At last night’s Peninsula Township Board meeting, reps from the Traverse City Track Club/Bayshore Marathon were on hand to present a check for $25,000 to Peninsula Township to help fund the Bowers Harbor Park expansion.
Lisa Taylor, Executive Director of the Traverse City Track Club, and Jim Graham, Board President of the club (which founded and hosts the Bayshore Marathon each year), presented the check to Township Supervisor Rob Manigold and the Peninsula Township Board.
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“We’ve worked for many years to build a relationship with Peninsula Township, and it’s grown and thrived,” said Taylor, adding, “We love to see the community participate in our event.”
She noted that the Track Club has given about $126,000 to Old Mission Peninsula organizations over the years, including the Peter Dougherty Society, Peninsula Fire Department, Old Mission Peninsula School, and Old Mission Women’s Club, which bakes cookies for the race each year.
“We’re really proud of that and we know it takes a strong relationship to be able to do that,” said Taylor, adding of the Old Mission Women’s Club cookies, “People love those cookies, and they’re very important to us.”
The check to Peninsula Township is part of Bayshore Marathon’s charitable gifts program, launched in 2010. Organizations may apply for grants in the spring and fall.
The 37th Annual Bayshore Marathon will take place on May 25, 2019. Registration will open on Dec. 1, 2018. See a photo gallery of the 2018 Bayshore Marathon here.
For more information, visit the Bayshore Marathon’s website here.
I am a third generation Old Mission summer visitor, now resident, who likes to see runners, joggers, hikers, bikers and farm equipment operators on the peninsula roads and shoulders. Years ago I used to be impatient and wanted them off the road so I could dash down and then up the peninsula. Now, I realize I was going against the grain of this piece of heaven on Earth. I do wish we had wider and safer bike paths. I also think speed limits on our non-37 roads should be lowered for safety and just for a better quality of life. Just my 2 cents worth, giving support to people-powered travel.
Thanks for the note, Joe. Yes, better bike paths would be welcome on our curvy roads. Good thought on all of us slowing down to enjoy our beloved homelanda little more. Growing up in Old Mission, seemed like I was always in a hurry to get to school, work, college, wherever. Now I work from home and since part of the job involves driving around the OMP to meetings, interviews, etc., I like the slower pace of life. Plus, that speed limit I got on Pen Drive a while back scared me straight. 🙂
It would be nice if these organizations and the township would also recognize the loss of revenue for various businesses on the peninsula (including ours) as a result of road closures on a high traffic Saturday morning and afternoon. Blue Water Road is completely closed and inaccessible till 1pm. We have even had to argue with race personnel to allow our employees to access the winery – which results in loss of wages for our staff. This race costs peninsula businesses thousands in lost revenue and peninsula workers loss of hourly wages. Hosting the race on a Sunday would have less impact – or changing the course so that peninsula businesses can stay open.
And now there will be another one with the iron man. They were supposed to limit the number of large events so which one will this new event replace? I will bet none and the answer to you will be “its only one day” and another and another. They don’t bother me at all but I think it is going to be out of control and no benefit to the residents except for the surprise 25k check just in time.
I do worry that it’ll get out of control at some point. I mean, it sort of already is out of control, and now we’ve got Iron Man coming in. Where does it end?
Thanks for the note, Patrick. There must be a way to keep everyone happy, though I’m not sure what that is. I like your idea of holding the races on Sunday – that might help a little. And right, a couple years ago, I had to take my daughter to work (down Bluff to Blue Water to Center), and we were sworn at, had things thrown at us, runners knocking on the car, etc. – it was a little scary – as we tried to weave our car through the runners (to be fair, we’d forgotten it was race day – Bayshore – but I’m not sure that would have helped, because she didn’t have to work til 10 a.m., which would have meant leaving super early before the runners arrived and having several hours to kill somehow). Then I tried to get back home, and the cops at Center and Blue Water wouldn’t even let me drive part-way down Blue Water so I could walk the rest of the way home. I ended up taking the back roads, trespassing through neighbors’ orchards and woods and got most of the way home, then retrieved the car later in the day. I’m not sure what the answer is, but race organizers have to realize that things can’t just come to a standstill as we wait for runners to go through, and people out here can’t just NOT work when they’re scheduled for a certain time on race day.
And that’s not to say that I don’t want the race, especially the Bayshore, which has a long history of working with the Township, giving back, etc. I love seeing runners out there smashing their goals and doing what seems next to impossible to me. But how can we keep everyone happy – the runners, race organizers, OMP businesses and residents… someone is always going to get short shrift in the equation.