Club returns with records
Sanikiluaq athletes achieve personal bests at Winnipeg races
Myles Dolphin
Northern News Services
Published Monday, October 28, 2013
SANIKILUAQ
Members of the Paatsaali Running Club returned to Sanikiluaq teeming with pride on Oct. 21 after having set personal records during a trip to Winnipeg.
Seven runners, including organizer Terri Skinner, spent six days in the big city and took part in two different races on Oct. 19.
The races were part of the second-annual Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service Half Marathon, in which participants could also take part in the five-kilometre or 10-km runs.
It was the group's second trip south in less than six months, after having competed in Toronto in May.
Skinner said everyone had a great time and she wishes she could take more kids on these trips.
"It was so much fun. There were many educational things to do such as visiting museums and zoos," she said.
"We also kept busy by going to a football game, we went bowling, swimming, shopping and saw a movie. The students here are wonderful and I would do it again tomorrow in a flash!"
The students, who were already familiar with Winnipeg, loved every minute and wished they could have stayed longer, she added.
They continued the club's long-standing tradition of finding an all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant and stocked up on supplies at Costco.
"Their eyeballs just about popped out of their heads," she said, referring to the students' reaction to endless amount of bulk items.
Two senior runners, as well as Skinner, ran the 10-km race while three junior runners and the group's chaperone ran the five-kilometre race. All of them established personal best times.
The cost of the trip was approximately $12,000 and fundraising began six months ago, with various activities such as music nights, bake sales and loonie sales.
Help also coming from the local Northern store, the Mitiq Co-op, the Najuqsivik Daycare, the hamlet of Sanikiluaq, Sport and Recreation Nunavut.
Skinner said the group has already begun raising funds for next spring's trip, which may include a half-marathon and marathon attempt.
