Even though The County Marathon’s new race director Brian McLean is legally blind, one thing you could never accuse him of is lack of vision. “I want this to be Prince Edward County’s biggest, most popular, most spectacular community event,” he enthuses.

A record 2000 runners are signed up for the slate of October 4 running events, which include a Kids 1K Run, a 5K, a Half Marathon, and the Full, 42.2K Marathon Relay.

“We’ve got over 200 volunteers already signed up. We’ve got 20 water stations, all crewed by different community groups. We’ve got the Junior A Wellington Dukes and the Special Olympics Track Club handing out finishers’ medals. Best of all, I’ve got an amazing volunteer committee that makes it all work.”

”One of the great things about the County is our huge community spirit.”

The most important reward the race can supply, however, won’t be given away. It has to be earned.

For the over 500 marathon racers, The County Marathon is an official Boston Marathon qualifier, offering a slim but real chance at a registered eligible time for your age group. A chance made even slimmer because Boston organizers often trim the required times to match the number of runners allowed. That means, despite global demand and a defined time minimum, less than 15 percent of applicants ever win a place.

To assist in the pursuit of a qualifying time, The County Marathon is a very rare, Boston-like, “point-to point” race, meaning the magnificent fall County scenery never repeats and its overall profile is flat.

Mr. McLean refused to let the condition retinitis pigmentosa (RP) define him when he first received the devastating diagnosis in his 20’s. Despite knowing he would, eventually, lose his sight completely (he is now at 1%), he also refused to stop running. 

Living in Toronto at the time, he formed a running club for those with sight challenges and those with none, hoping to match sighted guide runners with those in need. It worked. He called it The Achilles Track Club, inspired by and modelled after the original Achilles running club for sight-challenged runners, founded by American Dick Traum in New York. Traum not only fueled McLean, he was also a major motivation for Canadian icon Terry Fox and his Marathon of Hope.

“Dick was an inspiration to me,” says Mclean. “We became and stayed great friends until his death at 83 a couple of years ago.”

But a club has costs. Mr. McLean decided a funding race might be a good idea. When he consulted the calendar, there seemed to be an opening.

St. Patrick’s Day.

Almost three decades later, McLean’s St. Patrick’s Day Race is a Toronto classic, attracting 1,800 runners annually for its 5K and 10K events.

A place in Picton and a deepening love for the area later, McLean noticed a Facebook posting on a Picton community page. The long-time owners The County Marathon were looking for a new director. It was a match made in heaven. In the three years since, it has become one of Ontario’s premier running events.

Registration is at Crystal Palace Oct. 3, where a pre-race Health & Wellness Expo is on offer.