Tog dogs meet the GOAT
Ian Royle, left, and Brittany Fitzgerald, right, were the fastest male and female finishers, respectively in the CBS T’Railway Trek Half Marathon on Sunday, September 27. They were greeted at the finish of the 21.5 km course at Topsail Beach with medals and a photo op with race mascot Joshua the Goat. The real GOAT – that is greatest of all time CBS runner – may well be Fitzgerald as she repeated her win from last year, adding this year’s crown to a long list of victories in CBS races. Fitzgerald’s time this year was one hour, 36 minutes and 30 seconds. Royle, of St. John’s, blew past the finish line at 1:22:11. Three hundred and thirty-two runners completed the race, which started at the College of the North Atlantic campus in Seal Cove, then west to Garden Road to the old railbed along the beach all the way to Frog Pond Road in Topsail before descending Topsail Hill down to the beach. The last finisher crossed the line in three hours, 44 minutes and 41 seconds. The beautiful fall day brought out many spectators, including families with dogs who showed up to cheer along loved ones. Sitting in a comfortable perch at the top of Beach Road were Pamela Williams, left, and Glenda Butler, whose husbands Curtis Williams and Cliff Butler were among the pack At the final stretch near the finish line, Chris and June Noftall waited with their grandchildren Molly, 19 months, and Mae, 2, for their daughter and the children’s mom, Christy Noftall, who was delighted to see them as she ran by. The family were in from Grand Falls to participate in the half marathon. Even the dogs tried to get in on the action with Tallula making a success of it as she dragged her dog mom Rachel McDonald across the finish line in pursuit of dog dad Jarrod Ash of St. John’s. Sherry Grewal (nee Trickett) gave a whoop as she turned onto Beach Road, the street where she grew up.
Photos by Craig Westcott