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he would meet Mike Narozanski and Dan Welch. Though the
Sudbury Masters dated back to the year 1969 and names
like Louis Moutsgaard (still involved to this day), Vic
Bridle, Mike Furlong and Ted Coe, it was the Narozanski/Welch
tandem that lassoed Winters into what would become a much
longer than first anticipated partnership with the group.
?Those guys are pretty chatty,? said Winters
with a smile. ?They found out I was running and eventually
talked me into coming out and running with them at Sudbury
Arena.? A ten kilometer run to the Four Corners and back
was pretty much standard fare for the group. ?They talked
to me all the way there and all the way back, and before
you knew it, we were finished. They were very encouraging.?
Quickly ingrained within the Masters group,
Winters would gradually expand his horizons, both as a
runner, but also, initially, as an administrator. ?In
1993, I don't know how this happened, but I started organizing
the race (Ramsey Tour). I would get the guys to volunteer.
We raised enough to cover our expenses and give a little
bit away. When you haven't done a lot of race directing,
it can be overwhelming.?
Though Winters would expand the scope
of race sponsors, there were challenges beyond his control
that lie ahead, the wave of popularity of the ?Participaction?
era of the 1970s and 1980s giving way to a less active
soon-to-be new millennial group. ?There was a gradual
decline in runners through the 1990s,? he said.
?But as soon as the Running Room came
to town (early 2000s), there was a resurgence. They have
certainly put an emphasis on running, and their ?learn
to run? programs and clinics have been really helpful.
Right away, you have ten to twelve new people in this
clinic that are going to run your race.?
On a more personal level, about the same
time, the local man was ready to tackle a running goal
of his own.
?When I turned 50, I was the only guy
in the Club (Masters) who had not run a marathon, and
I heard about it every day,? said Winters. ?What better
excuse to run a marathon than when you turn fifty? Vince
(Perdue) drew up a four month schedule and told me that
if I followed it strictly, I would finish the race. I
had two goals: to finish the race, and hopefully break
four hours.?
Crossing the line in Ottawa with four
minutes to spare, Winters returned to the same venue again
in 2005, but would not tackle a third marathon until heading
to Green Bay in 2008. Breaking the 3:45 barrier, he would
qualify for Boston, and has since padded his marathon
resume with stops in Chicago, Berlin, New York City and
London.
On Ramsey Tour race day, however, he puts
away the shoes for a bit.
?You don't have time to run the race if
you are organizing the race,? confessed Winters. Over
time, his troop of dedicated game day volunteers has expanded
beyond the ever-faithful presence of a large number of
folks who have witnessed twenty or more of these races,
later welcoming aboard the primary beneficiaries of the
event.
?When the university stopped funding the
varsity cross-country teams, we decided to help them out
with our race fundraising,? said Winters. ?That's when
Dick (Moss) got involved. Now, Dick and Darren (Jermyn)
organize the whole five kilometer race. They have all
the volunteers, they have all of the folks in the chute,
and Darren looks after all of the timing.?
?Within five minutes of the finish of
the race, we have all of the results, and accurate results.
I just have to organize the volunteers for the half marathon.?
And, playing to his strength in the sales department,
Winters' portfolio includes working with the sponsors,
a group to whom he is immeasurably thankful. ?Look at
a guy like Chris Laking ? he has been sponsoring the race
since before I arrived in 1990.?
There will come a time that Winters will
step back, just as a juncture will be reached when he
can no longer endure the toll of a 26-mile marathon. For
now, however, the Sudbury running community will remain
thankful for his ability to participate, both as an athlete,
and an organizer.
Tour Tidbits: The 2017 half-marathon champion
was Ryan Marsaw, in a time of 1:29:09 ... the fastest
two times posted in the event in the last five years both
belong to female participants ? Kaitlyn Toohey (1:22:32)
and Megan Kuikman (1:22:33), both in 2016 ... Marsaw has
cracked the top five in four of the last five years, with
Pierre Dumont and Brent Walker not that far behind with
three appearances each ...
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