Hub Staff

On an unusually green Christmas Eve day, dozens of festive looking reindeer, Santas and elves were seen at Fitness Corner in Port Elgin the morning of December 24 as participants gathered to take part in the Reindeer Romp's 11th year.

The annual event is a fundraiser that is jointly hosted by Fitness Corner and the Saugeen Track and Field Club with this year's funds going to Bruce Shoreline, the local branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Participants could choose to walk, jog or run and two route maps, a two kilometer one and a five kilometer one, were available. Both routes took participants down to the Port Elgin beach, with some choosing to repeat the circuit for a total of 10 kilometers.

Fitness Corner owner, Holly Vanderzwet said the event originated when she used to run every Sunday with a small group of people. “One year it fell on Christmas Eve and we said, 'Let's run anyway',” she continued, “We said we should do this every year and then we turned it into a fundraiser because it got bigger and bigger and bigger.”

Vanderzwet said that the event raises approximately $1,000 each year through entry fee donations.

Geordie Farrell of the Saugeen Track and Field Club explained the routes to all those taking part and Vanderzwet, with the sun shining down, put all involved through some warm up exercises before they set off through the streets of Port Elgin.