City council has agreed to provide one-third of the requested sponsorship by organizers of a popular outdoor endurance race set for the West Kootneay this summer.
On March 7, John Reed of Raid the North Extreme (RTNX) asked the City of Castlegar for a $15,000 marketing donation and said he would be asking Trail for the same.
Although the outdoor race takes competitors all over the West Kootenay, he said he was only asking the two cities for partnership because it begins in Castlegar on July 23 and wraps up in Trail on July 31.
He anticipates that more than $360,000 will be spent in the West Kootenay during the event, with the biggest amounts stemming from travel, food and beverage sales, accommodations and safety-related activities.
Castlegar’s finance and corporate services committee met on March 14 and recommended researching the possibility of allocating up to $5,000 to pursue direct marketing and promotional opportunities.
“We hope this event both occurs and is successful,” Coun. Kirk Duff said during the regular council meeting on Monday.
Reed previously told city council the race would still happen regardless of their support, but council was apprehensive of putting forth so much money without knowing the return.
“It’s hard to say … how much benefit the city will get from it,” Coun. Gord Turner said.
However, Mayor Lawrence Chernoff said supporting a $5,000 partnership is a good start.
RTNX last took place in Prince Rupert in 2007.
Up to 50 teams of four people each are set to navigate a 500-kilometre route through the West Kootenay mountain ranges on an unmarked course. Forty-seven teams are already registered, including eight from B.C.
“RTNX is, and has always been, a hardcore traditional expedition race,” race director Geoff Langford said in a release. “We design true point-to-point courses that traverse the landscape as an early explorer would have. Competitors will have to deal with exhaustion, weather, elevation and anything else nature will offer up that week. There’s a good chance they won’t finish this race. This is not a scavenger hunt or a day hike; this is real, challenging expedition racing.”
For more information on the race or how to register, visit raidthenorthextreme.com.