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The Manitoba Marathon 2013 – Fargo Style

I know what you are thinking, Fargo is not in Manitoba, nor is it in Canada. It is in fact a small city about 2 hours south of the border in North Dakota, but it definitely deserves to be a honorary Canadian city on Marathon weekend. As hundreds of Canadians flock south from Manitoba, NW Ontario and Saskatchewan annually to take part in this event.

I know what you are thinking, Fargo is not in Manitoba, nor is it in Canada. It is in fact a small city about 2 hours south of the border in North Dakota, but it definitely deserves to be a honorary Canadian city on Marathon weekend. As hundreds of Canadians flock south from Manitoba, NW Ontario and Saskatchewan annually to take part in this event. This is a race that everybody should experience at least once, as it appears the whole city shuts down to come out and support the runners as they hit the streets. The cities participation is second to none as live music in the form of bands, dj’s and of course where would you be without a Elvis impersonator, line the course approximately every half mile. It is a flat and fast course and when the weather cooperates a legitimate Boston Qualifier for those that are close to their time requirements.

This year was my first time running Fargo and I was quite excited to participate in this event, as my wife Nicole (yes her name is Nicole Nicol) has run it twice and has enjoyed it immensely. I had decided to take it a step further and complete the ‘GoFar’ Challenge as well which required running the 5km the night before. The intent was to not run it fast, trying to keep my legs and feet primed for the marathon in the morning. It was not hard getting pumped up for this, as there was over 8,500 other runners and walkers set to go on this little jaunt through the streets around the Fargodome. Even with the mass of runners, I was still able to weave my way through from the back to near the front and finish with a 24:04, I’ll take it.

The marathon itself is a treat to run for runners of all skill levels, as you run up and down the streets of this college town and take in the  outpouring of support from the spectators that line the street. For that matter, I don’t believe I saw a stretch longer than a couple hundred feet without seeing somebody cheering us along, which is impressive for a marathon route.

Typically I usually get a bit of attention while I run, because of my footwear or lack of but this time I was not alone, so the attention was happily shared. In fact, there was seven of us registered and running barefoot that day, yes, I did say seven. There was a friend of mine Deryk Ducharme (aka The Dirty Ninja) who was running his first barefoot half marathon, another speedy half marathoner who I did not get the chance to meet and a barefoot relay team from Fargo who were running to support a charity called Barefoot for Barefeet. It was fun running with the relay team, because as they ran their legs some of their fraternity brothers joined them for a quick jaunt barefoot as well, expanding our presence, which brought a smile to me and many other faces throughout the crowd, especially the kids.

Overall it was a good day, I did not hit my goal time with a 4:16, but I did have a lot of fun along the way and reduced my personal best by 4 minutes to boot. I also got to show my support for a unbelievable little boy who is currently fighting the effects of stage three kidney cancer which is something no seven year old should have to do, here is Adler’s story. I got some looks with my different coloured painted toe-nails that day, but I also got quite a few smiles as well and that is a big reason why I do it.

So if you want a fun experience, this is a race that you may want to check out,  I know I will be back.

Deryk (The Dirty Ninja) and myself before the marathon
Deryk (The Dirty Ninja) and myself before the marathon
Our toes pre-race
Our toes pre-race

A quick video clip of myself and Zack (also barefoot) coming into the finish

Deryk's Toe'ing Into Barefoot Stardom
Deryk's Toe'ing Into Barefoot Stardom
The Rest Of The Article
The Rest Of The Article
My Finisher's Medal's and Feet and Not A Chipped Nail Polished Toe
Not A Chipped Nail Polished Toe

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