Hundreds race at Point Pelee National Park raising $10K for Crime Stoppers

Kids race to catch crooks Southern Footprints' youngest participants take off for the one-kilometre Kids Dash on Apr. 21, 2024.

More than 350 runners and walkers have helped raise approximately $10,000 for Crime Stopppers in Windsor-Essex.

The 22nd annual Southern Footprints event took place Sunday at Point Pelee National Park.

Participants enjoyed free entrance into the park, along with official race timing provided by W.E.R.A.C.E. (Walkers and Runners Around the County of Essex)

Event organizer Dave Campbell said offering three different race lengths is helpful to a wide range of runners.

“When you're a sprinter, you want to do a 5K. If you’re training for something else, you do the 10 and if you're serious about training for a half marathon, you do the 15K,” said Campbell.

In the end, the real winner, according to Campbell, is Crime Stoppers.

“We want to really support the cause because we believe in solving crime."

The flat, five-kilometre loop race took runners and walkers along the banks of Lake Erie, across a small portion of beach and a bush trail.