There is no denying that the Sudbury Rocks Marathons races are extremely well supported.

While final numbers for the group in its entirety are still being compiled, all signs point to close to 2300 participants – a new record high for the event that celebrated year 21 this past Sunday.

In fact, based on casual race day conversations, one might surmise that the Sudbury Rocks Marathon is all about the “support” – in all of its various incarnations.

Nearly ninety runners / joggers would complete the full marathon, with 24 year-old Lucas Jones the first to cross the line, clocking in at 2:44.50 as he completed his fourth marathon and third in the nickel city.

A native of Langton (near Tillsonburg), Jones attended Laurentian University, was a member of the nordic ski team and has spent the past year or so in the Ottawa area – and still saw fit to make his way to Sudbury to run in less than ideal conditions.

“It’s the people,” said Jones, acknowledging a key motivator in selecting this race to slot into his busy calendar of athletic endeavours. “I’ve been in Ottawa for the winter and even with where I am from, the community just isn’t the same.”

“Sudbury is big enough, with lots of people, but small enough that everyone knows each other and supports each other.”

A cross-country runner during his high-school years who lost his love of running before re-engaging during his time north, Jones also had some practical reasons for choosing to race in a setting that is not at all foreign to him.

“Knowing the course is essential, especially here,” said Jones. “There’s elevation in Sudbury that there isn’t in other cities. We might be running some of the flattest roads in Sudbury, but when I did Niagara, my legs got tired because there is no change of elevation at all.”

With his sights set on perhaps eclipsing the 2:30 barrier some time in 2027, Jones managed to capture the Sudbury race by a seven-minute margin, with Alex Godin (2:51.42), Kyle Coffey (2:55.29), Nicholas Lambert (2:55.52) and Alex Chenier (2:59.36) rounding out the top five and the trio of Iris Lenauer (3:13.18), Saree Sasson (3:13.25) and Jessica Brake (3:16.23) showing the way in the women’s division.

A year ago this time, Lucy Gideon stood on the sidelines, cheering on her daughter (Megan Easter), one of a group of friends who were running in support of families who lost loved ones to cancer. Set to celebrate her 50th birthday in October, Gideon could remain on the sidelines no more.

A ten-kilometre run-walk trek was a reasonable goal, in her mind, though she plans to tap into the knowledge gained from 2026 to improve with age a year from now. “I made sure I practiced a lot, but at the end, I was exhausted,” said Gideon, an avid walker who cited no long-term connection with running at all in her background.

“Next year, I will make sure to practice even more.”

While the remainder of her daughter’s grouping were tackling the 21km, Gideon was somewhat on her own for the 10km – at least on her own as much as one can be in a race that featured more than 400 hardy souls forging forward in the rain.

“I started with a slow jog for a bit and then just walked at times – but I am very chatty, so I would talk to anyone who was beside me.”

Throw in an affinity for both music and podcasts and one has the makings of the start of a journey that the friendly psychotherapist would like to see grow and prosper in the years to come.

“Because of my age, I grew up in the seventies and eighties, so I love that and the techno stuff too,” said Gideon. “And I will listen to podcasts and keep busy pep-talking myself. This is very motivating.”

Leah Kernan also found herself motivated.

Sure, it was last minute motivation – but motivation none the less.

While the 30 year-old all-around athlete during her time at Lasalle Secondary (flag football, soccer, softball, cross-country) had been contemplating taking a shot at her half-marathon with this group of friends, it wasn’t until one week before race day that she officially took the plunge and registered.

“This is the furthest I have run; I just went for it,” said Kernan, who jogged the 21km distance with co-workers in a time of 2:41.53, with her official "training" for the race beginning seven days before the event itself - hardly the outline of ideal pre-race preparation.

“There was a lot of stretching before hand and stretching after the race too – but it felt good, ” noted Kernan. I thought I would be out of breath but I had breath the whole time. We just kind of paced ourselves.”

And, of course, supported each other through the tougher segments of the race.

“About halfway through, we were thinking we still had another 10km to go – and my music died – but running through New Sudbury and Minnow Lake was really nice. My plan is to keep running all summer.”

It’s been 18 years since Jeannine Foisy completed her one and only marathon, that in the same event she would revisit this past Sunday. This time around, it was the half-marathon that called her name – largely for the chance to share the experience with her daughter, Julianne Graveline.

“For me, I was there to support her – not realizing that she was there to support me as well,” noted Foisy, the 62 year-old daughter of figure skating great and member of the Sudbury Sports Hall of Fame, Gertie Desjardins.

“I am very active, so that helped – and I followed a program in a running book,” said Foisy. “I didn’t stress much as this wasn’t as much my goal as my daughter’s goal. During the race, we were grateful that were together and able to do this together.”

Mutual support, as it were, in a race where encouragement and assistance could be found located with ease.

Following are some of the top finishers in other primary distances:

Half-Marathon
Men
1st - Eric Leishman - 1:12.37
2nd - Keon Wallingford - 1:13.14
3rd - Evan Palmer-Charrette - 1:15.29
4th - Dan Whalen - 1:19.55
5th - Tim Tindall - 1:20.35

Women
1st - Elissa Bertuzzi - 1:24.48
2nd - Sara Perfetto - 1:28.25
3rd - Fiona Shering - 1:29.37

Perdue Family Lise's 10km
Men
1st - Jacques Tiessen - 31:56
2nd - Cory Brennan - 38:25
3rd - Christian Smith - 38:35
4th - Taylor Conaty - 39:00
5th - Eric Sampson - 39:10

Women
1st - Jayde Hurley - 41:29
2nd - Emily Soares - 47:41
3rd - Sasha Shank - 48:04

5km Run / Walk
Men
1st - Cameron Date - 16:34
2nd - Travis Annett - 16:38
3rd - Alan Wilkin - 17:27
4th - Gord Farrell - 18:36
5th - Tejada Gieselman - 19:08

Women
1st - Kylee Fowler - 18:44
2nd - Georgia Lepage - 19:06
3rd - Kristen Mrozewski - 19:11
4th - Angela Mozzon - 19:16
5th - Charlotte Grenier - 19:51