The weekend of May 27 to 29, 2022 is going to be an epic! In addition to celebrating our 10^th Terroir Run, it is the first time we are able to bring everyone together for a fun run since May of 2019!

In a time when we are still managing through waves of the COVID-19 pandemic and challenges brought on by global unrest, we have taken measures to ensure the run is safe for our guests and support our local community partners. Our goal for 2022 is to donate all proceeds, after paying fair prices for all products to local suppliers, to the ROC Youth Centre for their after-school food program. Run registration is $175 per runner and includes the post-run lunch and runners kit with a custom t-shirt. Limited Companion Lunch tickets are $60, and are made available for your friends and family to celebrate with you at the finish line.

Our run is not a race – it is a 10km+ fun run in PEC’s wine country. While the run begins at Rosehall Run Vineyards at 9:30 AM, we encourage our runners to park their cars at the finish line at The Old Third Vineyard to ensure that they have transportation to return to their homes, and vacation rentals, B&B’s, or hotels after lunch. We provide bus transportation from The Old Third to Rosehall Run beginning at 8:45 AM.

The route begins with our lead vehicle, provided by The County Cider Company, taking runners west along Danforth Road and then north on Benway Road to Closson Road where they follow Closson Road west (right) all the way to The Old Third. Along the route, there are four water stations. The first is hosted by Karlo Estates Winery at the junction of Danforth Road and Benway Road, the second is in front of Trail Estates Winery, and the third is in front of The Grange of Prince Edward Vineyards and Estate Winery and the final water station is at Closson Chase Vineyards. If along the way you need to stop for a ride, the fine folks from Parsons Brewing Company are bringing up the back of the pack with their vintage VW Bus.

Upon completing the run, Chef Steph Ferndas from The Old Third will have local delights for runners and their companions to feast upon! Beginning with healthy snacks featuring Humble Bread, to a full lunch of freshly made pasta and salads, your taste buds will be delighted! Of course, what makes our run unique is the libations served with lunch – wines from our winery partners, craft ciders, and beers, and refreshing iced tea from Pluck Teas. Joining us this year to provide some great tunes and celebratory vibes are local artist Chris Bonham Carter who will be playing live during lunch.

Our runners are encouraged to come in costume and are rewarded not only by high fives from fellow runners but also the chance to win a gift certification from Zest Kitchen Shop in Picton (plus bragging rights, of course). Don’t feel like dressing up? Runners are encouraged to wear their custom Terroir Run t-shirts from County T-shirts that are made in Canada from bamboo and organic cotton. The annual t-shirts are a collector’s item so make sure you keep an eye on your runners kit!

BTW our runner’s kits rock! With the support from Wine Country Ontario, the bags are wine totes and include a VQA Wine Country Ontario wine glass to be used during lunch, a package of PEC Lavender Tea from Pluck Teas, a custom t-shirt, and some surprise goodies from local partners. Our event aims to be as close to zero waste as possible using only compostable plates and cutlery, glassware, and managing food waste. There are no single-use plastics used during the event – our water stations have bulk water served in compostable glasses.

New for 2022 – we are asking our runners to identify where they are traveling from and how they are traveling to our event so that we can track the carbon emissions of the event. We are committed to measuring the emissions from our event and purchasing carbon offsets from CarbonZero audited projects – specifically here in Ontario.

We have some other fun elements for our guests to participate in during their stay in PEC (we encourage you to come to play for the weekend):

Friday, May 27^th at 6:30 PM enjoy a 4-course Chef’s Tasting Menu dinner with a pint at Parsons Brewing Company prepared by Chef Sean Finnerty. Tickets are $100 per person including taxes and gratuities. The first course is a ceviche of sea bream, shrimp, pineapple, Peruvian corn, sweet potato, and cilantro. The second course is empanadas Argentinas made by Goucho Pie Co. either butter chicken or mushroom served with chimichurri. The third course is Asado – a selection of locally sourced prime cuts served with chili lime sweet potato, chimichurri, and Ensalada Criolla. For dessert enjoy alfajor – house-made Argentinian cookies with dulce de leche and shredded coconut.

Sunday, May 29^th at 11:00 AM enjoy a Vegan County Brunch with mimosas, tea, and coffee at Karlo Estates Winery. Tickets are $45 per person and include taxes and gratuities. The menu includes Jubilee Forest Farms buckwheat flour pancakes, vegan breakfast sausages made by Sausage Party Toronto, maple syrup from Walt’s Sugar Shack, Sprauge baked beans, and Highland Mushrooms garlic sauteed mushrooms and grilled tomatoes from Lakeshore Farms. The pancakes are #glutenfree and the entire meal is plant-based and dairy-free!

