation profile below.
The race starts and finishes at the Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club. The route includes the McIntyre Wetland, Haeckel Hill, Sumanik Ridge and down to Jackson Lake and along Fish Creek to Fish Lake and then back up to Mount McIntyre to Copper Haul Road and finally back to the finish at the Whitehorse Ski Club.
Last year, 39 competitors toed-the-line for the 50-miler (80.46K). The event also offers a team relay. For 2019, there was a total of 48 teams that participated.
The Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club is off Sumanik Dr, 200m off Highway 1 heading north from town.
“If we cancel, we want it to be the result of a calm, collected and rational decision. For now, we remain hopeful that we can have some kind of a race. The format is yet unclear. One thing, however, is clear to us: we would rather pay the price of having false hopes, than that of losing all hope.”
Currently, if the race gets cancelled, registrations will be deferred to the 2021 edition.
The Reckless Raven 50 Ultra and Relay has a cap of 220 participants. According to Larochelle, the cap may be capped to a smaller number.
Registration is available, here: Reckless Raven
