Crystal Beach 5K brings over 600 runners and walkers to Erie Road

More than 600 participants filled Erie Road in Crystal Beach on Saturday morning for the 21st annual Crystal Beach 5K.

The Thanksgiving weekend event brought together residents, visitors and families for a kids’ 1K race, a sanctioned 5K course and a post-race charity barbecue supporting the Fort Erie U9 Jr. Meteors hockey team.

Co-organizer Sarah Randall told Fort Erie Radio the run has become an annual fixture for the community.

“It’s just a great tradition. So many people come out Thanksgiving weekend every year,” said Randall.

Randall said the race brings people to Crystal Beach during the off season, giving visitors a chance to see local shops, restaurants and the waterfront while supporting the community.

First-place finisher Jackson Sider ran the 5K in 16 minutes and 15 seconds, much to his surprise.

“I wasn’t really expecting to win, but it was a good run,” said Sider.

Sider, who graduated last year, told Fort Erie Radio he joined for another chance to run a local race, something he thought he would do less often after finishing high school.

Ian Carter, 71, set a new 70+ division record for the Crystal Beach 5K, with a time of 21 minutes and 59 seconds.

“I ran Stratford last week, so I’m on my game right now,” said Carter to Fort Erie Radio, referring to the 5K event that took place October 5 in Stratford, Ont.

Carter said he respects the younger racers in their 20s who finish far ahead but explained that he’s in his “own little world” in the 70+ division, where breaking a long-standing record felt especially meaningful.

He added he will be racing again next weekend at the Ontario 5K Championships along the Toronto waterfront against 9,000 people.

Phil Smith, a co-organizer and local business owner, said the race has grown far beyond its early years, starting with just 75 participants in 2005.

Smith is the only person who has run every year. He organizes the event alongside Randall, Kendall Smith and Lindsay Redekop Smith.

“Fast forward, today we’ll have over 600 people from all over Ontario into Western New York and beyond,” said Smith to Fort Erie Radio. “It’s just a great Crystal Beach tradition.”

Smith said he hopes to expand the race further, having always dreamed about reaching 1,000 participants, and next year he plans to put in the work to make it happen.

“I think it’s time to really ramp it up and promote it better on the radio and do different things and really see if we can’t get this thing to 1,000 people,” he said.

Meanwhile, families lingered at the Grove where parents and coaches of the Fort Erie U9 Jr. Meteors served burgers, hot dogs and baked goods to raise money for the team’s season expenses.

“The team building’s number one,” said coach Jonathan Lagace to Fort Erie Radio. “The other thing is to help with the financial impact of the hockey season. It can get expensive. Tournaments, tracksuits, jerseys, that sort of thing.”

Next year’s Crystal Beach 5K is already scheduled for Thanksgiving weekend, with organizers excited to draw even more runners to Erie Road.

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