This is not really a measurement topic, but still interesting for the history buffs. This note is from Frank Stebner, the Vancouver Marathon course director.
"Thanks to Gordon Rogers and Jordan Myers we have tracked down some history of the 1909 Vancouver Marathon.
In fact our current overall men's trophy was first awarded to Will Chandler in 1909. According to Gordon our current trophy was valued at $30,000 in the 1990's. It would be interesting to know if the marathon distance was 40K or 42.2K as the distance was changed to 42.2K in 1908 at the London Olympics. So this coming May 24th marks the 100th anniversary of the 1909 marathon.
May 24 Vancouver’s first marathon was run. The location was Recreation Park, and the race was won by Vancouver’s Will Chandler in a time of 3 hours, 22 minutes, 11 1/5 seconds. Eleven runners took part and the race was run around a track in the park. 2,500 spectators attended and Mayor Charles Douglas fired the starting pistol. One of the timekeepers was prominent local jeweler George Trorey, manager of the Birks store here. Our thanks to Andrew Martin of Special Collections in the Vancouver Public Library for this glimpse into the city’s athletic past.
http://vancouverhistory.ca/chronology6.htm
http://regardingplace.com/?p=3324
As many of you know the Chandler 15K road race was held for many years from Ambleside to Jercho until its demise around 1990.
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