News
A Father’s Day treat: trotting down the new YYC runway
June 9, 2014, Calgary - Deciding what to do for dad’s big day can be a frustrating task each June. eggs Benedict and a new necktie are a lovely gesture, of course, but do they really express the depth of your appreciation for the man responsible for half your DNA?
June 9, 2014 By The Calgary Herald
In the end, most fathers would probably be equally happy spending
some quality time outdoors with the family and saving the hollandaise
sauce for a day that didn’t require a 45-minute wait for a table.
Thanks
to the planning of Calgary’s Airport Authority and the Running Room,
more than 11,000 Calgarians will be able to spend Father’s Day enjoying
what is likely to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience at this weekend’s
Run & Roam the Runway Events.
According to Jody Moseley, the
airport authority’s director of corporate communications and marketing,
this two-day celebration of the opening of Calgary’s $620-million runway
offers something sure to appeal to every member of the family, no
matter their age or interests.
“We asked Calgarians how they
wanted to celebrate the completion of this three-year project and a
charity run was one of the most prominent ideas,” she says. Ask and you
shall receive, YYC.
Saturday’s festivities will include both an
8.4-kilometre (exactly the length of runway 1735 Left, as it’s known,
from one end to the other and back) and a five-kilometre fun run on the
tarmac before it officially opens to airplane traffic on June 28.
Fourteen
hundred runners will lace up their sneakers for the unique opportunity
to cover the 14,000 feet of asphalt on what will be Canada’s longest
airplane runway, replacing YYC’s 1735 Right, which now holds the title.
“YYC
needs a long runway because of its altitude,” Moseley says. “Aircrafts
require more runway length to land and take off this high above sea
level, especially when loaded to capacity with passengers and cargo
during hot summer days.”
Canadian fitness icons and recent Amazing
Race Canada contestants Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod of BodyBreak fame
will be leading a pre-run warm-up with proceeds from the event going to
KidSport Calgary, a non-profit organization which removes financial
barriers standing in the way of children participating in organized
sports.
If running is not your dad’s jam, Sunday’s Roam the Runway
event offers a much more leisurely opportunity to take in the landing
strip on foot.
From 9 a.m. to to 3 p.m., 10,000 pre-registered visitors will be shuttled to the runway for a free day of family-oriented fun.
The
airport authority would have liked to open the celebration to anyone
who wanted to attend, but needed to cap the guest list for logistical
reasons. If you have not registered for the event on yycrunway.com and
received your electronic tickets, you will not be admitted to the
events.
For those who did secure their access ahead of time, though, this Father’s Day is going to be a truly memorable one.
“We will have enough going on for everyone of all ages to be entertained,” Moseley promises.
For
the little ones, there will be face painting, obstacle courses, a chalk
zone and street performers, while the more mature crowd can enjoy the
vintage plane displays and aviation exhibits, local food trucks and live
entertainment.
After this weekend, experiencing the runway on
your own two feet is not going to be an option. Says Moseley,
“We’re
excited that so many Calgarians recognized this fact and jumped at the
chance to register for this very special run and full day of fun.”
