Story by Herbert Daniher, Photos by Darren McChristie

The Fire Fighters Ten Mile Road Race is returning to a live in-person marque event Monday, May 22 with a 9 am start time.

The race will follow the traditional race course, starting at the corner of Simpson and Donald Streets, and heading north along Simpson/Fort William Road/Water Street to Marina Park where runners will turn around and return to the starting point on Simpson Street.

Race director, Herbert Daniher says there has been a tremendous amount of interest in the race from runners across Canada and the United States. The Thunder Bay Professional Fire Fighters Association and Fresh Air, long time sponsors of the Fire Fighters Ten Mile Road Race, are continuing their support of the event.

With the recent recruitment of additional committee volunteers to the position of relay race coordinator and assistants, the registration for the relay event will be opening soon. It is anticipated there will be 300 runners from primary and secondary schools which consists of 60 teams of five runners running two-mile legs of the ten-mile course.

The committee is also seeking to fill the positions of start/finish line coordinator and logistics person. Anyone interested can contact the committee through the website (see below) or contacting a committee member directly.

To celebrate the 87th running of the of the Fire Fighters Ten Mile Road Race, there will be an art contest open to the public to design the logo for the 2023 race offering a $500 prize.  The race committee will also be unveiling a new customized inflatable start finish line for the return of the event which is open to all levels of runners. There is three-hour window to complete the ten-mile distance.

For details and to register, visit tenmileroadrace.org

If you’re new to running and would like to participate, check out Fresh Air‘s training group which runs every Saturday morning. This is their 18th year supporting people with all different running abilities, from seasoned runners wanting to improve their time on race day to beginners.