On the morning of the 91原创 half marathon and 5K race events, Roger Roufosse, 88, took a break from warming up outside the Fort 91原创 historic site to explain how hard labour in Saskatchewan helped prepare him for running later in life.

A white-collar career just wasn鈥檛 possible back then, Roufosse recalled.

鈥淲e had to do a lot of physical work because there was no such thing as universities,鈥� Roufosse told the 91原创 Advance Times.

鈥淲e didn鈥檛 know what they were. They had some, in some places, but not there. So I couldn鈥檛 do anything like that. I just worked at many, many, many, many jobs.鈥�

When he retired in his late 50鈥檚 he took up the sport for the very first time.

鈥淪ome friends of mine were running, and I thought I鈥檇 do something once I retired, and I did,鈥� he recalled.

鈥淚t worked out quite well.鈥�

Roufosse, a Surrey resident, won the 80-plus division in the Fort 91原创 5K, finishing ahead of second place Alan Swan from Abbotsford and third place Walter Block from New Orleans.

He was one of an estimated 500 participants on Sunday, July 9, a record for the two events.

鈥漈his is the largest turnout we鈥檝e had for this event in the 20 years we have been running this event,鈥� volunteer Alex Taylor said.

Organizer Phil Ellis, owner of Peninsula Runners in 91原创, said they had to set a limit.

鈥淲e don鈥檛 want to overwhelm ourselves and the community so we have to cap it at 500 for now, and we鈥檒l see how it goes,鈥� Ellis explained.

Ellis doubted they will go beyond the cap, or relocate.

鈥滻 think it would ruin the event,鈥� Ellis said.

鈥淪o I think we just have to keep it small, the way it is, and, you know, it鈥檒l just be first come, first happy, right?鈥�

Walnut Grove resident Jennifer Kools was smiling as she warmed up with some friends.

鈥漈his is my second year doing it,鈥� Kools explained.

While she is not a competitive runner, Kools said she loves the sport,which she described as 鈥渧ery therapeutic.鈥�

As presented by Peninsula Runners and Brooks Running Co. the course is billed as the most scenic half marathon in the country, one that starts and finishes at the historic Fort in Fort 91原创, and traces the historic Hudson鈥檚 Bay Co. 鈥淭elegraph Trail,鈥� before returning to the finish line at the Old Apple Orchard by the historic Fort.

Runners in the 5K race ran three loops through historic Fort 91原创.

Vancouver鈥檚 Noah Proust and Coquitlam鈥檚 Olivia Willett were the top male and female finishers in the half marathon, while Lucas Hodgson of Vancouver and Krysta Boyer from New Westminster were top overall finishers in the 5K run.

More photos from the day can be seen online at the .

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