BC Business
Half Corked Marathon | BCBusinessParticipants make their way through vineyards in the Oliver Osoyoos wine region during the annual Half Corked Marathon.
On Saturday, May 24, 850 participants will put on outlandish costumes and run 18 kilometres through Oliver Osoyoos wine country. Along the way, they’ll sample local wine and culinary delights as part of the fourth annual Half Corked Marathon.
“It was inspired by the Marathon du Medoc, a similar event in Bordeaux, France, where people dress up and run a full marathon from chateau to chateau,” explains Oliver Osoyoos Winery Association president Tim Martiniuk, who also serves as general manager at Stoneboat Vineyards. “We decided to scale ours back to just under the length of a half marathon.”
In 2011, the South Okanagan Winery Association rebranded as the Oliver Osoyoos Winery Association in an effort to better define its region. The group decided to make its marketing efforts more event-focused, introducing the Half Corked Marathon into the normally quiet spring shoulder season. It’s now so popular that participants have to win their way in through a lottery.
“In our first year, the marathon had 250 participants,” says Martiniuk. “Last year, we had 650 spaces available on a first-come first-served system. We spread it over three nights—it sold out in a few seconds each night. This year, we’re looking at 850. We had 2,800 entrants for the lottery, so the demand definitely outstrips the supply.”
The event has achieved its goal of bringing more people—and more business—to the region. “Hotel facilities are booked up because of the marathon. Participants are also eating in local restaurants and oftentimes they’re bringing family or friends who aren’t participating. We’re anticipating we’ll see 1,100 to 1,200 people coming to the area for the marathon.”
After tasting wines during Saturday’s run and at the finish-line party, participants can return to the wineries to make purchases on Sunday before heading home. Satellite events are being hosted at wineries, and there’s an eye toward building to a multi-day festival in future years. The region is also seeing repeat visits from past participants who had visited the area for the first time.
“One of our mantras with the Winery Association is to offer people new ways of experiencing the wines of the region and experiencing the region itself,” Martiniuk explains. “The marathon is a tangible way to taste wine and experience wine country. You actually get to run through the vineyards and see that part of the process firsthand.”