Prepping for around the bay

The Around the Bay Road Race takes over Hamilton this Sunday, as it has virtually every year since 1894. It’s the oldest road race in North America, and attracts athletes from all over the world. This year however, organizers expect fewer runners to show up on race day. We noticed a lot of people are trying to sell their race bibs on Kijiji — turns out the rough winter has thrown a wrench into many runner’s plans.

Around the Bay organizers have begun setting up at FirstOntario Centre — including the finish line at centre ice. In the mezzanine area, athletes will come pick up their race packets.

Event organizer Mike Zajczenko: “So we got the 5 k shirts all set up? Hunky dory!”

T-shirts for the 30 k runners almost didn’t make it on time. They were held up by a trucker dispute in B.C. But by end of day, the boxes did make it to FirstOntario Centre. A happy surprise for runners who expected to have to wait. But organizer Mike Zajczenko says there may be fewer runners this year, even though the race sold out in February:
“Usually any race is a 10 per cent no show. So if you have 10,000 — 1,000 won’t show, but that’s normal. (And you expect it will be higher this year?) Yeah, I do.”

The weather has been so bad, many runners didn’t get in enough training.

Mike said: “I kind of like running during the winter, but even this year I started walking and the sidewalks were just full of ice. So we’ve had a lot of runners that are pulling out because of injuries, a lot of them maybe haven’t trained, and a lot are going from the 30 k to the 5 k.”

Runner: “I trained a little less and yeah, a buddy of mine hasn’t trained too much.”

Alex Pablo has tried to get out at least three times a week. in the gym if the weather was too bad: “I just dealt with the snow and forced myself to train because I want to do well.”

The route of the race is changing a bit this year. There were some problems last year along this Woodward Ave. stretch, when trains would come along and hold up the runners. Instead, this year the runners will traverse the undulating overpasses of Burlington St.

Mike said: “We figured we throw in a few more hills.”

The 5 k route also had to change. Part of it doesn’t even exist anymore. A bridge is being rebuilt near Bayfront Park. But that race will also end at centre ice.

A lot of people are trying to sell their race bibs on Kijiji. The weather is supposed to be good for running on Sunday.