Bellarine Sunset Run set for February

THE Flying Brick Bellarine Sunset Run will return to its usual spot in the calendar this year, with the event confirmed to take place on February 12.

Organisers were heartbroken in 2021 as Victoria was forced into a snap five-day lockdown at 2pm on the Friday of the event.

The run was rescheduled to seven weeks later in a show of good faith to loyal participants, albeit at 25 per cent of its usual capacity of 1,200.

“It was the hardest thing we have had to endure in our six years, but the facts are the pandemic has seen many families have the biggest challenges of their lifetime,” event manager Dion Milne said.

“Our sponsors were some of the hardest hit with the Valentine’s Day weekend cancelled, yet they still remained positive that we needed to reschedule and show the community our passion and resilience to host the event.”

As events reopen across Geelong and the Bellarine, so does the energy of the community, which is reliant on visitors and tourism.

“To play a role in getting people back to the Bellarine Peninsula and restoring the community spirit is important to our family,” Mr Milne said.

The 2022 distances include the Active Feet Half Marathon, Port Phillip Ferries 10km and the reintroduction of the Community Bank Portarlington Bully Buster 4km, which will hopefully see numbers return to 75 per cent (or just over 900) capacity.

All distances have walk or run options and medals are also back in 2022.

Organisers are expecting an increase in new walkers and runners to the event as many people took to exercising in their 5-10km radius through the lockdowns.

Mr Milne said he believed the course is among the most accessible, flat, scenic and by far the friendliest in Victoria, with holidaymakers

cheering participants as they pass through the holiday parks.

Entries are now open, and runners are advised to sign up this month at the Bellarine Sunset Run website before distances sell out.