Running Around British Columbia

October 8th, 2015

The other day I was looking at all the organizations Accent Inns sponsor, or support and came across an intriguing one called Dirty Feet. Excuse me I thought – why are they sponsoring unhygienic practices?

Of course, I should have known, there was more to it than that – Dirty Feet (http://www.dirtyfeet.ca) is a trail racing events company based in the Okanagan with a mission to provide a fun and comfortable environment for people to get off the road.They provide challenging courses that are fun, safe, but still challenging and cover terrain that includes rocks, roots, logs, ski hills, hiking trails, mud and snow. They have 10 trail runs planned for 2016, so head to the Okanagan and you’ll get a warm runner’s welcome at either the Kelowna or Kamloops Accent Inns. The first is scheduled for March 20th in Kamloops.

BC is a perfect place to run whether you’re off road or taking part in a marathon. More and more trail running events are cropping up across the province and there are literally thousands of trails if you simply want to go it alone. The Okanagan is one of the best places in the world to go off road and Accent Inns’ Kelowna and Kamloops locations are very popular with runners taking part in Dirty Feet events, or exploring the area’s trails on their own.

That’s not to say that there are not great trails in other parts of the province; if you’re staying at Accent Inns in Burnaby you’ll love the 10k circular run around Burnaby Lake. It’s an easy run, but great if you’re in town and want to get a good run in. Looking for something a little more taxing with enough elevation to get your hearty racing? Then head out to Burnaby Mountain where there are many trails to choose from, so you can run as much, or as little as you like. One trail, the Velodrome Trail features a 400-stair workout!

If marathons are more your style then one of the best in the world takes place in Victoria, with the Goodlife Fitness Marathon for 2015 taking place on October 11th. This will be the 36th running of the marathon in Victoria and over 12,000 participants are expected this year for the marathon, half marathon, 8K road race and the Thrifty Foods Kids Run. It’s the largest annual sporting event to be held on Vancouver Island.

2015/16 will see an amazing 14 marathons taking place with several being held in Accent Inns’ locations including Kelowna, Kamloops, Vancouver, and Victoria.

Remember all Accent Inns have fitness rooms and Kelowna, Kamloops and Victoria’s fitness rooms have just been updated. They now have more space and fabulous new equipment – so if you’re participating in one of those running events, stay with Accent Inns and you’ll have a great place to warm up prior to the race.

Mike Wicks
Blue Beetle Creative