The 500 or so runners in The County Marathon were greeted with a dose of summer on the morning of Sunday, Oct. 2. That was a problem.

County Marathon organizer Mark Henry told the Gazette that in its 17-year history, this was the first time the fall race was run in high summer conditions. That put a strain on water solutions on the course. Post-COVID water protocols have made in-person water stations problematic and difficult to source. Bottled water was left at the road side along the route. But supplies went quickly, leaving runners without hydration.

BIG SUPPORT FROM TINY FANS- Quinte West’s Katherine Shirriff is joined at the finish line by 2-year-old Rory Gunter. Ms. Shirriff was the winner of the women’s portion of the 2023 County Marathon. (Jason Parks/Gazette Staff)

“We have never had to deal with such weather in what has always been a fall race and were clearly wrong in our projections about how much water we needed on the course,” Mr. Henry added.

The race organizer apologized to 2023 competitors in a statement issued Monday. Meanwhile, the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation continues to be the charity of choice for the event and nearly $25,000 has been raised in the last 11 marathons.

With construction obstructing the usual Main Street finish line at the Crystal Palace, runners instead completed the course at Gladstone Ave. The closing kilometres wound through side streets on the north side of town.

“It wasn’t our typical finish up the Main Street, but Gladstone has an appeal for being quiet and close to the arena,” Mr. Henry noted, adding that Mizuno and Base31 provided wonderful prizes to the top runners, and that county staff were a dream to work with.

Nick Cosman of Kingston was the winner, completing the course in 2:49.25. A triathlete, Mr. Cosman won the half marathon in 2022. He said Sunday’s heat was going to help him when he competes in an Ironman Triathlon in Florida later this fall.

Mr. Cosman cruised to the end of the line, topping Simon Bourget of Montreal by a full 11 minutes. He said that while the long treck from Wellington to Picton was a bit lonely, “I felt well supported by the community. It’s a really nice course.”

In the women’s division, Quinte West’s Katherine Shirriff was the first runner over the line at 3:13.21

A professional firefighter in Toronto, Ms. Shirriff had hoped to compete in the Toronto Marathon later this month but was unable to register in time.

Winning the 2023 County Marathon was better than any consolation prize she could have imagined, though. Especially in her first attempt on the County course.

“It was a tough run with the heat and the steady inclines,” Ms. Shirriff said. “Most of the races I run are a lot flatter but it’s nice to have support on the route and have people cheering you on.”

Gedion Kipkosgei Ngetich was the winner of the men’s half marathon event at 1:10.57 while Patience Jepkemboi was the women’s division winner at 1:20.10.

Ottawa’s Channing Pestell was the Ultra Marathon winner with a time of 3:51.07.