Last June I had a great time with Anita at the Niagara Women’s Half Marathon. I wrote about the wine and whine of it all here. There were all sorts of cool things about it, including the finishers’ medal. But in 2016, it proves to be even better with the most meaningful finishers’ medal I’ve ever seen: the Harriet Tubman Finishers’ Medal.
Check it out:
The Niagara Women’s Marathon Facebook page made the announcement on the weekend with this note from Ross Robinson, Race Director:
Harriet Tubman will be honoured by the Niagara Falls Women’s Half Marathon. Her picture will be on the 2016 Finisher Medal presented to over 3,000 runners and walkers.
She was an icon of American courage and freedom, risking her life as a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad. She led over 300 slaves to freedom in Canada. They followed the North Star from Maryland to the Niagara River, travelling at night, cold and poorly fed and being chased by bounty hunters.
We hope that while our runners and walkers are in Niagara Falls, they will take time to learn about Underground Railroad history on the Canadian side of the border.
The Medal is an artist rendering and the finished size is approximately three inches in diameter.
I wasn’t really planning to do the event again quite so soon. But with the announcement of this medal I’m starting to re-think my plans.
I’ve got a collection of medals that give me a sense of accomplishment as they gather dust on a hook on the back of my closet door. But none of them has any deeper meaning beyond that. To have a commemorative medal that honors a heroic woman from Canadian history–that would be something really special.
Anyone else interested?