$5 from each meal is being donated to The ROC Youth Centre for their after-school food program.

Lastly, we want to give back to Mother Nature and are inviting any runners inclined to join us on Sunday, May 29^th at 2 PM to take part in a trash bash walk on Lakeshore Beach in Sandbanks Provincial Park. Runners can join us at our home (located in the Sandbanks Park) where we will supply gloves and garbage bags along with a light refreshment after the walk. There is no cost to participate – your time is priceless.

A few final details:

-We are keeping things small this year and are only hosting 60 runners and 20 companion lunch guests this year in an effort to ensure there is adequate covered space at The Old Third during lunch

-The run starts at 10:00 AM at Rosehall Run Vineyards

-This is a rain or shine event. If the weather is wet or cold – please dress appropriately

-There are port-o-potties at The Old Third and Rosehall Run but not along the route – please use the facilities before starting. Be respectful of property owners along the route.

-We do not shut the roads down to local traffic. We ask that all runners are mindful to stay on the right-hand side of the road and to call “car” when traffic passes to give other runners a heads up.

-All runners and companion lunch guests are asked to sign waivers and be mindful of any protocols required due to COVID-19.

We thank all of our run partners for stepping up to support our 10^th annual Terroir Run:

–Rosehall Run Winery

–Karlo Estates Winery

–Trail Estates Winery

–Hinterland Wine Company

–Grange of Prince Edward Vineyard and Estates Winery

–Lacey Estates Winery

–Closson Chase Vineyards

–The Old Third Vineyard

–Parsons Brewing Company

–The County Cider Company

–Pluck Teas

–County T-Shirts

–Humble Bread

–Zest Kitchen Shop

–Wine Country Ontario

We are thrilled for our event to be a finalist for the Ontario Culinary Tourism Event of the Year presented by the Culinary Tourism Alliance. Congratulations to our fellow category finalists West Nipissing’s Premiere Food Festival – Feast on the Farm and The Whiskytown Festival in Windsor.

What began as a personal passion project for us has become a community event that we are fiercely proud of. In 2009, we hosted 50 runners and grew to over 175 in 2019 with an annual economic impact of over $80,000. We have seen a lot of changes in the past decade. Pre-COVID, we noticed our run community was looking for authentic connections and an experience that reflected our unique destination. With everything from our run snacks, to the shirt on thier backs and a delicious post-run lunch – we are supporting hyperlocal in all of its expressions.

We’ve got great plans in the works for 2021 and whether we take home a medal at the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario Gala Awards on October 28th or not, we already feel like a winner because of what we get to do with all of our partners and event participants in PEC – THANK YOU!

We have held on as long as possible to see if we could make our 10th Terroir Run a reality this spring, however, it appears that the decision is no longer ours to make. Following recommendations from our Federal and Provincial governments not to gather in groups until sometime this summer (and only if it’s safe to do so then), we have chosen to set our targets to run together again on May 29th, 2021.

All of our registered runners have been refunded. We will set up registration for the 2021 10th Anniversary was we can get a better sense of the realities of this pandemic. We hope everyone stays healthy, keeps running, and supports our PEC run partners by buying gift certificates to their restaurants, purchasing their wine, beer, cider, spirits, tea, and coffee online, and lastly, but certainly not least – by supporting the ROC Youth Centre, you can donate directly to them here https://theroc.ca/donate/

There’s really not much more to say, on May 30th, 2020 the 10th Annual Terroir Run will begin at Rosehall Run (how apropos, and to the “pop” of a cork no less) and scamper the bucolic backroads past vineyards aplenty. We’ll arrive at The Old Third Vineyard in pairs, and groups and even some rocketing alone to personal bests – but we’ll arrive, gather, celebrate and break bread together. We’ll also raise funds for a great organization, one that is of special value to the youth of Prince Edward County and close to our hearts –food and education at The ROC. In the following months, we’ll revisit the past nine runs and highlight many of the amazing partners, volunteers, and stories that make our little run special.

So, what do we want you to do? Accept Rebecca and my appreciation for your continued support and enthusiasm – we won’t disappoint as this year’s run will be extra special – and for those who want to join our 10th Terroir Run get your tickets NOW. Registration has opened and for those who don’t know, our run is kept small (150 runners) to ensure an exceptional experience for everyone. As a result, we sell out quickly so please don’t wait!

We’ll leave you with a funny little quote that sums up our surprise at how quickly the first ten years have passed, and our hopes that another follows like Parsons’ Brewery’s vintage orange VW van.

“My doctor told me that jogging could add years to my life. I think he was right. I feel ten years older already.” –Milton Berle

X (O)

Andrew & Rebecca