© Copyright – 2026 – Athletics Illustrated
The K’ómoks First Nation describes the Comox Valley area as a “land of plenty” due to its rich resources, mild climate, and fertile soil. On Sunday, there was much to be said about the perfect weather and a race of plenty (of personal bests) in the Valley in Courtenay, BC.
Russell Pennock and Katelyn Ayers won the 2026 Comox Valley RV Half Marathon on Vancouver Island on Sunday. Pennock finished in the time of one-hour, five minutes and 30 seconds, while Ayers finished in 1:14:01; both are personal best performances.
The men’s race
Pennock, a former triathlete, was looking to run sub-66 minutes in the half-marathon and accomplished that by 30 seconds, taking the win over defending champion Brandon Vail, who finished in 69:07 in second place. Taking third was Luch Monteiro in 1:11:48.
Pennock and Vail were together for approximately 5 km before the course began to climb. From there, Pennock ran alone, focusing on the climbs, the 180-degree turnaround, and the long downhill stretch.
His seasonal goal is his debut marathon at the BMO Vancouver Marathon on Sunday, May 3. He may look at chasing the course record, which he admitted is a tall task for a debut.
When first asked about going sub-2:20, the former University of Calgary Dino was confident, saying, “Oh, yeah, definitely sub-2:20 and maybe I will look at the course record, which is 2:14:33.” The record was set by Domini Arce in 2025. The historic event record is 2:13:14 from 1980 by Garry Henry. There have been several course adjustments since then.
“Yes, that may be a bit ambitious for a debut, but we will see. I am pretty happy with today, though.”
The Comox Valley RV Half Marathon, while hilly, can produce fast times if run with the appropriate tactics. The course record is 63:57 by three-time Olympian Jon Brown from 2005, before the use of supershoes and bicarb became the norm.
The first master 40-plus across the line was Mark Cryderman, who clocked a 1:15:11 for ninth place. The Campbell River native competes in the 50-54 age-group.
The first junior U20 athlete across the line was 12-year-old Kaiden Howells, who recorded a 1:59:26 time in his third half-marathon.
The women’s race
Kate Ayers bettered the next fastest athlete by 5:28.
“I’m really happy with my race today and grateful I had athletes to run with every kilometre. We had perfect half-marathon weather, and it was great to see so many people in the community enjoying the day and supporting each other. Love this race!”
Fawn Whiting, a former Ironman athlete, is happy to have finished second and to be back racing after a series of injuries and starting a family. She is now a mother of three and managing to keep fitness high on limited training. “It was fun out there today. It is difficult to get much volume training in, but I am keeping fit with a load of just 40-50 kms per week,” shared Whiting.
Taking third was Patricia Roney with Speedfarm, finishing in 1:21:26. Whiting ran 1:19:29.
For Ayers, she improved her performance from 2025 by six minutes and 38 seconds. Across all distances from 1500m and up, it is her third-best run according to the World Athletics points performance scoring system. The value is rated at 1107 points. It is her second-best individual event performance. She ran 4:09.74 in the 1500m and was part of a 4 x 800m relay; the performances earned 1128 and 1117 points, respectively.
While Ayers competes in the 30-34 category, Whiting and Roney are in the 40-44 masters age group.
Alexie Bowser with the Prairie Inn Harriers turns 20 during the Vancouver Island Race Series on April 2. Therefore, she competes in the 20-24 category. Although she is still 19. Today’s performance would be a junior competition if the half-marathon were a provincial or national championship. She missed the open podium by one position and 14 seconds. She bettered the first U20 junior by more than 36 minutes.
Shoestrings…
The Comox Valley RV Half Marathon had the most finishers this year in the 43-year history of the event, with over 1100 registrants and 736 finishers. This continues a growth trend for the series and the race with three consecutive record years. The race is organized by the Comox Valley Road Runners.
The race has been a 21.1 km half-marathon since 1995. Prior to that, it was a 20 km route for 12 years.
The Vancouver Island Race Series includes eight road races from January to April each year. The distances include 5 km, two 8 km, three 10 km, 12 km and the half-marathon.
Next up in the Vancouver Island Race Series is the McLean Mill 10K in Port Alberni on Sunday, March 29. The final race of the series is the Saanich Physio + Bazan Bay 5K.
