Chilliwack runner marks 24th birthday with 100-kilometre fundraising run
Kalyn Head spent the first 10 hours and 42 minutes of her 24th birthday on the run.
The Chilliwack native is an endurance runner, and she's celebrated each of her last four birthdays with a fundraising run for an organization in her community.
The runs started as five-kilometre fun runs with friends and family, but when the pandemic made a group gathering impossible last year, Head decided to escalate her efforts.
Instead of running five kilometres with friends, she ran 100 kilometres - an ultramarathon - by herself. In the process, she raised more than $6,000 for Chilliwack Community Services.
"This year, after I saw how much the pandemic affected a lot of the athletes, I decided that it would be good to donate the money to Special Olympics," Head told CTV News.
She began her grueling run at midnight with a 50-kilometre loop around Chilliwack. After that, she ran to Abbotsford, where she was joined by some Special Olympics runners as she crossed the finish line at Rotary Stadium.
As of Saturday afternoon, she had raised more than $16,000 for Special Olympics BC.
Head has volunteered as a coach for Special Olympics for the last six years, and said the fundraising run gave her the opportunity to raise awareness about some of the athletes she has coached.
"I just think it's so important to be inclusive and to be kind to everyone," she said. "My running logo says, 'Run hard and be kind.'"
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.