Last year I ran the 8K run at the Victoria Marathon, and after a lengthy running hiatus last winter and spring I wanted to do it again this year. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to run myself into the shape I wanted to be in, but instead another opportunity presented itself; Don Denton, the photo editor at Black Press, contacted me and offered me the chance to photograph the marathon.
I went for one last run to see if I was ready to participate in the 8K or not, and subsequently decided to take the work instead. A great experience? Yes. Was I done when I was done? Pretty much. Lugging two camera bodies and a heavy backpack (which I tried to keep as light as possible) around for five or six hours – even running from the start line, over the Legislature lawn, to catch the runners going past the Empress hotel – left the bottom of my feet swollen and sore. But it was worth it.
Three of the following images (and one more which isn’t here) found their way to the pages of most or all of the Black Press papers in Greater Victoria.
And then two photos of newlyweds at the finish line:
