Grant Yule ran his first marathon at the age of 76. Since then, he has completed five more.
On Sunday, Yule's workload wasn't quite as heavy. He did the 10-kilometre distance in the 25th Annual Canadian Tire YMCA Road Race, and, at age 83, was the most senior participant in the event.
Yule's time for the 10K?
Get ready to hide your heads in shame, all you 20- or 30-something sofa-sitters out there.
One hour six minutes 41 seconds.
Yule's only problem was finding the right pace.
"I'm used to running long distances, so to run a shorter distance, faster, is hard to do," he said moments after he stepped across the finish line at Masich Place Stadium. "The distance doesn't bother me, it's just that I have to speed up.
"It was a hard race but I was quite comfortable all the way around," he added. "If I could have had a little bit more wind I could have done it faster because everything else was fine. I was in good shape."
Yule's wife, 78-year-old Jean, was also in her running shoes on Sunday. She finished the 10km race in 1:31.30.
"I could have done a bit better, but I have a big excuse -- I had a bit of sinus trouble," she said with a grin. "But I feel good."
Grant and Jean run together an average of three times per week. During their outings, they normally cover five to 10 kilometres. Jean said she hopes she and her fleet-footed hubby are setting an example for others.
"I think that we really need to be active, have a good lifestyle with our eating and exercise, and so I think we are an example," she said.
Added Grant: "Over the years as you get older, fitness becomes not a priority. And if you're going to do anything when you're older, you've got to be fit. So it's a priority for us and we hope to talk to other people about that. We see it so much, especially in older people, who think because they're old that they've got to slow down. You may have to slow down but you don't have to quit."
The 'fit forever' message is certainly rubbing off on the Yule family members, because four of them -- son Scott, daughter Heather, granddaughter Ashley and her future husband James -- were also in Sunday's race.
Prior to that first marathon of Grant's, he had run several shorter races, including two half marathons. His first crack at the full distance was in Olympia, Wash., and his time of 4:43 qualified him for the world-famous Boston Marathon the next year. Running in Boston, at age 77, was a definite highlight and a major challenge for him. He finished the course in 5:09.
"That was about as tough a run as I've ever had," said Grant, a Prince George resident since 1966. "It was hot, and a long day, and by the grace of God I finished it."
Two in a row for Grigg
For the second consecutive year, Kevin Grigg was too quick to catch.
Grigg was the overall winner in the half marathon distance of the YMCA Road Race. His clocking of 1:19.52 placed him ahead of runner-up Steve Martin (1:20:14) and third-place man Bryce Gladdish (1:25.33).
In the women's half marathon, Belen Comas (1:44.12) set the winning pace. She was followed by Roxy Solmonson (1:47.03) and Deborah Pawar (1:47.37).
Other winners included: men's 5km -- Austin Bartell (18:32); women's 5km -- Kari Borowski (21:49); men's 10km -- Brian Nemethy (35:43); and women's 10km -- Angela Wheeler (44:58).
