Hundreds of runners braved the rain in Port Alberni for the McLean Mill 10K.
The race, which took place on Sunday, April 6, 2025, marked the seventh of eight races in the Vancouver Island Race Series. A total of 412 runners crossed the finish line, which was slightly down from last year's record-setting number of 459. Organizer Sasha Visona partially attributed this to the rainy weather on Sunday. Despite this, the event was "fantastic," she said.
"The rain doesn't help," said Visona, whose business Ridge View Health & Performance sponsored the event. "But year after year, we get tons of support from the community and more and more donations from local businesses."
Dog Mountain Brewing, for example, served up beer for the runners at the end of the event, while McDonalds Port Alberni offered coffee.
Nathanael Tabert, a Victoria runner with Speedfarm Running Club, crossed the finish line first with a time of 32:54. It was a personal best time, said Tabert.
"I wanted to get in under 33 minutes, so that was awesome," he said after the race.
Second place finisher Dusty Spiller (Cowichan Valley Running) came in at 33:30, followed by Devonte Scarlette (Comox Valley Road Runners) at 34:07.
On the women's side, Jennifer Erickson, also with Speedfarm Running Club, finished first with a time of 38:22. She was followed by Emily Bugoy (Bad Ass Chicks Run Trails) at 39:02, then Amanda Polus (Prairie Inn Harriers) at 40:21.
Despite the "soggy" weather, Tabert said the McLean Mill 10K was a fun race environment. This was his first time competing in the Island Race Series.
"I felt pretty strong throughout," he said. "The last half gets pretty hilly, but I had enough in my legs to keep pushing through."
Dave Osborne was the first Port Alberni finisher, with a time of 38:42. It was his personal best by a minute, Osborne said, in his first race since high school. His New Year's resolution this year, he said, was to complete a 10K in less than 40 minutes.
"There are a lot of professional runners here today, so it was really fun to push my athletic ability with them," he said. "The weather today was misty the whole way, so it was nice and cool. There's one pretty punchy hill, but the others are pretty soft, so that made it really good for pace and consistency."
Each year, organizers of the McLean Mill 10K donate proceeds from the event to KidSport Port Alberni. Visona said the final amount of funds raised won't be known until the end of the race series, but her goal this year was a $10,000 donation to KidSport.
Full race results are available online at www.islandseries.org.
