Vancouver Sun run experience registration boom in wake of Boston bombing

VANCOUVER – Registration for this weekend’s Vancouver Sun Run has been bolstered by the Boston Marathon bombings as runners refuse to be deterred by the tragedy.

Sun Run chief organizer Jamie Pitblado said Tuesday that registration has increased in wake of the two bombings that killed three people and injured more than 140 others near the Boston Marathon finish line.

“We’ve been completely overwhelmed by what is happening in the response from runners,” Pitblado said. “Our registration in the last day and a half has picked up.

“I think people are talking about it in the social media circles, that the best way to show their support for what happened in Boston is to get out and participate in the Sun Run. We’re just humbled that the community has reacted to this in such a positive way.”

Pitblado said registration for the 10-kilometre event has already surpassed 45,000 runners, and the number is expected to continue to climb. In recent years, the event has averaged 49,000 participants, but Pitblado said he would “never underestimate the power of the human spirit and get out and show support for Boston.”

The event’s participation record was just over 59,000 in 2008. Pitblado does not expect the record to be challenged, but said organizers will have to consider opening up the event to more than 50,000 entrants if there is a rush on registration.

Despite the increase, runners are still feeling anxious about participating in the Sun Run and other mass-participation events, said Running Room store founder John Stanton.

“I have a lot of conversations with runners in the last day and a half, and I can tell you candidly that there’s a great deal of anxiety with some people,” said Stanton. “What happened in Boston was horrific, and it happened in an area which is normally the elation of an event, the finish line.

“For a lot of runners, it’s created some anxiety in people who train for the Sun Run or Vancouver Marathon.”

Sun Run organizers met Tuesday with Vancouver police and fire department officials to discuss whether security needs to be beefed up in light of the Boston bombings.

Security is being increased for this week’s London Marathon, which like Boston is one of the world’s premier long-distance races. Conversely, organizers of the Hamburg Marathon in Germany said they did not plan any changes to their security measures their race on Sunday.

Stanton said he’s confident that security will be increased at the Sun Run, but it will still be limited.

“It is a 10-kilometre course, and to protect that and say that (security) is tight is silly,” said Stanton.

But, he added, it’s important that people participate this year in order to remember the Boston victims — and stand up to terrorism.

“It will be a celebration of our liberties and the values that we all have to hold so high,” said Stanton.

Running Room stores play an active role in preparing runners for the Sun Run and other events.

Stanton said 80 per cent of the people he has spoken with have the attitude of “we’re not going to let terrorism or evil take over the good things in our lives.”

He said in addition to serving as athletic events and achievements, the Sun Run and other runs promote positive lifestyles and raise funds for worthy community causes.

“It’s about our freedoms and we don’t want people to lose that (sense of freedom),” he said.

The Running Room is organizing a tribute to the Boston Marathon bombing victims by holding a run and moment of silence Wednesday night at 118 locations to remember the people who were affected directly by the attack.

“We live in a free world, and our freedoms are important to us,” said Stanton. “Going to runs like the Sun Run is no different than (getting) on planes after 911.

“We’re still going to go to hockey games. We’re still going to go to baseball games. We’re still going to have Olympics. We’re still going to have Commonwealth Games. We’re still going to go to large concerts and other large gatherings with crowds, and we’re going to do that because we’re not let terrorists rule the lifestyle that we have in the free world.

“And, I think, there’s a consensus among the running community. It’s a tight community, and it’s supportive, and it’s encouraging, and it supports that whole community atmosphere. It’s time we stood up and took those freedoms and stood guard on them.”

Kelly Wiebe of Swift Current, Sask., who recently completed his fifth and final season competing for the University of Regina, will not return to defend his overall 2012 Sun Run title. A University of Regina spokesman said Wiebe is “banged up” and the decision has nothing to do with the Boston bombings.