Bellingham residents who take part in an upcoming event will find themselves seeing their city from a different perspective.
The Bellingham Traverse is a multisport relay race that takes place throughout the city, using its open waterways, twisting trails, and scenic parks as its racecourse.
The Course of the Bellingham Traverse comprises a 3.6-mile paddle, a trail run of 4.3 miles, road biking for 18 miles, a greenway run that covers 5.5 miles, and finally a 0.65-mile trek by teams to the finish line at the Boundary Bay Brewery.
Race organizers have made some changes to the course that are new this year, but are keeping them secret for now. They will provide details soon but do say the distances will be similar to those in earlier Traverses. Open-air events like this can be simplified if organizers work with banner printing to create course signage.
The event is open to everyone from those who want to run solo to teams of as many as 12. The upper limit depends on how many team members fit in a boat. There are three divisions, all named for salmon and/or the fishing industry. Chinook is for solo runners, pairs should choose Coho, and relay teams will be part of Chum. There are further categories in each division of Youth, Masters, Family, Mixed, Male, and Female.
The Bellingham Traverse is set for Saturday, September 10.
